[lone]

Originally Posted by AbsurdJinx

Sorreltuft struggled through the water, his ears folded against his head in an attempt to keep the insides of his ears safe from water. His whiskers were weighed down by thick drops of water, and his steps were sluggish. He had been racing around, assuring himself his family was safe before he himself got out of camp. As far as he was aware, his brothers and sisters had left the area - or were currently leaving the territory - with other clanmates. His mate was safe, and his former... flings... were also safe. He hadn't seen Caracalfrost, though, which is why he had left his loved ones - safely, he left them after making sure they were safe. Sorreltuft wasn't ready to lose his best friend, the very cat he relied on to keep him steady.

Sorreltuft was the big brother type out of all his siblings. He held all the responsibilities, he looked after and protected his loved ones... Actually, he was the one his siblings relied on. But who did he have to rely on? Certainly not Everwhisper - she was best friends with Feathermist whom was the sister of his own sister's mate in which he despised. Confusing, but it made sense in Sorreltuft's mind. Plus, Everwhisper was a very skeptical feline, and she may as well be obsessed with him. There was no way he could tell her his secrets - about the felines he had once `loved`. She would rain down on both him and his former flings! No way could he tell her that, especially when he fathered kits with those flings and his mate. He didn't want to hurt Everwhisper.

Finally, he spotted a familiar pelt among the chaos. ``Caracalfrost! Caracalfrost!`` Sorreltuft bounded towards his best friend, the splashing of the water around him disturbing him very little. The only thing that mattered right now was reaching Caracalfrost. He was panting heavily, exhausted after his frantic running around. Not to mention he was cold and his thick, medium-length pelt was weighing him down. He was just very happy to be assured that Caracalfrost was safe. Sorreltuft bowled into her, careful not to knock them off balance. He was purring loudly, embracing Caracalfrost as he continuously brushed against her. ``I was so scared! I thought I'd lost you.``

Caracalfrost saw Sorreltuft before he reached her, and an expression of relief washed over her features. He was okay, he was going to be fine, thank StarClan... the feline didn't know what she would do if she had gotten to ShadowClan and found out he was dead. Been numb, probably. Her emotions would have gone haywire. "You won't ever lose me, I promise... I promise." Caracalfrost's relief at seeing him seemed to strip away her previous worry and she felt better until something seemed to hit her as hard as it possibly could. A wave of... was that cold? No, she was okay, it was gone now... she was fine.

"Th - thank StarClan y - you're okay," She mewed in an uncharacteristic stammer. Stammer? That couldn't be right. Cold... She'd been so worried before, it was hard for her to tell how cold she really was. And right now, she was freezing... the short pelt she had didn't give her much protection. But it wasn't supposed to be cold! She was supposed to be warm... warm... it was green-leaf... Caracalfrost couldn't believe that just a little while ago she had been safe in ShadowClan. And now they were all leaving, the weather had gotten horrible and she felt as though her life was crashing down around her. Sort of how she had felt when Everwhisper and Sorreltuft had become mates. "D - don't ever do th - that to me again, you s - scared me! I thought y - you were dead, I didn't k - know..." Her voice trailed off and she gave him a nuzzle, a purr rumbling in her own chest and throat, though it was low and weak-sounding... the feline wasn't feeling so good in that moment, physically, that was.

Emotionally?

She couldn't remember the last time she had been this happy to see someone. Even in her colder state, she was tempted to give Sorreltuft a playful nudge had she not been worried that he would slip and fall into the water below. And that was something she was trying to avoid seeing happen. She needed to get warmer. When she got to RiverClan, maybe she would dry out and the usual heat would keep her pelt from freezing. But until they got there she was going to have to make do. Now, Everwhisper had only entered her mind once since seeing him, but now the feline entered her mind again. For some reason, she seemed to hold a grudge or something against Caracalfrost. Why? Who knew. But whatever the reason, Caracalfrost didn't seem to care very much.






Water... Lostpaw... need to get out of here, where is she...

It was like something out of a nightmare. Only this nightmare was very real and very scary. Badgerpaw had discovered this wasn't a nightmare when he realized that what he was feeling was quite real, and he had seen what was going on. Never before had a dream that vivid occured to him. They were all about he and Lostpaw playing... and, occasionally, a romantic fantasy that Badgerpaw knew would never happen. The traditional 'chasing prey' dreams, or sometimes he was just walking around in the territory. As far as nightmares went? Something was chasing him. Foxes invaded the clearing. But they were all very obviously fake, and quite rarely scared Badgerpaw. This? This was no nightmare. This was a living hell, and he knew it.

"Lostpaw!!" His voice was raised above the chattering of other cats. His fur felt mucky and gross and weird, and all he wanted to do was clean it off. Well, he wanted to do that and he wouldn't have objected to having Lostpaw do it for him while he cleaned her own off. The thought made his ears heat up, and he shook his head. Now was not the time for fantasies. Now was the time for action. To find his best friend before something happened to her. In all the chaos, she could be overlooked... knocked over... pushed down into the water where he was afraid she wouldn't rise again. That thought seemed to give him the energy to move on. Twice he almost slipped and fell - and twice he managed to catch himself just in time.

His underbelly and sides were dirty now, muddy and wet, and it was becoming harder to see through the hazy rain. All Badgerpaw wanted to do was sleep... just close his eyes and let go... fall... but he kept going for Lostpaw. He would always keep going for her. Because he couldn't risk losing her again, he couldn't risk not being there for her again.
@lost