Bears, bugs, and Swans oh my!

[dionysus]

@hxneysuckle
Grizzlybug pushed his way through the reeds beside the river, wasting time before he had to head back to camp. The day was a bit chilly, but his voluminous fur shielded the tom fairly well- about the only thing it was good for. He sighed as he glanced toward the water and watched the breeze ply with his reflection’s fluff as it ruffled the rippling surface. What kind of Riverclan cat was he? More like a walking dandelion. Except this fluff didn’t fly away in a stiff wind. Then again...
there were times during green-leaf when it kinda did...
Grizz shook his head and dashed a paw at the water with a grumble; he was about to move on when he noticed a flash from the depths before him. Perhaps he could bring home a fish- after all, fishing didn’t require swimming. The flash wasn’t a fish at all, though- rather a shiny stone. Interest piqued, Grizzlybug fished it out off of the riverbed and plopped it on the ground before him, shaking the moisture from his paw with a grimace.
The stone truly was a nice find. It sparkled with blue and white hues, and was much smoother to the touch than many other stones- courtesy of the river. Good mood restored, Grizz gingerly packed the rock in a leaf bundle and picked it up to take back to his collection; he couldn’t carry it in his mouth and get teeth marks and saliva all over it, gross. This stone might just be the peak of his collection! It definitely gleamed more brilliantly than any of the others.

[lio]

[ @Beau ]

Swanfeather had been adventuring around the territory when he spotted something gleaming in the distance. His interest immediately piqued, he dropped down, moving forward slowly. As he crawled towards the shiny object, however, he managed to trip over his own paws and fall flat on his face. Right beside a really cute tom.
How did he always manage to do that?
He looked up sheepishly, quickly scurrying to his paws and giving a flustered chuckle. "S-Sorry 'bout that, guess I lost my footin' whilst lookin' for somethin' 'round 'here." Swanfeather giggled quietly at his foolishness, trying to ignore the embarrassment that creeped through his pelt with a searing heat.

[dionysus]

@hxneysuckle
“Oh that’s alright, n-” Grizzlybug had started talking without looking at the tom, but once he looked up his words stuttered to a stop. Heat rushed all the way up to his ear tips and he blinked a few times like he’d been cuffed around the ear. Was that Starclan singing or just the birds? Was that halo of light there before? Stars- this tom was handsome!
Time to be charming, he told himself and Grizz smoothed back the mane of hair that had fluffed up in surprise, clearing his throat and continuing, “don’t worry about it! You can trip in front of me any day!” That didn’t sound right... “Er... I mean I don’t mind watching you fall.” Nope, that wasn’t right either. “T-though I’d prefer you fall for me!” That’s it! Grizzlybug threw in a wink and a smile and silently patted himself on the back. “What were you looking for, anyway?”

[lio]

[ @Beau ]

He blinked as the tom trailed off, finally coming to focus on him. As he did, his pelt seemed to catch on fire, eyes widening slightly at the other's adorable appearance. Swanfeather cleared his throat and gave a nervous smile, giggling at Grizzlybug's joke. As usual, he didn't pick it up as flirting, though he felt sheepish nonetheless. His tail twitched and he stared at the other for a few moments before seemingly snapping back to attention.

"O-Oh, I saw somethin' shiny o'er 'ere, so I tried to follow it. Then I tripped 'n' fell. Now 'ere we are. What were ya doin' 'ere?" he explained, then continued to ask in return.

[dionysus]

@hxneysuckle
Grizzlybug felt his own expression of glee bubble up at the sound of the other tom’s giggle. He didn’t flirt back though... what did that mean? Grizz shrugged it off that maybe the pale tom was shy- though Grizzlybug couldn’t begin to understand why he would be with a pelt like that. No, no, if he started thinking about how cute the tom before him was he’s get distracted and totally ruin the conversation! The fluffy warrior blinked at the mention of something shiny and thought of his stone but his mind was distracted by a question. “Oh, I was just taking a walk to get some air when I saw something shi- oh!” Grizzlybug unwrapped his little leaf bundle and revealed his shiny stone, “is this what you were looking for?”

[lio]

[ @Beau ]

His gaze was immediately stolen by the pretty stone. "That'd be 'ight! But 'm seein' ya a'ready got yerself the stone, I won' be stealin' nothin' from ya," the tom said, though his blue eyes clearly showed a want for the little rock. It was absolutely gorgeous! It'd look wonderful as a decoration in his hollow. Swanfeather forced himself to look away from it in favor of giving a lopsided smile toward Grizzlybug, a sheepish little expression dancing across his face.

His pelt was aflame under the other's gaze, paws shuffling nervously. Goodness, how did he keep running into such pretty boys? Literally? And how did so many pretty boys live in one Clan at once? He was gonna burst with how flustered they all made him! Swanfeather curled his tail over his paws to hide how they were shuffling, desperately searching his mind for something to say.

[dionysus]

[ @hxneysuckle ]
Grizzlybug practically tripped over himself in his hurry to offer the stone to the other tom. “No, no,” he exclaimed, nudging it gently toward the warrior, “please, take it! I have plenty more, I don’t really need it and someone as pretty as this rock deserves to have something as pretty as you!” Close but it sounded weird, “we, something as pretty as you deserves someone pretty?” No! Cmon Grizz! “I mean that you are pretty and so is this rock so you deserve each other!” Ehh, close enough. Flushing under his fur, Grizz nudged the stone all the way to the other cat’s paw and sat up straight, offering a goofy grin. “Oh! I’m Grizzlybug, by the way,” he added swiftly, voice squeaking once in a rather embarrassing manner, “I don’t think we’ve met.” The fluffy tom turned to the side for a moment and widened his eyes at himself in embarrassed despair before turning his orange eyes back onto the cat before him, trying to ignore the fluttery feeling in him that made him want to bounce upon and down.

[lio]

Swanfeather's eyes lit up as the rock was passed to him, a wide, happy grin spreading along his lips. A small "thank ya!" emitted from him, sky-blue gaze glued to the pretty rock. It was absolutely gorgeous, and it'd make a wonderful addition to his collection!

But with Grizzlybug's compliments, his pelt heated up. "Th-Thank ya, I appreciate it, Grizzy. Oh, 'm Swanfeather, by the way. Nice ta meet ya! Yer quite the pretty tom yerself, 'm surprised we haven' met before now." He giggled to himself, tail swaying in amusement at his own joke- though it may not seem like a joke to Grizzlybug. But he had to make it given how he seemed to be running into every pretty tom in the Clan!

Tilting his head to the side, Swanfeather asked, "Have ya been in RiverClan long? I don' remember seein' yer face 'round here. Then again, 've only been 'ere fer a couple o' moons myself." Another light, flustered giggle.

[dionysus]

[ @hxneysuckle ]

Grizzlybug dipped his head in response to the other tom’s thanks and chirped a cheerful,

“Of course!”

The fluffy tabby absolutely loved making other cats smile so giving up the stone was well worth it to see the way the other warrior’s expression lit up and how happy he was. Grizz even thought that he might have been happier seeing his new friend’s joy at the stone than he would have been taking it himself.

Swanfeather- what a lovely name! Grizz could see how this guy had earned it! He was taken aback somewhat at the compliment directed toward him. Grizzlybug didn’t really think of himself as pretty so his skin grew very hot and his fur suddenly felt too tight. So much for being suave- he felt like melting into a puddle from only one compliment! He giggled too, a little tentatively since he wasn’t sure exactly what the joke was, but shrugged,

“I’m surprised we haven’t met too! Though, Riverclan is like the biggest of them all so maybe that has something to do with it?”

At Swanfeather’s question Grizzlybug nodded swiftly with a small smile, trying to get himself to focus on the topic at hand rather than the other’s sky-blue eyes,

“Yep,” he mewed, “Riverclan born and raised! Not that you’d know it with all this fluff,” Ugh! Why did he bring up his fluff? Now this handsome tom would only see him as a walking bush better suited for Thunderclan than a sleek swimming Riverclanner!

“If you’ve only been around a few moons, that could explain it. Though i still don’t know how I would’ve missed you! It’s nice to formally meet, though! I really should go around and introduce myself to everyone in camp- though I do love first meetings! Nothing quite as special as the first time you meet a cat who you can look back with moons later and reminisce about when you were just strangers.”

Grizzlybug sighed dreamily, a total romantic, and shook himself to return to reality.

“Where did you come to Riverclan from?”

The fluffy tom sat down gently on the bank, altering from looking at Swanfeather’s eyes to the flowing water when he felt too embarrassed to keep making eye contact.

[lio]

[ @Beau ]

He offered a small shrug, uncertain of the reasoning. Then again, he didn't put himself out there much. Spending time in his stump, making flower crowns, collecting pretty things, or doing usual duties was all he really did. Of course, Swanfeather somehow managed to run into a lot of cats lately, so maybe his social skills would start to bloom again. In the Clan, he seemed to enjoy keeping to himself, at least, until he settled in completely. He hadn't been a warrior for very long-- maybe two moons? So it wasn't a surprise that he was still getting comfortable with everything.

Though with Grizzlybug's question, he perked up, opening his mouth to tell the tom his entire life story.

"'M formerly a loner by the name o' Cupid. My sweet ol' Mama raised me well, then sent me off on my own to travel the world. I traveled through many places, livin' the life, teachin' myself how to scavenge for food. Some housecats let me stay in their humble homes for food 'n' shelter before I went on my own way again. 'M nev'r gon' find a way to repay 'em."

He wouldn't speak of Duke. Even the memory of that tom left his heart wrenching in sorrow, even though it was so long ago. Instead, Swanfeather continued on with his explanation-- leaving out the less-than-great parts.

"As I made my way 'round, I helped cats to find love. Romance is quite the int'restin' lil' thing, and it makes others happy. So it makes me happy. I like to say my ol' name o' Cupid was like a prophecy, given that I was some type o' 'Love Doctor' to those I met on my journeys. I do miss my ol' name, but Swanfeather is a good one as well.

"After a while o' journeying, I was found in the RiverClan territ'ry. Y'all took me in and I became one of y'all. Now 'm livin' life as a Clanner, and I don' think I'll be returnin' to my travels anytime soon."

With his explanation done, Swanfeather looked up at Grizzlybug, searching for a reaction.