First Sight (Private With Splash)

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Silverfeather padded silently throug the undergrowth. She was on Leafclan territory, and very conscious of the fact. Several moons ago, she had fled Leafclan to live as a loner; however she'd never worked up the courage to actually go to loner territory, and just wandered Clan land. For her it would have been more prudent to wander another Clan's territory, but she was usually in Leafclan's. Perhaps she liked the familiarity. Perhaps she subconsciously enjoyed provoking her old Clanmates. Whatever the reason, she prefered Leafclan territory and that was where she was. At the moment she was listening for prey. Sometimes she snuck into Leafclan's camp and took from the fresh kill pile, but last time she'd gotten caught, and she was wary to do it again. So today she was hunting for herself, but on Leafclan land. To her, any food she got at the expense of Leafclan tasted all the sweeter.
Suddenly she heard something- a pidgeon, she thought- nearby. Sniffing, she decided that yes, it was a pidgeon, and that it had not noticed her- it seemed to be looking for some food of its own. The wind was blowing her scent away from it, that was good. Moving with silent, stealthy grace, she glided towards the pidgeon. It was so oblivious, she almost felt bad as she pounced. There was a very short struggle, but Silverfeather quickly dealt the killing blow, snapping its neck. The pidgeon was plump and smelt heavenly, but Silverfeather knew it was unwise to eat it on Leafclan land. Picking it up in watering jaws, she slipped silently toward the border.
but soon she became aware she was being followed. It was a Tom, a warrior, that followed her. The scent was familiar from her Clan days but, as she had not seen its source for several moons, the name had since left her mind. Turning, she liked for her pursuer. She hoped he would not attack her, that he would be kind. He wise thing to do would be to prepare for an attack; to raise her hackles, to hiss, to drop the pidgeon and unsheath her claws. but Silverfeather decided to give him a chance to be friendly and just stood there waiting, illicitly-gained pidgeon in her jaws, for her follower to speak.

Splash

[Splash]

Falconfrost was not one for wandering alone in the territory. He was the type of cat who longed for the company of others - even if he wasn't flirting with a she-cat, the company of anyone was preferable to his lonely walk. However, that day he had woken up early and, rather than anger a clanmate by awakening them, he had left camp all by himself. And already the tom was growing steadily more bored. Until he caught scent of another cat. Now, his initial plan had been to walk right up and sweet talk whoever it was into allowing him to join them. This plan was discarded as he payed a bit more attention to the scent of the cat. Though at first whiff he would say LeafClan, as he grew closer he grew less sure. His approach, once rather rushed became wary and he was careful to remain downwind as he slunk closer.

Soon the she-cat came into view. And, as though the two things were tied, the wind changed direction. "Foxdung." He hissed beneath his breath, but decided to stay crouched. It was unlikely she would pick out his pelt. A brown tabby fur pattern blended in with the forest surroundings at any time of the year. She was not similarly blessed, her own fur being a silver-tinged white and starkly obvious. However, though her endowments - such as the fluffy tail and large bluegreen eyes - were quite a short-falling in practicality, Falconfrost did think they were particularly well-suited to her and looked rather nice. Which would be a compliment, if Falconfrost did not find the majority of she-cats around his age attractive and flirted with the better part of them until they told him off.

but looking over the she-cat told him another thing about her - she was a member of LeafClan. Prime word there - 'was'. She not a LeafClanner anymore - she had left. Falconfrost felt the fur on his neck raise sightly. It was, of course, his job to chase this trespasser far off the territory. And preferably leave her with a few scars, which he doubted would be difficult. Falconfrost wasn't a big cat, but, he was a good fighter and this cat was just plain tiny. but, well, he couldn't just attack her. Falconfrost knew that cruelty was, to an extent, a short coming of his and to attack this cat who he had once shared a clan with, well, he simply couldn't do it. Such hippocracy was looked down upon by his moral code. No, he had to make sure she left the territory and he would have to take that prey back, but couldn't he perhaps lead her to the border without a fight? Whatever path she had chosen now, she was once his clanmate and he felt as though he owed her that much.

Taking a deep breath, having decided to attempt to peacefully escort the younger cat to the border, he stood up from his crouched position and make himself quite clear, making a purposeful racket by stepping on the branches around him. He approached the she-cat, sliding easily into the open, honest persona that so often graced him as he walked the ten or so fox lengths to her. "Silverleaf." He meowed, having remembered her name from a few instances. Though he had not known her well, her unusual pelt color had made her easy to remember. "It is certainly a surprise to see you here. After all, to my knowledge, you left not that long ago. And something about the way you're stealing that prey makes me think you don't exactly regret that decision. but hey - I might just be misreading the signs."

Falconfrost, though normally silver-tongued, allowed a small amount of menace to slip through into his words. They were just that bit where friendly and easy-going became purposefully honeyed. And though he smiled, there was a certain undertone that made it quite clear that this was not chat among friends that it could be misinterpreted as if one was thickskulled enough. On top of this was the fact he was a good bit taller then her. Though Falconfrost, even when attempting to be intimidating, was not the 'towering' type, he did stand taller then the dainty she-cat. This was, he knew, a difficult exchange. After all, he could not be all sweet and friendly as she had left his clan. but were he to give the impression of imminent attack, she would either strike first or run off, neither of which would be good. So he had to play the part just perfectly to show that he meant business while also remaining non-violent. And though he was usually not bad at manipulating people, he did not consider himself the best cat to be confronting any trespassers of any sort.

Still, He figured, It could be worse. After all, one small ex-LeafClanner isn't threatening. There could a group. Or a large cat. but there's not. Look on the bright side.

The bright side is if a fight happens you will experience the joy of fighting one of your clanmates rather then a pack of rogues. Whee.


(Oh wow, that turned out longer then I expected. Muse? Is that you? Are you back?)

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Silverfeather could only blink dumbly for several long seconds. Finally she managed, "Oh, um, it's Silverfeather." She cringed. Normally she wasn't so tongue tied. "And, uh, I wasn't stealing any prey," she continued, kicking the pidgeon toward him. She remembered his name was Falconfrost. "It's, um, a present... For you. You look, uh, hungry." Silverfeather was shocked at herself. What was she saying? She was the hungry one. That was her pidgeon. Why was she babbling like this?
She had seen, during her Leafclan days, some of her fellow apprentices acting this way. One if her best friends had talked like Silverfeather was talking, without any sense of reason and with many ums, the first time she spoke to the cat that was to be her mate. but that couldn't be what was happening here. She hated Leafclan, and all its members. There was no way she could ever befriend, much less fall in love with, a Leafclanner.
Still, she wondered. Falconfrost had a bewitching, velvety voice. It made her want to talk, to talk without pause until the world ended. Maybe there was a chance...?
No! She couldn't... Or could she? She would give him a chance to speak, to win her over. Already, at some level, she knew that no matter how hard she resisted, her heart was already his. The battle was lost before it had begun, no matter how much she might hate herself for losing it.
Reluctantly, her heart filled with fear for herself but also with longing for him, she sat, curling her fluffy tail over her paws in a clear sign of peaceful intentions. Looking up at him with wide eyes, she told herself that she wanted him to leave now and never see her again. but really, she wanted to talk with him.

[Splash]

Okay. So Falconfrost may have been boasting when he said he remembered names. In fact, he didn't remember names. Even with friends and family members and cats that had been close to him, he didn't remember names. Fawntail had once meant the world to him. He'd once called that love. but now he wasn't even certain if he'd gotten her name right. Even though he probably should have been expecting the slip up, he still attempted to hide the flush of embarrassment that spread over his face as he silently cursed his overconfidence. Not that it matters. She's not a clanmate or anyone important. Just a traitor. He figured that, if anything, that logic was infallible - after all, messing up her name could be interpreted as aloofness. Yes, that was it. Definitely. He simply did not care enough to remember her name. That's what he was going with. It was definitely not a careless blunder on his part.

He watched the bird roll back toward him, and, giving it a careless sniff, pushed it behind him using a paw. "Thanks but I'm personally fine. Naturally thin, you see. I just have to take this back to camp. Since Silverstar gave WhisperClan and SunsetClan back the stolen territory, food's a bit harder to come by. The clan is growing." He meowed, half wondering if he ought to offer it back. but he decided that he would not. Due to the recent loss of the territories in other clans, LeafClan was a bit too big for it's slice of forest and that meant his clan came before rogues. And not only rogues - trespassing, traitorous ones. "Alright, so you aren't stealing. but you're still trespassing and technically I'm supposed to claw your fur off, but you gave us a bird so that would be really rude." Falconfrost relaxed a bit, whatever earlier attempts at menace he'd been attempting falling off him. No longer was there a threat, so the tomcat decided that this was basically a friendly encounter that would end with the other cat leaving and not coming back.

Rolling his shoulders to relieve the tension in the muscles, he grinned slightly. "So, Silverfeather, what are we going to do? Obviously you're not supposed to be here but just as obviously you aren't exactly causing too much trouble - though I guess you probably would've happily eaten this here bird if I hadn't shown up. That would be trouble. but do we punish someone for planning a crime, or for committing it? That's not a question I can really answer, so I cannot hold against you that which you have not done. On the same hand, what's to stop you from stealing more of our prey?" Falconfrost drawled, stretching slightly. "I think you're going to have to help me with this one. What exactly happens now, hmm? Do you head on your merry way? Do we decide to go on a walk through WhisperClan territory for no reason other then to get attacked by a patrol or so? You know, that's really not one of my better ideas."

The tomcat couldn't help grinning. Not only was he amused with himself, he just was the type of cat who smiled. Almost excessively. Tail waving freely in the air, he awaited her reply.

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Silverfeather smiled. She liked this cat's sense of humor and also his casual acceptance of her. Realizing she was just standing there grinning like and idiot, she hastily answered, "Well, um, innocent until proven, um, guilty, right? Maybe I would have brought that bird to your camp to, um, show there's no hard feelings." In her mind she analyzed her words. Had she said anything dumb? Offensive? Incriminating? She was relieved to find that she seemed to be blunder-free, at least for now. Except for all the hesitation. That was something she would have to work on.
"As for what to do with me... You could let me go. You know, I, um, really like that idea." Silverfeather would have smacked herself in the head in her feline legs had the range of motion the do so. She sounded like a complete moron. If she had any sense she would kick some sand in his face and run until her legs gave out. but she knew the chances of her doing that were about as good as the chances that she'd sprout wings before being kidnapped by twolegs and experimented on and then released. And then run over by a cat with wheels and seventeen eyes. Okay, maybe not that unlikely. By nearly. Now Silverfeather was babbling to herself mentally. Next she'd be talking to inanimate objects and hallucinating.
Silverfeather seriously considered stuffing her tail in her mouth. but she decided that would just make her look even more brainless.
As she silently waited for his reply, she vowed not to sound dumb when she spoke again.
As if she could keep that vow.

[Splash]

Falconfrost found himself enjoying the company of the other cat. Which resulting in him reminding himself that she was both a rogue and a traitor and that if he saw her again she would probably be trespassing and he wasn't certain how much he'd be pushing it if he just let her off again. So that meant that while he would have definitely invited her on a walk, or perhaps to share a meal, he did neither of those things, simply limiting the encounter to this conversation in his mind. Still, he did enjoy her company despite the slight mess-ups as she spoke. In fact, it was a bit easier that way. Falconfrost was the type to keep talking, smooth and seamless. He was rarely at a loss for words and was good at both starting conversations and keeping them going. It was a particular skill of his, one that he enjoyed.

Flashing a crooked smile, he purred, "Fair enough. I do think I'll have to escort you to the border. Rules are rules." He looked slightly apologetic, but was obvious that the mock sadness was insincere and he was more then happy to be walking her the border. It was rather obvious that he was sliding back into the typical, easy-going flirting that he used as freely as some cats used sarcasm. To some extent it was flirting, yes, but it was also a method of communication. And, Falconfrost figured, it made others feel good about themselves. People pleaser he might be, but there were worse things and honestly Falconfrost had decided that the world would be a better place if one's own happiness was derived from others.

"I guess we ought to get moving. Not sure what the rules are exactly, but I don't think Silverstar would be too pleased if I just pleasantly escorted you back to the border." He meowed, setting off in the direction of the border, pausing to make sure was following, beckoning with his tail.

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Silverfeather hesitantly followed him. As she walked her steps grew longer and more confident. but still she had to trot to keep up. For the first time, she was glad the border was a good distance away.
She hated herself for it, but she was becoming fond of this cat. but he was from Leafclan. To her, a Leafclan cat was about equal to a mutant snake in terms of how likely she was to fall in love with them. She shied away from the idea of returning to the clan or even admitting maybe some Leafclanners weren't so bad. All of them were heartless thugs... Right?
Still, a part of her- a part that, to her dismay, was getting stronger- wondered. Hadn't she regretted her rash decision to leave many times? Hadn't she considered returning every time she went to bed hungry? Hadn't she longed for the familiarity of her birth clan more times than she'd ever admit?
Maybe all Leafclanners weren't cruel. Maybe some of them had the ability to love and be kind.
There was something she had been wondering that she was scared to ask. Finally she worked up her courage. It was worth a shot. "So... How are things in Leafclan?" Her attempt to sound casual was feeble at best and she didn't want to think what it was at worst. "Is-is Silverstar still accepting loners into the clan?" She glanced over, gauging his reaction and hoping he would ask why she wanted to know.
Because Silverfeather had trouble even admitting to herself shy she was curious. She wanted it to be only that- curiosity.
but she knew it wasn't.

[Splash]

Falconfrost walked along, a bit slower then he normally would have be cause of two reasons. The first was that she was small and he took long strides. The second was that he didn't really mind drawing this out a little bit. Falconfrost denied things to a point, but it didn't take too long for him to decide that he's just take the blunt truth. And the truth was he liked this she-cat. She seemed neither coolly indifferent nor stupid and it was surprisingly difficult to find someone who fit that bill. but, he didn't rope himself into thinking that this could ever become anything. After all, Silverstar wasn't going to welcome this ct into the clan, and he wasn't going to disobey the warrior code. In fact, the only way that he'd been able to loophole this around to make it not disobedient in his head was that she'd once been his clanmate.

Aside from that, he'd definitely have to attack her if he ever saw her again. This he made certain not to lie to himself about. After all, however nice this cat was, he was and always would remain loyal to his clan and to his leader. It was one of the promises he'd made to himself. Still, he smiled as though he wasn't thinking about the fact that he desperately hoped he wouldn't see her again so that he didn't have to either attack her or break the promises he'd made, not only to his clan, but to his heart.

Then she asked those two questions. Does she want to come back? It sounds like she wants to come back. He waited a couple seconds before replying, "Well, things are actually pretty good. There has been a bit of trouble at a gathering, but that was the fault of this idiot MidnightClanner. He kinda rebelled against StarClan, so there's that. but as far as LeafClan goes, I think things are pretty calm. I mean, Silverstar had proved our strength to the other clans. I personally think that that whole thing was coming to an end. All the other clans take us seriously. I think that most of them fear us. but I also kinda think that Silverstars' settled down. I mean, no one's gonna mess with us. I don't see why she'd continue attacking."

He paused again, and you could see him trying to think out how to phrase the next part. "As for allowing rogues and loners into the clan, a few moons ago I would've said 'ha, no.' I'm not certain now but...... I dunno. Maybe the restrictions have eased up, maybe not. Cats aren't exactly flocking to join if you know what I mean." Falconfrost meowed.

[Deleted]

Before Falconfrost had even finished his sentence, Silverfeather's heart began to flutter in hope. Maybe she could return... Then she wouldn't be alone... And she and Falconfrost would be in the same clan... Had her life in Leafclan really been so bad? Immediately Silverfeather hated herself. Of course it had been so bad. She had gotten her warrior name because she killed a cat. That was just wrong.
but according to Falconfrost, that was then, and this was now. Maybe Silverstar had changed. Maybe it was time to rethink her choice and come back.
The silence between them stretched longer. Silverfeather was t sure what to say, really. Her heart wanted her to say that she had wanted to return since she'd left. but she wasn't sure she was ready for that. There were many perks to that... Friends... Food... Him. but it was Leafclan. Leafclan!
At the same time, she wasn't ready to tell him that she'd never considered returning and was just asking for a friend, either. She remembered him as a loyal cat and knew that if she told him that, she'd never see him again.
She decided a vague answer that hinted at her thoughts was the way to go. He was smart, and her probably figure out her meaning without her having to declare herself. "Oh," she meowed, "Well, that's nice to know."
She saw to her horror that the border was drawing near. She hoped that Falconfrost would ask her to return... She wouldn't say no. Or at least ask her to meet him again. She wasn't going to ask, but she hoped he would.

[Splash]

Falconfrost felt his heart drop a bit as the border appeared, and sighed. "Well, here we are." He meowed, looking at the other side of the border. He paused for a few moments, look out over the border. "I guess this is goodbye then." He stated, a bit forlornly. There were another few moment where he didn't speak before, turning to go with a dip of his head. "Best of wishes Silverfeather."

He began to walk away, back towards their camp, before he stopped again. "And please, don't..... don't come back unless you plan to stay. Things are better here, but...." He blushed a bit, turning his head away. "There are many cats in this clan who would gladly attack you. I don't want you to get hurt and if you are found here by anyone, then..... Just be safe, alright?" He peered at her, green eyes less care-free and happy than they had been.


(Ugh, sorry, my muse for this post was absolutely nothing.)

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Silverfeather was desperate. She didn't want him to leave, never to be seen by her again. Frantically she ran through her options. She could ask to meet him again- but he seemed too loyal to his clan to go for that. Maybe she could sneakily follow him and in the dead of night, wake him up and chat with him. but no, that was just a stupid idea in so many ways. She could join the clan... Then they could be together. but she wasn't sure she was ready for that. And she couldn't be sure the clan really was better. Maybe it was worse, and Falconfrost had just been being too optimistic. If only there was a way to see for herself... but maybe there was. He seemed like a caring cat. The type who would not leave an injured cat alone in the woods.
but Silverfeather wasn't sure she could pull it off. Her acting skills had never been great, and her long skills worse. Besides, the minute they realized it was a rise, she'd be in deep trouble. And what would be think when she was discovered... Unless it wasn't a ruse. Silverfeather was even less sure she could pull that off. Could she do it? She thought she could.
Putting real pain in her voice, she meowed mournfully, "Well, I guess this is goodbye... It was nice seeing you again, Falconfrost. Thanks for being so nice to me." Slowly she turned away and began to walk, looking for... Yes, there! Deliberately, she placed her foreleg in the hole, thin enough to trap her foot and trip her. She put more force into her next stride to make sure she fell hard. And she did fall hard. but she wasn't injured the way she expected. She had expected to maybe land on a rock and get a nasty cut, or possibly hurt her nose. but really, the hole held her tighter than she'd thought. Her leg pulled out with a burst of pain that was like a fiery inferno. Her face was fine but her leg was not. Only the knowledge that she'd brought it on herself kept her conscious.
She was fairly certain he leg was not broken. It was just badly bruised, and she thought she had turned her ankle. but her mewl of pain was very real. "Ouch!" She cried, falling to the ground. Now she had to wait and hope her plan worked and that she hadn't injured herself needlessly. but if he took her to he medicine cat... Mission accomplished. She could see for herself that Leafclan was tolerably non-bloodthirsty and then decide whether or not to come back. Although, whether she knew it or not, that decision was already made. She could have come back to find the clan in shambles and it wouldn't have changed her choice.

[Splash]

Falconfrost gave a small, forced grin, before crouching slightly to climb up a tree, LeafClan's favorite way of moving about the territory. Peering from his new found perch, he sniffed the air, planning to return to his hunt. Then he heard the sharp cry of pain, a cry that sounded oddly like Silverfeathers' voice. Spinning around and leaping down from the tree, hazel green eyes searching for the easily spotted white pelt. Spotting her almost instantly, lying on the ground, Falconfrost darted over, eyes wide. He was no medicine cat, but he was pretty sure legs were not supposed to twist that way. Further examination showed that she was still conscious, which was good everything considered. After all, he was pretty sure that this type of wounds wouldn't kill cats. Still, he hardly had any idea about what to do. He presumed the first step would be to pull her leg out of the hole, but he also figured that that would be extremely painful. After that though, what was he supposed to do? Attempt to put her leg back into place? Though it sounded painful too, it couldn't possibly be worse then walking with a leg in that state. Or being dragged along the ground, because with that type of injury, she might not be able to walk at all. He shoved all the worse case scenarios aside, steeling himself. If he was freaked out, she would be too. If he was calm and bluffed his way through it, it certainly wouldn't make things worse, and hey - he might be right. Swallowing and masking his doubts, he meowed, "Silverfeather, I'm going to pull your leg out of this hole. It's going to hurt a lot, but it'll be better after that, alright?" His voice, though calm and comforting, was a lot steadier then he felt. He steadied himself and quickly jerked her leg out of the hole, immediately letting go of it so as not to make it any worse.

muse; okay mood; pretty good, relaxed

falcon words;332 tagged;@dragon6678

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Silverware saw Falconfrost jump out of the tree to help her. He looked worried, and for a few seconds she felt guilty. but she was suffering a lot more than he was thanks to her plan. but it was worth it, she thought.
When he suggested pulling her leg out of the home, she knew it was a good plan, but worried about the pain. She didn't want to black out. What if he decided to leave her in a heap by the border rather than take her to the medicine cat?
but it was better than him leaving her in the hole. She nodded to give him permission to act, but did not speak, choosing instead to grit her teeth and prepare for the pain. She had been hoping to stay silent, but the pain when he pulled her out was so severe she couldn't resist a pained yelp.
Thankfully, it was over quickly. The pain faded as he set her down. The duller she held her leg, the less it hurt. She could keep it nearly motionless, but even her heartbeat and fast breathing sent rhythmic hours of pain down her leg.
"I don't think I can walk, Falconfrost," she informed him. "Your don't have medicine cat training, do you?" She asked, hoping he didn't. That would ruin her plan, he'd just fix her leg right there and send her on her way. "If you don't, we might need to go back to camp to see your medicine cat. I think my leg might be broken." That wasn't necessarily true. She was fairly certain her leg was not broken, but the more necessary he thought a real medicine cat was, the better. She hoped her medicine cat comment didn't reveal her, or that if it did, he decided she was too badly hurt to be chased off without treatment no matter why that treatment was necessary.
She also worried that he'd decide to bring the medicine cat to her. That too might ruin her plan. She needed to get inside the camp. If it meant the difference between entering camp or not, Silverfeather would walk, and just deal with the pain.

Splash