Remembering and Running (Tribal)

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Tags: @tribal

Grayfang padded out of the warrior's den and into the dim light of early morning. He blinked his eyes a few times and stretched his powerful limbs before padding toward the entrance. He didn't have patrol this morning- he had gone on the midnight patrol- so he figured he'd go for an early morning hunt, maybe pick up some prey to bring back to Moonwhisper.

He had been spending most of his time with her recently, and every time he got that same feeling, and though he couldn't quite understand it, he thought he liked it.

but now was not the time to think about her, as much as he wanted to. Now was the time to focus on hunting.

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Moonwhisper heard some shuffling besides her, and she muttered something quietly as she turned over. She didn't want to get up. Her nest was so warm... but then, something in her mind clicked. New-leaf!

She stood up and exited the den, mindful of stepping over tails and then jumped about. It still wasn't as warm as green-leaf, but it felt great to finally feel the warmth bath her body. The camp was bare, save for a few cats and apprentices wandering this way and that. Moonwhisper shook the moss out of her fur, and then went to the fresh-kill pile to bring food to the elders, then the queens. Then, she would ask the deputy that she was ready to be scheduled for patrol.

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Grayfang was about to leave when he saw Moonwhisper in the clearing. Her forgot hunting for a moment and padded over to her happily, suddenly realizing that for the first time in a while, he felt the sun warming his fur. It just put him in an even better mood.

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Her ear flicked, and she turned. Her heart rate quickened when she saw Greyfang padding her direction, and her ears grew hot. Slowly she turned and padded towards him, eyes bright.

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"Good morning," he mewed as he grew closer. "I was just about to go hunting. It's such a nice morning," he mewed, gesturing with his tail towards the sky. "Care to join me? After all, who better to provide this clan with their first newleaf meal than the two best hunters of the clan?" he mewed with a grin.

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Her ears perked, and then they went hot again. Her eyes were dancing with blue electricity. "You're right, they'll have a feast once were done today." She mewed, ignoring her pounding heart as she padded up to his side.

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"Come on, let's go catch some prey," he mewed, turning to pad into the forest. He tried to think about hunting and catching prey, but even as he walked, his thoughts continued to return to Moonwhisper, along with that feeling that he always seemed to get when he thought about her.

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Moonwhisper, padding side by side with him, had to avoid looking at him for too long, force her thoughts to stay focused on the task in front of her, and often had to move herself a few steps away from him everytime she realized that she was walking to close.

She didn't speak up about her emotions; what if he thought she was weird? When they got to the trees, she caught several pieces of prey, but then an idea dawned on her, her eyes revealing an epiphany going through that clever mind of her's. "Hey, Greyfang." She mewed.

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Grayfang managed to catch a couple of mice before Moonwhisper's voice stopped him in his tracks.

"What?" Grayfang asked, turning to face Moonwhisper. Her eyes really were pretty...

Grayfang shook his head, trying to focus. He had already been distracted this morning while hunting, and had let a vole and two squirrels escape his grasp. Something just felt off today. Different. And he couldn't place his paw on it.


Tags: @tribal

OOC: Sorry it took me so long to respond! Technological difficulties...

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"Well, I, um...." Moonwhisper thought, trying to figure out a way to word her little idea in a non-offensive sentence. "I think I should teach you to be a little softer. A strict, but empathic leader is the best leader of all." She mewed, and after a moment, with a little humor, she added. "I grant your first life with the ability to understand and feel other cats emotions, Greystar." She gingerly touched her nose to his, very briefly, and then moved backwards again. She quietly thought it over, before sitting down and wrapping her tail around her front paws. Then after a moment, she spoke up again. "Greyfang, try speaking with a softer voice."

She patiently waiting, watching him with soft blueberry eyes, the dark color finally taking place after a long, frozen and colorless leaf-bare. They only appeared a darker color because of the dim-lighting in the pine forest. After a moment, she found that her eyes were trailing over his big, musclier body. And then, her ears grew hot, and she looked away momentarily, before looking back up at him. He... he was so handsome, and she finally understood why all the she-cats fell head over paws for him. but, he was so much more special. He was... perfect.

Her mind traveled back to her conversation to Whitehawk. Then to Mosspaw, the rebellious little apprentice. She couldn't help but feel like she was slowly changing her life, by helping and changing other lives. She shook her head, cleared her thoughts, hoping he hadn't responded. Luckily, he hadn't, and those deep thoughts were very short images.

{ OOC: It's alright! I totes understand. }

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Grayfang stood confused for a moment, staring at his friend. What was wrong with his voice? Then he remembered that he did speak a bit harshly to some cats. Well, to all cats. Come to think of it, Moonwhisper was right. He could be even taken as mean in some cases. Maybe it was time to change that.

"Um, okay," he mewed. "Wonderful weather we're having," he mewed, a teasing glint in his eyes, feeling stupid. Before she could even respond, he stopped her.

"Okay, I know, I know. I'll be serious. Um, okay. The freshkill pile needs to be stocked for winter, and we need to check on the nursery," he mewed, giving simple everyday commands, trying to use a gentler voice. And, to a certain extent, succeeding.

His gaze turned to her eyes to see her reaction, and he was startled by how stunning they looked right now. This simple thought triggered a wave of emotions that he still couldn't manage to label, but all he could think about was how beautiful and perfect she was.

Then, everything hit him at once. No, this couldn't be happening. No. It couldn't, right? No, there was no way he could be in love with this she-cat. but that was the word that kept running through his mind. Did he love her? He didn't know, and he didn't want to find out. He didn't need this. Never wanted this.

His mind wandered back to that first day they had truly met, the day he had agreed to be her hunting partner. The rules he had set for himself. He had broken every single one.

No, he didn't want this. At least that's what he told himself. Never asked for this. It was past time for this to end.

"Um, Moonwhisper, I, um, I have to go," he mewed, backing away.

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Moonwhisper's eyes lightened up when she heard his voice soften, like it had just came naturally to him. She practically laughed, laughed harder then she had ever when she heard his little joke, and then gave him a gaze that was so warm, one would have mistoken her for a queen.

Her ears perked, the look in her eyes dying as she saw the sudden facial change in Greyfang, her eyes becoming hard, gunmetal blue again. She stood up, tilting her head, watching as his eyes betrayed his emotion. Was it something about her? Did she do something wrong? Oh, StarClan, let it not be something she had done!

Her eyes were wide, distraught, even. She gingerly took a pawstep towards him. "G-Greyfang...?" She mewed uncertainly, her mind finally drawing a blank. She began following each one of his pawsteps, before stopping and backing away. As a cat who used to be anti-social, she understood when a cat needed space. "Are you alright?" Please, please be alright.

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@tribal

Grayfang took a step backward, then another, then another. His eyes were filled with fear. No, no, no.

"I," he started, but he didn't know how to finish, didn't know how to control the wave of emotions washing over him right here, right now.

"Moonwhisper," he whispered, unable to say anything more than her name. His eyes met hers, those beautiful eyes that had captured his heart from the beginning. That sent him over the edge.

Grayfang turned and ran, as fast as he possibly could. He raced through the forest, legs pumping like never before. He had to get away. Had to escape. No, no, no. He had told himself this wouldn't happen. but it had. And now he had to make it stop. but he didn't know how, not when her eyes were the only thing he could see. His paw caught in a thorn and he yanked it free, welcoming the pain, anything to distract him from her.

At last he slowed. The sky was dark. He had run a long, long way. He was beyond clan borders now. He was on his own in rouge territory. Good. Let a rouge attack. He didn't fear rouges. He didn't fear anything. He had to remind himself of that as his heart raced, practically in his throat.

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Sudden, it was so sudden. All she heard was her name before he took off like a cat out of the dark forest. She was frozen, no, not frozen. It was far too warm for her to be frozen; she was worried, terrified. She jumped on a log that was slowly decaying, tears gathering in her eyes, ears pulled back, a desperate pang in her loving heart.

"Greyfang!" She cried, her voice cracking with sadness. No, no no no! This wasn't happening to her, THIS WAS NOT HAPPENING TO HER! She paced in a frantic circle, round, and around, and around. Then she stopped, jumped off the log, jumped back on, and then called the name of the tom once again, before breaking completely.

Moonwhisper had never cried so hard in her entire life. No, never, not when her brother had died, not when her mother had died. She felt like a piece of her was being ripped away and it hurt, it hurt so much.
And through all the pain, one thing became so much more clear, then she ever thought it would be.
S-he was in love.

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Grayfang settled down to sleep. Tried to sleep. but the simple truth was that he couldn't. Nothing could erase her eyes from his mind, her gentle words from his ears, her soothing touch from his shivering pelt.

A tear leaked from his eye. Grayfang never cried. Never. So why was this so upsetting to him? Why did even that single tear exist?

Then another came, then another, and soon he was crying openly, tears flowing down his face, all of his buried emotions released at once, but the one thing that stood out over everything else was Moonwhisper. The cat he loved. The cat he had just abandoned.