go back to start again [Acorn&Aspen]

[Dawn]

A sleek brown she-cat padded along the bank of the river, sniffing the air curiously. Her long limbs allowed her to step gracefully and easily over large mossy rocks and twisting tree roots. Large almond shaped yellow eyes peered intently across the rippling water, head turned slightly to the side. Acornpaw, as she was called, was peering across into MarshClan territory now, though not even really thinking about it.

Sure, MarshClan had been loosing itself lately, what with Hawkstar seeming to loose his grip on reality, but she didn't want to blame the rest of the Clan. If a leader was off their rocker, it was sure to affect the Clan in an adverse way, wether the members of said Clan liked it or not. Long brown tail waved in the air behind her, feeling the absense of wind or breeze. It was a lovely day, not too hot and with little wind. The perfect type of day in Acornpaw's mind.

"I wonder what new adventures will be born of this day."

[/color] She mewed to herself, gazing up through the canopy of trees, towards the sun which was mostly obstructed by the leaves. She was glad to be an OakClan cat, they had the soft canopy of the oak trees for cover. They created great shade from the sun and didn't drop little spiny needles like PineClan's pine trees did. "How they can deal with that is a mystery to me."[/color] She mewed, again to herself.

She sat back upon one of the mossy rocks, closing her eyes and turning her face up to absorb the comfortable air of this day. Hopefully no MarshClan cats came wandering by here now, they had all become so paranoid after the last few moons. She could hardly blame them, but even so, it was no fun to be sitting there peacefully and have a patrol come up and snap demands at you. She was within her own Clan's territory, she wasn't breaking any rules, but being anywhere near the border these days seemed to constitute a full criminal inquiry.

"I do hope everything settles soon."[/color] She mewed, opening her eyes and gazing across the border once more. She missed the peace that she used to feel, before the time of the fox fiasco and MarshClan's attack on DustClan. She missed being able to hop happily into a gathering and greet friends from other Clans without being glared at suspiciously. What did everyone think? That she was going to betray her Clan just because she had a friend in another Clan? That she would try to seduce or force information out of the cats she went to talk to?

She let out a sigh and glanced down at her paws. Bits of moss were flecked here and there among the dark brown fur, standing out like a black cat in snow. They didn't particularly bother her, though she bent down to lap them away, just for something to do. Suddenly, she saw a flash of movement in front of her and her head jerked up, expecting to see another cat. But it was not a cat, it was a little fish, darting around in the river.

She paused a moment, teetering on the edge of a decision then leapt lightly onto a lower rock, careful not to spook the fish. She wondered if she could catch it, what it would taste like. She had never had a fish before, and nor, to her knowledge, had anyone else in OakClan. That was more MarshClan's thing. What if she caught it and brought it back to camp? Would she impress? Would she get to try the thing? Maybe.

She leaned out, not completely sure how this was supposed to work. By the grace of StarClan, she had managed to lean out without her shadow falling upon the water and spooking the fish without even realizing it. She lifted a paw, hesitated for a moment, then plunged it into the water. She felt it touch the side of the fish, but it darted away far more quickly than she had imagined it would. But the feeling of the slimy scales on her paw startled her and she felt herself falling forward.

Luckily it was only about a paw length of a fall. She landed on her side in the rippling river, sputtering and coughing with surprise. It wasn't deep, and she stood on the slimy pebbles, pushing herself to her paws and shaking her wet fur. The water reached about the middle of her foreleg and was chilly with the snowmelt from leaf-bare. "Great StarClan, why would anyone go through this just for a stinking fish?"[/color] She meowed, her eyes wide with shock, yet amused.
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[blueberrykisses]

Aspenpaw raced through the trees, the deep green foliage of the undergrowth ripping at her pelt, not hard enough to pierce her thick pelt but enoug to tug at her fur. Her gray-brown spotted tail streamed out behind her as her muscles contracted and flexed. There was good definition in her shoulders and hind legs, the result of moons and moons of warrior training. Aspenpaw's blue-green optics were bright like stars, shining like broken sunlight on water.

Skidding to a halt, the tortoiseshell tabby scented the sharp, clean scents of the river blowing towards her. Aspenpaw slowed her pace to a trot, energy still flowing through every fiber of her being. It was greenleaf, and OakClan especially was thriving. The prey was running like the wind, the lush deciduous forest packed with prey. Aspenpaw parted her jaws and drew in a huge gulp of air, realizing the hunger clawing at her belly.

Splash!

What was that?

Aspenpaw whiped her head around at the sudden noise, nearly jumping out of her fur. Heart thundering, her blueish green eyes darted around wildly. Drawing in another mouthful of oxygen, she tried to detect any foreign scents. But all she could distinguish was the unpleasant tang of wet fur. Beneath the watery stench was the scent of... Acornpaw! A deep purr rumbled in her chest as the toirtoiseshell tabby picked her way across the forest floor littered with twigs and plump green leaves.

When the trees broke and the rushing water of the river came into view, Aspenpaw could see her dark brown friend splashing around in the shallow clear liquid. The orange and gray-brown dappled she-cat flicked her dark tail, her ears pulled to the top of her head.

"Hey, Acornpaw!" she called to her friend, purring with undisguised amusement. "Did you turn into a MarshClan cat all of a sudden?"

[Dawn]

"Hey, Acornpaw! Did you turn into a MarshClan cat all of a sudden?"

Acornpaw looked up as Aspenpaw's voice reached her, grinning slightly. "Hey Aspenpaw."

[/color] She mewed to her friend, pulling herself out of the river and onto the rock she had previously vacated. She shook her fur, wanting to get the water that clung to it off. What an unfortunate happening, this was rather uncomfortable. How MarshClan cats dealt with it was a mystery to her. "I saw a fish so I tried to catch it... it didn't go well."[/color] She continued with a sheepish smile. "I suppose I should leave fishing to MarshClan cats, eh?"[/color] She finished, looking down at her sopping fur.

She looked back up as Aspenpaw, who looked very amused indeed. Who could blame her? She had come upon Acornpaw knee deep in the river, sputtering with shock and dripping. Acornpaw had no doubt that any cat would be amused if they came upon that of all things. It was undoubtedly a very amusing sight. She supposed she was just lucky it had been Aspenpaw who had come along as opposed to a scornful warrior or, even worse, a MarshClan cat.

"I don't know how MarshClan stands it! This feels so odd, being sopping wet. I much prefer the dry ground we have here."[/color] She meowed, looking gratefully into the forest terrain of OakClan territory. The leafy trees, rich with green-leaf color, the softly strewn earth, the small shrubs and bushes sprouting out of the ground beside the large oaks. Small gorse flowers had begun to blossom on some of them, they were very pretty.
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[blueberrykisses]

Aspenpaw shrugged. She didn't mind water all that much, actually.

She and her brother, Alderpaw, weren't born in Clan territory under Clan circumstances. Her mother was a rogue named Parvati, her father an OakClan warrior called Stripedfur. Her father met her mother grieving over his dead apprentice, Applepaw. After his tenth or so visit to Parvati, the she-cat admitted she was pregnant. Stripedfur refused to both leave her and tell his Clan about his foreign affair. Aspen and Alder - their birth names - were born in an alley in Twolegplace, where the water from leaky pipes never stopped dripping. When Aspenpaw was a kit, her paws were almost always wet. Alderpaw always hated the moisture, but she herself liked splashing in the puddles and looking at her reflection.

But that was a different part of her life that happened a long, long time ago. Seven moons ago, to be exact, as Parvati had brought Aspenpaw and Alderpaw to the Clan when they were one moon old. The two littermates hadn't seen their mother since that day. As much as they missed their mother, the two siblings had to move on. They lived happy lives in OakClan, and had no desire to go to back to the Twolegplace.

"Atleast no MarshClan cat saw you," Aspenpaw purred. "Leave them to their stinky fish! I'd much prefer a fat mouse anyways!" The tortoiseshell tabby picked her way down the bank to Acornpaw's side.

[Dawn]

"Atleast no MarshClan cat saw you,"

Acornpaw nodded fervently. "I highly doubt any MarshClan cat coming along now would like us being here. Even if we aren't doing anything wrong."

[/color] She meowed, shaking her head sadly. It was not a peaceful time. MarshClan seemed to be loosing themselves, which was particularly unfortunate as Acornpaw loved to come to the river. It helped her think more clearly, sitting in the peaceful forest beside the rushing water..

"Leave them to their stinky fish! I'd much prefer a fat mouse anyways!"

Acornpaw grinned slightly, flicking her ears to get the water off of them. "I've never had a fish, but they seem slimy and stringy, from what I felt of that fish when it brushed my paw."[/color] She commented, her eyes flicking back towards the water. She supposed that anything that lived in the water couldn't be as good as something that lived on the dry earth. Yes, a mouse would be better than a fish any day. [/blockquote][/blockquote][/size]