Hunting - And Two Mysteries

[XxSilverxX]

And the best of your days
Will all vanish in the haze

A blue-gray tom with emerald green eyes darted quickly through the heavily falling snow, his breathing quick yet deep, his pelt shivering and waving with the adrenaline of the wind. The leader had to admit it to himself every time he left his den; it was idiotically freezing. It was almost like a glacier in his territory, except that it was never going to melt, not even in a million years - if the Clans and the world lived that long, that is. Swiping his pink tongue around his white fangs, he saw in the vague distance the stone barn building of the Hunting Barracks.

His senses alert for the most part, but Sonicstar felt that there was no need to concentrare extremely hard about if there was any cat around. He smelled, nor heard, nor seen any suspicious cat in sight.

I wonder where Dreamwind, Spiritwind, and Fireblade are patrolling first... most likely not here, it's a bit far from camp. Like, really far...

Then his blood ran cold.

Shoot! We left Rainkit alone in camp! Who knows what she'll do...

Shaking his head, he mewed to himself, "Too late now. I suppose I'll hunt a bit, then get straight back. And then get the herbs from the Medicine Cat Den and go on my way to the Mooncave to get my nine lives... and leave Dreamwind in control for a while..."

Sonicstar slowed from a run to a trot, now very close to the Hunting Barracks. His stomach growled again once he leapt over the heap of fallen wood that was close to ancient - over around as old as the Stone Portal the five Clans had supposedly come through, and his blue paws landed on the ground.

Nope, not dead. Sure feel like it, though.

As the squeaking of mice reached his ears, he crouched down in a hunter's crouch and sprung at one, ultimately killing it - even if he was lightweight, for a tom. He bit the mouse's small throat, unaware that there were visitors.

[:.Icewater.:]

((First post with Almondspirit! Woot!))


Almondspirit trotted briskly towards the Hunting Barracks, gently crunching the snow under her feet. She was actually pretty tired right now, being kept awake constantly by the snores of other warriors in the warriors den. Feeling as if she'd go insane if kept there another minute, she had silently crept out, and decided to do a little hunting. After all, prey was always scarce during leaf-bare. It wasn't as if anyone would object to a little more food. And besides, she felt like stretching her legs. She hated the feeling of being squashed in a tiny den.

Though anyone looking at her now would assume she'd had an okay night sleep. Her eyes were alert and focused, her gaze was calm and calculating. Almondspirit was always the expert at hiding emotions.

As she sniffed the air looking for any prey scent, she glimpsed an unexpected arrival that had came before her. And she wasn't talking about prey, either.

"Sonicstar. Greetings." Bowing her head in respect briefly, she immediately caught sight of a small, thin mouse scuttling across the sheet of snow.

Snapping into a hunter's crouch almost instantly, she concentrated shrewdly on the mouse, for the clan needed as much food as it could get. Especially at this time.

Stalking perfectly, she crept up skillfully on the mouse. Any second now...

At the last possible moment, she jumped on top of the mouse. The mouse immediately began squirming furiously, but unfortunately had no chance with Almondspirit.

Killing it with snakelike speed, she grasped it into her jaws, and buried it near the stack of logs for later.

Turning to the leader, she gave a nod towards the mouse, indicating her need for being so abrupt, then continued searching for prey.

[XxSilverxX]

Sonicstar dipped his head, acknowledging the fact that Almostspirit was around. He swiped his fangs with his tongue, and he pinpointed a mouse.

Weird that mice is pretty much the only prey here, to make a point of our survival. Heh.

He lunged, biting the mouse and killing it. The leader was half-tempted to just devour the mouse, but went against it.

"Cut the crap, follow the code," Sonicstar muttered to himself, "Same old, same old. Hasn't yet changed..."

[:.Icewater.:]

As Almondspirit was busy searching for prey among the ground,(Though not having any luck) she did catch what the leader was muttering to himself.

Of course we still follow the code. What kind of clan would we be if we didn't? Idly wondering what Sonicstar was talking about, she didn't mention it out loud. Besides, she wasn't a conversation starter. Talking to each other right now would have no point, as they needed to concentrate to more important things. As far as Almondspirit was concerned, talking the day away while there was work to be done would as foolish as sticking your nose into a thorny bush.

((Funny. I thought Sonicstar was a she, until I saw HIS bio. xD))

[XxSilverxX]

((XD I borrowed it from another site I'm a member of. They were playing with Sonic the Hedgehog, and I had to take him.))

"So... why'd you decide to come?" Sonicstar asked, not sounding unfriendly. He was just curious - and he felt like talking.

Sure, he was a leader, but he was thirty-seven moons old and a bit excitable. To him, it was a bit... normal for him. But Almondspirit's silence always bothered him - probably because he was always a kit inside. Very deep inside.

As he pounced for another mouse, it managed to escape his grasp, and the swift tom tried again to catch it, but it scrambled for the wall quickly.

Mousedung.

[:.Icewater.:]

Glancing briefly at the leader, she quickly turned away. So he was willing to talk, was he?

"Because I felt like hunting." That was the simple answer. All the other ones like being tired of sitting in the warrior's den, and wanting to stretch her legs, and wanting to enjoy the snow were all unneeded. Why waste time chatting about wanting to come out anyway, when she was already out, and hunting?

Watching in disdain as the leader missed a mouse, she turned her head away as to not give away her expression on her face.

Pathetic. Even an apprentice could do better than that.

In an attempt to still be respectful to the leader, she gruffed, "You would have almost caught that one, if not for the mouse being too fast."

[XxSilverxX]

Sonicstar rolled his emerald green eyes.

"No, I would've caught the stupid mouse if it weren't so many cracks," He mewed curtly, not liking the seemingly condensending voice of Almondspirit.

He had caught a very short glance of Almondspirit's disdain, and he held back a retort that would get his ears clawed off.

If you don't like me at all as leader, then why don't you just leave and kill me when you join a different Clan? He seethed in his mind, not really enjoying the she-cat's company right now.

Hmph! Why should I reply to her when she's being condensending like that?

[:.Icewater.:]

"The cracks are half the reason. The other half is the fact that the mouse was so quick. If the mouse had slowed down a little bit, you could have had a better chance." Almondspirit quipped, instantly regretting that she hadn't been careful with the tone she had used before.

Great. Now the leader thinks I'm criticizing his catch. Which I am, but I shouldn't have said to him.

Doing the next best thing she thought of, she bowed her head, but in apology this time.

"Sonicstar, I'm sorry It seemed as if I was condescending your catch. I honestly didn't mean to. Sometimes, it seems as if I can't control my emotions well." Only inside her mind, Almondspirit was laughing silently.

Can't control them well? Yeah, right. Though she carefully made sure none of what she was actually feeling was showing on the outside. For even though she didn't really like Sonicstar, she was extremely loyal to her clan. And when the loyalty called for respect to the leader, so be it.

"I understand everyone can make mistakes, even you and me. So I'm sorry I insulted your catch, and I ask for forgiveness."

Glancing up quickly at Sonicstar, she searched carefully for some sort of look of apology shown there.

((Not my best post. I think I made my cat slightly old-fashioned.))

[XxSilverxX]

((That's not your best post? Believe me, it's better than mine...))

"Oh, really? Thanks for not saying that beforehand..." Sonicstar mewed lividly, not at all regretting it, unlike Almondspirit. The she-cat had just pulled the last of his remaining patience he had gotten this morning, which was actually quite a lot, for a change.

Sure, he was known for his impatience, but he actually had a good amount. Glaring away, he murmured, "I'm sorry..."

The leader's breaths were becoming a bit heavier than normal, and he kept himself from rolling his eyes.

Can't control your emotions well? Humph! Lies, lies, lies!

He whipped around, not at all feeling sorry for the pathetic she-cat. If she knew what was better for her, she would've said it behind his back, not while he was right in front of her.

"If you truly understood that everyone makes mistakes, you would've not said anything at all. What's said is said, and you can't take it back. There's no such thing, so why bother!"

[:.Icewater.:]

((I notice your location is possessing Icewater. xD))

Almondspirit looked Sonicstar straight in the eye. "I didn't say it beforehand because it was one of the factors that I thought you already knew, since you aren't blind or anything. By not saying it, I thought I was helping you by not pointing out the obvious, but instead helping you by giving some advice as your warrior. If it sounded insulting, I'm sorry." Everything she had said was true, except the last part. She had insulted the leader, and she wished now that she hadn't said anything at all.

"If you truly understood that everyone makes mistakes, you would've not said anything at all. What's said is said, and you can't take it back. There's no such thing, so why bother!"

"I said something because I wanted to help you with the mistake. You know, learn from your mistakes? I understand I can't take it back, but I am sorry for doing it."

Which was true. Very, very true now.

"How about I make up for it by taking the apprentices out training today? We do need to be prepared for an attack by any clan, right?"

This was also true, though Almondspirit was very hesitant in dealing with a bunch of apprentices for today, but she DID need to make up for her actions...[/color]