A Day of Gold

[Fallentear ||]

|| and you asked me what I want this year
and I try to make this kind and clear
just a chance that maybe we'll find better days

Ahead loomed a figure with wide, jumbled limbs. It's spiny arms reached upwards, as if trying to scrape the cloud-ridden sky. The black silhouette stood high and mighty, like some monster daring to challenge any creature to venture nearer. It's regal shape looked like it were strong enough to take the life from any low-down trespasser that had the nerve to step paw anywhere near it's roots. The sky was gloomy and gray, filled with a seamless line of stormclouds that rolled in with an unusual menace. An unspoken evil seemed to hover over the territory, and it was a much more frightening scene than most days in Fernclan.

[/blockquote]

|| cause I don't need boxes wrapped in strings
and designer love and empty things
just a chance that maybe we'll find better days

Suddenly, a crack formed in the clouds, and they split to allow a shard of light to leap down and stab through the thick canopy of trees. Sunbeams spread like rolling fog, tumbling and spilling over the rocks, shrubs, and loamy earth to coat the world around in a magical golden light as strident and resonant as birdsong. The slants of light filtering in from above brought a warmness, and a joyful outlook to the forest, showing almost immediately in the sounds of the forest that erupted into a symphony at the signs of the sun. This was the Fernclan that most were familiar with. This was the Fernclan that the black and white she-cat knew and loved so dearly.

[/blockquote]

|| I need someplace simple where we could live
and something only you can give
and that's faith and trust and peace while we're alive

Out of the brush stepped a she-cat with a pelt like stars on a velvet canvass of night. As her muscles moved, her pelt shimmered, looking oddly out of place in the place that spoke only of the daytime. Usually, the gruff female didn't like to stand out. Most of the time, she kept her short, coarse fur in an unkempt state, to deter other cats. She wasn't really the best at being sociable, and preferred to be alone anyways. Out of all the optimism in her clan, she certainly ranked very low. But there were some days when she liked to romp in the grass, and flow across the ferns and short grasses of Fernclan; to sprint and leap and howl happily to the sky. Today was one of those days.

[/blockquote]

|| and the one poor child that saved this world
and there's ten million more who probably could
if we all just stopped and said a prayer for them

Her deep indigo eyes scanned back and forth, watching the moths drift drowsily through the air around Moth Tree, spiraling down in large lazy ovals. They looked like huge dust puffs, and the only way that the warrior could tell the difference was by their fluttering, dusky wings that differed from the actual colors of the tree only a tiny bit. She watched as one broke free from its trace and billowed gracefully towards earth, slipping round and round in tight little rings. Twilightstrike lowered into a hunting crouch.

[/blockquote]

|| so take these words
and sing out loud

The whole thing looked surreal in the bright lighting, almost as if the she-cat were in Dreamclan. She crept forward, her tail twitching behind her as she kept her eyes on the descending moth. A powerful push of her hindlegs, and Twilightstrike was flying across the clearing, and leaping into the air like a missile straight for the creature. Her back arced as she raised her black and white paws up into the air, and clapped them around the now frantic animal to bring them crashing back down to earth. Her tail lashed excitedly, and a small smile of triumph flickered on her features. Lifting a paw slightly, she peered beneath it's furry mass to check if the moth was still there.

[/blockquote]

|| cause everyone's
forgiven now

A small gasp of surprise choked out of her throat as the panicking creature shot out from under her paw and beamed her in the face, beating it's wings furiously. Spluttering, she fell backwards with a small cry of shock and did a backwards somersault as the moth flapped away. For a moment she sat with hindlegs splayed to the sides and forelegs placed between them, and watched it go with wide, blank eyes and a deep frown set at her mouth. Then the corners of her lips twitched, and she burst out laughing at herself, rolling onto her back in the short, prickly grass. The warrior rubbed her head against the ground, purring half-heartedly with her eyes squeezed shut.

[/blockquote]

|| cause tonight's the night
the world begins again

Then she opened her eyes again and looked up from where she lay at the golden-brown oak leaves that rustled in the faint winter breeze. Twilightstrike sighed, her long forelegs bent and tucked against her chest as she thought to herself, 'Wouldn't this day be just splendid if I actually someone to spend it with?'

[/blockquote]

|| cause tonight's the night
the world begins again. ]]

[/size]

[rainfur]

XXSwiftleapXX

Within the moth tree, lay a lazy, sleeping cat high above. He usually did this with this day. Not spending any of his time doing something usefull. He thought he already did it all just for being in the clan. Somedays, he was productive and helpful, hunting for every mouse he could find. Other days, such as this one, he was too lazy to walk along the ground. He said he came out here to hunt, but really, he wanted to escape camp and get some sleep.

Lately, he had trouble sleeping. His nightmares were starting to get worst and more complex by the minute. One second, its a herd of giant dogs chasing his tail and the other second, its him falling from a cliff. He didn't know what they meant or if he was having dreams, but they were giving permanite scars within his mind.

He was having one a the moment in fact. The black of the day he was surrounded in. He couldn't see or smell anything. It was like he was in his own personal black hole he couldn't escape. His own prison not contaning any bars. He flipped on his side while he was dreaming this awful nightmare, but didn't feel the ground benieth him.

He landed squarly on another branch lower to the ground, waking him up. His eyes burst open, breathing heavily. He felt pain on his stomach and lower tail bone. Groaning with discust, he leaped down to the ground. His eyes peered into his territory and he spotted a fimilar she-cat of his clan.

Curious on what she was doing out here, he padded up to her. His footsteps made a crunching noise on the ground as he walked. His body weaving in and out of shadows. "Hello" His voice was friendly and unharmful as his blue eyes sparkled brightly.

[Fallentear ||]

Twilightstrike heard a rustling of leaves above her head. She growled in surprise and thrashed onto her belly, her tail swinging around like a propeller as she did so. Raising into a low crouch, the female snarled low in her throat and peered up into the tree where she'd heard the noise. Relief flooded her as she realized that it was a tom, and sleep was evident in his dreary expression. Her bristling hackles fell flat again, but as she raised her nose to the wind, she realized that something about his scent was off... She had not seen this tom before.. and although he looked friendly enough, she finally realized what was amiss.

"Boulderclan," she breathed, her eyes narrowing as she watched the tom advance through the golden curtain of light. Twilightstrike was hesitant in answering back. "Hello.." she said meekly, eyes widening as she realized he was coming closer still. Flattening her ears against her shapely skull, she took a small step back from him, muscles tensed apprehensively. Indigo optics flicked from side to side, as if expecting a party of attackers to pop out of the brush on either side of her. "You... don't smell like Fernclan." She paused, adding in a slightly more snippety tone, "Is there some way I can help you?"

She still stayed low, but her expression was not as fearful, as her slightly sarcastic tone had made her feel more bold; more daring. The wiry female looked at his brown and white pelt, and realized that he was quite handsome. Her scrutinous gaze slowly slid over his paws, his chest, and then rested upon his face. "Because you know I-" The stranger's eyes were emanating a sky blue color, and she found the shade rather beautiful. They distracted her. "-I c-can't allow you here if you are of a different clan." She finished in a choked sort of murmur.

'What's wrong with me?' She thought to herself, cursing her stumbling speech silently. 'I can usually pick out a foreign scent from miles off! Why didn't I sense this tom? And why am I being so.. mousey?' Twilightstrike straightened a little bit, and tried to make her eyes as scornful and harsh as possible, but found that her glare melted away before the innocent crystal gaze of the stranger. She had the sudden urge to ask him his name, to know more about him, but instantly berated herself again in her mind. 'No, you idiot! He's an intruder, not an acquaintance!'

Twilightstrike looked at him uncertainly, her nose twitching as many different confusing perceptions of the situation flooded her brain. The senior warrior was, for once, finding herself unsure of what to do, and she didn't know why.

[/color][/blockquote]

[rainfur]

XXSwiftleapXX

He was about to argue that he was in his territory, but blinked around with surprise. He WAS in an enemy territory. How did that happen? He couldn't remember what he did to come here. Was he so sleepy that he didn't notice the border. His ears went flat in embarassment. He felt like a stupid kit that crossed the border on accident. His mind went through all the possible things that coud happen.

This simple mistake could cause war between the two clans! He might have just sent his clan fighting for a mistake. Cats would die, and it would be all his fault. Maybe he could quickly turn around and run, pretending this never happened. No, that would prove that he had his fear. The she-cat would probably go and tell her leader, and the leader would tell his clan what happened.

"Uh...uh..." He stammered, not knowing what to say. What could you say when you didn't realize you were on enemy territory? "I didn't realize..." He looked around like he was lost. Without warning, he turned around and bolted. He felt really stupid, and he hoped this wouldn't become public.

XXWolfwhiskerXX

His large eyes watched a Boulderclan scented cat burst to his border. He was quite fast, especially in this part of the territory. Was there a battle happening? Wolfwhisker's fear made itself visible, and he started running toward the direction in which the Boulderclan cat came. He spotted the beautiful pelt of Twilightclan.

"What was that all about?" He asked, looking in the other direction. His massive body was still tense, waiting for an ambush to come out. As he sat down, the ground almost shook because of his size. His eyes still staring out in the distance, he waited for a good answer.

[Fallentear ||]

Twilightstrike watched with a blank expression as the stranger tore off. She tilted her head sideways in confusion. Sure, she was from a different clan as him, but he had behaved as if she had been preparing to devour him for lunch. Shrugging dismissively, she turned to head back to camp and ran straight into the wide chest of another tom. "Oh!" She exclaimed in surprise, springing back as he posed his question. Twilightstrike's heart hammered, for this tom had crept up silently and started her. What was with all of these stealthy toms? She recognized this one from camp, but didn't know him by name. "Oh..." she said again, this time more softly, as she straightened up and tried to gather her thoughts again for a reply, "well this Boulderclan warrior just kind of came up and introduced himself. But when I pointed out that he was on Fernclan territory, he turned pale as a ghost and dashed off, as if I were a badger or something."

She remembered his horrified expression, and the frantic way he'd looked this way and that. After she had stammered, and looked quite silly in her bluff of sternness, he had still been as jumpy as a flea. Suddenly, the serious warrior found this quite funny. She began to chuckle, and it slowly grew into a full, rolling laugh. Between bursts of this, she gasped, "I'm--so sorry-- it's just that-- he was truly-- frightened!-- Of me!" There was something amusingly ridiculous about the stranger finding her threatening.

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[rainfur]

XXWolfwhiskerXX

At first, he was debating to run after him or not, but the cat seemed like he was scared of something. Wolfwhisker heard something come out of the she-cat's mouth and turned to look at her. The sounds soon became laughter and her voice glinted in Wolfwhisker's huge ears. His eyes lit up brightly with amusment of the she-cat.

"Yes, that is a little different." He agreed, hiding the amusment in his voice with seriousness. He didn't like to be funny at times where they were wondering if they should do something about it or not. He bit his tounge to keep from laughing with the she-cat. He could control his mighty muscles very easily to him. "What should we do?" He asked.

[Fallentear ||]

Twilightstrike noticed a glint of humor in the tom's eyes, but he was clearly trying to be mature and serious about the situation. Her laughter slowly faded, and she cleared her throat and sat up straighter, realizing there was something slightly urgent about that Boulderclanner's jumpy attitude. What if he'd been doing something in Fernclan that he hadn't been supposed to? She looked around, considering possibilities. "Well... I don't know.." She meowed uncertainly. "Should we follow him? After all, he looked a little more than suspicious. Maybe he did something bad.." But maybe he didn't, she thought. Twilightstrike lifted her nose to the wind, seeking out scents of prey or urine. Neither were there. He hadn't been hunting there... and he hadn't marked any of their territory for his clan.. so what had he been doing? Dozing? She was curious now, whether he'd done something against the warrior code or not, to know how this stranger had found himself across her clan's border.

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[rainfur]

XXWolfwhiskerXX

He twitched the tip of his long tail, thinking of if they should follow him or not. "No." He decided outloud, "He would have probably crossed the border by now." He didn't know wiether to tell the leader or not. He didn't seem like he was doing anything out of the ordianry. He walked over to the tree that was recking with his scent, but he didn't smell any blood. So there was no hunting involved. He started running around, inspecting the trees for anything unusal. There wasn't any scent marks, so there wasn't anything that would lead to anything. He had only gotten this part of the territory it seemed like. Was there any point to tell the leader but to rise panic within the clan?

"All I know, is that cat must have been blind, deaf, and couldn't smell." Wolfwhisker laughed, shaking the entire forest with his loud booming thunder voice.

[Fallentear ||]

Twilightstrike watched Wolfwhisker run around urgently, sniffing out the scent of the strange cat. Finally, after he confirmed what she had smelled, she breathed out in relief. Looks like he had meant no harm, and had somehow stumbled across the border on accident.

"I know," she agreed, a smile curving on her lips, "what in heavens name was he doing? Sleepwalking? He looked confused enough to have been." The sound of Wolfwhisker's laughter eased her tense muscles, and she grinned wider at his joke, realizing it as an attempt to ease the tension. "I"m Twilightstrike, by the way," she told him, bowing low in mock formality, a smirk of good-humor playing on her lips. Even the appearance of that odd tom could not dampen the golden mood the beautiful day had put her in.

"How about we go for a hunt? The clan could use all the food it can get, and we could check the borders on the way, just to make sure he made it back to Boulderclan without any... side trips." Her midnight eyes glinted excitedly, for she hadn't been on a patrol with another cat in a long while.

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[rainfur]

XXWolfwhiskerXX

Her named sounded through Wolfwhisker's ears, transporting it into his mind to remember the name. He was rather good was names, so this wasn't a challenge. "I'm Wolfwhisker." He couldn't believe however, that he didn't know the name of a clanmate. He thought he knew pretty much everyone in the clan. Guess he forgot someone.

The sound of a patrol made Wolfwhisker purr. He loved other cats. He was a very lovable, warm hearted cat. It was his huge size that everyone took misleadingly. He was a giant, furry, lovable, soft cat on the inside unless you threaten him. "I would love a hunting patrol. You will have to excuse my heavy paws scaring the pray away though." He told her with his usual humor returning to his voice. "On the way, we can check the patrols." He added, thinking that may be the best thing right now since a Boulderclan cat had just been here not too long ago.

[Fallentear ||]

Twilightstrike nodded as he introduced himself, thinking that she rather liked his name. It made him sound feirce. "Oh, don't worry about your feet. I'm on pretty much the same page with you there." She lifted a huge forepaw for emphasis, wiggling her toes as it hovered in the air. Her head dipped again, agreeing with his statement of patrolling the border after catching some prey. Without another word, the mottled black and white female slid into the tall grass, her eyes keenly seeking out the movement of prey.

Her nose and ears twitched around wildly, as she sought something that might catch her attention. She heard the soft crooning ahead of her; the sound of a nest of doves getting ready to sleep. The warrior slowed her pace and inched forward through the fronds so as not to scare them off. Flying targets were always the hardest to pounce on; any fernclanner knew that. Her movements were painfully slow now, lifting and placing each paw after half minute intervals. Twilightstrike could see the peachy feathered heads through the grass now, and noticed with an excited quickening of her heart that none had noticed her yet. The time was perfect to spring..

She sense a presence beside her, but dared not look. If she took her eyes off the prize, they would see their glint and flutter off in a startled frenzy. Was Wolfwhisker beside her, ready to pounce simultaneously? Or was she imagining things..? Regardless, she bunched her thick hind legs and soared forward over the tops of the long grass, as she extended her paws towards the birds nestled on the ground.

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[rainfur]

XXWolfwhiserXX

A small smile light on his face when she said 'its the same thing'. He spotted what she spotted almost right away. He found himself following her. Not on purpose of course, but they were both searching for the same thing. Besides, since there was a lot more than one, she could use some extra strength on her side. He didn't know if she knew he was there or not, but it didn't matter to him at the moment. He just cared about getting what was laying in front of him.

He bounded forward after she did, sending some of the birds flying. The mother bird squeaked, trying to fight off the cats. Foolish bird He thought with a rare smug on his face. His paw swiped the air, taking down the bird trying to attack Twilightstrike. With a quick snatch of his white long teeth, he managed to catch the bird. He left Twilightstrike deal with another one.

[Fallentear ||]

Twilightstrike used her peripherals, and found that she'd been right; Wolfwhisker had been beside her! They pounced at the same time, and her friend expertly struck out at a huge dove that lurched towards her face. With a howl of glee, she smacked her paws together and bore down a small male bird, smashing him to the ground. Not even a half a heartbeat after he'd landed, her teeth were snapping his neck. She released the dead prey, letting it fall from her claws, and leaped immediately into the air after a second one. She barely caught his tail feathers, and with a slight struggle, caught it between her teeth. It was another female.

She carried it back towards her first catch, dropping the second body neatly atop the first. Twilightstrike turned now to the other Fernclanner beside her. She saw the large prize at his paws, and flashed him an approving smile. "That was a pretty amazing catch! You just slammed that sucker right outta the air, like she weighed nothing!" She laughed, and it carried gently through the air.

ooc- I'm soooo sorry about posting so late!! I have been really inactive. Sorry!! D:

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[rainfur]

XXWolfwhiserXX

Wolfwhisker couldn't help but laugh at her comment. He didn't get much of that talk very often, so hearing it was something else. He didn't mind the talk, for it amused him. Then again, Wolfwhiser found himself a cat that was so very easily amused. Sometimes, it would get the best of him, but lately, he seemed to grasp on top of things.

"Compared to me, she DOES weigh nothing!" He chuckled with his deep rumble bursting through the forest. "You didn't do so bad yourself, moving at lightning speed. Even a rabbit would have lost the race!" He exclaimed. He wasn't sure if he was exsagerating or not, because to him, thats what it did look like. She was nothing but a blur beside him.

He grasped the bird in his jaws, trying to find a simple place to hide it. Prey like what they caught was hard to find, which meant that there was a lot of animals willing to do anything to steal it. Even other clans. And after that Boulderclan cat randomly came in, he wasn't going to trust outsiders for a while.

OOC: tis fine. Don't worry bout it