Post by crouchingxtiger on Jan 9, 2010 11:01:12 GMT -5
Moonlight glittered on the surface of the lake, casting lights onto the trees and the stones. A silver fish rippled beneath the water, reflecting the lunar glow. The pebbles were washed silver like the fish, so much different from their normal greyish brown. The bright emerald summer leaves sparkled and the grass glimmered. It was a beautiful night. The almost silent scurryings of prey echoed in the forest beyond, unnoticed by anything but themselves. Small crunches on the leaves were the only other sound, a noise that could only have been made by small, kittish paws. Small, white kittish paws. The gentle breeze ruffled her fur as she trotted along, smearing together the spatters of white and grey. Blue-green eyes glowed in the darkness as she emerged from the trees, claws clicking softly against the stones. She padded forward and sat down, letting the crisp water caress her toes. Such a peaceful environment... Her favorite kind.
This was not her first nighttime outing. It had happened several times before. She had felt an urge to move instead of lying motionless in the nursery, to smell the fresh scent of the forest rather than the stuffy, warm, and milky fragrance of the den. So she crawled away from her mother's belly, away from her siblings' warm pelts. The fresh air had greeted her with a small amount of wind to flow through her thick pelt. She welcomed it with a swish of her tail before padding around camp, silently placing each paw on the ground with utmost care. The cool air washed along her scent glands, clearing her head and lightening her heart. Truly, she would rather be up and outside rather than cooped up in a nursery any day. But her travels were not untroubled. As always, a guard was posted in camp, to keep the Clan safe from enemies and predators. Tonight, that guard was a warrior named Hopeshine.
The kit's sneakiness couldn't possibly trick a warrior's tracking skills. Especially the Clan's star tracker. Hopeshine's ears pricked and she sniffed, opening her mouth nd letting the breeze slide against her scent glands. Her golden eyes losed for a moment and her face set itself in an expression of exasperation.
"Kit, come out. I know you're there." Hopeshine whispered, reopening her eyes and pinpointing Greykit's position. The kit stood motionless, her heart vibrating in her tiny chest. She couldn't let Hopeshine find her. She'd be in trouble. True, the pale golden she-cat was more gentle and lenient than some other warriors, but that didn't mean that Graykit wouldn't be punished. Her flanks heaved and she knew that Hopeshine's ears could probably hear every breath, and she was surprised that her thundering heart hadn't woken the whole camp already. Hopeshine shook her head and slid toward the clump of ferns where Graykit was hiding; the little fae slithered down onto her belly. The warrior pushed through the ferns and frowned, thingying her head. "And why are you out here all alone, little kit?" the she-cat meowed tersely, narrowing her eyes at the kit.
"I...It's st-stuffy in the n-nursery and I wanted t-to go for a w-walk!" Graykit mewled, sitting up straight and trying her best to sound defiant, but still trembling. Hopeshine wouldn't punish her... Would she? But then Graykit noticed the humorous gleam in the young queen's eyes.
"A walk? Really? Not hunting or patrolling or whatever else it is you kits all fantasize doing?" Hopeshine meowed, letting out a little mrow of laughter. The she-cat didn't bother to recognize the kit, she didn't go in the nursery often. She didn't know that she was Shystar's daughter. The little kit couldn't do any real harm, after all, surely she was clever enough not to go into a fox's den or jump into the lake. "Fine. You go on your walk. I'll be waiting for you, and you'd better stay out of trouble and be back before dawn." Hopeshine stepped back, a crooked smile threatening the edges of her lips as the kit crawled out of the ferns, her tail fluffed up and her eyes blazing. She watched as the kit broke into a run, scampering through the camp entrance and dissappearing.
The four sets of small silver claws tore at the leaves as she sprinted away from camp, ears flat against her head and belly brushing the ground. At last the fear began to leave her and was replaced by excitement. She had gotten through the guard! Possibilities were now endless. She could do anything she wanted, just so long as she returned before sunrise. And of course she would. It would be easy. She would have an adventure. None of her siblings would. Just her. Just how she liked it. She slowed down and decided that she ought to enjoy the time she had alone. With four siblings, she didn't get much time to herself. So she conceded to observe her surroundings... A chirp of a nightbird there... A squeak of a mouse here... The rustle of the leaves in the wind and the distant slapping of the lake on the shore. So many things to hear... So many things to see.
The moonlight highlighted her pelt, creating spots of silver light on the white and the grey, beautiful highlights that would be gone within a few hours. She swished her fluffy tail and padded on, relishing the feel of the cool leaves against her soft pink pads. This was how all the world should be. Almost silent, beautiful, pristine and crisp. She lifted her face to look at the stars. They were merely specks of light from here, beautiful and mysterious. But she knew... They were the warriors of StarClan, hiding from her view. But they never faded, even if you could only see them on nights such as these. They were always there, guiding the medicine cats and their clans. But Graypaw would always have to get their messages secondhand, through the clan's medicine cat. For this little fae had no desire to spend her life smelling the stench of sickness and gathering sickly sweet herbs.
She breathed a sigh of happiness as she reached the shore of the lake. Beautiful. Just like the rest of the forest. Glimmering. Shining. Perfect. Like a star close up. She sat down where she stood, the water gently rubbing against her paws. Cool and soft, like her mother's tongue but better. Softer, smoother, and more comfortable. She scooted forward, submerging her forepaws in the minute waves. They were wet now. It was not uncomfortable, merely unfamiliar. She had never touched water like this before in her entire life. It felt good, it cleared her head and soothed her mind, unlike the chaos of the nursery or the actiity of camp. All was peaceful and to her taste. Yes, of course she enjoyed playing with her littermates, but their craziness sometimes annoyed her. She wanted to be brave and strong. She wanted to be like the great leaders of the clans. She wanted to fight and hunt and maybe even bear kits for her clan. And she knew that determination and skill were all it took to do that.
Graykit slid forward more. Now her hindpaws were in the water. She stood up, her short, fluffy tail sticking straight up in the air. She watched curiously as her fur fanned ou around her legs, feathery and weightless. She lifted a forepaw. Her fur was now slicked down and dripping. Not nearly as beautiful. She replaced it in the water before pressing forwad. Up to her belly now. It was cold against her skin, and she shivered. Her tail swished against the water, creating ripples that fanned out around her. A sudden wave slapped against her chest, soaking her face in cold water. And then, as she spluttered and coughed, the water pulled back, dragging her paws from beneath her. A squeak escaped her before she was completely submerged, staring around at a different world.
The water was cool and green, floating around her and beneath her. She was completely weightless. She was pulled further out into the lake, and darkness began to loom below. Reeds floated up from the bottom, stroking her paws as silver fish darted around her. Smallbits of dirt and debris moved with the current, as did she. Her entire pelt of fluffy fur floated around her, and every noise that the undrwater creatures made echoed in her waterlogged eardrums. She opened her mouth and lakewater flooded into it, sweet and cool. But she couldn't breathe. Flailing her paws franticly, she propelled herself to the surface, where her head broke out into the air, which had never felt better on her aching lungs. Her paws splashed around her as she spun, trying to figure out which direction home was.
There! A familiar shore. It was closest, although she was near the center of the lake. Her paws pressed against the water, pushing her small body through it. It was slow and tiring work, and she thought she would drown when she was half way there. Her lungs stung from the water that kept splashing down her throat and her throat itself burned or the same reason. But she continued on. For what about her dreams:? If she drowned in the lake beforeeven becoming an apprentice, she would never be able to be brave and strong and loyal for her Clan. She had to keep going. So despite her exhaustion, she continued to swim through the water until her legs felt like they were going to fall off and her entire body ached. At last her pads scraped the pebbles and she collapsed, shaking.
Water dribbled from her mouth as she gasped for air, hey eyes closed. She wanted to sleep right there, right then. But the once so sweet breeze was now a cruel wind, ripping through her fur and forcing her to heave herself to her paws. She looked up at the sky. Hints of dawn were appearing on the horizon, great slashes of gold and purple. She tottered for a moment, then realized what was happened. It was almost sunrise. She scampered away from the bank, finding and followng her own scent trail back to camp. This time she didn't stop to appreciate the sounds of the coming morning or the beauty of the light on the leaves. She stumbled into camp, breathing heavily, to ind Hopeshine staring at her in dismay.
"What on earth have you been doing, kit? I thought you were more sensible than this!" Hopeshine hissed angrily as she saw Graykit's drenched fur, stricking up in spikes and dirty from the lakewater. "Clean yourself before going back to sleep! Now!" And so Graykit plopped down on her haunches and began running her tongue along her fur, drying and smoothing every single hair. At last Hopeshine nodded approvingly, and Graykit tottered back to the nursery before slipping through a hole in the wall and padding into Shystar's den. Her mother lifted her head sleepily as her daughter came in thrrough the entrance.
"Graykit? What were you doing out there?" the queen murmured to Graykit as she curled up in the curve of her belly. Her tone was splashed with concern as she stared at her daughter.
"I couldn't sleep earlier so I went outside..." The little she-cat mumbled sleepily, ending the last word with a yawn. "Can I go to sleep now? I'm tired." And with that she laid her head down on her paws and closed her blue-green eyes. Her mother sniffed at her suspiciously, eyes still blazing with worry and also fury; Graykit was not to show herself to the rest of the clan! Her eyes widened as she detected the scent of the lake clinging to her daughter's pelt, as well as a very recent wash. The little kit had obviously gotten herself into much mischief over the night. But now she was sound asleep and safe, and no one would suspect their secret, so none of it really mattered.
This was not her first nighttime outing. It had happened several times before. She had felt an urge to move instead of lying motionless in the nursery, to smell the fresh scent of the forest rather than the stuffy, warm, and milky fragrance of the den. So she crawled away from her mother's belly, away from her siblings' warm pelts. The fresh air had greeted her with a small amount of wind to flow through her thick pelt. She welcomed it with a swish of her tail before padding around camp, silently placing each paw on the ground with utmost care. The cool air washed along her scent glands, clearing her head and lightening her heart. Truly, she would rather be up and outside rather than cooped up in a nursery any day. But her travels were not untroubled. As always, a guard was posted in camp, to keep the Clan safe from enemies and predators. Tonight, that guard was a warrior named Hopeshine.
The kit's sneakiness couldn't possibly trick a warrior's tracking skills. Especially the Clan's star tracker. Hopeshine's ears pricked and she sniffed, opening her mouth nd letting the breeze slide against her scent glands. Her golden eyes losed for a moment and her face set itself in an expression of exasperation.
"Kit, come out. I know you're there." Hopeshine whispered, reopening her eyes and pinpointing Greykit's position. The kit stood motionless, her heart vibrating in her tiny chest. She couldn't let Hopeshine find her. She'd be in trouble. True, the pale golden she-cat was more gentle and lenient than some other warriors, but that didn't mean that Graykit wouldn't be punished. Her flanks heaved and she knew that Hopeshine's ears could probably hear every breath, and she was surprised that her thundering heart hadn't woken the whole camp already. Hopeshine shook her head and slid toward the clump of ferns where Graykit was hiding; the little fae slithered down onto her belly. The warrior pushed through the ferns and frowned, thingying her head. "And why are you out here all alone, little kit?" the she-cat meowed tersely, narrowing her eyes at the kit.
"I...It's st-stuffy in the n-nursery and I wanted t-to go for a w-walk!" Graykit mewled, sitting up straight and trying her best to sound defiant, but still trembling. Hopeshine wouldn't punish her... Would she? But then Graykit noticed the humorous gleam in the young queen's eyes.
"A walk? Really? Not hunting or patrolling or whatever else it is you kits all fantasize doing?" Hopeshine meowed, letting out a little mrow of laughter. The she-cat didn't bother to recognize the kit, she didn't go in the nursery often. She didn't know that she was Shystar's daughter. The little kit couldn't do any real harm, after all, surely she was clever enough not to go into a fox's den or jump into the lake. "Fine. You go on your walk. I'll be waiting for you, and you'd better stay out of trouble and be back before dawn." Hopeshine stepped back, a crooked smile threatening the edges of her lips as the kit crawled out of the ferns, her tail fluffed up and her eyes blazing. She watched as the kit broke into a run, scampering through the camp entrance and dissappearing.
The four sets of small silver claws tore at the leaves as she sprinted away from camp, ears flat against her head and belly brushing the ground. At last the fear began to leave her and was replaced by excitement. She had gotten through the guard! Possibilities were now endless. She could do anything she wanted, just so long as she returned before sunrise. And of course she would. It would be easy. She would have an adventure. None of her siblings would. Just her. Just how she liked it. She slowed down and decided that she ought to enjoy the time she had alone. With four siblings, she didn't get much time to herself. So she conceded to observe her surroundings... A chirp of a nightbird there... A squeak of a mouse here... The rustle of the leaves in the wind and the distant slapping of the lake on the shore. So many things to hear... So many things to see.
The moonlight highlighted her pelt, creating spots of silver light on the white and the grey, beautiful highlights that would be gone within a few hours. She swished her fluffy tail and padded on, relishing the feel of the cool leaves against her soft pink pads. This was how all the world should be. Almost silent, beautiful, pristine and crisp. She lifted her face to look at the stars. They were merely specks of light from here, beautiful and mysterious. But she knew... They were the warriors of StarClan, hiding from her view. But they never faded, even if you could only see them on nights such as these. They were always there, guiding the medicine cats and their clans. But Graypaw would always have to get their messages secondhand, through the clan's medicine cat. For this little fae had no desire to spend her life smelling the stench of sickness and gathering sickly sweet herbs.
She breathed a sigh of happiness as she reached the shore of the lake. Beautiful. Just like the rest of the forest. Glimmering. Shining. Perfect. Like a star close up. She sat down where she stood, the water gently rubbing against her paws. Cool and soft, like her mother's tongue but better. Softer, smoother, and more comfortable. She scooted forward, submerging her forepaws in the minute waves. They were wet now. It was not uncomfortable, merely unfamiliar. She had never touched water like this before in her entire life. It felt good, it cleared her head and soothed her mind, unlike the chaos of the nursery or the actiity of camp. All was peaceful and to her taste. Yes, of course she enjoyed playing with her littermates, but their craziness sometimes annoyed her. She wanted to be brave and strong. She wanted to be like the great leaders of the clans. She wanted to fight and hunt and maybe even bear kits for her clan. And she knew that determination and skill were all it took to do that.
Graykit slid forward more. Now her hindpaws were in the water. She stood up, her short, fluffy tail sticking straight up in the air. She watched curiously as her fur fanned ou around her legs, feathery and weightless. She lifted a forepaw. Her fur was now slicked down and dripping. Not nearly as beautiful. She replaced it in the water before pressing forwad. Up to her belly now. It was cold against her skin, and she shivered. Her tail swished against the water, creating ripples that fanned out around her. A sudden wave slapped against her chest, soaking her face in cold water. And then, as she spluttered and coughed, the water pulled back, dragging her paws from beneath her. A squeak escaped her before she was completely submerged, staring around at a different world.
The water was cool and green, floating around her and beneath her. She was completely weightless. She was pulled further out into the lake, and darkness began to loom below. Reeds floated up from the bottom, stroking her paws as silver fish darted around her. Smallbits of dirt and debris moved with the current, as did she. Her entire pelt of fluffy fur floated around her, and every noise that the undrwater creatures made echoed in her waterlogged eardrums. She opened her mouth and lakewater flooded into it, sweet and cool. But she couldn't breathe. Flailing her paws franticly, she propelled herself to the surface, where her head broke out into the air, which had never felt better on her aching lungs. Her paws splashed around her as she spun, trying to figure out which direction home was.
There! A familiar shore. It was closest, although she was near the center of the lake. Her paws pressed against the water, pushing her small body through it. It was slow and tiring work, and she thought she would drown when she was half way there. Her lungs stung from the water that kept splashing down her throat and her throat itself burned or the same reason. But she continued on. For what about her dreams:? If she drowned in the lake beforeeven becoming an apprentice, she would never be able to be brave and strong and loyal for her Clan. She had to keep going. So despite her exhaustion, she continued to swim through the water until her legs felt like they were going to fall off and her entire body ached. At last her pads scraped the pebbles and she collapsed, shaking.
Water dribbled from her mouth as she gasped for air, hey eyes closed. She wanted to sleep right there, right then. But the once so sweet breeze was now a cruel wind, ripping through her fur and forcing her to heave herself to her paws. She looked up at the sky. Hints of dawn were appearing on the horizon, great slashes of gold and purple. She tottered for a moment, then realized what was happened. It was almost sunrise. She scampered away from the bank, finding and followng her own scent trail back to camp. This time she didn't stop to appreciate the sounds of the coming morning or the beauty of the light on the leaves. She stumbled into camp, breathing heavily, to ind Hopeshine staring at her in dismay.
"What on earth have you been doing, kit? I thought you were more sensible than this!" Hopeshine hissed angrily as she saw Graykit's drenched fur, stricking up in spikes and dirty from the lakewater. "Clean yourself before going back to sleep! Now!" And so Graykit plopped down on her haunches and began running her tongue along her fur, drying and smoothing every single hair. At last Hopeshine nodded approvingly, and Graykit tottered back to the nursery before slipping through a hole in the wall and padding into Shystar's den. Her mother lifted her head sleepily as her daughter came in thrrough the entrance.
"Graykit? What were you doing out there?" the queen murmured to Graykit as she curled up in the curve of her belly. Her tone was splashed with concern as she stared at her daughter.
"I couldn't sleep earlier so I went outside..." The little she-cat mumbled sleepily, ending the last word with a yawn. "Can I go to sleep now? I'm tired." And with that she laid her head down on her paws and closed her blue-green eyes. Her mother sniffed at her suspiciously, eyes still blazing with worry and also fury; Graykit was not to show herself to the rest of the clan! Her eyes widened as she detected the scent of the lake clinging to her daughter's pelt, as well as a very recent wash. The little kit had obviously gotten herself into much mischief over the night. But now she was sound asleep and safe, and no one would suspect their secret, so none of it really mattered.
