you've left me here with all this on my mind [open

[fable]

SMOKESTAR & ANIMUS

---- as usual, there was a scowl on her face as she looked out across the moorland. sure, it was sunny, and the wind was calm, and it wasn't snowing. but that didn't change the fact that her tail was freezing off. she should be used to it by now, especially since she had reached the three year mark. but sometimes, her mind didn't want to relax when chilled. relaxing didn't always come with the job of being a leader. the weather wasn't the only thing to cause smokestar's defiant mood.

a fool was crossing the moorland. not a clan cat; no, definitely not. this was a rogue, or a loner, but she supposed it would be a rogue because he was bothering her. rogues tended to bother the clans, while loners just kept to themselves. whatever they did, though, they were all fools and scum. she snorted as she watched the large, dark furred tom with his indifferent movement that spoke of arrogance; didn't he know he was in clan territory? he was in the presence of his rulers, the ones who would decide his fate. sleetclan had yet to find a sacrifice for the gathering, and with the full moon fast approaching, she couldn't just let this tom wander freely through her territory.

far from smokestar's position, the dark brown tom's thoughts were on other matters. the clans were not important to him. what was important was to find his father. to find cats who would help him. he doubted the clan cats; especially these cats who murdered his own kind for no reason other than cowardice; would ever help him. no, he would have to find the other clans, or perhaps a rogue group somewhere outside of their territories. his father was nearby. the thought sent hate and excitement tingling through the tips of his claws. wouldn't he enjoy watching the tom's life bleeding from his throat; the look of defeat in the eyes of the one who had wounded his mother.

it was an injustice of disgust that brought the tom to his conclusion. alka must died. his friends must die. he had already killed one. but he was no match for all of them alone. that's why he needed help.

"trespasser," a tight mew brought his head swinging around, and he stared in surprise at the smoky tortoiseshell she-cat standing in front of him. she was a scrawny thing, with green eyes that were as pale and different in her coat as anything else about her. his ears flicked. it was obvious from her use of the word "trespasser" that she was a clan cat, and judging from her scent, his suspicion was confirmed.

being the charming tom that he was, he let his tail flicker lightly around him, his eyes showing that light emotion that he usually buried beneath his indifference.

"trespasser? oh, you must believe boundaries are something that matters to all. certainly if you traveled and scented some ugly stench somewhere along the way, you wouldn't stop, would you? and then you ran in to an arrogant fur ball who acted all smug and proud to be... what do you call yourself? a descended of some group of cats who you plead and whimper to for mercy like kits?" he sneered, teeth bared in an instant.

this was a sleetclan cat. they were a blood clan, and he could tell by the look in her eyes that she was not going to let him go. he unsheathed his claws, a gesture that meant try me in the mind of any cat.

smokestar's eyes narrowed with outrage. how dared this tom judge her and treat her so disrespectfully; how dare he talk about memoryclan like that! it took all of her self control not to hurl herself at the tom and rip her open with her ready claws. she could see the light of battle in his eyes. he was ready to fight.

'beg!" she spat in disgust. "sleetclan never begs, fool! we are no rogue or loner cowards- we don't flee from the right path of hardship and destiny," she curled her lips back in return, and the two sized each other up in definition of jaws.

"me? a coward? me, who fights alone and hunts alone, never knowing if i will be attacked by groups of cats, or living without fear of being alone, more of a coward than those who desperately need another to make them feel safe? don't be so conceited, clan cat. only rabbits live in burrows," the tom growled smoothly.

smokestar's eyes flashed with rage. "how dare you, mouse!" she hissed. "arrogant like all rogues; brainless and wrongly proud until the end."

animus felt a smug satisfaction at having riled her up, but her words sent a pang of rage through him. "you may defile me and my kind all you like, she-cat. but don't you dare take me for a fool," a warning growl rumbled in his throat and the two cats paced around each other, waiting for the storm to break.


/// horrible post, i'm sorry. i didn't really have muse to begin with!