Intruding

[♫Serenesong♪]

Serenesong remained emotionless at Syn's comment on her name; it wasn't necessary to reply and so she didn't. She felt this conversation was awkward, not in the way that is associated with self-consciousness, but just because a minute ago they had been fighting seemingly to the death and now here they were, sitting and introducing themselves. Liking each others' names. That was weird.

"No," the white deputy said, thinking. "WindClan doesn't want your prey, we just want to be left alone." She paused, trying to think of an idea to offer over his. What I really want is to keep BloodClan off our territory. But if I tell him to go back and tell all his friends that WindClan is strong, and not to pick on them - will he keep his word? How much trust can I put on a promise of a BloodClan cat? Moons of growing up with the clans told her none. The anti-clan foxdung were not to be trusted.

Serenesong decided to continue down a slightly different path. "And it would be wise not to come back, for your own good, because I'm most definitely not the best fighter in my clan; probably one of the worst." That was a lie; but it was partially opinion. The she-cat needn't mention her deputyship, nor that her fighting skills were mediocre to good in her clan. "You got lucky this time around." Serenesong didn't know if she would be convincing enough, but her upbringing told her this path was the way to go; much better than relying on the 'rotten promises' of a cat with backgrounds like Synkah.
[/size]

[Synkah]

Perhaps what made Synkah so strange, so unlike other cats, was that he could separate the feelings of hostility associated with a fight from things like talking. Synkah was a cat who, above all else, valued speech. He didn't talk just to talk, but quite often manipulated others by talking.

His intelligence was what also made him untrustworthy, even to those in BloodClan. Nobody could trust Synkah, and, for those who had wandered the streets long enough, knew to avoid him. Still, there was always something strangely captivating about him as well. He had a way of making himself seem like he wanted nothing but the best for whoever he was talking to, and also a way of melting suspicions.

"Oh? You speak for the whole of your clan?" he asked, tilting his head to the side. He blinked. "You're sure you don't want any prey in return? I would be more than happy to repay you for your loss." He looked up the rise to where the rabbit was. He couldn't help but wish he could take it back with him.

"Well, it wasn't wise of me this time, either, was it?" Syn smirked. "I did get lucky, but I don't understand why you'd worry about 'my own good,'" he stood up, unable to hide a wince of pain as he felt the deep gash in his shoulder pull where it had begun to scab over.

"I'm sure you find some satisfaction in this, eh?" He decided not to stretch. "I'll see you again, Serenesong," he walked up to her until, if he had turned his head, his whiskers might have brushed against her. He looked at her, his yellow-green eyes unreadable.

"Feel free to take me up on my offer anytime," he said as he turned away. "I'd be glad to oblige."

He dared to let the tip of his tail brush her shoulder as he walked past her, not totally sure that she wouldn't leap up and latch her teeth into it.

[♫Serenesong♪]

Serenesong hadn't been chosen as deputy for her fighting skills, and she was well aware of that. If Charredstar had wanted brawn, he'd have chosen Blazewing, the biggest and one of the best fighters in all of the four clans. No, her best guess at this honor presented to her was probably her battle strategies, or her speed and sharp tongue.

"Yes, I speak for my entire clan, and can do so confidently." Serenesong replied, standing her ground. "If you're so keen and able to promptly 'repay' me with what, I assume, is equal to what you have taken from us, why bother come and take it in the first place? Like getting your fur ripped out?" The she-cat sneered faintly. The wind picked up again, howling vaguely in the deputy's ear fur, flinging her fur around her body and making her seem slightly bigger than she was in reality.

The gales hid her sourly amused twitch of whiskers. "Ha, worry for your good? I could hardly care less. Just thought I might... inform you - WindClan is stronger than ever, so find someone more your match to pick on." The clan cat's claws slid out suddenly in reaction to Synkah's step towards her, the automatic guard mode she had put herself on not faded in the least. Her green eyes glinted in still-present suspicion, unsure of what he wanted or meant by padding up this close.

"See me again?" Serenesong replied as Synkah began to walk away, the back of her subconcious mind dismissing the touch of his tail as a mistake by the wind. "Well, we can be sure it won't be on WindClan territory, can't we?" She hadn't meant it as a question, and it didn't come out sounding like one. Taking a pawstep forwards, the she-cat decided to escort the BloodClan cat and see him to the border.[/size]

[Synkah]

"Really?" Syn angled an ear towards the she-cat. "But you're not the leader, right? Leaders get that ending to their name... I forget what it was. Someone told me about it once, though." Syn twitched his tail as he continued thinking, but he let the thought pass as Serenesong pointed out the flaw in his statement.

"It was worth getting my fur ripped out by you," he said with a smirk, his eyes narrowed deviously. He tactfully avoided answering her question. Plus, he figured she would try to rip some more fur out of him, or just scoff, or both.

The wind continued to howl in his ears and he wondered how this cat, any cat, could stand it. He was surprised that she didn't attack his tail.

"Of course, 'see you again,'" Syn replied over his shoulder. "No, I don't think 'we' can be sure." Although he had heard the hostility in her voice, the not-so-veiled threat, he had taken it as a simple question and answered it with a simple answer and a smile.

He angled his ears back and then glanced over his shoulder to see that she was following him. His eyes narrowed and as he looked ahead, he ran his tongue around his jaws as if he had just swallowed something particularly tasty. Not counting the rabbit, his thoughts were only on the white WindClan she-cat.

[♫Serenesong♪]

[Sorry it took me so long to respond]
"No, I'm not. But I know my clan well enough." Seren replied. Her eyes narrowed from behind Synkah in response to his next statement, her tail twitching irritably. A low hiss escaped her jaws, matching that of the wind in the grass so well that she wasn't sure if the other cat noticed. The she-cat offered no other response.

The walk became stonily silent, with the exception of the howling wind and whistling grass. The moonlight began to dance - bright one heartbeat, then dim again as a cloud passed overhead. Serenesong didn't notice the rain until one fat drop plopped onto her forehead, wetness seeping down into her eyes. "Let's get a move on." she hissed. They were almost at Fourtrees, and once there she'd let Syn navigate his own way through ThunderClan and RiverClan territory. Once she'd gotten rid of him, she could dash back and hope to beat the heavy part of the rainstorm.[/size]

[Synkah]

Synkah was a bit dissapointed when she didn't really talk anymore. He thought he heard her hiss behind him, but he couldn't be sure. The wind was howling over the moorland, but he wouldn't put it past her. His ears were back to listen to Serenesong, if he could. He felt like the wind was sapping every last ounce of warmth from his small body.

He looked up to see clouds massing and growled quietly to himself. "I hate rain," he mumbled.

It wasn't long before rain began to fall. He hoped it was a light shower and not a downpour. He couldn't stand getting soaked and there would be no cover until he reached his tire. He would be frozen by then.

"Certainly," Syn replied, beginning to trot, but wincing at the pain in his shoulder.

"Grah! You had to try to tear me in half, didn't you?" His voice was surprisingly light, although his eyes were narrowed.

His whole body ached and stung from the wounds he had received. Syn knew very well that he deserved them, but he still wasn't thrilled with being slowed up by the deep wound on his shoulder. Not only that, he didn't want Miss Serenesong to get the pleasure of seeing him in pain.

He could smell the border, and he slowed to a walk. "Well, I suppose I can navigate my way home from here." He said, looking up at the trees. "Don't miss me too much, okay?" Syn flicked the tip of his tail. He looked over at Serenesong with his yellow-green eyes before turning away and trotting across the border into ThunderClan territory.

ooc: Maybe I'll get Owlshadow up tomorrow so we can kinda branch off Synkah intruding. Then Syn will come back one day to see Serenesong again. x)

[♫Serenesong♪]

"And I will again if you return." Serenesong growled, wincing as another fat raindrop plopped onto her torn flank. But I certainly hope I won't have to. she added silently to herself.
The white she-cat came to a stop at the edge of Fourtrees, and was reminded of the gathering that was coming up soon. She watched Synkah start off and throw a sentence over his shoulder. "You needn't worry!" Serenesong replied, eying the black tom as he made his way into ThunderClan territory. As the end of his tail-tip disappeared, the WindClan deputy also turned and headed for home, thinking of what she'd tell her clanmates when they saw her soaked and injured. Hah, maybe I'll tell them that I was confronted by a tom cat twice my size, with claws the size of mouse tails. The rain pelted down harder, and Serenesong felt the increased sting of her wounds as she picked up speed. Oh well, I'll just tell them it was a BloodClan warrior that I fought, chased home, and leave out the details. She decided.
[/size]

Okay, cool. Any particular way you want to tie Owl in with this? Or just have it as a separate RP? Lol does Syn have like a crush on her? XD

[Synkah]

OOC: lol. Well, I was thinking Owlshadow could have been out hunting and he can run into her. And yes, Syn does. But he's Synkah. He's a crazy little cat. x) He doesn't take no for an answer, either. He'll keep being a pest until Serene just shreds him to pieces. lol

[♫Featherdance♪]

Haha okay. So you can post here when you're ready, then.

[Owlshadow]

Owlshadow had been out hunting when he had noticed the storm brewing. It didn't bother him, he was used to storms. He didn't particularly enjoy being soaked, but he wasn't in any hurry to head back to camp without anything to put on the fresh-kill pile.

He had managed to catch a young rabbit just as the first drops of rain began to splatter on the ground. He twitched his whiskers as he looked up at the dark sky. A fat drop of water landed square between his eyes. He flicked his ears and shook his head before lowering his head to pick up the dead rabbit.

As he carried his prey back to camp he noticed the pale fur of his deputy, Serenesong. Owlshadow lifted his tail in greeting and cut a path to intercept her.

Setting the rabbit down, Owlshadow ducked his head as he flicked a piece of fur out his mouth. He cleared his throat as he looked back at Serenesong. He noticed how ruffled her fur looked, as well as the smell of blood.

"What happened?" He asked, his fur beginning to bristle. "It wasn’t ThunderClan, was it?" His voice had the harsh edge of a growl to it.

[♫Serenesong♪]

[OOC: Just a question - is this text too small? I just realized that it might be more comfortable if I wrote the normal size? Or is it okay?]

Serenesong hurried home, ignoring the sharp stings of the rain on her cuts. Too bad this evening's hunt hadn't resulted in any product, much thanks to Synkah. A flash of moving grey caught her eye, and she saw a cat making his way towards her. A heartbeat later she recognized him as Owlshadow. The she-cat changed course slightly, heading in his direction. She mimicked the grey warrior and raising her own tail in greeting.

"No, it was BloodClan." The deputy replied. "I chased a tom out of our borders - he'd caught one of our rabbits." Serenesong realized that she hadn't really 'chased' Syn out, but rather walked him out. She pushed the thought away. "We'll increase the patrol around FourTrees - that's where most of them come from."

Tension was prickling around clan borders now - and with leaffall full in and leafbare imminently close, hostility was on the rise. Every clan closely monitored their borders, tense for an attack if a warrior of an opposing clan got even close to the division line. "Nice rabbit." Serenesong commented, glancing at the sodden but relatively plump fresh-kill Owlshadow had in his jaws. "Maybe we should head back to camp before this rain really starts to pick up."[/size]

[Owlshadow]

OOC: No, not at all. I have no problem at all reading it. ^^

Owlshadow bit back a growl and instead just snorted. "Filthy Twoleg scum," he spat. "Well I'm sure you gave him a lesson he won't soon forget." Owlshadow nodded his narrow head and drops of rain dripped off of the long for on his cheeks and chin.

He wondered why a BloodClan cat would wander all the way out to WindClan territory when ThunderClan, RiverClan, and ShadowClan were all closer to Twolegplace.

"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea." He agreed with her idea to step up borders. He didn't want to have any more of those disgusting cats stealing more prey from them. With leaf-bare coming, they couldn't afford to lose prey to those sorry excuses for cats.

"Hm? Oh, yeah. Thanks." Owlshadow nodded. "Yeah. Plus, I'm sure nobody will want my rabbit if it gets too much wetter." He prodded it with a claw before lowering his head and picking it up. He twitched his ears, ready to follow Serenesong back to camp.

[♫Serenesong♪]

OOC: Sorry for delay. >< Busy week. (Added later: And sorry for the short post. Low on muse)

Serenesong waited for a moment, then realized that Owlshadow was letting her walk first. The rain drizzled on, growing gradually more and more dense. The hills looked dark and ominous in this weather, and the white she-cat picked up the pace slightly. Gotta see the medicine cat. she thought to herself, wincing as an especially large drop splashed full-on into a wound. She couldn't help but wonder about the odd ending to the battle with Synkah - he was smart; gotten away with that rabbit by exchanging some of his fur for hers.

"That's a good point." She said a little suddenly, then quickly added, "I mean, what you said about why BloodClan would come this far instead of just raid ThunderClan or RiverClan like they normally do. Maybe the other clans are getting hit by the coming of leafbare harder than we are? I dunno, just a speculation."
[/size]

[Owlshadow]

Owlshadow picked up the rabbit once Serenesong began to walk towards camp. He flicked his when the deputy suddenly said that he had made a good point. Owlshadow narrowed his eyes quizzically, but then Serenesong added what had been a good point.

He wanted to reply, but the rabbit in his jaws didn't allow him much room to talk. The lithe gray tom just nodded his head awkwardly and tried to ignore the rain dripping down his whiskers.

The sight of the camp made his yellow-orange eyes glitter. He was starving on top of being soaked. He briefly set the rabbit down and blinked as a drop landed on his muzzle. He shook his head, flinging water off of his feathered cheek fur.

"We could share this rabbit after you report the BloodClan intruder," he said. "I'd like to hear a little bit more about it."

Since his brother Finchpaw had died when they were both apprentices, Owlshadow was usually rather morose and taciturn. He was a loyal cat, but preferred to keep to himself. When he did spend time with the other cats, it was usually with the senior warriors.

He doubted he would ever have an apprentice of his own, and would be glad to never have to train anyone. He didn't have the patience for an apprentice.