i'm not much a poet_[open]

[DEVIANCE``]

ashstar

"Come on, Ashfoot! It'll be fun!" The light brown tabby smiled down at her accomplice, shaking her bum, and waited for him to join her. Ashfoot looked up at her cautiously. "Are you sure, Cougarfang?" The small feline laughed brightly and nodded. "Yes! No hurry before anyone sees!" Ashfoot shrugged, and jumped upon the rocks with his friend.

As he bounded after her, she turned back and smiled. "I'm not much a poet," Ashfoot grinned. "But a criminal." They shared a laugh, and as they were laughing, they didn't realize that they had crossed the border into SunburstClan. Ashfoot stopped laughing and looked at Cougarfang with horror. "Behind you!" But it was too late. Cougarfang was already fighting a tortoiseshell feline.

He ran after her, but was stopped by another cat. One with spots. He hissed and clawed at the other tomcat, and after a few moments managed to get away from him. He looked around for Cougarfang. "Cougarfang!" A faint reply came back, and he ran after her. He jumped onto the grass and ran over to his friend, who was still fighting that cat. He snarled and jumped on the tortoiseshell. He pulled her off, and spat. She and her clan mate growled. "Get off of our territory!" Ashfoot narrowed his eyes and ignored them. He turned to look at Cougarfang.

"Cougarfang?" He asked, voice tight with panic. She smiled at him. "Huh?" She coughed and turned on her side. Tears welled up in Ashfoot's eyes. "Don't leave me, just... hold on, okay?" The two SunburstClanners looked at each other and bounded away. "Ashfoot. I love you, don't let anything happen to you, ok?" "Don't talk like that!" He wailed. The small feline gave one final jerk before closing her eyes forever...

Ashstar woke with a start. He jumped up and looked around, eyes narrowed. When he realized he was alone he dropped to the floor in defeat. Sighing, he shook his head. How many times did he have to go through this pain? Shaking his head again, he sat up and looked around. Closing his eyes he could see Cougarfang, but when he opened them she was just a memory. The leader sighed and picked himself up.

Stepping into the sunlight, he sniffed the air. It seemed fresh and crisp. Ashstar was not looking forward to the harsh air that came in the summer. He was defiantly not looking forward to the gathering. He narrowed his eyes at the thought of seeing those two SunburstClan cats who killed his beloved. If he told her to come home instead of following her, she would be alive. They might even have had kits. Tears formed in the leader's eyes, but he blinked them away quickly.

Padding over to the freshkill pile, he noted that it needed to be re-stocked. He sent out a hunting patrol or two and promised himself to go out soon. He peered around to the nursery and saw kits playing. His heart warmed whenever he saw them. He thought of his own brother, or so his mother said, and his kits. They were apprentices by now. Yawning, he began to groom himself when he heard something. Not bothering to stop, he continued.

Only when the figure was right behind him did he stop. He rolled his eyes and turned around. "Hello."

((really crappy post. sorry. D x))

[felicity!]

Birds chirped in the tree above her. Hissing at them wordlessly, she let the flying creatures know that they were trying to make nests in the wrong tree. No one makes a nest at the top of this Warrior's hollow tree. Her den had been made in one of the hollow trees that happened to still be upright and had been ravaged by birds since the day that she had settled it. Forcing her eyes open was one thing, but letting them crack open to bright light coming from the entrance to the den was another thing. Ugh. It was a sunny day, and in her opinion the sun could stick it where it can't shine. When it rained, that was another thing. Cool, refreshing water pouring down from the sky. Now that was soothing. But, no, that would have to be another day. Slowly and tiredly Specklefur forced herself up and out of her nest. She felt like a giant fluffball, and felt part of the grasses that lined her ness stuck in her tail. Flicking her tail around so that she could remove the irritating substance from her dappled tail, she leaned down and carefully pulled the dried blades from her fur with her dainty mouth. She spat them out with slight disgust and then cleaned her tail some more. Good enough, Specklefur. Good enough. She chided herself silently, and let out her frustration with a sigh. Every once in awhile she could let her anger go that easily, but not too often. Stepping out into the sunshine, she blinked, momentarily blinded by the flash of light. Ugh. Ugh. Ugh. Looking over to the freshkill pile, her eyes caught sight of glittering scales and she stepped quickly over to retrieve what she thought to be a fish. See, something's going right today. Specklefur told herself as she stuck out her paw to push away other pieces of freshkill to reach the darling food she loved so much. In an instant, her eyes recognized the pattern of the scales and she realized it was not an aquatic life form at all, but a reptile. Snake. She hated snake. With another exasperated sigh, she grabbed a small mouse with her mouth and then looked around to find a nice spot to devour the damn thing. She saw a handsome, cream colored cat and recognized him by his blue eyes. Ashstar. Making the decision to go over there and speak to him wasn't hard, but she thought that she might regret it later. Their stubborn natures made them terribly irritable around each other. As she walked up to him, she set the mouse down and murmured with purpose. He had noticed a cat approaching and had stated a simple greeting consisting of one word. Hello. "May I join you? No one else seems to be around and eating alone is quite offensive." Her tone remained even throughout the whole phrase, but her frustrating morning made her put an emphasis on 'quite.' Whatever. Was her only thought.

note: lol, this is terrible. *headdesk*
words: 516, woah, i didn't think i wrote that much.
tags: ashstar (cee), anyone?

[DEVIANCE``]

ashstar

The sun was shining - that was something Ashstar knew he could avoid by simply going back into his den. If only he could, but he didn't want to be known as the leader who ran and hide whenever things got tough. Never before did he run and hide when they did, and he wasn't about to start now.

When he heard the voice of Specklefur, he had to stop himself from cringing. She sounded like the was in a bad mood. The last thing he needed was to listen to a she-cat talk about her problems. Though, he was sure that she wouldn't do that. He tilted his head and stifled another yawn. "May I join you? No one else seems to be around and eating alone is quite offensive." Of course it was.

Ashstar shrugged, and moved over a little. He noticed that she was carrying a mouse with her, and he looked back over to the freshkill pile. He decided to get something for himself, so getting up, he padded over. Looking over his options, he realized that there weren't any fish or birds. He frowned. He had been looking forward to some bird. He picked up a vole instead and padded back over to Specklefur.

He nibbled on the vole, savoring the taste. Everything tasted better when you were hungry, would you not agree? He looked back up at the feline and hoped that she would not go into why she was annoyed, or how she missed the rain, or how she wanted kits, or whatever she-cats talked about. Sure, he knew what most she-cats talked about, but there was one cat who always surprised him. Cougarfang.

Cougarfang was... different. She could have been mistaken for a tomcat, if not for her soft light voice. Ashstar looked down at his paws as a feeling on longing washed over him. He blinked his eyes to make sure that he wasn't going to cry, and then back up at Specklefur. He smiled politely at her. "How are you?"

[felicity!]

She waited as patiently as she could for him to respond, and in the end it was only with a slight shrug. Oh well, better than nothing in this sorry scenario. "Thanks, I guess. Specklefur muttered to the tom after he had made some room for her nearby. Gently, she kicked the mouse over to where she would be sitting and eating. Licking her lips, she went around and plopped her fluffy rear end down on the ground and went to town on the mouse, yet she was did only take polite little bites. She had a mask to maintain in front of her Leader. After a few moments, her eyes flicked to the cream furred tom near her as he made his way away from her. For one moment she thought that he was leaving her there alone and was about to speak up when she noticed that in the same direction he was going there was the freshkill pile. With that, she resumed eating in her awkward (for her) yet polite manner.

After he had come back he spoke up. "How are you?

[/b]" The leader had said with a polite smile. She noticed there was a tad bit of falseness to that smile, but decided to ignore it. "The usual, I'm afraid, as this Clan hasn't had much excitement in awhile." Muttered the hardened, younger female. Reaching down for one of the last bites of mouse, she chewed it thoughtfully before swallowing. "How are you then, Ashstar? I do hope you are getting along better than a bored little she-cat such as my own sorry self." She asked, continuing the odd sort of conversation they were having. It was better than none, of course, just like his simple shrug back in the beginning.

note: shorter than the first, haha.
words: 295...ish, I forgot what the word count said and I don't want to copy and paste it again.
tags: ashstar (cee), anyone![/blockquote][/blockquote][/size]

[aribeari]

Lunarwind opened her eyes when she felt the heat of the sun on her face. Ugh, another dry, hot day., she thought to herself. Orange rays from the morning sun broke through the open patches of bark and colored the ground auburn. "Man, I just can't catch a break this moon, can I?" she said softly to herself in a frustrated tone. She yawned a huge, air consuming yawn and slowly walked out of the den, the sun puncturing her eyes with blinding light. She squinted. Two Ashstar and Specklefur were sprawled up next to each other under an oak tree, having a bit of breakfast.

Look at them flirting., she thought. Specklefur must be yearning for kits now. But who does she think she is, trying to steal Ashstar from me? Lunarwind scowled as she trotted over to the freshkill pile and grabbed her favorite treat-Water Moccasin. Wanting to interrupt, but not wanting to appear jealous of Specklefur, she quickly and quietly went back to the den and ate the snake.

When she was done, Lunarwind tidied up around the den and went outside. Both Ashstar and Specklefur were still chatting under the tree so she decided she'd drink from the smaller pond, away from both of them because she was thirsty. She headed around her tree and found the pond sparkling in the sun. She took a few gulps from the shallow end of the pond and then decided to run. She needed to think.

Across the forest, a hawk rested in a wide mangrove. He kept an eye on his next target:The white and auburn cat galloping away from the pond.

[DEVIANCE``]

ashstar

Sitting there with her made the tomcat slightly uncomfortable. He didn't want to be here, talking to a cat who got on his nerves quite often. "The usual, I'm afraid, as this Clan hasn't had much excitement in awhile." Excitement? Well, that was true. The only news about the clan was that there had been some new warriors and kits. And apprentices, but, well, yeah.

"How are you then, Ashstar? I do hope you are getting along better than a bored little she-cat such as my own sorry self." He smirked. "I'm doing well. As well as I can for a cat who wallows in self-pity." He stopped smiling and looked at his paws, which now had bits and pieces of the vole he had been eating.

Really, to be honest, he was wallowing in self-pity. He pitied himself. He felt sorry that he was incompetent, and incapable of saving his friend. He felt angry that his father hated him, and blamed himself. Hell, anything that was wrong with the clan he blamed himself. A thought crossed his mind - where was his deputy? Was she out hunting? Maybe she was just enjoying the sunshine. Ashstar laughed to himself at the thought. Why like it? It just made you hot and uncomfortable.

Once he had finished his vole he looked over at his companion for the day. Well, hopefully. Even if she did annoy him, he didn't want to be alone after that nightmare. Getting up, he began to groom himself. He looked over the Maine coon and reasoned that she was quite pretty - but her attitude could use some adjustment. She was unique - he'd give her that.

He looked at Specklefur with a blank expression on his face. Silence dragged on, and he decided that it was time to end it. "So," He began, "What do you want to do, hm?" Hopefully she wouldn't pick something stupid. Something flashed across his vision and he noticed that it was Lunarwind. He smiled at her.

When she bounded away he wanted to call to her, but he decided that that would probably be rude, so he waited for Specklefur to speak. His gaze was still lingering on Lunarwind for a few more moments before he looked at Specklefur.

[felicity!]

Awkward waves seemed to float off of the tom and crash into her skin. Hmph. Specklefur thought at the notion that Ashstar did not feel comfortable around her. "I'm doing well. As well as I can for a cat who wallows in self-pity.

[/i]" The older tom had replied to her question. Somehow, this struck her as quite odd. "Why pity yourself, tom? You're our Leader and you have an entire Clan here to support you if you screw up. I mean for CelestialClan's sake, you have nearly everything a tom like you could want. Even the freaky ambitious ones." Specklefur snapped at first, but her tone softened into a delicate murmur as she realized the truth in her words. He had everything that most cats could only dream about. Well, except for a mate, but as far as she knew he didn't even think about things like that. All of a sudden she felt like a giant nag, and made a mental note to calm the hell down next time.

Quickly flicking her eyes over to the flitting partial white tabby she-cat, she let them roll. What was that deputy of theirs doing now? Shaking her head as if to clear her mind of the more cruel thoughts, Specklefur looked back to Ashstar. Man, his eyes were a pretty blue. And great, he's looking at me. Pfft, why not? A Leader has to know all of his Clanmates. Her own hazel eyes scanned over their leader quickly, and then back away at the rest of the camp. Sunbeams poured through the trees, lighting up the day. Ugh, once more please. "So, what do you want to do, hm?[/i]" Ashstar meowed to her. Hah, what did she want to do? I'd like to curl up in my nest and rest my tail over my eyes to block out that light. She retorted silently, but forced out a tiny, tiny smile as she spoke. "I don't mind, really. It might be nice to go hunting, I suppose, and get some fish since the freshkill pile is lacking some aquatic life. Perhaps we'll bump into your dear deputy while we're out too." Specklefur's mew was genuinely nice for once, as she tried to dispell anymore awkward feelings between the odd pair.

note: i dunno if we should skip ari since her post was kind of not related and she's gone now. x-x
words: 378
tags: ashstar (cee), lunarwind?, anyone![/blockquote][/blockquote][/size]

[aribeari]

Lunarwind darted towards the other side of the AstralClan's territory. She ran even quicker when she got to breaks in the trees, where the sun shone through. Her paws dug into the dry earth with each step she took, and then flung up dirt when they ripped out of the ground. Man, I'm gonna need a bath after this, she thought to herself.

A loud, terrifying noise came from above, and Lunarwind stopped to see what the horrible noise had come from. She looked up, and saw a huge, orange hawk soaring through the air, weaving through the trees with great grace and barely any effort. The hawk's mouth was open- a sure sign it was mealtime for this gigantic bird.

Fearing that she would be this bird's dinner, Lunarwind jotted into a tiny den under a great oak tree. In front of the den, there was a good-sized, tangley-branched bush. Seconds later, the hawk landed in front of the bush, and started pecking through it. Lunarwind cowared in fear, knowing that if the hawk got through the bush, she would be eaten.

The hawk succeeded at pushing through branches until, suddenly, it could not get through to the den. Lunarwind heard the struggle, and peeked out from her paws. The hawk's beak had gotten stuck in a mess of thin, wooden branches. That at least buy her some time.

[DEVIANCE``]

ashstar

"Why pity yourself, tom? You're our Leader and you have an entire Clan here to support you if you screw up. I mean for CelestialClan's sake, you have nearly everything a tom like you could want. Even the freaky ambitious ones." The cream-coloured tom listened in surprise. Really? Was she really telling him this? He looked at her, and with a forced smile, spoke.

"I let my best friend die." He said this with a bitter tone, but his voice was eerily quiet. "That is reason enough to pity yourself. I could not save her. I didn't even try." he sighed and looked down.

When she suggested to go hunting, he looked up at her and smiled. He was gonna hunt later, but he could go now. Besides, it would be much more fun with another cat to talk with. (Even if... well, you get the point.) He stood up and turned to look at her. He put another grin of his face. "Let's go see what we can, shall we?"

He turned around and began to pad out of the den with long strings, taking care in his footing. His movements were graceful as he walked past his clan mates and past the camp entrance. He turned to make sure that Specklefur was still with him, and when he saw that she was, he nodded to her and began to walk faster.

He so did love the territory. It made him happy. If only it was raining... "Bad luck, no?" He meowed. Looking up to the sky he frowned. Why was there no rain today? Perhaps it is an omen. He thought grimly.

Suddenly he heard the flap of wings, and he cringed. Looking to the sky, he saw that is was a hawk. It was flying to the north. He was going to ignore it but he heard the screech of a cat. He hurried quickly to the noise to find a cat hiding underneath the oak tree. He growled lowly and turned to look at Specklefur. "Well, there's some excitement now, hm?" He stalked toward the giant bird, and without hesitation, he pounced - aiming for the hawk's back.

Well... he could have thought that out better.

((last cougar reference, promise. xox))

[felicity!]

For once the dappled grey and white she-cat had to strain to hear Ashstar's words. "I let my best friend die.

[/i]" He had uttered so quietly. Specklefur blinked and stared at the tom with wide eyes for a moment. No wonder he can get so sad sometimes! The stubborn she-cat thought, and nodded solemnly as he explained what little he felt obliged to tell. "Right..sorry." She whispered quietly, feeling more sorry for her blunt remarks earlier than anything. "Let's go see what we can, shall we?[/i]" Her leader piped up with false emotion after her inviting him to hunt. Once more, she gave him a quick nod, not bothering to even let out a harsh word. Jeeze, maybe I've been too hard on him. As he muttered about the weather to her, she finally spoke up once more. "Indeed. Let's hope things shall get better later." Specklefur murmured in a nearly monotone voice. If she had let the words spill out like normal, they would have been a quick snap and she felt as if Ashstar didn't deserve that right now. Cries from above made her stop padding along after the creamy tom, and her eyes shoot to the skies. A bird was crying out, and soon after their were the cries of a cat. "Oh my, what idiotic cat is in trouble now?" The harsh she-cat muttered softly under her breath, and sped up to catch on up to her leader. In just a few moments, they were both racing toward where the bird had dived from the sky down to the forest floor. A slight smile twitched across Specklefur's face as she saw the odd predicament before her. "Well there's some excitement now, hm?[/i]" The older tom meowed to her. "Oh quite." A large hawk had attacked the Clan deputy, Lunarwind, according to the patterns on the victim's fur. Wow, just look at that! Specklefur thought as Ashstar jumped into action. Wincing as the leader lept and crashed down on the bird and onto his deputy. With a sigh, sprinted over to help and made small, dainty jump onto the hawk's neck. "Lunarwind, get out of there and at least a few tail lengths away! Ashstar and I will try to hold him down. Then, you try to take him out." Ordered the slightly younger she-cat. Yes, she was not a cat of power and had no right to be belting out orders, but danger called for extreme measures.[/blockquote][/blockquote][/size]

[DEVIANCE``]

ashstar

"Lunarwind, get out of there and at least a few tail lengths away! Ashstar and I will try to hold him down. Then, you try to take him out." The only reply was a faint whimper. The cream tom growled. "What kind of talk is that? You're my deputy; I chose you for a reason!" He paused as the bird reared. "Now show it! Fight this bird off!" Once more the bird reared, but now it turned toward Ashstar. Quickly he jumped back before he could get a bite from him, and turned to Lunarwind. She was slowly creeping out.

The bird turned and saw this, and attempted to move toward her, but Specklefur had attached herself to him. He reared and squawked. After a few moments he finally pulled back from the two cats and raced toward Lunarwind. He was quite angry, and he was going for blood. Terrifying screams raced through his ears as the bird scraped it's claws over his friend's back, and he froze. "Not again..." He said softly. No, he wasn't going to let her die. Not this time.

He jumped toward the bird as it began to lift the cat up. Lunarwind's body was limp, but faint breathing could be seen. He pulled the bird toward the earth and looked to Specklefur. He was panting hard by now. Pulling the bird to the ground, he pinned it down and attempted to bite it's neck. It moved just in time, but it was too slow to move the crushing blow of his large paw. With a sick crunch he felt the bones snap beneath his paw.

Turning to Lunarwind, he was horrified when he saw her no longer breathing. Her eyes were glossing over, and her body was jerking. The cream tom turned away. His head was down, and just then the rain slowly began to fall. A sick smile fell upon his lips. "The sunshine? It really was an omen." He meowed.

He grabbed his deputy by the scruff and began to pad back to camp. He turned to look at Specklefur. "Cm on, les git 'er ack to amp." He meowed through her fur, glad that it was raining. Nobody would see his tears. He stopped after a moment and waited for Specklefur. He pointed with his paw - lead the way.

Twice. Twice he has failed.

No more. Never again.


I swear it.

[felicity!]

That bird was a huge monster with wings. It easily flicked Specklefur as if she was just what the prefix of her name suggested; a speck! Oh, that got her mad. Fightin' mad, enough, but before she could blink just once everything happened quickly That damn sunshine glared in her eyes and made her blink as her eyes watered. The next moment, Ashstar had killed the bird and that whiny she-cat Lunarwind was down for the count - permanatly. "The sunshine? It really was an omen.

[/i]" Her leader spoke up with a crazy-eyed, unnatural smile. Somewhere in the next short while rain started to fall, and yet Specklefur was still in shock. Dead. Lunarwind was really dead, that fast. Guilt seemed to poke at the edges of her mind, but she tried to keep her thoughts clear of that kind of stuff. No, it wasn't her fault. A freak accident, yeah, that was it. Not even CelestialClan could have stopped that. With an odd air about her, she finally hit reality.

Slowly, her ears picked up the words Ashstar had attempted to say through the mouthful of scruff he had. Lunarwind must have been so scared, yet she died in battle in a way. Hmph, that wasn't much of a noble way to die. Thought Specklefur, but instantly discarded the thought. No, you musn't be like this. One of your Clanmates has just died, and you may be partially responsible. She silently reprimanded herself. With a sigh, she flew back from her reverie and nodded to her creamy leader. "Yes. Let's." She murmured solemnly with a sober face and water-slicked fur.

note: shall we do a short time skip so that we have the body back into camp?[/blockquote][/blockquote][/size]

[DEVIANCE``]

ashstar

((/nods/
ew. fail post is faiiil.))

Ashstar pulled the body of the dead deputy into camp. Gasps and a few shocked wails filled the air as he dragged Lunarwind into the center of camp. With a soft smack, she hit the ground. Ashstar looked around and jumped upon the highrock. "All cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the highrock for a clan meeting!" His voice sounded tired and sad. He sat down and waited as the cats gathered around him. He looked around and stopped at Specklefur. Soon though his gaze shifted to another feline.

"As you can tell, Lunarwind was killed. She was killed by a great hawk that had been threatening our clan for many moons. He has given his last breath, and she gave her life to save ours." He guessed that she wouldn't want to be remembered as a baby. "We will sit vigil for her tonight and bury her in the morning. Now, I need to choose a new deputy." He looked at the group of cats, and saw one that he adored. Could he be deputy? Yes. "But I shall tell my decision in the morning." With that, he jumped off of the rock and padded over to the body.

He licked her fur until he was satisfied with it. Then he left and let her family members share tongues with her for the final time. He padded into his den, and shook his fur. "Gosh darn it!" He yowled, scraping the earth in anger. He continued to do so until he saw another cat pad in. "What!" He meowed in annoyance, turning around. His gaze softened as he saw who it was, and looked down. He murmured a soft 'sorry' and sat down, looking away from the feline.

[felicity!]

Her skin crawled as she watched the Clan's reaction to their deputy's death. It's your fault too! She hissed icily at herself. With a deep shudder, Specklefur noticed her leader's eyes resting upon her for a few moments. Sigh. They were both responsible, but they could keep it comepletely between them for now. Dear CelestialClan, sunny days were the worst. Perhaps she asked CelestialClan to send rain down to those who tried to fight for her so that we might know she really did care for us/ She pondered to comfort herself and let her eyes wander about the crowd. Many cats were crying, but some, like her, did not know Lunarwind very well and were only slightly saddened in the loss of hierarchy. Death would come and go, but few cats, save her dead father, would care if Specklefur went and got herself murdered. She never would do that, since she respected life and her own self even if her personality made her seem so hateful of the place and cats around her. Inside her, guilt spiraled in her stomach, and she swallowed hard to clear her throat of the lump in it as she placed her nose to Lunarwind's now cold and delicately pink nose. Forgive me. Though your last moments were weak, I shall remember your strong spirit, Lunarwind. Help us stay together here, you crazy she-cat. Thought the dappled living she-cat as if she could speak directly to the now deceased tabby and white cat. Stepping away, she noticed a creamy tom slip inside his den and felt an urge to go comfort him. Then, she remembered what he had told her earlier. "I let my best friend die. That is reason enough to pity yourself. I could not save her. I didn't even try.

[/i]" Happened to be his words earlier, but this time, Specklefur knew that Ashstar had tried to save Lunarwind. Something encouraged her to go to him, and with a short sprint, the she-cat dashed off to her leader's den. "Gosh darn it![/i]" Were the first words she heard. He was definitely angry with himself, and she wanted to help somehow. Stepping into the entrance to his den, she murmured a quiet 'hello' and stood there for a moment. "What![/i]" The older cat meowed sharply in response to her presence. His sharpness would have caused a flinch out of most cats, but Specklefur liked this sharp tone and it inspired something inside of her. A muttered sorry came from his lips, but it didn't matter much to her. "Don't beat yourself up about this. You tried your best to save her. It was me that did nothing. I..it..It was a freak accident, and it happened so quickly. Don't let this bother you like your friend's death last time." She meowed to him. At the beginning of her sentence, her voice was strong and normal, but at the end her words slurred together as she talked quickly trying not to take a wrong step and offend him. [/blockquote][/blockquote][/size]

[DEVIANCE``]

ashstar

"Don't beat yourself up about this. You tried your best to save her. It was me that did nothing. I..it..It was a freak accident, and it happened so quickly. Don't let this bother you like your friend's death last time." The cream-coloured tomcat smiled a little. He shook his head.

"I'll try not to." He meowed, looking at her, stone-faced. Of course it was his fault! If he had been faster, stronger, even, he might have been able to save her! Then again... the sun was an omen. It might have been inevitable.

Ashstar turned around and began to pace. His face was calm - but on the inside the gears were turning. No longer would he be too weak to save a feline. He was going to train. No longer would the other clans think of him as a fat leader who would rather eat then help his clan. As he turned to Specklefur, a determination shone in his eyes.

The sudden mood change put him off a bit, but hey, like she said, it wasn't his fault, right? Well, no. He still had guilt prickling at the bottom of his belly. Hopefully it would go away soon, before it consumed him.

((where do you wanna go from here?
also, I don't have much muse. sorry!))