[ti]Private[/ti]bugs under the surface

[bits]

She was, if nothing else, getting better.

Closer to Creeksong's disappearance, Swiftwing had been running herself ragged with the (hidden) efforts to find him. She hadn't had any reason to stick around camp in the first place (their leader had enough madness within him to excuse her own, lesser neuroses), so she hadn't felt too bad about her frequent, elongated absences. She still had contributed - she brought back prey, and she scoured the borders nearly feverishly. But the efforts had weighed on her, and the warrior had suffered from sleeplessness and even more irritability than usual. It had been nearly constant, a storm of guilt and anxiety.

Swiftwing was, in comparison to then, doing much better. 

A part of it stemmed from the loss of hope. She hoped her brother was okay, if only so she could tear him a new one for disappearing on her the clan like that. But her belief that she could find him had waned considerably. She was more or less going through the motions now - picking along the abandoned thunder trail, careful to remain on her side of the border despite the ever-so-faint scent of unmarked territories on her pelt. She hadn't been gone long - an hour or so at most. But despite her need to find her lost sibling, she knew better than to return to the camp right away after another escapade. She was less ashamed of her rare border crossings than she was the fact that she was looking for him. For a large portion of her life, she'd done anything and everything to avoid him, to shun him; only once he was missing did she feel gutted.

This was not great, but it was better than it was. That was her final appraisal, upon reflecting on her state of being for the time. Not great. But better.

[pants]

Greenleaf was in full swing. The leaves were greener than ever, the sun was blistering hot, and the birds were sending their offspring off into the world.

Cloudchaser had decided to go hunting, as most of the other cats were busy. Ospreypaw was busy polishing his skills for his assesment and most of the other cats she would hang around were either on patrol or had their own things to attend to. Thus, Cloudchaser was left alone. This didn't bother her, per se, but she definitely enjoyed the company. So the day to herself left the molly to her own devices. What better way than to go hunting? The warrior smiled as she thought of how she was gonna complete her task. Today, she was going to try and find a squirrel. Or perhaps a nice, fat bird? Either way, she was gonna bring home the biggest prey she could find.

Cloudchaser was nearing the spot she normally hunted. It was a bushy area, filled with an abundance of foliage. It was a bit more difficult to hunt in, but it was a way she outsmarted some of the prey. She'd lay in wait for them to pass through what they thought was shelter from predators. But little did they know she was patiently waiting for them, only to take them by surprise as she pounced.

After checking the direction of the wind, the molly crouched down, her stance balanced as she started to stalk forward, watching her paws carefully as she made sure not to step on the twigs below. She made her way to the far side of her hunting ground, finding a suitable space to compact herself, but with enough room to spring out when she was ready. After a bit of scanning with her amber eyes, she found a place under a bush that arched enough for her plan to be executed. Perfect. Cloudchaser tip toed through the obstacles on the ground before reaching her spot. Squishing her body into the space as silently as she could, the only noise she made was a slight rustle as her back brushed against some branches.

Now we wait..., the dark cream warrior thought to herself, eyes carefully keeping watch on the branch crowded area in front of her. Past the bushes that were just ahead was a clearing, a tight path between the shrubs that a lot of different animals took. If she couldn't catch something in the bushes, then at least she could pounce as they tried to escape from her. However, the cluster of leaves and low laying plants obscured her vision, and she'd have to calculate her attack well.

Time passed and nothing more than a few mice made their appearance. Perhaps she was down on her luck today. Cloudchaser twitched her whiskers, unsatisfied with the results. She was hoping to make good use of her skills today, and this wasn't how she planned it to go. Maybe it was just too hot?

But then, out of the corner of her eyes, she spotted a fleck of bright fur. Oh! A squirrel perhaps? Maybe a stray rabbit? The molly straightened her tail, her haunches in position to launch her body. Her eyes didn't leave her target, watching between the tangle of branches as the other creature got closer. She watched as whatever it was neared the small clearing that Cloudchaser would leap through. Closer...closer...Steady....And...

Cloudchaser pounced out of the bushes, claws out with intent to kill, her eyes locked on to the ginger fur. But in a split second, she realized it was a cat, not a rabbit or other piece of prey like she originally thought. The molly quickly sheathed her claws in the split second she had, but couldn't change her direction fast enough. Cloudchaser unfortunately barreled into the other cat, getting a mouthful of fur. She sputtered while dazed, taking a moment to register what happened. The molly looked to her unintended target and realized it was Swiftwing. She scrambled to her feet. "Oh Great StarClan, I-I'm so, sooo sorry!" Cloudchaser fretted, her amber eyes filled with worry. "Are you alright?"

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[bits]

The immediate response that Swiftwing had to a sudden force barrelling into her was, understandably, to try and defend herself. She twisted as Cloudchaser made contact, trying to toss the other warrior off of her and as far away as possible. She had spun around almost instantly to ready herself for some kind of further contact but - she turned snarling to face her own clanmate. The initial thought was one of what was she thinking? But the warrior didn't have time to articulate that thought before Cloudchaser was apologizing profusely. That bought her enough time to try and flatten her bristling fur, though it was far from perfect by the time she was asked whether or not she was alright.

Deep breaths, Swiftwing - deep breaths.

Through gritted teeth, the molly managed to respond without immediately snapping at her clanmate.

"I - I'm fine. What, for Starclan's sake, were you thinking?"

She was an almost alarming mixture of disappointment, frustration, and utter bewilderment. Swiftwing was nearly an expert at the 'senior warrior disapproval' game, having been very serious from apprenticeship onwards. But the ginger molly was very visibly doing her best to keep her tail from lashing as she came down off of the initial shock and readiness to fight.

[pants]

The molly pinned her ears back and diverted her eyesight as her clanmate snapped at her and her accidental attack. "I'm sorry," she murmured again. "I was hunting. I hide in the bushes and leap at the prey as it passes by." Cloudchaser explained, hoping Swiftwing would understand. Granted, it was an odd way of hunting, but it worked for her.

Cloudchaser looked back to Swifting. The other she-cat had calmed a bit, but it was obvious she was still irritated, and for good reason. It wasn't every day that a random cat would leap out for an attack, accidental or not. "It's good that you're ok, though." The dark cream warrior offered a smile, trying to make a bit of light in the situation. "I'd hate to hurt you before you went on....er...Patrol?" she inquired, looking to the direction that Swiftwing was heading. There wasn't any other clan borders around here, but perhaps she was checking for rouges? The hostile anti-clan group hadn't struck as of late, to her knowledge...

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bits