back from hunting. [oakfall]

[tails//]

Ivory paws pressed against the slightly dehydrated ground just outside ThunderClan camp. After a long day of hunting, Goldenblaze finally was returning to where she started her day. Jaws laden with the limp body of a rabbit, the ThunderClan she-cat could hardly wait to get off of her paws. Though the weather was pleasant enough and the ThunderClan Forest full of life, Goldenblaze had found her hunt frustratingly unfruitful. Because of Goldenblaze's stubborn nature, she hadn't been able to give up her hunt. Many hours were wasted waiting around before the now deceased rabbit had made its presence known. A part of the brown and white tabby wished she had never left her nest that morning.

The past is the past, she had to remind herself as she spied the fresh kill pile pawsteps ahead of her. The warrior dropped the rabbit from her jaws and into the pile before glancing around. As she soon deduced, not a soul seemed to be around. Where is everyone? Out hunting? she inwardly asked as she settled on her stomach. The she-cat could hardly admit to herself that she was being a little optimistic. Clearly, there was some other reason for the silence in camp. Goldenblaze didn't like this sort of silence too much. In the world of nature, silence often meant danger. It unnerved her. 

After a few minutes of shifting uncomfortably, the warrior stood up, eyes slightly narrowed.

[|{/Bloodrose\}|]

Oakfall

~~~~~~~~

The long furred tabby tom had volunteered to guard the camp the night before, so his whole day was slightly behind schedule. Having not gotten to sleep before dawn, by the time the tom had woken up, sunhigh had passed. He had immediately gone out, intending to do as much as he could for the Clan in the limited time he'd been given. Guarding the camp had given him the perfect opportunity to observe the stars. Admittedly, his neck was a little sore from the amount of time he had spent gazing upwards early this morning. He couldn't help it, however. The stars were such a fascinating thing to him, for many different reasons.

Wondering how in the name of StarClan his thoughts had veered so far off course, the ThunderClan tom gave his thick coat a shake. Forcing himself to instead focus on his surroundings, intending to catch prey for the Clan, Oakfall pricked his ears and parted his jaws, stilling the motion of his plume-like tail. The familiar scent of vole drifted to his nose, and the tom moved slowly, careful not to alert his prey to his presence.

A few moments later, the tom was scooping earth overtop of the slowly cooling body of the same little brown creature he'd been hunting. Taking note of his surroundings, the ThunderClanner intended to return to retrieve it later, after a bit more hunting.

More wandering led the tom to a spot with exceptionally tall trees. They had large bases, good for climbing. It also meant they had plenty of branches for prey to sit on. A bird call alerted him to his next target's presence. Hooking his claws into the tree's bark, the ThunderClan tom pulled himself up the length of the tree, before balancing upon a larger branch.

It took him a moment to find the bird, quickly identifying it as a blackbird. It perched upon the branch, calling to another bird that must have been in somewhat close proximity. This meant it was distracted. This was a good sign, especially for the hunting tom.

Climbing up on the side of the tree opposite from his prey, Oakfall positioned himself one branch higher than the bird, quietly moving, as not to alarm the bird. It looked rather comical really, such a large, long furred tom miraculously balanced upon a branch, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.

And then it came. With the slightest shift, Oakfall dropped down from the branch. The bird let out a squawk of alarm, moments before the tom's jaws locked around its throat, cutting the call short. Snagging his claws into one of the lower branches, the tom ended his fall quickly. With a slight snort of laughter, the tom noticed the tree he'd recently chosen to 'fall' from was none other than an oak.

Hoping down to the ground, blackbird firmly in his jaws, Oakfall set off back towards the area he had caught the vole. Climbing trees was hard on the tom, leaving him more tired than thinner, lither cats. Glancing up at the sky, the tabby figured he should return to camp. Someone aught to be hungry.

Entering camp at a comfortable pace, the tom noticed Goldenblaze not far from his destination. Oakfall's steps faltered slightly, nearly causing him to trip face first into the dirt. He managed to catch himself, however, by some StarClan given miracle, and continue his path to drop off his two kills. Once finished, he offered a dip of his head to the she-cat nearby.

"Greetings Goldenblaze. It's a little quiet around here today, is it not?"

[tails//]

I let you see the parts of me that weren't all that pretty,

Curious eyes the color of sunsets locked in with the slightest change in sound. Once her ears caught faint pawsteps of an approaching warrior, her eyes had glued to the entrance of camp. While the figure had not yet revealed itself to her, Goldenblaze was quickly becoming more and more defensive. The brown tabby patches on her back raised and her muscles tensed slightly as she sat. Her heart rate picked up significantly, even though the she-cat wasn't really exerting herself in the slightest. With adrenaline racing in her veins, the warrior was prepared for danger despite her casual stature.

As Oakfall crossed from the outside world, she did not let up her guard. Orange eyes slid across Oakfall's face and only when she registered that he did not appear distressed did she let her guard down. Carrying in prey from the forest, the tom was simply performing a mundane activity; serving his clan. Maybe everything is alright? the white and brown warrioress wondered as she silently watched her fellow ThunderClanner approach the fresh kill pile. Goldenblaze tried to settle down before Oakfall spotted her and approached her, but by the time he did, she was still on edge.

"Greetings Goldenblaze. It's a little quiet around here today, is it not?"

The partially ivory she-cat could hardly glance up at the passing warrior to answer his small talk. While he had been as receptive as she was to the silence, he didn't seem nearly as perturbed by it as she was. Without answering the time, her mind began to shoot off different ideas. What is going on? What if Oakfall is lying to me and things are not ok? What if something is about to attack camp and only Oakfall and I are the ones who don't know? Goldenblaze's heart rate was beginning to speed up again. It was funny how only her mind could set er entire body out of whack.

"I wonder why," the she-cat meowed emptily. The way she freaked out left her mentally incapable of coming up with a good retort for the tom. Now, all her mind kept on moving back to the past. The greenish fur of her attacker ... The wild look in his dead eyes ... Every time Goldenblaze scented another ThunderClan warrior, she feared it would be him. Though she had seen him and had spoken to him on multiple occasions, she feared him and the aggression wearing thin beneath his friendly demeanor.