I'm a one-cat circus, honey! [OPEN]

The night air, silent as it might be to twolegs, comes alive to the ears of a cat. Dogs bay streets over, howling their frustration at being confined to backyards. An occasional door slams. Late crickets chirp as the air gets colder.

Through it all Diamond trots; her tail swings lazily and her sharp eyes scan the street around her, taking in every detail. Not the worst neighborhood she's traveled through. The houses are clean and the streets are quiet. Yes, this might do very well indeed. For a while, that is - the she-cat doesn't like to stay in one place very long if she can avoid it. So Diamond strolls on along the wide sidewalk. Nothing so far has caught her eye as a potential resting place.

No matter. The maine coon has plenty of energy left for walking.

Crows bayed and bellowed loudly in the distance, a final dying mating call to others. Sparkling ebony feathers flashed as the sable birds flew away, swooping in unison off of a picket fence. Twolegplace was different and dangerous, yet it was the border nonetheless. It still had to be patrolled and marked every so often. Pawsteps sounded in their wake across the asphalt ground. Around it, the hard stone surface was lined with reddish-brown dirt. Bright wine-colored eyes twinkled like tiny stars in the distance.

It was a rather large tomcat. Rippling, rugged shoulders and a long, droopy tail, which dragged with exceeding difficulty across the rough ground. The orbs shone as they looked up. The speckled tom had noticed something. Slinking like a snake across the winding trees, he caught sight of a she-cat; a rogue.

Blacktwig was devoted with all of his heart to his clan. He wouldn't let her get away so easily with being so close to the border, drawing even nearer with every heartbeat that passed. He leapt in a single, fluid, fleet and agile motion atop a steel canister. His back was arched like a ridge. An esker in the soil mildly elevated the platform in which Blacktwig was standing on.

His gaze flashed for a moment with curiosity. His fur bristled with anxiety, and his paws slowly lifted, as if he were contemplating whether to go back, or not. His eyes blinked like moons being overshadowed by the night.

He saw her.

A one-cat circus.

A flicker of movement catches Diamond's eye. The big, heavily-built she-cat stops, standing tall as she examines the strange tomcat. His back is arched wildly, contorted almost beyond what one could think possible. Defending a territory, then, by the looks of it?

Hmm, she thinks. Interesting.

Pointedly, the she-cat sits down where she is and begins to wash a paw. Watch and wait. Watch and wait. He'll either leave or come on the attack, and whichever one he does will be telling. No point in rushing in straightaway, though. Who knows whether he has other cats waiting with him, ready to defend their borders?

He's attractive, though. An interesting, speckled coat...

Blacktwig saw the maine coon. She seemed to be inspecting him carefully. He gazed at her, turning around in a whisking motion. "Why, hello there." The tomcat said, in a coordinated, monotone yet slightly tinged with emotion, voice. He blinked at her with his docile nature. He made sure he wouldn't frighten her. He sat down, still partially masked by the bleak shadows. It made only his eyes and speckled coat stand out from a black canvas.

"He speaks," Diamond purrs, subtle laughter entering her voice. "Hello to you too. I assume you're from these parts?"

The tom is purposefully sticking to the shadows. It's amusing, actually, that he's attempting to be so mysterious. Perhaps I'll humor him for a while. Could be fun, Diamond muses. Her tail twitches ever so slightly. Most encounters she's had with other cats have been cut and dried: 'Stay out of my territory', usually, or other, cruder propositions. Which Diamond isn't opposed to, necessarily, but she doesn't mind a bit more finesse from her partners.

"Yes, I speak," Blacktwig mewed, uttering a small mrrow of laughter in turn. How could a rogue be appeasing him so? He leapt out of the shadows to greet her. At first he nodded, sneaking forwards with subtle prowess, then sat up. His blue-violet eyes seemed to be perpetually ablaze. He sat down in front of her, far enough so that they may have a casual conversation.

There's an odd air of innocence about this tom. Something not trusting, per se, but more willing to invite company than your average loner.

It's refreshing.

So Diamond remains where she is. Her fur is long, thick, and silver in color. Bold tabby stripes run through it as well. Her gleaming green eyes assess the tom curiously as he comes further into the light. Whoever he is, he's well groomed and not lacking food. This definitely puts Diamond in mind of the clans she's run into on occasion while she travels...

"So I assume you live around these parts," she states mildly. "I'm Diamond. And your name is?"

"I do live close," Blacktwig mewed. "I'm a clan cat. I'm Blacktwig, nice to meet you." The well-muscled tomcat realized he had been well-fed lately. Prey wasn't running scarce, and he guessed one million squirrels must reside here due to so many kittypets being fed slop. He nodded, mind wandering to the subject of his kits. He wondered how Mothpaw and Mottledpaw must be doing. And Flamepaw, and the other one... Auburnpaw. That was her name. He grinned, but diverted his expression to a different subject. His oculars traced around the rogue she-cat's curvy frame. The maine coon was beautiful. "How are you?" He asked her.

"The outside is wonderful," Diamond admits. "If you've ever lived with the twolegs, or even if you haven't, I think you understand what I mean. Nothing compares to being out here."

She's telling part of the truth, at least. It is wonderful to be free; Diamond craves the freedom of open air as a fish craves water. She hasn't set foot in a twoleg house since she was still a kit, however, despite what her wonder-filled tone and wide, innocent eyes hint. But that's why she keeps dark blue collar set around her neck: a fresh kittypet wouldn't know yet that it should be disposed of. Never mind that the fabric is getting slightly dirty with age. The same happens to the collars of much-loved cats, too, after all.

Blacktwig had been ignoring the collar the entire time. Its twoleg scent was faint and stale, and it didn't reek strangely of other kittypets or local 'housefolk' at all. His tail-tip twitched, its slight tip like the jagged peak atop a snowy mountain - despite its sooty color. It was frayed gently, as if the touch of fingers grasping it had caressed it into a sharp shape and stature. He looked at her for a moment. "I have never lived with the twolegs." He fought his voice so that it wouldn't raise with defiance. Why would he ever live with them? He thought. He forced himself to allow his tone to die down and become calm. "I see you have, though." He commented suddenly, hostility ringing slightly into his voice.

The tomcat stretched luxuriously in the cavern-esque alleyway. "The clans have always been my home," he purred adoringly, cocking his head towards Diamond. He seemed unusually convincing for a moment, to the point of bribing. Although darkness shrouded him, his eyes were eerily slitted to sharp black needles. "I'm sure you'd agree if you were there, too," he said. Blacktwig sat down near a shady corner.

Diamond's tail twitches slightly at the mention of clans. Ugh. Commitment to a twoleg, commitment to a clan, it doesn't matter; they're all the same to her. The she-cat chooses not to voice this opinion, however, choosing to go a more tactful route.

"I've never been part of a clan," Diamond's voice is mild. Simple statement of fact. "But I know that I didn't enjoy being a kittypet at all. What is your clan like? I don't understand what so many cats would do together."

Play dumb. Figure out what exactly this clan is like.

"Well," Blacktwig explained timidly, "We all work together to find food and resources to live. Kittypets are taking the easy way. We fight and learn to live independently," he said. His tail waved to punctuate his sentence. It was a little harsh-sounding, but he was only trying to convince the young she-cat rogue. She seemed even younger than him - now that was surprising!

Feather jumps from a ledge of a fence. "hello there" she says in a mysterious way. "why are two nice cats out in the middle of the night. Another little paw pecked out, "Treepaw come on out they are harmless I think.

The little kit comes out and hides behind feather. "Sorry for the trouble can we tag a long if you guys go somewhere we need somewhere to stay for the night. Treepaw pecks her head from Feather's tail "hi...." she says in a timid yet sweet voice. Feather sits 5 feet away from them to make sure they won't hurt Treepaw.

OOC: Please do not RP until you've made a cat creation here, Feather-Song.