Runaway [closed]

The season's heat made Jayfrost dread the day, for it was warmest at sunhigh, and Windclan wasn't exactly known for having trees that shade their territory. Stars, he was sweating under his fur in the small amount of shade he could find in camp. It put him in an irritable mood that nothing could be done about, for no cat could change the weather.

In front of him was a rather small hare, something one of his siblings had brought him earlier and left without asking if he was even hungry. It laid in the sun, warm but not yet spoiled. It frustrated him that he hadn't even been asked if he was hungry, but he wasn't able to protest the offer. The cat who'd brought it had left as soon as they'd arrived. He subconsciously flicked his tail, a silent expression of his annoyance.

Cold gaze flickering over, he noticed an idle warrior. Didn't seem busy. Tiger-something. Jayfrost hadn't bothered to learn his name. "Hey." He meowed, beckoning the warrior over. "Do you want this? " He was going to explain why he wasn't eating it, but he didn't feel he owed the warrior an explanation. As if it carried some disease, he passed the hare over, barely touching it as he nudged it away from himself. "I'm not going to eat this. If you don't take it, it'll spoil or something."

"Not hungry?" Tigerdance asked the tom who had just nudge a hare his way. It was a bit lucky the lanky tom hadn't got up to go to the pile yet, he had been debating it but the heat had mostly kept him rooted to his spot. He nodded a quick thanks before taking a bite of the hare. It was obviously warmed by the sun but still tasted fresh, which was fine with the brown tom.

"No. I'm actually starving, I just didn't particularly want a hare today." Jayfrost had a difficult time deciding how to tone his words, torn between making a joke or a sarcastic remark. It ended up as some mix between the two. With a light-hearted sigh, he moved over, slightly, allowing space for Tigerdance if he wanted to sit nearby. "Does it still taste fine? It wasn't sitting out for long. It's probably a bit warm because y'know. It's warm. Today." His half-lidded gaze drifted upwards, observing the cloudless sky. A bird passed his line of sight. "Eaglefly was the one who gave me that. Didn't even ask if I'd already eaten before he just dropped it off and kept walking." It was a kind gesture, he supposed, but very inconvenient, given that it had become his job to figure out what to do with it. At least Tigerdance had been willing to take it for himself.

"I'm sure you probably had to go out today already. It's been like - three patrols every day since that display at the gathering." He meowed, unable to hide the annoyance in his tone. "There wasn't anything strange though, was there? I went on a patrol earlier, but we just hunted. Didn't go near the borders."

"It's not the best I have ever had, but it will do. Fresh enough." The tom said as he settled into the spot that Jayfrost had offered him. He was thankful for the rest. "It was nice of your brother to drop it off, but a little.. well. he should have asked if you wanted it first." He didn't want to insult the tom's brother. It was a kind gesture, and sometimes they needed more warriors like that.

Tigerdance was happy for the change in conversation, to discuss more.. important matters at paw. "Yes I have already went out today, the borders are quiet for now but its only a matter of time before something happens.." The striped tom sighed. "There is no way they are just going to let this die.. Not with the way Shadowclan does things."

Jayfrost shifted, glancing over to Tigerdance. "Yeah. I almost don't blame them. I think I'd hold on to something like that, too. Uncalled for, if you ask me. Could have easily been handled in private, and saved us all a headache." He sighed. "Shrikestar and Smallbean seem to recognize it's a problem, which is good... at least." Not mentioning the fact that the reason it is a problem was because of them. Stars, he loved his father, but it was difficult to keep leader-Shrikestar and father-Shrikestar separated. He couldn't help but let them seep into each other.

"Increased patrols make me feel like I should be working on my fighting skills, though. Not that they're bad, or anything." He defensively drew his lame leg toward himself, as if Tigerdance even knew it was weak. "Just... In case something happens." A flicker of anxiety. "Every cat has area to improve... y'know? I'm sure that even Shrikestar has some things to brush up on." Jayfrost wanted to ask Tigerdance to practice training together, or something, but held himself back from speaking.

It was certainly something that Shrikestar and Smallbean recognized there was a problem on their hands but he didn't know if they were reacting to in the way they should at all. It felt like there was doom waiting to raid their camp, and it seemed like increased patrols weren't urgent enough.

"I will say the increased patrols don't feel like enough.. I feel like something bad is just waiting to happen, and we aren't prepared at all.." The striped tom sighed. "I feel like I'm being paranoid but I think its warranted after that fox show." He felt like they all should be doing battle training right now, but he wasn't the leader.

"Not sure there's much of anything that we can do to prepare. Negotiation isn't an option, Batsong made sure of that." His gaze narrowed once more, flickering to the medicine den. "Also made sure that no other clans would help us. The entire forest wants our heads." The thought of it all made him agitated again, replacing his anxieties.

"We're just sitting and waiting for Shadowclan do to something, hoping that they choose not to... even though we all know they will. We have reason to be paranoid. And I know you're not the only one who feels that way." The discontent that came as a result of the gathering was seen in most, if not all, of his clanmates. It was difficult to talk about it, considering that the cats causing them problems were in their own camp, but the comments made under their breath was enough to tell. "How do you feel about yours? Fighting skills, I mean. Prepared? At all?"

Tigerdance let out a discontented sigh at the words and question from Jayfrost. He didn't like this situation more than anyone else, just waiting for their doom mostly. "Never really had to fight anything other than predators before, so I don't know how an actual battle will go." He didn't feel very confident in fighting other cats. He knew the real thing wasn't like sparring in the slightest. He would do what he could but he feared his inexperience would show quickly in the actual situation.

Jayfrost nodded as the striped tom spoke. "Really?" It was strange that having shed the blood of another wasn't exactly... normal. On multiple occasions he'd fought another cat, none of them were really necessary for his survival or anything. Every fight he'd had he considered to be personal unfinished business, concluded by the shedding of blood. Still, it came as a sort of shock that Tigerdance had never been in a border skirmish of any kind. "I've fought cats before." He said, as if Tigerdance didn't know about the gathering. "It's different than sparring, but the same, sorta. You have to let your emotions drive you. Think on your paws. Look for windows n stuff." It was sorta similar to battling a predator. A predator was an enemy. He though of battle opponents the same way. "If you think of it like a spar, though, it's not like. Authentic. Your enemy is a predator. They are the fox."

Tigerdance let out a hum at the other tom's words, taking in what the tom's account was like. While he didn't know if it was going to be like that for him when he actually got into a fight with another cat, he knew it was a decent starting point, or rather at least something.

"I keep that information in mind. It's a good place to start when it comes down to it." Though the tom was more logic driven so he didn't know how well it would go to let his emotions drive him, especially in a fight. "I suppose I should start sparring more."

The tom raised his ears. "Wanna spar sometime soon? Not today- I have things to do already." Jayfrost lowered his tone, not wanting to give away his eagerness. That was, if the fact that he had offered didn't already give it away. "It would be good to train against a clanmate, we both might learn something."

Tigerdance nodded. "I think that is a good idea. Extra training never hurts. The tall tom said. He stood, and stretched, his claws digging into the dirt somewhat as he tried to release the tension from his body. "I appreciate the chat, and the food, but I do need to go check on the elders now. See you around Jayfrost."