Children of the Forest [OPEN FOR SKC]

Small tufted ears popped up behind the expensive leather couch. The light-brown ears flicked and twitched every time a sound erupted from the television. Slowly, a kitten rose from her spot behind the couch with a sly smile on her small face. Standing on the edge, she glanced down at her unsuspecting victim. Sleeping peacefully below his twin sister was a larger version of the attacker. Little Adaka watched his side rise and fall gently before narrowing her eyes and pouncing.

Nepken woke, frightened. The air was knocked out of his lungs as him and his sister toppled off the couch and onto the carpet. Pushing her off, he jumped to his feet with raised hackles. "What was that for?!" he snarled, baring his small teeth at the lighter cat. Adaka smile and lowered into a playful position.

"You'd never wake up if I had been soft about it," she retorted, her bobbed tail flicking. The tom rolled his green eyes and smiled back. "I guess you're right."

With that the two kits began pouncing and rolling around. Their little play fight was cut short as one of the glass doors opened and their owner began calling their names. Adaka pushed Nepken's face with her back legs and bolted for the opening. The darker tabby growled but quickly followed. The kits ran until they felt the soft grass beneath their paws. Stretching their toes, they began to continue their fight.

It didn't take long for the pair to become breathless. Resting on her brother, the she-kit stared out towards the towering trees with bright chartreuse eyes. "What do you think is out there?" she inquired, nibbling on Nepken's ear. He flicked Adaka in the face with his other ear and stood, letting her fall to the ground clumsily.

"Why don't we find out?" he mewed with a playful tone, pointing to the narrow opening in the large wooden fence. The smaller tabby was taken aback. It was very rare that her brother would want to explore, let alone into the forest. They had heard from neighboring cats that the woodland was filled with dangers, but they were too young to hear about them just yet. She just smiled. How could she turn such an opportunity down? Nepken made sure the coast was clear before galloping towards the edge of the garden with his sister at his heels. They giggle a little as they slipped out and into the thicket.

"This is great!" the tom cheered, Adaka purring as she ran close behind. "Yeah! We can take on anything we come acros-" The two came to a sudden halt when a dark looming figure appeared in front of the twins. Skidding across the cold dirt, they could not stop and bumped into each other. And the shadowy character. Both looked up with fearful eyes, their bodies quivering from the terror.

Was this the danger their neighbors spoke of?

Things had been going for Smokeheart. While the news of his mother and sibling's death had been a cold blow to the tom, he had soon recovered as he knew he had to be cheerful as things were finally looking up for him. Being home in SkyClan was heavenly to the tom; even getting his fur cleaned up in what seemed like the first time in moons. His fur was back to its fluffy self as he moved though the territory. However, as he moved on, an uneasy feeling washed over him as he moved closer to closer to a spot that held back memories for him; the location of where he was captured. He could almost smell the nests of the twolegs as he padded forward, but he put on a look of determination as he carried on. He was not the young apprentice he had been those many moons ago, he was now a warrior and would never befall the same fate twice.

Suddenly, the sound of some movement caused the grey and white warrior to come to a halt, blinking in surprise. The sound of young voices filled his ears, and the next thing he knew two young kits came bounding from a thicket. He stared at them with a bewildered look, wondering where they had come from, unmoving as they drew close. But then they saw him, and while they attempted to come to a halt fast enough, he took a small step back as the bumped into his front legs. His yellow eyes, once more bright, stared down at the two kits with a slightly confused look as he twitched his tail. "Er...Hello there, little ones," he spoke, trying to make his voice as soft and caring as he could be as he easily saw the fear in their eyes as they quivered in their pure terror.

"Please don't eat us! We're too young to die!" Adaka cried, covering her eyes with her paws. Her brother on the other hand, actually took a moment to look at the figure before begging for mercy. When his green eyes met with a grey and white cat, he was confused. Why was there a random cat out in the forest? Was he looking for adventure too?

"Knock it off sis, it's just a cat," he remarked with no emotion. Lifting a paw away she saw her brother's comment was true. "Oh." Giggling in embarrassment, she stood and licked her chest. Looking at the older tom she too was confused. He didn't look fat or pampered like the cats they came across at home. Instead he was lean and tall, his fur slightly dirtied with dirt. Just how long had he been here? The she-cat sniffed him. "You smell weird," she meowed, cocking her head in confusion. The bronze tom had not thought about smelling the stranger so he followed his sister's lead. He really did smell odd. Almost like the pine trees they stood under, but with a slight scent of home. Nepken's eyes narrowed.

"Who are you? Where did you come from?" he questioned, trying to stand tall enough to intimidate the outsider.

A rather confused look spread across Smokeheart's face at the she-cat's cry, titling his head. He was about to open his mouth to tell her that he wasn't going to eat them when the tom spoke up. Closing his mouth, he remained silent as he watched the two, frowning at the she-cat's comment on how he smelled weird. Well that wasn't very nice, now was it? Then the tom spoke up, reminding him of Ocrapaw's questions to him when he had first returned home.

The tom blinked as he glanced from one kit to another, sitting down as he flickered his tail in a faint acing motion across the ground. "Me? You can call me Smokeheart. I happen to live in these forests, so I suppose the better question is what you two are doing here. Young kits such as yourselves shouldn't be wandering on their lonesome."

"We're adventu-" Adaka's reply was cut off when her brother's paw was stuffed in her mouth. He shook his head. It would be better if they didn't mention they were trespassing. "We got lost. We were just on our way home. It's not too far from here..." Looking around he realized he didn't know where here was. Had they really run that far? Looking back he saw no sign of the garden, or even the fence. He began panicking, pacing in front of the warrior.

"Oh, I knew this was a bad idea. We really are lost now? What will our housefolk think? This is all your fault Adaka!" he mewled, pressing his ears flat on his head. "My fault? You're the one who wanted to come out here, Nepken," she rebutted. "Well you agreed to come!" he grumbled. The small tom began approaching his sister, the fur on his shoulder raising. The light-brown tabby corresponded to his advance her own fur standing on end. The twins in their argument completely forgot about the pressing matter in front of them.

Smokeheart watched the two kits with amusement, but it turned to concern when they started to bicker with each other about being lost. With the mention of 'housefolk' a shiver ran down the warrior's spine. So they were kittypets. Their names also seemed odd to the tom. Adaka, Nepken...What kind of names were those? He titled his head as he watched the two face off, before loudly clearing his throat. "Uh...I am still here, you know," he stated in a half-bored, half-annoyed manner as he frowned at them. "I could perhaps be of some help to you both in some form or another."

Both the kits froze in their tracks, their heads lowering in shame. Though they had bickered before, having a fight like this in front of a stranger was not kind. Settling back down, Adaka decided to take the reins since her brother apparently couldn't handle the pressure.

"We'd lov-" Wait a second. Did they really want to go back so soon? The twins hadn't even had a chance to see the forest yet! Adaka shook her head and smiled at the tom. "We came here to explore and that's what we're going to do! You could show us around, since you live here and stuff. That way, when we need to go home, you can show us the way," she spoke firmly. The smaller tabby stood and jumped beside Smokeheart, a large smile on her face.

Nepken was taken aback. When did she get so smart? he wondered, a grin plastering against his face too. He took the warrior's other side, nudging his leg with his head. "Yeah, you don't want to leave two lost kittens alone in these dark woods, now would you?" his mewed, his smirk reaching his voice.

Well don't you have your paws full?

Smokeheart blinked as the she-cat started to talk, shifting his gaze between them as they attempted to get him to lead them around. That hadn't been what he was expecting, and a soft frown crossed his face. Really, he shouldn't be talking to them but they had a fair point...As a warrior, it was his duty to protect kits...Although they didn't really need protection, he really couldn't leave them alone in the forest.

He shifted away from Nepken as he rubbed his head against his leg, before letting out a defeated sigh. "I...I suppose I can. But we are going to have to be careful, my Clanmates may not take to kindly to me showing two kits around the territory." He pulled himself to his paws as he glared at the two kits. "But as soon as you guys are done, I am taking you straight home. Alright?"

"Alright!" the twin spoke in unison. They giggled at each other before turning their attention back to the warrior as the began pressing on.

"So why do you live in the forest? Wouldn't living with housefolk be easier?" Nepken chirped. "Yeah, you don't have to worry about food, and belly rubs are so nice!" Adaka added, her stub tail wagging.

ooc: so short

A scoffed escaped from the tom as he stood up and started to lead them into the forest. "Tried that, and no thank you. The life of the warrior isn't suppose to be easy. In fact, we shun the life of you kittypets. We live together protecting and feeding each other, until it is our time to become one with the stars above." He sighed softly as he went on, his whiskers twitching. "Of course, I was a kittypet for a while when I was taken from the forest many moons ago and I have just returned, but I would never want to be a kittypet once more. The food was tasteless, I was never allowed in the fresh air...It was not the life that I wanted, and I was so happy when I returned home to my family."

Warrior? Kittypets? What was this old coot going on about? Listening to his story, the two became more and more curious about his life in the forest.

"You get to eat whatever you want? So you can eat mice and birds?" Adaka inquired, her yellow-green eyes bright with interest. "What do you mean 'become one with the stars above'? Can you guys become stars?" Nepken asked, his green eyes also showing eagerness. The twin pixiebobs lost track of their surroundings as the three traveled deeper into the forest. With each step they became less interested in their home, and more interested in Smokeheart's.

"Whatever our paws can catch, but normally we eat birds, but sometimes squirrels or mice," Smokeheart explained as he carried on leading them into the forest, his tail swishing back and forth. His gaze flickered to the tom as he spoke up, causing him to chuckle softly. "Yes, Nepken, we do. While it might seem strange to you - as it did to all of the kittypets I had met when I was one - I, and the five Clans that live in these forests, have faith in knowing that our clanmates that have past away have become stars. We call them StarClan for that reason, as every single member of the five Clans will join them when their day comes. My father has even seen them, as they gifted him with nine lives so he may lead SkyClan."

Woah.

Slow down there Smokey, these kits were already being overloaded with awesome as it was. But the talk of Clans, and nine lives, and cats living in the stars was too tempting.

The two looked at each other, speaking through their twin telepathy, and nodded.

"We want to join you!" they announced in unison. "I'm going to have nine lives like your dad!" "I'm going to speak to Star-whatever every day!" Now they needed to slow down. They haven't even been accepted into the Clan yet!

Smokeheart came to a sudden stop when the kits started to speak, his eyes flashing as he stared at them in shock and surprise. "Woah, woah, hold on there!" he said hastily, waving his tail at them. "It isn't like it is that easy. Our life is something not for kittypets just like yourselves. We face hardship; we live a life of fighting among our life of freedom." A dark shadow fell across the warrior's face as he went on. "SkyClan had to fight for our place in the forest, and lives were lost...The deputy before my father was slain when I was just a kit, and that is the only reason my father is leader of SkyClan today was because he was the next best cat to lead our Clan in that harsh time." He paused, taking in a deep breath deciding to move onto a less...Horrible topic then his father's rise to leadership. "Besides, I don't know how willing my father would be in taking in kittypets, much less kits into the Clan!"

"I'm sorry that your father became leader like that, but we can do it! We're strong compared to our neighbors," the tabby tom meowed, looking at his sister for back up. "Yeah! Our mother was the strongest cat ever! And we're young! We haven't even made dirt in the box of sand yet!" Adaka added, speaking a little less proudly at the last bit. "I caught a butterfly in mid-air once!" "Ooo, ooo! I got in a fight with this grey kit when he came over to play, and I won."

Their list went on and on until they ran out of examples of their strength.

"Please! We've always wanted to come out here, and now that we have, we don't want to leave," Nepken mewed, his green eyes staring at Smokeheart. "Please, Mr. Smokeheart. Our garden is boring, and we can be warriors too! Give us a chance?" the light-brown she-cat cried, her eyes glued to the tom as well.