The speckled fox (Closed for Night)

Specklefur wasn't really enjoying the new found disability, it put her especially in a sour mood. Specklefur couldn't really blame herself, after all, she knew that after she finished training Tigerpaw it wouldn't be long before she'd be too old to continue, Specklefur really wanted to know Spottedstars secret to being able to continue moving like a young warrior. Sighing the senior warrior didn't want to go, to leave her clan but it was inevitable.

Looking out at the empty clearing since most cats where out in the middle of the day, Specklefur settled herself to the ground in the shade, her leg jutting out with discomfort from the fox bite. Laying her long and fluffy tail the she-cat rested them over her back paws and just looked, and rather blankly, at the sunny and warm camp.

He awakened in his nest with a groan, as usual feeling like something was caught in his fur. The dawn patrol had left him tired, and Foxfang had hoped to sleep through the blazing midday hours. No dice. It just just far too hot no matter what he seemed to do. Eyes slitted in irritation, he dragged himself up and out of the warrior's den, into the bright light of camp. Squinting at the sudden change of light, he soon spotted the lone cat in the clearing.

Ignoring the burning feeling of the sun on his scars, he approached, short tail lazing in the air. "How's that bite?" Grey eyes gazed upon the wound.

Glaring at the approaching tom the she-cat gave a huff as she turned back to look at the camp. "It hurts, it itches, it bothers me with walking. Need I go on?" She hissed, pressing her torn ears against her head as she spoke. Letting her head rest she gave a snort as she dug her claws into the ground.

Plopping down in the shade, he resisted the urge to roll his eye. "Figured that'd be your answer, he meowed. He stretched out in an attempt to cool down, to which his scarred back protested. "How's the apprentice's training? All fine and dandy?" Foxfang was being a little sarcastic in his tone, of course. But he couldn't help but remember his latest and now late apprentice, Silkcloud. He hadn't been able to prepare her for that type of battle, not that he could know how difficult it was himself. Still, he did his best to look irritated at the sun. That was easy enough.

Snorting at Foxfangs remark she rolled her own eye, well, her good one since the one with all the scars down it was kind of blind. "Smashing, Echopaw most undoubtedly will be a warrior soon, Tigerpaw has run off somewheres. It isn't surprising since he's so small and frail, I'm surprised that Spottedstar made him my apprentice since she knows me better than everyone else pretty pathetic really." She snorted, giving a dismissive flick of her paw. Over all she was rather surprised that Foxfang hadn't gone and got fired up and left already, normally that was the norm whenevver Specklefur spoke.

Pretty much used to her way of thinking and acting, Foxfang still laid there on his side, eyes half closed. "She probably thinks you can put some spirit in him. Starclan knows he needs it." He half-heartedly pawed at a twig close by in slight boredom."You're probably the only cat in Thunderclan that can." He paused and glanced at the she-cat, twitching his tail.

"You are probably right, but I hate to have so many cats faith on my shoulders. Since I managed to beat down Riverclans leader and the camp was burned down I feel like they all look to me as well as Duskfall and Spottedstar, I don't blame them since I make them progress a lot faster but I'm not a higher up." She scoffed, pulling her head back up as she glared down at her paws. "They all better look to themselves if not Duskfall and Spottedstar. Pretty dependent of them." She spat, her gaze despite her annoyance softened.


"Enough about myself, its pathetic. How has your day been going?" She asked, turning to look at Foxfang better than just a bit of blur.

"I suppose so," he said, lengthening his words while he stretched. Dark eyes watched the sky, hoping to see a cloud of some sort. No luck. The plants were going dry with all this heat and no rain, although that would probably just make it humid afterwards. No one liked humidity. "Other cats respect you almost as, if not as much as Spottedstar herself. I can't say the same."

He turned to his other side in an attempt to cool off. "Sore and feeling unpleasant as usual. Couldn't sleep after going on the dawn patrol." The tom sighed and muttered, "Feels like the sun's trying to roast us alive."

Rather warmed by the praise in which she rarely received she decided to be a bit nicer and give advice. "Mmm pity, go get some poppy seeds from Nightfire and whatever for your muscles. That or find some cat to help you. Other than that yes I can agree, I just hope another fire doesn't disturb us again." She huffed, stretching out her paws and pressing them into the dirt as she drew back.

He gazed at a spider ambling across the hard dirt. Even it seemed sluggish today. "Thanks." Another small insect caught his eye, a tick crawling towards the other cat. Reaching out with a claw, he skewered the parasite and flicked it into the bramble wall after it had stopped wriggling. "Leaffall isn't so far away, rain might come soon. But that also means Leafbare will arrive as well."

"Yes, I'm glad that it is. This weather is suffocating me under my fur, It is so much more comfortable at the end of green leaf and beginning of leaf-fall. Leafbare is too cold, it's bother-some." She hummed, bringing a paw up to lick it and draw it over her torn ears. Sighing Specklefur pushed herself into a sitting position and stretched, shuffling the short distance closer to Foxfang and licked at his ears with the intention of sharing tongues.

Specklefur while living in a clan very rarely did this, she did it on occasion with Spottedstar but never did she really share tongues with any other cat. All in all this was a very awkward and wonky experience for the senior warrior. "Hope you don't mind." She muttered lowly, her ears pressing against her head and preparing to pull away and pad into the warriors den within a moments notice.

His tail twitched in surprise as the she-cat came closer, then began to lick his ears. Feeling confused and awkward for a moment, he returned the gesture by grooming her shoulder fur. Although it was a strange experience, Foxfang felt an odd twinge of pride; he'd somehow managed to have Specklefur, probably the most ornery cat anyone had ever met, share tongues.

"I don't," was his mutter through strokes. For a moment he wondered what a clanmate would think seeing the two toughest cats in Thunderclan grooming each other. Despite his best attempts, he chuckled quietly. As if to explain it, the tom came up with something, "I'd bet if we were from different clans, we'd be the worst of enemies."

Specklefur seemed to pause in the grooming for a moment before stiffly continuing. "No, I'd rip you apart before any true rivalry happened, but we wouldn't be worst of enemies. You would not and do not compare to Soulfang. No cat does and will." She hissed, giving one harsh lick on his head before trying to reel in her seething temper and forcing her fur to lie flat. This was one tender moment she wasn't going to spoil, it was a nice change and Specklefur was hell bent on making it last for as long as Foxfang deemed comfortable. Flinging a leg across the smaller tom in a bit of a possessive-aggressive manner Specklefur continued, the purr little and raspy as she went.