Call It Fate (Closed for Twisty)

Shadepaw's ears twitched as he stared down at the great dip in the earth that's surrounded by the imposing ancient oaks, his nose wrinkling as he inhaled the sour, off-putting mixed scents that the cats from the previous gathering had left- for a place that was hailed as one of the most sacred places in all of the Clan's history, it sure was a letdown. Half skidding-half leaping down, Shadepaw bounded into the hollow and stared around with disinterest. "What about this place is so special? It reeks of elders and mouse bile." He thought irritably, prowling through the frosty grass as he sulked about Fort Trees, searching in vain for anything that would pass as interesting.

Shadepaw's new mentor Wildfang had deemed him too rowdy for the previous night's gathering, but had allowed him to come explore the neutral territory this morning as long as he didn't stray into any other Clan's territory.  This had been one of the first times he had been allowed to roam about with so little supervision and he found the freedom riveting- he felt like all of Shadowclan's territory was his own! Shadepaw eventually halted his stalking and inner musing as he made his way up to the Great Rock- its smooth surface glinting in the weak Leaf-Fall sunlight, and it was covered in the scent of countless of leaders who had led their Clan's throughout history. Growing mischievious, Shadepaw dropped into a crouch and gathered his powerful hind-legs underneath his body before hurling himself into the air and onto the slick surface of the rock with a powerful leap. Scrabbling up onto the Great-Rock, Shadepaw dropped himself into a rather ungraceful heap and rolled on to his side; basking in the weak warmth of the sun.

(ooc: So I guess Shade and Twisted can meet and Twisted can end up with a crush on Shade after some banter? Then they can decide to meet up again eventually.)

Twistedpaw stepped into the moon-washed clearing, empty besides her for all she knew. The towering oaks still took her breath away, their bare branches reaching out into the cold air of the time between leaf-fall and leaf-bare. This was an amazing place, where the most legendary leaders have stood there. Where the Dark Forest forced the Clans into their reign. It was truly a place to never be forgotten.
She was still numb from her mother's death, and she was advised that a walk would make her feel better. As she padded through the empty clearing, a shadow cast from the Great Rock fell against her pelt. Turning around, she curiously asked, "Hello? Anyone there?"

Shadepaw's whiskers twitched as the scent of fresh Windclan filled the hollow, and he rolled over onto his paws to glare down at the cat who tromped nosily into the hollow and was mewing at every little leaf- they had ruined the first decent sleep he'd had in moons! Huffing as he saw the small wiry shape of the Windclan cat, Shadepaw realized that she likely wouldn't be able to see him due to the angle of the sun, she would of only of been able to scent him.
"No need to wake up the entire forest- if you had scented someone, they're obviously here." Shadepaw finally called, his husky mew dripping with annoyance. Shadepaw rose to his paws and perched himself in the view of the Windclan cat; noticing with smug amusement that the shadow his sitting form threw stretched all the way to the furthest Great Oak. Raising a massive paw, Shadepaw began to groom the thick fur that billowed around his individual toes before unsheathing his long, menacing hooked claws to gently nip at as he kept one, glinting amber eye on the newcomer.

Twistedpaw at first jumped at the sight of the huge shadowy claws, but then realized the shadow. The embarrassment to get frightened by a shadow puffed up her fur before she quickly licked it down."Please tell me who you are. I can smell Shadowclan in the still air. Who are you? Hawkpaw? Waspstep?"

Shadepaw's ears twitched scornfully; why had it taken so long for her to even catch wind of his scent- did all of Windclan's apprentices have mud for brains? Sheathing his claws and dropping his paw to rest against the cold stone of the Great Rock, Shadepaw stared down at Twistedpaw with interest; she clearly hadn't been in training for more than a moon or so and her senses seemed unusually unfocused. He was startled when Twistedpaw rounded on the Great Rock and demanded to know who was there, irritation causing his ears to flatten against his head. "No I'm Shadow herself, coming back from the dead to swear vengeance against all those who oppose the master-race Shadowclan." Shadepaw snorted, mulling over the nursery tale of the founders of the Clans with amusement.

Bunching his strong, rippling muscles underneath his smooth, sleek pelt, Shadepaw propelled himself off of the smooth surface of the Great Rock in a formidable leap that placed him beside the smaller, Windclan she-cat. Rising to his full height, Shadepaw noticed how he towered over the smaller Windclan apprentice with a smug sense of satisfaction- before curiously noting her crooked tail. "What's a cat so small doing so far from Windclan? Are they so desperate for warriors now that they're training kits?" Shadepaw questioned as he circled the she-cat, inhaling the sour tang of her Windclan scent.

OOC: I just realized in your post it was sometime in the morning, but in my post it was night. Sorry!

Twistedpaw rolled her eyes. "Windclan cats are lean, not small. I am simply a new apprentice. And please stop staring at my tail. I was just born that way. And Windclan cats training kits? You Shadowclan cats have hearts so cold you probably would not care if your clan did that." Her usually pacifist nature was disturbed by the rude cat eyeing her.

OOC: Oh it's fine, I didn't even fully noticed haha

Shadepaw's whiskers twitched with an indistinguishable emotion- likely a mixture of amusement and annoyance, but he didn't chase the feeling closely. Stopping his pacing and settling himself down in front of Twistedpaw, scoffing at her jibe directed towards Shadowclan. Wrapping his bushy tail around his sitting form, Shadepaw's nose twitched at the peaty, unpleasant scent of Windclan. "You say you're not a kit but the fact that you still believe the nursery tale that all Shadowclan cats have cold hearts proves you are." Shadepaw teased, looking down at the smaller cat with an almost friendly expression. "Plus if you believe the tale that Shadowclan's hearts are frozen from the Northern winds, then you must believe the tale that Windclan is only fast because they always run from battle!" He recited the nursery tale with a gleeful look in his honey colored eyes.

She smiled, with a tinge of annoyance. "Stop it," she said before her smile faded, "If you want to know why I am here, it is because my mother Heatherstripe died recently. I decided to go out so I can get my mind off of that." Her words were more of a rumbling growl, the shards of grief piercing her again as she visioned the dead body of the cat who raised her after she was abandoned.

(OOC: super super super late response, sorry!)

Shadepaw's right ear twitched in response to Twistedpaw's admission, his eyes watching her intently with the faintest glimmer of interest. "Now Windclan seems to really be lacking in numbers." Shadepaw thought, his face emotionless. "That's unfortunate." Shadepaw mewed, blinking sympathetically. "At least she's in Starclan now- she won't go hungry during Leaf-Bare like the rest of us." He pointed up, looking up at the leafless trees, noting the sharp scent of frost on the breeze. It would be a hard Leaf-Bare for all the Clan's no doubt; the first snows had come early and driven all the prey deep into their burrows.

Twistedpaw looked up into the sky. "It will be a hard one. But at least she would be up there, looking after us."

"Is there even such thing as an 'easy Leaf-Bare'? They're always long and difficult." Shadepaw grunted, ear flicking as he looked out past one of the Great-Oaks, catching the faintest glimpse of the browning-moorland. "It must be especially hard out on the moor- you have no trees to protect you from the snow. I don't envy that." He commented, shivering at the thought of being out in the open all day and all night with no protection from enemies and the elements alike.