tale as old as time [closed]

Smokewish was sat at the camp entrance. She probably should be asleep by now. Ah well. The moon was up high in the sky, shining it's beaming light down on the snowy camp. Stars peppered the night sky like small, shining diamonds, their beauty beyond compare as they twinkled and flashed. A happy sigh escaped the warrior's jaws. Leafbare would soon come to an end, and then it would be Newleaf, when new life arose from the ashes. Most cats were asleep so late at night, but the grey warrior wanted a little time to herself. After all, why would she miss such a wonderful sight? The thought that her warrior ancestors were up there, probably watching her at that very moment, made her even happier. It was all so fascinating! As she sat there, gazing up at the sky, she listened to the way the wind whispered through the reeds, as though it held secrets of its own it was willing to share, just waiting for the right cat to come along.

Spotfur couldn't sleep. Even though he was tired(the night before had been his vigil), he still couldn't help but step out of his new den into the crisp cold night air. It was fully dark now. The stars danced overhead, and the moon's cool glow made a pelt shine silver. He stopped as he heard a sound, like a breath out. He glanced about. A shadow sat in camp. A real cat? Or something else? Calm down, will you? It's probably just someone up late. He decided to investigate anyway. Just in case. His tense muscles relaxed to find out it was Smokewish, his former denmate, the pretty silver warrior. She was stargazing like he and Wolfsong had done that one evening. He looked up as well. Brightpaw was up there, somewhere. So were Raccoonpaw, Frostpaw, Fawnsong, Rowanpaw, Darkpaw, and Tigerpaw. "The sky is clear tonight. Perfect time to go stargazing, don't you think?" He looked over at her. She was probably a bit startled by his sudden appearance by her side.

Smokewish was startled indeed at the voice by her side, her head whipping round to see who it belonged to, but her shocked expression changed to a content one. It was Spotfur. Her dark green eyes shone in the starlight as she looked across at him, and she had to stop herself from blurting out how nice his pelt looked under the pale light of the moon. "It's as good a time as any." She responded. "Oh, and congratulations on your warrior name, Spotfur." She smiled, her gaze floating back to the sky. It was a truly memorising sight. She wondered if all the recently passed cats were up there. All those apprentices, slain by foxes and ThunderClan and sickness. The thought crossed her mind that the tom next to her was probably grieving for his lost siblings. "I-i'm truly sorry about your family. I'm sure they would have made the best warriors." She mewed, her tone clear and sweet as she looked comfortingly at the spotted tom, trying to convey how much she cared about the deaths.

Spotfur smiled slightly. "Reedpaw- claw beat me, though." He said playfully. Then the smile vanished. "I know. That's what keeps me going... I have to live my life to the fullest because they couldn't." He looked at the she-cat and smiled again. "Reedclaw and I are all that's left of our litter, and then we have Petalpaw, and that's it." Then his face turned thoughtful. "Leafbare is a hard season. Makes us stronger for it." He paused a few heartbeats, then got an idea. "Well, if neither of us is going to sleep, would you like to go out on a patrol with me?"

Smokewish listened to what he had to say. "Well, I'm sure you'll go on to be great. They must be very proud of you." A small smile twisted her muzzle. "I never had littermates. My father died before I was born, and my mother died kitting. I can't say I know what it's like,
because I don't, but I do know what it feels like to lose a Clanmate. I can only imagine it would be worse." She mewed thoughtfully. The only other cats she had told this were Ashpaw and Sweetheart, but she felt like Spotfur deserved to know this. Her smile widened when he asked to go on a patrol, and something deep inside her stirred, like a bird longing to break free and fly. It was a sensation she had only felt once before, with Ashpaw, and she disregarded it. It couldn't be. She didn't have feelings for this tom. They were friends, that's all. "Sure." She replied, getting to her paws.

IC: Spotfur smiled. He was glad it was dark because he could feel his ears go pink. "Shall we go then?" He asked, tail swishing as he turned to walk towards the exit.

OOC: rose petals fell from the sky as a candlelit path appeared leading them out of camp.

Smokewish nodded and followed Spotfur, feeling almost giddy with happiness. The spotted warrior actually asked her to go on patrol, just the two of them, and it was such a beautiful night, too.

ooc: do we hunt? and if we do, do we use the hunting system?

OOC: No hunting system... maybe after a try or two, he finds himself distracted and then realizes right there and then why all this was happening and then... "Confession time, here's what I got:"

IC: Spotfur's heart was leaping in circles. Why? This was a similar feeling to how he felt stargazing with Wolfsong, but Smokewish was just a friend, right? And this was a different feeling, more excited and fatherly. Tigerfur hadn't been very apparent, so he had no clue where this came from. He began to hunt a mouse he smelled, trying to direct his focus on only that. But her green eyes filled his mind. Green like ferns, like the Greenleaf grass he could only imagine... Something moved in his vision and he jumped out of reflexes. The mouse got away! I'm usually so good...

Smokewish sniffed through the reeds, her heart dancing in a light, rapid rhythm. She sternly told herself, over and over, that Spotfur was just a friend. Just a friend. Just a friend. She padded in the direction of the river, keeping an eye out for prey, but found none until she arrived at the sparkling, glistening water. She gazed down at the infinite depths, looking for fish, but all she could see was the spotted warrior in place of her reflection. She could only think of the way he handled things so smoothly, of the way he had with words, of the way he could say whole speeches and make it all so convincing. Her reflexes were so slow, that she didn't notice the fish flash by until it was halfway up the stream. Fox-dung. She shook her head, and decided to go try land hunting. That would take her mind off of things. Yeah.

Spotfur shook his head. Why was he like this? Maybe his home ground- the river- would offer more successful results. He stared at his reflection, and at the stars' reflection. The moon, too. In the reflection, he saw him. He looked at both sides. He was alone. But his reflection shimmered with the image of kits playing on him and with each other, Smokewish beside him. He blinked and it was gone. Instead was the dark silhouette of a fish. His lightning-fast paw flipped it out of the water, but he saw Smokewish's face on it and suddenly couldn't get it all the way to land. The water darkened with its blood, and it got away. His heart sank. Were they going to catch no prey? Why did he keep seeing her everywhere?

Smokewish scanned the area for any land prey, her sharp eyes picking out the pelt of a white little mouse. What she could see of it was white, and it looked plumper than what she was used to in this frigid weather. She crouched low, her tail swaying slightly in the breeze, and pounced, dragging it out of the reeds. What she saw made her jaw drop open and made her let go of her catch, sending it scrambling away. It had spots. The same colours as Spotfur's, in fact. She shook her head, trying to get the vision out of her mind. She couldn't hurt anything with such a close resemblance to her... Friend. Yes, just friend.

Spotfur dipped his face in the river and blinked a few times. That woke him up. He turned to try catching more prey when reality hit him full-on. He felt like banging his head into the ground. OF COURSE! He saw her standing by some reeds and walked over to her. It was time to tell her. Two things could happen. Either she would accept, or his relationship with her would be ruined forever. He took a deep breath. "Smokewish... can I ask you something?" He asked. This was it. The moment of truth.

Smokewish turned her head at the sound of his voice, her heart practically soaring higher than the stars - metaphorically, of course. Her deep green eyes gazed into the depths of his, as she tried to search for some kind of emotion similar to what she was feeling. Could this be it? "Of course. Ask away." She almost cringed at how awkward that was, but never broke eye contact.

Spotfur tried to calm the excited throbbing in his head. He was nervous, curious, kit-like and wise, all at the same time. "Smokewish... I've come to a realization tonight which explains why my heart's been fluttering like a bird this whole night. I love you, Smokewish. Will you be my mate?" Worry stirred in his belly. What if she didn't feel the same way? Then a calm washed over him. It would all work out okay.

Smokewish's pupils dilated until they almost swallowed her eyes into great, black holes. Was this for real? She had to be dreaming. There was no way such good fortune would come to her. She would wake up, now, back in the warrior den. Her expression broke into a huge grin, one that started at the corners of her mouth and grew in such a pleasant way. "I love you too, Spotfur." She purred, sitting next to him with a loving tone laced into her voice. "Of course I'll be your mate." She came to the realization that this was, in fact, one hundred percent reality.