You Look a Little Lonely [Closed]

Tawnypaw padded across the wet ground silently, tail flicking and ears down as she moved across the marshes. There was no real purpose to her being there; just happening to overhear it and decided to check it out. She paused and took in the scenery; several pools of water, not even that deep. The apprentice hummed to herself and bounded a bit closer to the water's edge, stopping to take a drink.

After drinking to her heart's content, the blue-eyed she-cat sat there with her tail wrapped around her paws. This place was..quiet and tranquil, like she was the only living thing in a silent world. It comforted her, but still didn't lift the overwhelming feeling of loneliness that had settled on her shoulders. Ever since she became an apprentice, she had distanced herself to her adoptive family and blood kin. Starclan, how she regretted being so stubborn and unwilling to listen. 

Tawnypaw shook her head to clear her thoughts, claws slipping out for a brief second. "No, don't think like that. You didn't come here to think like that, Tawny. You came here to enjoy the scenery and maybe relax a bit before you continue on about your day doing things apprentices should do." Agreeing with herself, she allowed her eyelids to shut as she dozed off a bit, coming to peace with the world around her.

The brown and gray dappled cat swiveled her ears when she heard a noise from the bushes nearby. She turned slowly, opening her eyes and glaring hard at the bush for any more movement. Whatever it was, just gave itself away. "Looks like you're not the only one here.." She unsheathed her claws and stood up, lashing her tail as she cautiously stepped closer.

Darkpaw was not the kind to wander. Her nature called for structure and guidance. It was for this very reason she had recently become tangled up in a mess of truths. There was nothing within her that clearly stated right and wrong and so she was left in a bit of a mess. Silverfang and Ivystar had always been her inspirations and the thought that they might not always be right left her feeling a little... hopeless. But, more confused than anything. Normally, she wouldn't be found outside of the camp alone. Darkpaw was a creature who craved and thrived off of companionship. However, today the den walls felt a little too close and the air too thin. So, she slipped out of camp with a silence that was a bit unusual for the young she-cat.

Instead of reveling in the beauty of the territory, moment, or day, she padded on without a real purpose or place. Her paws carried her towards the broken pools. The split-face apprentice hadn't come out here all that much, she never had a reason too. As she slipped through a low-bush and her fur snagged in several places, the branches clashed and rustled softly. It snapped her out of her oblivious daze. In front of her was one of her denmates. A weird feeling stirred in her stomach. She couldn't tell if it was a relief to be faced with a clanmate or the opposite of what she needed, so she simply meowed, "Oh, hey, Tawnypaw."

Tawnypaw blinked a few times before allowing herself to relax. She had distanced herself from cats, but this one seemed to know her. "Probably caught on when Torrentpaw yelled for my name once or something." "Hey...you..?"

Who was she kidding, she wasn't prepared to talk to anyone. This was her moment of peace, and someone had just disturbed it like sending ripples through a serene pond. The young Riverclanner let a sigh escape, flicking her ears in an agitated gesture. "We all can't have what we want. Might as well make myself useful while she's here. Maybe hunt for a bit, see if she goes away or not."

"What brings you here? I was thinking about hunting but then I heard a noise. Assumed you were enemy cats or something," She meowed, stretching out her hind legs a bit. Tawnypaw gave her flank a few licks before turning back to the multi-colored cat, a small tilt in her head as she awaited an answer to her question.

Although her denmate's tone held aggravation, she was too caught up in her own head to catch it. A soft smile twitched at the edge of her maw as she padded closer. Her paws felt heavy and her mind was clouded, but she barely knew Tawnypaw. The split-faced calico had made it her unspoken goal to be close to every Riverclan cat. They were her clanmates after all. Right? Once more thinking of Dewshine and Silverfang, her smile flitted to a frown. However, the deeply rooted part of her that did know she longed to befriend this distant she-cat drove her to speak up once more, "No... no, enemies here." Darkpaw picked around the word carefully, her inflection sounding a little off but the words brought her right back to thinking of the dilemma from before. Her tail flicked behind her as she paused for a moment before speaking up again.

"I'm just out. Maybe I should be hunting, but Snowblossom gave me the day off." Her paw dabbed at the edge of the nearest pool and she watched the ripples caused by the motion. Glancing up at the other she-cat, she added, "Maybe we could find something to do?" To distract my mind for now, Darkpaw added silently in her head. The company sounded nice. And maybe something could help to keep her busy enough to not worry about the things that now plagued her. Darkpaw's eyes pleaded with her clanmate to accompany her... likely for fishing.