Better Watch Out, Better Not Cry {CLOSED}

It truly was the most wonderful time of the year. The sights, the smells, the sounds, and the general feeling that this time brought Claus couldn't be described in one word. He could go on and on about how amazed he was with this time. The weather outside surely was frightful, and the tom did prefer to stay inside where the fire was delightful, but this meant that he was practically trapped inside of the house. He had nowhere to go, but he was fine with it. Watching the snowflakes fall from the sky, dance through the air, and land gracefully on the ground filled his heart with nothing but joy and curiosity. Claus enjoyed happiness, and so should the majority of cats and twolegs, and he felt a bit of warmth whenever one of his twolegs would smile. There was one tradition that Claus always loved to watch, the one that filled him with the most warmth of all. The big twolegs would always wait until the little ones were sleeping, and they would leave colorful items underneath the tall, glowing evergreen tree that graced the corner of the house. When the little twolegs woke up, their eyes would glow as they received those items under that tree, and they would obsess over it all day, all week, all month, even. Knowing that his twolegs were happy made Claus happy, and he even received some gifts of his own. Whether it be a special treat, or a toy mouse, the tom was never left empty-pawed.

It was time, again, and Claus was looking forward to it all, as usual. He remained stretched out by the fireplace, watching as the red tongues flickered behind the bars. The warmth that the flames gave off seemed to spread a sleepy feeling throughout his entire body, and his jaws opened wide as a yawn managed to escape. Sleep was nearly upon the kittypet. However, the loud thumping of little twolegs running excitedly down the stairs jolted Claus out of his temporary state of euphoria. The small tom rose from his spot on the rug, and he padded over to greet the little ones as they stood by the door. Confusion went through the cat. Wouldn't they want to stay inside where it was comfortable and cozy? One of the little ones bent down and ran their hand over Claus' head. The kittypet let out a purr as he was given a quick rub. That was when he noticed what was upon their head. It was large, and it was red, and there was a white ball at the very end. Claus saw it every year, so it was nothing new to him, but he noticed that it seemed to be sliding off of the twoleg's head. He let out a concerned mew, but, of course, the twoleg said nothing in return.

The two little ones dashed out of the house, heading directly into the cold weather and the white snow, and their giggles could be heard from where Claus sat in the doorway. A chilly breeze whisked through the air and straight into the house, and Claus shivered. It was time to head back to his spot near the fireplace. Perhaps he could get a good nap in, now. He curled up on the rug, shut his green eyes, and willingly let sleep take over him.

Time seemed to fly by in a matter of heartbeats. Almost quicker than he had fallen asleep, Claus woke up to the sound of loud chattering coming from the door. It didn't sound like happy chattering, and that made the tom's heart drop. What had happened? Nobody could be downcast during this time, right? After rising from the rug, Claus scampered over to the door to watch the scene unfold. The little twoleg seemed so upset, tears running down their face as they looked around, hopelessly. Fear gripped the kittypet's heart. One of his twolegs was upset. This couldn't be right. That was when he noticed it, the lack of the fluffy red item that had sat on their head not long ago. The poor twoleg had lost it somewhere, Claus assumed.

Claus felt as if everyone deserved happiness, and losing something that they loved was not the key to joy. The little twoleg left the scene, hopelessly, and disappeared up the steps. The other small twoleg followed after them. What could the tom do? He had to be the hope that the twoleg had lost. He could only imagine the look on their face as he carried the missing item back into the house. Everything would fall back into place, and everyone would be happy, again.

So, he decided at that moment that he would find the item, again. He would easily retrieve it, and he would bring it home. The reward of the smile on his twolegs' faces would be plenty for him, and as he glanced out the window to see the snowflakes still drifting down from the sky, the kittypet figured that he would leave in the middle of the night. That way, none of his twolegs would be able to stop him. He knew that they would be shocked when they realized that he was gone, but returning what had been lost would make up for it all... right?

Her pawsteps light and tail swishing from side to side, Violetfall trotted at a brisk pace along the far border of ThunderClan territory. She was a few fox-lengths from the border with the Twolegplace, carefully watching as she made her way along the territory's edge, occasionally setting a scent marker. A thin layer of snow crunched beneath her paws, so each step was quick so as to avoid the achy cold that she knew would seep into her body if she idled too long.

It was strange to be on patrol alone, but with the shortage of warriors ThunderClan had seen this season, it had become commonplace for solo border patrols to occur. They weren't preferable, she knew, but worked in a pinch. Today was one of those days, when her apprentice was busy with something in camp and she was sent out on her own. All seemed to be peaceful in ThunderClan territory today, however, so she didn't think she would have much to worry about.

Suddenly, something bright caught her eye. A flash of red, the color of deathberries, could be seen caught on a twig just outside of a twoleg enclosure. What is that? She padded closer, curious but highly alert. She caught no scent nor sound of twolegs nearby, so she approached the strange object, brushing her nose to it with care. It seemed to be some sort of pelt, but strangely shaped and colored. Bright and bold, the soft red fur stood out on a border of white fluff. The red tapered to a point, at the end of which a round ball of the white fluff seemed to be attached. How strange it was! She wondered if it was a twoleg object, but she could not come to a solid conclusion. She had had little contact with twolegs since she had been taken in to ThunderClan as a kit, nor did she have any desire to, so she couldn't say if this was something the strange fur-less creatures used.

Glancing around, she made a quick decision. Grabbing the brightly colored pelt by a thin point in the red fur, she gathered it into her jaws like a large piece of prey and turned back in the direction of camp. She would let some other cat finish the border patrol later on. It was a bit awkward to carry, but didn't take too long to get used to. After what seemed like only a few moments of a brisk trot, she neared the entrance to the ThunderClan camp. Violetfall ducked through the thorn bushes that created the camp entrance, dropping the strange pelt just inside. "Leopardstar?" she called. "Someone? Come quick, look what I've found in the territory!"

The calm light that the sun provided from its rays seemed to vanish in a matter of mere heartbeats, replaced by the eerie yet soothing milky shine of the moon. That was the kittypet's cue to make his escape, to begin his quest. He lifted his head from his paws almost as soon as he saw the last twoleg vanish upstairs to retire to their own resting place. Claus, quietly, crept out of his little bed and headed toward the door that the twolegs always went through. The tall, wooden figure was closed shut, and the little, golden handle was far too high up for Claus to even consider reaching. The tom did not feel defeated by this minor setback. That was when he remembered that there was always a window open in one of the rooms. It was the room that the food was always made in. Claus would sit there for long periods of time, waiting for his twolegs to come down and open that delicious can of food for him. Every night, they would leave the window open so that the breeze could cool down the house. Light on his paws, Claus sprang toward the room, feeling the breeze almost immediately after entering.

He scrambled onto the counter, making sure to avoid any noise, before he poked his head out of the opening. He was greeted by a gust of winter air. The chilliness made the tom shiver, but he still proceeded to make his way out of the twoleg home, anyway. Limb by limb, Claus squeezed out of the window, before he was completely out and on the ground, right outside. Snow, pure white snow, ate away at his paws and legs. It was awfully cold. Beginning to shiver, the kittypet trudged through the white sludge, not wanting to make too much noise. Now, considering the fact that it was completely dark, and Claus was unaware of the forest's boundaries, he had no idea where he was going. All he knew was that he had to go... out, as if that was specific in any way.

The gray and white tom continued to pad through the snow, shivering even more. Strong words began to flood his mind, encouraging things ran through his head, telling him that he was doing this, not for himself, but for his twolegs that he loved so dearly. Despite the fact that there was fear in his heart, Claus still made his way forward.

Heartbeats passed, moments passed, and it seemed almost as if moons passed before Claus felt himself wanting to stop. He was surrounded by trees, tall, ominous trees, with twisting branches and dark leaves. He felt closed in and unable to escape. It certainly wasn't an enjoyable feeling. The young tom figured that he wouldn't get much done in the dark, he had simply needed to leave during the nighttime to avoid the risk of getting caught. Now that he was away from his twolegs, he could finally get some well-deserved rest. The tom, completely unaware of where he was now sleeping, on the territory of a Clan that lurked in the shadows, curled up underneath one of the trees. It was cold, it was terrifying. All of the trees seemed to be closing in on him. Perhaps Claus should've thought his plan through a bit more. Now, he just felt miserable. A pang of sadness struck the little tom as he pulled his own body closer to himself, for it was the only physical warmth that he had.

However, Claus was rich in mental warmth, for his brain buzzed with positive thoughts and uplifting words. He told himself that tomorrow would be another day, a day to begin his quest, a day to find the twoleg item. It would be easy. He would find it, take it, and return it home in time for the big celebration. A tiny smile grew on the gray and white kittypet's muzzle as he began to comfort himself. This wouldn't be difficult for a tom like him, correct?

Correct, indeed.

(topic end).