quiet (open)

Kits, both older and younger than he was, were always wrestling outside the nursery. Batting leaves around, chasing each other, pouncing on each other's tails; normal things a kit should be doing. Every day, they would simply just play, explore, make new friends and have fun, enjoying their moons before their inevitable apprenticeship to the fullest.

Foamkit sneered.

While others frolicked in dust and sunlight, he spent much of his time crouched away behind something or tucked into a deep corner in the nursery. Nobody had ever wanted to be friends with him, and that was how he liked it - or he had at least convinced himself that he did. He supposed there was something off-putting to the joyful kits around him, perhaps his quiet nature or his reluctance to try and make friends, but he had never had the guts or will to actually ask one of them to play. So, his days were spent alone, but he had learned to entertain himself; some days, he would dream up stories of him being leader or the best hunter in the clan, or even saving Windclan from something bad like dogs. Other days, he'd just tear up leaves or roll around small pebbles. He'd rarely interact with anyone but his mother, but whenever he did it never ended up going anywhere. His mother had grown worried about his apparent preference for solitude and tried to convince him to make friends, but he never followed through. Today was no different; Foamkit had perched himself just outside the gorse, in the open but still a distance away from the other kits. He half-heartedly played with a feather he had found, mostly looking at his clanmates going about their daily duties. He sighed; when I'm an apprentice I'll always have something to do.

"I got it!" A small voice cut through the air as a mossball was tossed over a small, ginger kit's head and she turned to follow it to where it soared near the gorse. She skid to stop at the ball, and was in the middle of picking it up when movement caught her eye. She looked up, blue eyes sparkling at this new distraction and was greeted by the sight of Foamkit occupying himself with a feather. She had noticed him at the edge of activities, and hesitated for a moment. Blinking down at the mossball, she hooked it up and hurled it back to the other kits and turned her face back up to Foamkit with a bright smile. "Hi! Want some company? What kind of feather is that?" She asked brightly, plopping herself to sit on the ground, gazing up at the older kit with a warm, friendly expression. He was going to get her company regardless, but... Barleytuft would have appreciated her manners, she was sure.

Foamkit gazed blankly at the little ginger kit, letting the pale grey feather float down beside him. What was he supposed to say? She was younger than he was, so he didn't want to tell her to go away and upset her, but he didn't really know how to play with others. Lost for words, he gently pushed the feather towards her.
"Pigeon, I think," Foamkit mumbled, not answering her first question. He didn't really have a clue what bird it was from, but whatever it was it couldn't have been very interesting; a light grey with a couple of darker speckles here and there, but nothing more. His expression was unreadable, but inside he was conflicted on whether he should even try to speak to the she-cat. He sighed quietly under his breath, but decided not to move; he'd probably end up scaring her away anyway, so he wouldn't have to deal with her for long. Either that or she'd be so bored by his nature that she'd scamper off in search of her stupid little moss ball.

Blinking at the feather that was pushed towards her, she leaned down to smell it. The feather raised with her breath, tickling her nose, causing her to pull back with a light sneeze. Turning her attention back to Foamkit, she posed her next series of questions. "What's a pigeon? Have you ever seen one? What are they like? Would you show me someday?" She gazed up at him, ignoring the sounds of the other kits at play just a short distance away, content to stay and listen, and ask questions until the tom forced her to leave. She knelt down and lifted the feather up with a tiny paw, and blew it back towards him, floating down towards the top of his head gracefully.

"I can't show you a pigeon. I'm not an apprentice yet and can't go out of camp. I've just heard other cats talking about them, and I know that they're fat and grey." Being alone all the time, though it wasn't really that fun, gave him more opportunities to eavesdrop and listen to the older cats; Foamkit could swear that he had heard every story the elders had to share by now. He looked towards the fresh-kill pile; through the mass of rabbits and hares, he spotted a bloody grey wing poking out. He gestured loosely over to it as he spoke. "Maybe the feather's from over there." Speaking of the feather, it had just landed on his forehead. His ear twitched, and he looked down towards the she-kit without shaking it off; he thought of making a joke but decided against it. After hesitating, he brushed it off his head and looked back towards the fresh-kill pile. He didn't want to be cruel, but there was no point in being friendly.

A pout formed on her face. "Will you show me one once you become an apprentice? That would be really cool! Maybe you'll catch it yourself!" She followed his gaze to the fresh-kill pile, and just saw a multitude of rabbits. Letting out a sigh, she looked back to the older kit. "I can't wait to be able to catch rabbits too... I'll be the fastest cat in WindClan!" Her tail twitched in amusement as the feather landed on his head, and he looked down at her. "I like your hat! It suits you!" She giggled as he shook it off and looked back towards the pile. "Do you think you'll be an apprentice soon? You're much bigger than I am, maybe you can teach me some things!"

Despite Foamkit's rather aloof persona, he couldn't help but enjoy the she-kit's company just a little bit. After all, he didn't get many opportunities to talk to his clanmates, no matter their age. "I think I'll be an apprentice soon," he replied, "Then maybe I can catch a pigeon to show to you." He didn't realise what he was saying until it was too late; how could he promise something like that, especially after only just meeting her! He mentally reprimanded himself; you idiot, now you don't have a choice but to show her one. He looked back at Goldenkit again; he had trouble meeting her eyes when he spoke, most likely due to his unease around people. Instead of continuing to talk about the pigeon, he tried to change the subject, hoping feebly that she wouldn't realise what he said only a few moments before. "W-well, when are you going to be an apprentice?" Foamkit asked; the question was rather awkward and forced. He turned his head, staring back at the fresh-kill pile again.

Cloverkit played with the other kits across the clearing for what felt like several long moments before he began to realize that Goldenkit had disappeared, likely having gotten distracted during their game of mossball. The little tom let out a huff of frustration and rolled his eyes, willingly leaving the game behind to search for his companion. He began to scamper around WindClan's camp to search for her, light amber eyes looking for the ever-familiar ginger tabby pelt. It seemed she was always getting distracted by something, and all Cloverkit wanted to do was work on his reflexes! He was gonna be the best apprentice on his very first day! He couldn't practice very well with his best teammate gone.

"Goldenkit!" he cried as soon as he saw her. He didn't know what had distracted her; he didn't notice the other kit at all with all his attention bent on his sister. The silvery-white tabby tom bunched up all his muscles and then sprang, charging at Goldenkit to bowl her over.

The she-kit's pretty blue eyes widened in excitement and happiness. "Really? You mean it?? That would be amazing! Maybe we could catch one together someday, when we're both apprentices! Hopefully it'll be soon, I want to get out of the nursery and camp and go see the moor! I want to run and be free." She smiled, her tail twitching excitedly as her attention was drawn to the feather that the older kit had brushed aside. It twitched in the wind, spinning as it caught the tendrils of fluff that come off of it. She crouched, head low and rump high, before leaping as high as she could. It wasn't very high, considering her short legs and kit stature, so it was a bit laughable, but in her mind she thought she had jumped higher than any cat had before. Landing on top of the feather, she snagged it with her teeth before standing proudly.

Before she could say or do anything else, she was bowled over from the side by an unidentified source. The feather flew into the air as the breath was knocked out of her, and she let out a squeak of surprise as the two kits rolled together. Once the world stopped spinning she jumped up, turning to see who had surprised her, fur puffed out indignantly. Her eyes narrowed as she recognized the pelt of her Cloverkit, her brother. "Cloverkit! What was that for? I was practicing hunting!" She narrowed her eyes, immediately shifting into her 'defensive' playful stance before remembering Foamkit, and she looked up at her newfound friend. She stood straight, shaking out her pelt and gestured up to him. Cloverkit, Foamkit here told me he'd find me a pigeon to show me. So ha!"

Foamkit grew flustered. He hadn't wanted to promise her anything in the first place, let alone have it grow into a competition. "I-I.." the colourpoint tom stammered, trying to process what to do in this situation. Will I upset her if I say no? Will Cloverkit want a bird as well? God, why did I even talk to this kit? He stood still, a barely-visible twitch in his tail, as his jaw hung half-open while he wondered what he should say. In doing so, he remained silent; though embarrassed and conflicted, he couldn't make out the words to tell Goldenkit that he really wasn't interested in this conversation-

Mistykit fumbled over to the trio. Cloverkit and Goldenkit were taking a long time to get back to the game of mossball, and the she kit was getting worried. "What are you guys doing?" She squeaked. Then she saw Foamkit. "Oh! I didn't realize you two had a new fwend! Hai! I'm Mistykit, it is nice to meet you!" The she kit sat down, looking between her siblings and their new friend. "Are we going back to playing mossball? We could do teams with the four of us!" The she kit stood up with a smile and began bouncing in a circle. "This will be so much fun! Let's go let's go let's go!"

His attack had caught Goldenkit off guard, much to his delight, and Cloverkit found himself rolling in a tangle of toes and tails for a moment. He came out on top and immediately sprang off his sister, allowing her to stand and grinning smugly above her. "Yeah, and I was practicing hunting too - I caught you, what'd you catch?" he retorted cheekily. She had seemed ready and poised to retaliate when suddenly she sat up straight again as if she'd remembered something, looking to the side and gesturing with her tail.

Well, in fact she had sort of caught something. Goldenkit introduced Foamkit and explained that he had promised to show her a pigeon. He looked hotly at the kit from a different litter and mewed with a grumpy expression, "That's not fair, how come she gets to go?"

A new interruption arrived in the form of their other teammate and sibling, Mistykit. The pale silvery tabby had been left alone and confused just like Cloverkit had been, but he wasted no time considering that fact. She had moved on and so had he. Mistykit was suggesting they all play mossball together with the four of them divided into teams. Immediately Cloverkit pressed his side right against Mistykit's, proclaiming, "I call Mistykit's team! You and Foamkit can be the other team, Goldenkit." His light amber eyes shined excitedly as he looked at Foamkit. "Come on, this is more fun than silly pigeons!"

Goldenkit smiled with a triumphant hmph. "Because you weren't here, and I'm his friend! Right, Foamkit?" She looked up at the tom, ignoring the look on his face as her sister approached, asking where they had been and offering a group game. Cloverkit quickly claimed Mistykit as his partner, and Goldenkit narrowed her eyes at her brother. Mistykit was one of the best partners for mossball, and they both knew that. Probably why Cloverkit jumped on the chance to claim her. Turning her gaze up to Foamkit again, she noted his noticeably larger size. That would come in handy... "Alright, fine! Besides, Foamkit will be a great teammate. Right?" She looked pleadingly up at the older kit, her eyes begging him to come down and join them. "Come on, let's go! We can talk about that pigeon more later!"