Damp Morning Meeting [closed]

Summer had still not yet been in the new territory by the river for even a moon, but she had already learned so much about the way of life of the cats who lived there. WindClan, RiverClan, ThunderClan - there were two more than she had yet to meet, but she had all the time in the world. She was free, after all. Summer had wandered back across RiverClan's territory, over the river, and carefully around the edges of ThunderClan's territory, careful to respect the boundary as much as she could (for today it suited her to play nicely). Eventually she had found the long upwalker road that split through the forest parallel to the river, and she determined that this day would be the day she crossed it. Summer had much experience with roads from the travels during her life, and though she felt a rush of adrenaline as she approached, checked, and crossed it, she wasn't daunted by the task. It was a quiet morning; it had rained in the night and left the earth damp.

It seemed, though, that the territory itself was just a bit more marshy than anywhere Summer had traveled in the territories thus far. Her cream pelt became flecked with mud, her ginger-pointed paws now brown and sopping, as she left the road behind to wander farther into the trees. She wondered for a moment if she had scented one of the Clans' borders, but over the reek of the Thunderpath it was hard to tell, and all Summer wanted to do was try to find a bit dryer land to walk on. She picked a path through to some thicker, lush green grasses in a clearing of the pine forest, and Summer's blue eyes gazed around into the tree-tops, seeing how the sunlight sparkled in the raindrops collected on the pine needles. Her ginger tail-tip flicked contentedly; she was blissfully unaware, for the moment, of company.

It was a peaceful morning. The songbirds in the pine trees above sounded as beautiful as ever, and the marshy ground was even softer underpaw after last night’s rain. Sparkfire took in a deep breath through her nose, taking in the scents of the damp marshes that she called home, and released it through her mouth in an exhale. The Gathering would be later on tonight, and she was sure there would be trouble between the Clans and StarClan. She could feel it in her bones. So, for now, she relished in the serenity of the here and now.

That was, until another inhale wafted an unfamiliar scent to her nose. She carefully scented the air and detected a loner. It was very close. Deciding to investigate, the ShadowClan warrior stealthily moved forward, following the scent. It didn’t take her long to spot a rather pretty cream-colored cat wandering around in the marshes. At first, her heart pulsed with excitement. Was that Honeypaw? ...No. Honeypaw would have smelled of SkyClan. This cat did not.

Narrowing her eyes and crouching down in the darkness of the shade, Sparkfire waited until the loner turned her back to her before launching out from the shadows. She slammed hard into the intruder’s flank, sending her sliding across the muddy landscape. ”You are trespassing in ShadowClan territory,” she growled lowly. ”Leave this place now, or you will leave in pieces.”

Sparkfire used Run-and-Tackle on Summer, dealing 10 (+3) damage and costing 10 stamina.

Sparkfire
60/60 HP
190/200 SP

Summer
32/45 HP
140/140 SP

Company, of course, was not unaware of Summer, and the moment she became aware of them was the same moment that their unwelcome weight came crashing into her side. Entirely startled, Summer yelped as her paws were thrown from beneath her. The sound was cut off as she hit the muddy earth and skidded a few tail-lengths before coming to a scrambling halt. Her muddied paws flailed around for just a moment as she attempted to get her bearings and right herself, feet squelching in the muck while she stood. Summer's sky blue eyes glinted with anger and indignation as she took in the sight of her attacker. It's always the pretty ones, isn't it? she thought. Despite the ugly, threatening look on the she-cat's face, Summer's attacker was beautiful: her coat was gray like a mist before dawn and thick like clouds, her eyes sparkling like sand in the sun even with the fury. The drifter narrowed her eyes, sopping tail lashing as she listened to the she-cat's words.

Ah, of course. It is another Clan's territory, Summer thought, half exasperated and half amused. These cats sure do like their space, don't they? She was becoming accustomed to being told she was trespassing. Perhaps she could change that. Summer blinked her blue eyes slowly, then cleared her throat and turned up the charm. Her tail lifted up in a friendly arch, and she meowed silkily, "Oh, darling, haven't we all made mistakes? I do apologize for trespassing; I'm new to the forest and still learning. I've never met a ShadowClan cat before. Maybe there's another option? Since you're so kind as to offer mercy, it wouldn't be trespassing if I were only here for you to show me where the borders are, would it?" She gave the most alluring, innocent smile she could; she was fairly certain this cat could take her pelt whether all that mass was fur or muscle.

Summer hasn't attacked.