solitaire [o]

It wasn't exactly a secret that Flashlight was typically sharp-tongued and bad-tempered with all but those she held closest to her heart, even (and often especially, given how rarely she deigned to speak to cats from the other clans) to her clanmates, but since Asylum's downfall it seemed like she'd lost part of what made her herself. Oh, she still snapped, almost more than she had before - swiftly latching on to any minor slight or misstep as something to criticize harshly; but the clear passion she had once possessed was something rarely seen in recent days.

She'd always spent a great deal of her time by herself, by choice or by chance, but as of the past few days it seemed like she was actively trying to dissuade her clanmates from approaching her; with either a sharp glare or a warning glance if she noticed their approach. The few cats she'd never snap at - her family and her leader - remained the exception, but even they couldn't return the spark to her eyes. The invisible chill that still draped itself over her was dry and bitter, something she couldn't quite shake even as the seasons changed and the icy landscape returned to the way it was before.

For now, at least, she rested alone at one edge of the camp, allowing one paw to brush lightly against the water. Watching ripples start and stop at each place she touched with a quiet sort of fascination, choosing for once to keep her thoughts completely to herself.

That fascination with her current distraction meant she was no longer diligently keeping an eye on her immediate surroundings, not paying close enough attention to anything besides the water to notice someone's approach.

Spark wasn't normally one to approach others. Normally, he just listened to others speak from a distance, but it wasn't something that was very possible at the moment. Due to RiverClan watching him and Shira wherever they went, he really couldn't exactly watch someone else without it being a staring contest. He felt like he was an outsider in the Clan. It was probably because, at the end of the day, he was. After all, he had just met these cats just a few sunrises ago. And despite the gathering coming and going, he still felt more at home with Raisha than the cats who were his clanmates.

So that's why he padded over to Flashlight's direction this very day. Maybe, if he made another friend in RiverClan, he'd feel better staying here long-term. The ginger tom couldn't see the she-cat's expression at the moment, due to the fact that she was looking down at the water she was standing near. "Hello," he said, a small smile coming across his face. "Your name is Flashlight, correct? I'm Spark, if you didn't know. It's nice to meet you." Of course, there was a part of him that felt extremely nervous on this entire process, but there was no way that she would snap at him, right?

Right?

Flashlight swiftly turned her head to acknowledge the cat who had interrupted her thoughts. They weren't pleasant thoughts, true, but they were hers; and worse still, she recognized him - he'd been with that pathetic rat at the Gathering, hadn't he? Her eyes narrowed into a sharp glare.

She could tolerate Ivystar's daughter, if only out of respect for her leader. She'd come to tolerate Brick's continued presence as well, simply because she was almost certain there was no way she would be a threat (and perhaps a hint of guilt for words she'd never know if the other cat had somehow heard, both spoken by her and not). This cat, however, had nothing of note that she was aware of to earn either her sympathy or curiosity; all she knew was that he'd arrived with another, and that he'd willingly spent time alongside someone who most definitely could not be trusted.

Why couldn't it have been Bubblepaw, or Loonwhisper, or even Dewlight? All pleasant or at least tolerable company, and yet none of them were present now. Honestly, she might have welcomed any proper RiverClan cat. Not that what she'd wish for mattered in that moment.

Her voice was cold as ice when she finally spoke. "What do you want? Further, what makes you think you have the right to interrupt someone who's clearly otherwise occupied?"

Spark sighed. It was obvious that she didn't like him. Honestly, he should have expected that reaction, just because of how RiverClan acted around him. He was an outsider to them, and nobody in the clan liked him. But still, he needed to say something to this she-cat. Perhaps it was just the fear of talking to another cat in the Clan, or perhaps he wanted answers. His smile immediately turned into a cold glare as he spoke once more. "I hope to learn more about RiverClan and to make this my home in the near future. I also thought that you could give me advice for this, but now I know I was severely mistaken."

The ginger tabby may have been pressing every single one of Flashlight's buttons for all he knew, but he didn't care. If he was burning a bridge with RiverClan, so be it. They didn't seem to want him all that much anyways. The only cat that he cared about here was Shira - and also Brick, but he didn't know her very well. Either way, he couldn't think of either of them as really a part of RiverClan. They seemed to be outsiders, just like he was. But Brick didn't do any harm while assigned in RiverClan, and Shira was Ivystar's daughter, so they were treated better than he was. "I assume that you would rather have me out of RiverClan, is that correct?" He was treating Flashlight like she was an enemy, not like his clanmate.

Perhaps it was too late to salvage his relationship with RiverClan as a whole.

Flashlight narrowed her eyes further. "If you wanted to learn more, if you wanted to make this place your home, you'd put in more than a token effort. You're an embarrassment to yourself, spouting such nonsense while associating with murderers; and yet you seem to expect - what, trust? Respect?" She rose from her position by the water, the absent thoughts that had drifted through her mind now vanished in place of very present anger. The glare she fixed him with was sharp, and while she hadn't taken on a battle stance, she was standing proud. A veiled threat, if not an immediate one; that he had best decide who he was and what he wanted, and quickly. "I wouldn't delude yourself into thinking you're more than you are. And from where I'm standing, what you are is pathetic. As for your question... Well, we certainly have no need for traitors and their associates. If you can't dedicate yourself to something - to RiverClan - then why are you here? For StarClan's sake, don't waste my time with your self-pity!"

Spark blinked. Flashlight wasn't meant to be nice to him. In fact, he completely expected her to yell at him for being too nosy into RiverClan. And yet, it still stung when she ripped into him like that. The ginger tom had always been sensitive inside, which was bad when trying to confront someone else. Usually, his entire life rolled around not confronting others, so he wouldn't be yelled at. But he seemed to be getting more confrontational by the second, despite still being easy to break.

"I expected that response," Spark said apathetically, leaving Flashlight to continue with whatever she was doing. He wouldn't tell he what he would do with the information she told him, but he thought that she would be glad to know that he would no longer be in RiverClan by next sunrise. Now, he had to tell Shira that he was leaving RiverClan. Goodbye, RiverClan. I'm gonna leave tonight, and I'm never coming back.