Eye of the Storm [OPEN]

It had a little over a week since Softbreeze had found her, and Eleos had been let out of the medicine den after they'd looked her over. There had been some grumbling about the obviously-healed scars across her shoulder and ear, but that hadn't been what had caused the medicine cats to fuss. Now that she'd regained some weight, Eleos was clearly older than she had looked at first, and was older the kits in the nursery. There had been talk of what to do with her, and as best Eleos could gather, they wanted her to become an apprentice and train.

She was... Wary, admittedly, but the idea of staying was an enticing one. Her family was dead, and it wasn't like she had anywhere else to go. The life of a loner wasn't one she had enjoyed, and here she wouldn't be alone. Most of the cats seemed friendly enough, and recalling her mother's words, Eleos thought that her mother wouldn't have wanted her to live alone, either.

Now she sat near the edge of camp, pale blue gaze watching the comings and goings of the Windclanners curiously. She hadn't been allowed out of camp, something that had made her grumble, but in the end she had understood where the medicine cat was coming from. That didn't stop her gaze from wandering wistfully to the moors beyond camp, however. Eleos wasn't quite sure she had liked sitting around while others fussed over her, and the obvious wariness of some of the Windclanners had made her uneasy, too. It felt like she didn't belong, and Eleos had to wonder whether the offer to stay had been too good to be true. Most of the time she was okay but sometimes... Sometimes the loss of her mother and family was felt more clearly.

"Morning, Eleos!" Softbreeze greeted, sitting a rabbit down and sliding it towards her. "How are you adjusting to the nursery? Is the moss soft enough?" She asked, eyes softening at the kit she'd found lonely and wary on the moors. "Soon enough, if you choose to stay, you'll be made an apprentice and you'll be allowed to leave camp."

Her eyes shined with sympathy; Downtuft had been eager to get out of camp, so she understood the restlessness. "How've you been sleeping?"

Nightwind had gone out earlier that day with Sunnyskip. It had started off as hunting... when they each found a snake. Neither were the venomous kind, so Nightwind had dispatched them swiftly and collected one, allowing Sunnyskip to collect the other. Their long bodies trailed the ground and Nightwind had to be careful not to step on the tails. Annoyed, he whipped his head around to try to get a different grip on the stringy reptile... when it ended up smacking Sunnyskip right in the face.

And that was how their ridiculous, childish game began. The two cats had spent the last several minutes whipping eachother with the dead snakes as they got closer and closer to camp. Nightwind whirled the skinny animal's body around, trying to pop Sunnyskip with the end of the tail on the shoulders, the forelegs and the back, while also doing his best to dodge and sidestep her own snake whip.

Their game would likely come to an end fairly soon, as the snakes were real and not made of rubber. The snake's bodies were getting mushy and tender with each successful strike.

A soft pop noise split the air as Sunnyskip's snake struck Nightwind at the base of his neck. "Ow! That one stung!" He yelled through a tight jaw that held his own snake. It wasn't an angry yowl, as he'd chuckled in the middle of his sentence. He was determined to get Sunnyskip back though. He whipped his head to the side and even shuffled his feet to try to get more power in his own snake whip.

He was unfortunately and unwittingly shuffling toward Eleos, a kit that he hadn't realized was there yet. There was a chance she was about to get whipped by the snake as well... or stepped on... if she didn't move.

OOC: Moss already said this was okay! Not taking control of a character that isn't mine! Just a FYI

A cheerful voice preceded Softbreeze settling beside her, and Eleos glanced over at the older she-cat. "I'm fine, Softbeeze." She mewed softly, "The nursery is... fine, I suppose." She was older than the other kits, but she didn't mind playing with them, either. Shyfawn and the other queens were nice enough, though Eleos tried not to impose herself any more than strictly necessary.

"I'm... thinking of staying." She admitted. And before she could say anything else, two warriors were bounding into camp, playfighting with... snakes? Dead snakes. Eleos ducked, narrowly avoiding the dark-furred tom as he and his companion darted past her. Tail twitching as she attempted to smooth down her fur, the rogue let out a huff at their antics.

"What were you saying about kits, Softbreeze? I think the nursery would do well with those two." Eleos grinned, covering her startled response with snark.

Softbreeze's ears perked up instantly as Eleos told her she was contemplating staying. "Really? Oh, that's wonderful!" She mewed, her purr doubling in volume. "If yo--" Whatever she was going to say was cut off as Sunnyskip and Nightwind darted past, roughhousing with....Snakes? Huffing, she nodded towards Eleos. "Quite right, Eleos. What in the name of Finchstar are you two doing?" Softbreeze asked, turning to face the two warriors.

"Neither of you are apprentices. Do you not know the danger of throwing snakes around? Snakes are still venomous even after death! Wait--" Softbreeze paused in her scolding as her eyes widened. "Where did you find these two snakes? And, just as importantly, did either of you get bit?" If there were snakes on WindClan territory, it was important Lilacstar knew; and it was equally as important to quickly expel the poison if either cat had been bit.

Sunnyskip laughed around her snake as she ducked Nightwind's most recent attack, but as she crouched to dodge the next one her eyes met much smaller ones. Oh stars, a kit. Dropping her snake, she tried to warn Nightwind, but the kit sidestepped the threat herself and turned back to who she was talking to. Softbreeze. Sunnyskip's stomach sank as her eyes met the medicine cat's, and she lowered her head as the she-cat turned towards them. "We were playing... And we weren't throwing them, Softbreeze." Sunnyskip mewed adamantly. "We were holding them near the heads, and just using the tails..." She trailed off as Softbreeze asked where they had gotten the snakes. Immediately, she brightened up again. "Oh! Nightwind killed them, they tried to surprise attack us and he made sure I didn't get bit! I don't think he got bit either, if he did he's hiding it really well. They must have liked the pretty flowers too, since they were in the field."

Once Eleos had stepped aside, Nightwind finally spotted the kitten and did a maneuver that could be considered... awkwardly graceful to avoid going back into the pathway of the kit. Still, he wasn't about to let an opportunity to whip an unarmed Sunnyskip go to waste. He flicked his head and attempted to pop her in the shoulder, not caring that she had dropped her snake. That was her mistake.

Upon being yelled at by Softbreeze however, Nightwind turned to stare at her, a mix of a guilty expression as well as a playfully defensive one. Her concern about the snakes being venomous gave him a chuckle. She must not have thought very highly of him... and considering that he was playing an immature game of "Snake Whip", he supposed that her judgement of him was warranted.

"Venomous? I'm not sure... Let's find out." He then thrust the snake's mouth toward Eleos, though did his best to gave her a sly wink. He knew for a fact that they were not the venomous kind, or he would have removed the heads and buried them deep. At the last minute however, he turned the snake's mouth in a different direction and sailed it right over Eleos's ears.

"I made sure they weren't dangerous." He said to Softbreeze with a smirk. She may or may not have appreciated his antics, but he at least was getting a kick out of it and that was all that mattered to him. "Mine's pretty tender now. Are any of the elders toothless? I imagine this guy would be pretty easy to swallow by now." Or he could smack it against Sunnyskip and let it splatter on her... Hmmmm

"Oh, how brave of him." Eleos commented, whiskers twitching. "I wish I could-" Eleos couldn't quite stifle a laugh as Nightwind winked at her and whipped the snake over her head, "-leave camp. It's boring being stuck in camp." she added the last with an almost apologetic glance at Softbreeze, but as far as the former loner was concerned her words were right.