Dust in the Wind [OPEN]

Leaf-fall was in full-effect, the leaves above turning beautiful shades of gold and red before they'd eventually wind up on the forest floor. Evergreens were unchanging, and Smokefeather sighed quietly, wistfully gazing up at the trees as she padded through the territory. She'd wanted to get out of camp for a little while and stretch her legs, and naturally there had been several volunteers to accompany the lamed elder. Smokefeather tried not to balk at needing an escort, but it only made sense, and as much as she didn't want to admit it, she wasn't the capable warrior she once was. Dawnhawk was still out there too.

She refused to let that prevent her from enjoying this crisp leaf-fall day. Her current escort had remained quiet so far, and Smokefeather wasn't inclined to break the silence on her own... But if they wanted to talk, that was okay, too.

Olivepaw listened to the leaves crunch under her, the sound made her smile. She was enjoying today, with leaf-fall presented to her in all it's glory. Eccentric colors of crimson, gold, auburn, brown- all together they created a cozy aesthetic, reminding her of cold nights spent cuddling. To Olivepaw it was a wholesome time of year.

When Smokefeather said she was going out for seemingly no reason Olivepaw was eager to join. With the training she'd been doing most of the time the ragdoll was ready for more relaxing activities. Padding behind the elder she kept silent, preferring to have the peace remain intact. Quiet moments where brimmed with chances to focus on your environment.

It was because of her focus she could make out squirrels running through the branches above, hurrying to collect acorns for the coming winter. Since they were the exact color as the orange and red leaves it can be hard to see them. Olivepaw watched one dive into a small hollow with an acorn in it's tiny hands. Acorn is a cute word, she commented to herself. Quietly the molly began to hum a soft tune, watching robins flutter to their nests. Occasionally she daydreamed about being a bird, then she'd be able to see the sky better. What's more is she would fly to knew places, see new forests. Different leaves and different squirrels, maybe new animals she's never been told about? While continuing to hum the song in a loop she thought about what else is out there.

To be honest, Dawnfeather hadn’t been hunting. She’d meant to… but she’d been patrolling near the Twolegplace (not ThunderClan, thank goodness), and the long… brown tree thingy without leaves that separated the Twolegplace from SkyClan territory was broken in places. She’d found a few glittery things that hurt her paws, but nothing interesting. Today hadn’t been interesting. The young warrior wasn’t pleased with that. Today had a lot of potential (ooh like her!) but hadn’t shown it yet. And then she’d tried to hunt but just ended up being divebombed by a crow that thought itself a hawk.

That was why she was lounging on a high limb, up where it was just herself and the sky. The birds sang around her, and she tried to sing back. That didn’t go so well, but it was alright. She’d be scared if the birds started talking in cat.

The leaves were beautiful. She’d never imagined anything other than the heat and green of green-leaf (very accurate name). Now, they were crispy, astounding colors she’d never imagined. The world was completely transformed, and it was amazing. There were these things called acorns and they looked so funny! She batted at a cluster that dangled tantalizingly above her head, sending a few ricocheting down to the forest floor. Oops.

She peeked over the branch to discover that, yes, there were cats beneath her and it was quite possible the acorns had hit them. “Sorry!” She called, making her way down to the forest floor, a flash of gold amidst the rioting colors. “Smokema, hi! Hi Olive! I didn’t mean to knock the acorns down on you, are you okay?” If there were other cats she knew standing behind her grandmother and friend, she didn’t quite notice yet, worry in her blue eyes as she dropped down to stand next to them.

Olivepaw hummed softly to herself, and Smokefeather listened, enjoying the crunch of the leaves underfoot. Birds chirped overhead, and she felt more relaxed than she had in moons. Olivepaw was quiet and calm, a stark contrast to a lot of Skyclan cats Smokefeather could name. The fluffy apprentice reminded Smokefeather quite a bit of Sapphire, whom Smokefeather rather liked. The former rogue had a unique perspective on things, and seemed quite driven to fit in with her new home. Her kits seemed equally determined.

Her paws continued to wander aimlessly... And that's when a few acorns were sent tumbling past her. Smokefeather jumped, fur lifting in surprised as she ducked out of the way, gray-green eyes searching the trees above for signs of whatever squirrel had knocked them from their branches. She couldn't go after it in the trees, but she could glare at it. "Are you alright, Olivepaw?" Acorns were small, but being dropped from such a height were likely to cause a nice bruise, even so. She glanced towards the younger she-cat, gaze softening with concern.

Movement from above had Smokefeather reflexively glance upwards, only it wasn't a squirrel. Smokefeather tensed slightly at the flash of gold fur, so reminiscent of the cat she never wanted to see again. Dawnfeather's voice was different though, and her apology had the tension ebbing away from Smokefeather. Mostly.

"I'd say be careful but... I was the one wandering aimlessly." She huffed out a quiet laugh. "Hello, Dawnfeather. Enjoying yourself?"

Olivepaw's humming and thinking was stopped by a small something brushing the side of her. Silently alarmed she hopped to the side, swiveling her head to see what the thing was. It was an acorn. Before she could continue on her walk another one fell on her head, falling to the ground beside her with a thud. Ouch, never mind about acorns being cute, she thought while slightly annoyed, only staring at the acorn in response. Smokefeather's concerned voice had her turn her attention to the elder. "I'm-" she began quietly before another voice appeared, a cat along with it. This didn't spook her like the acorn did, she recognized her friend quite fast. "Hello Dawnfeather," she purred before bringing her paw to the top of her head. No blood, it just stung a bit. "I'll be okay," she said, raising her voice slightly. Olivepaw was glad they asked if she was okay, thankful to have good friends like them. Pawing the leaves near her she listened to the she-cats exchange greetings.

”Oh stars, I’m so sorry! I didn’t know they’d hit anycat!” Dawnfeather bounded over to Olivepaw, worriedly looking at the top of her head- the ragdoll was still a bit shorter than Dawnfeather, but that might change soon- who knew? ”Does that hurt, Olive?” She asked anxiously, gently patting the top of her friend’s head with a sheathed paw. “And are you okay, Smokema? How are they so hurty?” She flicked her tail, big blue eyes looking worriedly at her grandmother.

Smokefeather nodded at Olivepaw's answer, though she'd keep an eye on the apprentice just in case. She couldn't help worrying, the younger cats got into enough trouble as it was, and she would hate for that to be the case when this was meant to just be a simple walk in the woods.

"I'm fine, Dawnfeather," She replied, "The taller the height, the harder they hit the ground... Or our heads." She added, limping over to the two she-cats.

She flicked her ear as Dawnfeather leapt over to her, lowering her head as the cat examined it. Even though Olivepaw was big she wasn't as tall as the warrior quite yet. Very close though. She allowed the molly to pat her head, even though it hurt a bit. "I'm alright Dawn," she assured while glancing away from Dawnfeather, not exactly honest. It's just an acorn, it can't do too much, she reasoned to herself before Smokefeather explained why it hurt, which Olivepaw thought made sense. She's quite wise, maybe she knows more stuff I don't. I'll have to ask her later. At the end of the day a feeble nut wasn't worth the worry.

The she-cat was glad they had bumped into Dawnfeather, this walk would be nicer with her in it. Standing up she moved a tad away from Dawnfeather before shaking bits of leaves out of her pelt. After her shake a glossy feather floated down near the nut that had hit her. Olivepaw bent down to sniff it before gently blowing on it. The starling feather danced near the leaf-matted ground before landing once more. Sadly there wasn't a breeze to kick it around for her.

“Oh, good,” Dawnfeather purred with relief. A flash of color caught her eyes, and she sprang on the starling feather as if it might fly off and evade her. “Beechaunt loves these feathers! I think everycat does, really. They’re so pretty.” She gently picked it up and sent it flittering into the air, an array of flashing colors. The young warrior batted at it like a kit for a moment, then sent it to fall lightly to the ground at Olive’s paws. “You found it first! Ooh! Ooh! Who you going to give it to?” Mischief glinted in her eyes as she glanced at her friend, a reminder of the conversation they’d had at the Moonlit Creek.

“Or you could keep it, they look very pretty in nests.” There, now her friend had a way out if she wanted it. Dawnfeather didn’t want to make Olive uncomfortable… but somehow it was hard to see Olive uncomfortable. She was just… so task-oriented. “If you had a feather, who would you give it to, Smokema?” She asked curiously, tilting her head. “I could find you one, if you want!” If the others started walking again, she’d follow them, always pleased to find company.

Smokefeather purred as she watched Olivepaw and Dawnfeather bat at the fallen starling feather, whiskers twitching in amusement. What she wouldn't have given to be that carefree again.

Dawnfeather's question of who she would give the feather to caught her off-guard... And Smokefeather felt her fur warm at the immediate answer that sprung to mind. Things between her and Bloodstrike were over, much as he might've regretted it... She would respect his decision. As much as it bothered her to do so. There was a time when she would've slipped a few feathers into his nest without a second thought.

Now was definitely not the time to bring such to light, however. "Beechface, or maybe Sapphire, I suppose. They could use something cheerful, don't you think?"

Olivepaw watched Dawnfeather bat at the feather, she observed how it curled and spun in the air before landing by her feet. She placed her paw gently on the feather, preventing it from washing away in the leaf-fall wind that had just picked up. The she-cat listened to Dawn's query, noticing the mischief-tinted sparkle in her eyes. Quickly diverting her attention to the elder's reply she found an answer for herself. "Yes, Sapphire. That's who I'd give mine to, I think she'd like one." The ragdoll turned to Dawnfeather with a controlled expression that read "nice try," before continuing, "Or you. You like feathers as much as I do, if not more. Here-" She slid her paw over to the cream warrior, hoping she would accept the gift, and that it would distract her from the topic she would prefer not to discuss.