familiar interactions [c]

The trees of SkyClan were beautiful things. They reached up as if they sought to touch the sky, to gently brush against the clouds, to paint the heavens with swirls of white, yet more than that, they were natural. They were alive. Some had fallen, aye, but such was the way of life, and of death, and as long as the latter followed the former, as in the natural order of things, all was well. Death would provide for life, the fallen trees nourishing the soil, but life did not spring from death. Life sprung from life, the seeds of a living tree creating another. The biting winds of the Season of Silent Snows would soon be upon them, yet it could not, in all its’ power and fury, kill the forest. It would wait, biding its’ time for as long as it needed to do so.

And so would Astraeus.

He padded along on the ground, keeping a wary eye open for Twoleg traps. Their silver glimmer was sometimes concealed with dirt or paint, yet always their rigid corners and angles stood out against the natural landscape. As long as he kept his eyes open, all should be well.

On a low branch not too far off perched a dove. Its low coos betrayed its presence to the silver tom, who dropped into a hunting crouch. Snow had not yet fallen (the ultimate cover, a background against which he could nigh well disappear) yet the dappled light shining through the bare branches should be enough for his indistinct silver pelt. Slowly, silently, like a phantom, he glided over the forest floor, yellow hawk’s eyes locked onto his victim, paws easily sidestepping twigs and leaves. Perhaps to an outsider his overly cautious approach might seem odd- if he leaped at the bird he’d almost certainly catch it- yet to Astraeus, “almost certainly” simply wasn’t enough. Compared to the cold streets, this bountiful forest, no matter how chilly or barren the Clanners called it, was perfect. It was if he could hardly set a paw down without catching something- yet the habits that had kept him alive would not be abandoned so easily.

He paused, freezing as the bird momentarily ceased its soft cooing. Then- once it began again, seemingly lamenting to the biting wind- he sprung. Front paws knocked the dove off its branch and onto the ground; sharp fangs met its neck, and cold hawk’s eyes checked to make sure the bird was truly dead before budging an inch. Astraeus picked up his prey- oh, but right. He was hunting in company. How was the other doing?

Rolling to hunt a bird, roll success!

The member 'Cocoa' has done the following action : Dice roll

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'Hunting Dice' : 6

The journey to Skyclan territory was long, not a trip that Astershine was particularly disposed to travel considering the dangers that now hid within every shadow, under every unturned leaf - Quite literally. As he slowly and inattentively tread the land into thicker wood, the eye-catching glint of twoleg mechanisms shone from the underbrush, recklessly concealed. Although recklessly concealed, could easily become dangerous, or even worse, considering how little attention he paid to his surroundings. The young warrior's mind was everywhere except his immediate surroundings, he had only avoided twoleg traps by following the path Astraeus had left in the trodden grass.

The further they walked, the denser the forest grew, and the more fallen trees he noticed; jagged broken branches jutted a silhouette into the pale sky, slicing a distinct outline. In that moment, Astershine couldn't care less about the destruction of his clans territory, there wouldn't be much cover above his head this time of year anyways. Nature would eventually take its course and everything would eventually settle, after all. The main thought that repeatedly circulated thought his train of thought and remained at the front of his mind was his father. Days had passed since Skyclan had recuperated at Fourtrees, and days had passed since he'd last seen his Crimsonflame - the last of his family. Or at least, the cats he truly considered family. That brought him to Astraeus, the cat he was currently following, or was. The loner had seemingly disappeared, split off from Astershine, or at least he thought so - he didn't quite remember. He lifted his nose to the wind in an attempt to locate the tom, but the shriek of a bird nearby alerted him to his location.

With his head lowered he trotted in Astraeus's direction, he wasn't far. When he met the other tom, there was a bird hanging from his jaws. Thats right, they were out on a hunting patrol. Astershine had forgotten.

For a moment, he stood a few fox-lengths away from Astraeus, attempting to organize his words before they came pouring out. Clearing his throat and straightening his posture, he looked at Astraeus. "You knew my dad... didn't you? Crimsonflame." He mewed, uncertainly. He spoke as if his father were really dead. Some part of him hung onto the hope that he was still out there, but after the unlucky string of events that had struck the clans, his hope was fading. "How did you know him?" Astershine hadn't learned much about Crimsonflame's past, but over the last few days he'd learned that Astraeus had some kind of connection with Astraeus despite having never met the tom before now.

It was dangerous, to be inattentive, no matter where one stood- and this place, a forest teeming with traps, was, quite possibly, one of the worst. Astershine was the name of the other tom Astraeus was patrolling with, a silvery young warrior. Perhaps if he hadn’t been so cross with Crimsonflame for avoiding him (and with such skill that it irked him, deeply), he would’ve caught the family resemblance- Astershine’s pelt was a lighter, less striped, version of his own.

He hadn’t caught anything? Only the twitch of the very tip of Astraeus’ tail betrayed his feelings about that fact. He set the dove down at his paws, about to ask what was wrong (and hoping he wouldn’t have to teach the other how to hunt, seriously) when the other spoke, and so, politely, Astraeus listened.

Oh.

Aether was dead, wasn’t he?

The solution was so strikingly simple, the reason for the mottled tom’s newfound hiding abilities, that had he been by himself, Astraeus might’ve snorted in amusement. Was there a twinge of sadness, there? He prodded it- a little, yes, which was alright. That was okay. The silvery tom’s ears pinned. Now- for the lie- with as much truth as possible, for he did not wish to deceive this tom, not about his father, yet… Astraeus would not tell the whole tale, for Astershine’s benefit as much as his own. He would not want to hear about Aether’s seeming indifference towards wickedness.

“Before Aether joined a Clan, we travelled together for quite some time- we even called each other brothers. However, we had a… difference of opinion, and elected to separate peacefully moons and moons ago. I left the forest in search of… adventure, you might say. Returned- oh, about a moon and a half ago, and met him again, learned he had joined a Clan, but that life’s not for me. I- I’m sorry to hear that he’s gone. Truly.”

There. Good. He would not, would not tell of being Dawnhawk’s kit. He would spin a lie of likeness with as much of the truth as possible- that was the safest option, for both him and Astershine.

“He did tell me he had a son, Asterpaw…” warm yellow eyes looked over the other tom once more. He rather thought he could see it, a little, if he knew of the relation between them. Thankfully, however, it was not obvious enough to really show- and hopefully Astershine would buy his story of not-really-being-related. He was not getting found out because of Aether.

Astershine's expression softened slightly when Astraeus spoke, telling about the time he'd spent together with Crimsonflame - or, Aether. It took only a moment of thought to put together that Aether must have been his father's name before he joined the clans. It seemed the Skyclanner had the wrong idea about Astraeus and Crimsonflame, though. Astraeus's words implied that they weren't actually related. A hint of disappointment briefly crossed his features before he looked back up to Astraeus, now solemn. "Thank you, Astraeus."

The story Astraeus told had put his wandering mind to rest, certain that he had a better grasp on his father's past. Even if he was still grieved by his father's disappearance (he couldn't tell himself that he was dead, not yet), at least he would be able to focus on his current objective - for now. He began to look around, applying his senses to his surroundings. It would be embarrassing to return to Fourtrees with nothing, there had to be some animal nearby that they hadn't scared off. Astreaus suddenly spoke again, though, drawing Astershine back in. "He did?" For some reason, Crimsonflame telling Astraeus about him took him by surprise. "Did he say anything about me?" He inquired, stepping toward the other tom.

Astraeus’ eyes unfocused for a second as he dug back into his memory- though he was still paying full attention to the other tom’s every movement. “He did mention something about porcupines…” he reminisced, the very tip of his tail flicking in amusement. “Yes, he said that he had a son, Asterpaw, a good cat, as long as he stayed away from porcupines, and one that he was glad to have in his life… we didn’t spend very much time talking about family,” he admitted, feeling a little bit of regret gnaw at his soul. “It was a slightly chaotic first encounter, I must admit. I didn’t even know that I was near the territories once more, and we hadn’t seen each other for seasons. I was quite surprised to hear that he was in CloudyClan… heh. Aether used to call it that, a very long time ago.”

Astraeus sat down for a moment, curling his tail around his paws with the ease of someone whose time was his own. “We actually infiltrated a gathering once, a very long time ago. Ptcha, your father- oh, the foolhardiness of youth. He ran up to some black ShadowClanner and introduced himself as Aetherpaw… we were lucky that was a kind tom. Aetherpaw. Pthcha. I tried to do damage control, but we didn’t know much about the Clans then… Brownsilver and Silverbrown might not have been my best moments.” His ears pricked at the sound of prey, somewhere close, but he’d let the other decide whether they resumed hunting or not.

"Oh, yeah, that." Astershine's ears grew hot with embarrassment at the memory of the porcupine, although he felt a hint of longing. He missed it, back then. So much had happened over the last few moons, it felt like it had happened so long ago. Now, the scars left from the porcupines were barely visible beneath his fur, although if one studied his flank hard enough, faint remnants of claw marks and puncture wounds were still visible.

Although he'd never doubted that Crimsonflame cared for him, hearing that he'd even told Astraeus made Astershine feel warm, like he was whole again. He wanted to thank Astraeus, but it'd be weird if he said it twice, right? Unintentionally mimicking Astraeus, he sat down and wrapped his tail around his paws, listening as he told stories from their youth with a weak smile. "So you guys knew each other since you were young." It was difficult to imagine his father in the way Astraeus described him, so foolish and carefree. He supposed even Crimsonflame was young once. "He never really mentioned anything about you, sorry. He didn't talk about his past much. I'm glad you've told me, though."

Birdcall echoed through the barren trees, pulling Astershine to his paws. It was difficult to read exactly where in the conversation they both stood, but he figured it would probably be a good time to at least take a brief intermission to catch something. Hesitantly, he turned away, maintaining eye contact until Astraeus was no longer in his sights.

Pale gaze sweeping through the trees, the familiar call of a finch reached his ears, followed by the bird's appearance on a low-hanging branch a few trees away. It was unaware of their presence, at least for now. Digging his claws into the bark of a nearby tree, he began to hoist himself up, supported by the strength of his back legs. Once he had moved to a sturdy branch he was able to rely on his balance and relax his grip, but only slightly, Staying low, he moved along the length of the branch, testing the give of a nearby limb before stepping onto it. He moved swiftly, only slowing when he was close to the bird. Then, within an instant, he had launched himself from the branch and to the bird with pinpoint accuracy, claws pinning it to the branch and jaws closing around it's neck before it had a chance to react.

Astershine attempted to catch a bird. Attempt was successful, costing 5 SP

Astershine:
75/80 SP [-05]

The member 'cotton' has done the following action : Dice roll

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'Hunting Dice' : 6

Astraeus stifled a grin at the other tom’s discomfort, wondering how the shades Astershine had managed to get attacked by a porcupine… but sure enough, there were a few faint quill-marks on the SkyClanner’s flank. Hilarious. Porcupines- they didn’t even eat meat! Or have territories! What sort of a fool would attack a spiky mouse? They didn’t have much meat, and what they did have was under layers of spines… heh. Certainly Aether’s son, this one. The silvery tom shrugged at Astershine’s last few words. “I’m not surprised, really. I wouldn’t talk much about my former life if I joined a Clan, either. Doesn’t exactly scream ‘loyalty’, does it?”

The loner watched Astershine, appraising his every movement. Hmm. He himself preferred not to hunt from and in the trees- he’d leap from a branch to the ground, or vice versa to knock a bird off a branch, but leaping onto a branch? Too risky, too easy to slip and fall and break a bone. That would be fatal- he’d have to find some kindly Twolegs and hope for the best in that scenario.

Turning away, he sniffed the air, catching the distinctive scent of a hare… unlikely prey, yet the earthquake had likely scared it off the moors. Like a silvery shadow, he slunk through the bare underbrush, ears pricked for the tell-tale sound of paws thumping against the ground. There- there was some scent, something familiar, not hare but not… rounding a corner, he set one paw into the silvery netting of a trap-

Then sprung back with haste, rolling undignifiedly onto his back in his hurry to throw himself away from the door- which sprang shut, clanging against his paw painfully before he wrenched himself away. Ow. A moment’s investigation revealed that it had not drawn blood- just an annoying tingling. Despite himself, Astraeus hissed. Fool. These were cleverer than the ones in the city. He’d have to keep that in mind.

Roll for hare failed! Astraeus encountered a trap.

The member 'Cocoa' has done the following action : Dice roll

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'Hunting Dice' : 7

The spine-chilling snap of metal striking metal reached Astershine's ears. The tom stood upright, ears raised, his stillness being jeopardized only by a slight shiver. A shiver not caused by the crisp Leaf-bare air sneaking beneath his pelt, but by the thought of what the sound could have been caused by. "Uh, Astraeus?" He called, searching eyes fixed in the direction he'd last seen the other tom.

The finch forgotten, the Skyclanner skillfully, quickly, dropped from the branch to the barren forest floor, dashing through the trees. Since they'd been in this area for a while, it was difficult to pick out which scent of Astraeus' was most recent, but luckily he spotted the tom's silver pelt between the trees before he had to worry about scents. "Oh, you're alright?" His words weren't meant to sound like a question, but that's how it ended up coming out. Approaching Astraeus, he was about to ask what had happened before he noticed the twoleg trap. There was no way he couldn't notice it, now that it wasn't hidden. It stood out, an inorganic structure in the middle of a not-so-green forest. Astershine was honestly surprised that he himself hadn't been the one who'd run into a twoleg trap, Astraeus had seemed far more aware of his surroundings so far.

"I thought you might've gotten hurt or something. It's a good thing you didn't get stuck in one of those." Astershine hadn't seen any cat return after getting caught in a twoleg trap, he didn't know what he'd do if Astraeus got stuck in one. "I'm gonna go get the finch I caught." He muttered quickly, turning away from Astraeus. He swiftly returned to the bird and retrieved it, bringing it back to Astraeus and tucking it behind a tall clump of grass against a tree. "I think, um. I think i'll try catching one more thing before we go back." He looked up, trying to place where in the sky the sun was. It was difficult with the clouds, but he didn't think there was too much daylight left, and he wanted to make it back to Fourtrees before nightfall.

“I’m fine,” Astraeus muttered, trying to shake some feeling back into his paw. Ouch. “I’d expected that the Twolegs would try to cater to SkyClanners and put the traps in the trees, not on the ground. The more fool me, eh?” Shaking out his pelt, the silvery loner returned to his usual easy-going tone. He wouldn’t let a trap ruin this hunting trip… the first opportunity he’d had to spend time with his definitely-not-nephew. Him, an uncle. What an odd feeling. Astraeus nodded at the SkyClanner’s next words, rising to his paws and trotting back to where he’d deposited the dove he’d caught earlier.

Suddenly, the scent of songbird hit his nose and Astraeus froze, paw still tingling. There, on the ground- a solitary cardinal, speedily pecking at some worm or other. Astraeus slowly stalked forwards, suppressing a wince as his paw hit the ground, then sprung. The cardinal was too engrossed in its meal to discover that it itself was now a meal- it was the work of a moment to finish it off, then head back to where he’d stashed the dove. Two good-sized birds and a long conversation. Not bad for a morning’s work.

Rolling for bird, roll success.

The member 'Cocoa' has done the following action : Dice roll

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'Hunting Dice' : 5

"Oh, I hadn't even thought of that." Astershine had only been looking out for traps on the ground, the possibility of them being in trees hadn't even crossed his mind. "I'll keep out for them in trees too, just in case." The thought of having to avoid twoleg traps while treading the treetops wasn't exactly appealing to the tom. Perhaps he would stick to hunting on the ground for now.

Sneaking away in the opposite direction of Astraeus, Astershine didn't even have to search before a fresh scent of prey hit his nose. A pigeon on the ground nearby energetically hopped into view, seemingly unaware of his presence. Laying low, he crept forward, pale eyes locked on the bird. With muscular back legs, he launched himself toward the pigeon, jaws open and fangs prepared to close around the bird. However, instead of meeting the warmth of a living creature, Astershine's claws met cold, sleek, inorganic netted material. Unable to stop the movement from his initial leap, he skidded into the side of the trap and he cringed as the cage rattled, displeased at the sound it produced. As soon as he was able to look himself over and realize that he was okay, he called out. "I'm okay!" The last thing he wanted was for Astraeus to come find him because he thought that he was in trouble. Perhaps he wasn't paying enough attention to his surroundings.

Astershine attempted to catch Pigeon. Attempt was unsuccessful, costing -5 SP. Astershine has encountered a trap!

Astershine:
70/80 SP [-05]

The member 'cotton' has done the following action : Dice roll

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'Hunting Dice' : 7