Breathe it in (1)

Alpinehowl nimbly weaved throughout the dreary trees as she ventured EmberClan's land, her durable frame breaking through the rolling fog. She took in each feature of this burnt-down forest carefully, studying her surroundings to understand her new home. Unable to keep her focus on one particular part of the forest, her eyes skipped from tree to tree, branch to branch, eager to learn and familiarize herself with each part. Every sound, every smell, she wanted to know. The she-cat, ignorantly blinded by her excitement, paid too little attention to the ground. As she glided in and out of the trees, she failed to notice a small tree root looping out of the dirt- right in her path. With a hefty wrong placement of a paw, Alpinehowl found herself flinging face-first into the ash-covered terrain. An unexpected grunt escaped her maw, with an "Oof!" as she fell.

Laying still, her nose planted well into the ground, a soft chuckle muffled from the ashy dirt. Wriggling herself out of the root, she picked herself up, only to continue on with her exploration. Prior to lifting another paw, or twitching a whisker, her ears swiveled towards the sound of a small crunch. Fear quickly washed away her optimism and excitement. Had she gone too far out? Who was there, and how long had they been watching her? Alpinehowl shifted her body towards the sound of the crunch. Her voice sliced through the dense fog, clear as day. The breeze revealed her scent to the unfamiliar cat, as it combed through her fur then danced into the wind.

"Whos there?"

Foxstep, like usual, did not linger around EmberClan's camp for long. It wasn't as though he disliked his clanmates, stars no, but even after the past three moons Foxstep had yet to bring himself to look any of them in the eyes for longer than a split second much less speak to them. The words just simply got caught in his throat and formed a lump that he could only make the faintest hint of noise around unless his panic seized him in such a way that he couldn't help but wheeze through it. The weight of his responsibilities, the fear that he wasn't holding up compared to the other cats, made him shrink in the face of his much stronger allies. How they could even stand knowing he was part of the clan Foxstep didn't know. It was because of this, at least partly, that he almost haunted the Forest of Ash rather than inhabited the camp. The tom split his nights between sleeping in an isolated corner of the warrior den and sleeping underneath the cold glare of Silverpelt out in the territory. The chill of the night and the looming presence of his ancestors made it ever harder for him to sleep when he chose the forest's company, especially when combined with his paranoia and constant fear of FireClan invading to reclaim their lost home, but it wasn't like Foxstep slept much or well to begin with due to the nightmares that plagued him. Foxstep still believed in StarClan (of course he did! Barknose was part of them now and Foxstep loved his departed father far too much to ever forsake him like the remnants of FireClan had) but even he had to wonder why they left so many cats to suffer without warning. What crime had all of FireClan committed to be deserving of the Sun-quake? What crime had Barknose committed to have his life stolen by the flames? The thought made his head and heart hurt but Foxstep hadn't much to do but think, and think, and think, and overthink what he spent so long thinking about to begin with. There was new growth, he'd noted, tentative green sprouts poking out from the ash that coated the forest floor where hardened rock did not obstruct it. Even this had sent him into a spiral of doubt, though, with worries about how long it'd take for the forest to regrow to the point that a conflict with FireClan was inevitable. Foxstep didn't think, or rather he simply knew, that he didn't have it in him to fight. He hadn't during the first battle when the split initially started, let alone now of all times. He was, in his own words, a coward. His thoughts fluttered to and fro from one line to the next, struggling to find a topic that didn't lead him spiraling down back to the fearful, self-deprecating depths that they all seemed to go to. It was because of this that he didn't watch where he was stepping, for even within their own territory Foxstep was careful to make as little noise as possible and have as small of a presence as he could, and thus cracked the twig that alerted his clanmate to his whereabouts. Her voice came through the fog, filtering into his ears just before he caught her scent. If he had been given a little more time to panic without knowing her identity, Foxstep likely would've just fled. As it was, the russet tom could only admit to himself that she was of his clan and thus likely had no ill intentions... though Foxstep wouldn't have blamed her if she did. It seemed he'd bothered her, interrupted whatever important business she was up to. Always just a nuisance. He lamented internally. The man didn't even attempt to reply, didn't want to deal with the bubbling frustration of being completely incapable, but he would at least show his face to her. She deserved that much, at least, as the best apology he could really give her. He tucked his tail close to himself as he lowered his belly to the ground in an attempt to appear smaller and less of a threat, pinning his ears before he'd creep through the fog towards her with his eyes directed towards the ground and her feet rather than her face. The position made him look guilty, perhaps, as though he had been caught doing something he shouldn't have been. Foxstep hadn't been up to anything nefarious, of course, though he wasn't exactly capable of pleading his case if accused. Foxstep didn't mind. He didn't even think about it, truth be told, although if he had he would've decided in a heartbeat that he deserved much worse than a scolding for all, or rather the lack of, he had done anyways. "speech." | thoughts. OC: A wild Foxstep appears! :D Don't mind him being mopey, he's always like this. I'm also so sorry about the post length, Foxstep posts seem to always get out of hand x.x

Finn Frode

Preparing herself for the worst, Alpinehowl inhaled anxiously and held the her breath deep in her lungs until the ginger tom crept silently out of the fog. It was what only moments, however seemed like minutes, before the cat appeared before her. He was an EmberClanner, she could sense it. His body language told her that he obviously hadn't expected this encounter, catching him off guard. How did she fail to notice him before? The tom-cat's pelt wasn't a burst of flame, but rather, a humble rusted color. A color rather opposite than the dull fog. Why did he look so ashamed? So many questions, but such an odd situation. Shaking away all the questions, she turned her concern towards her fellow clanmate. Lightly padding closer to him, her tail brushed against the ground behind her as she approached him. "Please stand. I meant no harm, you only alarmed me is all." She paused, realizing he still hadn't looked at her and could tell he wasn't in search of company. Rather, he looked as if he wanted to run and hide. Was she really that scary? "I am new here, though... so, shouldn't I be where you're crouching? This is your home." The she-cat laughed light-heartedly, tilting her head down at him with a small smile. Lowering herself down on her hindquarters, she flicked her tail tip from side to side, in thought. This was the first cat she had interacted with here, and she hoped she wouldn't ruin it. Everyone seemed to have the same troubled, unhappy look pooling in their eyes. He was no different. ∣ A L P I N E H O W L ∣

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