Deeply in Depression

[~Twister~]

A black and white sleepy cat, sleepily opened her eyes a crack. She lay in a soft, purple blanket surrounded by walls of a woven basket. Jennifer sat at the table eating breakafast. Fifi stretched out her legs, completely covering the interior of the basket and fully opened her eyes. She quickly shut them as the light blinded her. She tried once more, this time, keeping them open. She let out a soft purr as she padded over to Jennifer and limberly pressed against the chair. She glanced over at her food dish, it was empty, she mewed softly to her owner and lept up onto her lap. Fifi sat down where she had landed and gently licked her white chest and forepaws that were sticky out under her chubby belly. Occasionaly she would lick the skin of Jennifer, which was always warm and coarse. After Jennifer had finished her breakfast, Fifi jumped off her lap as she rose to fill Fifi's pet dish. It was a green pet dish with a picture of a cat in the interior. On the outside said Fifi's name. Fifi bent her head and sucked her food in ravagously. When she had finished she scurried over to the cat door. Crouching low to the ground, she crept out the door with a heavy sigh. She had remembered the first time she had ever left the nest, right before her family died. She image of her at three moons flashed in her mind. She saw her snuggling to her cold mother, in between her brother and sister, as if the bodies could make her warm. She leaped up on the fence with difficulty. Being eight moons old, she acted as if she were twenty moons and had already had three litter of kits. She gazed out over the block in which she lived in Ivy Lane and scented a strange scent.

[triskaideka]

(beggin' yer pardon, but may Mothdark come and play?)

The forests were wide and tasted of freedom, but the lands of the Twilight Clan were thick groves of pines and elms that nearly covered the territory in dark, inky shadows--taking with it all good possibilities of a good nap. And even when Mothdark, the shabby old tom, ever did find a spot of sun in the camp to warm his weary bones, every hour or so he would have to move, chasing the patch of sun around the camp, which effectively ruined the purpose of catnapping. Thus, once in a while, Mothdark would wander his way out to a Two-leg's path, where all the trees had been cleared away, so that he may enjoy the heat of the sun in his purple-blue fur, tucked away among the grasses that lined the path. Of course, with this came those awful, snarling monsters, but they seemed to ignore him for the most part. Occasionally the smell of another creature would float by, but usually napping by the two-leg path was uneventful and lead to wonderful sleep.

But this time, a smell wafted by that was a bit different, and Mothdark could see a young queen, a ways off in the distance, but she seemed young, innocent and comely, not anything to be worried about. Mothdark nearly shut his eyes in content, a sign of trust, and waited to see if the young queen was as shy as she looked. After all, what would compel this cat, who seemed to live a soft life by the state of her belly and coat, to talk to a ragged old fop?

[}xx.£eaƒm∞n , ,]

ShaDE

``don't try to make me a hero

[/s][/blockquote][/blockquote]

Lurking he was, always lurking, like a sinister shadow that seemed to be out of place on the landscape. He had wandered here through twisting alleyways and intercepting treelines, without direction nor care as to which territories he set paw on.

A large, lean but muscular tom of black and white Shade was, with deep, snarling eyes of amber and a smirking jaw, upon which several scars made their grand entrances. He was handsome, no doubt, but had a dark, warning aura about him, a vibe that told whomever came close that Shade was no kittypet. Not even a wild Clan cat. Oh, he was far worse than that, a brutal rogue that ruled no one, and followed no one, though a few hazardous souls did decide to trail after him, in respectful silence.

It was in the midst of a lazy day that Shade padded along the border between forests and two-leg houses. No two-legs disturbed him, for one had tried to tame him and had ended up flinging him out the back door, a deep gash across their hand. The tom's eyes glared and darted back and forth with the speed of a minnow, taking in everything as if he expected a Dark Forester to leap out behind every shrub. He noticed a queen, no, just a plump she-cat balancing precariously on the edge of a fence, eyes traveling up and down her fur. Maybe he could con her into letting him inside her twoleg home, so he could ravange the food and make a get-away, or something like that. Something entertaining. He didn't seem to notice the purple-blue elder lying just a few foxlengths away from him, downwind; however, if he had, the memories of Timestar would have come welling up, and a challenge would have been yowled. Instead, the black and white tom watched the she-cat kittypet, putting on a mask of sincerity.

"I'm afraid I've lost my way, pretty face, mind if I drop in for a bit?"

Shade was back to his old tricks, as always.

[~Twister~]

Her black and white soft pelt glared the ground with the sun off her white patches. Her dull green eyes looked around, but she let out a soft sigh. She saw the blue-gray elder laying in the sun. She could tell by his scent that he was a forest cat, but that wasn't what was troubling the air. Another cat, black and white like her, crept up to her, cautious of every bush. Fifi wondered why he was doing so, there was nothing behind them. She peered back over the fence. Maybe I should go in? She was about to go in, when a strange voice mewed something. Instantly she turned around, startled by her presence and winced as he approached her. She gave a silent hiss as she peered down the outside of the fence. She leaped down, facing the stranger. Fifi noticed a strange aura coming from him. She couldn't quite place it and instead took it to be part of his scent. She smiled at his comment. "I'm sorry. I don't know you're name." Her mother had taught her well while she had lived for the first three moons of her life. Her mother's voice rang in her ears. 'Never trust a stranger, and don't let him into your nest.' "Why do you want food. There are plenty of food around here or in the forest, why stop here?" Fifi asked curiously. Her eyes wandered down the feline's pelt then back up and over to the elder. He seemed to be no harm. She supposed she could go see him when she had finished with this wandering cat. She faced back to the black and white tom. Her ears halfway back against her head.

[triskaideka]

The scent of the black and white tom soon found its way to Mothdark's nose, and his eyes blinked open in alarm. Restraining himself from making any sudden movements, Mothdark hunkered himself even further into the blades of grass, even knowing that this didn't completely conceal him. Wandering cats, especially those who took to living in the Two-legs' territory, were known to be violent and crafty, and from his time as a loner, Mothdark knew that to be true. What worried him more than his own safety however, was the young kittypet who, although cautiously, leaped down from the fence, and struck up conversation with the rouge. It made Mothdark a bit frustrated to be sitting where he was, watching the young queen in obvious discomfort. Mothdark was no coward, but was not a fool either. Confronting a tom many moons younger than he head on was not an option. Oh, to be a young cat again! Mothdark's eyes closed to a slit again in deep thought. It seemed he had not been discovered by the rouge yet, and that gave Mothdark an advantage, indeed.

But it was then that the young queen looked his way. Their eyes did not meet, but if the tom had seen... the consequences would be quite grave. It gave Mothdark a horrible feeling in his stomach to think about the possibility of having to flee like a kit if the tom were to turn on him. Chances were that he would catch the elder easily. The old tom merely would have to hope that this rouge either didn't notice, or was not particularly inclined to go challenging geriatric forest cats. But then again, if he did, perhaps the kittypet would be able to escape back into her nest of leisure. Either way, Mothdark would have to wait until the rouge made his true nature known.

[}xx.£eaƒm∞n , ,]

ShaDE

``don't try to make me a hero

[/s][/blockquote][/blockquote]

The rogue watched as the female leapt down from her perch, noting her caution and understandable awariness. Who wouldn't be intimidated by a creature like him, riddled with scars and a face that couldn't hide the savage craze of its eyes? Yes, she had reason to be hesitant, and Shade knew it.

So, he lay his ears sideways, showing supposed embarrassment and uncertainty, whiskerpads frowning somewhat.

"My name be Timestar, milady, and I'm sorry to barge in, as it is. I am weary from hunting without success and no other cats have been courteous enough to lend me a bite of food."

Ah, Shade never told his real name to anyone, except the extremely trusted. Instead, when he went around on his shinanigans, he went under the name 'Timestar', to help cultivate hate and disgust towards his brother. Oh, for the day when he would taste blood, the blood of his hated blue-pelted rival...

Shade watched the kittypet with a pleading look, waiting.

[~Twister~]

Fifi, still cautious about the tom's presence, straightened up. Her tail swaying back and forth, her paws itching to help this cat, but her mind told her something was strange. For the first time, Fifi had noticed the scars on his face. Where had they come from? What had caused them? She remembered the elder, maybe he could help her. But would it be wise to show 'Timestar' where he was now hiding? He had a strange scent, but it defiantly smelt like forest, versus this cat, who smelled of trash and not from two-leg place, but somewhere far off. Fifi asked again,

"Are you really Timestar?"

She had heard of this name as rumors. She'd heard about the forest cats that lived among the forests. That looked as much of she did as any cat. She had heard that if you crossed their 'borders' they'd shred you to pieces. All of these were rumors, and if this cat really was Timestar, then she could ask him question on what's it's like to live in the forest. A question pondered in her mind. 'If he's a forest cat, that'll shred you to pieces, why hasn't he shred me to pieces? Her eyes hesitated to ask the questions of the forest cats, but her eyes were willing to burst them out.

[triskaideka]

This was troubling. While the rouge and kittypet had neither attacked one another or was in the process of running for their lives, it seemed that the conversation had reached a slightly awkward standstill. In short, the young queen seemed even more wary but at the same time, intrigued by what was probably the first non-kittypet she'd ever met. Mothdark was still deep in thought. Running he had struck out as an option long ago, and hiding as well, if he were to choose to make his presence known. Perhaps there was a way to get closer to the conversation without Mothdark's location being known.

Slowly he crept through the grasses, the blades brushing against his fur making the slightest of sounds until he found a monster tucked against the roadside-- obviously sleeping from its lack of snarls--and swiftly dove underneath it. From there, he wriggled under the monster's belly to some underbrush, lined up against a two-leg's nest. Slowly, painfully making his way through the tangles of branches as quietly as possible until he heard it-- the rouge said his name was Timestar.

Mothdark slitted his eyes again, confused as to why this Tom would want to take such a name, especially when it could mean next to nothing to a kittypet. But that's what Mothdark needed to hear. Within the next few moments, he would have his plan. He could only hope that he was still downwind.

[}xx.£eaƒm∞n , ,]

ShaDE

``don't try to make me a hero

[/s][/blockquote][/blockquote]

He could sense the growing tension, as his plan seemed to be backfiring somewhat. Most kittypets were naive and thought the outside cats wild and free, and would have done anything they could to be hospitable to the "free cat", in exchange for stories of the life away from twolegs. This she-cat, however, was one of the smart ones, ones with some common sense still left in their overfed selves.

Shade perked his ears towards the kittypet, suprised at her question. Had she met or had previous knowledge of his so deeply despised brother? If so, then this would be rather difficult to pull off, especially since he had the quiet sense that the two black and white felines were not alone.

"Yes, I am the afamed Timestar, leader of a valiant Clan far from here...I was on my way to meet an old friend when I got terribly lost."

Shade mewed sincerely, looking suddenly very serious. As a breeze ruffled his thick fur, a scent came, and for a moment, deep inside him, he fancied that Timestar was nearby, and Shade resisted the urge to run out and slash all nine lives away. But, no, as a corner of his eye confirmed, it was one of the true Timestar's minions, creeping quietly in the grass. Shade showed no reaction, though inside he was boiling at the thought of this cat getting away and telling his brother what he was up to. He'd have to put a stop to that after conning his meal for today, if he managed that. Dark amber eyes watched the kittypet solemnly, but a corner of his left eye glared at the purple-blue feline nearby.

[~Twister~]

As the wind blew across her white muzzle, and a scent filled her nose, Fifi suddenly recognized the elder tom's scent. Why had he risked coming closer, when Timestar could do anything he wanted to, especially an elderly tom cat. Fifi ignored the tension she felt coming from him, while she tried to keep her voice as steady as possible. "What's it like, living in the forest? What kind of cats do you reign? How come you haven't shreded me into little pieces, like my friends say forest cats do to cats like us?" Fifi held her gaze to his eyes, studying the still dark, murky gold-brown eyes. He seemed so innocent, but something deep within him, something stirred uneasily in him, it made Fifi shiver slightly. The air around her became cold with the chilly breeze buffeting her kit neck fur. She brought up her paw, carefree, but cautiously eyeing Timestar. She bathed it and swiped it across her muzzle, before putting it back on the earth ground.

[triskaideka]

The last of the plan had been finally set, the words of the rouge sealing them with certainty that Mothdark could never dream of. With an air of confidence that he didn't truly feel, Mothdark slunk out of the brush, slowly and lazily, as if he was moving to a new patch of sun.

"For Star clan's sake, Timestar," The elder cat chuckled as he came to sit about a foxlength away from the impostor, "I'd thought you'd never say the code word. I was almost convinced that it wasn't you for a moment."

"My apologies, young one," Mothdark turned to the kittypet with a warm look, "My sneaking around must have been quite the odd sight. As Timestar himself said, I was supposed to meet him, but I must have given him poor directions. Well, all's well that ends well."

Ignoring any impatience that the impostor-Timestar might have had, Mothdark continued with his casual chatter, "Ah, yes, the forest--if I may, Timestar--The forest is a wonderful vast refuge where we cats have our freedom, and through hardship forge long and dignified lives. The cats that of the clan are many: Warriors strong enough to fight off badgers, cats learned in the ways of medicine that no hurt cannot be healed by them."

"And our Timestar, why he is the cleverest and strongest of them all," The elder cat's tail wriggled with a mischievous flair, "He is a master of disguise, as you can see, and he is meeting with me for something very secret and important. Timestar, don't you think you can let this young one back to her nest? If you want for food, surely this old pile of fur has enough hunt in him for a meal for the two of us. It would be my honor."

Mothdark kept a steady eye on the rouge. Had he enraged him enough that the elder would have to flee for his life? Or was the rouge smart enough to respond correctly to his bluff?

[}xx.£eaƒm∞n , ,]

ShaDE

``don't try to make me a hero

[/s][/blockquote][/blockquote]

The dark and light tom smirked somewhat, mostly to himself, as the kittypet replied with her questions curiously. That's what he had wanted her to do, and now he would (hopefully) awe her with his knowledge of the forests.

He was just about to cooly answer her concerns when that blue-purple cat appeared, slinking up like he owned the place and talking to Shade as if they were the oldest of friends.

Yeah, Shade, friends, right.

The black and white tom supressed a wicked snarl, instead toning it down to a low sigh. Might as well play along, rip him in half when the pretty girl isn't looking. True, Shade was taken aback and outraged, but also silently pleased, curious to what plans the real Timestar could have set up.

"Ah, you are right, dear warrior, good to see you here. Miss, may I show you to your nest?"

The muscular tom inquired, looking towards the twoleg accode behind the fence. Secretly, he cast a scathing glare towards the elderly tom that had interrupted his scheme, as his amber eyes narrowed in observative silence.

[~Twister~]

Fifi watched the blue-purple elder cat, who had a forest scent, creep up and talk to Timestar. Interesting, she thought. I never knew that such a cat could talk like he's known him forever. Are all forest cats friends? Fifi looked down to where Shade had offered to walk her in.

"But...this sounds so interesting. Can't I stay and at least watch, I promise I won't repeat anything you two say to one another. I've never met forest cats before. Please?"

The she-cat's dull green eyes pleaded innocently, and for the first time since her family died, gave a small sparkle. She looked at the elder tom.

"Please, I'll stay silent. You won't even know I'm here."

Reluctantly the she-cat gave a sigh. Why would they want a nosey kit in their business. She started to turn around and ready to leap off the fence, but she stopped hoping they would let her in on their talk on the last minute.

[triskaideka]

The little queen struck something in Mothdark, a type of paternal instinct that he had never gotten to practice on any kits of his own. That's probably why he was here in the first place, risking being torn in two by a rouge in exchange for the kittypet's safety. And yet, as she seemed so despondent as she turned to cross the fence, something sparked across the elder's mind. Perhaps it wasn't best for this cat to be shut up in her nest. Pushing away his nagging good judgment, Mothdark spoke up and called to the young queen, "Just a moment, my dear."

"Hmm..." Mothdark looked to the imposter-Timestar with a slightly skeptical twitch of his whiskers, ignoring (or perhaps not noticing) the scowl that flitted across the other tom's face, "Is it so terribly secret, Timestar? You did ask for a secluded area as possible, so I assumed that you wanted to talk about something rather covert, but I could have been mistaken. What exactly is it that you wanted to talk about?"

"Although," The purple-blue elder cast his eyes downward, "I suppose that you wouldn't have told me to make sure I wasn't followed if there wasn't an element of danger to this. If you were to listen to us, young one, you would have to be prepared to leap over the fence if anything dangerous happened--to run straight to your nest if anything happened at all. Well, it depends on what you say, Timestar."

[}xx.£eaƒm∞n , ,]

ShaDE

``don't try to make me a hero

[/s][/blockquote][/blockquote]

Shade was boiling on the inside, clearly put out that such a shrewd minion of his brother's had dared, dared, to interfere with his daily connings. But, of course, he didn't show this; the tom's face was kept a in a calm, straight, controlled facial expression, as if he had been expecting everything from the beginning. As if the elder's plans were true, and not just a desperate attempt to talk to the obvious imposter of Timestar.

Shade groomed over one paw idly and swept it over his face, acting cool and calm.

"I'm afraid, babydoll, that what we must discuss is strictly confidential, pertaining to the very well-being of the forests themselves. However -"

here Shade looked up from his grooming, one eye watching the kittypet with an expertly mischevious smirk -

"if you think you handle what you're about to hear, feel free to it. But, as my old friend said, if anything happens, you best be ready to run straight into your nest and don't look back. Understood?"

Shade lowered the black and white paw and turned to face both the kittypet and the older warrior at once, smooth concern and mystery on his face as he watched the female, but at seconds when she wasn't looking, he'd glare at Timestar's warrior with a look of pure disdain, a look that said you better explain yourself, mister. It seemed that this was one of the few, but disastrous, times that his carefully woven plan had been unraveled, but the viscious rogue was determined to reweave it, even if he had to dip his paws in blood.

[~Twister~]

The young she-cat's sparkle faded as the imposter Timestar denied her presence, but lit up slightly as she became serious in the news she was about to hear. She nodded,

"I understand."

She leaped down from the fence, so they didn't have to talk to loud. Fifi crouched close to the ground, her head up, ears pricked, her chubby, white belly flattening against the ground. Her black back arched, and her back hind legs relaxed, but ready to tense up at the sign of any trouble. What could be so important that they have to be so secretive? What kind of forest stuff do they do? The questions of the forest raged through her mind, but settled as the two toms began to talk. Fifi's ears listening to the conversation, but also for trouble or 'discomfort' near her two-leg nest.

[triskaideka]

Well, even though the rouge had certainly made his point that he knew what Mothdark was up to, he seemed to be agreeing with every word that the elder cat said. So, in some ways, that was a small victory. However, the impostor Timestar would not budge in terms of saying exactly why they had presumably gathered here. With a long, slow blink, Mothdark figured that he would have to broach a subject, and let the rogue play off of that. Not really the position he wanted to be in, but since they were supposed to be talking about something of importance to the whole forest, Mothdark too, would also have a slight idea about it.

"The clans, so I've heard, are becoming more aggressive with the the lack of prey," The elder spoke barely above a whisper, his voice dark and low, "If you have come to seek my council about the hunt, I regret to say that only Starclan can help us there. My sister, she knew where prey was by her gift, but I don't know where she is now."

"However, avoiding warring clans is a good thing for loners too, so I understand where you are coming from. If it were to come to war, it will not be like the wars that are in my stories. It would be hundreds of times worse. Strange warriors walk the woods these days. Even those with common coats can have gifts that... Well, I would wonder if they are even truly cats anymore. I have seen such things wandering the forest, Timestar, that would make some warriors die of fright."

Mothdark looked over to the kittypet with a solemn, but gentle eye, "Although, I would say that this was the rare occasion. I doubt that there are any such cats that claim loyalty to a clan. Perhaps I have said too much."

The purple-blue elder kept thinking, wondering exactly if food was this rogue's only motivation. If it had been, the rogue would have probably given up by now. Could a cat truly be this stubborn just for the sake of it? Mothdark couldn't believe that. There had to be some other reason.

[}xx.£eaƒm∞n , ,]

ShaDE

``don't try to make me a hero

[/s][/blockquote][/blockquote]

Shade shook his fur out as a chilly wind blew, blinking and watching the elder and the kittypet thoughtfully. He crouched down and leaned towards the purplish cat, acting intent on his words even though half of his mind told him to rip him to shreds, along with the kittypet. But, he realized, it would be in his best interest to play along with the Clan cat's antics, to avoid raising concern. For if he got a reputation for blood too soon, it would certainly ruin his chances of overthrowing the hated brother of his.

"I see, and yes the shortage of prey is making cats become more wary than normal, especially of those with the more uncommon coat colors. Those of such alliance are using their talents all too freely, to the point where they are becoming dangerous. We must warn them of such danger, and perhaps our words will save at least a few."

He had little to no clue how his words, or the Clan cat's words, made any sense, but he saw it as more of a distraction, the conversation being used to dodge the question of Who are you?. Looking to the kittypet, Shade twitched his nose and spoke.

"You best return to your nest now, darling. Be grateful that you do not have to face such terrors as we of the wild do. And, my dear warrior, will you accompany me into the forest? I believe I must consult another opinion on the topic, and it would be best if you were there to aid me, should his temper flare."

The black and white rogue stood, stepping towards the shadowed forests. He needed to have as little witnesses as possible should he decide he needed to "take care of business."

[~Twister~]

The white and black colored cat sat sup straight once more.

But I haven't heard of such a wonderful place, nor have I heard of any dangers, just the smell of rain coming within the next few hours," Fifi pressed.

It was no fun being a kittypet, but the way the two forest cats put it, it was no fun being a forest cat either, many dangers, barely enough food during Leaf-bare. As Fifi looked behind her, her gazed landing on the other side of the fence, as if she could see through it, she realized the younger tom was probably right, but she didn't want to go alone.

"Timestar, do you mind if I take your 'warrior'," the words sounded weird on her tongue, "To walk me to my nest, I don't like leaving cats to watch me leave."

Fifi was not sure why she had asked the question. The elderly cat could do whatever he wanted to her, once past the fence, but in a weird way, she felt protected by him, and she wanted to return the favor, but not in Timestar's presence.

[triskaideka]

Uncurling his tail from his back legs as the cruel, cold wind settled down, Mothdark gave a small smile at the kittypet's words, "Ah, a smart young one she is, I must say. With us talking of 'lack-of-prey' this and 'strange warriors' that, I might get a bit suspicious of us too. No, my dear, point well taken. Here, we'll leap up at the same time."

"You, my friend," The elder directed back to the black and white rouge, with warm encouragement, "You need no assistance to deal with any cat in that forest, that I truly believe. I know that the young feel that they are helpless at times, but you are not one of those warriors. An old sack of fur like me would only be in your way. But if you fear his temper will kill his words, I would not be late."

So food had not been the only thing that was this impostor-Timestar's agenda. He wasn't particularly after the young queen either, since he was willing to let her go. So I either fill his plans more aptly or it doesn't matter what kind of cat it is, Mothdark thought deeply, watching the rouge walk towards the forest.

"Worry not, Timestar," Mothdark's voice became a bit more authoritarian, "I will do everything in my power to make sure the forest is at peace."