cherish life's [simple] pleasures

[Crowzerplorodon]

Hunting was an easy way to take off the stress of the day, something you could focus on and just forget all the stuff that was weighing you down. At least, that's how Cloudstar saw it. He took hunting as a pleasure he rarely got to enjoy. Being leader meant little free time to actually go hunting. He was actually surprised he found time to go hunting today.

But of course, hunting was no fun alone. He assumed many of his warriors would love a good day hunting alone. To him though, hunting was a good time to really get to know his members. The warriors and apprentices of StreamClan. This time going out Cloudstar made sure to invite a warrior to join him. On his way out of camp, Cloudstar bumped into Rookfang, and decided to ask the pretty she-cat to join him.

Now he was stalking through the undergrowth, green eyes locked onto a mouse not three foxlengths ahead of him. The small rodent was nibbling on a seed of sorts and seemed to have no clue that Cloudstar was stalking it. The large white tom kept still for a few moments before creeping closer, avoiding a twig threatened to snap and give his location away.

As his position to the mouse got closer, Cloudstar froze again. He was in leaping distance now and the mouse still had no idea he was there. Taking in a deep, silent breath, the white tom tensed, leaned back a bit, then launched forward, flying over the grass in front of him and landing on the mouse with just a little "oomf" from his paws hitting dirt. The mouse's life was ended before it could even squeal.

Satisfied with his catch, Cloudstar quickly scraped some dirt over the dead critter before looking around for Rookfang. The she-cat warrior had probably gone off stalking her own prey by now. Keeping the mouse's location in mind, Cloudstar padded off to locate his partner.

[laur]

Deep in the brush, a tiny black she-cat was slinking between bushes. Piercing yellow eyes locked onto a thrush not too far from her position. Rump in the air and tail out, the she-cat prowled slowly towards the bird, every muscle carefully controlled, every pawstep as silent as the night. When she was as close as she dared to get, she paused, sucked in a large breath of air, and rocketed herself forward.

It took one mighty leap to propel the black she-cat onto the thrush before it even knew what was happening. She dispatched it quickly, covering the corpse with a thin layer of dirt and debris. She purred; next to fighting, hunting was her favorite activity. Lifting her small, sleek head, she scented a mouse on the other side of the oak tree where she buried her first catch.

I should find Cloudstar soon, Rookfang told herself, but... This mouse is too good to miss. With a few silent bounds around the massive tree, Rookfang planted herself directly behind the scuttling brown creature. She pounced -- the mouse let out a squeak, but that was all it had time to do. She carried it around the tree to bury it next to the thrush, but nearly ran into Cloudstar on the way.

"Oh! Sorry," Rookfang purred, amused. She dropped the mouse on the dirt pile that was her first catch, and looked up at her leader again. "Hunting's good today!"

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[Crowzerplorodon]

He wasn't watching where he was going. Cloudstar was too busy sorting out things for StreamClan to notice the scent of Rookfang that kept growing stronger and stronger. The near-collision was practically his fault, too. It took him a moment to come out of his thoughts and pay attention to the she-cat speaking to him.

"It's fine, I should have been watching my step," he said kindly, taking a seat after he had spoken. "And yes, the hunting is very good today. Green-Leaf is really coming into full bloom now, I expect StreamClan to grow strong." That was the main thought on his mind now, the strength of StreamClan and how they would grow this season. For some reason, he always felt his clan was the least respected. Whether it be because he was the only non-ForestClan leader or that his clan just didn't stand out.

"Shall we search a little farther from camp?" He suggested with a smile, flicking his tail in the direction he meant. "Maybe down by the river?" He hadn't been to the river in a while and a trip there -- no matter how short -- would be a nice welcome to the white tom cat.

[laur]

With a bounce, Rookfang trotted over to the other side of her leader. "No no, it was my fault. I was daydreaming!" she added, a bit mischeviously, leaders aren't allowed to make mistakes." Flashing a glowing smile at the tom, she picked up the two pieces of fresh kill and nodded at him to signal she agreed to head towards the river. Rookfang darted between trees and shrubs, the limp bodies of food jiggling wildly in her locked jaw. Finally, she padded out of the thin trees and onto the bank of the larger river in StreamClan territory.

She spun around, locking her pale yellow eyes onto Cloudstar's face. "Beautiful, isn't it?" she half-whispered, jerking her head towards the vast area around the river. She scurried down to the bank, dipping her left front paw into the swirling rapids. Eyes darting across the wide water, Rookfang hopped onto a stone in the river and peered over into the dark water. "Fishing!" she purred, flicking her tail and glancing over at Cloudstar, "I'm not very good, but I love to do it!"

Flash! A thin streak of silver exploded out of the water as Rookfang hooked a fish out of the water. Not able to get a hold on it, she quickly yelled to her leader, "catch!" and flung the flopping creature at the snow white tom. Holding her breath, Rookfang silently prayed that the fish did not smack her leader in the face and that she would not be embarrassed ebcause of it.

[/center]

[Crowzerplorodon]

"Leaders aren't allowed to make mistakes."

Cloudstar could help but think how right Rookfang was. Being a leader meant -- at least to him -- that he needed to be the cat that his clan looked up to. He could not risk making mistakes, lest his clan suffer. No, Cloudstar would rather relinquish his role as leader before he watched his clan suffer. It saddened him to think he had already made plenty of mistakes.

His green eyes trailed after Rookfang as the she-cat slipped off toward the river. It wasn't until she was out of sight did Cloudstar follow, taking slow (but long) steps after her. Her words drew him from the gloomy thoughts he had been thinking as he arrived to the open area around the river. "Yeah..." He muttered, watching Rookfang playfully run toward the river.

A StreamClan cat who is not a fisher? He thought with a purr after Rookfang spoke. Cloudstar had always assumed all of his members were decent fishers. He knew from now on he wouldn't assume that anymore.

He barely reacted in time to the flying fish, stepping to the left a little so the silver creature didn't hit him. A swift bite to the dying fish ended its life. Cloudstar wondered if a cat killing it was better than suffocating for the fish. "Nice toss," he commented, a glint of humor in his eyes.

[laur]

"Nice toss"

Rookfang shot her leader a jokingly malicious glare. "Oh yeah, I meant to make it spiral, but it slipped out of my paws too quickly." She bounded back up the sloped bank, long black tail flinging droplets of water everywhere, her sleek fur practically reflecting the sun's light. She padded over to her snow white leader, pale yellow eyes glinting mischeviously as she circled him like a shark.

"Could you have done better?" Rookfang challenged, stopping to sit directly in front of him. She penetrated his fur with her yellow-green eyes, looking determined yet playful at the same time. It was nice to get out, especially with such an honored cat like Cloudstar. All he needed was to loosen up a bit. Like anycat was going to come along right now and need his leadership! It was just her, Rookfang, and she could take care of herself. She was merely with the clans for the social aspect.

Watching Cloudstar closely in case she did something to annoy him, she cuffed his ear with a sheathed paw, yowled, "Lighten up, Cloudstar! But not literally, I don't think that's possible for your fur." and dashed off to the edge of the river.

She knew she was being childish; it just didn't bother her. As she crouched by the water, she vaguely heard a rustling nearby, but decided to ignore it. Smiling gleefully at Cloudstar, she purred and flipped onto her back with her paws stretching far above her head, giggling. "Oh, don't punish me, dear leader, I am not worthy!"

[/center]

[Crowzerplorodon]

He chuckled at Rookfang's words, flicking his tail back and forth as the pretty she-cat circled him with a mischievous look on her face. Cloudstar tilted his head ever so slightly to the left, not speaking until after she had taken a seat in front of him and presented him with the challenge.

"Could you have done better?"

"Yes," he replied automatically. Suddenly he wondered what Rookfang was thinking. The look in his yellow eyes was not one Cloudstar was used to looking at, if only he could read it. His claws dug into the dirt without a sound as he studied the other cat. No luck though, he just couldn't get a reading on her. It never was a strong point of his, he thought with a shrug as Rookfang bounded back toward the river.

"Lighten up, Cloudstar! But not literally, I don't think that's possible for your fur."

A grin broke on his face. His sister use to say things like that, the words took him back to when he traveled with her. His green eyes lightened a bit, remembering the kind brown tabby she-cat who had always been his "fun". She had claimed to be his fun when he showed signs of taking after their father, being completely serious and always worrying.

He followed Rookfang toward the river, giving a mock glare at the she-cat. "You disappoint me, Rookfang," his voice was low as he spoke, green eyes narrowed. "Now what would be a fitting punishment? Perhaps..." He wasn't quite thinking, the only thing on his mind was that the water nearby was not deep and any cat could stand in it. "This?" One of his forepaws shot out and he gave the warrior a playful shove toward the river.

[laur]

With a screech, Rookfang rolled directly into the rushing river's water. She was dragged under for a split second -- the river was making sure no inch of her could be dry. Rookfang swam against the river, but the current was dragging her downstream; she had to climb onto the bank at least five fox-lengths away from Cloudstar.

Trodding back towards him, Rookfang gave Cloudstar the meanest look she could muster. "That was not nice," she growled as she reached his side. "Cruel punishment from a cruel leader!" Backing away from him, Rookfang could not help but let an evil smile flash onto her tiny face. "Now you'll pay!" she roared, and with all the strength her small body could muster, she tackled the larger tom and toppled alongside him into the water once again.

For a tiny she-cat, Rookfang certainly was strong. She proved that when she knocked the almost-twice-her-size white tom into the river. She groped for the bank once more, pushing herself onto it and turning her head to find where Cloudstar was. Will I get in trouble for that? Rookfang wondered, spotting her leader a few paces away and taking a step back, I hope not! She didn't know he was as playful as he'd been, but maybe her luck had run out when she took him under the water with her.

Whether I get punished or not, she giggled to herself, I don't care. It was worth it.

[Crowzerplorodon]

"Cruel?" Was he really cruel? Or was Rookfang just joking because he had pushed her into the river? Before he could ask he felt something hit his side and a slight gasp of wind came out. The last thing he thought before his body hit the water was damn, she was stronger than she looked.

His claws grabbed for the bottom of the river, but the only thing he could feel was soft sand and loose pebbles. He vaguely felt Rookfang swim away from him and caught sight of the she-cat pulling out of the water, but he didn't follow right away. It had been a while since he had even gone near the river, let alone take a swim. Pushing his strong legs forward, Cloudstar managed to get farther upstream where the river bed was stable and he could stand without much difficulty.

Once he was sure there wouldn't be any problems with staying the river, Cloudstar turned to face the wet she-cat. "Refreshing," he said with the slightest grin, lifting a paw to splash at Rookfang, even if the water wouldn't reach.

"Mousebrain," he muttered suddenly, flicking his ears in irritation and scanning the waters. "We probably scared away all the fish, the river might not be the best hunting place anymore."


ooc;
This would be the best time for Dappledflower to come in. With the leader in the water splashing at Rookfang. xD

[» s a b ø r ]]

Dappledflower marched into StreamClan territory like she was Cloudstar himself. She did not stop, even for the faintest of seconds when she crossed the border and scented StreamClan around her. She was determined and a bit ticked off that MeadowClan did not have fish of their own.

She did not wait for Mistystream, the warrior should be able to scent her clanmates well enough to follow them, and marched right on through Cloudstar's land. Even as she ventured deeper and deeper her pace did not falter. She was on a mission.

Then she found him! Cloudstar was with some she-cat at the river. This could not be any easier, she thought to herself. She cleared her throat as she drew closer then meowed in a very loud, friendly voice, "Ah, Cloudstar! Just the cat I was looking for!"

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Dappledflower was aware that she sounded like she was supposed to be in StreamClan territory and that cats would most likely find humor in her odd request. This did not stop her though, she wanted a fish.[/blockquote][/size][/center]