[ and we all fall down ] birchxbeaver private

[[ hardyrex ]]

ooc; This role play is between Beaverstripe and Birchtail only. ( Poor Beaverstripe. D: )

The cool, crisp air of Leaf-bare was creating a thin layer of frost on anything the claws of the cold season could grab. The lack of rain was a low-blow that came with the cold, and it meant that prey was keeping to their burrows and out of sight. Less food meant less fat, and less fat meant more cold.

Beaverstripe's fur was ruffled out in a effort to collect and keep any warmth he could. The forest's ground didn't catch the sun's head like the city's hard surfaces could, and to say he was used to the cold ground yet would be a lie. At least he had manged to sneak out of the Warrior's Den without having to meow a single hello to anyone and was able to set himself in a sunny corner of the camp without being bothered.

Being alone-- at least when no one was taking to him --was one of Beaverstripe's favorite thing to do. It gave him plenty of time to thing about little or big things, and even question if StarClan was real. And vole's fly, he thought, frowning a bit. If StarClan was real, then why did they allow so much suffering here? Becoming dead must have make you a cold, heartless fox. The tip of the tabby's tail twitched back and forth in a small beat. But part of his mind wanted StarClan to be real. If they were, he'd be able to see his Bonnie again.

Beaverstripe closed his green eyes. Maybe today he would be left alone for once.

[Cloud of Diamonds]

OOC: Pity Beaverstripe, for the cat who has a crush on him is a featherbrain. -goes to modify Birchtail's bio so it says her crush-

So quiet, so still...it seemed to the long-furred tabby she could have heard a moth's wing beat. For some reason, probably some effort on StarClan's behalf, she'd woken early in her spot in the nursery. She'd spent a full four minutes or so studiously grooming herself for the day, making sure every bunch of fur was looking perfect. StarClan forbid she squander her good looks.

Leaving Palekit to sleep in their bedding place in the nursery, she quietly slipped out of the den, yawning slightly. And who should she smell in the clearing but Beaverstripe. As soon as she thought the tom's name her heart rate quickened and with it a rush of emotions mixed in her head.

His handsome pelt. His leaf-colored gaze. The tom's quiet, strong nature that set him apart from so many other male warriors in FogClan. Beaverstripe was a cat apart. But yet,she could not stop a small voice in her head that cried that she was being disloyal to Slash. Imagine if she let herself fall for Beaverstripe; what could she say when she met him again in StarClan so many seasons from now? What would her kits do if they found out? What did StarClan themselves think?

So many questions. Yet even fear of them all didn't stop her fancying the dark-striped FogClanner a bit. So far no cat knew her attraction to him, so she thought. She'd done her best to keep from looking over at him on patrols, or to be too friendly with him, or talk to him at all. In fact, she'd tried to distance herself from him as much as possible, trying to stop the temptation of liking him too much. But slowly and surely, it was happening anyway.

What was he like, though? He was admirable as a warrior and all, but what was he like personally? Birchtail found herself wanting to know, to get to know him. Woah, back up there a moment, said a part of her. You can't just run in like a lovesick...something. You know how this has to be done, she mused. Neatly. In an organized, controlled fashion. If she were to do it at all.

Well...just talking to him a little bit couldn't hurt, could it? StarClan would stop her from going too far, she felt sure. He was her Clanmate, after all. So her decision was made. Continuing to pad forward, she quickly spied him sitting in a corner of camp, alone as she'd thought.

"Hi there, Beaverstripe." She said almost shyly as she settled down about a tail-length or so away from him. "I guess you got up early like me."

Her amber eyes were looking away. Lame. But at least she didn't sound overeager.

[[ hardyrex ]]

Lulled by the warm rays of the sun, Beaverstripe's mind wondering into a day dream. It was the live he had imagined himself having; Bonnie by his side, running through he streets of the city he called home in the middle of the warm season. A piece of fresh kill dangled in his jaw as they dived under the nearest box, holding back mrrows of laughter at the two cats chasing them for prey ran right past. He pictured them padding back to their nest, finding their three kits tumbling over each other and getting under their paws as they sat down to eat. He could almost smell the milk of the nest...

Beaverstripe's green eyes opened. Confusion clouded his brain for a moment, then reality smacked him between the eyes. Bonnie was dead. They had never got to have kits, and he didn't live in the city anymore. But the milk scent...?

"Hi there, Beaverstripe. I guess you got up early like me."

His head turned to find Birchtail sitting to the right of him and... not looking at him. His tail twitched. He knew he hadn't groomed his fur yet, but it couldn't look that bad, could it? Come to think of it, the she-cat never really talked to him anyway. Did she not like him or something...?

Oh well.

"Mornin'." The tom replied, closing his eyes and moving his head back to it's original pose. "I'm always gettin' up early." In fact, he couldn't see how these cats didn't get up early. An attack could come at any moment, and one guard at the camp entrance could be easily taken out. But this isn't the city, he reminded himself once more. Things just don't work that way here.

[Cloud of Diamonds]

Always getting up early....how unusual. Birchtail had almost never gotten up early before, not ever before as a Clan cat or kittypet and only a few times as a rogue. How, she wondered, had the ability been built into Beaverstripe's head? Well, maybe it was a good way to keep order, hunting early so you could spend more time grooming. That made sense. Or perhaps it was a StarClan-given gift. Who knew?

Should she look at him now? Did he think she was being rude? No...she'd promised herself she'd try and be faithful to Slash's memory. But then...surely StarClan would permit a cat to have more than one mate in a lifetime? I'll always love Slash and honor his memory, I know it! However, it shouldn't keep me from falling in love a second time...right? Even if Falconpaw and Cinderpaw might feel I'm betraying their father...Oh, if I only had Brightnose's ability to go to the MoonGlade and ask StarClan myself! If I'm lucky they might appear to me in a dream, though I'm only an ordinary queen...

Thoughts like these whirled in the sleek tabby's brain. Well, no matter what I decide I need to answer him, she thought. She prayed to StarClan she wouldn't say anything offensive or stupid to Beaverstripe. Here goes...

"Wow. How did you learn to do that?"

She almost winced at the level of liking in her voice, it wasn't well-concealed at all. Hopefully Beaverstripe would think she was just being friendly. She almost turned her head to look at him, but at the last second caught herself and didn't.

[[ hardyrex ]]

"Wow. How did you learn to do that?"

Beaverstripe sighed a bit, creating a white cloud of cool hair in front of his muzzle. Birchtail obviously wasn't going to leave any time soon, and he couldn't just walk away from her. He may have been a cold killer at some point of his life, but at least he had manners.

The tabby tom blinked open his eyes and stretched until the top of his tail curled to hit his spine. Sitting back down on his hind leg, he turned to Birchtail, who still wasn't looking at him.

She-cats. Who understands them?

"Just kinda learned it, I guess. Of course, when you life may have depended on it, it was pretty easy to get used to." Beaverstripe meowed, holding back a yawn mid-sentence. It was true. If you slept in too late in the city, who knows what would have happened. A cat with a grudge may have found you, or a twoleg wanting to keep you as a kittypet. The best time to travel was the night due to the fewer monsters and twolegs on the street anyway, and more shadows to hide yourself in.

None of these Clan cats would never know this, he thought, licking his chest fur. They wouldn't last out there very long.

[Cloud of Diamonds]

OOC: I'm so unlike Birchtail it's not even funny. I don't know how I play her.

This was shocking, to say the least. His life had once depended on waking up early? Good StarClan, he must've had a messy existence before FogClan, poor thing. Even her life as a rogue hadn't been that dangerous. Because who would care about killing Birchtail, is a waste of time. |3

Life as a rogue...when she'd fallen in love. So many idiot rogues. But one had charmed her heart. And he isn't Beaverstripe, she told herself firmly. What if Beaverstripe, too, has had a mate? She had no idea, but it was possible. All in all...she should try not to have a crush on him. Yes. So much simpler all around, said her brain.

But her heart spoke quite differently. It said that to love-love? No, no, I only sort of like him, y'know, just kind of...-again could not be a sin, for love was the most beautiful thing of all, was it not? Yes, yes, she thought desperately, he's good and all, but...but, don't deny yourself, Birchtail, you're falling in love. Again.

How pathetic. Her own heart rebelling against her. She barely knew him anyway; why did she like him so much? But still, it was there, that little tug of adoring emotion, amidst all her confused pain and fear over it. Just talk to him, it suggested. Get to know him. Then decide whether this is your imagination or not.

She moved her head..she still wasn't looking at him, but stared straight ahead instead of meeting his green eyes.

The long-furred tabby self-conciously licked her shoulder, then spoke, "Amazing. Did you ever get in some kind of trouble if you didn't wake up early?"

[[ hardyrex ]]

"Amazing. Did you ever get in some kind of trouble if you didn't wake up early?"

"I got in trouble regardless of what I done." Beaverstripe couldn't help but smile a sly smile. He could just walk towards the Thunderpath and trouble would hit him like a monster. Cats would come after him all the time, trying to get pay back from the dirty deeds he had done. There was even a time were he was a hit-cat for a group of cats that wanted some other cats out of the picture. Sure, it was harsh, and many cats here would see him as a fox-hearted warrior, but in the city it was just another day of living.

"Some seasons back, I remember my father told me if I didn't get up before the Sun did I would be in a world of hurt. I didn't believe him, foolish me, and woke up to find everyone was gone. I panicked and ran outside only for my father to jump out and scare me. Needless to say, I was the first one up every day since." The tabby's smile was still on his muzzle as he remember that day. He was about eight moons at the time, and his father wanted him to get up early. I never did, and look what happened. Beaverstripe thought, licking his paw.

The tom smile dropped as he realized he was having a decent conversation with someone who he didn't care deeply about. It was slightly out of character for him, but as long as he wasn't getting attached nothing bad would happen, right?

[Cloud of Diamonds]

The FogClan she-cat couldn't help it, she laughed softly at Beaverstripe's little story. Having grown up as a kittypet, she'd never had to do any such thing. The russet-brown tom seemed so friendly...he smiled, and it was beautiful to see. He was so easy to talk to, funny, charming...she now knew that it wasn't just an imagined fancy; she did like him.

Comforting though that was, it also meant she had to admit she wasn't fully in love with Slash anymore. He would forever be in her memory, but he walked with StarClan now. Surely....surely he would want her to be truly happy again, would understand her liking for Beaverstripe? Of course, there was also the tabby himself to consider...would he figure out the truth? Would he hate her for it? Would he mind at all? Would he show affection in return?

Breathe, she thought. She did so, the exhalation fluttering the brown fur on her chest slightly. Her golden brown eyes were wide open, she was so longing to turn and look with them at the tom beside her, drinking in his appearance and scent. Her whiskers were quivering slightly.

But...what to say now?

"Aha. I imagine that would've driven a lesson into any cat's head. Reminds me of my attempts to learn to hunt when I was with another rogue."

She grinned, but noticed quickly that his smile had gone.

[[ hardyrex ]]

ooc; Sorry for not posting. Beaverstripe muse tried to take a holiday break. -.-

"Reminds me of my attempts to learn to hunt when I was a rogue."

Learn to hunt? Beaverstripe finally let that yawn out ( ooc; which make me yawn. O.o ) as he remembered how he was taught to... 'hunt'. More like steal, and kill whoever tried to steal from you. he mused, beginning to flick the end of his tail. Sure, the tom had learned some basic hunting forms, and don't forget about his instict, but why do all the work when you san have someone else do it for you? But now that had came back and clawed him in the tail, because he looked like a kit compared to some of the other cats around here.

"I didn't really learn to hunt." Beaverstriped meowed, instantly kicking himself for speaking before thinking. Why don't you go tell Mistpelt that you think StarClan is a load of fox dung while you're at it? the brown tabby scolded himself. "Who taught you how to hunt? he meowed, hoping to make Birchtail forget about his earlier comment.

[Cloud of Diamonds]

She almost laughed again. How could a cat living in the wild not learn to hunt? It was silly, hunting gave you the energy you needed to keep your life organized and in check. But then, maybe Beaverstripe had been a kittypet before he joined FogClan. The female tabby didn't know his origins. At least this conversation was going better than she had hoped, and she sent a silent prayer of thanks to StarClan.

Speaking of StarClan...was Slash watching her right now? Did he approve or disapprove? The lithe FogClanner wished with all her heart that he would answer, but the only thing she heard in her head were her own pleas. She hoped that whatever happened in the end, it wouldn't be too chaotic. That would be truly terrible. The striped queen took a deep breath, and tried to push her worries to the back of her mind and try to have a good time speaking to the tom she fancied.

The question he asked brought a slight smile to her mouth. Who had taught her hunting?

"Usually, the most patient or friendly rogue or loner I could find. Often they'd give me a lesson on how to hunt a certain kind of prey, and in return I'd often give them the first piece of prey I caught with my new skill. It worked for the most part, though some of them were bit scornful of my kittypet heritage."

She said this matter-of-factly, it didn't really bother her now. Birchtail was a Clan cat in the most blessed Clan there was, better than any run-of-the-mill loner or rogue.