Border Games

FOGSTAR

    Most of the day had already passed by the time Fogstar was finally able to relax. Though most of her duties included ensuring everyone else was doing what they were supposed to, she also enjoyed joining the dawn patrol whenever she could — an early and active beginning to her day put her mind at ease, and allowed her to have a clear head for all the things she had to get done. Today, however, she hadn’t been able to join it (she’d been a part of the one the day before), so now she was looking around for someone to keep her company.

    Spying a familiar figure not too far from where she was currently standing, she lifted her tail in greeting and made her way over. “Pebbledawn! Are you busy right now? If not, I was wondering if you wanted to come on a hunting patrol with me?” Fogstar desperately wanted to get out of camp after being stuck in it all day, and she couldn’t think of a better cat to accompany her than her combat specialist, Pebbledawn. The molly was still uncertain if you could call the two of them friends, but it certainly felt like only the two of them could stand each other’s presence the majority of the time.

PEBBLEDAWN

   The wound had begun to slowly scar over, it was just still a sizeable divet out of her upper hind leg. While it might have been safe from infection for now, it'd surely take time for the muscle to slowly recover. And Pebbledawn...well, StarClan knew that "slowly" definitely wasn't her thing. 

   Especially now that she was Combat Specialist. 

   The old one had finally croaked from his infection, and Fogstar had selected Pebbledawn as his successor. While it wasn't a surprise to most, some seemed to send the calico tabby some accusatory glances. It seemed that they suspected that the promotion was out of personal bias.

   Well...she'd just have to prove to those snarky little bastards that she was a perfect fit for the job.

   Heat radiated from her pelt, and a soft huff sounded from Pebbledawn as she saw a Novice off. They'd been skipping some of their lessons, so the dutiful molly saw to it that she had some brutal one-on-one training with them. Maybe that would set them straight. Nobody liked to have to spar against her. 

   After watching the beaten adolescent slink off, her attention was redirected to a familiar voice: Fogstar. While she'd just finished a task, Pebbledawn sure as hell was eager to start another. Anything to get out of that blasted camp after a moon of..."rest". Hunting wasn't necessarily her favorite, but...sinking her claws into the flesh of a rodent was better than sinking them into nothing at all. “You wanna hunt with me? Well…” With a roll of her shoulders, Pebbledawn shot her leader a toothy grin. “...Only if you think you can keep up.”

   It was a confident statement from the Combat Specialist, especially since was far from being the best hunter in the clan. Most cats liked their prey whole, anyways. Not...squashed and shredded to pieces out of a fit of rage.

FOGSTAR

   A slight chuckle escaped her at Pebbledawn’s response. If there was anything Fogstar could count on, it was that the other molly would always be pretty enthusiastic for something— Especially if it involved fighting. A small smile on her face, she nodded, “I thought you were meant to be resting that leg.” She raised an eyebrow a little at this, though didn’t make any further comments about the fact that her clanmate wasn’t really supposed to push herself too much. Pebbledawn was fortunate that their Herbalist was Barleyflower, who Fogstar wasn’t even sure she’d seen hurt a fly.

   With a flick of her tail, the grey-furred leader motioned for the other molly to follow behind her. Fogstar didn’t get to go out hunting too often, usually preferring the dawn patrol over anything else, but she enjoyed the feeling of getting her paws dirty every now and then. Calling over her shoulder, she suggested a direction for them to go in, “How about we head towards the Sweeping Shade? That should be far enough for us to stretch our legs, at least.”

   She didn’t really wait for a response before she began to walk that way, knowing that Pebbledawn would make it very obviously known if she didn’t agree.

PEBBLEDAWN

   She really, really hoped Fogstar wasn't about to rain on her parade with more of that pitiful "your leg looks owie" crap. She'd received enough of that endearing concern from the rest of her clanmates whenever they noticed her leg. Fortunately, most were quick to cower away when Pebbledawn flashed her teeth. Such an explosive response was tempting, but she reined it in for the sake of being respectful to her leader. With a soft sniff, Pebbledawn raised her chin as her pale eyes burned into Fogstar, that spark of competition refusing to extinguish for even a moment. “What— you lookin' for excuses to get out of this hunt already? 'Fraid you're gonna lose? Don't worry, Fogstar— I'll still go easy on you. Maybe me havin' only three good legs will level the playin' field between us.”

   As the leader motioned for her to follow, the pale calico tabby gave a quick stretch of her legs. If she spotted a SoaringClan cat sniffling about, she'd ensure that all hell broke loose. She wouldn't chase off those mousy bastards with any other cat! Fogstar...she was one who knew how to have fun. Was it wrong for Pebbledawn to be quietly praying that one of those SoaringClan freaks was moping about?

   Brows furrowing as enthusiasm and vigor coursed through her veins, the Combat Specialist quickly trotted in pursuit of Fogstar, her fur bristling from excitement. Nothing was as exciting as...well, doing something. She lived and breathed to serve- she could never imagine trudging around as some helpless elder. She'd serve Fogstar with every ounce of power she had until she drew her very last breath. Retirement was no place for a cat like Pebbledawn. 

   Sweep of Shade? Close to the river that divided their land into two...yes, this was very acceptable. “Gives those SoaringClan wusses a good running start...I mean- great place to hunt for prey. S'long a that's a good enough warm-up for you to get ready to eat my dust.”

FOGSTAR

   It was clear from Pebbledawn’s sniff that she was offended by Fogstar’s concern. The leader only felt amused by such a detail— Only the combat specialist would find such things offensive, though the grey-furred molly found his oddly endearing. There was a reason she chose Pebbledawn, after all, and this was one of them. They just seemed to understand each other, even if they didn’t always agree. Their respect for one another trumped everything else, even the scolding Fogstar would’ve given any other rank. For Pebbledawn, there were different rules… Though whether this was due to the molly’s strong will alone or Fogstar’s own affections was hard to tell.

   The leader saw the competitive glint, and she returned it. Two cats could play at that game. “Lose?” She murmured, chest rumbling with a purr, “I am afraid that I do not know what that word means… Maybe you can teach me all about it.” She smiled then, eyebrows slightly slanted like she was relaying some bad news. Despite their somewhat serious teasing, Fogstar was very glad to have Pebbledawn by her side; arguably, she’d never been safer. The combat specialist considered the Soaringclan ranks with such ferocity that oftentimes Fogstar mistook it as pure hatred. Maybe it was. Whatever the case, she didn’t feel very vulnerable right now, despite being so out in the open.

   At Pebbledawn’s statement, she turned back. Was she planning to run across the border, generally cause trouble? Fogstar could only defend her actions to a certain point… She chose to pretend that she hadn’t heard what the other molly said, instead focusing her eyes on the undergrowth before them. Despite her reservations about what Pebbledawn might be up to, it was true that this was a great place to hunt. Maybe if the two of them concentrated on that, Pebbledawn’s itch for chaos would lessen. For today, at least. The words from the other molly echoed and Fogstar hummed in response, “Are you certain you wish to challenge me?” Her voice was serious, though there was a subtle shine in her eyes.

PEBBLEDAWN

   Despite the faint remnants of pain in her damaged limb, Pebbledawn trotted confidently alongside her leader with her tail streaming behind her. The Combat Specialist kept nearby Fogstar as she moved along, occasionally increasing her speed by some minor increments before lingering in front of Fogstar. There was a fire beneath her paws- she was ready, she wanted to go! And it seemed that her movement beside Fogstar was a challenge to a race of sorts. While her attention briefly lingered in and out on Fogstar and their little game, she was still highly alert. Her pastel eyes darted back and forth as she scanned the forest, begging for something to come out and challenge her. Pebbledawn's ears, albeit scarred from battle, were perked and angling towards even the slightest of scuttling. 

   Hah! The molly's brows furrowed and a wicked smile grew onto her facial features as Fogstar returned the glimpse. “Oh, don't you worry now— you'll get paws-on experience in losin' when you're competing against me. I'll teach you good 'n well.” Haha! She'd never want to challenge Pebbledawn again. Not that she didn't mind interacting with her leader, of course. Pebbledawn had admired her ferocity and dedication in battle. She'd follow her until the end of earth if need be, assuming their opinions continued to align. Cats could change. Pebbledawn...well, she wasn't overly fond of change.

   ...Regardless, she didn't want to lose. She wouldn't lose. 

   They seemed to have slowed, perhaps settling into the current location as their hunting spot. Pebbledawn didn't mind- it seemed decent enough, even though she didn't particularly dabble in hunting. The dilute calico tabby rolled her shoulders as if she was warming herself up, while her tail uncontrollably lashed from side to side out of excitement. Fogstar's voice seemed to take a serious turn. Pebbledawn looked her leader in the eyes, that arrogant smirk making its fabled return. “Certain you wanna lose?”