[Insidious]

"Do you remember this place?" He lifted a paw and patted the bark of an oak, glancing over his shoulder, a glimmer of mirth in his bright gold eyes. While it was true that he had always known her, the two hadn't talked much before they met at this place. He remembered like it had happened just yesterday: He saw her sitting in the tree, off in her own world, and he approached with every intention of getting a good laugh. Not much had changed, it seemed, because he made a bad habit out of laughing at the poor she-cat's expense, but it wasn't to hurt her feelings anymore. Lately, her feelings mattered more to him than he cared to admit.

But he wasn't in denial, not like he used to be, and StarClan knew it was a step in the right direction when he stopped fretting over what Blackwolf would have to say about it. Hollowcry leapt onto the lowest branch, inviting her to join him with a tip of his head. Normally, he would've climbed higher, and made the whole thing into some kind of challenge, but a voice in the back of his head warned that closer to the ground would be, in this situation, for the better. He couldn't say for sure that after he finally told her how he felt about her, she wouldn't fall right out of the tree.

Maybe a small part of him wanted that to happen. It wasn't that he liked to embarrass her, but rather that he liked the way she got all flustered and aware of herself - aware of him. Hollowcry was a boastful, confident cat, and he was assured that nothing bad would come from this heavy declaration, but he couldn't help feeling a little... nervous wasn't the word he wanted to use, but there was no other way to phrase it. "Well, are you coming up?" He bit his lip, hoping he hadn't sounded too obnoxious or impatient. He didn't want her to run. Not again.

However, there was a certain thrill about the chase.

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leafbare twenty-four

[BlooRey DVD]

[smear:74ffd2]Echobreeze[/smear:ffffff] ~~~~~~~~~ The timid tortoiseshell had been more than a little surprised when Hollowcry had asked her to join him on a walk. She'd agreed, figuring it was as good a time as ever to be heading out. The snow had stopped falling, spreading the slightest sense of relief across the Clan: their camp entrance was no longer filling with snow, threatening to trap them in the very tunnels they made their homes. She'd followed him quietly, being careful to place one paw in front of the other. The last thing she wanted was to trip over her own paws and go sprawling into some predicament that Hollowcry would have to pull her out of. Her pelt heated up just thinking of the countless times he'd had to pull her from one situation or another. StarClan above, if it hadn't been for Hollowcry, she'd have drowned in mud or been frozen in this intense Leafbare, she just knew it. Echobreeze had been so caught up wallowing in her embarrassment that Hollowcry's voice breaking through the silence startled her. Her head snapped up, eyes widening to mirror her alarm as they locked with Hollowcry's mirth-filled gaze. It took her a moment to register his question. She slowly turned her attention to the tree, blinking at the bark like it would tell her something. By the time RainClan's scent drifted over her senses from across the border, bringing back flickers of memories of an earlier time, Hollowcry was no longer on the ground. Gorgelight... That name sat heavy in her heart for a moment as she glanced up through the leafless branches of the oak tree and up to the sky above. She did remember this place. This had been where she'd gone after finding out Gorgelight, the RainClan tom she'd been falling in love with, had died. But... I-It's also the first place H-Hollowcry a-approached me... There was that tiny voice in the back of her mind, the part of her that was pulled towards Hollowcry despite how different he was from her, despite some of the previous things he might have said or done. Black and orange ears shot forward as Hollowcry called down to her from a branch above. She found herself nodding rapidly, her heart rate spiking as the poor thing panicked. She had to get up there somehow. And soon, too. Why the sense of urgency, she didn't have a clue. She took a couple steps back through the snow, clearing a sort of makeshift runway for herself. She wasn't quite big enough or powerful enough to simply leap into the tree as Hollowcry had done. Instead, she would bound up. Her little paws carried her as quickly as she could, her steps awkward and staggering in the snow, but still moving forward by the grace of StarClan. The first leap sent her toward the tree, her claws clutching at the bark as she scrabbled one or two steps upward. Her second bound was off the trunk, and towards the branch on which Hollowcry was sat She somewhat awkwardly clawed herself up onto the branch, her limbs shivering slightly with the effort. She wasn't strong on a good day. With the lack of food in NightClan in recent days? It was a miracle she'd not been blown away like a leaf on a breeze. Panting as she caught her breath, she cast a shy glance toward the brown coated tom. "F-First time w-we were h-here... You f-forced me to g-get out of the t-tree... N-Now you're asking m-me to climb int-to it." She laughed awkwardly, a timid smile stretching the length of her maw. "E-Everything is a l-little backwards t-today, i-isn't it?" Insidious

[Insidious]

His lips spread into a smile when she finally hulled herself into the tree. She was breathless, her limbs shaking from the effort, and he instinctively coiled his tail around her, anchoring her to the spot. It had become so familiar for him to reach out to her. It almost seemed like him doing it offered a reassurance that everything would be okay. Hollowcry had never been much of a clanmate. He was hardly a friend to his posse, let alone the whole of NightClan, so that he wanted to be a source of positivity in someone's life - in her life - was foreign. The words swelled on the tip of his tongue and, before he could think better of it, they were out in the open for her to hear.

"You know that I like you, right?" For a moment, just one, the word love had flitted through his mind, but he wasn't sure if he was ready to say it, or if she was ready to hear it. It seemed like too much to dump on someone as timid as her all at once. There was no telling when he of all cats in the forest had become so considerate. If anyone asked, he would deny it. "I have for a long time. I wasn't sure if you knew, so I figured it was as good a time as any to say something."

He looked at her from the corner of his eye, curious. The way she laughed, even if it was a little awkward, made him feel light, and he didn't know how to respond to the newness of that feeling. For the first time in his life he caught himself hoping for something rather than expecting it. If she didn't like him back, the two of them would probably stop spending time together, and he didn't like how that made his stomach seem to twist itself into a knot. He bit down on his lip, overcome by a sudden surge of bitterness. He would be able to get over her if he had to.

... did he have to?

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OOC: if kits somehow get brought into the conversation I would not be disappointed just saying. ;D

[BlooRey DVD]

[smear:74ffd2]Echobreeze[/smear:ffffff] ~~~~~~~~~ She'd fallen quiet, letting the silence settle about them as his tail wrapped around her. She felt safe in his hold, a feeling she'd been lacking for moons now. She'd nearly forgotten what it felt like... Her green eyes flicked down to her paws, a small smile still written on her features. She fidgeted softly, though for once it wasn't due to any sort of discomfort. She felt... Nervous didn't feel right. Nervous had always been something bad to her. This feeling wasn't bad... She felt giddy, as though she were a she-kit all over again. It was a strange feeling for the senior warrior. His voice broke the silence, and her ears shot up. As his words truly sunk in, she felt almost as though time stood still. Despite the near-unbearable chill of Leafbare, she felt warm. Her heart hammered against the confines of her chest, and for a brief moment... She stopped breathing. The soft puffs of steam ceased to bloom into existence from her muzzle as her body tensed. She couldn't think, couldn't wrap her mind around what the brown NightClan tom had just confessed to her. Sure, it might seem like nothing to most, but to her? Small ears lay flat against her head as wide green eyes turned to stare at him. Well... At his shoulder. Her mind churned, piecing it all together as she grasped for the courage to meet his yellow gaze. H-He... He l-likes m-me..? She'd never been a social she-cat, had never had a best friend. She'd always thought she would die in the same pathetic manner she'd lived: surrounded by cats but always alone. B-But he... "Y-You... M-Me..?" Her breathing sprung to life again in the guise of a few stammered words, his yellow gaze finally met by awestruck green. She blushed beneath her mixed-colored fur, the warmth blossoming through her so quickly it was almost alarming. Yet... The timid she-cat was too caught up in what he'd just admitted to her. Struggling to find the words, she contented herself with just gaping at him, her tiny frame moving every so slightly so she could just... Her tiny nose pushed into his fur as she breathed his scent. The weight of the cold hung all around them, yet all she could sense was him. "I-I.. I l-like y-you t-too..." Realizing she still had her nose pushed into him, she quickly ducked away, focusing on her paws embarrassedly. "S-S-Sor-rry..!" She felt so stupid! Although she loved the feel of his fur against hers, she had no idea if he liked that too. She was so tiny and gaunt... Her fur was probably prickly and not nice. Not like his... Insidious