[Ghost the Undead Goddess]

Cobrashadow

Beware the Coiled Snake

You got your rules and your religion

All designed to keep you safe

But when rules start getting broken

You start questionin' your faith

---

Leafbare was getting closer.

You could feel it in the air, taste it in the water. Each morning was colder, the days shorting but warm through the height of the sun, and every night was frostier than the last. And for the time being there was still a good amount of prey being brought in daily by warriors and hunting patrols.

The late afternoon sun hung heavily in the pale sky, the chill of the for-coming night was on the breeze as it swept through the camp. Many cats were absent the quiet Stoneclan dens as they were either out training future warriors, hunting or patrolling the boarders they shared with other clans of the valley. Queens lay comfortably within their den, kits either sleeping or nursing. Not that it mattered none to the tempermental tomcat that made his way through the camp.

He had been up and about at dawn this morning, rising to join a patrol with his sister and a couple other clanmates. It had been a fairly still and uneventful morning, although along their border patrol Viperstrike paused to catch a mouse on their way home. Otherwise all was quiet as the world awoke around them, filling the sky with pinks and oranges as the sun rose up to fill the sky with light.

Fierce green pools narrowed ever so slightly as he caught sight of his diluted calico deputy making her own way towards the entrance as well, presumably for one last hunt before night replaced day. Cobrashadow himself had been planning on strolling through the territory until he happened upon something. Whether than meant a piece of prey or a rival cat, who knows.

That was the beauty of an evening walk.

The black tip of his tail twitched for a moment before the golden spotted tom continued on in his direction, the permanent smirk on his maw shifting as he called out, "Smokestorm," in his rather distinct, rough voice. The fading sunlight touched his pelt, increasing the color of his golden fur ever so slightly, the scar across his shoulder more noticeable within the moment. Although Cobrashadow wore each scar with pride, like a prize or a memento from a moment in time, a piece of his past.

Muscles rippled with each movement of his legs, the senior warrior letting those emerald pools of his hold her lighter green orbs as he approached the high ranked she-cat. "Last minute outing?" The words rumbled in his chest as he spoke, the smirk on his maw ever so slightly present while an ear twitched atop his head. It took a moment but he finally dipped his head in respect towards Smokestorm, she was his deputy after all. Though he didn't really give her time to answer.


"Perhaps a stroll?" He continued in that rough tone of his, green gaze pulling away to glance at the sky, attempting to judge the amount of time the two cats had before the sun would vanish to leave them very little light. A little hunting could easily be done if they immediately went after scents, but Cobrashadow didn't feel like shoving his nose to the ground the second they found a spot to hunt. Turning to glance at the pretty calico she-cat near him, he tilted his head towards the side ever so, he slightly in the direction of the entrance.


"I was planning on heading out myself, possibly look for a mouse or two among the rocks." Cobrashadow spoke again before leisurely making his way out the camp, tail flickering slowly behind him. The tempermental tom was normally in a grumpy mood in general, though today he seemed to be in a less badger-like attitude. Casting a look over a broad shoulder he gave out one least jest, his sarcasm intertwining with the roughness of his voice as it again rumbled from his chest.

"Unless you'd rather be alone."

---

I have a voice that is my savior 

Hates to love and loves to hate 

I have a voice that has the knowledge 

And the power to rule your fate

Taxx

[Taxx]

Smokestorm

This gal right here's gonna rule the world
No, I won't sit still and look pretty

The camp was settling down for the night, some cats already turned in to sleep so they'd be rested for tomorrow's dawn patrol, while others lingered in the camp to talk, eat, and share tongues. A typical day, which was good- recent past events certainly warranting a bit of peace. Palepaw had returned to the apprentices' den, Mistcloud to the nursery, and all was back to normal.

Mostly.

Striding across the camp, the she-cat headed for the entrance, to where two cats were waiting. She would have preferred do this alone, but having others around lessened the chance of something sneaking up on her as night closed in. She wouldn't be going far, and once finished, she could finally take a relaxing breath.

Her name rumbled from the throat of the approaching tom, and Smokestorm paused to blink at Cobrashadow. "Yes," she replied, her tail flicking in response to the dip of his head before moving on. A snort, inelegant but still a statement of her thoughts on his offer, a flash of cool green eyes over her shoulder.

"What do I look like to you, a moonstruck apprentice? I'm not going for a stroll. I'm checking the perimeter of the camp, to make sure nothing's strayed too close." And if they happened to find prey, and caught it, it wouldn't be unwelcome. "You could come with me, though," she added on, and ducked ahead to exit the camp before him, the tip of her tail flicking at his nose at his last, possibly teasing statement.

A glance to Dustclaw and Badgerjaw, who'd been waiting for her, and with a nod of her head back toward the camp, she sent Badgerjaw to rest- three ought to be enough, since they weren't going far. "Come on, then, Cobrashadow," she called, and now her eyes flashed with mischief. "Unless you'd rather be alone?"

Deputy of StoneClan

Tags: Ghost the Undead Goddess Notes:

[Ghost the Undead Goddess]

Cobrashadow

Beware the Coiled Snake

You got your rules and your religion

All designed to keep you safe

But when rules start getting broken

You start questionin' your faith

---

There was the slightest hint of annoyance that floated through those handsome green hues, not to mention the faintest ruffle of golden fur along broad shoulders. The diluted calico's scent lingered upon his maw from where her tail had briefly made contact with his nose. The tempermental tomcat had to force a growl back down his throat before it was made audible, and instead opted to flick the black tip of his tail and follow after Dustclaw and Smokestorm out into Stoneclan territory.

It wasn't often a cat of his own clan could get up underneath the golden spotted pelt of the Senior Warrior, but with his normalized grumpy attitude, almost anything could be possible. With a quick shake of his body, as if throwing off the negative aura, his flat paws lead the way while his nose kept up with the other two cats' scents as they lingered on the path.

It didn't take long for Cobrashadow to catch up, and with that motion he passed by Dustclaw to make his way up near his deputy's shoulder line. The contrast color of their pelts made obvious in the late afternoon gleam, diluted calico and golden with black spots. The ear farther away from Smokestorm twitched to catch any slight movement around them, the cool breeze brushing through the old 'V' shaped scar ripped within the flesh of the appendage atop his head.

A thought crawled along his brain as the handsome tom gave a side glance towards the she-cat next to him.

He wasn't often soft on she-cats, though his brother Adderstone liked to point out those who were quite easy on the eyes. However, that being stated, Cobrashadow could easily noted how pretty the diluted calico she-cat was.

"I suppose it would be better for me to tag along..." His deep mew was potent with sarcasm as he gave a sigh, keeping pace with his deputy as they made their way towards the border. With a frosty glance over his shoulder towards Dustclaw, he continued after his emerald gaze pointed forwards again. "I don't think Dustclaw could scare the fur off of a rabbit if he tried."

He was received with a snort from the warrior behind him.

Cobrashadow's truer nature flashing every so slightly from his comment. He was not the easiest cat to get along with, not with his temper and attitude, and it was something he quite liked. The golden tom could certainly care less about what the other felines around him thought of him. Being a great warrior was not a popularity contest, but it was about ability. Fortunately for the senior warrior, he had the tendency to usually back up what he bragged about.

The border of their clan grew closer and closer with each passing moment, pawsteps from all three cats near silent, and so far no sound nor scent of fresh prey anywhere near their chosen pathway. "So tell me, oh great Smokestorm," Her name rolled off his tongue as his voice rumbled from his chest, sarcasm once again intertwining with his mew, that permanent smirk on his maw ever so slightly evident, the scar across this bridge of his nose more obvious as the sun continued to dip down towards the horizon.

The stream bubbled nearby, once belonging to Rainclan though now under Stoneclan jurisdiction, though the heavy scent of their fish breath cats was noticed fairly quickly. Cobrashadow rather despised the scent of Rainclan, his tongue flickered out to run across his crooked maw in an attempt to rid his mouth of the foul odor. "Are we worried a stray fish has wandered from their territory? Perhaps wishing to steal our land?" His tone darkened ever so slightly as the flare of battle weaved into those green pools.

Taking a few steps from Smokestorm's side, Cobrashadow made his way towards the borderline, the gentle breeze tickling his ears as they twitched slightly.

I'd like to see them try...

---

I have a voice that is my savior

Hates to love and loves to hate

I have a voice that has the knowledge

And the power to rule your fate


Taxx

[Taxx]

Smokestorm

This gal right here's gonna rule the world
No, I won't sit still and look pretty

The tom caught up quickly, his pace slowing once he was side-by-side with Smokestorm, with Dustclaw falling a bit behind. For a moment the three walked in silence, Smokestorm's eyes and ears on the alert for anything alarming- and yet she had to admit that this was nice. Walking with Clanmates, the silent company of the tom at her shoulder and her former apprentice padding after, with the cool breeze in her face and the familiar scents of her Clan's territory all around her. It eased, somewhat, the nagging worry that there was something dangerous lurking nearby.

An ear swiveled toward Cobrashadow as he spoke, and she tossed him a glance. "Is it?" Whiskers rippled in amusement at his next statement, glancing over her shoulder at Dustclaw as he snorted. "How nice we've got you here, then. To look out for him."

"Wow," came the heavily sarcastic reply from the tabby tom. "Good to know you've got confidence in me."

A friendly flick of her tail was the deputy's only reply- Dustclaw knew her too well to think she was serious. And she knew that the older tom's penchant for dry humor, which could easily be viewed as true insults, matched her own. It was nice to have like company such as his.

They paused as they neared the stream, the soft bubble of water sliding over the pebbly bottom a calming note. "No," she muttered, even as her gaze lifted to scan the other side. "It's not RainClan I'm worried about. Or fish. Bird-brain." On her other side, Dustclaw added a fresh mark to the border line, the waning sunlight flashing off his claws as he unsheathed them, and she flicked her tail in his direction, but spoke for both toms to hear. "Relax. There'll be no fight here tonight. Let's keep going."

Deputy of StoneClan

Tags: Ghost the Undead Goddess Notes:

[Ghost the Undead Goddess]

Cobrashadow

Beware the Coiled Snake

You got your rules and your religion

All designed to keep you safe

But when rules start getting broken

You start questionin' your faith

---

"Relax. There'll be no fight here tonight. Let's keep going."

A shame really, the tempermental tom could have used a nice battle stretch. Nothing was better than knocking the fur off of a smug, fish eating furball.
 
However, the order from his deputy rang clear within his ears. With one last scan from those chilling green pools, the golden spotted tom turned his head to move farther along down the border line to mark his own scent for good measure. It was only once he was farther away from where Rainclan met Stoneclan did those curled claws slink back into his flat paws.

Even after all his moons, the senior warrior was always ready to jump into a good battle. The scars along his handsome pelt were obvious evidence of that fact.

Still, Cobrashadow made his way back to Smokestorm's side as they continued on to leave the border shrinking behind them. Once again in alert mode, the golden tom's ripped ear moved to catch any form of movement, whether from a scrap of prey or something that shouldn't be on Stoneclan's rocky terrain. Muscles rippling under his tight pelt with each paw-step and tail flickering lazily behind him.

With a quick glance over his shoulder, Cobrashadow judged the distance between Dustclaw and the other two. His mind trickling over bouts of information, especially that pertaining to the pretty diluted calico padding softly next to him. Annoyance at himself rippled through his larger form, he couldn't believe he was about to be nice but he felt the odd need to ease her nerves.

For whatever reason.

Subtly stepping closer as they walked, Cobrashadow came within a hair of their distinct pelts brushing against one another. That smirk on his maw still present as he dipped his head down so that when he spoke it would only travel to her ears and not to their following companion. While he may not have cared what others thought, he didn't necessarily what others to know that he could be somewhat nice. If that was the word that could be used for the instance.

"You should relax a little more..." Cobrashadow's deep mew was quiet as he spoke softly, emerald pools glancing at Smokestorm to catch her gaze for a second before flickering them back to watching ahead. His mind briefly replayed the previous Gathering, a night of terror for many, though for him it just earned him another scar, this one upon a hindleg.

"We haven't seen or scented any foxes since the Gathering." There was hardly any point to stress over the possibility of constantly checking over a shoulder for the pointed nose, foul breathed canines. The subconscious was powerful and fear could do dangerous things to the mind if it was left to dwell on certain things for too long.

Though saying and doing were two different things.

"You should try to look for the positives, not worry about when the next terrible thing will happen." Cobrashadow finally spoke again, still in a quiet voice so only his deputy could hear him, though those handsome emerald pools shifted to hold her green gaze once more.

---

I have a voice that is my savior

Hates to love and loves to hate

I have a voice that has the knowledge

And the power to rule your fate

Taxx

[Taxx]

Smokestorm

This gal right here's gonna rule the world
No, I won't sit still and look pretty

Both Dustclaw and Cobrashadow followed, if less than willingly, as Smokestorm turned away from the river, back toward the camp to check the area that bordered no Clan's territory. She didn't look back at them, but she could hear Dustclaw's muttering, and the wary step from Cobrashadow even though he made no sound. She gave the spotted tom a glance as he caught up to her again, padding at her side, but his own gaze was not on her, instead monitoring their surroundings as they walked.

An ear flicked as Cobrashadow spoke, Smokestorm's head turning to him before he glanced away, back to the territory ahead. Her tail flicked, and as he uttered his last words, she stopped dead, staring at the tom and ignoring Dustclaw's startled noise behind her. "Look for the positives?" she repeated, her voice quiet even as her claws unsheathed and her tail lashed.

"Dustclaw, go back to camp. Cobrashadow and I will follow shortly." She waited until the younger had obeyed, padding away into the growing darkness, before speaking again. "The positives. Right. Like the death of Ashpaw? Of Eagletalon? Of Dawnblossom?" Anger boiled in her tone, and deep down she knew she was skewing his words, but she couldn't stop now. "How am I supposed to not worry? Tell me that, since you seem to be so full of advice!"

Deputy of StoneClan

Tags: Ghost the Undead Goddess Notes:

[Ghost the Undead Goddess]

Cobrashadow

Beware the Coiled Snake

You got your rules and your religion

All designed to keep you safe

But when rules start getting broken

You start questionin' your faith

---

Flat paws came to a stop as the diluted deputy challenged his slew of words. The ripped ear atop the golden spotted tom's head twitched ever so slightly, attempting to keep the annoyance from shimmering within the depths of his emerald pools. Despite the fact that Smokestorm had sent Dustclaw away, it still didn't settle well that the younger warrior had seen the start of this argument.

Even though it wasn't meant to be a lashing of tongues.

This was why battle scared tom didn't offer his nice-ish side very often. With his tempermental and rough exterior, he didn't always come off as nice as he attempted. It was better to let Adderstone be nice, or even Viperstrike with her manipulative purr. Of the three siblings, Cobrashadow was not the gentlest warrior, nor did he try to be.

His tail lashed behind him ever so slightly as those green hues narrowed at Smokestorm's irritated gaze. So much for calming her nerves. The senior warrior's own volatile temper was brewing just below that golden pelt of his, threatening to unleash. He wondered if the deputy actually heard the words that fell from her maw as she snarled at him.

"They died protecting Stoneclan." Cobrashadow finally growled out, deep within his chest. Not to mention a slew of cats from other clans... The slight crooked posture of his jaw gave him a cruel smirk that didn't aid in the heated situation between tom and she-cat. If anything, it was an honor to be sent to Starclan in such a way, not that the grumpy tom would suggest to die in battle against foxes.

"We are warriors. Cats live and cats die." It was harsh but it was the truth, and the blaze of green within Cobrashadow's gaze burned like wildfire. The senior warrior practically lived his life with one paw on the edge of the battlefield, always chasing for that next high or that next scar to show on his pelt.

Was it fair that several cats from Stoneclan were lost due to half starved foxes? No.

But life goes on within the valley.

"Every-cat trains because there will come a day when our life will be in danger and we have to fight to survive." Despite the wisdom in his voice, his tone was cold and harsh like claws ripping through a pelt. His hackles were raised yet, but his ears as moved to lay near his head and that black tipped tail of his still lashed angrily behind him.

"That doesn't mean we should act like prey!" Cobrashadow couldn't help as his growl lowered, the snarl on his muzzle very present at the moment, still almost shocked by the fact his deputy was worried about looking over her shoulder every five minutes. The fear of being attacked evident within her scent, evident within those lighter green orbs.

Pulling that fierce gaze from his diluted deputy, Cobrashadow let it move across the land around him as if to prove a point. "This is our territory, our home. And if our deputy is scared of her surroundings how is that going to instill courage or strength within her warriors?" Finally, after a long moment, those burning green hues made their way back to Smokestorm's face. The scowl was still present on the handsome tom's face, smirk lingering on his maw.

"Honor our fallen clanmates by living, by fighting. Show them they didn't die in vain."

---

I have a voice that is my savior

Hates to love and loves to hate

I have a voice that has the knowledge

And the power to rule your fate


Taxx

[Taxx]

Smokestorm

This gal right here's gonna rule the world
No, I won't sit still and look pretty

"They..." Smokestorm started to repeat, her eyes widening in disbelief before narrowing once more, her tail lashing harder as the fur along her spine rose. "An apprentice barely out of the nursery and a medicine cat? They didn't die protecting StoneClan, they had no battle skills to speak of. They were murdered." Grief seared her once more as she remembered all they had to remember of Ashpaw was just the scraps of fur left behind as those cursed beasts had taken him away. A pile of stones and feathers buried in place of the body they'd never find.

Cats lived- cats died. She knew that. She'd known it since her own father had died, greencough weakening him until his body had been unable to sustain life any longer. It was a lesson that had sunk in hard, and she'd grasped that sometimes, even the best help couldn't save a cat when StarClan called.

Fury flashed through her gaze as Smokestorm's eyes met the tom's again. "I am not afraid of those foxes," she snarled, cold hate in her voice. "I would love to have another chance to sink my claws into their fur and shred them for what they have taken. It's not them I fear- it's for them." Her tail waved in the direction of the camp, the cats who would be settling down for the night: her Clanmates, her mother, sister, niece. She wanted to claw this arrogant tom's face for daring to call her a coward, when he hadn't even been at the Gathering to see the destruction the foxes had caused among her Clan.

"Do not tell me what to do, Cobrashadow. Do you think I would ever forget them, for their untimely deaths, for the sacrifice those who fought made? You don't know anything."

Whipping around, she started back to the camp, her steps stiff with anger still, ears flattened as she fought to quiet the growl in her throat. The calm feeling she'd experienced earlier was gone, all the anger and misery piled up again, and she could hardly stand the thought of company now- maybe she'd take the night watch over the camp, rather than trying to sleep just yet.

Deputy of StoneClan

Tags: Ghost the Undead Goddess Notes: