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Greenleaf 9 Clouds congregate above the valley, absorbing the sun's rays and promising rain.

It seemed like so long since he had been to the Lightningclan border, much less traveled as far as he had. Before the most recent Gathering, Leopardpaw had been mostly isolated to just being within camp. The Gathering had been his first time travelling a far distance from camp, after which he had been trying to walk around more. Of course, he had to be careful. With the looming threat of Nightclan, no Treeclan cat had time to remain off-guard. It had been said that if anybody left camp they needed to be with somebody else, if he remembered correctly. Which he had done. He and Timberfrost had went out together, planning to do a little bit of patrolling near the Lightningclan border. It was much safer to do so with fewer cats in that area, which was probably why she had agreed when he asked if he could do some patrolling on his own. He was going to be becoming a Warrior soon, after all. He wasn’t quite as young anymore and his training was just about finished. She didn’t seem to mind that much, so he did as he said.

He walked along the border in the direction of Starclan’s claws, still a slight limp to his step. His tail gently swayed behind him, his ears were constantly turning for any possible sounds, and his mouth was ever so slightly open to bring in more scents. His eyes, though, stayed looking ahead of him, only occasionally side-glancing in the direction of Lightningclan. Surprisingly enough, he didn’t have any particular thoughts as he walked. His mind was silent and cloudy, which was unusual for him. He typically had something on his mind, whether that be training, his first Gathering, or...Windpaw.

The orange-yellow bengal came to a sudden stop. He remained motionless for a second, but his head slowly lifted, looking at the tree that was in front of him and travelling upwards towards the branches. This was not the tree that came to his mind. This wasn’t the same place he had first met that particular Lightningclan Apprentice. Yet when he looked up to the branches, he could almost see it. As his yellow eyes locked onto a relatively thick branch, he started to almost daydream, seeing a faded image of Windpaw’s terrified face looking down at him from the branch. She wasn’t really there, yet for a second he almost questioned this was true or not. His mind slowly came back to focus, her image fading and his thoughts returning to him. But he wasn’t focused on his patrol or Timberfrost or even Windpaw. No, there was something else.

Leopardpaw approached the tree, lifting one leg and unsheathing his claws, gripping them onto the bark. He let out a few breaths before pulling his other front leg upwards, also gripping onto the tree. There was hardly any pain in his leg, minus that constant soreness that remained from his beginning-to-scar wounds. He allowed a few more breaths to escape his maw before he lifted his non-injured back leg, quickly catching his claws on the bark, though it was barely off the ground. That little bit of soreness remained. It’s ok. I can do this.

A sudden determination filling his mind, Leopardpaw swiftly lifted his scarring leg upwards, gripping the tree as a very small jolt of pain shot through his leg. His eyes closed and he pressed his nose against the tree, giving himself a second. He hadn’t climbed in so long. The last time he had been in a tree was the day he and Windpaw faced the fox. Back then it had been somewhat easy to climb the tree despite his wounds because of the adrenaline. But right now there was no excitement. He had no urgency to climb this tree. He had no reason. But he was a Treeclan cat. It was their instinct to climb. His instincts had been blocked and forbidden for quite a while now. But it was finally his chance.

Leopardpaw only managed to get about a fox-length off the ground before he quickly started to lower himself back down, the slight pain in his leg getting worse the more he went up. He would have to work towards it slowly. It would be somewhat heartbreaking, not being able to jump from branch to branch and climb with ease, but it had to be done.

As his back paws touched the ground, a scent gently flowed across his tongue, his ears perking. He turned his head to find that he wasn’t alone. When he saw his company, a smile formed on his face.

WORDS: 772 | Ghost the Undead Goddess | NOTES: -

By Cotton of Template HQ

[Ghost the Undead Goddess]

Windpaw

15 Moons, LightningClan

I hear the wind across the plain,

A sound so strong, that calls my name

She was older, growing closer to the end of her apprenticeship with Bluefrost. Soon she'd earn her warrior name and the pale tabby hoped that she would sit beside her sisters as they earned them under Redstar's watchful eye.

As such, her leniency with wandering had grown tremendously. She was a grown she-cat and it was hard to keep an eye on such a free spirit. It was like trapping the wind, her namesake pertained so well to her. 

So, she found her petite paws leading her to a familiar border. One that she probably shouldn't have been around by herself, seeing as at the beginning of the season Owlmind had reclaimed the neutral territory between Lightningclan and Treeclan in the name of the clan among the moors.

But she couldn't help it. Something was drawing Windpaw towards Treeclan.

Once her pale green eyes spotted a familiar, handsome golden and black tomcat, she knew exactly what had brought her there. The wind, though hot, brushed against her pelt practically pushing her forwards towards where he stood, waiting.

Leopardpaw!

A purr broke her chest as Windpaw darted forwards, the long moorland grass sweeping past her quick movements as the new border grew closer. Though, it was ignored as the pale tabby passed it and pressed close against Leopardpaw's larger, comforting form.

The younger apprentice stood there a moment, face snuggling deeply into his neck before she pulled away. Windpaw had no idea how much she had missed his woodsy scent until she had it surrounding her once more, purr deeping.

Pale green pools turned from his handsome face to look at his leg. A lance of pain shooting through her heart as she saw the scars parting the golden fur upon his limb. He had earned it when she had frozen in place, when she had panicked and ran.

He protected her, placed his life on the life to save her from the jaws of a rather hungry fox.

Green finally returning to the warm green pools of Leopardpaw's gaze, Windpaw offered a silent apology and apprechation. I never thanked you for saving me... I'm sorry.... She could have never forgave herself if he hadn't made it out of that situation alive.

Thank Starclan that Owlmind had been close by.

Boldly move forwards again, Windpaw pushed her head underneath Leopardpaw's chin for comfort. Her silent tongue but comforting purr was all she gave for the time being as she enjoyed the soft moment with the other apprentice.

But sh

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At the sight of that familiar silver coat coming from the open meadows, Leopardpaw lightly pushed away from the tree and allowed his front paws to touch the ground just as she began to rush forward. He turned in her direction and began to sort-of trot, sort-of walk towards her, but she closed the distance much faster than he did. As she came closer, the handsome tom expected this encounter to be a lot like the last ones. A quick nuzzle of a hello, and then some one-sided talk. But he was proved very wrong as the Lightningclan Apprentice ran up to him and immediately dug her face deeply into his neck, a deep purr vibrating through her chest and against his own.

His eyes widened in surprise at her embrace, the skin beneath the fur on his cheeks growing hot. But he didn’t pull away. As a matter of fact, he leaned into it, lightly rubbing his head against hers and allowing his own deep purr to rumble through his chest. When she pulled away, his golden yellow eyes looked to her own pale green, only to find that she was no longer looking him in the eye. Confused at first, he followed her line of sight to find that her gaze was locked onto his leg.

Momentarily, he had flashbacks to their last encounter, which had been quite a bit ago. Their second meeting, their brief conversation of the Gathering and the fight, the fox. He remembered seeing Windpaw in danger and throwing himself at the fox without a second thought. He allowed his body to take control, latching onto the fox’s eye and holding on for dear life. He had felt the fox dig and rake its claws into his skin to try and get him off of it. When he finally let go, he shot into the tree to help Windpaw. His thoughts only got that far before he saw Windpaw move out of the corner of his eye, drawing his mind out of his thoughts.

When he looked at her, her gaze held that of what seemed to be sadness or regret. Perhaps guilt. She didn’t speak, but she didn’t have to. Her face alone showed that she felt bad. He couldn’t be sure what she was thinking or why she felt this sadness. Did she think it was her fault? Did she think she could have jumped into action too? He didn’t know, but he did know one thing: sadness wasn’t a face he wanted to see on Windpaw. He wanted her to be happy, to be open and free, to enjoy running through her lands with a smile on her face and the wind helping her glide.

Without thinking, the tom began to take a step forward. He wanted to comfort her. He wanted to be close to her. He wanted to show her that no matter what it was she was thinking, it was ok. But she beat him to it. He felt her press her head underneath his chin, her muzzle pressed against his neck and that same purr going through her. A small smile emerged on his face, his eyes closing and his nose taking in her scent. The smell of grass and that mix of scents that wafted through the wind to become the scent that Lightningclan was so well-known for. It had been an odd scent for the longest time to him, and still somewhat was, but being there with Windpaw, his knowledge of that scent linking itself back to her, he almost found it comforting.

He wasn’t sure how long the two of them stayed this way, her face buried beneath his chin and his own head resting atop her own. If he could, he would have stayed this way for as long as possible. Why did he desire her company so much? Why was this embrace so much more different and soothing? It almost reminded him of his mother. When he would embrace her, he found himself falling into a sort of trance, one that reminded him that he was safe and was loved by she who had made him. Her touch made his thoughts and fears disappear for that time being. Windpaw’s embrace was quite similar. He found himself losing his thoughts, forgetting about everything except for her touch. But this was different than his mother. He knew for a fact that when his mother embraced him and he returned the gesture, they were showing their love for…

Leopardpaw’s eyes suddenly opened wide. Wait…..do I…..does she…?

The golden and orange bengal felt every inch of his body begin to burn, not from heat, but from fluster. As much as he didn’t want to, he slightly pulled away from the embrace. He slanted his head ever so slightly so that he could look at her, but as soon as he looked at her eyes, he found himself looking away, the fur on his back beginning to stand. He couldn’t look her in the eye. His thoughts overwhelming his mind, one in particular taking full control, he was embarrassed to the point where he couldn’t even look at her. Even when he didn’t look at her, he still saw her in his mind. The fact that it had taken less than a few seconds for Windpaw to completely consume his mind was shocking and a strange feeling. He wasn’t thinking about Treeclan. He forgot about Timberfrost completely. He forgot about the fact that he was supposed to be patrolling the border. The only thing he could think of was Windpaw.

“I...maybe we should...w-would you like to walk with me? W-We could go see Starclan’s Claws w-when it’s empty?” Leopardpaw never stuttered. Even when he was usually embarrassed, he kept his voice the same. But not this time. He couldn’t control it.

Is…..is this what falling for someone feels like?

WORDS: 982 | Ghost the Undead Goddess | NOTES: AAAAHHHHH

By Cotton of Template HQ

[Ghost the Undead Goddess]

Windpaw

15 Moons, LightningClan

I hear the wind across the plain,

A sound so strong, that calls my name

The silver tabby was ever so content standing there with the Bengal tom from the neighboring clan. The ever loved breeze brushed against the short, dilute coat of the Lightningclanner, the scent of Treeclan mixing with her own.

However, her moment was shattered for a moment as Leopardpaw pulled away, taking his warmth with him. Pale green pools looked at the older tom curiously, tilting her head ever so slightly to show the question within her mind as he tried to avoid her gaze. 

What had gotten into him?

The thought was ever so subtle within her curious mossy eyes. She didn't understand why he recoiled from her so suddenly, and it caused the smallest squeeze within her chest. 

Windpaw wasn't used to such a feeling, it was confusing to her. Though if she were to be completely honest with herself, she wasn't entirely sure of her feelings for the golden spotted tom next to her. The young tabby was used to being loved and giving love, she had friends in Thistlepaw and Sparkjaw, and siblings in Lightningpaw, Sleetpaw and Thunderpaw. Not to mention her mom, mentor, and several kin among her multitude of clanmates.

But yet, the emotion was different when it revolved around Leopardpaw. 

The young tom attempted to diverge the conversation onto a different topic, causing the tabby to once again tilt her head. Though this time a different curiosity entered the free spirit's gentle gaze. Starclan's Claws?

Why, she'd only been there once and it had been during the gathering. The whole clearing had been full with cats from each clan. It had been an interesting experience, she and Sparkjaw, or rather Sparkpaw then, had met up with Owlpaw, an older apprentice of Rainclan.

The silver coated feline couldn't imagine what the massive space looked like completely empty and during the day time. 

With her purr contiuing within her chest, Windpaw gave a nod. I'd love to go for an adventure! Especially if she was with Leopardpaw. Brushing up against the tom once more, the younger apprentice moved to take the lead down towards the destination. 

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Heat still very present throughout his body, Leopardpaw at least attempted to look over at her, though he didn’t turn his head or use both eyes. He felt the heat grow stronger when his eyes landed on her face. He hadn’t seen the first few emotions to run through those pale green eyes, but when he did shift his gaze to her own, he found that she seemed excited at the thought of going to Starclan’s Claws. A small, more shy smile formed on his face at her excitement, hoping that his proposition had driven away any negative emotions she might have felt when he pulled away from her. Or at least he could only assume that she had them too. He hoped that she did. Wait, he did? His thoughts began to jumble in his head, but they all disappeared instantly when he felt her soft coat brush against his side. He felt his fur spike up, starting at his tail and quickly travelling up his body to his head, before it fell flat once more.

As she took the lead, he stood and began to walk after her. Admittedly, throughout their walk, his eyes weren’t wandering or scanning the area around them. No, his eyes were locked on Windpaw. He couldn’t look at her when she was facing him, but now that she was turned away, he found he couldn’t look away. Were his thoughts right? Did he truly care for Windpaw that much? Did he...did he actually have feelings for her that were much more than just friendship? If so, how was that possible? He was a Treeclan cat and she was a Lightningclan cat. He knew that cross-clan relationships weren’t uncommon, but they were still looked down on by all the clans. Was it even ok for him to...that word. That one word. He struggled so much to think it. He knew what it was, of course. But saying it to himself when talking to Windpaw seemed like such a strange thing to do. He didn’t want to do so unless he knew it was true. Maybe he just had a little Apprentice-crush on her? Was that even possible?

Finally, they reached their destination. As the two cats emerged into the large clearing, the tom’s eyes widened slightly. The last time he had been here, there were a bunch of cats and the five Leaders sat atop their perches. So many scents had been jumbled together that it was nearly impossible to focus on just one. That had also been the day that he met Ebonypaw, the Stoneclan Medicine Cat Apprentice, and they had momentarily bonded over his scarred leg, which had been worse then than it was now. His wounds had basically healed over completely by now, but he still had some trouble using it.

But now there was nothing except an empty clearing, a Leader-less boulder, and two young and curious cats. Leopardpaw felt the heat that had been radiating through his body slowly fade away at the sight. “It’s so...empty.” He padded forward into the center of the clearing, looking at the land around him. He then found his eyes drawn to the boulder and its claws. A sudden curiosity hit the tom. “I wonder what it’s like to be a Leader, looking down at all the clans gathered together.”

WORDS: 557 | Ghost the Undead Goddess | NOTES:

By Cotton of Template HQ