[Justice]

BACKDATE Greenleaf 22
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It had been a few days of being in and out of consciousness and in a haze of pain from her injuries, but slowly she'd become able to stay awake and regained some of her energy. She didn't dare to move more than was necessary, and always with someone helping her to walk to and from even the shortest of places. She never strayed further than she had to and had settled herself as comfortably as she could in this strange place. Really, it wasn't too much different from home, just with fewer cats that she knew. Or any cats she knew really, though with RainClan currently staying as well she at least recognized a handful of them. She did her best to stay away from that group, however, since she didn't want to cause trouble.

Today she was lying in her nest, wide awake and listening to the goings on beyond her line of sight. She could see somewhat, watched the comings and goings of the Tribe cats, their interactions and conversations.

It was odd, how at ease she felt here, in a way she never had with the TreeClanners. Not that she'd ever leave them, not with her offspring there, but still. Everyone was so accepting of one another and so kind to outsiders. Even better, in her opinion, they weren't prone to the drama and wars of the clancats in the valley below.

The only thing she really had to complain about, aside from the persistent throbbing pain in her leg that she refused to ask for herbs to help with, was how terribly lonely she was. Skyteller was an attentive medicine cat, but there was only so much she could tolerate of one individual before she simply wanted to see others. Also, she could do with the company of another she-cat, at least for a little while.

Moonfeather sighed. How different would things have been for her if she'd ended up here instead with her kittens? Would she have had an easier time with a group that didn't have the belief of StarClan? She shook her head. It was pointless to think of things like that. Primarily, and most importantly, she would never wish to not have met and become Aspenfire's mother. She loved her offspring, and wanted to raise more if she was so blessed a second time.

[♛ 𝔽𝕒𝕓𝕣𝕚𝕔𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟]

Splash of Leaping Trout

tribe of forgotten waters

There was no sating the curiosity of a cooped up kit. Splash was filing out into a hard-muscled young she-cat, practising relentlessly with the determination of a Tribe cat. Already, she was beginning to look very different from the lean, stream-lined parents she shared nests with each night. She was determined to be ready for her eighth moon, when she would no doubt be named a Cave-guard to-be. The excitement of it all made her head spin. She'd be a formidable cat to any eagle, like uncle Dark! Her fantasies of dragging sky predators out of the air with her white paws alone pranced through her thoughts.

When she pictured her future, she envisioned a tigress with a mane of feathers she'd collected from every eagle she overpowered... did tigers have manes? Or was that lions? She frowned. Unable to recall quite how River recited those legends, her fantasy wobbled. The image faded, and she was a kit again, battling not eagles, but her scrawny golden sister. "I didn't hurt you, did I?" Dawn paused, paw raised midair. Her blue eyes were round with concern. Splash shook her head, frowning. "Nobody can hurt me! I'll be the strongest Cave-guard yet, just you wait." She replied, puffing out her fluffy chest. Had Stone been present, he probably would have scoffed at her confidence, but Dawn was a gentle creature who always did her best to closely guard her littermate's feelings. Splash gave a bored sigh. Ever since speaking to the Clan kits a few nights ago, she had been filled with the needy desire to know more about Clan cats and the way they lived. The idea of cats being so very different to the mountain-dwelling Tribe intrigued her, and finding out that her parents were originally Clan-born peaked her interest ever-more. Her golden-green eyes drifted up towards where the Healer hole resided, as she nicknamed it. Where Skyteller had gathered together all the wounded Clan cats in one spot. Splash twitched. She'd never seen an injured cat before. She trotted towards the temptation.

"Where are you going?" Dawn struggled to catch up with her, slipping along the stony floor. "To see the injured cats." Splash responded neutrally, drawing a tongue over her lips. Dawn was puzzled. "Why?" Splash turned to face her, struggling to find an excuse that didn't boil down to nosiness. "Well... what if you or Stone got hurt out in the mountains and we couldn't get Skyteller on time?" She meowed slowly, the excuse coming word by word, rolling the logic around in her head like a battered piece of fresh-kill. "If we're used to seeing hurt cats... then I won't be scared, and I can help." The words were clumsy, and very clearly a lie; Splash only wanted to have a gander at the injured cats to satisfy a morbid curiosity. Dawn blinked at her. "That doesn't make any sense, Splash. You're not going to be a Heal-" But before Dawn had even drawn breath for the second half of her sentence, Splash was dashing off towards the scent of tired, slowly recovering warriors.

When she poked her way inside, she was surprised to find only one cat awake. Skyteller was absent, by the fresh tang of his scent he hadn't been gone long. The tortoiseshell kit blinked at the new cat, sniffing the air cautiously. "Hello?" She meowed bravely despite the nervousness that swam in her eyes, the unfamiliar feline coming into focus. She took a few steps closer. Feeling she had to make an excuse to be here to hide the fact that she was being blatantly intrusive, Splash squared her shoulders. "Do you need something to eat?" That was it. Being on an errand was much more believable than claiming to be a self-taught Healer to-be.

I got spirit I got wings
I got fire in my lungs

633

[Justice]

Moonfeather was startled by the new arrival, not sure how common it was for non-medicine cats to come into this grotto. Especially when Skyteller wasn't around to dictate they do so. She tipped her head, green eyes considering the other cat before motioning her in. "I'm not hungry right now, but thank you."

She sighed, looking over the younger she-cat before just going for what she wanted. "I could use a little company though, if you wouldn't mind. Skyteller is kind, but there's only so much a she-cat can talk to a tom about."

When was it that she'd become so timid around others? When had she backed down so much that she could barely function socially? She had always been a bit reserved, but this odd panic she felt just talking to other cats was not right for her. Perhaps too long in a small circle of friends was not good for her, so this experience could only be for the best.

She grasped at something to talk about, anything that kept the other there for awhile. "What's your name?"

♛ 𝔽𝕒𝕓𝕣𝕚𝕔𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟

[♛ 𝔽𝕒𝕓𝕣𝕚𝕔𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟]

Splash of Leaping Trout

tribe of forgotten waters

Splash heard a drip as a small droplet of moisture slid from the ceiling. She felt like a trespasser here in the small enclosed space of Skyteller’s healer hole. She paused, paw raised in uncertainty. Maybe this was a bad idea. Maybe the Clan cats would not appreciate her questions. The stone was cold beneath her paw pads, and though she felt like retreating she forced herself to move further in. She shouldn’t be afraid. This was part of the cave, her home, where she and her family were always together and safe. Splash fixed her gaze on the rather dainty looking feline that lay comfortably in one corner of the den. She realised with a start that the other cat’s bright green eyes were fixed on her, glinting with surprise. The sleek form and large ears made the Tribe kit immediately assume that this cat was a prey-hunter. Despite her young age, she quickly learned to recognise the favoured traits in both cave-guards and prey-hunters alike. Prey-hunters tended to be slim, speedy and sure-footed, with large ears for hearing prey. Cave-gaurds tended to be strong and sturdy, quick-eyed for scanning the sky for danger. She moved closer when the other cat gestured with her tail. “I’m not hungry right now, but thank you.” The clan cat meowed, her tone polite. Splash was at a loss. She didn’t know what else to say, what excuse she could make to stay here.

The other feline expelled a quiet breath, and seemed to regard Splash for a few moments. “I could use a little company though, if you wouldn’t mind. Skyteller is kind, but there is only so much a she-cat can talk to a tom about.” Splash was amazed. The Clan warrior was giving her exactly what she wished for, without her even having to ask or hint at it. A sudden thought came to her. Could Clan cats read minds? She knew so little about these distant wildcats that they might as well have been from the Tribe of Endless Hunting. “I suppose so.” She said with great uncertainty, not wanting to lose the cat’s interest now that she had somehow earned it. “What is your Healer’s name?” She asked boldly, golden eyes dying for the smallest titbit of information. “Is he or she kind, too?”

There was an awkwardness about the other cat that the Tribe kit could not sense. Inexperienced in dealing with strange cats, the anxiety or trepidation of the newcomer was lost on her. “What’s your name?” The cat asked with a subtle flick of an ear. Splash furled her tail happily, thinking of how bored Dawn must be, missing out on the excitement of interviewing a RainClan cat. “I’m Splash that Leaps the Trout-” She began hurriedly, losing the poise and politeness she originally had. She flushed at her mistake, and rushed in to correct it. “Splash of Leaping Trout.” She licked her chest fur self-consciously. “Yours?”

I got spirit I got wings
I got fire in my lungs

Justice , 492

[Justice]

Moonfeather smiled serenely at the youngster, sweeping her tail out to invite the other to make herself comfortable. It soothed something in her, even in this strange place, to have someone to just talk to that had been outside and that wasn't there to fuss over her broken leg. And she was curious, which was just fine. "Our medicine cat is called Falconstorm. He is a large, sturdy built tom who tends to take no nonsense from the rest of our clan. Even Lionstar must listen when Falconstorm is fussing over his health." She took a slow breath and breathed through the pain that suddenly pulsed up her leg, letting it ride then ease back down. Muscles contracting.

"He's kind to those that need his help, but ruthless with those that get themselves hurt because of being silly. He dotes on the queens and their kits, soothes worried mates and friends. But he isn't afraid to bellow to get someone somewhere they need to be." She remembered the commotion when Honeysong went into labor and Lionstar wasn't at her side. The entire camp heard their medicine cat's voice.

The green eyed she-cat watched the younger she-cat carefully, minding the way she moved and considering how excited she seemed. It was good to see something familiar. Moonfeather giggled at the mistake, nudging the other with her tail to tell her quietly to calm down and try again. Once she got it out she nodded. "Do you go by Splash or Trout?" How did the Tribe cats address themselves? "And is it acceptable for me to call you by the shortened form as an outsider?"

Another pause as her name was asked. "Moonfeather. My mother would call me Moon when I was small, but as soon as I caught my first bit of prey on my own father told her it was better to add the rest to show that I'd become an adult." Which was not a clan custom, not how they did things. Just how her family had done things. "I wasn't born in the valley, so my family was different."

♛ 𝔽𝕒𝕓𝕣𝕚𝕔𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟

[♛ 𝔽𝕒𝕓𝕣𝕚𝕔𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟]

Splash of Leaping Trout

tribe of forgotten waters

Splash was determined that this bright-smiled she-cat be at least somewhat impressed by her, so she puffed out her fluffy tortoiseshell fur in an attempt to make herself look as hard-muscled and strong as the Cave-guards she so admired. The long-furred cat opposite her waved her tail in a sweeping motion to invite her to sit near. She did, settling down at the edge of the large moss nest, any semblance of nervousness fading away. Her eyes drew down to the bundle of leaves wrapped around the she-cat’s leg, and wondered privately whether that had happened in the flood. She wasn’t fully sure what a flood really was. She imagined it was like a predator, massive and unrelenting. Perhaps it was a giant eagle. She shook her head, reminding herself not to be so foolish. If there was such thing as a giant eagle, she would have been told so. Right?

"Our medicine cat is called Falconstorm. He is a large, sturdy built tom who tends to take no nonsense from the rest of our clan. Even Lionstar must listen when Falconstorm is fussing over his health." Falconstorm, Lionstar. The names still sounded very strange to Splash. And she wondered as well, why the words in the names seemed to clash so strongly with eachother. Tribe names were always something that made sense. Splash of Leaping Trout, because according to her mother, trout make a splash when they leap. Words like “lion” and “star” didn’t make any sense. “Falcon” and “storm”? Perhaps “Falcon that Braves the Storm”, that would make more sense, at least to her. Blinking away her confusion over the nature of Clan names, Splash furled her tail to show she was paying attention. “He sounds like he would have been a cave-guard!” She meowed, smiling. “Cave-guards are really big and strong. Skyteller used to be a cave-guard.” She added, then fell suddenly quiet. She didn’t know if Skyteller would be comfortable with her blurting out personal things like that to the Clan cats, though she couldn’t come up with a good reason for him to not want them to know. They were guests, after all. The beautiful feline suddenly let out a mewl of pain, and Splash startled, sitting up in place. She gazed back down at that injured leg, alarmed. “Should I get Skyteller?” She asked, eyes wide.

When the moment passed and the warrior could continue, Splash relaxed. Maybe pain was just part of the healing process. Maybe it meant she was getting better, by whatever magic means Skyteller wielded. "He's kind to those that need his help, but ruthless with those that get themselves hurt because of being silly. He dotes on the queens and their kits, soothes worried mates and friends. But he isn't afraid to bellow to get someone somewhere they need to be." Splash listened, imagining this other world beyond the mountains. She had never been anywhere except these slopes, so the image was unclear and the idea of a place that wasn’t mountainous was as strange and alien to her as the face of the moon. “He sounds nice.” She finally decided, thoughtful.

She was embarrassed by her slip-up with her name, she didn’t want the warrior to think she was some silly half-brained kitten who couldn’t even get her name right. But there was no trace of scorn or mockery in the silvery cat’s eyes, which gave a decent burst of confidence. "Do you go by Splash or Trout?" The other asked, and Splash realised she had forgotten to offer the shorthand version of her own name. “Splash.” She meowed, eyes glowing. “I don’t know what a trout looks like. River said they live in water, and they can grow really big.”

"And is it acceptable for me to call you by the shortened form as an outsider?" The other asked, her voice a soft and polite sound, like the distant drip of water that sometimes back-dropped the ambience of the cave. This made Splash pause. She wasn’t quite sure of the answer, she had never met an outsider before now. “I think it’s okay.” She admitted uncertainly. “No-one ever calls me by my full name, unless I’m in trouble.” Which was frequent enough. Splash always wanted to prove herself to her Tribemates, that she was going to make a powerful addition to the Tribe ranks one day, that she deserved her place here in the mountains. She knew some cats were uncomfortable with the idea of a random rogue cat’s litter being taken in and adopted by the Tribe, but as far as she remembered, this cave had almost always been her home, and Dusk and Snow had been her doting parents. It confused her that other cats seemed so caught up on something she herself could not fully remember, and she was determined to prove that she was as much a daughter of the mountains as they were.

She waited expectantly for the odd name this other cat would no doubt give. "Moonfeather. My mother would call me Moon when I was small, but as soon as I caught my first bit of prey on my own father told her it was better to add the rest to show that I'd become an adult." Moonfeather told her, a thoughtful gleam in her eyes. Splash was intrigued, and once again wondered about the name. The moon did not have feathers, but there was something musical to the way the she-cat said her own name that made Splash like it. “So, you hunt?” She meowed, frowning. “Like a prey-hunter?”

I got spirit I got wings
I got fire in my lungs

Justice , 930

[Justice]

She settled, watching the youngster quietly and with a calm smile. She always had felt safer and more at ease around those younger than her or that were she-cats. As a former loner, a tom meant danger to she and her kits. A tom could kill kits, a tom would kill a small she-cat if it meant he had better chances at prey in a limited population. It was different here, but some habits never died.

"Falconstorm was a warrior before he became our medicine cat. So if a cave-guard is the same as a warrior then yes he was. He's very sturdy built and heavy, and from what I've been told of him he hits very hard when he has to." It sounded like their leader was also their medicine cat, and that he had previously been a warrior before being called to heal. So not unlike Falconstorm. Interesting.

When asked if her pain needed the healer she simply shook her head. "Just part of the process." More like she didn't want to be a bother. As a guest of this clan, she had to take as few resources as she could.

Their conversation continued and Moonfeather made a soft humming sound as the other explained that she didn't know what a trout looked like. "Its a green speckled fish that lives in rivers and streams. I once saw a whole bunch of them swimming upriver, against the current. It makes for easy fishing." And she only got called her full name when she was in trouble? Sounded about right.

"I'm better at fishing than anything else. I learned to swim well when I was young and always kept up the skill as I aged. I taught my kits to swim so they would never have to worry about drowning in the water." Prey-hunter? Sounded pretty self explanatory so she just nodded. "I suppose you could say that I am. I'm not much of a fighter so hunting is about all I do."

♛ 𝔽𝕒𝕓𝕣𝕚𝕔𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟

[♛ 𝔽𝕒𝕓𝕣𝕚𝕔𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟]

Splash of Leaping Trout

tribe of forgotten waters

The shadows of the cave cast the faces of the conversing felines in a somewhat eerie light. The cats that slept around them weren't disturbed by their chatter, as they kept respectfully quiet, but Splash couldn't help but cast wary glances in their direction every now and then. She didn't want their conversation to be cut short, especially when it was so interesting and this cat seemed so nice. She had thought that the other Clan cats would be as hare-brained and weird as the three kits she and her littermates had spoken to previously, but this cat seemed different somehow. She wanted to just keep talking and talking and find out more about the mysterious other world she had come from. 

"Falconstorm was a warrior before he became our medicine cat. So if a cave-guard is the same as a warrior then yes he was. He's very sturdy built and heavy, and from what I've been told of him he hits very hard when he has to." She replied evenly, and Splash's ears pricked. This "Falconstorm" certainly did sound very alike to Skyteller, who had always been a figure of great admiration for the young kit. He had been there since her early few moons in the Tribe, to offer advice and encouragement, and his words of reassurance still echoed in her mind to this day. "A... warrior?" She repeated the word slowly, evenly. It felt foreign to her tongue, like funny-tasting prey. She had heard it passed around in the cave since these Clan cats had arrived, but still didn't fully grasp what it meant.

Though Splash still felt a flare of concern, the warrior simply offered a slight shake of her head. "Just part of the process." She meowed, and Splash relaxed. If this cat said so, then it must be true. She didn't budge to go find Skyteller, settling back down on the smooth stone floor. She stretched out her ginger and white legs, fluffy tail comfortably tucked around her rump. "It's a green speckled fish that lives in rivers and streams. I once saw a whole bunch of them swimming upriver, against the current. It makes for easy fishing." Moonfeather explained. Splash struggled to picture her namesake. She imagined a sinuous creature that looked somewhat like a hare, paddling with green paws in water. It was strange, to be named for something that you had never seen before. She wished she could ask Moonfeather to take her back with her to her home, so she could see trout for herself. "Wait- you catch them?" She asked, surprise glinting in her green-gold eyes. She imagined the way that Dusk had told her prey-hunters caught hares, by working as a team to drive them into waiting paws under the watchful eye of their cave-guard patrols. "Do you wait for them to come out of the river, to chase them?" Though she was not interested in becoming a hunter, the ways of those who caught the food she ate were something of interest to her, and she knew that the Clan prey-hunters must have very different ways than her Tribe. After all, they came from beyond the mountains, and she had been told that generations of living in mountainous regions had moulded the Tribe into who they were today.

"I'm better at fishing than anything else. I learned to swim well when I was young and always kept up the skill as I aged. I taught my kits to swim so they would never have to worry about drowning in the water." Splash was amazed by this information. Cats, swimming? In water? She sat up, curiosity pricking at her mind. "Do you like getting wet, though?" She asked doubtfully. "I hate it, even when it's just the spray of the waterfall making my pelt a tiny bit damp." She shuddered. The idea of actually getting into the water, to paddle around... it sounded horrible, and cold. Moonfeather nodded. "I suppose you could say that I am. I'm not much of a fighter so hunting is about all I do." Splash nodded. So this cat was a prey-hunter. That made sense. "My mother and father are both prey-hunters." She meowed. "But I think my uncle Dark is happy that me and Stone might be cave-guards." She puffed out her chest. "Skyteller says that we look like we'll grow up really strong, but my sister Dawn... she'll have to be a prey-hunter. I don't think she minds but-" A sudden sound of paws scrabbling over stone cut her off. Splash raised her head to see a familiar flame-point form pushing into the den. "Splash of Leaping Trout?" Snow's voice was slightly disapproving, but warm with amusement. "Dawn told me you were bothering the RainClan cats." She dipped her head in greeting to Moonfeather.

I got spirit I got wings
I got fire in my lungs

Justice , 803

[Justice]

This little she-cat sounded like she had when her father had first told her about the fish in the little pond where she and her siblings were born. She smiled and hummed quietly despite her pain. "Mmhmm..." Then giggled at the next question. "A trout is a type of fish, it doesn't have legs. It lives in water and swims from place to place. So when you hunt for fish, you catch them in your mouth or paw them out of the water to land and carry them home." She swept her tail out slowly then used a paw to make a little fish in the dirt of the cave. "This is a fish, see?"

Moonfeather could only smile at the other she-cat's look of horror at the mention of water and swimming. Many TreeClan cats gave her the same look when she told them she was going fishing. "I've always loved fishing, of swimming in the water. I have these long legs and have a funny gait, but when I'm swimming I'm graceful as any land hunter and keep up with the prey." As she mentioned her family the green eyed she-cat's gaze fell, nostalgia warming her heart even as sadness clouded her eyes.

"My mother preferred to stay home and keep the nest clean and everything tidy. She managed the prey pile and made sure my siblings, father, and I all ate and kept drinking water when it was hot. She was the one to line the nests with feathers and moss when it was cold and drag wet moss into it when it was hot. She took care of the home, while the rest of us hunted and brought home food. I fished and stayed close, mostly, and father would always bring pretty feathers and flowers home for mother's enjoyment. I grew up in a small grotto, surrounded by large trees, where the paths were stalked by things much bigger and more terrifying than Demon is and cats disappeared forever if they got caught by one."

Her story stopped then as another Tribe cat came in accusing the little one of bothering RainClan cats. She looked around then realized she was the one being talked about. "She isn't bothering me. On the contrary, I was in need of she-cat company and she's obliging me." She gave her a beaming smile. "Aren't you?"

♛ 𝔽𝕒𝕓𝕣𝕚𝕔𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟