*archived* laissez faire {mal + sunny}

Forums SkyClan SkyClan Territory Sunlit Clearing *archived* laissez faire {mal + sunny}

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    The afternoon sun hung heavy in the day-lit sky. Today, it burned fiercely and without mercy, a stark shift from the gentle tendrils of warmth felt throughout leaf-bare that ended a mere few weeks ago, and a brutal reminder of the furious and exhausting green-leaf days to come. The forest’s productivity seemed concentrated in the shade, under the thick stands with closed canopies. Life there scurried amongst the cool, dark patches of earth and under leaves leftover from last leaf-fall where dewy, morning moisture still remained. 

    Out in the open canopy meadowlands, the hot sun leeched energy out of anything less fortunate and without shade. After a full day of hunting and patrols, Mallowfrost’s energy was sapped. Her muscles ached from constant movement and her heart ached for a rest, and a sunbathe. Mal’s mind was off musing on the day as she felt her black, soft paws drag her to the sunlit clearing a bit outside of camp proper for some relaxation.

    Breaking out of the canopy and into the meadow, her darkly furred patches began to prickle with heat and she sighed a mmhhrrr in contentment, eyes drooping with the soothing warmth and in anticipation of a nap. The tortoiseshell fae picked a smaller clearing, near a patch of shade where grass grew thin but the sun would still warm her pelt, and plopped down for a grooming session. Her paws were littered with small pebbles, sand grains, and little chunks of bark, so she set to relieving herself of these small pains while the overarching sun soothed her aching muscles.

    ☼ ☼ ☼
    One of the first to stir in the SkyClan camp every morning, Sunnystar had been awake since far before the sun had even started to turn the sky to pink that morning. By sunrise, there were two fresh mice sitting in the fresh kill pile, and the leader was nowhere to be found. It was a beautiful day, what some others might see as too nice, but warmth never seemed to bother him personally.
    Sunny was certainly aware that a majority of his clan had passed his sprawled out figure this morning, but none had stopped to talk to the still-laying tomcat. Indeed, a passer might mistake him as dead if the diluted ginger pelt hadn’t been rising and falling softly as it absorbed the heat of the sun rays. Of course, that would require a passerby to almost step right on top of him, as the surrounding tall grass was doing a marvelous job of keeping the SkyClanner hidden from sight.
    But wait now, was there someone else close by? The grass was rustling somewhere nearby, which either meant prey or- no. That was the smell of another cat, for sure. But who had decided that this secluded sunny spot was a good place to sprawl out? He had picked it for the simple fact that no one usually wandered directly into the middle of the clearing. Keeping his eyes firmly shut against the sunlight, and still resolutely sprawled on his backside, Sunnystar called out to the stranger. “Who is it??”
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    Mallowfrost’s vibe of peace, serenity, and zen was zapped away as soon as she heard another’s voice. In her warmth-induced drowsiness, she had been careless–it didn’t even dawn on her to check the clearing for another. The warrior’s drooping eyes snapped open and she suddenly ceased her lazed grooming, black furred ears pricking sharply towards the new voice.

    However, after the moment of shock of ‘someone is here‘ passed, Mal thought she recognized the voice. “Hello?” she mewed, curious, and no longer so perturbed–although, her mind wandered, some guilt setting in that she had taken her free time to veg out in the sunshine for a long nap instead of being productive in camp. Twitching her whiskers in contemplation, the fae weighed the options of introducing herself, and decided on forging ahead anyways. How silly of her to doubt that Skyclan territory was not safe from strangers! “Its Mallowfrost, warrior of Skyclan,” the tortoiseshell feline added, albeit hesitant in her infliction. 

    ☼ ☼ ☼
    Ears swiveling towards the other’s returning greeting, Sunnystar relaxed as he realized it was just one of his own warriors. It was a bit amusing, considering he had caught them completely off guard. They had hoped to escape away from duties for a relaxing afternoon in the sunshine. However, since that was exactly what the leader was up to today, he could hardly chew her out for doing the same.
    Yeah yeah, I get it. One of my warriors.” said Sunnystar, voice strong and sassy as he rolled over towards the voice and poked his head through the tall grass. Within a few seconds, he was face to face with the she-cat. “I thought so, hello there Mallowfrost. How are you?” his voice was full of amusement at the sight of the other. He was hardly one to be outwardly judgemental, but there was always something in his gaze that seemed like he was always analyzing his company intensely.
    ☼ ☼ ☼

    Mallowfrost could instantly feel the mortification washing over her. Her ears swiveled back, whiskers pressed against her face as she made a guilty frown. The guilt bloomed even quicker when she discovered it was, in fact, Sunnystar. The little fae immediately started coming up with reasons for why she was out here, reasons logical enough they held water and were of more substance than an excuse. It wasn’t that she was shirking her duties–no, not that, she was done for the day–but it was that she was avoiding being given more duties. What she didn’t stop to think about was not only she out here, avoiding work, but so was Sunnystar.

    The tom’s voice snapped her out of her frazzled reverie, and deepened her mortified frown. “I’m sorry!” she bumbled, grimacing. But the mood changed quickly once again, when the leader rolled over lackadaisically and brought her a friendly question. Mallowfrost let out a relieved breath. Sheepishly, she meowed, “I’m doing okay, how about you?”

    ☼ ☼ ☼

    The judgemental gaze remained firmly attached to the greenish-yellow eyes, but the rubbery lips curled up slightly in what was clearly an amused expression. While the duties of being a leader, something that was clearly something he was ill prepared for with his less-than-a-moon as a deputy just a short while back, were tedious- it was funny to see just how much his influence made those around him flustered.

    “I’m alright. Also avoiding getting sucked into some tasks this afternoon. It’s been hectic since new-leaf began and I haven’t had a true day to myself in ages.” Opening his mouth in a wide and slightly-squeaky yawn, the ginger leader sat up and began to lick a paw lazily. “That’s not the answer you expected I bet. But it is what it is.”

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    “Oh,” mewed Mallowfrost, a bit surprised. Despite the mildly accusing–albeit conflicting signals–expression Sunnystar wore, the young warrior could feel herself relaxing into the sunshine and into the grass. She didn’t know how to respond to that, but she instantly felt herself apologizing the moment he concluded, “Oh no, it’s okay! I understand–or, not really, I guess, but–“ the babbling tortoiseshell stopped herself while she was ahead and shot Sunny an apologetic look.

    At least it’s a nice day, Mal thought, feeling the cheery mood begin to stagnate. “It has been a busy new-leaf, though, lots of work. Sometimes you just need time to breathe. Like right now.” The fae concluded with a quick, friendly smile to the leader, trying to lighten the proverbial load.

    ☼ ☼ ☼

    Sunnystar’s gaze had been quite stationary for the entire time that the she-cat spoke to him, locked onto her face in apparent concentration. As she finally came to a stop in her ramble, he decided it was time to sneak a word in before she could continue “You seem nervous. It’s as though you think I’m going to punish you for having a conversation with me. I’m just here enjoying the day, and I’d appreciate if you had a conversation with me, while you did the same. 


    It was a suggestion, as the tone of his voice made clear, and not a command. But for good measure, he added a “Please.” at the end before the other could begin speaking again.

    ☼ ☼ ☼

    “Oh.” Mallowfrost blinked a few times, ashamed. “I’m sor–,” she caught herself before apologizing and shook her head, “nevermind.” Her nervous energy transferred from aimlessly talking to twitching her whiskers and flicking her ears, as if she were being pestered by imaginary bugs. “It’s okay,” she added after Sunnystar’s request, and then racked her brain for possible conversation topics. Frankly, the little fae was reeling a bit–she couldn’t reconcile her apparent intimidation with that being a logical thing at all–after all, Sunnystar was just another cat, just like her, and every other warrior in their clan. He wasn’t a mythical messenger from Starclan, or a prophesized holy cat. Mal sighed, and absent-mindedly dug her claws through some grasses, dragging them from ground to stem. 

    She knew she didn’t have a problem with authority, no–that wasn’t it, but more-or-less it was just his role in the clan that sent jitters down her spine. That was all she could delineate from the completely illogical social fear she was encountering. Mallowfrost took a deep breath. “The hunting was good this morning.” It had been good, in fact. Not only had she been able to snag a few birds to contribute to the fresh-kill pile for those returning from the dawn patrols, but she had also been able to nab herself some bird eggs. Robin eggs, she recalled, a warm feeling settling in her chest as she flashed back on the joy she felt this morning, eating her favorite meal.

    • This topic was modified 1 year ago by Ribi.
    • This topic was modified 11 months, 2 weeks ago by Ribi.
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