camp ALL MY STARS ALIGNED ༻☾ running

[HOLLYPAW---]

☽༺♰༻☾​

hollykit had made an interesting discovery. the winds had grown unbelievably strong, sweeping things across camp, throwing cats off their feet. it was odd, certainly a doing of starclan. she had spent some time pondering why they would bestow their anger by blowing gusts across the moors. and after a whole day of ignoring her siblings and denmates to think, she had finally come to a conclusion.

of course starclan wouldn't want to cause them trouble, juniperfrost was a resident. surely he would let them know not to mess with windclan too much as he had children there. therefore it could not be a bad sign. she had taken a tumultuous walk outside of the nursery, back to the wind. that was when it hit her. starclan was helping them. with the wind blowing, pushing her steps forward far faster than she had ever walked. they did this so that the moor runners would be able to run faster, match the speeds of sprinting rabbits so they could catch them easier. once it had dawned on her, a grin had cracked her perpetually stony face.

that wasn't enough though. hollykit would never believe something without seeing it for herself first. sure it had made her walk faster, but could she run with the speed of a warrior? the she-kit was about to find out. she trekked to a far corner of camp, made sure that the wind whipped her fur into her face from behind. her green gaze was laser focused as she stared her path down. if her idea was correct, she should make it back to the nursery in no time at all. tiny talons left her inky paws, stretching into the earth beneath as she took a deep breath, prepared to dominate the stretch of land.

one more moment and she was off, racing like she never had before. a black streak dashing across camp. there were moments that she felt as if she were flying, paws entirely disconnected from the grass, pushed just that much further forward despite it. this was fun. a gift granted from the stars above, they had given her the same ability that the birds bore. hollykit didn't stop until she was whiskers away from colliding with her den, and when she finally did she pushed back to do it again. she trotted back, jaws parted in a grin as she hummed a silent 'thank you' to her father and the sky above.
​

 

[BLUEFROST]

A black streak races from one end of the camp to another, little legs pumping with vigor. The wind parts a roadmap into Hollykit’s dark pelt, but the grin on her face is visible from where Bluepaw quietly observes. She’s quick, using the wind to propel her. A born moor runner, like her father had been, like her mother is when she isn’t tending to kits. Like Bluepaw’s own father, her brothers, Moorpaw.

Watching Hollykit gives the tiny gray she-cat a vague sense of nostalgia. It has been two moons since she’s toddled about the nursery with her littermates, but they had played games very like this one. And like she is now, she had only watched, perplexed at the reason behind the games. Mystified by their laughter, their imaginations.

She aimlessly combs a white paw through the fur on either side of her pretty face. “You’re fast,” she says graciously to Hollykit. “Can you run against the wind, though?” Her facial expression does not change, but her green eyes glitter.
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[ PENNED BY MARQUETTE ]​

 

[SCORCHSTORM]

TAGS — Scorchkit doesn't often participate in these games without some sort of nudging, but Hollykit's near-collision with the nursery is certainly enough to pique her interest. Pinpricks of curiosity needle her pawpads until she's sitting at the mouth of the gorse-wrapped den, the wind whipping her face even from inside. Her contemplative stare is similar to Bluepaw's nostalgic one. But unlike Bluepaw, Scorchkit gathers the will to join her denmate, white-dipped paws struggling to hold her to the ground as the wind tries its best to blow her away completely.

"What are you doing?" she asks Hollykit, raising her voice agains the howling gusts. What cat would want to subject themselves to this weather? But Hollykit is running really fast... like, really fast. Maybe she'd be a moor-runner like Badgermoon. Personally, Scorchkit wants to service WindClan through the tunnels-- but sprinting around camp seemed sort of fun, even if the wind was almost too much to bear for the young girl.

Bluepaw's challenge rides above the howls and into her ears. Can she run against the wind? Scorchkit digs her needle claws into the soft earth, trying to even get a step in against it. It's... sort of working. She can inch forward a tail-length or so, but it takes her nearly twice as long as it usually does, and it takes even more effort than that. But if she can just get to the other side of camp, maybe she can run like Hollykit, too.​

​

 

[WOLFSONG]

──⇌•〘 INFO 〙 Hollykit is a small, streaking blur through camp, drawing DChis slowly blinking gaze. A creative use of these gusts, but the danger goes without saying. Given how unpredictable the winds are, and that Morningpaw's mentor toppled into the gorge after a particularly fierce blow, he is not wholly confident that they are safe even within the confines of camp. But he does not dissuade Hollykit, though his stare lingers on Bluepaw for a moment after she issues her challenge. He cannot decide what to make of the gleaming of her eyes, and slowly returns to Hollykit. The ruckus has attracted Scorchkit, but rather than join Hollykit, she instead seems to try her paw at running into the wind's force.

"Careful. Should the wind shift directions, you might find yourself crashing," he cautions Scorchstreak's little reflection. He speaks loudly enough above the howl to be heard by Juniperfrost's daughter as well.
​

 

[HOLLYPAW---]

☽༺♰༻☾​

on her journey back to the starting line, she feels the presence of another and only moments after spots bluepaw. effortlessly, the apprentice whisks fur from her face, bestows a compliment onto her that was a high prize for any windclanner. speed was relished both above and underground, and the daughter of windclan's queen had noticed hers. her smile widened ever so slightly at the comment that had her ready to run once again, perhaps this time she could move even quicker. but, a challenge was presented. one that had her ears pricking, eyes narrowing slightly in thought. "against it," she echoed, glancing down to her paws inquisitively.

it seemed another kit was willing to face the wind too, scorchkit joins and meets her with a question over the howl of wind. "running," she replies rather curtly, mildly disgruntled that the tortie had pulled her from her train of thought. "real fast too, we can race if you want." this would help her cause. greatly too. sure she seemed fast, running alone with nobody to gauge it. but an opponent would prove that she truly was as quick as they came.

hollykit's whiskers twitched in anticipation, she followed in suit as the other kit began an attempt at forcing herself through the wind. hind legs pushed hard off the ground as she attempted to gain a head start, but the efforts of the wind were working strongly against her and she landed in the same spot.

the kitten frowned, determination clouding her gaze as she pulled herself up and tried again, remaining closer to the ground this time. she listened to wolfsong's warning, but was wholly convinced it did not pertain to her. the notion that the wind would hurt her was unbelievable, especially after her most recent revelation. but perhaps wolfsong just didn't understand what it's true message was. confused, he was. she almost giggled at his dubiety. "don't worry, it wouldn't hurt me!" hollykit calls out reassuringly, sending a knowing glance back to the lead warrior. the kit couldn't explain, didn't have the time. not when she may have a race to dominate.
​

 

[Doverunner.]

The winds were cruel particularly. She knew they recently lost a warrior to such winds, swept off entirely into the gorge, but just as all things had their grim and dark sides, they also had their brighter silver linings. Doverunner was crouched under some heather in camp, prepping herself for another patrol, when a small black shape zipped past her faster then she thought. Her ears perked, yellow eyes widening as her head followed where Hollykit dashed before being joined a few more kits and Wolfsong himself. But... intrigue made her paws prickle, excitement in her young features as she grins and pulls herself from her small resting spot. "I can judge!" She calls, excited, as she trots her way toward the nursery, making a line with her paw in the dirt. "First over wins!" She tells the two, giving them now something to gauge the speed as she waits, practically bouncing on her paws. She'd love to run with them, but given their size, she didn't want to hurt them or have an unfair advantage and crush their little spirits. Afterall, she can always race a moor-runner with these winds... maybe Firefang would want to race her...
"speech"​

 

[Spiderbloom]

Spiderbloom watched her daughter race with the wind with a smile. The wind was dangerous lately and she worried someone was going to get blown away sooner or later, depending on who it was she would laugh. But Hollykit has the right idea.

Run with the wind, and you will not break.

But it's always good to become strong enough to withstand it, too.

Ever watchful, especially now with the weather, she gives Hollykit an encouraging smile. She had no doubt that she would one day become a force to be reckoned with, just like the wind.​

 

[SCORCHSTORM]

TAGS — Wolfsong's warning is acknowledged with a twitch of the child's ears (though, in this wind, Wolfsong could be forgiven for thinking the movement is just the gusts blowing her about). She can't reply, though, her energy funneled into pressing forward against the wind that buffets her. She digs her claws more firmly into the dirt-- as firmly as a kitten can --and continues her trek, considering Wolfsong's warning between muscle-straining pauses in her steps. Soon enough, though, she's face to face with Hollykit, taking in her challenge.

A race? It was certainly a challenge that spoke to her WindClan blood. Scorchkit, though not often one to engage in this sort of play, feels ambition prickle in her claws. Maybe Hollykit thinks she'll win, but Scorchkit is born of some of Windclan's greatest warriors-- the wind is just as much on her side as it is the ebony kitten's. "Okay," she accepts, a smile twitching at the corners of her otherwise stoic lips. She's quick to follow Hollykit on her journey back to the starting line.

Soon enough there are more onlookers for their race. Doverunner scores a line in the earth and declares it the finish line, which she acknowledges with a quiet nod. Scorchkit reaches the starting line first, but in her fairness she waits for Hollykit's arrival to begin. "Okay: three, two, one, go!" And then they are off, the wind at their backs to push them along. It sweeps her paws out from under her, helping her glide...

for a few steps. The child falls flat on her face. She felt it happen before she could realize what was going on, her paws slipping away faster than she could touch the ground to keep her pace. Clearly she should have practiced like Hollykit before taking on this challenge. Humiliation swells in her maw with the dirt she tastes-- but Scorchkit gets back to her paws, white-tipped-ears still burning nonetheless. Hollykit is surely ahead of her by now. The kitten takes a few moments to brush the dirt and grass off of her pelt before setting off again-- albeit much slower and with more trepidation now than before.​

​

 

[HOLLYPAW---]

☽༺♰༻☾​

hollykit nods happily to the acceptance of her challenge, continues on her trek to the starting point. conserving her energy for the race, she is rather slow to reach it, trailing the other kit. it was fine, this was only the predecessor to the big event. looking over her shoulder she takes in the growing audience with a stoic face, a hint of anxiety prickling up her spine. to fail on her own accord was one thing, however to fail a race that she suggested in front of her clanmates, under their watchful eyes. she reckoned that leaving to go somewhere far far away would be the only remedy to such embarrassment.

of course though, she would not lose. not a paw would be misplaced nor a stride too short. it just wasn't possible, not when she had starclan themselves looking out for her, rushing her forward with mighty gusts. hollykit swiveled an ear to listen to scorchkit count them off, but her gaze was lasered in on doverunner's finish line.

at 'go!' she was off, needle tipped paws tearing through the grass. for a moment, the two kittens were neck and neck, much to hollykit's dismay. her eyebrows dropped into a look of determination as she pushed onward, stretching her limbs as far as they could go before snapping them closer together. just as she was pushing ahead, scorchkit completely dropped out of her peripheral, meeting the ground with a thud. she didn't look back to make sure the other kit was okay, just kept running to the line drawn in the dirt. it was an unfortunate accident, certainly not one that she would give up her lead for. besides, what if it were nothing more than a ruse? get her to stop, then speed ahead. unluckily for scorchkit, she was far too intelligent to be caught in such a trap.

eventually, she made it to the finish, shifting her weight into her hind legs to slide into a stop. sat there for a few moments, she let her chest flutter rapidly, refill her breath spent in the race. grin plastered wide on her face, she did not look for her tortie opponent again, instead turning to doverunner. a wide, expectant grin lit up her features as she bore into the tunneler, waiting ever so patiently for the older feline to announce a victor.
​