- Jun 20, 2023
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Just how... did he get roped into this? He feels as if someone from above is for some reason punishing him, forcing him to watch kittens play their meaningless games when he could be hunting to feed them instead! Skyclaw recalls that it first started with his sister asking for a break, and then another queen piling on, and then another, and - ... well, there are at least one or two still lingering about, so he's not entirely alone. He supposes, too, that even they have their cute moments, like playing pretend as warring Clans, or the cheers that erupt when one catches a particularly wayward mossball... but still, Skyclaw is still frustrated. (Then again, when is he not?)
A kitten waddles up to his side wordlessly, sitting down to people watch with him. He tunes them out almost completely before hearing them mumble something - "... Story?" Amber eyes flick down to see the child looking back up at him, sleepily. It's then that he notices a few of the others acting sluggish, and he has the sudden realization that he's slated for naptime with the little buggers. Oh, great StarClan...
"Okay... just - just one story. If you're not sleeping by the end of it, I'm getting your mothers," he grimaces, thinking of Moonwhisper talking down to him because he cannot get his nieces to sleep. Children are not his forte. He doesn't think they ever will be. He get's himself slightly more comfortable, situating himself a tail lengths away from a nest. Amber eyes flicker coolly as he watches kittens tumble into it, some tempted to edge closer to him. He only warns them with a glare, but doesn't stop them entirely.
"Once, long ago... There were warriors - cats larger, quicker, meaner even, than the ones we have here. They were called lions and tigers, and though they didn't often get along, they understood their own set of rules, and they abided by them as best as they could. No cat was to waste a meal, nor did any cat stray from the land they claimed. They were civil. Sometimes they fought, but they always found a way to understand one another..." He trails off, as if his story has ended already. However after he finds just one odd look from a kitten, he continues again, pulling from his mind a story that he's never been told before.
"One day, a new creature moved in... The lions and tigers had never seen a beast like it. It lounged like it had never been scared, napped in the sun like no worries could be had in the hard world the lions and tigers lived in. It was round and pudgy, as if it ate well - but neither of the ancient cats understood how. They ate the same prey, did they not? They hunted similar grounds and yet this new beast seemed to feast endlessly... What was so different about them?
"The tigers decided one night to follow the beast. They trailed the tall grasses, camouflaged with the reeds, and watched as the new creature pounced on a rabbit. The tigers could've sworn that the beast would've fumbled the kill, it's pudgy arms and dull claws hardly able to grip the prey - but it managed eventually. And after a few bites... the mysterious newcomer discarded his meal. Meat was still on the bone and yet he left, wandering towards the lions' land. The tigers were flabbergasted and conspired to talk to the lions in the morning.
"The next morning, the lions decided to conduct their own test. They watched the creature as the sun rose, beating down on the hot lands. The creature yawned and stretched after a long night, and with a few wobbly steps, it crossed into the lions land. The lions, too, were shocked! Even the tigers understood the sanctity of territory, but this beast didn't. It found a cool place in the shade and lounged, as if a sacred law had not been broken. The lions stared, confused at first, before moving quickly to protect their land.
"They descended upon the creature, and just as they began to growl, so too did the tigers from across the border. 'He caught prey, and didn't finish it!' The tigers said, furious. That rabbit could've fed their young, and yet the beast discarded it as if it was worthless. 'Well, he's just wandered onto our land! Has he no tact?' The lions replied, just as angry. The creature sat between them, unbothered by the yelling and frustration. The lions and tigers finally looked at him again, and their sharp claws dug into the ground. 'What have you to say for yourself?' They asked.
"'Who, me?' The pudgy beast asked. 'Oh... I suppose I just didn't care.' The beast said..." Skyclaw then paused, looking over the kittens. He feels himself running out of material, halfway hoping the kits have fallen asleep by now.
A kitten waddles up to his side wordlessly, sitting down to people watch with him. He tunes them out almost completely before hearing them mumble something - "... Story?" Amber eyes flick down to see the child looking back up at him, sleepily. It's then that he notices a few of the others acting sluggish, and he has the sudden realization that he's slated for naptime with the little buggers. Oh, great StarClan...
"Okay... just - just one story. If you're not sleeping by the end of it, I'm getting your mothers," he grimaces, thinking of Moonwhisper talking down to him because he cannot get his nieces to sleep. Children are not his forte. He doesn't think they ever will be. He get's himself slightly more comfortable, situating himself a tail lengths away from a nest. Amber eyes flicker coolly as he watches kittens tumble into it, some tempted to edge closer to him. He only warns them with a glare, but doesn't stop them entirely.
"Once, long ago... There were warriors - cats larger, quicker, meaner even, than the ones we have here. They were called lions and tigers, and though they didn't often get along, they understood their own set of rules, and they abided by them as best as they could. No cat was to waste a meal, nor did any cat stray from the land they claimed. They were civil. Sometimes they fought, but they always found a way to understand one another..." He trails off, as if his story has ended already. However after he finds just one odd look from a kitten, he continues again, pulling from his mind a story that he's never been told before.
"One day, a new creature moved in... The lions and tigers had never seen a beast like it. It lounged like it had never been scared, napped in the sun like no worries could be had in the hard world the lions and tigers lived in. It was round and pudgy, as if it ate well - but neither of the ancient cats understood how. They ate the same prey, did they not? They hunted similar grounds and yet this new beast seemed to feast endlessly... What was so different about them?
"The tigers decided one night to follow the beast. They trailed the tall grasses, camouflaged with the reeds, and watched as the new creature pounced on a rabbit. The tigers could've sworn that the beast would've fumbled the kill, it's pudgy arms and dull claws hardly able to grip the prey - but it managed eventually. And after a few bites... the mysterious newcomer discarded his meal. Meat was still on the bone and yet he left, wandering towards the lions' land. The tigers were flabbergasted and conspired to talk to the lions in the morning.
"The next morning, the lions decided to conduct their own test. They watched the creature as the sun rose, beating down on the hot lands. The creature yawned and stretched after a long night, and with a few wobbly steps, it crossed into the lions land. The lions, too, were shocked! Even the tigers understood the sanctity of territory, but this beast didn't. It found a cool place in the shade and lounged, as if a sacred law had not been broken. The lions stared, confused at first, before moving quickly to protect their land.
"They descended upon the creature, and just as they began to growl, so too did the tigers from across the border. 'He caught prey, and didn't finish it!' The tigers said, furious. That rabbit could've fed their young, and yet the beast discarded it as if it was worthless. 'Well, he's just wandered onto our land! Has he no tact?' The lions replied, just as angry. The creature sat between them, unbothered by the yelling and frustration. The lions and tigers finally looked at him again, and their sharp claws dug into the ground. 'What have you to say for yourself?' They asked.
"'Who, me?' The pudgy beast asked. 'Oh... I suppose I just didn't care.' The beast said..." Skyclaw then paused, looking over the kittens. He feels himself running out of material, halfway hoping the kits have fallen asleep by now.
