It was hard to believe that his little group had doubled in size. It had just been Yew and himself for some time, but now he had Lavender and the ex-SkyClan warrior Sharpeye at his side. The tom had given him cause to be wary, but ultimately he found himself warming to the older tom as he reminded himself that Sharpeye had not been directly involved in Sunsetbreeze's death. No, all the blame for that lay directly with Sootstar. He had to remember that.
Grim thoughts aside, the fluffy tom turned his thoughts to that of food. The morning air was cool with a tickle of dampness that clung to his pelt as he emerged from the wooden crate that made his nest. Stretching, he eased the stiffness of sleep out of his frame before he padded towards where Lavender would be. Already a smile was forming on his features as he drew ever closer until he was finally able to lay his gaze upon the she-cat. "Good morning, Lavie! I know it's a lil' early but I was wondering if ya wanted to join me for a morning hunt. I reckon we can catch somethin' good before the old man and Yew wake up."
( ) She was sitting in the first few rays of the sun, thriving beneath their gentle warmth as the first notes of birdsong trickled into the air. Lavenders's eyes were closed, a soft rumbling purr flowing from her throat the vocal sign of her content. Life here was so...different compared to her upbringing. Gale and Yew and Sharpeye never demanded anything from her, not to hunt to feed them tend to them as her father had. So many times she had offered to repay their kindness, and each time her companions only smiled and waved it off.
The sound of pawsteps behind her would alert her to one of her friend's arrival, and she turned her head to smile at Gale over her shoulder, "Morning Gale." She would return the toms' greeting and as his invitation, she would rise to her paws and give her chest a quick lick before nodding, "I'd love to. Been a while since I hunted with another cat." Grief would flicker for less than a heartbeat within her clear blue eyes; memories of the hunts she used to take with her littermates and mother touching her mind.
But as soon as it was there, it was gone, and she was smiling again as she motioned with her tail for him to lead the way, "Do you normally wake up this early?"
( I'M FEELING LONELY; WISH I'D FIND A LOVER WHO COULD HOLD ME )
The momentary flash of grief is too fast for Gale to spot so he simply continued on as he was. In that moment he only really cared about the fact that she was willing to accompany him that day, which would certainly improve the chances of catching something good between them. Not only that but he could get the chance to learn more about her, and vice versa. "I used to a lot back when I was part of WindClan. We had things called dawn patrols, and of course hunting duties throughout the day. These days I tend to sleep in more often than not. What about yourself?" He assumed she must have been around other cats prior to meeting his little crew. Though admittedly he had no idea of what hardship she had gone through.
The tom showed no hesitance when it came to leading the way out of the alleyway and off down the street. Yet another advantage to heading out early; no twolegs. The streets were quiet for the best part, and that even included the thunderpaths that crisscrossed the place. It was hard to believe that he had grown up fearing the singular one that ran along the very edge of WindClan's territory, now he boldly crossed them on the daily. Fortunately it wasn't all that far to the outskirts of twolegplace, so he knew that once they crossed the final fences they would be free to hunt in the forest beyond.
( ) Windclan. Lavender appeared thoughtful as she listened to Gale's answer to her question. Dawn patrols, and hunting duties, didn't sound very far off from what she had been tasked with alongside her mother and sisters. Her whiskers would twitch, turning back to Gale as she smiled at his mention of sleeping in more now than when he was a clan cat. As he turned the question back on her she would look up into the crisp blue sky and seemed to count the clouds before answering, "My sisters and I always had to get up before dawn to hunt for our family. Father was the only one who ever went on walks around our small area in order to make sure no other toms were trespassing, to keep us safe." At least that's what her father had always told them, but how much worse could other males be, if it was his own claws that had scarred the flesh beneath her pelt?
"Mama would stay behind to fix our nests and just keep our den clean. Father hated whenever her pelt got dirty." Her gaze would go distant for a moment before she swished her tail and continued, "I didn't mind waking up early though. Seeing the sky turn all those pretty colors and feeling the warmth of the sun very first thing in the morning just gives me energy."
Not to mention it was the only time of the day that she felt peaceful and safe. Lavender would follow faithfully behind Gale as he lead the way through the alleys and through the fences that would drop them off on the outskirts of twolegplace. Her gaze would settle onto his face, "You don't have to tell me but...why don't you live with Windclan anymore? Did Yew use to live there too?"
( I'M FEELING LONELY; WISH I'D FIND A LOVER WHO COULD HOLD ME )
Wait, so the head tom of the family didn't assist with the hunting? That was... weird. Even in a clan it was still a leader's duty to assist with the everyday jobs, as well as managing their own. Though what made his pelt prickle uneasily was the additional information relating to that of Lavender's mother regarding how she had to keep her pelt clean. Why would that be such a major thing? Something about her former life with her family just seemed... well, he honestly found it hard to describe it. It just made his skin crawl! What wasn't helping was the strange vibe he was picking up from the she-cat. Still, whatever life she had once been forced to lead was behind her now. Life in his little group didn't see anyone stand higher than the other, even though he probably seemed like the leader at times. "Sunrise is something special. I can't deny that. Up on the moors it was truly beautiful."
Once on the outskirts of twolegplace he took the opportunity to flex his toes into the natural grass. It wasn't as soft and plush as some of the grasses in the gardens but it held that promise of the wild in its texture. Grinning, he then began to head further into the woodland. Though that grin lessened when Lavender's questions reached his ears and it prompted him to glance back over his shoulder at her. "Well... to put it bluntly both Yew and I were exiled from WindClan. We were hunted by our former clanmates through a blizzard until we were beyond the territory." It had been grim and memories of being pursued by those he had just slept beside less than a day prior continued to hold a dark cloud over his mind.
"It's a long story, but WindClan is ruled by an evil leader. I had only lived through eleven moon cycles when she sent us to war against another clan. It was an act of her own selfish desire, nothing more. During the battle my-..." Gale found himself choking back a sob as an old emotional wound ripped itself open in his heart. It had been so long since he had last dared to dredge up Sunsetbreeze's visage in his mind, and it remained raw.
The tom had to stop in order to compose himself before he couldn't continue talking, though he feared what Lavender was even thinking of him at that moment. "S-sorry, I just find it hard to talk about. But I lost my first love in that battle. It pushed me over the edge that day and I confronted Sootstar that day. Called her out for her injustice, for all her mistakes. Yew stood by me that day, and so did another, and it resulted in our exile." There it was, the whole story. Gale had hoped the act of sharing the tale might have made things easier for himself, but it only proved to him that it still cut him deep. There was so much healing left to do but he didn't even know where to begin.
( ) Lavender would remain close to her friend, watching the emotions flicker across his face as he retold his story. Her heart broke for him, for his losses and the pain he had endured. Perhaps the two of them were more alike than she first thought.
He came to a stop, in an attempt she assumed to gather his emotions, and on impulse, she would move to press against his side to comfort him. "I'm so sorry you had to go through all that, Gale." The words were genuine, blue eyes almost seeming to prick with tears as she faced him, "My father was evil too." She spoke the confession so easily as if she had had a lifetime to come to terms with that reality. In truth, she had, since the first day she had opened her eyes and ears her father had been a looming presence of unrealistic expectations and flashing claws. "He was ruthless and cruel, and I've never fought a day in my life and yet I have scars that would say otherwise." She sits and uses her paw to lift a patch of fur, showing him a jagged scar that was housed there.
As she let the fur fall again she would muse lightly, "I'm sorry if this is bad to say but..." She looked beyond them again, smiling ever so softly, "A part of me is grateful you were banished. Because then who would have saved me in the twoleg place?" She would rise to her paws again and give her chest a lick before lightly touching her nose to his shoulder, "Let's go and catch something big today, yea?"
( I'M FEELING LONELY; WISH I'D FIND A LOVER WHO COULD HOLD ME )
The touch to his side caught him momentarily off-guard but it wasn't unwelcome either. It held the embers of comfort and it was exactly what he had needed in that moment. Upon turning his head to look at her he was surprised to see the beginning of tears glistening in her eyes. Then she said it, that her father had been evil. It confirmed his suspicion that the tom in question was nothing less than a major prick. No doubt such a guy would have gotten along with the likes of Sootstar and her zealots.
The sight of the scars was a shock and he looked on with sympathy. All he could think about in that moment was how horrible it must have been to be marred with wounds without being able to defend yourself. All his scars were from battles, and he had dished out nearly as much as he had received. "I'm so sorry that all happened to you, I truly am. But I'm glad you're free of him now." He was glad that he would never meet the tom, otherwise he knew that his claws would be flying against a cruel creature.
What she said next held him stationary with a look of awe on his features. After a moment of processing he slowly let a smile emerge across his features as he began to imagine the fates guiding his-... no, guiding their destinies until they met. He might have saved her from the dangers of the streets, but she had rescued his heart from a very dark place. He just wished he knew how to explain that to her. Perhaps he'd find the words another day. Chuckling, he aimed to nudge her shoulder in return with his head before he pranced forward in order to return to the original route they had been taking. "Big? Heck yeah! Maybe it's time I taught ya how to bring down big rabbits and hares. Used to hunt 'em all the time back in the day."
( ) A smile of gratitude would touch her features as Gale gave his own sympathies and she seemed additionally grateful as he continued their trek towards their chosen hunting grounds. Her shoulders would relax, having silently tensed up as she spoke of her father and her scars; for they were truly the most vulnerable parts of herself.
Why she had chosen to open up to the brown tabby she wasn't quite sure, but she did not regret it. Gale was trustworthy, and that was all her gut needed to feel for her to speak her past. As his mention of rabbits and hares, she would tilt her head as she mewed, "I've seen them before, but I was never fast enough to catch them." Only her older sister had been blessed with the speed for such prey, but bringing one home always meant good things, not scolding and the glare of her father always softened just the tiniest bit at the feast.
"It's impressive that you can catch them, Gale. You must be very fast."
( I'M FEELING LONELY; WISH I'D FIND A LOVER WHO COULD HOLD ME )
"My speed is partly why I have the name that I have. Galeforce was my clan name, and it related to the wind itself. Though in truth speed alone isn't enough to catch rabbits." The tom explained with a wink as he looked back at Lavender. It did take a lot of planning, and the more cats you had to help then the higher the success of landing a catch happened to be. So he hoped to turn the she-cat into a worthy hunting partner like Yew. The more the merrier!
It wasn't long until the forest seemed to give way to a more open stretch of ground, edged with thick bushes all around. Even now he could see all the rabbits milling about in the open without much of a care. Gale signalled for Lavender to join him under the bushes so they could plan their attack. "Rabbits rarely stray far from their burrows. The key is to know where the burrows might be so one cat moves to block the route to it whilst the other begins the chase. So, do you want to be the blocker or the chaser?"
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