stålfågel + gecko

[smogstar]

Every so often, Smogmaw took a jaunt out to Carrionplace in aspiration of finding something worth telling his clanmates about. The twolegs' gated-off dumping grounds houses a vast array of spectacular oddities, objects designed for purposes he can't quite comprehend. There were scraps of food, sometimes putrid, sometimes edible, stored inside flimsy containers which he sometimes snacked on. And watching the peculiarly-shaped monsters rumble across the ground, seeing them push heaps of crowfood and waste into large piles, it simply leaves him open-mouthed.

There's not a lot in this forest that arouses his interest anymore, but visiting Carrionplace felt like walking through another world.

A moon has passed since his last adventure, and the urge to return is like an itch he cannot scratch. There's too much to do around camp in this day and age, particularly when there's a fresh-kill pile that never seems to have any fresh-kill. All the same, he supposes the rats living in the dump will replace toads and frogs when their food supply runs too thin - so perhaps paying the place an early visit wouldn't be in vain.

"Hey, @GECKOSCREECH," he calls, summoning the first clanmate within earshot. He's glad it's her - she's a trustworthy one in his eyes. "What d'you say we give the dump a little scope-out? Maybe find something rotten to eat?"​

 

[GECKOSCREECH]

✦ HOLD YOURSELF BENEATH THE BRINE ✦​

---

leaf-bare has turned shadowclan into a frozen wasteland.

the prey has long since disappeared and the most someone could find on a good day would be the stomach-churning scraps of crow-food lying about but there was little room for complaints about it because in the end it's still food that could go on the fresh-kill pile and into someone's belly but even then what they end up finding is hardly enough to feed half the clan and cats end up going to bed starving regardless. it doesn't help that they continue to take in more and more stragglers that they just don't need.

a grimace would contort the lead warrior's expression for a moment, there was alot of things going wrong that has geckoscreech being pulled on an already taut string and the hunger that was curling within her gut certainly wasn't helping. slinking out from the warriors den with a troubled mind, the molly is quick to be called by the familiar voice of smogmaw who beckons her over with the idea of venturing to the carrionplace.

"sure, i'll accompany you to the dump. better than wasting away inside the camp." she mummers, flashing a quick glance around the clearing.

"lead the way." ​

 

[smogstar]

A sharp exhale parts from his maw at Geckoscreech's response. Having asked the lead warrior to be of assistance before, Smogmaw anticipated some degree of opposition to come from her. Well- because of how it'd left his mouth at the time it sounded more like a demand than a request, but all the same. "Huzzah," he grunts in gratitude. "Haven't been out that way in a couple of moons. Never hurts to check out what's happening there." When he starts off towards camp's exit, gesturing to the creamy she-cat to trail after, he mutters something with bated breaths: "Probably have to start getting our food from there in another moon or so."

Smogmaw does not say a whole lot throughout the trek to the dump. He keeps his eyes pointed forward, and tries to deflect his focus away from the hostile feeling of snow brushing against his pawpads.

It isn't until he comes up on the frozen stream separating ShadowClan from Carrionplace that he shifts his consideration in Geckoscreech's way again. "Whew, sure love the smell of the place," says the tom, giving his companion an inelegant grimace. Putrid crowfood and stinking waste bombard his nostrils, but having lived in the marsh for so long, it isn't enough to deter him. Not yet, anyways.

He refrains from crossing the narrow body of water for the time being. The layer of ice on top looks to be quite thin, and if Smogmaw were to fall through, he wants to at least be on good terms with Geckoscreech before he dies. "Leafbare..." he more or less ponders aloud, "I can't say I'm very optimistic about it. Hell, I'm never optimistic about anything- but I really don't have a good feeling about this season." Three more moons of starving bellies and inclement conditions, the mere thought instils a steep hopelessness in him.

"Am I alone in this or do you feel similar?"​

 

[GECKOSCREECH]

✦ HOLD YOURSELF BENEATH THE BRINE ✦​

---

the walk to the carrionplace was a quiet one but geckoscreech didn't seem to be bothered by it, honestly the mackerel tabby was one of the very few people who's presence didn't immediately annoy here in the first five seconds. sure, their first interaction got under her fur considering he spoke to the molly like she was some sort of drone but ultimately it was brushed off since there alot more on her mind at that time.

as they come up by the frozen stream that divided their land, the horrid stentch wafting from the idly waiting carrionplace causes a pale muzzle to twist in revulsion. out of all the landmarks they've could've been blessed with the stars had ultimately decided to gift shadowclan with a scorched tree with burnt land and a literal dumpster. gee, how thoughtful of them. what's next, is a giant hole gonna open up in the ground and swallow half the swamp?

smogmaw seems to avoid crossing the stream so geckoscreech takes the lead to walk alongside the bank until there was a way across and lucky for them, in the middle of the frozen stream was a decently sized rock which could be used to get to the other side. so that's what she did, the lead warrior neatly bounds across the body of water using the stone before looking over her shoulder at her companion who started to speak about leaf-bare and the omnious feeling it leaves behind.

"i'd be fucking shocked if anyone said they felt optimistic about leaf-bare." a snort escaped her followed by a small eye roll.

"it'll never gets easy for us out here, especially right now considering not too long ago we had a tree burn down ruining perfectly good hunting grounds. now look at us, starving and having to rely on crow-food just so we can survive another moon."
​