camp talking to the moon ☾✩ o, intro

[nightbird]

if nightbird was anything, she was a product of her name. the small warrior found comfort in the dark. the more cats that were sleeping, the more time she found for herself. nightbird was happy to work independently in the darker hours, whether it was bettering her combat or hunting skills, or simply stargazing as she was tonight. the stars intrigued the feline, how they shone against something so dark was truly beautiful to her. however, it was a solitary activity. she felt the most vulnerable in this state with her belly exposed staring up to the sky. it also was a side of her not often seen, a softer side she shut away to preserve a hard exterior. usually, it was uninterrupted as well. nobody ventured out to the edge of the camp this late. sure there was the occasional straggler who couldn't sleep, but nighty was able to evade them with the aide of her dark pelt and quiet footsteps.

tonight though, she was less alert for whatever reason. maybe she had just gotten too comfortable, but she failed to notice an approaching scent and footsteps. when she did, it was possibly too late to be undetected. nightbird flipped around quickly and scanned the area with an accusatory glare. her tail lashed as she searched and her eyes landed on one of her clanmates. whether they had known it or not, they walked into her self proclaimed spot. her eyes narrowed as she watched them and she felt anger bubble up inside of her. she took great offense to the actions of this individual, and the ever bold nightbird would let them know just that. "what are you doing here? it's the middle of the night." she said sharply, probably overly so considering she was out here too. the only crime this other cat had committed was taking a night walk, but she felt like her world was collapsing. all she needed was another thing to deem her weak, so naturally the smoke molly had to overcompensate with a prickly statement. ​

[ WE'RE GONNA BE LEGENDS ]​

 

[FINCHCATCHER]

A walk.

One much needed to Finchcatcher - both to clear his mind and to stretch aching joints, to ease the young warrior back to slumber after a restless attempt.

The ginger tom pads carefully through the night's cover, reveling in the silence around him. His first time leading a patrol had been... interesting, to say the least. The events that had happened between then and his night, however, bear the most weight on his mind. Cinderfrost. He'd seen Cinderfrost. Talked to the former medic, now exiled from the oak forest.

He'll have to tell Howling Wind - and, maybe Emberstar, too - come morning, Finchcatcher reminds himself, though guilt sits heavy on his chest at the thought.

A thought that, evidently, gets interrupted, as the silence carrying the night breaks before him.

"What are you doing here? It's the middle of the night."

The scarred warrior startles, stumbling back a couple of steps as he looks around for the voice's step. Had Howling Wind caught on? Had the deputy followed him out of camp? When yellow-green eyes spot the inky coat of Nightbird before him, a snort follows. Thank the stars.

"You know, I could ask you the same," the tom retorts, tail swishing behind him, "Am I not allowed to stretch my legs? Or am I supposed to ask permission from you, first?"
​

 

[nightbird]

her gaze held strong as the tom before her faltered. it was easy to see his startled expression and stumbling steps as his bright pelt stuck out like a sore thumb against the darkness. while it did take everything in her to not laugh at his expression, she was relieved by it. if he was this surprised, he had obviously not seen her. this information could have lead her to an apology. nightbird opened her mouth to utter one, sharp teeth almost shining when the moonlight caught them. but, just as she was about to say the awful phrase 'i'm sorry,' he snorted. right in her face.

the dark molly's ears instantly went flat and she snapped her jaw shut. her tail made one dangerous lash as she listened to his retort. angry words itched her tongue, threatening to escape. she had to be somewhat civil, even though finchcatcher's sarcastic response made her want to claw his ears off. nightbird silently reminded herself that they were a part of the same clan, he was not an enemy. she did however take note of his tone. a strong defense for someone who was just stretching their legs.

"if you could, that would be lovely," she began in a saccharine tone so sweet it almost made her nauseous. she held strong eye contact with the ginger tom, carefully gauging his reactions. "maybe then i can catch something before your heavy pawsteps chase all the mice off." she added quickly after, her words sharp and highly contrasting from the sickly sweet voice she had before. she knew he had earned his warrior's suffix for his hunting ability. seemingly useless information from his ceremony, but in this instance it would work out just fine, hopefully hitting him in a skill he prided himself in.
​

[ WE'RE GONNA BE LEGENDS ]​

 

[FINCHCATCHER]

Ginger ears twitch at the shadow-furred warrior's words, at the all-too-sweet tone in her voice.

What was meant to be a quiet walk, now paused to snark back at the feline before him. At least it would keep his mind busy, for the time being. Maybe he could be glad for the distraction.

"Well, then, am I allowed to take a walk? Please?" he asks, matching her tone, only for a critique-laden insult to be shot back at him. Heavy pawsteps? Ha! Sure, his hunting had been clumsier since the fire - with good reason, of course - but, his pawsteps certainly weren't heavy.

"Not very nice of you to be tormenting the injured, is it?" Finchcatcher shoots back in a teasing manner, raising a burn-scarred limb. Not like the young warrior needed the sympathy, of course, with enough battle-scars to go around. Certainly not from Nightbird, in the sarcasm-heavy conversation before him. "My pawsteps must've landed on deaf ears, otherwise, we would've had this conversation all the way back at camp." The fire-furred tom sets his paw back down, watching the molly closely with narrowed eyes.

"So, what are you doing out here then, other than picking on me?"
​

 

[nightbird]

her own tone was shot back to her pretty quickly, earning the tom a small scoff and a dramatic eyeroll. she feigned a sweet smile as her insult settled it right where she wanted it. nightbird could practically see the wheels turning. he responded again quickly, not giving her too much time to bask in her victory. finchcatcher's quick wit appeared to rival her own, something that impressed her and gained him an some respect in her book, although she would die before she admitted it. she could appreciate a good ole' battle of wits, maybe she had found a worthy opponent in the bright furred warrior.

as he held up his injured paw, she just stared blankly, looking a little bored as he teased her. his leg had been injured, not his brain.

"correct me if i'm wrong, but 'the injured' was the who dragged his ass all the way out here to stretch his legs," nightbird replied still sporting the bored expression, "maybe i should escort 'the injured' to the nursery, i'm sure he'll fit right in with the whining kits" she added, sitting down and wrapping her twitching tail around her front paws.

now it was her turn to receive an insult, and she was not entirely too happy about it. "you should be thankful that i'm kind enough to torment you in private so the rest of the clan can sleep," was her pointed response, returning his words back to him. it was obviously a reach. out of the top five words used to describe her, kind rarely made the list. however, nightbird wasn't bothered by that. she would much rather be known for her achievements as a warrior than as a kind molly. besides, there were plenty of warm-hearted cats around to pick up that slack.

"i was hunting," nightbird lied easily in response to his question. it was a harmless lie, but hell would freeze over before she told finchcatcher that she was doing something as soft as stargazing. at that point, she might as well tell him she was picking flowers or chasing her tail. "it's easy at night when you're quiet, but by now any prey is long gone," she added coolly, alluding back to earlier when she had called him out while also referring to their little standoff.

.​

[ WE'RE GONNA BE LEGENDS ]​

 

[FINCHCATCHER]

Finchcatcher copies her action, sits down beside her with his own tail wrapped around him. He doesn't want to admit the moment of stillness, of standing and throwing insults has only done his shoulder worse, but it has, and he's more than glad to sit - to relieve himself of the weight against it.

He should be in the nursery, Nightbird says. Was he really being that whiny? He shifts his burn-laden limb, pulls it close to his form. Surely not. The kits that occupied the nursery had to be whinier than him.

"Funny," he says, a twitch of the ears following, "I didn't know you could be kind." Granted, how much did he truly know of the ThunderClanners around him? Though he'd been living among them for almost two moons now, he had yet to get to know many of the oak-dwellers. He only read most of them from afar, judged them before he truly got to know them.

Hunting, she then claims. She's been hunting. He looks, doesn't see any sort of kill with her. The tom is about to protest that when she explains herself.

"Because I'm too loud," he fills in - because, that must be what the molly means, right? Chartreuse-hued eyes take a moment to look away - opting to look up at the sky, at the stars.

Huh.

"Sky's nice tonight," the warrior points out. When was the last time he looked at the stars - just, really looked at them? He isn't so sure. Perhaps before the Great Battle, before the stars held a different meaning to him.

​

 

[nightbird]

night sat entirely still as he moved to sit next to her, watching from her peripheral vision as he made the same movements she had only a few moments ago. confusion clouded her mind. there was nothing inviting about her lashing tail or the insults that were being traded. nothing that should have prompted him to join her, so why was he now sitting next to her as if they were old friends. she wasn't used to cats being undeterred by her sharp remarks. she remained motionless, head reeling even as he responded to her.

"i have my moments," the molly interjected almost uncertainly. when she finally looked over to him, she watched as he looked around for any signs of her hunting. the smoke panicked internally knowing there was nothing near that would back up her fib. her jaw clenched as she racked her mind for another defense, but the other warrior spoke again and she was flooded with relief. she responded wordlessly with a small nod and a half-assed grin.

nightbird's relief was short-lived as finchcatcher looked up towards the sky and commented on it. she tensed almost immediately as her tail began twitching. the sky was beautiful, especially on that clear of a night. that was exactly why she had come out. under her tail she pushed her claws into the ground as she faltered, hesitating to respond.

"hm, i didn't notice." she finally uttered, her voice lacking any trace of the bite that was formerly there as she tilted her head back to catch a glance of the stars once more. it was almost as if she couldn't bring herself to be rude when gazing into the sky. she begrudgingly drew her eyes away. "so do you usually stretch your legs in the middle of the night? or is tonight a special occasion," she added, desperately attempting to get the focus off of her.
​

[ WE'RE GONNA BE LEGENDS ]​