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Post by Solaris on Jul 5, 2022 3:38:06 GMT
B A Y O U  She/they | 14 Moons | Rogue How many moons was it, since she left Bog? Two, three, four? She’d lost count already, she thought as she fiddled with the dead mouse she caught earlier that day. She wanted to say that all that time spent away from her brother was the most free she felt in moons. It would be easier, for one; there would be no guilt nipping at her heels. But truth be told, her nights were colder than they used to be, and mornings were quieter. There was no cat to bicker with. There was only her.
They swallowed the mouse, savoring the bits of morsels, before getting up, and facing the adolescent sun with plastered confidence. Pushing a path through the reeds, Bayou climbed up a boulder to sniff out the landscape. Their nose caught a fresh scent of… cat. A lot of cat. Eyes widening, they slid off the rock, following the cat scent wherever it would lead.
Bayou could certainly hear Bog’s exasperated voice telling her, “Don’t go marching into situations you can’t anticipate!” But dung for him, Bayou wanted to meet these other cats! Shame Bog wasn’t here, huh? |
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Post by Solaris on Jul 20, 2022 5:41:12 GMT
B A Y O U She/they | 14 Moons | Rogue Her thoughts were interrupted by a voice from behind, and she swung her head to meet the stranger’s pale green gaze. It was a tortoiseshell cat, bearing the same scent as the one she’d picked up. Her whole body perked up, excited to finally meeting someone else. They didn’t look much older than she, and didn’t seem that threatening either. Bayou could probably take this cat if she needed.
“My name is Bayou, pleased to meet you!” they grinned. They gestured their tail to the surrounding area. “Melodypaw, was it? Do you live in this territory? It smells like there’s a lot of cats here.”
And having a lot of cats meant a bustling community. Having originated from a community herself, she left the farmlands in search of a new life—one that would be free from her brother. Her experience surviving on her own only reinforced the need to be with other cats. She hated having conversations with herself. Where was the fun? |
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Riley
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Post by Riley on Aug 8, 2022 4:34:17 GMT
If Melodypaw had thought before she'd sounded stupid, that was nothing to when the stranger turned to her. Her brain stalled like a raindrop against a boulder, scattering and refracting. Because this stranger had the prettiest eyes Melodypaw had ever seen. Blue, blue like the river when the current was slow and sunlight shined through it. Blue like the hidden depths on cloudy days, with ripples every time she blinked and sparkles like sunshine on the river's surface.
She barely heard Bayou's introduction, just enough to know her name. The rest of it took a few moments to register, and Melodypaw had to violently shake her head to stuff her thoughts back into her head. "No! I mean, yes, I live in this territory, I live with my family and our Clanmates. I don't know why I said no. You asked two questions, both of them yes. Actually you asked three questions, now that I think about it. And the answer is still yes to all of them. Yes my name is Melodypaw, yes I live here, yes there's a lot of cats. Actually I guess it WAS two questions, since the third wasn't technically a question, but-"
Was. Was she babbling? What the heckity heck, she was MELODYPAW, she didn't BABBLE. Melodypaw slammed her eyes and jaws both closed and took a deep breath. "Sorry. Excuse me for a moment." She padded toward a tree and lightly knocked her head against it three times. Not enough to injure or even cause concern. If anything, it looked weird. Satisfied, Melodypaw went back to the exact same spot she was in before. "Sorry. I'm. Usually a lot more eloquent than that." She took a seat and primly curled her tail over her paws, sitting as delicately as she could. "It's nice to meet you, Bayou. What brings you around these parts?" There. Much better.
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Post by Solaris on Aug 8, 2022 5:16:15 GMT
B A Y O U She/they | 14 Moons | Rogue They blinked at the sudden stream of words that flew out of Melodypaw’s mouth, gushing out like water from the silver legs back at camp. Her eyebrows raised, casting a confused and astonished look at the other cat. It was amusing in a way, hearing the blunders of speech Melodypaw was making, tripping over words the way a cat would trip over roots. Though, Bayou wondered if she was alright and if she was always like that.
Bayou tilted their head, wearing a light grin and an ambivalent look that said, “You’re not telling the full truth, are you?”
She brushed it aside as something not to worry about. There were probably a hundred reasons why Melodypaw was acting this way. Heck, Bayou just met the cat a heartbeat ago. Definitely not long enough for them to have any opinion,
But the mention of “clanmates” implied that there were a group of cats nearby, large enough to fit a whole family and then some. Her eyes widened, brightened up at the thought of joining another cat community and meeting a whole bunch of strangers. Oh, the thrill of getting to know everyone!
They jumped in to speak, right as Melodypaw started asking about where Bayou came from.
“Where I come from? Uhh, I come from a farm. There were a lot of cats living on that territory. Pretty big community. I was also wondering if I could join your—was it a clan?—community,” said Bayou. She smiled at Melodypaw before sighing. “I just miss having company.” |
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Riley
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Post by Riley on Aug 31, 2022 8:06:28 GMT
Melodypaw had to withhold a wince at Bayou's observation. If she asked, Melodypaw wasn't sure what she would say. Luckily, the other she-cat brushed right past the incident. Even more luckily, Melodypaw's awkwardness hadn't deterred Bayou's curiosity. Melodypaw watched Bayou's eyes widen and brighten, transfixed by those pretty pretty eyes and trying REALLY HARD not to zone out again.
She must have succeeded because she didn't jump when Bayou answered her questions. Her ear twitched in curiosity and her head tilted slightly. Why leave somewhere there were lots of cats then want company? She'd ask later though, just in case it wasn't something Bayou wanted to talk about. Maybe she'd been chased out for some reason and Melodypaw didn't want to come off as insensitive.
And it did sound like there WOULD be a later. "Welllll..." Melodypaw dragged out, pretending to put thought into it. "I'd have to take you to Shellspots, our sort of leader, for you to be accepted... but her sort of deputy, our sort of second in command, is my brother, so I might have some pull. I can vouch for you! But since you look like you're young we gotta make sure you can handle yourself. The apprentices, that is, the young cats training to be warriors, kind of outnumber the adults right now. If we can prove you don't really need training then you can join the others in the warriors den instead of being stuffed in the honestly-too-small apprentices den."
It was only as she was saying it that Melodypaw realized she kind of WANTED Bayou to sleep near her. Not necessarily next to her, that'd be creepy so soon after meeting her, but near enough that Melodypaw knew she was there. Oh well, kind of bit her own paw there. It wasn't like she could ask Bayou to sleep in the overcrowded den. And she absolutely wouldn't sabotage her new friend's hunting efforts either!
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Post by Solaris on Aug 31, 2022 16:40:37 GMT
B A Y O U She/they | 14 Moons | Rogue Bayou leaned closer to listen, eagerly gulping down Melodypaw’s words, and almost unable to contain the excitement that was now fizzing beneath their sleek fur. For the sake of a polite conversation, Bayou held their breath, waiting patiently for her to finish her sentence. It was only after Melodypaw was done that Bayou realized they didn’t process any of the words spoken. Oops.
Backtracking, Bayou recalled the mention of a “Shellspots”? Probably a leader. Someone she needed to impress in order join. Doable.
“So what you’re saying is that, all I have to do is prove myself to cat named Shellspots, and then I can join. What do I have to do? Fighting and hunting? Is that what warriors do? ‘Cause I can do that pretty well. I’m a good mouser, I’m a decent fighter, I’ve lived alone in the forest for a few moons. I’d say that I can handle myself,” said Bayou with confident nod. Bog didn’t drill all those weird fighting positions in their head for nothing. There was also something about an overcrowded den?
“But if I become a warrior, that means we won’t share the same den? Shame,” Bayou said, winking. Bayou wasn’t trying to imply anything to Melodypaw, but it was also too fun of an opportunity to miss out on teasing her. “Sleeping with a lot of other cats sounds cozy.”
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Riley
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Post by Riley on Sept 12, 2022 1:38:06 GMT
Melodypaw withheld a sigh of relief when Bayou said she was good at fighting and hunting. But there was more to being in a Clan than just hunting and fighting, at least in Flare's stories. She was going to say that, she even had her mouth open to respond, when Bayou spoke again. Bayou even WINKED at her. Because of her open mouth, Melodypaw couldn't quite stifle the wheezing, slightly garbled sound that escaped.
She cleared her throat, feeling her ears burn with embarrassment, and ducked her head. "Ahem. Well. Um. It can be, until you get kicked in your stomach by your restless brother in his sleep. Then you have a sore stomach, half a night's sleep, and a confused sibling on why you're grumpy at him in particular." Was that too much information? She didn't know how much information was too much. She'd never had anybody make any comments like that before, especially not a pretty she-cat before, and it was scrambling her brain.
Melodypaw ducked her head, avoiding Bayou's eyes, and meowed, "Well, there's more to being in a Clan than fighting and hunting. We're not just a community, we're a Clan. We have a warrior code that we live by, and certain rules." Still avoiding Bayou's eyes, she turned sideways and jerked her head for the other she-cat to follow her. "I'll take you back to camp and tell you it on the way... if you'd like?"
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Post by Solaris on Sept 12, 2022 3:12:19 GMT
River 9, 2021 | Riley Bayou rolled their eyes, all too familiar with the sentiment as they briefly recalled what it was like sleeping with Bog. Another reason why Bayou left the farm. He must have been running after mice with how much he kicked around in his sleep. Nearly spooked all colony cats who tried sleeping near him. Eventually, Bog had his own corner of the barn to sleep in.
"Yeah, I know how that feels. You have my condolences," Bayou said, scrunching her nose. She patted her tail against Melodypaw's shoulder in sympathy. "I have a brother too. He's also annoying and obnoxious. He kicked a lot in his sleep, actually. It would have been funny if he didn't wake me up before dawn all the time."
They arched a brow, fighting the urge to snort. Instead, they shrugged and followed after Melodypaw. "'A warrior code'? Sure. I hope there aren't too many rules. I'm bad at them."
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Riley
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Post by Riley on Sept 29, 2022 4:21:35 GMT
Melodypaw suppressed a sigh of relief that Bayou seemed to just entirely ignore the sound she'd made. The wrinkle in Bayou's nose was actually adorable though, and Melodypaw was keenly aware of Bayou's tail on her shoulder. She did her best to ignore it though, in light of this new information. "I'm going to assume he isn't with you then. Otherwise your side would be a lot more bruised from him kicking you." she joked. She hesitated answering about the warrior code though. If she was being entirely honest, she didn't quite one hundred percent understand it. The only rules she DID understand were common sense though when living among other cats. Melodypaw did remember though that Bayou had mentioned living in a community, and she did her best to smile reassuringly. "Not too many, I don't think! I've never living without other cats so it might have been different where you came from, but a lot of it makes sense when you think about it! The really young and really old eat first to preserve their strength. We… don't actually have any of either though. The oldest cat in the Clan is actually my dad and he'd claw you if you tried saying he couldn't provide for himself, and the youngest is one of the other apprentices."Solaris |
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Post by Solaris on Oct 2, 2022 16:43:38 GMT
River 9, 2021 | Riley “Yeah, no. Bog isn’t here. He’s probably still at the barn,” said Bayou. She let out a laugh, nudging Melodypaw’s shoulder. “This past moon has been a lot more peaceful, I’ll give you that.”
Their eyes widened slightly. “Oh! We had something similar where I lived. We didn’t have a code per se, but it was more of an unspoken rule. Granted, food was plentiful enough back at the barn, so it was really matter of opening your jaws and a mouse would fall right in. If you did have trouble hunting, someone would help you.”
“Anyway,” she bowed her head in an exaggerated display of respect and formality. “Show me the way to your camp, my lady.” |
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Riley
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Post by Riley on Nov 7, 2022 8:24:38 GMT
Melodypaw had mixed feelings on Bayou's brother- Bog, she'd said? Yeah, Bog. Melodypaw had mixed feelings on Bog not being there. Because on one paw, if he HAD been there, Shellspots would have been happier having two cats join than one. On the other paw... It was nice, having Bayou's attention purely on her. Melodypaw wasn't used to being the sole center of attention, no matter what her littermates thought about the way the adults in their life growing up had spoiled her.
The news that Bayou was familiar with such a rule was a relief. It had been a struggle for herself at least to get used to that rule. She'd been catching her own prey since before her family had joined RiverClan, and it had taken a few explanations to remind her that she couldn't eat right away without bringing something back for the Clan. The amount that she'd had to catch expanded when more cats joined.
Bayou bowed in an overly dramatic way, and Melodypaw giggled at it. "I shall indeed! Do keep up, will you?" she responded with a snooty voice. With her nose and tail equally held up in the air, Melodypaw started in the direction of camp. Unfortunately, with her nose like that, she couldn't see the branch. And she tripped over it and landed flat on her nose. Like a moron. "Ow." she mumbled, voice muffled.
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Post by Solaris on Nov 11, 2022 0:50:24 GMT
River 9, 2021 | Riley Almost as if the moment played in slow motion, Bayou watched as Melodypaw held her head up high, and walked straight into a thick branch. Instantly, their paws sprung to life, lurching to over to her before they could process what just happened. Nudging Melodypaw to her feet, Bayou breathed out, “Are you alright, are you hurt anywhere? Stars, that was quite the landing!”
Gripping the branch with her teeth, she cleared it out of their path, to prevent a future accident. When she turned to Melodypaw, she noticed a splotch of mud on her chest, and pointed it out with a tail. “Hey, there’s mud on your fur. Do you need help cleaning it off?” |
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Riley
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Post by Riley on Nov 21, 2022 7:31:40 GMT
Melodypaw must have blinked because one moment Bayou was right behind her and the next they were right next to her. Bayou nudged Melodypaw up, asking if she was alright and if she was hurt. Melodypaw's ears burned with embarrassment, and she grumbled out with a pout, "Only my pride. Galepaw can never find out I landed on my face." He'd be mocking her for this for the rest of their lives.
Bayou moved the branch out of the way while Melodypaw watched, sulking. She only noticed the splotch of mud on her chest when they pointed it out, and Melodypaw looked down in surprise. Now that she was aware of it, the wetness sinking through to her skin made her shiver. She debated getting it off herself but, frankly, she had enough tasting mud for the day. "Yes please." she sighed out, raising her chin to make getting at the splotch easier.
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Post by Solaris on Nov 28, 2022 1:54:29 GMT
River 9, 2021 | Riley “Well, whoever Galepaw is, I can keep a secret for you,” Bayou said. She would do the same with Bog; being humiliated in front of him led directly into a lecture that lasted until the sun sunk from the sky. She shuddered at the memory, and moved to reassure Melodypaw with a smile. “It’ll be like nothing happened—we just have to clean you up.”
With Melodypaw’s permission for help, Bayou leaned to inspect the spot, but not without being aware of how… close their proximity was. They pushed the thought away; they were only cleaning mud off, nothing more than that. They made quick work of the damp spot, clearing it off until there were only dry flakes clinging to the fur. But that could be washed out with by bathing in a river, of which was abundant in the area they were in.
“There you are,” said Bayou, humming a pleased sound. She quirked her head around in an exaggerated motion. “Fresh like a newborn kit! Wait, no, maybe cleaner than that…”
Coughing, they glanced at the direction of where Melodypaw was headed. “Maybe we should head to your camp before I make more awkward jokes?” |
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