Zesha
New Warrior
176 Posts
About Me
Hi, I'm Zesha!
> Ciswoman
> She/Her
> 30
> EST
> 11 Cats IRL
> Biromantic/demisexual
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Post by Zesha on Aug 7, 2022 1:06:13 GMT
chrysanthemum • she/her • 31 moons • loner • bioFlower Moon. Day 9. Mid-Morning.
A flash of bright orange and white fur leaped up onto the fence and then came down on the other side gracefully, exiting the confusing patterns of twoleg nests and entering the even more confusing forest. Her big round eyes gazed around as she tried to figure out which way to go. Chrysanthemum had never been into the forest before now, so all the sights and sounds were new to her. Her attention caught briefly on a bird as it flitted from one tree to the next, its song calling out to all those around. But now was not the time to admire the beautiful songs the bird sung. Something was calling to her out in these woods, as if it were physically pulling her to come this way. The fluffy she-cat began to look at the forest floor and noticed that there seemed to be some paths that were more worn than others, as if some other cat had been through before her. A plume of a red tail lifted as she smiled, wondering if perhaps they’d like to be friends with her. It had been so long since she had talked to anyone. Maureen had been gone for several moons now, and she had lost track of when she last saw Hyacinth and how to even get back to the area he lived in, never mind where Tulip lived. Trying to remember some of the things her father had told her when she was younger, she opened her mouth to drink in the scents around her. One path in particular seemed to smell strongly of… something. Unfortunately she wasn’t sure whether it was cat or what it was, but it didn’t smell dusty like dogs usually did, so she figured she would be safe enough heading that way. As she headed down that path, she kept her eyes and ears alert in case she had made a very bad mistake. Solaris
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Post by Solaris on Aug 7, 2022 8:26:13 GMT
P R O W L  He/Him | 48 Moons | Loner A quarter-moon or so had passed since his encounter with the healer, Juniper. He wandered about the forest territory, getting a feel for the area that was now his home before unwittingly finding himself near twolegplace again. When he came upon the fence that represented the entrance from one world to the next, he stared at the wood, and then turned away.
That was yesterday.
He had fallen asleep under the cover of trees, a safe distance away from twolegplace. He was curled up by a sycamore’s roots, dreaming of birds and mice, and how nice they tasted in his jaws. When he woke up, he found himself disappointed that he wasn’t surrounded by a sea of birds and mice; that certainly would have saved the headache of searching for food. But alas, his stomach was bare, and the sky was new. That meant it was time to hunt.
He lifted himself to his paws, arching his back in a stretch. His jaws parted in a large yawn, and he shook away the last remnants of morning weariness. He raised his nose to the air, sniffing for nearby scents. Strangely, he found the smell of another cat. And it wasn’t Juniper’s scent, so who else could it be?
He furrowed his brows and debated on whether to meet this cat or ignore them. But it seemed relatively fresh, and he was curious about this stranger. A moment of deliberation, and he decided he could wait for food. He padded after the scent trail, wondering who it would lead to. |
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Zesha
New Warrior
176 Posts
About Me
Hi, I'm Zesha!
> Ciswoman
> She/Her
> 30
> EST
> 11 Cats IRL
> Biromantic/demisexual
|
Post by Zesha on Aug 7, 2022 15:42:54 GMT
chrysanthemum • she/her • 31 moons • loner • bioThe forest seemed oddly quiet now that she had moved past the bird singing its songs, and she wondered if she should have taken the time to try to find food when she had first set foot in the woods. But it was too late for that now; she had a scent to follow, the scent of another cat. She hoped they were nice, unlike some of the alley cats she had met in Twolegplace. The last thing she needed was a fight when she had no knowledge of how to care for wounds. This caused her to pause for a moment. Should she be seeking out this other cat when she didn’t know what they were like? She stood frozen on the spot as she mulled it over. This could be a very, very bad idea on her part. But then again, if she were afraid of every cat she met, she’d never meet anyone. She would never have met Penny or Maureen. What was a world if she could not enjoy it to some extent? Chrys nodded, steeling her resolve as she started forward on the path once again. Suddenly she caught movement out of the corner of her eye, and she looked up to see a fluffy black cat with some lighter patches, especially around their mane. Honestly they looked gorgeous, and the way the sun was dappling on their coat only made them seem more beautiful. Chrys had never seen a cat with such a coat pattern before. Drumming up her courage, she put a big smile on her face and waved her tail, calling out, “Hello! I’m new to the forest. I hope you don’t mind my being here. It’s been quite some time since I got to speak to another cat, so if you’re up for a chat this morning I’d love to get to know you!” Hm, perhaps that was laying it on a big strong. Oh well, what was done was done.
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Post by Solaris on Aug 8, 2022 2:31:51 GMT
P R O W L He/Him | 48 Moons | Loner Prowl’s fur bristled with caution as he followed the scent, increasingly growing aware of how he moved in the direction of twolegplace. It wasn’t hard to figure out that this stranger was a type of kittypet or stray, wandering some ways away from their home. He lifted his muzzle upward as he padded, stopping short when he caught a flash of orange fur moving between shrubbery. His eyes narrowed, watching the stranger’s movements the way a hawk regarded its prey. He bared his teeth in a warning growl.
A heartbeat later and a ginger-and-white tabby appeared, a wide smile warming her face. Prowl rolled back his lips, the tension in his shoulders falling. He eyed the tabby, quickly leaning in to smell their intensions. The tabby spoke.
Prowl blinked, unsure of what to make of the cat. He had been anticipating someone more ferocious, someone who more guarded. Based on how friendly and forward they were, he presumed they were a kittypet who ventured a little too far.
“A newcomer, you say? I’m a newcomer to the forest myself,” he said, ear twitching.“Came a few moons ago from twolegplace. Where do you come from?”
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Zesha
New Warrior
176 Posts
About Me
Hi, I'm Zesha!
> Ciswoman
> She/Her
> 30
> EST
> 11 Cats IRL
> Biromantic/demisexual
|
Post by Zesha on Aug 8, 2022 12:52:00 GMT
chrysanthemum • she/her • 31 moons • loner • bioRelief flooded through her as the other cat spoke. Chrys hadn’t been sure if they would be hostile or not, like some of the cats in twolegplace were. She wondered if this cat used to be a house cat since he didn’t immediately attack her, but she pushed those thoughts out of her mind for now. There was a cat here and he was speaking to her! That was already more than she could have asked for. “I come from twolegplace, too,” she answered. “I used to live in the park many moons ago with my parents, but had to leave when they had a new litter of kittens. Not enough prey around there. Been a wanderer since then, just sort of floating from place to place, you know?”Her ears twitched as the sound of birds calling came to her again. Her paws itched to hunt, but she was in the middle of a conversation. Instincts warred with manners in her mind, until she got a brilliant idea: what if she simply asked him if he’d like to hunt with her? “Would you be up for hunting with me and catching some breakfast?” she asked. “I’ve been hearing birds since I set foot in the forest, and it’s starting to make me hungry!” She said all of this with a good-natured grin and relaxed posture to show she was no threat at all to the other cat.
Then she realized she hadn’t told him her name. “Oh! And I’m Chrysanthemum, but everyone calls me Chrys for short.”
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Post by Solaris on Aug 8, 2022 20:41:51 GMT
P R O W L He/Him | 48 Moons | Loner “I was a stray. Moved all over the place in twolegplace. Eventually I got tired of my old life, so I decided to live here. Although, I don’t believe I’ve ever seen you before,” he said, carefully placing his words. Meeting another cat from twolegplace could be bad news for his reputation in the forest. He didn’t need his past life as Fang to resurface. He nodded slightly. “My name is Prowl, if you’ve ever heard of that name?”
Of course, the other cat couldn’t place that name because Prowl kept a low profile.
The way she held her posture and grinned at him indicated that she was friendly enough. Though Prowl hadn’t anticipated the company of another cat, hunting with someone else was an opportunity to make more connections, and that was lways a bonus.
“Look at that timing—I was about to hunt for breakfast,” Prowl smiled slightly. “As a head’s up, there’s a bit of a learning curve to hunting in forest terrain compared to in twolegplace if you’ve never hunted here. Although, the quieter ambience of the forest beats the constant noise of twolegplace.”
“And pleased to make the acquaintance, Chrys.”
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Zesha
New Warrior
176 Posts
About Me
Hi, I'm Zesha!
> Ciswoman
> She/Her
> 30
> EST
> 11 Cats IRL
> Biromantic/demisexual
|
Post by Zesha on Aug 9, 2022 16:01:19 GMT
chrysanthemum • she/her • 31 moons • loner • bio she said. “And the name Prowl doesn’t ring any bells. We probably lived on opposite sides of twolegplace or something.” Though she had met some alley cats in her days of living in twolegplace, she had never come across Prowl before, even as Fang. Anything he might have done before was a mystery to Chrys, so if he didn’t want her to know then she never would. “I’ll have to keep that in mind and adjust my paws then,” she meowed. “Thanks for the heads up, I’ve only ever hunted in twolegplace. It’s so noisy there most of the time prey can hardly hear you.” It wasn’t a lie, either; stalking birds on a sidewalk was fairly easy as monsters drove past, drowning the sounds of pawsteps. Or even when she was in the park with dogs barking and twoleg kits hollering, making it easy to sneak up on prey. “Pleased to make yours as well, Prowl.” She bowed her head as a sign of respect. “Now… where would be a good place for us to try to find something that’s foraging on the ground? I don’t fancy climbing a tree just for the birds to fly to another one.”
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Post by Solaris on Aug 10, 2022 6:05:16 GMT
P R O W L He/Him | 48 Moons | Loner “If it’s birds you’re after, your best chance is to pounce on them while they’re on the ground, and then pin them down before they fly off,” said Prowl, flicking his tail at Chrys, beckoning her to follow him. “There’s a clearing in the forest around here. I’ve got a bird or two there. It’s a safe distance from any trees.”
He padded through a row of undergrowth, shouldering past the branches and thorns that prodded at his fur. The tree line thinned out into a bright, sunny glade, a contrast to the rest of the dim forest. He blinked at its intensity, as if he were crawling out of the shadows for the first time.
A flash of movement scuttled out of the bushes, taking a pause behind a bramble bush. He glanced over and saw it was a shrew. Without another word, he quickly fell into a stalking crouch and approached his target, each pawstep a careful motion. The shrew took another nibble at its food then turned, about to scamper back, but not before Prowl pounced at it. He ended the shrew with a single bite.
“It’s a great hunting spot,” said Prowl, nodding. “And with the bountiful prey that comes with newleaf, catching food has been a lot easier.” |
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Zesha
New Warrior
176 Posts
About Me
Hi, I'm Zesha!
> Ciswoman
> She/Her
> 30
> EST
> 11 Cats IRL
> Biromantic/demisexual
|
Post by Zesha on Aug 13, 2022 19:03:17 GMT
chrysanthemum • she/her • 31 moons • loner • bio she said, lifting her tail a little higher at the thought of pouncing on a bird. This forest was even more wooded than the park she had lived at before, though it seemed similar enough that she thought she could keep from blundering too badly. For now, though, she would just follow Prowl and learn from him. The red and white tabby followed him through the undergrowth, the branches of bushes tugging at her long hair and trying to become tangled within it. She just gently pulled to get it loose, though sometimes she left tufts of hair behind where she pulled a bit too hard. Finally the thicket began to thin out and before she knew it, she was emerging into a lovely glade filled with sunlight. She noticed movement in the bushes, but Prowl was faster, slipping into a crouch and dispatching the shrew before it even knew what was really happening. Her tail curled at the tip to show her pleasure that Prowl had caught his prey. “It certainly seems like a great hunting spot,” she meowed, then fell quiet. A bird was pecking at the roots of a tree just beyond the edge of the glade. Without hesitation she crouched, moving forward with quick, quiet movements until she was a few feet from the bird. She wiggled her feet into position and then leaped, landing on top of the bird and biting its neck before it could get out an alarm call. She lifted the bird proudly and brought it back to where Prowl was. “Shall we eat our newly caught breakfast?” she purred.
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Post by Solaris on Aug 15, 2022 2:41:07 GMT
P R O W L He/Him | 48 Moons | Loner Prowl noticed the plump bird by the roots of a tree, and raised a brow as Chrys started creeping after it. He kept himself silent, watching Chrys go through the motions of locate, stalk, pounce, and then the moment of recknoning—the kill, a quick bite to the neck, so fast the bird couldn’t escape. He nodded approvingly at Chrys’ catch.
A disconcerting noise emerged from Prowl’s stomach, answering the question before he could. He blinked, a slight embarrassment showing on his face, before he cleared his throat in an attempt to keep his some semblance of dignity. “Yes, we should eat before the sun rises above our heads, and to keep any stomachs quiet.”
He lied on the ground, his paws resting out in front to hold his shrew, and his head bending over for a bite. A smile warmed his face as juices shot in-between his teeth. The most rewarding part of any hunt was the satisfaction of the kill going down your stomach. No other feeling could quite match that one.
He glanced over at Chrys. “That was a rather clean kill there, I’m impressed. How do the birds in the forest compare to the ones in twolegplace, I wonder?” |
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Zesha
New Warrior
176 Posts
About Me
Hi, I'm Zesha!
> Ciswoman
> She/Her
> 30
> EST
> 11 Cats IRL
> Biromantic/demisexual
|
Post by Zesha on Aug 20, 2022 15:27:13 GMT
chrysanthemum • she/her • 31 moons • loner • bioChrys stifled a laugh at the noise Prowl’s stomach made. She was surprised her own wasn’t making the same noise—it had been a while since she last ate, possibly a day or two even. She had been so busy traversing twolegplace that she hadn’t really stopped to think about food until she had reached the forest and heard the birds singing overhead. Now she held a lovely, plump blackbird between her paws. Settling down near Prowl, she began plucking the feathers from her bird. That was the only bad thing about birds, in her opinion. Once she had stripped it of all its feathers she tucked in, enjoying the warmth from a fresh kill and the juiciness of the meat. A twoleg might have said it tastes “just like chicken.” Each bite seemed more enjoyable than the last. Swallowing her mouth full, she answered, “The birds in twolegplace aren’t very bright, but I think the ones here taste better. Probably because they’re eating less twoleg garbage. And I think my kill was so clean because there’s not a lot of stuff for me to brush against here—I had started in the clearing and only got near the bushes and ferns once I pounced on the bird. It was already too late by then. I’m sure I’ll have a bit more trouble when I’m in the thick of the forest.”She took a few more bites of her bird before asking, “How long have you been out here in the forest? Was it difficult getting used to it after living in twolegplace?” Chrys could see where it might be. In twolegplace there were always places to hide, or twolegs to dupe into giving out food. Here it was do it yourself or die.
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Post by Solaris on Aug 22, 2022 3:55:13 GMT
P R O W L He/Him | 48 Moons | Loner He nodded along, switching between bites of his shrew and lifting his head up to feign his interest. In his experience, the best way to charm a cat was by maintaining eye contact—with breaks in-between, so as not to disturb the speaker—and let them speak their thoughts uninterrupted. Even if he wasn’t listening with full attention, he learned to hone in on certain sentences, ones that might lead into another question.
“I think I like it better in the forest. Forest food is much tastier than any of the twoleg filth back at twolegplace,” said Prowl, after swallowing the last morsels of his shrew. He swept his gaze around, scanning for a movement in the underbrush that would indicate another small critter, but the shrubs appeared painfully stiff.
“If you ever venture too far into the thick of the forest, it’s easy to get lost.” Prowl stood up then gestured at the surrounding trees with his fluffy tail. “What with all of the trees towering far above you, all of them looking the same. In a way, they remind me of the tall dens of twolegplace, but they don’t have its vibrant colors.”
He arched up his back in a stretch, then glanced over when Chrys asked a question.
He considered his answer, head tilted, chin jutting out. “A few moons or so, I’d say. I think it took that many moons to get used to living in the forest. Should you stay here, K recommend finding some sort of cover—a log, a ditch or a thick bush, perhaps. This will help when rain comes.”
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Zesha
New Warrior
176 Posts
About Me
Hi, I'm Zesha!
> Ciswoman
> She/Her
> 30
> EST
> 11 Cats IRL
> Biromantic/demisexual
|
Post by Zesha on Aug 25, 2022 17:24:29 GMT
chrysanthemum • she/her • 31 moons • loner • bioChrys was none the wiser that Prowl likely didn’t listen to every single sentence she said, though it wouldn’t have mattered too much; she had learned long ago from Maureen that sometimes minds wander, and it wasn’t the fault of either party usually. Minds were just like that. They caught on a thought and away a cat drifted, as if they were floating downstream or something like that. She was happy enough with him half-listening and not rudely interjecting every few seconds like some twolegplace cats liked to. “I don’t understand why twolegs leave such garbage everywhere,” she mewed, shaking her head. “All the birds and mice and rats get into it and then it makes them taste bad for us. I guess twolegs aren’t that bright though.” Some of the things they ate did taste pretty good, but a lot of it wasn’t good for anything to eat. She remembered spitting out some shiny stuff that had been in a mouse’s stomach once. Twolegs called it a wrapper. “I’ll have to find some reference points then. I don’t want to get lost, that’s for sure,” she said, gazing about at the trees. Many of them looked the same, but every now and then there would be a noticeable difference, such as the one tree whose limb bowed out oddly, as if it had been weighed down by something at one point to make the dip in the tree limb. Whatever had caused it, it was a good landmark for her to use if she ever got turned around to know she was near this clearing. Seeing him get up and stretch, she felt the need to do the same. It felt good to feel the rush of blood into her limbs, warming them slightly. “I don’t intend on going back to twolegplace anytime soon, so thank you. I’ll have to look for some sort of cover. I hope it doesn’t rain anytime soon though, long fur is such a pain to get dry!” she said with a laugh. Her hazel eyes looked up at his face and she asked, “What do you usually do this time of day, now that you’re not in twolegplace?”
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Post by Solaris on Aug 26, 2022 4:44:35 GMT
P R O W L He/Him | 48 Moons | Loner Prowl snorted at Chrys’ comment about twoleg garbage. “They leave behind garbage the same way we make dirt. I suppose the real question is, why don’t twolegs make their dirt in carrionplace instead of leaving it everywhere else?”
Twolegs had a funny habit of ruining things, like the time they felled a giant tree, and nearly crushed Prowl, or the time they chased off Prowl’s group from their territory. Even the food they freely offered to cats tasted disgusting. Why were they always so nosy about everything? He spat out his disdain towards twolegs with a dramatic huff.
He glanced at the sky. Since they were in a clearing of trees, it was much easier to tell the time of day or examine the clouds for signs of weather. It was like any pristine, perfect blue day, with feathery strikes of white.
“Doesn’t look like it will rain soon. That will give you time to find a shelter,” he said, lowering his head to level with Chrys.
“Well, after breakfast, I usually take a nap. The forest is big enough that cats don’t often run into me and disturb me. Other times, I travel around, get used to navigating the forest.” Then he paused before continuing. “It’s less busy here compared to twolegplace, but you know, the trees are whispering about odd things. Something about a group of cats living on the other side of a river.”
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Zesha
New Warrior
176 Posts
About Me
Hi, I'm Zesha!
> Ciswoman
> She/Her
> 30
> EST
> 11 Cats IRL
> Biromantic/demisexual
|
Post by Zesha on Aug 26, 2022 18:25:53 GMT
chrysanthemum • she/her • 31 moons • loner • bio Chrys murmured. It just didn’t make sense to her to leave things out in the open like twolegs did. But they were mostly hairless and walked on two legs, so they were already very strange to begin with. Momentarily she wondered how her sister Tulip was doing with her twolegs. She had always found it hard to live in the wild, so when they had found a kind twoleg that seemed to love Tulip it was a relief. The tug at her heart pulled her toward twolegplace, but another part of her pulled her closer to the forest. The hustle and bustle of twolegplace just seemed too much to her these days. As Prowl looked up, she did too. The sky was a brilliant blue, the feathery wisps of cloud white, the makings of a beautiful day. She could see one spot in the sky seemed lighter than the rest and guessed that was where the sun was, slowly moving closer to sunhigh. “That’s good,” she said, her gaze falling back to Prowl. “It’ll give me a chance to become a bit more familiar with the area too.”Her ears burned a bit when he mentioned that the forest was big enough that cats didn’t often run into him and disturb him. “Sorry for bothering you this morning,” she said with an apologetic smile. “What’s this talk of a group of cats living on the other side of the river, though? Is it a big group of cats?” Her interest was piqued, her embarrassment gone now that her attention was fixed on the group of cats by the river.
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