Who Turned Out the Lights?

[siren]

There were excited screams and squeals, stern voices quieting them and planning things out, and solemn faces watching from the shadows, huddled among others with damp paws and scraggly fur, most of their heads down. The journey here alone was no party, and now they found themselves in a stuffy, dank dark cave that smelled of moldy water and had no smell of nearby prey.Though it was nice and spacious, that was possibly the only good thing about the place. Going on a journey, you wanted to be energetic, but it was gloomy and depressing in this hellhole. All of these thoughts and more were racing through Falconclaw's mind, but only one really struck him, only the one thought hung around and made him think: get out of here. The echoing was too much on his ears, the rambunctious apprentices barreling into him with no warning whatsoever, the she-cats talking in those high-pitched, hushed voices, and the younger tom warriors rolling around on the stone floor. It was all too much commotion for this tom. He refused to sit around and listen to this torture, so he simply waited for the perfect time to slip away. A cave would be fun to explore, wouldn't it? And anyways, they would have to know how to get through here, so why not explore? Falconclaw has noticed many holes in the roof, allowing small amounts of light to filter in, which would guide the way, and he saw a narrow path behind him and off to the left; he would love to see where that brought him.

"Ow! You hit me for real!" screeched a small apprentice, batting with unsheathed claws at another one, hissing furiously, while a motherly looking she-cat came to break them up. It was rapid-fire events, but in Falconclaw's eyes it was slow motion, and he had been planning his escape for twenty minutes now, it was perfect. As all heads turned and the others were too far away to notice anything, the long-legged tom took long, silent leaps across the floor, his breath catching as he nearly slipped in a shallow puddle, but he quickly regained balance and slipped out of sight. Quiet immediately consumed the small area, it was blocked off from anything, a bit dark but with enough light to see. Panting from the quick, spastic sprint, Falconclaw glanced around the corner, and no one had even noticed him run off. Good.

And then, turning once more, the tom's eyes widened in awe. The mystical sight before him was unbearably beautiful. Purple and blue crystals lined the walls of the cavern just ahead, and sunlight flickered in through the ceiling, illuminating the crystals, and they shimmered more beautifully than snow. Falconclaw felt happy for a moment, stepping daintily forward, his claws sheathed, his mouth wide open, as he stared up and around, then slunk off to the side to flop down. The lanky tom awkwardly tucked his legs under body, curling up and thumping his tail contentedly on the cave floor, still unable to believe that this had been here. There were so many things to make this world better, and for some odd reason the Clans never knew how to find these lovely things. But, the feelings of happiness quickly wore off, even though he was alone, he noticed a few other entryways; some cat could wander in here at any time, or come looking for him. He assumed his grumpy face, and stared up at the ceiling, dazed.

[cinder]

Brindlefoot had to escape, that was all there was to it. All of the voices and whispers were bouncing off of the walls of the cave, into her ears and then around in her skull. This was an odd place, she looked around with awe and a small amount of annoyance. The noise was becoming deafening, if she didn’t find a way out soon, she was going to go crazy. At that moment, another cat brushed past her, brushing her soft fur the wrong way. A small growl snuck out between her teeth; that was the last straw.

Just then there was a commotion from behind her. A pair of apprentices had apparently had enough as well. All that was visible from here was a tussling ball of fur, but it was enough, this was just the chance she needed. While all the attention was on the young fighting pair, she slipped quietly away, following the far wall and down the nearest passage. She followed it for a long way, winding this way and that before she saw a dim light up ahead. As she came to the mouth of the tunnel, she stopped short, and her breath caught in her throat.

The room was full of crystals that shown with a brilliance that she had never before seen. The sunlight coming through the holes in the celling of the room danced across the surface of the crystals and made them sparkle and shine like true diamonds. Brindlefoot sat down slowly, her eyes huge and round with wonder at the beauty of it all. She curled her tail delicately around her paws and felt only peace and serenity around her, all the chaos frombefore forgotten.

[siren]

Still trying to understand why the Clan leaders blocked the cats from living in such beautiful places, Falconclaw sighed, a legitimate happy sigh, and relaxed all of his muscles, gently closing his eyes and watching the sunlight flicker in kaleidoscope shapes through his eyelids. It was extremely rare for Falconclaw to be happy, and yet, it had happened, him sitting, rather thrilled, in a world of his own.

All of this was interrupted, however, when he shifted positions, and also rotated his ears slightly, just in time to hear the faint clicking of claws trot carefully across the cave floor. It was all too good to be true, and now it came to an end. The slim tom opened his eyes casually, and tried to hide his shock; a rather pretty she-cat was the 'intruder.' She was being quiet enough, so he decided he wouldn't throw a fit over her mere presence, though he was ready to throw a fit if she disturbed his peaceful place.

Standing slowly, Falconclaw adjusted his slightly crumpled ears, and shook out his paws, followed by a quick swish of his tail. He wasn't sure if he should speak to her, and decided against it. She would need to get over the shock of finding another cat in here anyways, and although he loved to see it happen, since they were alone he wouldn't fluster her.

[batman]

The steady dripping of water off stalagtites caused Sootwhisker to cringe each time. Water was one of the things he hated with a passion, and could not stand the wet stuff. As he tried to avoid a skirmish between apprentices, it maneuvered him over towards the source of the sound. He flinched as he felt the pressure of a drop on his head and shivered as the wet droplet streamed down the back of his neck. Trying to avoid the throng of cats as well as the dripping stalagtites, Sootwhisker found himself backed into a little tunnel. At least it was safe from the nasty water.

The cat turned his head around to smooth his fur and get rid of the drop that continued down his back. He didn't mind water when it was still and in a pool or something where he could drink it without getting wet, but this cave was one of his worst nightmares. It was dark, which didn't really bother him, but it was also crowded and dripping. The dripping was the main thing that bothered him. He tried to avoid water at all costs except when he was particularly thirsty, but this was just rediculous. It seemed as if the water were trying to follow him. Of course, the crowd of cats filtering through the mouth of the cave didn't help either. They were all trying to avoid the rain that fell relentlessly outside.

He felt bad about abandoning the cats that might need help in the main cave, but his curiosity got the better of him.Without a second thought, he followed the twisting tunnel. After a while, he could see a faint glowing up ahead. Turning his head to the side with curiosity yet again, he followed it, picking up speed as he went. As he came into the opening, he marveled at the sparkling crystals that lined the walls. He was still with shock until he sensed the presense of other cats. With surprise, he took in the rest of his surroundings, seeing one cat sitting while the other was just arriving, like him. The one that was arriving was a beautiful she-cat, almost as beautiful as the crystals that glittered on the wall. It took a second before he could move his gaze onto the other cat. He had seen this cat before. His name was Falconclaw or something of the sort. If he remembered right, this cat was quite a pawful. He was cranky and ungrateful, which was pretty much the opposite of Sootwhisker's personality. He only hoped they wouldn't clash too much. He wouldn't want to hurt the cat.

[siren]

Falconclaw suppressed a groan as yet another cat entered the marvelous room, and his fur stood on end, and he arched his back slightly. Though his eyes were pale, they were flaming with fury. Taking one slow, pointed step forward, he took a deep breath and then spoke in an exasperated but surprisingly calm voice.

"Now, look, I only wanted some peace and quiet. So either you sit your furry ass down and don't say a word, or you both leave me be. I found this place, I got here first, and frankly, I'm a strong believer in personal space, something neither of you obviously understand, standing there like a bunch of mousebrains with your jaws hanging open like it's the strangest thing to find that someone is already here." Breathing heavily now, the tom's tail lashed back and forth, and he inhaled sharply, then began again, his voice not so calm this time. "So like I said, stop gaping like a bunch of buffoons and sit down and enjoy the quiet, or scram and scream laugh your fool heads off about what a joy this bloody journey is!"

Finally complete, Falconclaw gave a mock grin before flopping down again and yawning heavily, then simply closing his eyes and leaving the two cats to decide what had just happened.

[cinder]

Brindlefoot sat there with her tail curled around her feet staring around the room with large eyes. She was filled with wonder and amazement at the beauty of the place that she had found. She was staring at a particularly bright spot high on the wall of the cavern, when she heard it. Brindlefoot froze as the sound of another cat shifting nearby registered in her brain. She sat perfectly still, looking at the colors that danced outward from the crystal, but not truly seeing them. She scented the air, there was definitely another cat in the room with her, but she could not put a name on the scent. “Should I speak to him?” she thought to herself. But she decided against it, he had not spoken to her, and he was probably her to seek peace too.Never taking her eyes of of her spot on the wall; she relaxed again as she heard him settle back into stillness and felt the tension go out of the air.

But the moment of perfection was short lived. A few moments later another cat entered the room. Brindlefoot was instantly filled with annoyance. Was there nowhere to go to get away from everyone? Was there no peace and privacy? The end of her tail began to twitch with her irritation. This time she did take her eyes off of the sparkling brightness in the wall. But her eyes were no longer sparkling with wonder and delight, now they were narrowed with annoyance and irritation at being disturbed. She stood, tail lashing, and walked closer to the two other cats and sat down. She took in the newcomer as she glared. He was a smoke grey tom with smooth fur. Brindlefoot had seen him around, but had not had any close dealings with him herself. Even though he did not look like a threat, that did not lessen her current feelings any.

It was at that moment that the tom that had been in the cavern first opened his mouth and spoke… "Now, look, I only wanted some peace and quiet. So either you sit your furry ass down and don't say a word, or you both leave me be. I found this place, I got here first, and frankly, I'm a strong believer in personal space, something neither of you obviously understand, standing there like a bunch of mousebrains with your jaws hanging open like it's the strangest thing to find that someone is already here." Brindefoot closed her mouth as it was hanging slightly open, and glared as the feeling came flooding back to her. He continued "So like I said, stop gaping like a bunch of buffoons and sit down and enjoy the quiet, or scram and scream laugh your fool heads off about what a joy this bloody journey is!" Now Brindlefoot was annoyed, irritated, and offended. Her face turned from an expression of shock, to a dark glare. If looks could kill, this tom would be dead on the spot. She had done nothing to disturb him, nor had she done anything to deserve such a speech.

“I have done nothing to disturb you. I will stay here as long as I like and leave only when I wish. Not on your command. At the moment you are the one causing a racket and disturbing the peace of this beautiful place.” She glared for a moment more and then turned to the grey tom. “But I agree, I came here to get away and find some sanity and peace and quiet. Please do not disrupt that.” Before either of them could answer, she stood, stomped back to her place, and laid down with her back to them, tucking her feet delicately beneath her and fixing her eyes back on her sparkling spot on the wall.

[siren]

Falconclaw gave a pointed sniff, then lashed his tail, narrowing his eyes at both cats. "I never really said you did disturb me. I'm just giving you a fair warning that I won't tolerate it," he said, his head held high. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going back to my happy place." With a flick of both ears, he spun on the spot and stalked back over to the somewhat sunken place he had been resting, and flopped down once more, hardly visible in the darkness of this spot. The tom looked out at the crystals, done making any contact with these newcomers, and yawned silently, his tongue curling up. Falconclaw acted as if he was completely alone, and shut his eyes again, smirking at his own little speech.

(Ugh. This is horrid, just horrid. It hardly meets the word minimum, but I just...I honestly don't know what else to do with him. Forgive me...)

[batman]

Sootwhisker shook his head slowly and sat down a ways from the two cats. Not that he was doing it for their benefit. He just didn't want them to complain much about him being there. "I'm not disturbing anybody. We all know that it's crowded back there, and you shouldn't blame us for wanting to get away from it all, exactly like you." He spoke to Falconclaw, narrowing his eyes slightly. Already this tom was getting on his nerves.

His voice was little more than a whisper when he spoke again. "It doesn't matter who got here first, anyways. It's a cave for Starclan's sake." Sootwhisker rolled his eyes and curled his forepaws under his chest, returning his gaze to the crystals. Despite the downpour outside, sunlight still filtered through the cave and hit the crystals, making them, in turn, reflect the light at odd angles throughout the cave in a multitude of colors.

[cinder]

Brindlefoot laid in her place for a long while, left alone in her own mind. The room was quiet except for the soft sounds of water all around them. She had forgotten all about the presence of the other cats, and only thought for herself.

Slowly and leasurly she got to her feet and softly padded to a crystal that stuck out from the wall infront of her. The crystal was about chest height to her, and was full of color, it held all the hues of the rainbow and then some. It was bathed in a patch of pale light that filtered down upon it and made it all the more bright. Brindlefoot sat infront of it just staring for a long moment, and then without thinking delicately reached out a paw and touched the small rainbow.

As it shifted in the wall the colors danced around the room like the inside of a kilidoscope. Shards of light bounced of all the surfaces that they could reach. Brindlefoot watched the colors dance as she touched it again, this time watching out into the room. But in her moment of delight, she froze as the sparks flicked off of the eyes of the tom that had been so aggressive and arrogant. Brindlefoot steeled herself for that wrath that she was sure was going to come.

[siren]

"Pardon me for having a desperation for some peace and quiet. It's ridiculous how hard these things are to find, and let me just say, I never said you did anything, I'm just giving you a fair warning that if you do, I'll handle it my own way," Falconclaw muttered, quickly licking a forepaw and then sitting upright. The lanky tom stared around the cave some more, grinning cruelly at the sparkling gems, when he spotted one beside him, hiding in the shadows, which he pawed out of a shallow puddle. It had no color at all, but it glinted as if it did, reflected from the actual colored ones, and he batted it across the floor, sliding it towards Brindlefoot. "The leaders need to find cool places like this for camps," he said with a smirk, not acknowledging the other tom's presence. Blinking pale green eyes, the tom sat back against the wall, yawning silently.

Falconclaw squinted as the colors burst around the room, and swept a paw across his eyes, shocked at the sudden explosion of beauty. Instead of flipping out, he simply smiled when she moved it again. He could see the fear in her eyes as she realized she may have done something to piss him off, but he simply nodded in approval, and glanced around, finding a similar, slightly smaller one nearby himself. He butted it gently with his head, and the same rainbow of colors spread across the spacious cavern. "Lovely, isn't it?" he asked with a smirk. He could be the weirdest tom; flipping out one moment, the next your best friend. And now he was the best friend, like nothing had ever happened.

[batman]

Sootwhisker was glad that Falconclaw didn't practically rip his face off with his words. The tom was known for doing such things and Sootwhisker did kind of pull his tail, figuratively speaking. Without warning, a small drop of water fell from the ceiling, landing on Sootwhisker's head, causing him to jump back with a mrrow of annoyance. He hated water, even the little bit that had fallen. The drop continued down Sootwhisker's head and he drew his paw over it to keep it from moving anywhere.

As he calmed down, he saw that Brindlefoot was moving a crystal, making the prisms of light maneuver around the room. He was more surprised to see that Falconclaw was doing the same with a crystal that lay beside him. Now that was a sight he never thought he'd witness. Falconclaw was actually being civil, if not giddy. Maybe not quite giddy, he thought as he sat back on his haunches, following the colors that flickered as Brindlefoot moved the crystal.

Sootwhisker sighed in awe and reached out his own paw, moving a smaller crystal that protruded from the wall beside him. Even more colors exploded across the room as he moved it. When Falconclaw spoke, Sootwhisker knew he wasn't adressing him. He was more than likely solely adressing Brindlefoot, as many toms before him had probably done in the hopes of catching the she-cat's eye. Sootwhisker himself wanted to, but he wasn't quite as bold as the other tom.

[cinder]

Brindlefoot was suprised. Falconclaw had not bitten her head off or come after her as she had expected, but had given his approval of her action. As the hues danced around the room the effect was magical. She was even further shocked when he spoke to her. "Lovely isn't it?" Those were not at all the words she expected to come from his mouth. Before she could think to stop it, a small purr of agreement escaped her. Suprised at herself she ducked her head in embarasment and nodded "yes it is" she mewed softly.

She sat quietly for a long time just watching the colors dance, but there was a tension in the air between the two toms. Toms always acted funny around her and she couldn't figure out why.

[siren]

Falconclaw tipped his slender head to the side as he mused at the spectrum of colors dancing around the room, so very gracefully. He had quite a weakness for these things, these sentimental little things that reminded him of the few happy moments in his childhood. Not realizing as he did so, he sighed an obviously contented sigh, then quickly looked around at the two other cats, panicking if they had heard it. But then, he relaxed his shoulders and thought, why not keep up the nice guy act for a pretty lady? I might get in well with this other tom to, who seems timid, but still...seems to think pretty highly of himself.

"Lovely indeed. It's one of those small things that make certain cats happy, you know? Like me. It makes me happy," Falconclaw said, realizing suddenly that he felt very comfortable around this she-cat. And then, his attention diverted from her to gaze at the tom. He felt tense in this guy's presence, for reasons he couldn't quite figure out. He didn't want to ruin his tough guy reputation, but then, he wanted to be kind to the she-cat...what to do? He ended up looking rather silly, turning his head back and forth. "I think I need...I need some fresh air," he muttered, just barely audible, and trotted swiftly towards the direction he entered, heading for the mouth of the cave.

Slipping around the thong of cats chattering around him, he nearly stumbled over a trio of identical kits battering each other with fluffy, tiny paws. Hiding his amusement, chuckling ever so softly, Falconclaw pressed onward, slipping outside and turning immediately to the right, resting against the outside of the cave. Staring up at the slightly cloudy, blue sky was calming to him. Once he was outside, he realized he liked this far better than even the glimmering cave.

[cinder]

Brindlefoot sat still for a moment with her head cocked to the side trying to make sense of what had just happened. Why had he acted that way? After a few minutes, she shifted her attention back to Sootwhisker and muttered a quiet "excuse me" to him as she stood and padded to the tunnel that Falconclaw had left through. She followed his scent as she trotted through the tunnel and out into the main cavern that now made up the camp.

She stopped for a moment and watched a group of kittens wrestle in a ball of fur and tiny claws. The writhing ball of fluff emitted frequent squeals and growls. A queen sat nearby watching the kits lovingly. Brindlefoot dipped her head to the mother as she trotted by chuckling to herself.

Brindlefoot trotted out of the mouth of the cave and into the fresh air of the outdoors. She briefly closed her eyes and took a deep breath in. She trotted straight out of the cavern and sat a few tail lengths away with her back to the opening, tail curled delicately around her paws. For once she was not really paying attention to her surrounding, she was simply marveling at the fact that there was no rain falling fron the sky. Brindlefoot tilted her head back and looked up to watch the clouds drifting over her head, drifting with no home, just the way she felt at the moment.