The Nearing of an End

[. s p o r e l e t t ♪]

Late in the afternoon, the sun hung low in the sky as if too weary to remain in its lofty seat any longer. Its bloody rays reflected and caught on the waters of the river, turning the broad current to a sweep of red and gold. Willows and rushes swayed on the banks, casting pools of shadow that blotted out the radiant glow of the water. The air was warm and heavy, laced with the droning lull of insects and a few last snatches of birdcall. Soon those piping notes would fall silent, and the hum of the insects would increase and diversify until it was every bit as clear and complex as the daytime chorus. Afternoon would fade into sunset very shortly, drawing the day to a close, ushering the night.

Ushering in the dark.

Night could be quite beautiful in its own right, just as much as day. It was more secretive, mysterious. Almost seductive, if that was what you wanted. But the cat sitting alone on the bridge didn't care to be seduced. Spottedfur had come only to think and to be alone for a short while before returning to camp. Every once in a while, it was nice to take some time for himself and simply be. He may have been a seemingly tireless warrior, a cat who pulled his weight and more in the Clan, but sometimes he too simply sat, just watched and thought. He would never have admitted it, but it was tiring to be amongst his Clanmates, to be a part of the bustle and yet hold himself apart. Sitting alone on the Twoleg bridge, staring out at the darkening waters of the river, Spottedfur relaxed somewhat and enjoyed the setting of the sun.

[Yoko]

The sun was a lovely orange berry, perfectly round, high and untouchable. As it sank gracefully, it set the world ablaze. Even the leaves and reeds, which were so bright and green earlier, seemed tinged with black as if lightly burned. The river bubbled along smoothly, not in overflow nor in drought. Perfect for swimming.

She slipped in smoothly, one paw at a time, shivering as she let the cool water fill her snow white and stone gray fur and brush the flesh beneath. She even felt a sigh escape her jaws, though whether it was audible or not was no concern to her. She sank as gracefully as she felt the sun had. Effortlessly, she shifted from walking, to paddling, her head steadily afloat.

The exercise was taking the weight off of her paws, just as her friend had suggested it would. It also took the weight off her mind. She had been worrying her pretty little head off about Graypaw's training, and Shellclaw's over-protectiveness, and Spottedfur's few and far between visits. Now in the cool water, everything seemed to float, just within paw's reach if she felt like grabbing any thoughts, but she was not worried about it at all.

Her mind drifted to Pebblepaw's fishing technique. Going all the way under? Isn't that dangerous? she recalled asking. But she had never tried. Without much thought, she stopped paddling and closed her eyes. Her muzzle sank in slowly, then the rest of her face, then her ears filled with the river. She opened her amber eyes. It was beautiful down there. She could see the fish! And the glow of sunset light rippled along the bottom of the river, which was not very far down. But as beautiful as it was, she could not hold her breath long and she paddled her way up.

And just when she thought she had let everything go. Just when the beauty of the river below had filled her head and pushed everything out...there he was. He was a dark shape on the twoleg bridge above, but she knew him instantly, as if she had known he was there all along, but in truth she did not...She felt her heart pound and her pelt tingle, and she knew she had to get out. To be near him.

She swam around to the RiverClan side of the shore. With great effort, she hauled herself from the river, pelt full of water and dripping, but she did not shake. Instead, she circled her way onto the bridge and headed, slowly, directly for Spottedfur. He would not get away, not this time.

Her pelt sleek against her sides from the water, she stood next to him. Her amber eyes half-lowered, drinking in the sight of him she mewed, "Good evening, Spottedfur? Enjoying the view?"

[. s p o r e l e t t ♪]

All that reached his ears was the sound of insects, and the slap of water on rock, the slide of the river as it swept underneath him. Scarcely a breath of wind stirred the gently waving trees, so that they were almost completely silent. He could see the occasional movement below, a flicker of silver in the river that was a fish coming to the surface, or a twitch of grass that announced a vole or mouse. But soon his gaze migrated upward, so that he was simply gazing at the play of colour on the horizon as the sun slid closer to the ground. He watched it for some time, simply seeing the dusky oranges and fading blues as his thoughts wandered. To hunting, to training his apprentice. To her.

It seemed that he thought of her far too often. He didn't like the way she-cats tended to slide into a tom's thoughts and take over, pushing out the others so they could move in. Or at least, this one did. He was frustrated with her- no, with himself. He should have been able to ignore her. Should have been able to forget about her face, about her scent for one damned second. He had a Clan to hunt for, an apprentice to train, and his own goals to pursue. None of them involved getting serious with a certain amber-eyed she-cat, and he didn't need her distracting him.

Of course, there was no reason he couldn't slip behind the warriors' den with her for a night, have his way with her, and settle that need that she sparked inside him. One night and he could be done with her, get on with his life... except he knew he couldn't. She-cats like her always expected more. It wasn't worth the moons of lingering tension just so he could enjoy himself for a night. Much easier, much simpler to just keep things light between them for a while longer. Until her paw healed, until those eyes stopped being quite so appealing. Given time enough, he wouldn't find her scent sparked quite the same feeling in him. She would find someone else, and he would move on. He needed only to wait.

He heard the moment she entered the water, slipping into the slow greenleaf river to swim and rest her paw. She thought she was alone, he could tell. She hadn't noticed him there, on the Twoleg bridge. He could go now, and she would never know that he had been watching her. But he stayed for just a few moments more, watching her as she sank below the surface and then came up again. And he saw her look up, notice him sitting there. Saw her make her way to the edge of the river and come to join him. The time for slipping quietly away had passed.

Spottedfur tensed slightly as soon as she saw him, his air of melancholy gone. He watched her approach coldly, almost stiffly, without a trace of warmth or welcome lingering in his eyes. Only cool politeness resided there as he watched her without comment. Her paw looked better. There was still a scab there, dark tainting what had been white and perfect, but the swelling was gone. It would heal. The she-cat herself appeared better already, sauntering towards him with her eyes lidded and intense. He wanted none of her, he told himself. Just because they were Clanmates didn't mean they were friends. "The view is indeed lovely," he answered coolly. "I was just leaving, but I'll leave you to it." He got to his paws, intent on leaving Puddlepelt with her sunset and returning to camp, to a piece of fresh kill and a soft nest. Simple pleasures, ones a cat could take comfort in. There was nothing simple about Puddlepelt.

OoC// Round one! Will Spottedfur be coerced into staying? XD

[Yoko]

He was being cold, which did not deter the young she-warrior in the least. He could put up a front, but he could not erase the memories. The way they had looked at each other when they had met in this very place a little more than a half-moon ago. Nor could he destroy the memory of his saving her, and the care he had showed. How he had stayed there with her...

Trying to leave already?

She was a bit stung by this, but instinctively she slid over to block his way, a near invisible scowl on her face, amber eyes shining. She could step aside now. There were other toms.

But not like him...Alright, if I'm going to do this it'll have to be all out.

She smiled lightly, almost teasing, as if his trying to slip away was a game. Her eyes half lowered, ears flat against the sides of her head and weighed down with water. And slowly she edged her way towards him, careful to block his way as much as she could. If he went running past her now, that was definitely not a good sign. Yet she was certain he was too proud a cat to pull something so cowardly. She looked down a little for a moment. Gracefully, she swept her right paw before her left one so that it rested daintily, hardly touching the ground.

"But why leave? The sunset is big enough for two cats to share. I'd be selfish to claim it all for myself."

And with the force of a battle strike she shifted her gaze up, meeting the tom's green gaze. You know you want to stay. So stay. Daring him to take a chance. This was special. They were. And she wouldn't let him smother it without ever understanding it.

[. s p o r e l e t t ♪]

Spottedfur almost continued walking when Puddlepelt sauntered over to block his way. It would have been easy to simply change direction and skirt around her to continue his path. He would have been gone within moments, and there was nothing she could have done about it. Yes, it would have been simple, like taking a piece of fresh-kill from a kit. Unfortunately, pride refused to let him take the easy way out. Troublesome emotion; his life would probably be much easier if he were to abandon it. But it was all he had, really, all he had had for seasons now, and he wasn't going to give it up just to save himself a bit of effort. So, as always, Spottedfur was boxed in, forced onto the more difficult path by his own ego. There was probably some irony to be found in there, but at the moment he couldn't be troubled to find it. He had larger fish to catch.

She was a bit annoyed now, he could tell. There was fire in those amber eyes as she sidled closer, graceful despite her injury. And though her smile was light, almost impish, her eyes were bold and intense as any battle-ready warrior's. It challenged him, even as it drew him in.

A tom would have to be dead for a moon not to feel the pull of it.

Spottedfur knew that he had stopped moving, had simply stood there ever since she moved to block his path. He made no move towards her; he didn't intend to. Yet pride would not let him move away. "Being selfish doesn't come into it," he stated evenly. "I was finished with the view in any case; I relinquish it to you freely." But though his words bespoke of his leaving, he made no move to go. Was it simply pride keeping him, or was it something more? Had it been her brother challenging him to remain, he would have brushed by without another thought. Then again, he didn't care at all what Shellclaw thought of him. And it mattered what his sister did, though he didn't want it to. It mattered far too much.

OoC// Grrr, curse my stupid slowness. We had all the time in the world, and now you have college and we're trying to finish up the day. >.< On another note, d'awww, I love Spottyfur. ;O;

[Yoko]

The sky was darkening even now. That orange globe lowering steadily, oblivious to pounding hearts and tingling lower bellies, oblivious to the fact that a strong young heart was teetering on a cold cliff. He seemed so unmoved. While it struck her heart, her resolve was unshaken.

Her amber eyes searched his leaf-green ones. What a mystery he was! How could he deny the strength of this feeling? This emotion that even now carried her forward despite the slight ache of her bruised forepaw. It filled her stricken heart, and made her eyes flash in determination once more. It made her bolder, more direct.

[/b]"Spottedfur, I must confess that the beauty of the sunset means nothing to me. It is lost without your company to share it with. I want you to stay. Would you honestly deny me the simple pleasue of your company? Do you find me so repulsive?!"[/b] she felt her voice breaking a little, strained by the flush of emotions.

She had said it, and now she would not be able to take it back. She was forced to wait, heart-pounding, for some response. Would he crush her beneath his paws like dirt? Toss her into the river contemptuously, or simply glide by with a proud head high? The weight of her fears was beating down on her chest now. Did she even dare to hope...that he might really stay?[/color]

[. s p o r e l e t t ♪]

Spottedfur winced internally at Puddlepelt's accusing words. Had he hurt her without meaning to? That hadn't been his intention. The distant warrior had hoped to avoid this entirely, to leave the path they were heading down together before it got to this point. There were a lot of toms in RiverClan, Puddlepelt could find another easily. She was a beautiful and competent cat, and he didn't doubt that she could have any tom she wanted. Any tom but him. He didn't want to get into the complications that came with having a mate. And she-cats were never satisfied with just a passing romp. It would be an evening on the river one minute, and then talk about kits and commitment the next.

And now he had to deal with her, and he wasn't quite sure how. Her amber eyes were scorching, yet he felt as if the slightest breeze might cause her to break. He would have preferred that she come at him with claws than that naked honesty. He took a step back, stopped himself. Cursed himself for a coward. "You're being ridiculous," he told her, letting annoyance slip into his voice. To hide the desperation that flickered for just a heartbeat in his eyes. "You're not repulsive, and if you seriously imagine that I could think that about you, you need to have your head checked." Where was he even going with this? Curse it if this cat didn't make him unsteady on his feet. He didn't know where he was treading with her.

OoC// Oh, Spotty. Scared of a little she-cat, are we? Grr! Anger-love doesn't work out so well though, because I can't think of a feline equivalent to anger-kissing. ;O;

[Yoko]

"But you act as if it is!" Puddlepelt retorted with an edge in her voice. Her heart was punding and her face felt warm from the torrent of emotions that she could not even express at the moment. In a moment of clarity, she realized how ridiculous she was being. They had only been discussing a sunset, however emotionally layered the words had been.

She glanced over the two-leg bridge to where the sunset had already sunk beneath the river. Only a large orange glow remained. Had the sunset faded so fast? It had been low to begin with, and now they had wasted the last glimpse of it arguing. The bold she-cat remembered how only moments ago she had set herself to the task of tempting him. The moment was gone. She had rushed it, or he had dashed it aside. Either way, she could not hope to regain it in her emotional turmoil. It would only seem desperate and cheap.

She changed her tone back to the gentle firmness to which she was accustomed. With a heartbreakingly beautiful sad smile, she mewed, "Well, I guess there's nothing to argue about now. It would seem that you stayed for the sunset after all."

She brushed by him, aware that she dampened his fur with her own, which was still dripping. In fact, she was a little cold. The night air was warm enough, humid, but the water clinging to her pelt seemed icy now. She shivered a little, eyes now trained on where the sun had once been. The first StarClan warriors were peaking down from the clear sky. Were they amused by her impatient young heart?

[. s p o r e l e t t ♪]

What had just happened? Spottedfur couldn't believe that he had been so caught up in their exchange that the sun had set without his knowledge. But set it had; the fiery colours of the dying orb had faded into the more subdued purples and blues of dusk. A cool night breeze touched his fur, teasing it as if to tell him something that he could not yet understand. His expression hardened against the accusation that Puddlepelt hurled at him; those he knew how to deal with. His flat gaze pierced the gloom to settle coldly on the other warrior. The wall was up once again, whole and complete and utterly devoid of emotion. Frost seemed to cloak him like a second pelt, completely masking the turmoil within.

"I think your injury is affecting you more than you realize," he said flatly. Turning away from the dying rays of the sun, he looked back down the bridge and into their territory. "It seems I did stay after all. You should have your paw looked at once you return to camp. It might have gotten infected." He glanced back at her, intending on leaving it at that and departing for camp, but her amber eyes caught him. She brushed against him, still damp from the river, her fur slick against his own. Spottedfur caught a breath of her unique scent over the cool, rich smells of the twilit river.

And for a moment he lost himself; the tightly-held control that he had clutched ruthlessly since before he had his warrior name slipped. Leaning closer, he stared back at Puddlepelt, his own green eyes capturing her gaze just as truly as her eyes held him. For one brief moment, the cold warrior was so close that it almost seemed as if their muzzles would touch, his warm breath ghosting across her whiskers like a breeze off the water.

Then he seemed to realize what he was doing; his eyes hardened, a shield snapping down behind them and hiding any trace of feeling. Spottedfur took one short step back, distancing himself from the cat that he was not ready to love. In an instant he turned and was gone, retreating back into the safe silence of the night's embracing shadows. Puddlepelt was left alone on the bridge as the sun gave out its last few rays and died completely, leaving only the waning moon to light the forest below.