Gray Day (Spore)

[Yoko]

Tears glistening like morning dew as they slid out of her amber eyes. She swiped them away with her paw from time to time but they just kept flowing. She simply could not understand it! It wasn't as if she was losing him really...He'd still be in the Clan. And she would see his Warrior Ceremony, and be able to talk to him rather often. But...but...more tears. Oh this is pointless

She stood up and paced a little, careful not to step on the sparkly shells and pebbles around everyone's nests. It was a good time and place to cry. It was mid-day so most of the warriors were out and about and the den was empty, quiet, and peaceful. She had not been in long, and still worried someone had seen her go in and would think she was lazy. The white and gray she-cat took a few deep breaths and the tears slowed but still rolled one at a time down her face. She had to leave soon...she was shirking some duties that she could still do with her injured paw by staying in here. But she refused to leave until she could keep a straight face.

"Oh Graypaw, if only I hadn't gone and gotten myself injured..."

But her mind was made up...Or at least she thought it was. Shellclaw deserved an apprentice. And Graypaw seemed more excited to learn from him than he ever had from her...It was time to let go, for the good of her apprentice's training...

That last thought made her crumble. She curled up in one of the nests. Had she been a bad mentor? No! Her brother was just a bet- bet- better one! She had always worked so hard...why did things never turn out her way?

[. s p o r e l e t t ♪]

Spottedfur had been in and out of camp all day, doing patrols and bringing prey back to camp, not to mention taking care of Cloverpaw's training while he did so. The young she-cat was progressing well, and would make a fine warrior in a few moons, he thought. Clan life certainly did keep one busy, especially with the new kits and the queen that had joined the nursery this past moon. It was getting to be the end of kitting season, but it looked like the she-cats of the Clan were determined to have one last go at it before winter made such things too risky to attempt. Such strange creatures, queens were. It was entirely likely he'd never quite understand them.

Thinking about she-cats inevitably brought his thoughts around to one very specific she-cat. It was irritating and inconvenient just how often he found himself thinking about her, but he couldn't seem to rid his thoughts of her, regardless of how often he tried. Padding lightly through the center of camp to drop several small fish and a vole onto the fresh-kill pile, he paused in the intense sun to consider where to go next. He had been up since before dawn to go on border patrol, and had been working nonstop since then. It might be good to rest for a short while in his den, just so that he wouldn't be dead on his paws by the time the sun set. Shaking his head slightly in a vain attempt to rid his thoughts of those warm amber eyes, he made his way into the shade of the warriors den, only to encounter the very cat of whom he had just been thinking.

Annoying to come upon her just when he had been thinking of her, though it wasn't hard to do when he thought of her as much as he did, in a place where they crossed paths so often. Spottedfur's step slowed as he entered the den, treading softly as if to slip by unnoticed, although that was an impossibility. He appeared not to pay much mind to her, giving only a cursory nod in her direction when he noticed that the grey and white warrior was awake, but the sight of moisture glinting in the fur of her face caused his stride to falter. Ah, why did it always have to be this? He should really have learned by now to just leave well enough alone. It was his own damned fault that he couldn't.

"What are you doing?" he asked as he stepped closer, some of his annoyance at his own weakness colouring his tone. "Sitting alone in the dark, crying to yourself? Hardly the mark of a great warrior of RiverClan." Spottedfur stood next to the warrior curled in her nest, gazing down at her with cool green eyes that carefully hid the concern that wanted to stray into his expression. There would be enough time for fussing later, once he determined what exactly it was that had made Puddlepelt cry.

[Yoko]

Oh for the love of- she rubbed her face furiously against the back of her paw. Mouse-dung! Puddlepelt pull yourself together before some cat-

The voice stopped her heart in her chest. Her mind told her that of all the cats it could have been to have caught her at this rather low moment it was impossible, not unlikely, impossible for it to be Spottedfur. Yet as she looked up from her forepaws there he was, sounding slightly annoyed and with a rather unreadable gaze. She looked back at him blankly for a moment, with her face still wet and slightly watery eyes.

...Great StarClan?...Do you hate me?! Why was it always him who caught her in moments of foolishness or sadness? How could he ever fall in love a cat that he only ever sees in deeply flawed moments?

She blinked and the withheld tears tickled her face as they trailed to the ground. With a little laugh, she swiped them away. Clearing her throat lightly, she mewed, "You know, we really must stop meeting like this...Please, don't mind me. It's nothing serious at all. I'm sure you have more important things to do."

All this she said lightly, with a smile, doing her best to suck up the tears, already drying up out of pride. Her parents had raised her better than to make such a spectacle out of her sadness.