[speck&open] it o n l y gets W O R S E

[deJENerate]

A lovely breeze whipped through the air, making the tree limbs dance in intricate patterns. The water in streams rippled to create tiny waves that crashed into the embankment. A wonderful scent lingered on the tips of the breeze, promising a day full of great weather. The sun hung low in the sky, casting a bright, morning glow across the otherwise bleak landscape. Dew on grass sparkled extravagantly in the mid-morning sunshine. The damp coolness of the night was slowly being extracted from the earth as the sun began to warm up and heat the region.

Balancing carefully on a fence post was a beautiful, young she-cat. Several hues of ginger, black, brown, and white splattered over her lithe bodice, giving her the appearance of some art project gone wrong. But this accidental pairing of markings wasn't hideous. No, this she-cat was truly gorgeous. A long, slender tail twitched anxiously on the inside of the fence, while her green eyes stared longingly at the horizon. Where she was sitting, she could see in all directions. In one, a large, open landscape of tilled farmland and open fields met her; in the other, the forest spread as far as she could see. Though she was not afraid of either path, she wasn't sure if she wanted to completely abandon her mother. The house folk rarely even tried to coax their little kitty back into the house because of her so frequent disappearances.

The young warrior is, perhaps was a kittypet. She had grown up under the care of humans along with her mother. When the day her brother left for the Clans arrived, though everyone knew it would come one day, their mother was shocked. After losing her mate and only son, the calico wasn't sure if her mother could cope with losing her other kit as well. But Marbles was drawn to the forest. Although she did not particularly wish to join the Clans as her brother did, she was interested in their lives. Every day, she would ventured further from the comfort of her home out into the forest. She taught herself how to hunt. She learned to keep alert at all times.

Today might be the day that her paws ever step foot into the garden again. She looked over her shoulder at the place where she grew up. The bush where she and Night would hide from their parents, the bowls the house folk had put outside in case Marbles wanted to eat, maybe just to keep her there. She hadn't eaten kittypet food in moons, not since she had perfected her hunting crouch for sure. Occasionally, when the humans left warm milk, her blockade would falter slightly and she would lap up a few tasty mouthfuls before turning away, vowing to never again touch the stuff.

A sigh escaped through her parted lips and she jumped gracefully onto the ground. She was outside of the fence. She glanced up at the wall of vegetation before her, gauging her emotions carefully. With a deep breath in, scenting all of the wonderful smells, she plunged into the darkness. The pads of her feet quickly went numb, for the sun had not yet reach her fiery paw into the forest. But Marbles didn't mind in the least. Her fleeting paws carried her farther than she had ever been. With the sense of recognition or familiarity completely gone, she realized that there was no going back.

An uneasy feeling tickled annoyingly at the back of her mind. Maybe today wasn't the greatest time to leave, after all.

[SPECKLE]

m o r n i n g & WINX

Pathetic. We are so pathetic. Wandering around looking for cats. We never had this problem when my father was the leader. No, we never had this problem at all. Morning will be the death of us. Her ideas... well her ideas are actualy fairly... decent... but not the way she is going about it. No, she just doesn't deserve this... doesn't belong here. She doesn't belong as leader. If anyone should be, it should be me.

[/color] The tom was rather small for his age, his muscles were thick and burly though and as he walked quickly behind her, he knew that he was going to hate today even more than he had all ready been anticipating. With a sigh, Winx glanced around the forest. They had long since left their damp forest, and this one seemed to be almost try and akward. While the ground was still damp, it was not squishy and like that of mud like he was so used to. He would have said something had it not been for the fact that he knew Morning would have loved to use his complaints against him. No, he would kep his mouth shut. For now.

The white cat with black patches walked slowly across the terrain, never bothered once by the difference between their home and now. She didn't care. It didn't matter, the terrain that she was walking on. What mattered was how many cats they could find, and if they would be able to take more than one today. Then again, she knew she couldn't be picky, she knew that if she could find just one cat, it would be one more cat than she all ready had. So with a simple nod and a dip of her head, the she-cat glanced toward Winx. She gave him no reassurance and instead she removed herself to the comfort of her thoughts. I am really sick of him being around. The sooner he gets out of here the happier I will be. I am perfectly capable of being alone, I am perfectly capable of doing this alone.[/i] But the sound of pawsteps in front of then caused the she-cat to snap her gaze up from her paws and a faint smile flicked along her face.

She sent a glance over her shoulder at Winx and flicked her tail slowly toward the edge, instructing him to disappear into the forest. And of course he complied. He slipped through the bushes and Morning tasted the air, raising her head and putting on the sweetest of smiles across of her face. Winx choked in silent laughter in the bushes and the glare that he recieved seemed to shut him up almost instantly. He crouched down in the bushes and took a slow and steady step back, staring out at his leader. While he hated her, he knew that her methods were... well no they really weren't. They weren't necessary. They were only necessary because she had made them to be. Morning flicked her tail and waited for the creature before taking a step farther into the forest, Winx following slowly and patiently through the bushes. Hello?

The voice that sounded from Morning was so soft and so sweet that Winx found himself having to glance over at her to make sure that it was indeed her. When he was certain it was he shook his head. He would give her a little credit at least. Morning was indeed a strong cat but she was a great actor. She was so small that she could be mistaken as an apprentice, really hardly the size of a kit and she seemed so small and so helpless. And that voice sounded almost scared. He wished he heard her talk like that all the time. [/justify][/size][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[deJENerate]

A shiver slid uncomfortably down her spine. The she-cat could almost swear that you could hear the bones rattling. Heartbeat quickened and soon blood roared in her ears. Her mind and body being wracked with the terror of being in such an unfamiliar place was coupled with the constant sensation of being watched. She began to think about her mother, Khloe. Not that she wanted to, but it was just second nature. Marbles worried that if something were to happen to her out here, then there was a possibility that her mother would never know. Khloe would probably just dismiss the thought, figuring that her daughter had gone ton join her son in the Clans. Her mother knew and understood that Marbles was not that fond of the Clans, but Khloe would have to assume something. There was a very slim chance that the old bat would come to the conclusion that something had gone wrong. And even if she did have a feeling, Marbles had never mentioned she was leaving or where she was headed, so there would be no leads on her whereabouts until too late.
Then, with the image of her own bleeding and broken body, Marbles' thoughts were sent into a spiraling frenzy of confusion and fright. She pictured a gory brawl, her mutilated corpse, tortured, raped, left to die. Images and scenarios flew rapidly through her mind.

'STOP IT!' Marbles screamed into her mind, demanding that the over dramatic thoughts ceased. She was nearly panting. Her green eyes were wide and tinged with moisture. Claws were fully extended and implanted firmly into the ground. All of a sudden, it was like the sounds and sights and smells of the forest just completely and utterly overwhelmed her. In one, quick motion, Marbles was crouched on the ground, cowering in the dirt. Her body shook softly from both fear and the chill that began to seep into her fur from the still-damp earth. Her eyes were shut tightly, attempting to return to her home, or at least somewhere nearby. This is all just a dream. A terrible dream. Close by, a twig or two cracked. Marbles inhaled sharply, almost a gasp. It's a nightmare!

Quickly, she stood, alert and focused. She brushed off her petty fear and insecurities and tried to concentrate. Senses were pushed out in order to pick up any strange scents and sounds. the problem was, all of the sounds and smells here were strange to her less-than-stellar capabilities. Already quiet pawsteps stopped completely. There was another feline here. Its scent was strong and overpowering. Marbles had to make herself keep from snorting in disgust of the stench. Then, the scent she was tracking seemed to split into two entities. There were at least two other cats here. Begging herself to keep calm, Marbles restrained from panicking. Maybe these cats were not awful creatures at all. Perhaps they were kind and friendly. But the reek that they released stated otherwise. The silence was dragging on, and that made her nervous. Mentally preparing for whatever was about to happen, Marbles braced herself and flexed her muscles.

"Hello?" spoke a tiny voice, soft and unintimidating. That was not at all what she had expected. After a few moments, Marbles made the effort to close her gaping jaw. And here she thought that these cats were a serious threat. She nearly scoffed at her own dimwittedness. The voice sounded injured and afraid, not rude and gruff as she had assumed. "Yes?

[/b]" Marbles answered the voice questioningly, facing in the general direction of its arrival. She was still a tiny bit skeptical, and would not take the chance of moving to find the voice. Instead, she waited for it to find her. "Are you hurt?" Marbles asked, trying to be of help. "Is there anything I can do?" she added, her voice sympathetic and calm.[/center]
[/blockquote][/blockquote][/justify]

[SPECKLE]

m o r n i n g & WINX

Winx stayed where he was, concealed perfectly in the bushes, his brightly colored eyes were peeking from the bushes at his leader, and he was contemplating once again just taking her out here. His entire band would thank him in the end, because while Mocking Cries had been a very rough band to be in, Morning had seemed to up the stakes, making it often more dangerous than any cat on the outside could realize. There were nights were even Winx himself refused to go to sleep for the fear of being murdered and having his throat torn out. But he simply shook it off, while he knew that Morning was not a simple cat to get along with, right now they needed cats and if he ruined this, he probably wouldn't have survived to make it back to camp. The the she-cat from deeper in the forest had responded and so instead he busied himself with pin-pointing where she was. Morning took it as the perfect opportunity, she moved slowly toward the bushes, the silence was so great that was ringing in her ears. But she reached Winx's hiding spot without being seen or heard and breathed out the words that said attack me. He wasted no time, the silence in his movements and in her receiving were almost scary, it was like they both knew too well that if they made too much noise, this entire plan would fail. When he was done, he stepped back into the bushes before surveying his work. The she-cat had claw marks above her eye and her shoulder, along her flank and down her back. On her chest there were even some, and the blood was slowly dripping down.

The copper smell of it didn't react until she moved forward, a small limp thrown in to show that she was “hurt”. That she needed “help”. So she spoke again and with the faintest of nods, the little cat lowered herself into a crouch, her large green eyes watering with tears of fake fear. The little tuxedo crawled along on her stomach and paused at the edge of the clearing where the other she-cat was. There were tears dotted in her eyes and that were slowly trickling down her face in streams as the cat stayed where she was, half submerged in the bushes with the blood that was also trickling down her face and swirling with the tears. The little tuxedo cat's voice was so soft and scared that she could hardly stand it. I got attacked... by a rogue. Her body was trembling with the act as well, as the bush shook from her being so timid, Winx took it as a perfect opportunity to travel back into the forest, climbing briskly up a tree and carefully walking through it's branches toward the two she-cats. One he hated more than life and the other, as he noted, was actually, in the faintest way, attractive. Suddenly he was liking this plan all the more. As he looked down at her from his tree, he smirked before climbing a little higher, up into the shadows where no one could see. Morning sensed him but made no movements to offer that he was indeed there, instead she kept her eyes focused on Marbles as she slowly crawled forward and wrapped her tail tightly around herself as she continued to tremble. My name is Morning.

Winx found himself staring at the little calico she-cat beneath him. The more he watched her, the more he found himself liking this plan. This she-cat would definitely have some beautiful kits, and with him as the father... a smirk, a dark, deadly smirk touched the tom's face. He was going to have this she-cat, whether she liked it or not. And she would be his that simple. Such a pretty, pretty she-cat. Too bad your beauty will be wasted soon. He thought with a smile planted on his face. Winx was an awful, wicked cat. And if anyone would have asked, he liked it that way.

[deJENerate]

Heartbeat racing, from fear and adrenaline combined, Marbles had to discipline herself to stand her ground. The voice was still quite a bit away, but if it really was an injured creature, then it would continue calling for help. Right? A few moments passed, and uncertainty lay heavily on her being. She made no attempt at masking her confusion or any emotion. The little calico was more worried about her own safety and the safety of this other feline than hiding her emotions. She always felt a calling to help others. She liked to make others happy and healthy. With her basic knowledge of common herbs, she was capable of healing any of her own scratches that she contracted from her adventures into the forest. But if this cat was badly injured, Marbles was unsure of the extent of help she could offer it.

Tentatively, she padded forward, now curious of the silence. She sniffed carefully at the air, still receiving two separate but similar scents. Her heartbeat fluttered uncontrollably, and she was immediately afraid for her life. She had to get out of there. But what about the other cat? She began to back away, her instincts getting the better of her. As she placed her paw to turn and flee, a noise caught her attention. Ears pricked, she managed to pick up faint sounds of a scrabble, so silent that it was unlikely to be real. Maybe the cat stumbled? Marbles held her breath until the noise ceased. When she finally dared to catch a gulp of air, it tasted of blood. Perhaps her nose just hadn't picked the scent earlier, or maybe whatever that noise was caused blood to flow.

Peering into the undergrowth as far as her eyesight would allow, Marbles picked her way silently towards the edge of the clearing and the voice. Before she fully made it into the brush, the sight of a body stopped her. The feline basically dragged itself halfway into the clearing and collapsed. A gasp of horror was audible through Marbles' parted lips. She wasted no time in crouching at the she-cat's side. The petite, tuxedo she-cat was bleeding from multiple areas, but none of her injuries looked fatal. "Oh, you poor creature," Marbles sympathized, a sincere kindness and worry for the cat's well-being clearly evident in her voice. Marbles gingerly touched her nose to the injured cat's forehead, careful not to disturb her wounds. She glanced to the side, trying to find any familiar plants that she could use to help this cat.

"Morning, hmm?

[/b]" Her voice was a soothing purr. "I'm Marbles, and I'm going to try to help you as much as I can.[/b]" She added, her eyes darting away from the she-cat, still in search of useful herbs. She stood and padded to the side of Morning. "Do any of your limbs hurt?" Marbles asked, softly prodding her paws into Morning's side. She touched her nose to the she-cat's trembling body, getting a more accurate temperature measurement. "Do you have anyone with you?[/b]" Marbles asked, hoping that this small cat had a guardian of some sort. Or maybe she belonged to one of the Clans! She could know her brother! Shaking her head of those thoughts, Marbles returned to the present. "I'm just going to get some cobwebs for those scratches, Morning. I'll be right inside the woods." Marbles explained as she padded into the undergrowth. After wrapping a moderate amount around one of her forelegs, she turned to awkwardly make her way back to the patient.[/justify][/blockquote][/blockquote]