Morning Musings (open)

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A.e.r.o.s.p.a.r.k. >>

The first rays of the morning sun were barely filtering through the heavy foliage over camp when a mottled orange, brown, and cream shape slowly stepped from a large den at one end of camp. No other cats were up and about; morning border patrol had already left, and the rest of the Clan was getting as much sleep as they could before their day started. The only sounds that could be heard were the lively sounds of birdcalls and the gentle dripping of rainwater falling from the trees from last nights rainstorm.

The mottled she-cat padded silently to the center of camp, where a spot of sunlight turned the sandy soil to a warm shade of golden-brown. Aerospark yawned widely and stretched, extending her forepaws far out in front of her and flipping her tail in the air. She felt her bunched muscles loosen and sighed in satisfaction. Sitting delicately in the ray of sunlight, she groomed her rumpled fur and let the rare sunlight soak into her fur and warm her bones. Aero enjoyed getting up early; she liked having camp to herself, so she could be alone without having to talk to many others. For the most part, she enjoyed being alone, but oftentimes she found her mind wandering to more unpleasant and painful thoughts.

As she twisted around to lick at her haunches, she found her thoughts inescapably drawn to her dead mate, Kestrelstrike. It had been almost a year since he had joined StarClan, but she still felt his absence like a sore wound. Part of her mind, the irrational part, couldn't let herself believe that he was gone. She still half-expected him to walk into camp one day, just as strong, vivacious and handsome as he always had been. The rational part of her mind had accepted his passing and wanted to move on, to let go of the painful memories that stuck in her mind like a prickly burr. It seemed as if there was no happy medium between the two parts of her subconscious; either she wholeheartedly accepted that he was gone, or she found herself desperately wishing he was still here.

Why can't you just let it go? The rational part of her mind wondered, Move on, get on with your life, maybe find yourself a new lover? Aero sighed and rolled over on her side so she could wash her belly. The irrational part of her mind argued back: Kestrelstrike was the only one right for me. Why should I forget him? Aero didn't know what to think. She knew that if Kestrelstrike were alive, he would tell her to stop fussing over him like an old widow and move on with her life before it all passed her by. She was torn; half of her wished she could forget he ever existed so she could save herself from the pain, but the other half was glad that she had known him, even for a short while. Twitching her ears, Aero rolled back to her paws and shook out her fur, looking up at the jade-colored leaves overhead. I want to remember him, always. She told herself truthfully. But not so much that it rules my life. I must live in a way that honors what he was to me: a mentor and a mate.

Aero shook her head as if bothered by an irksome fly. It was time to banish these thoughts from her mind. Other cats were starting to wake up, and it wasn't right for them to see her moping around like a kit. Aero breathed in the crisp morning air, clean and pure after last night's rain. It's a new day... time to make it a good one.

[Kiako]

Oceanheart wasn't sleeping as soundly as he would have liked. It had been a restless night for him, when the storms stopped in the middle of the night, there was no blanket sound of the rain to cover all of the other annoyances, so each shift in the slumering Warriors was like a foghorn. So when Aerostrike started walking about in the early morning, Oceanheart was instantly aware, and not very happy about it. He turned over, trying to doze for a couple more minutes, but his efforts were futile. The sun was streaming brightly through, and it wouldn't let him close his eyes. With a sigh that might have been a grunt, Oceanheart rolled out of the depressed area of the Warrior's den where he curled up to sleep every night, and padded quietly out into the new day.

Aerospark was sitting roughly in the middle of the camp, enjoying the sun. Oceanheart paused to roll his shoulders and arc his back, getting out all of the kinks from rolling around on the ground most of the night, before making his way to the fresh-kill pile for breakfast.

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Aerospark was dozing in the sunlight, lying on her side, when she spotted a large Warrior padding out of the den, looking disgruntled and bleary eyed from sleep deprivation. After a moments pause, Aero rose to her paws and arched her back in a stretch before padding over towards Oceanheart, fluffy tail switching back and forth. Twisting her ears awkwardly, she halted in front of him. "Oceanheart, I'm sorry." She meowed, eyes wide in apology. "Did I wake you, coming out this early?" Oceanheart was roughly the same age as Aero, but the small she-cat felt that the larger warrior somehow had seniority over her. She did not wish to make him upset or angry in any way.

[Kiako]

"Not really," Oceanheart answered, being mostly truthful. He didn't want to let the grumpiness that had nothing to do with Aerospark, and everything to do with the lack of sleep, effect the exhange. "I was mostly awake anyways. I never sleep well when the rain stops." He elaborated, looked up at the sky, which was completly free of clouds exept for a few wispy splotches of white in the distance. "It doesn't look like they'll be coming back anytime soon though." Oceanheart added with a sigh. Too bad.

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Aerospark listened to his reply, sitting and curling her tail over her paws. She tilted her head back to look at the sky when he did. "I know what you mean." She sympathized, watching a few wispy clouds skitter across the sky from a high breeze. "You get so used to the rain that it's a bit strange when it stops storming." She looked back at Oceanheart, whiskers twitching in amusement. "I guess that's why we're called StormClan still; we're rain addicts." For some reason, it was much easier to talk with someone else than normal. Usually she was shy and withdrawn. This morning, however, she felt embodied by a certain new boldness.

[Kiako]

Oceanheart couldn't help but laugh. "Addicts is a good word." Talking with Aerospark was putting Oceanheart back into his usual good mood, making his day just that much less depressing. "You have to wonder, though, what we were thinking when we chose this wet, stormy climate. You would think that being drenched on a daily basis, unable to scent out food, and dealing with the excessive ground water would put most cats off." As he finished speaking, Oceanheart's stomach growled loudly, reminding him the he had been on his way to breakfast. He ducked his head down in embarrassment. What awkward timing.

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Aero grinned as she heard the big tom's stomach growl. He ducked his head in embarrassment, but Aerospark just purred in amusement. "It's ok. Here, let's eat together." Dipping her head, she picked up a wet, bedraggled looking mouse from the fresh-kill pile and led the way over to the Warrior's eating spot. Dropping her mouse, she crouched over it, feeling suddenly ravenous. She took a bite, looking around at the rest of camp. "Y'know," She said, swallowing her mouthful, "I wouldn't mind going out hunting this morning. Would you want to come with?" It was an open invitation; he could decline or agree, whatever he felt.

[Kiako]

Oceanheart only felt more embarassed when Aerospark purred. He stifled a sigh of exasperation at his social ineptness, and grabbed a small sparrow from the pile, joining Aerospark in her chosen eating place. He took a slow bite, worrying about the size of the fresh-kill pile. There wasn't near enough to feed the whole camp breakfast. When Aerospark suggested hunting, Oceanheart couldn't help but chuckle, nearly choking on his food in the process. He swallowed the mouthfull before attempting to answer her question. "I was just thinking that the fresh-kill pile could use some more prey, it's looking a little low. That sounds like a great idea, I'd love to go."

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Aero glanced at the fresh kill pile, noticing as well that it was dangerously low, and looked back at Oceanheart, purring happily. "Alright, cool! I guess great minds think alike, or something like that." Bending over her mouse again, she finished it off in a few hurried gulps. Springing to her paws, she swiped her jaws with her tongue and looked towards the warriors den. "I think most of the other warriors are either out or too tired to come with; we're probably best off on our own." She looked back at Oceanheart with a smile. "I'm ready when you are."

[Kiako]

Oceanheart took another bite of hos sparrow, and had to suppress the urge to laugh again at Aerospark's comments. Despite contrary believe, he didn't actually try to make a fool of himself, and spluttering, choking and having to spit out his food in order to breathe seemed like the kind of thing that he would really regret later. Once he finished his sparrow, he straightened up, following Aerospark's gaze to the Warrior Den. "Yeah, it doesn't look like they'll be coming out any time soon. Let's go." Oceanheart led the way to the camp entrance, carrying the sparrow's bones to dispose of.

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((I'll just make a new thread in the Ferns territory. ^^ -runs off-))