-- house of cards [o]

[nightshade]

[bg=b09f8a][atrb=border,0,true] It would be cliche to start this thread on a dark and stormy night. But it would also be a bit boring to start it on a sunny afternoon, wouldn't it? So I think we'll just start it how it is: late evening, right after the golden hour. Nightshade peered across the sparse bogs behind her, then to the west. The sun was setting, ending the 'golden hour' that many coveted. Evening was now upon the world -- or this part of it -- and night would come even faster. Dusk was Nightshade's favorite time; when crickets chirped and the breeze was brought on and the lighting got hazy and dark. She loved the in-betweens, early morning and later in the day, when things were -- dare she use the word? -- perfect. Or, almost perfect. But enough poetry. The sleek black she-cat rolled her eyes. Nightshade was leaving the boggy marshes of ShadowClan for the more forested part of their territory, and didn't have any intention of running home just yet. Yechh. Home. What a word. Was home where she was born? Was home in an abandoned barnyard? Or was home in ShadowClan, where she at least knew everyone and had a near-family? Yes, near-family. Duskheart had never really forgiven her for what she did, no matter how right she was in the matter. And anyway, the one cat she would actually have kits with had been murdered. So that meant, Nightshade pondered, that meant that her real family came to be the cats she knew. Friends? Kind of, sort of. She knew that the cats she joked with, laughed with, were Clanmates and longtime chums. But they weren't true friends. The only true friends would be cats that she really cared for, and at this point those were dwindling. In the end, Night, your only cat you can really trust is yourself. Too true, she thought. It had been proven over and over to this black cat. And with this she immersed herself in her thoughts as she went. Before long the she-cat heard the footsteps nearby. They were quick, fleet, almost silent, and as self-absorbed as she was at the moment she did detect them. Nightshade abruptly turned to a trail that was nearly invisible, then spun again into the undergrowth. She serpentined through the evergreens and emerged at the Thunderpath. Nightshade narrowed her amber eyes, scrutinizing the asphalt before her. The cat turned and walked down the stretch of road, and ducked into the secret tunnel that passed under the Thunderpath. She'd gone a few steps of the wide road when she finally spoke up. To whoever was behind her she mewed, "Any particular reason you're following me? Or were you going this way as well?" words: 460 open to: anyone and everyone notes: my first post with nightshade :3 it's not my best, but hey.

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[! R E E D F i S H E R]

It was the time between day and night, dreams and reality, sun and moon. Fiery fingertips lit up the sky and reached towards the heavens as they fell beneath the horizon, as though begging for one last chance, one last glimpse of the world. Magenta, red, copper, gold, pinky hues danced through the clouds and caught their puffy edges, a sort of masterpiece in the heavens. Reedfisher knew it well - he had seen it many times before.

This was his favorite time of day, when the afternoon gave way to the dusky shadows of the night, to the glow of the sun as it lulled to sleep beneath the moon. At least it was still warm - the tom hated being cold. His thinner pelt didn't protect him enough to enjoy the leafbare or the early newleaf, as it was now. But since it was later in the day, he felt nice and happy, wandering around through the territory, feeling the sunlight on his tabby pelt and in his bright sky blue eyes. His ears flicked forward at the sound of a companion, although his pelt raised slightly at the scruff, his heartbeat remained steady. He wasn't afraid of death, or fighting. It was merely a way of life that he had become accustomed to. But he would prefer it to be a friendly cat.

Peering around the bend, Reedfisher blinked at the sight of the cat before him. well, at least she's not an enemy, he thought dryly. It was Nightshade, the sleek black she-cat who was always ready with a clever remark. Reedfisher had barely spoken to her before, but he might as well . . .

Glancing her way again, the tom noticed that her black pelt was no longer visible through the pine trees. Frowning slightly, the lanky tabby tom moved forward silently, peering through tree trunks and around bushes. The stench of the Thunderpath grew more ominent, and he finally came to the edge of the forest, his paws a taillength away from the black path. His nose wrinkled immediately, and he blinked the tears from his eyes, trying to see where she had gone.

Her voice suddenly emerged from beneath him, and Reedfisher backtracked to the sloping grass that led to the tunnel beneath the road. The darkness was slightly eerie, bathed in setting sunlight, and he opted to remain at the tunnel entrance, settling down on his muscular haunches.

"following you, m'dear?" he blinked his blue orbs at the darkness. "seeing as this tunnel leads to thunderclan territory, that seems to be the only explanation."

[hello there. :3]

[nightshade]

The darkness was advancing, settling upon the land, and for that Nightshade was glad. She blended in better in the darkness, and had pretty good night vision for that. The sleek black cat slipped underneath some brush and across a bare patch; then between fern fronds. It was here that she noticed the thunderpath splayed out before her -- and ducked underneath it.

She was halfway through the tunnel when there was an answer. Behind her a pair of deep blue eyes appeared, vaguely familiar. It was only when he spoke that she matched the voice to the face -- it was Reedfisher. In all honesty she barely knew him.

"Following you, m'dear?" A shiver snaked down her spine. "Seeing as this tunnel leads to ThunderClan territory, that seems to be the only explanation." The she-cat paced forward, turning at the mouth of the exit where there was room. "Quite." Nightshade glanced up and held his cerulean gaze, fishing for words. "Though it is quite a handy route either way you slice it." She kneaded her paws for a second, sheathing and unsheathing them. The claws made a steady grating noise against the damp concrete.

A small, brief part of her felt an urge to tell him her real business -- he was a clanmate, after all -- but she pushed it away. You didn't trust anyone, no one, not even yourself.

But if you don't trust yourself, who can you trust?

Touche. But that was another battle for another time. "I don't suppose you're out here for a stroll in the park?" She inquired. Of course, neither was she. "Though I am as guilty of insomnia as the rest of us."

[! R E E D F i S H E R]

The dark she-cat turned to face him now, her piercing gaze fixed on his. The tom chuckled slightly at her attitude - he liked a cat who could throw back some of her own sass.

"quite. though it is quite a handy route either way you slice it." she paced back to him, her pelt illuminated by the light of the moon that poured into the tunnel. Reedfisher's own dark tabby pelt was laced with silver, and his eyes glowed gray. Nightshade's claws scratched the hard ground, in and out, in and out, sending a shiver up Reedfisher's spine. There was something not quite right about this, but he wasn't sure what to say. He was about to open his mouth when she spoke.

"i don't suppose you're out here for a stroll in the park? though i am as guilty of insomnia as the rest of us." Reedfisher chuckled once more, taking a liking to this clever, if not a bit mysterious, she-cat. They could be good friends.

For the sixtieth time that day, his thoughts drifted to Foxtail. The fiery red warrior was full of life and energy, making him laugh and feel good about everything. His heart dragged in the dust as he recalled her absence the past few days. He had barely seen her. Sadness clouded his cerulean gaze, and he blinked, bringing Nightshade's face back into focus.

"insomnia is nothing to lose sleep over," he meowed, trying for humor, although he doubted that the she-cat would laugh. She seemed serious, intent on her journey, and annoyed that he had stopped her. That only made him more curious, and he felt slightly excited by the idea of an adventure. Getting right to the point, he tried to get some information out of her. "seems like a strange place to take a stroll," he remarked, glancing around at the dark, rounded walls, the Twoleg stench filling his nostrils and making him choke. "wherever you're going, you can't have been taking the scenic route."

(this post fails so bad. no muse.)

[nightshade]

The black ShadowClanner surpressed a chuckle, though a wry smile did escape her cold mask. It was written across her features for only a second before it was gone again. Nightshade felt a shiver crawl down her spine; her clanmate's sky-hued eyes seemed to bore right through her.

"It may not be very scenic, but it definitely saves time, don't you think?" Nightshade replied and looked around the dank space. Grime dripped from the walls and pooled between her toes. No, it was hardly scenic, but definitely safer and quicker than crossing aboveground. "Beats being flattened by a two-ton monster, anyway."

"But enough about me," she added. "What have you been up to these days?" Well, Nightshade didn't exactly care a whole lot, to be honest, but it was better to keep the conversation away from herself, wasn't it?

This talk, brief as it was, was making the she-cat feel antsy. When she'd set out that evening for a stroll, it had been for a multitude of reasons. Number one, to fend off the nightmares that usually berated her overnight, and to generally keep her mind off things. That was one of the problems with being clever, she thought, you're mind was always racing.

Though as she walked she realized that there could be another reason for an evening stroll, and quickly stuck to it like glue. It was always better to have a purpose, an excuse, a reason. A sense of direction. Even though the Coterie wasn't having a meeting tonight, a little infiltration was always in order.

[ hallo :] ]

[C!NDERDUST]

Nightshade let out a small chuckle, and Reedfisher felt his heart beating slower now, less rapidly, less nervously. He wasn't easily frightened, being a laid back kind of tom. But something about the night, and about this strange meeting place, made him less than thrilled to be there.

"enough about me. what have you been up to these days?" her voice was friendlier now, but there was still a lingering suspicion behind the words that seemed so innocent. Reedfisher smiled easily. "just the usual. training my apprentice, wandering about the territory . . . " he didn't mention Foxtail. He didn't even want to think about her at the moment.

For a moment, his mind flashed back to that day in the pines, laughing and smiling with the she-cat whose pelt lit up the world with its fiery color. Her eyes, so brilliant, made his breath catch in his throat, and yet recently they had been cool, pale.

"well, i should be on my way," he meowed suddenly, feeling the need to curl up in the warrior's den and fall asleep, forget the world and everything for just a few moments. He nodded politely to his clanmate and got to his large paws, his broad shoulders nearly blocking the moonlight from entering the tunnel. With a final smile, the dark tabby tom headed off, slipping into the shadows like he belonged there. In an instant, he was gone.

(sorry i ended it so fast.
i have like no muse whatsoever.)

[nightshade]

Nightshade narrowed her eyes and gave Reedfisher a curt nod as he turned away. She could see the the sadness in his eyes as he trailed off -- "Well, the usual, training my apprentice, wandering about the territory ..." -- and though she didn't know exactly what was up, it was obvious that she was not at the top (or bottom) of his list. She seemed to make him nervous, but she had that effect on most cats, it was nothing knew to her.

"Well, I should be on my way," the tom mewed. Nightshade didn't bother to answer, because he was gone a moment later. Instead she attempted to stifle her emotions -- the relief that she was free of his penetrating blue gaze, the strange, unfamiliar disappointment that lingered. Disappointment at what? She didn't want to think about it. She didn't want to think about the fact that he probably hated her like everyone else did, about the fact that she just might have a .. a minescule, microscopic fondness for him. Microscopic, Nightshade, Microscopic. It barely exists. It's a weakness, she told herself. You can't trust anyone, not even your own clanmates. Just like they can't trust you.

So as the moon rose higher in the night sky, she turned away. The black cat, nearly invisible, crossed through the tunnel into ThunderClan territory and firmed her resolve.

And faltered.

Suddenly the idea of .. well, whatever mission she'd dreamed up, whatever trouble she'd decided to cause ... didn't seem so appealing anymore.

She just wanted to be alone.

[ fin ]