|
Post by Solo on Jun 18, 2010 16:54:13 GMT -5
B R A I N The moorland cat set up a very brisk pace, which soon turned out into a dash through the woodlands as Brain kept up, more with his long strides than swiftness. He kept his nose within reach of her striped tail and noted the way that she moved as she came closer and closer to her home. A little good feeling stirred in him, and a smile came to his mouth as he heard her loud purr. He looked in wonder at the broad field and the vastness of it, both terrified and excited by the lack of trees. A wind coursed across the grass with the speed of the she-cat who bore its name, and he turned into the breeze that ruffled his white fur, as if this new land was greeting him.
When he turned to look at his companion, Brain realized that she was no longer by her side. He could see her lowered in a crouch, stalking forward. The technique of her movement was different than that of a forest cat’s, and he drank it all in, greedy for knowledge. And his heart and mind soared when the rabbit sprang up, the predator rushing after it. Effortlessly she leaped and swiped, knocking the animal down and falling upon it when it was vulnerable.
Wind picked up her kill and trotted back over to him. His yellow eyes washed over the dangling rabbit, and her, without shame before he stooped to sniff the meat. Her question seemed silly to ask a cat who hadn’t been to the moorland before, so he chose not to answer, instead taking a bit in his mouth. Prey was prey to him, sustenance to live off of and not be obsessed over, but from habit he analyzed the taste of this new meal and was pleased.
“Amazing,” Brain mewed—though he was talking about the moorlands and her speed and skill more than the rabbit.
|
|
Otter
Administrator
[M:-5]
Posts: 70
|
Post by Otter on Jun 18, 2010 22:35:37 GMT -5
"Amazing."
Assuming the tom was speaking of the taste of the rabbit, Wind nodded her head and quickly swallowed a few more bites. Restored to her home and no longer hungry, Wind's spirits skyrocketed and she sprang energetically to her paws. She wanted to run, jump, twist, and chase anything and everything she could find. Finally, she was back on the moors!
It was impossible to ignore the energy shooting like lightning through her skinny, wiry body, and as Brain finished his meal Wind shot off across the moors once more. Spotting a rabbit, she sprinted after it, only to change her target halfway through the chase to go after another. Again she twisted her body and shot off in a different direction, running after a whole new hare. Tail lashing back and forth to keep her balance, she zigzagged and raced across the open land like a madbeast.
Eventually, Wind recalled the existance of Brain, and she reluctantly gave up her chase of her fifth frightened rabbit and trotted back to him. She did not exactly want to rush him when he was eating his first rabbit, but she simply could not keep herself from trotting back and forth like an eager youngster, embarrassing herself quite profusely but not quite caring enough to be still.
When she could take the lack of action no longer, the she-cat mewed, "Interested in learning how to hunt, or do you want a tour of the place?" The latter option sounded exceedingly wonderful to Wind; racing across the moors with a cat that might very well be able to keep up with her sounded fascinating. She had, after all, only ever really run with her father.
|
|
|
Post by Solo on Jun 19, 2010 12:17:11 GMT -5
B R A I N Wind proceeded to wolf down her share of meal then leaped up. Startled, the tom glanced up at her, wondering if she’d spotted something. When he realized it was a physical expression of excitement, he calmly bent back down over the rabbit. She dashed off and began harassing rabbits, chasing one before whipping around and jumping at another, in a display of speed. He smirked in amusement, now lying on the ground with his paws tucked under his chest, watching her. It was like a dinner and a show at the same time, and he wouldn’t complain. Observing the way other cats hunted—or pretended to hunt—was always interesting.
The tabby, still fidgeting, finally spoke to him. He listened to her offer and stood up, stretching slowly. “I suppose it would be pointless to practice hunting now,” he said, glancing back at the carcass of her earlier kill. “A tour would be nice.” He bowed his head, though whether the gesture was mocking or not was ambiguous. “Lead the way.”
|
|
Otter
Administrator
[M:-5]
Posts: 70
|
Post by Otter on Jun 19, 2010 13:20:04 GMT -5
No more encouragement from the white and black tomcat was necessary, and with a flick of her tail Wind broke into an easy but ground-eating lope across the open land. Rabbits scattered before her, and she released a small purr of amusement and pleasure. Always enough food, always plenty of room to run...what better place was there in the world?
In the distance stood a large gray mass, and Wind set her eyes upon it as she ran. "Best place to be if you want to look around," she called behind her, turning her head slightly to see how Brain was holding up. Not that she was worried he couldn't keep up; the tom was doubtlessly built for this place.
Outlook Rock, as she liked to call it, was angled at a steep slope that caused it to rise high above the level moors. Wind bounded up the smooth surface without breaking stride, and came to a sudden stop when she reached the edge. From here, one could see miles in all directions. A deep ravine lay off to one side, and though it was not visible from this far away, Wind could picture the roaring river thundering its way through. In the distance, rising high above the ground, stood the beginnings of the oak woods they had just traveled from, and Wind gave the place a harsh glare.
"Best view you will ever find," she commented, shooting a glance at Brain to see how he would take this all in. Coolly, probably. By now Wind had stopped expecting him to show any form of emotion. "I know every inch of this place," she added, tail curling with pride as she surveyed her home. And I would gladly beat up any fox to defend it.
|
|
|
Post by Solo on Jun 19, 2010 18:15:06 GMT -5
B R A I N Brain was glad for the excuse of movement, and he counted the rabbits quickly as they passed by, before falling to count his steps. He blinked in interest when she called back to him and quickened his pace, lengthening his strides to pull alongside her. When the land suddenly became less level, he realized too late that he hadn’t the stamina for this even if he had the overall speed. While she darted up the slope with relative ease, he found himself slowing and panted quietly, straining his muscles to keep up. She had been sitting for a few moments by the time he dragged himself up to her side.
And he gasped.
The view was astounding, and even a cat like him could get emotional. While he didn’t voice his amazement or sit with a gaping jaw, his yellow eyes seemed to grow bigger and were constantly roaming across the horizon and the grass beyond. His tail curled in pleasure, and he turned to her, face still like that of a kitten who’d been outside the den for the first time.
“All of this moorland… is yours?”
ooc; I was suddenly reminded of the Lion King. xD
|
|
Otter
Administrator
[M:-5]
Posts: 70
|
Post by Otter on Jun 20, 2010 3:00:48 GMT -5
“All of this moorland… is yours?”
The softly-spoken words caused Wind's ears to twitch slightly, and as she turned to face Brain she did not miss the open-mouthed awe, the massive eyes, and the cheerfully curled tail. On another cat, this would not have been odd. But on Brain...well, Wind decided he must really like this place if he was willing to show that much emotion. Maybe he wasn't some robot from the sky, after all.
"The moor is not...mine," she mewed once she had managed to drag her mind off of Brain's odd expression. He looked like a cat that had taken his first bite of mouse and discovered just how terrible twoleg food really was (and then she remembered that he did often eat twoleg food and decided to forget her simile).
His question, like all of them so far, caused Wind to think a bit more deeply than she normally deemed to do. Upon reaching the moors after being trapped in that blasted forest, the wiry loner had felt a surge of protectiveness for her home. She had felt perfectly capable of fighting off a hundred foxes, as long as she was protecting the place she loved. But she was not the only cat out here, she knew. She was not the only cat who would fight for the moor. This place...it was her home, but it wasn't hers.
"Any cat that can thrive on the moors deserves to live here," she decided finally, tail-tip twitching at the thought. So few cats lived on the moors now that there was simply no reason for territorial feuds or arguments over prey. There were plenty of rabbits and not many who were skilled enough to hunt them. But what if more cats came? By bringing Brain here, she proved that she did not mind if other cats joined her on the moors. But what if, one day, there were too many long-legged, rabbit-fast cats, and not enough prey? Would she truly believe then that any cat fast enough to catch a rabbit should live here? It was food for thought, to be sure.
For now, however, she knew she could stick by that motto. Almost on afterthought she added, "No cat will be able to chase me away from here, and I do not plan on chasing any one else away." She felt rather old and Spruce-like as she spoke those words, and she wondered what was coming over her. This stranger, this Brain...he really made a cat think, didn't he?
((That was, indeed, very Lion King-esque ^.^. I think we should get props for having the longest thread, don't you?))
|
|
|
Post by Solo on Jun 21, 2010 8:31:32 GMT -5
B R A I N The white tom composed himself once Wind told him that the whole moorland wasn't hers. That hadn't been a logical question to ask, had it? He felt embarrassed, and the briskness that he groomed his chest with was testimony to that. Perhaps, if her family had been larger, she could control this land that was so different from the southeastern forest. He looked at her and could see the thoughtfulness on her face as she carefully worded her answer, saying at last that any cat who could survive here could live here.
"You aren't worried about territory and prey?" Brain asked. Most cats he met either wandered often, like him, or were strong enough -- or had enough allies -- to hold a patch of land from which they hunted, enough to support them. He looked at the tiny figures that were the rabbits below and turned to continue his grooming session, though the winds that swept through the moor constantly fluffed up his black-spotted white coat. Perhaps, though, Wind wasn't like that. He smiled a characteristically faint, awkward smile at her last statement.
"I suppose it was naive of me to assume you would be the queen of the moors," he said, looking stiffly off at the horizon. "A scrawny cat like you."
Was he teasing her?
ooc; xD Yay for long threads! Maybe we could get Thread of the Month if we keep it up. And I'm sorry for the shortness and bad quality of the post. It would've been longer/better/made more sense, but I am very, very pressed for time. >>
|
|
Otter
Administrator
[M:-5]
Posts: 70
|
Post by Otter on Jun 24, 2010 12:11:12 GMT -5
"No need to worry about prey when there's so much. How many cats do you know that can catch rabbits?" she responded with a shrug, allowing her gaze to drift out across the open field. Rabbits. Rabbits. Plenty of rabbits. As long as no one tried to chase her away from the moorlands, she would be civil to anyone living here. But, if any cat put this land in jeopardy...Wind's claws scraped against the hard rock as she flattened her ears at the thought. The wiry brown she-cat would never hesitate to shred the pelt of any arrogant cat trying to claim this land as their own.
"I suppose it was naive of me to assume you would be the queen of the moors. A scrawny cat like you."
Wind blinked once, twice, three times. Slowly she turned to face Brain, an impossible expression on her face as she stared at the tom. What was this...this amiable tone spewing from his mouth? Where had the robotic feline disappeared to? Can't complain, she thought to herself, tail-tip flicking as she considered the black and white tom.
"Maybe I am the queen of the moors," she mewed after a moment, tail lashing in mock indignation. With just enough gravity in her voice to be taken seriously, she added, "You here to challenge me, skinny spotted tom?" She was half-joking, of course, but would Brain know this? No one could ever tell with this cat. On the chance that he did not quite catch it, Wind turned her gaze back to the moors and mewed, "Scrawny cats trump bulky ones any day, anyway."
It was a belief she stuck to fiercely. More than a few times had Wind been confronted with loners arrogant enough to think that, because they were big and muscular, they were better than her. That they could beat her in a fight. And Wind had to admit that, if she were ever trapped in close quarters like the dreaded forest or a cave, she would be sunk. Destroyed. But in open land, where speed could count for something...well, let's just say she could get bulky cats dizzier than a blind badger.
|
|
|
Post by Solo on Jun 26, 2010 9:19:10 GMT -5
B R A I N The white tom nodded, satisfied by her answer. Why waste energy driving them out if they weren't a threat? He couldn't quite fathom bringing them in however, but while he was most curious about why she led him here, he couldn't bring himself to ask. Analyzing it led him to suppose it was one of those moral trades -- he assisted her, so she would assist him. He wanted to laugh at such a code when it would have wasted more energy for her to help him after he'd helped her. Perhaps her exhilaration for being on the moorlands clouded her judgment... Or she was just trying to make him happy?
His head hurt.
This is why emotions fog everything up, [/i] he thought, breathing a sigh. It's easy to find out motives until you have to go back and account for emotion.[/i] When he made his little joke, Brain had given into the social instinct, a victim of his own confusing feelings such as like and amusement. When one did not account for the need for rest and sustenance, he could have sat up here all day, teasing this she-cat. Mostly for the expression on her face when he dropped briefly into the demeanor of a normal tom. He didn't consciously do it, but it still made him want to laugh. Brain wasn't used to have jokes turned onto him, however, and when she lashed her tail he took a step back, prepared to placate her. When her attitude quickly changed, he was left confused. "Unless they catch you," he said instead, going off her last statement and changing the subject. "The bulky cats, I mean. Dancing around them is fine until you make a mistake, and then you're underneath them and you've got no way to push them off." His expression had grown fiercer, not quite the level of aggression as with the fox, but there was still an uncharacteristic scowl. Until... "Oh!" He turned quickly toward her, looking sheepish and almost eager. "Defeating you would be a simple matter if I used the tactics I mentioned. Waiting for you to mess up. Maybe you'd fall into a rabbit warren."Yep, he'd just gotten the joke.[/blockquote]
|
|
Otter
Administrator
[M:-5]
Posts: 70
|
Post by Otter on Jun 28, 2010 15:27:13 GMT -5
Well...it had been worth a try. It was only a matter of time before this robot's teasing abilities were turned off, Wind supposed. She shook her head slightly as he responded seriously to her joke, even looking a bit uneasy when she'd pretended to be angry.
"Unless they catch you."
Well, that was a good point. Wind had never been caught by a truly large enemy. She had been pinned beneath other scrawny, skinny moorlands-cats before, but never the big brutes she enjoyed making fools out of. "Well, I guess I just can't let them catch-" she cut herself off with a slight hiss as Brain suddenly turned on her, but his expression was not ferocious, but...excited. Eager.
And then, what do you know, he made a joke. Well, sort of. Not really, actually, but it was a good attempt. Well, not even a good attempt. But at least, finally, he'd caught on. It was all Wind could do to keep from cuffing Brain over the ear. She shook her head, unsure if she should just walk away right now or stick around and try to teach this cat something about friendly banter. How was it that she managed to have so much patience with this loner? And why was it that she continued to be so amused by his way of being? Well, the latter she could answer; what other cat in existance acted like Brain?
"We'll come back to that later," she mewed aloud. "Rest your...mind...a minute and go catch a rabbit." Her long, brown tail flicked in feigning dismissiveness as she jerked her head in the direction of the open land. The long, wiry she-cat couldn't help but hope Brain turned out to be a decent rabbit-hunter. How else would she be able to rationalize keeping him around? She certainly couldn't let him leave when he was so uneducated in the social skills of normal cats, now could she?
|
|
|
Post by Solo on Jun 29, 2010 8:29:18 GMT -5
B R A I N The tall tomcat stared at her, tail flicking idly, as he took in her reactions and listened halfheartedly to her words. His failed attempts at socializing had left the air rather tense, but he didn't find himself that anxious. He... trusted this she-cat, at least more than any other random cat off the street. He wouldn't expect her to save him from danger if she didn't have to, or to show him more kindness than sharing a rabbit that couldn't go to waste anyway, but that was simply his own view on these things.
"Rest your... mind... a minute and go catch a rabbit," the brown tabby suggested after saying they'd come back to this bantering business later. He bowed his head, relieved. Hunting was something that he could do.
"All right. I'll go and you can -- well -- right." Brain had started down the slope toward where the rabbits were hopping around, but he was unsure about what Wind would do. Would she follow or did she want to stay? He'd never hunted under the gaze of someone else before, at least not where the other cat mattered. With a final awkward look he rushed down toward the rabbits and stopped a safe distance away, crouching and going over his knowledge of Wind's hunting techniques.
The white tom pressed low in the grass, aware that he'd be a bright white shape standing out among the gold and brown and green. He crept forward as close as he dared, paused, and then leaped at the rabbits in a full-out sprint.
Immediately his speed was evident, as he quickly came up upon one rabbit, but when it darted in another direction, he lost ground. He unsheathed his claws to help grip the earth and propel him forward, turning to chase another rabbit. However, eventually he began losing his speed; his breaths came fast and hard, and his legs, used to slow sneaking across the forest or gardens, were sore. He had to stop to pant, his limbs shaking and sides heaving.
"I'm afraid I don't have the stamina," Brain said breathlessly, sitting down and shaking his head.
|
|
Otter
Administrator
[M:-5]
Posts: 70
|
Post by Otter on Jul 1, 2010 21:36:10 GMT -5
Except to take a few steps down the sloping rock, Wind mostly stayed where she was, tail high and head tilted slightly to one side as she watched the tomcat try his first rabbit-hunt. Brain wasn't half bad; he stalked pretty well despite his obvious handicap of being completely without camouflage, and he was one of the fastest sprinters Wind had seen before.
However, as he caugt up to one rabbit, Wind knew the prey would dart to one side or the other. She should have told Brain about that, she realized; a cat had to keep their tail out and ready to help them turn with the rabbit. Brain sort of stumbled, then tried to catch up, but Wind shook her head slightly, knowing it was useless. Once someone lost ground--be it the prey or the cat--the chase was over.
The wiry brown she-cat trotted briskly down to join him when he sat, heaving, in the grass. "Walk around, mousebrain," she mewed, part teasing and part serious. "Keep your blood flowing. Might get a headache if you just sit still after a run like that."
Needless to say, Wind had never taught a cat how to hunt. Spruce had taught her, and everyone else up here seemed to know how to hunt rabbits already. She wasn't entirely sure what to do--did she scold him for his mistake, or admit that it was her fault? Did she tell him what he did wrong, or make him figure it out? She decided honesty was certainly the best way to go, and after a few moments she mewed, "That was my fault; I forgot to tell you about the rabbits changing direction. You have to use your tail to turn you...it's hard at first, but eventually it becomes..." she stopped, searching for the word as her tail flicked lightly. "Second-nature," she decided, nodding her head briskly. She felt rather like a mother when she added, "You up for trying again?"
What could she do? She wanted this strange loner to stay up here, and in order for him to do that he had to learn how to hunt rabbits. Otherwise...well, she certainly wasn't going to be feeding him every meal. Brain did not appear to be the kind of cat to give up. In fact, he was probably analyzing every bit of his attempt in his head and figuring ot the best way to go about it. Heck, he was probably counting all the steps he'd taken or the number of jumps the rabbit had gone.....
|
|
|
Post by Solo on Jul 2, 2010 21:32:44 GMT -5
B R A I N The tomcat pricked his black ears when Wind padded over to him, instructing him to walk around. Too tired to question the validity of her order, he heaved himself to his paws obediently and began moving. He managed to slow down his breathing and, once he had become calm, allowed himself to flop into the grass with an audible thud. He stretched out on his side and barely lifted his head when she explained the importance of balance in turning.
Brain nodded silently and rolled onto his back, letting his paws dangle up in the air. He frowned slightly as he stared at the bright blue sky, something stirring in him as the wind blew across the grass, which tickled his long body. He finally sighed.
“I will hunt later. I have eaten too much recently.”
He never thought he could be complaining about having too much prey. For once, without any worry, he allowed his mind to go blank. He didn’t pick apart his hunting techniques as was characteristic for him, didn’t ask any questions, didn’t even bother to count his deep breaths. For a moment, he closed his yellow eyes.
“Wind?”
The white loner opened his eyes and rolled onto his stomach, lifting his head to look at her. “Why did you bring me here? I know why you do not drive cats away, but why did you bring me here and teach me to hunt?” Brain scowled at her. “It’s completely illogical.”
|
|
Otter
Administrator
[M:-5]
Posts: 70
|
Post by Otter on Jul 3, 2010 22:13:27 GMT -5
She snorted slightly as Brain flopped heavily onto one side, and watched in interest as he rolled over onto his back and kept breathing. He said he wouldn't hunt right now, which was perfectly fine with her; there was time enough for him to learn to hunt here, and they were both plenty fed from that last rabbit.
Brain looked calmer, more relaxed, as he seemed to stare up at the sky, and Wind found herself settling down in the coarse, sun-warmed grass and tucking her forepaws beneath her wiry brown body. Her tail swept lazily across the ground, her ears pricking this way and that to catch the sounds of thumping rabbits and bees buzzing around the numerous wildflowers.
It was relaxing, sitting here in silence, the wind rustling her fur and the sun warming her dark brown pelt. She closed her eyes, soaking in the glory of her beloved moors, picturing the land in her mind's eye....
“Wind?”
A pair of yellow eyes opened, and she glanced over to find the white loner staring at her. She blinked, about to ask "What?" but he kept going before she could speak.
"Why did you bring me here? I know why you do not drive cats away, but why did you bring me here and teach me to hunt?"
Again with the questions. The observant questions that made her actually think for once. She didn't particularly like his logical mind, nor his hard-to-answer questions. But they were honest, and that was all that mattered to her. Here was a cat who didn't beat around the bush, and she respected that more than anything.
So she shrugged and rose to a sitting position--she didn't like thinking while lying down. "Yeah, illogical. If you ever learn to hunt, you'll be stealing my food," she mewed absently, teasing by nature but not attempting to coax him into it. "I don't know." It wasn't a good answer, and she didn't plan to leave him at that.
Why had she invited him here in the first place? "At first, I just wanted to get out of that cursed forest. I didn't care how," she mewed after a moment, tail-tip twitching in thought. "You are not a normal cat, Brain. Weird, even." Well, no one ever said she had tact. "But when you saw the moor for the first time, you looked like a kit. Excited. I figured you ought to have a chance."
She stopped, head tilting to the side as she considered him for a long moment. What she said to him did not really seem to add up. So he looked like he liked the moorlands. Well, she could (and maybe should) have left him to figure it all out for himself. But I had Spruce to teach me, she thought.
"I want you to stick around," she blurted out finally. "You are weird, and the way you see the world is weird, and your questions are hard, but you're different and alone. And I'm lonely up here; besides my father, not many moor cats are friendly. So I figured I'd teach you to hunt and see if you stuck around. I have no interest in feeding you like a kit."
|
|
|
Post by Solo on Jul 5, 2010 8:10:27 GMT -5
BRAIN _________________________________________________________________
Wind shrugged and sat up, thinking out loud. Her answers were every bit as confusing as he had expected them to be. His whiskers twitched when she called him weird, though he didn’t feel defensive, just vaguely amused, wondering if normal cats knew how weird he thought they were. He tucked his forepaws under his white chest and returned her yellow stare.
But you’re different and alone.
Brain frowned, deep in thought, and stared down at the grass. “You’re looking for companionship, then. Not common for cats focused on survival, but with all the prey you have here, you can afford it.” He shrugged coldly and stood up, shaking his white coat out. The tall, thin tom started walking, passing her as if he had the intention of going somewhere, but at the last moment he turned. His yellow eyes flicked over her again, uncertain now.
“Thank you,” he meowed at last. “Thanks for giving me a chance.”
He thought of all the gangs, set on protecting their turf and kits, and the forest cats he could have met before coming to the moorlands. No cat would give him an inch. But Wind was different, and she’d given him more than a chance at an easy life. She’d given him a home and a meal and a verbal sparring partner to confuse and bewilder. His chest hurt, and he knew it was some emotion such as gratefulness, but he didn’t pay any heed to it.
“I would resent it if you tried to feed me like a cat,” Brain growled after a few solemn moments. His eyes were bright again as he looked out toward the rabbits. “I’m going to try again.” He sheathed and unsheathed his claws, ready for the chase, ready to give in to the feel of the moors and the wind slicking down his fur. He blinked and turned to face her.
“What angle do you recommend I stick my tail out at?”
|
|