Post by minnowleap on Jun 18, 2014 15:09:29 GMT -6
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[attr="class","fallowlyrics"]CRAWLING BACK TO YOU
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Minnowleap kept to the shadows as best she could. The sun beat down and she had half a mind to think the forest would combust. The air was dense and warm as if she was running through a billow of smoke. Cicadas filled their home with their somber songs; a repetitive track that seemed morphed and slowed by the heat. The older warrior seemed to glide through the forest, her paw steps cautious of upturned roots and thick undergrowth. Her jaws were parted, tongue hanging over her bottom row of teeth, and her breaths choppy. Magpiestar assigned her to the dusk patrol and with no apprentice; she had some time to spare.
Her paws led her to the lake shore. Most of her clan mates had become uneasy after witnessing the bodies that had washed onto shore. The sand burned the pads of her paws as she walked toward the water’s edge. The lake was calm. Little ripples of waves played tag with the shoreline. She saw turtles sunning themselves on an anchored piece of gnarled wood and a frog skimming the water’s surface. Minnowleap waded into the water until it rose to her belly. She settled back on her haunches, her tail wavering like a water snake. Even with the murders, she was surprised that none of her clan mates had ventured out to escape the sweltering heat. Camp seemed more unbearable with the amount of bodies packed in a small space.
Minnowleap closed her eyes and drank in the scents; water lilies, reeds, a faint hint of mint. She stood still, poised like that of a regal queen. Behind her eyelids she watched a memory unfold from the corners of her mind. She saw her mother, Willowbreeze; lithe, strong, full of youth. “When you’re old enough, you’ll be able to come here to hunt with the rest of the clan,” Willowbreeze said to the trio of kittens at her paws. It was the first time Minnowleap had ever seen the lake. Her mother thought they were old enough to be introduced to water just as Riverclan tradition seemed to dictate. Her brothers wanted to jump into the foreign substance and would have too, if Willowbreeze hadn’t held them back. “Water can be dangerous especially those who are not experience or have not finished growing,” she cautioned. She remembered her brothers complaining when their mother eased them into the lake. Minnowleap had stayed on the shore, too intimidated and self-conscious to attempt to swim. Instead peeled mud away with her paws, searching for shells and other trinkets, while her mother tended to her more adventurous brothers.
“You will need to learn how to swim one day too, Minnowleap. You can’t let yourself block your own path.” Willowbreeze had told her. Her mother told her a great deal of insightful things and Minnowleap held onto them – keeping them buried in her heart and mind – because that was all that remained of her mother. Her bones were buried among the others, a collection of shells and stones marking her grave, but the decaying bones were no longer hers. They belonged to the soil and the life that would sprout from it.
Minnowleap kept to the shadows as best she could. The sun beat down and she had half a mind to think the forest would combust. The air was dense and warm as if she was running through a billow of smoke. Cicadas filled their home with their somber songs; a repetitive track that seemed morphed and slowed by the heat. The older warrior seemed to glide through the forest, her paw steps cautious of upturned roots and thick undergrowth. Her jaws were parted, tongue hanging over her bottom row of teeth, and her breaths choppy. Magpiestar assigned her to the dusk patrol and with no apprentice; she had some time to spare.
Her paws led her to the lake shore. Most of her clan mates had become uneasy after witnessing the bodies that had washed onto shore. The sand burned the pads of her paws as she walked toward the water’s edge. The lake was calm. Little ripples of waves played tag with the shoreline. She saw turtles sunning themselves on an anchored piece of gnarled wood and a frog skimming the water’s surface. Minnowleap waded into the water until it rose to her belly. She settled back on her haunches, her tail wavering like a water snake. Even with the murders, she was surprised that none of her clan mates had ventured out to escape the sweltering heat. Camp seemed more unbearable with the amount of bodies packed in a small space.
Minnowleap closed her eyes and drank in the scents; water lilies, reeds, a faint hint of mint. She stood still, poised like that of a regal queen. Behind her eyelids she watched a memory unfold from the corners of her mind. She saw her mother, Willowbreeze; lithe, strong, full of youth. “When you’re old enough, you’ll be able to come here to hunt with the rest of the clan,” Willowbreeze said to the trio of kittens at her paws. It was the first time Minnowleap had ever seen the lake. Her mother thought they were old enough to be introduced to water just as Riverclan tradition seemed to dictate. Her brothers wanted to jump into the foreign substance and would have too, if Willowbreeze hadn’t held them back. “Water can be dangerous especially those who are not experience or have not finished growing,” she cautioned. She remembered her brothers complaining when their mother eased them into the lake. Minnowleap had stayed on the shore, too intimidated and self-conscious to attempt to swim. Instead peeled mud away with her paws, searching for shells and other trinkets, while her mother tended to her more adventurous brothers.
“You will need to learn how to swim one day too, Minnowleap. You can’t let yourself block your own path.” Willowbreeze had told her. Her mother told her a great deal of insightful things and Minnowleap held onto them – keeping them buried in her heart and mind – because that was all that remained of her mother. Her bones were buried among the others, a collection of shells and stones marking her grave, but the decaying bones were no longer hers. They belonged to the soil and the life that would sprout from it.
[attr="class","fallownotes"]530 words for @open. notes. xxx.