it's //now or //never [Wiltedflower/Open]

[.&&. Snowsong.]

Delicate, minuscule paws carried an exhausted figure to about two-tail-lengths from a bush, quite close to the area where a Clan's Camp was. It was there that the dragged body, having forced itself to run away nonstop from an area afar, slumped to a half sitting half laying position.

Panting, Sharp clenched his incisors. Dashing so far, abandoning the memories of his family's deaths, all except for his wretched uncle's, had taken its toll on him. Not only were his pads scratched, but his legs and chest felt sore, burning as the lactic acid of fermentation snatched control of his system. Now, he began to occasionally gasp for breath, to refresh his system with oxygen.

"Help," he choked out, gasping in some more oxygen. "Help!" Now, it was the yowl of a kit. Slumping to the ground, he clamped his eyes shut, forcing the tears pricking at the bad of his vision to dry almost immediately after they formed.

I wanted to be strong. I'll grow strong, to avenge my sister... It was his wish, as he lay there, fighting himself and his tears. His body stiff, he kept almost as still as a statue; if it weren't for his breathing, he'd seem like a deep ginger, merely realistic statue.

[Đarκsong]

Wiltedflower laid in the clearing, sunning herself. She was so glad it was spring; it was difficult for her to maneuver through snow, plus she disliked cold. It was also quite boring to be coped up in the nursery. All she did was occasionally look after other queens' kits. She had none of her own, but Patchstar believed she was of no better use the the clan.

The tabby queen counted herself as lucky to even be alive. She had unofficially been dubbed the most useless cat in the whole clan, save for maybe Jaywing. Of course Wiltedflower's milk hadn't dried up yet so she was of use to the other queens. That was probably the one thing that saved her.

Wiltedflower's danty head suddenly lifted and her ears shot upright. She had heard a noise. It almost sounded to her like the yelping of a kit. She stood up, carefully balancing her weight over her three legs. She padded out of camp towards the sound.

She found the ginger kitten lying on the ground, completely stiff except for his breathing. Licking his pelt gently, she asked, "Are you ok, little one?" Wiltedflower hoped she wouldn't scare the poor thing, "I won't hurt you."

[.&&. Snowsong.]

He felt a tongue rasp gently over his fur. "Are you ok, little one? I won't hurt you." It was a feminine voice, and it sounded older, much older than he was.

Glancing up, Sharp sniffed, before suppressing a jolt as he was greeted by the sight of a female cat that loomed over him. At first, he didn't want to smile; he knew that she seemed to care about him, but after all that drama, he doubted he'd smile this soon. Glimpsing into her eyes, he slightly flicked his lobes.

"I... I'm.. alright." At first, he thought she was alright. But, then, he scanned her figure; the collar and missing leg was extremely clear. "How... You... Are you alright, too?" Almost immediately, he realized that his question might have offended her, and he snapped his jowls shut.

"Sorry..," he mumbled after a short moment. He glanced down out of embarrassment.

[Đarκsong]

"Don't worry about it." Wiltedflower responded to his apology, "I know my appearance is a bit....shocking." She half smiled a her words.

Thoughts raced through the queen's head. She longed to just scoop up this kit, take him back to camp, and care for him. However, she knew Patchstar wouldn't approve. The chubby leader frustrated her to no end.

Yet she couldn't bring herself to leave this kitten.

Of course, Patchstar would find out eventually. Even if he forgets cats' names half the time, he would notice an unfamiliar kitten. Wiltedflower's blood boiled when she imagined his reaction. He would most likely order the kit killed, just like those young cats.

The queen decided she didn't care. "Come back to camp with me." She offered, scanning the kit's battered figure, "I'll clean you up and take care of those wounds."

[.&&. Snowsong.]

At first, his figure didn't shift as he began to ponder. But, eventually, Sharpkit lifted his apex to allow his orbs to lock with the older female's. He didn't know how to respond. Besides, he didn't trust being around other cats that much. However, he knew that, without any protection nor help, he would perish soon.

It was an extremely difficult decision. To betray his instincts and follow this she-cat, or to remain true to his rogue blood and remain alone. Either one could lead to his demise, but remaining alone seemed to be more -- threatening.

Stifling a faint sigh, he shifted to his paws, suppressing a wince as he felt a slight throb. "Alright, I'll follow you. But, promise me that you'll always be there?" His lobes pricked up with hope, his orbs also reflecting his hope in their gleams, and he acted as if he wasn't as beaten as he was. Though, it did come with a price; man, did those wounds hurt!

[Đarκsong]

The kit's request took Wiltedflower by surprise. She choked a bit on her words before responding, "Of course. I won't let anyone harm you again." She had guessed from his appearance that he had been attacked by another cat. She promised herself she'd make sure Patchstar wouldn't touch him.

If he even tried Wiltedflower decided she'd take the kit and leave. She was 'supposedly' useless to the clan, so no one would miss her. The queen was confident she could survive just fine on her own.

She licked gently at his pelt once again, then began leading back to camp. "I'm Wiltedflower, by the way." Wiltedflower told the kit.

[.&&. Snowsong.]

Returning the lick that the older she-cat gave him, Sharp got to his paws and began to trail after her. His orbs scanned the area, his lobes somewhat flicking as he took in all the information he could. Then, he snapped from gaining information, as her voice drifted onto his eardrums.

"I'm Wiltedflower, by the way."

His lobes pricked up and remained raised for a short while. "I'm Sharp." For a moment, he was silent, before deciding to speak again. "Uhm.. I heard that.. the Clan around here is led by a crazy leader... Is that true? Unless, you don't live in that Clan." He glanced down as he spoke, hoping to not offend or upset her.

Though he wanted to shuffle his paws, he didn't, and he kept hot on Wiltedflower's heels. His tail tip somewhat flicked as noises of other cats and their scents hit his senses all of a sudden.

[Đarκsong]

Wiltedflower stopped short at his question. She didn't think Patchstar was bad enough that cats outside the clan would know about his...well.....crazy-ness. "Yeah, Patchstar is a bit....off."

What she said was really quite the understatement. The leader had recently disappeared for moons, now he reappeared and there were rumors of him talking to himself. "Well....lately he's been really off. I don't worry too much about it though, since he hardly ever comes out of his den. So you shouldn't worry either."

She then resumed padding towards camp.

[.&&. Snowsong.]

With a nod, and with a breath to calm his nerves, he padded after Wiltedflower. "I do hope he doesn't try to kill me," he said, mainly to himself. "I've heard that he ordered a few helping rogues to be killed." Was he going on an on now? Sharp somewhat shrugged; he knew not of that.

He padded along quite well, despite his wounds. It was awe-inspiring to hear, smell, and see all the things around Camp. But he had yet to know that they were nearing the Camp of IvoryClan. However, he had a tingling feeling that they were close.

His paws even showed it. As they drew further into the atmosphere of many, he began to speed up. Deep ginger lobes flicked more, and a ginger tail tip twitched as they neared, and the scents, unfamiliar scents, of other cats and their needs and lifestyle slammed full into his nostrils. It caused him to pause with a gasp, before he bounded off after the she-cat again.

He was quite excited. And, to think that they hadn't even reached Camp yet.