Flowers for the Dead (Open)

[mystic]

Dappleflower
^{None are so old as those who have outlived enthusiasm}

Dappleflower sighed and sat by the Sky Oak, it was rare to see an elder outside of the camp. However she had good reason to be there. For it was here that her beloved mate was buried. She gave a little smile and looked down. "Hey Battleclaw." She mewed. "Our great grandson has become an apprentice. He'd make you proud I know." she added. "You remember him? He had just been accepted into the clan." she sighed. It had only been a few days after Mudkit being made part of the clan that the badgers had attacked and Battleclaw had been killed.

"He's changed a lot you know. Frostnose put the fear of Starclan into him. She's good at that, I think she gets it from you." she chuckled a little. "Rosethorn's doing well, I told you what happened to Tallkit. I know he's with you right now, oh he looked so much like you Battleclaw. It's sad that he had to leave so young. However I think Rosethorn's finally getting over it." Flicking her tail she sighed.

"Whitestar's doing well as a leader, he's survived so far. He hasn't lost a single life. Maybe Thunderclan's bad luck is changing, though it's only been four moons, so I am not going to hold my breath." she paused again. "Snow came early this year, and there's been no fighting yet. Not even a sight of a border patrol from what I hear. You always loved patrol, the chance to get into a scrap." she smiled. "So many times you'd come home with a nick in your ear or a new scar you were proudly baring." She sighed. "I miss you Battleclaw, I really do. But do not worry, I keep your memory alive. Maybe I will get permission to bring Ceaderkit out here, she looks like you too you know. Spitting image I swear. I wish you could have met her, I really do. She's quite the sweetheart." She smiled a little and then lay down. She decided she'd stay here for a while. She came here every day, it made her feel closer to Battleclaw. Not only was her buried here, at his own request, but this had been the place where they had become mates. Where they had confessed their love. It was a special place for both of them.

[ivyy]

Stonewhisker weaved through the brush, a plump quail hanging limply from his jaws. His ears strained to the right as he noticed the smallest mumbling. He almost dismissed it, as he was solo and he didn't want to get into a scrap.. Oh well. He harrumphed and slunk over towards the soft voice.

His pulse was quickening as he reached the sound, still unable to see the source. "Whew.." Stonewhisker sighed in relief as he layed eyes on the elder, Dappleflower. He held his tail low to the ground as he set his catch down and sat beside her. "I'm sorry, Dappleflower." he murmured, bowing his head in respect.

[mystic]

Dappleflower
^{None are so old as those who have outlived enthusiasm}

Dappleflower's ears pricked up and she looked over. "It has been four moons." She mewed. "I still miss him." she turned and smiled. "He died fighting, it was how he wanted to go." She said. "I see that you are hunting, that is good." she smiled, her eyes gentle. "That is good. You remember Battleclaw? I swore that he would have become leader one day, but that was not what he wished. He liked being a warrior better." Her tail flicked.

"How are you?" she asked. "Care to walk back to camp with me? This old lady could use some company." She stood and started walking.

[ivyy]

Stonewhisker nodded silently, keeping his head bowed slightly as the older she-cat spoke of her deceased mate. He couldn't sympathize exactly, as he had never lost a mate, but it did remind him of his old crush, Sandpelt. He resisted wincing at the dull ache he felt deep in his chest, though the pain was all in his head, he felt it as suddenly and sharply as the pain of a thorn in his paw.

"Care to walk back to camp with me? This old lady could use some company."

"Yes, of course." Stonewhisker responded to her request, her smooth voice bringing him back to reality. "Oh, Dappleflower. You don't look a day over 10 moons." he said, his obvious flattery an attempt to cover his previous daydreaming. The crisp, woody scent of the forest surrounding them cleared his mind of his bitter memories. He stood, his legs prickling and tingling as he began to walk with her, he must've been sitting on them at an odd angle. Stonewhisker breathed in the frosty Leafbare air, filling his lungs with the freezing breeze.

[mystic]

Dappleflower
^{None are so old as those who have outlived enthusiasm}

"You young scamp." she mewed, gently batting at him. "You need to be more respectful of your elders as opposed to playing with an old queen's heart." she chuckled. "Maybe I'll tell you a story as we walk." She took a deep breath and began to think of the stories she knew. There were quite a few, then she grinned as she stumbled upon one.

"In the long ago, all creatures could speak to one another. Anyway, during this time a fox and a cat were talking. They spoke of their common enemy, the hound. The fox bragged. "I have a thousand ways to escape from a hound, how many do you have cat?"

The cat shrugged. "I only have one." She mewed.

The fox laughed at her. "Only one? When the hounds come, show me."

A little while later the heard the sound of hounds baying. The cat ran up a tree.

"Now." she mewed to the fox. "Show me one of your thousand ways to escape the hounds.

And while the fox sat pondering what trick she would use, the hounds jumped on her and ate her up."

Dappleflower chuckled. "And that is why it is better to have one thing that works all the time, than a thousand plans to choose from." she said, giving him the moral of her fable.

[ivyy]

.:Stonewhisker smiled at his new companion, though he did spend quite a bit of time making sure the elders, queens, and kits were well taken care of, he hadn't spent much one on one time with those who dwell more outside the realm of his daily routine. "You young scamp." Dappleflower accused jokingly, making Stonewhisker release an amused chuckle from the depths of his chest. "Oh, I'm no flirt," he said innocently, "I just tell the truth about the lovely she-cats of ThunderClan."

"Maybe I'll tell you a story as we walk."

.: Stonewhisker nodded in silent agreement. He had always enjoyed the stories of the elders as a kit, though he could remember a couple occasions were he was sent off to the nursery with his tail between his legs. He listened to Dappleflower's story absently, his mind tending to wander while her soothing voice coaxed them along. One ear was set on the story of the fox and the cat, and the other listened to the sounds of the forest, to the birds chirping and singing to one another, to the scuffling of a rodent near by. Stonewhisker's eyes narrowed, he could definitely smell a mouse near by.. He paused as Dappleflower's story ended, touching his tail to her shoulder as he opened his mouth, taking in the scents around them.

[mystic]

Dappleflower
^{None are so old as those who have outlived enthusiasm}

Dapplefloewr looked at him. "You smell it to?" She mewed. "You might as well catch it the clan needs as much food as it can get." she said, digging her claws into the earth. "I can wait." She added, laying down and waiting for him to hunt down the mouse. She liked being around younger cats, it kept her feeling young. "Don't worry about me, I'm in no hurry to get anywhere." She smiled at him, her eyes gentle.