Alone & Very, Very Afraid |Anyone|

[yoyo]

’What have you gotten yourself into now, Juniper?’ The small cat mentally asked herself as a shiver went down her spine from the cool breeze that had just decided to pick up. How long had she been by that roadside since the human female had dumped her here? A day or so? Juniper re-wound the film that was her memory. Two dreamless nights since she had been abandoned here. And where exactly was here anyway? She knew the gray, cold thing she had been crouched next to was the trail that humans rode their big, nasty-smelling machines on. A couple had been by, but that was the only familiar thing she had seen around here. And it’s not like any human would want to pick up a cat from the side of the road.

Oh, and if it wasn’t bad enough that she had no clue where she was and she was freezing, she was also starving and felt like she was going to pass out if she didn’t get anything to eat. She had forced herself to eat a grasshopper that had mistakenly landed right in front of her paw. She regretted it now, it tasted horrible and didn’t help any. So she was pretty much in the same predicament as she had been since she was dropped off here. Her situation wasn’t really improving. If anything, it was getting worse by each passing second. Yeah, you wouldn’t want to be her right now.

She didn’t even have the comfort of knowing that she could escape to dreamland. She thought that it probably had something to do with her empty stomach. Maybe you couldn’t have dreams when you were starving… Or something ridiculous like that. She thought about leaving the road-side and going… Somewhere. But how would that help? She’d still be hungry, and she’d still be lost. She’d just be wasting her energy, chasing a lost cause…

And, in that moment, a wave of emotion crashed over her. She wished with all of her heart and soul that she was still with her nice human family, the one with the little kit and the mashed potatoes they would feed her. How could they turn her over to that evil human man who ignored her and never fed her? She wasn’t sure which was worse, being by this road and starving or being with the human man and starving. They were both pretty bad in her mind.

She took a deep breath and could’ve sworn she smelled cat. It smelled old and stale, though. ’How many other cats got dropped off here?’ She wonder, and then, with a twisting feeling in her gut, she thought, ’I wonder that happened to them.’ She swallowed hard before standing up and stretching a bit. Her sore muscles screamed in protest at her, but she stretched anyway. Then she sat down and wrapped her tail around her front paws, closing her eyes. ’Wonder what’s going to happen to me.’

[Moon Coldbite]

-Moon trotted happily along, carrying with her a fat mouse. It was great prey for spring, and she had just made an amazing catch. of course, she spotted it looking under a leaf, and using her favorite move, (that she prided herself in thinking of before anyone else) she half climbed a tree and flipped down to catch it by surprise. Her belly rumbled hungrily, but she was planning it on taking it back to the original bush she had first sheltered in when she had first appeared here.
--She strutted down the road, her tail waving along to an imaginary tune. Step by step, she was becoming wilder, and maybe even less mature since she left her home. The Old Lady wouldn't have lived forever, she knew that, but she still missed that warm life. But there was one thing she knew she would never miss.
--That horrid dry cat food. Yuck.
--She loved this road. It always had such a nostalgic feel to it. And in the moment, she decided to sing a song.

If I am lost for a day; try to find me
But if I don't come back, then I won't look behind me
All of the things that I thought were so easy
Just got harder and harder each day...

--She paused, scenting a fresh scent. One very much like her own, one she knew well. A cat. A female cat. And- a scared cat. She chewed on the end of the tail of the mouse that she carried, contemplating. Even through her happy mood, she could feel something was off. And then she spotted her.

--Hazel eyes looked confused and upset. She looked on with her wide, purple eyes. It was a kitten, like her, maybe even younger but she looked about the same. Remembering her first day, and her ravenous hunger, she decided to approach the stranger. She had been planning on helped her the second she saw the silver fur; she just didn't know how until this second.
--She would give her the mouse.
--Walking over to where the kitten sat, her thick white tail poked her right on the top of the head. She had come from behind, but just on an angle to see the starving eyes flicking around.
--A recent stray, she thought with a sigh. Moon still remembered her own despair at this knew life. So she dropped the mouse promptly at her feet and smiled her classic kitten smile, showing off her canines.
--'You look hungry,' she told the cat with a laugh. 'So I thought you could use a good meal. Fresh from the forest.' She pointed at the trees for emphasis.
'I'm Moon Coldbite. And I'm a stray cat!' She giggled. 'Welcome to Nenbrook, your new home.

[yoyo]

Juniper eventually opened her eyes, still wondering how to get herself out of her situation. She didn’t want to think about it before, but now, she realized, that she would die if she didn’t do something quickly. It was then that she started to get a little frantic, and tried to come up with plans. ’If I follow the road, then maybe I’ll come across a human village,’ She thought, the usual mischievous spark retuning to her eyes as she completely tuned out from the rest of the world and focused on one thing: Survival. ’Maybe I can find my old human family, and then--’

It was at this precise moment that she felt something furry come down on her head. Completely scared out of her wits at the sudden touch, she jumped up into the air, fur fluffed out so that she looked like a cotton ball, and landed in the human road. Not hearing any human machines coming, she turned around to look at the stranger who had just scared the living day lights out of her.

She realized immediately that this was a cat; no duh. It was a little hard to miss. Then Juniper went on to examine her further. And, it was a her; She could smell that much from her scent. She looked around her age, maybe a little younger, maybe a little older. She had white fur, and purple eyes…. And then, suddenly, all that didn’t make a difference. Because the cat had food. Juniper was vaguely aware that the cat was speaking to her as she stared at the mouse.

She’d heard stories that her friend had told her when he came to visit her in her backyard about wild cats that caught their food. Juniper thought that would’ve been too hard; Plus, why would they do that when humans could take good care of them? But now, she saw, that her friend was telling the absolutely truth. And, at that moment, she thanked no one in particular that cats actually did that.

Juniper swallowed hard before finding her voice. Her fur lay flat on her body again, and her ears were pulled back a bit in embarrassment. Her eyes were alight with curiosity, and her mouth was open to get as much of the delicious scent of food as she could. Part of her said to run from the strange cat, but she pushed that instinct down. The female in front of her seemed friendly enough. And, after all… She had offered her the mouse, right?

”I… I mean, Thank you….” Oh yes, Juniper was hoping to amaze her with her brilliant conversation skills. ’One thing at a time,’ She told herself silently. First she would introduce herself. Then she would eat the mouse as quickly as possible, before...What was her name again? Oh yes, Moon. Before Moon changed her mind about it. And then she would ask about what the forest was. ”I’m Juniper… Juniper Stormfeather.” She said kindly, allowing herself to smile a little.

[/blockquote]

[Moon Coldbite]

--Moon grinned, watching the silver cat carefully. Juniper Stormfeather... She liked the sound of the name. And then, thinking about the berry, she remembered her own hunger and thought about what she should do. She had been to one place before, what was it called? Well, it was unimportant.
--'Hey, Juniper. So whats your story? Most of the cats around here weren't born to the forest, and I've never met less than a former house cat on this road. She assumed this cat was the same.
--Looking up, she noticed that night was beginning to fall. It was also cold tonight- colder than usual. Not that the cold bothered her that much, Moon sort of liked the breeze, but she had a thick coat and this kitten looked like she might have less. So turning towards Juniper, she piped up,
--'Hey, we should find somewhere to stay the night. It's not so warm on a big open space like a road, and more than a little dangerous. I saw this great place down by Thorton Stream- Oh right, thats a little stream not far from here,' She paused to explain herself, 'But its a hollow log and it looked pretty sheltered besides,' She stopped again, looking at the gray clouds that had begun to roll in. 'I think it's going to rain.'
Turning back to the new stray, she smiled encouragingly. Storms were rough in Nenbrook, but it was spring- almost summer, and the forest gave great cover.
--'Or we can go by... the dump!' She told Juniper loudly, remembering the place she had been thinking of before. It was messy, but fun because of all the random junk in there, and even funner if you could track down a decent piece of food. Even so, it didn't offer much shelter, and food wasn't guaranteed. She was pretty good at catching fish, mostly because of the big koi pond in the Old Lady's backyard.
--'Besides, this place is creeping me out a little. And its bringing back lots of memories...'[/i] She finished with a yawn. Her violet eyes looked right into the pretty hazel ones, waiting for an answer. After all, it had been a long way, and Moon needed
--My beauty sleep. She thought with an inner laugh.

[yoyo]

Juniper couldn’t take her hunger anymore. She abandoned all of the manners she knew and started to eat the mouse Moon had provided her hungrily, and by doing this was now safely out of harms way from the cars that might come down the road. It didn’t taste like the food she was used to; It tasted delicious. She chomped on it like it with a certain urgency. Once she had pretty much devoured the mouse, her whiskers twitched as she stared at her paws. She was horrified by the mouse blood she saw there, and became nauseated. But she forced herself to get over it. It tasted good, anyways.

She had finished her meal in enough time so that there wasn’t too much of her messy eating after Moon had started talking to her. It was perhaps a few human heartbeats after Moon asked her about herself. She quickly tried to lick the warm life liquid from her muzzle before answering her question. ”I lived with humans, if that’s what you mean by house cat, but I was born in this place called ‘shelter,’ She explained, sitting down with her tail flicking back and forth, steel reeling over the taste of the mouse.

When Moon looked up, juniper followed her gaze. It was a beautiful night, truly; she hadn’t noticed it before. She had been preoccupied, really. When Moon started talking to her again, she turned her hazel eyes back on the white-furred cat that had been so kind to her so far. She hesitated for a few seconds as she registered all that Moon was telling her. An alarm was flashing on and off in her head, telling her something wasn’t right about her plan. Then, she realized what it was.

”If it’s going to rain, I don’t think it’d be a good idea to sleep by a stream… We could get a wet awakening,’ Juniper said, and smiled. She remembered the time when her human kit had accidentally left her outside and she had gotten soaked. It wasn’t until a half an hour later that anybody had noticed she was outside. They had wrapped her up in a towel and brought her to a place that reminded her of the shelter, except the human man there had done lots of weird stuff to her before sending her back home the next day.

”The dump?” Juniper asked rhetorically, wrinkling her nose to show her distaste. ”Isn’t that the place where the humans throw out their smelly stuff? The stuff in the black bag?” She asked, remembering the trashcan in her first humans’ home that had been a bit too close to her food and water bowl for her liking. It had taken her a while to get used to that thing being so close to her food.

[/blockquote]

[Moon Coldbite]

[ooc:: Sorry about the short post -_-']

--Moon listened attentively, and then realized that Juniper had been right. It would be very unsafe to sleep by a stream if the weather was planning on raining; They could even drown if the downpour was big enough. She shuddered at the thought.
--'The dump? Isn’t that the place where the humans throw out their smelly stuff? The stuff in the black bag?'
--Moon laughed. Of course it might seem disgusting; in fact, Moon thought so too. And it certainly didn't smell nice, but it was neat nevertheless. She had wanted to visit the place ever since she heard some old cats from the mill talking about the massive place. And after hearing that it was housed in Nenbrook, she had been dying to go. But despite her curiosity, she was also dying to eat, and turning back to the silver tabby, she replied,
--'Yes, but I'm sort of hungry, and that mouse was originally my dinner, so I might need to change some plans to make room for my stomachs apparent schedule.'
--She laughed, thinking about her first piece of prey, the squirrel Ash had caught for her. It had tasted great- She wasn't sure what she would think about appetizers from a pile of garbage after tasting meat like that. Although they were awfully furry...

[yoyo]

ooc:
No problem at all. XD

Juniper’s ears immediately went back at Moon’s words. She had eaten her dinner. She hadn’t even thought of sharing it with her. She suddenly felt guilty at her selfishness. She remembered once when her humans had made a large bird called turkey. They made one every year, but for that year, for some reason, she really wanted to try some. So, when her female human was on the phone in the other room, she jumped up on the counter and tried to get a few bites of it, but she couldn’t manage it because of the position it was in next to the wall and sink. So she pushed it off the counter and onto the floor, where she started to eat it. She remembered how delicious it tasted.

But then her female human caught her and started crying about the food. Juniper felt so bad for the rest of the day that she hadn’t even begged for table scraps at the big feast they had for dinner(that was missing a turkey). She flicked her ears. She needed to get over this whole memory flashback thing. She needed to forget about her humans and start a new life. She had already made a new friend. Now the rest was up to Juniper being able to put the past behind her and focus on the future.

”I’m sorry about the mouse, I should’ve shared some of it with you,” She apologized sincerely, and her tail stopped flickering around to rest across her paws again. ”Let’s go to the dump then; I’ll help you find some dinner,” She said it like her mind was completely made-up, and smiled. And her mind was completely made up. Even though she had no interest in rummaging through smelly stuff, she would do that in order to help Moon find her dinner. She would’ve done that even if she didn’t feel like she had to repay her back for the dinner she had given Juniper.

”So, about Nenbrook…” Juniper started, and hesitated a second to collect her thoughts. She had about a million and one question about this place. So she started with a question that would cover a lot of her questions at once. ”What’s in it besides… Uhh… The Dump and the stream? That can’t be it, right?” Juniper always felt more comfortable knowing exactly where she was.

Juniper wondered where Moon usually lived. Surely not in a log by the stream all the time? Didn’t she mention something about a forest before? Is that where she lived? How many other stray cats lived around here? She had so many questions. But she realized that most of her questions could be answered just by her observing and paying attention. That way she wouldn’t be bothering Moon every second of their time together with her annoying questions.

[/blockquote]

[Moon Coldbite]

--'That mouse? Oh that's okay, I gave it to you, I didn't need you to share it. Besides, you needed it more than me.' She laughed, flicking a piece of grass with her tail.
--Moon thought the question over. She didn't know everything about Nenbrook, but she would explain what she could. To Moon, Nenbrook was simply everywhere she had gone after she had escaped from the Shelter humans. It was mainly forest, but there were other places, too. Moon began to walk, he tail flickering back and forth as she answered,
--'Well, there's the huge forest, and inside that there's a stream, the one I told you about.' She spoke, walking south towards the Dump. She had seen it once, and knew where it was, but hadn't gone in. It had smelled bad, but once she had spotted a chicken leg. Anywhere that housed chicken legs couldn't be that bad...
--Then she thought about her adventure in the barn, and her stomach turned. She decided to warn Juniper about the danger the dogs had since posed.
--'There's also the dump, and close to that, the little human town. Mostly it's quiet aside from the marketplace in the middle and the human neighborhood just outside of it. It's actually pretty fun there, too... And then there's the Farmland. I went there once, and didn't come back unscathed...' She trailed off, her heart rate speeding up when she though about how close those gaping jaws had come from snapping her neck. Then she shook herself.
--'Anyways, I just wouldn't go too near there if I was you, it's dangerous. There's some huge dogs living in the barn, and who knows how much more of the Farmland they've claimed. Better to be safe than sorry.
--'There's also a park, and it's got a huge fountain that's pretty to look at.'
They continued their trot as the twilight began, and the quiet chirp of crickets commenced. Moon couldn't help but smile.

ooc:: Lets continue this at the dump. I'll go start a thread down there ;3]