(Ash) Let's Play, Shall We?

[{Lunarstar}]

"Twig came with me to make sure I was safe." Ash hissed at Owl, saying the first thing that popped into her head. "He seems to be the only cat who cares for my safety. Well, him and Shrill." Ash said pointedly, lifting her nose up, lashing her tail through the air. "Besides, cut the cat some slack. It's not his fault he actually has a heart. Well, one he shows." Ash added, sending Owl a narrow eyed, arrogant look that meant, I know how you feel about Twig. Stop screaming at him over every little thing and he may realize that. "Also, we're perfectly capable of handling ourselves." Ash added, shooting him a look that could kill, and showed how much she wouldn't mind.

[.:*Hawkstar*:.]

"I don't need to hear pointless words from you, she-cat!" Owl hissed viciously. "I heed no word from scrawny Life-Walkers!" He stood, his hackles raising. "And you wouldn't talk so big if the Disturbed just happened to appear! Twig knows what can happen to him."

Twig flinched. "Stop fighting, you two," he meowed softly, but Owl heard it. Ash most likely did, too. "You guys are so alike, why are you fighting?" He lifted his big yellow eyes up to Owl pleadingly. "And I know what could happen. I just..."

Owl's expression flattened out. A frown sat on his lips. "Alright, fine. Do what you want!" He whipped around, throwing his tail into the air and flicking it madly about. "But I'm taking no pity on either of you when they show up!" He felt something in his throat come up, and he coughed a fit of blood up and onto the ground. Too much stressing and anger made him do that.

"Owl! Are you--"

"I'm fine!" he coughed around the blood. His fit dimmed to the point where he could hold it in. "If you plan on being out here longer, stay out for the rest of the night. This is..." another three syllables. "Pun... ish... ment..." And he slowly picked up his paws to walk forward.

[{Lunarstar}]

"Owl I swear if you don't take your brother with you, I-" Ash stopped. "I sadly can't do anything to a ghost, but I'm staying here. I'm safe here. I always has been. My...mother... is burried here, and everytime I've slept here nothing has ever harmed me. It's never rained here, yet plants grow." Ash stopped again. Why was she telling Owl this. She looked at Twig and said quietly, "go on. I'm fine here. I'll meet you guys back at the cave in the morning. Ruby'll protect me. She always has."

"Oh, Owl! How did your sleep go?" Ash asked suggestively, hoping he'd realize she knew how he felt about Twig. "And remember, karma's a bitch!" She called as another warning, before laying down between Ruby's rock and the tree. She begged Twig silently to follow Owl. They needed time together.

[.:*Hawkstar*:.]

Owl snarled harshly at the she-cat as she lay down. "Can it!" he snapped. "You can do nothing to me, but you only wish it was the same the other way around! I'll tear you to pieces!" The last sentence was such a violent hiss that he blood once again poured from the corners of his mouth.

Twig looked back at Ash, but did as told and bounded up behind Owl. He believe her when she said that Ruby would protect her. "Brother, please... Let's just go," he meowed at the fuming tom.

"Go back to the cave." Owl's meow was surprisingly calm. His eyes were shadowed over, his head too high for Twig to look into them. "I'm going to just speak with her. I won't even become solid," he added at Twig's concerned look. As his little brother obeyed, Owl stalked across the clearing to sit only a few tail-lengths from Ash.

"What all did you hear?" he meowed quietly, almost nervously as soon as Twig was out of earshot. Owl curled his tail neatly over his paws, his bloodied muzzle still dripping down onto his chest and the ground.

[{Lunarstar}]

"I heard and saw some stuff." Ash taunted, glaring at him. "But if you wanna know, I suggest you never call me 'she-cat' again. I despise sexist cats." Ash's navy eyes flared just once as she said it, but that fire was a sign of her control slipping away. Her calm disappearing, her thirst growing.

"Anyway, I heard you say you do want to smile for Twig, but you can't because there's nothing to smile about. Which, by the way, is so not true. That's the pessimistic side of things. Things can always get worse, but can always get better too. And don't you dare say any crap about being a ghost! At least you're not a Disturbed. If you look hard enough, don't let your memmories hold you back, you could probably manage a smile. I can and I've killed. I've been close to dying. I lost my whole world. I killed my father. I even smile for Twig. He can't handle the world on his own, he's a good kid. He's got a good heart, sadly cats with no backbone don't last long. He needs to see everything's okay. He needs to hear that you'll be with him. It keeps him going and happy. You're his big brother, he looks up to you. You don't even bother to look down to him, you just look right through him. No pun intended."

Ash stopped, slightly out of breath. She wasn't use to giving lectures that long.

[.:*Hawkstar*:.]

Owl blinked a few times, as if coming out of a dream. He was no longer frowning, but he wasn't smiling. He was in his average neutral state.

"First off, I'm not sexist. I call you what you are: A she-cat. Names aren't my forte. Neither is speaking. It just so happens that I can talk in two-part words. Two is my limit. Not three. Second, you didn't loose your whole world. If there is still living, breathing creatures around you, you have world. Everyone has a world and it's near... uh..." Impossible was four! The tom shook his head. "Never mind. Bottom line is: you can't loose your whole world."

Owl sighed heavily, closing his eyes as his jaws parted, revealing his sharp fangs in the exhale. "I just don't find enough joy, Ash," he meowed, saying her name for the first time that night. "Twig's got a cute face, but he just tries too hard. I love the cat, but... life is too bitter for smiles."

[{Lunarstar}]

Ash shook her black tortoiseshell head. "No Owl, life isn't. You are. And you say I didn't lose my whole world, well you just don't understand. Ruby was the mother I never had, she made the dark things become light. She taught me how to feel compassion for a cat I'd never met in my entire life. She was gentle when I need a shoulder to cry on, firm when I needed more than kind words, harsh when that was the only way to get guidance through my thick skull. Ruby...she found me the night my father kicked me out. I was only a kit, small, scared, and helpless. I just ran, no destination, no idea what to do. I fell weakly onto the ground in front of a huge tree. She found me a little while later, and just started licking me, feeding me a herb to calm my nerves, and she gave me my first lesson. She just began talking about the tree we were in front of, an Ash. 'Dear, you should know something about me. I'm an Ash type of cat. Most like the Oak, sturdy and strong, but not me. I like an Ash. Tall, strong, bossy, doesn't let any saplings get in his way,' she told me pointing to the bare ground around us. 'But it's compassionate, offering shade to those in need,' she added, pointing to me. Since that day I vowed to rename myself Ash. I did, after killing my father. I killed him the day Ruby died, I buried her here, then killed him. I killed alot after him, sometimes in anger, sometimes jealousy, sometimes just for laughs. I killed without regret or remorse. Just killed. I don't ever want anyone to ever know how many cats I killed. Yes, I know exactly how many. All I'll say is over twenty. Not counting my father. When Ruby died and I killed my father, my life went black. She took my world from me, my soul and heart until all that was left was darkness. I was like you, Owl. I didn't smile, never. I barely spoke to cats. I was a hermit, a pessimistic hermit, living my life, killing when needed.

"Well, actually you're right. I haven't lost my whole world, it's all coming back. It started with Bleak. Bleak, yes i know he killed you three, was a kindred spirit. He'd done things that haunt him, just like me. He was cruel and hateful. Still is... but I can be too. He began opening up to me, taking care of me. He returned small bits of my life and soul back. He reminded me of how it felt to wield herbs, use them to save a cat's life. He reminded me how to show compassion for the injured and strong. Slowly, a part of me became whole again.

"Scratch came next, he taught me how to love. Watching him and Bleak...well that showed me that any cat can find love. Even me. he replenished a Small bit of my heart, too.

"Then when Bleak told me I'd be training with one of his siblings, a female ghost, I was skeptical. How could a ghost teach me how fight an ultra powerful living cat. She showed me alright. She also showed me how to grin. When the Disturbed came after me, she wanted me to run ahead. I didn't of course. But she reminded me that Ruy had always told me 'a life living isn't worth it if you sacrificed another for yours.' She brought back a lesson and a bit of life.

"Twig came next. I liked the kid since the first day I met him. That day we were walking to the cave. I began to like him. He was the perfect friend, sweet and good-hearted, but broken and torn with enough strength to smile. That changed though, tonight..." Ash paused, unsure if she should tell Owl. She decided there was nothing he could do so she continued. "Tonight, Twig followed me out here. He taught me the best lesson of all. How to forgive, laugh, smile, and love. Live life to the fullest. He made me feel beautiful... and tonight, my soul was almost together again. Tonight I realized I love Twig. And, even if you hate it, he loves me too.

"So, my world hasn't been lost. For a time, it was. But thanks to friends, it's returning." Ash stopped and locked gazed with Owl. "Owl, all Twig wants from you is one smile. Just one smile. If Twig, Bleak, and I can push past everything haunting us, you can, too. You may think you're all big and bad, but you are the most weak, spineless cat I've met. The strongest in this world can smile, even if there's nothing to smile at."

Ash sighed and looked at the sky. The moon was slowly setting. "Owl, I suggest you go back so you can get some sleep."

[.:*Hawkstar*:.]

The mostly white tomcat sat with his head lowered as Ash spoke. Every word seemed to ring in his head, until it was all just buzzing. But, even through all of that sound, he still made out every word. True words will ring through even the loudest storm...

Finally, the she-cat was done speaking, and Owl just ignored her last words about leaving. "Ash... We once lived near the humans." The change of the subject didn't seem random to Owl. The she-cat was reminding him of something that he could never forget. "They would listen to music. I was amazed by it. The beautiful sounds of them changing their voices was so great. But, one of them, a young she-human..." His voice trailed, and something inside of his body grew warm. "She found me watching them one day. She wasn't cruel. She came over slowly, crawling like a cat to appear smaller. She lifted something to me, and I could hear music coming from it. I listened for one whole song."

A long silence came after those words. Owl lifted his muzzle to the moon, the shining orb illuminating the whole world. "I put that song in my mind. It taught me a lesson." He let out a breathy sound that could have related to a laugh, but there still remained no smile on his lips. "And I noticed something: Singing allows me to talk in three-parts. I only would sing that song, no others. I didn't know any others. I thought of it while you spoke to me." He lowered his head and found Ash's lovely blue eyes with his own violet.

"I see what Twig sees in you. You are truly what he needs, what he desires, what he deserves. You remind me of the song. Collapse, I think it was called. If you can, listen to it. Or come to me. I will sing for you, for anyone who asks, really. That she-human was great, weather you believe that or not. She was great to me." And the tomcat stood up.

"You could relate to the song, Ash," he meowed simply, turning away. He paused, looking over his shoulder. "Feel free to come back. I was worried, and I am sorry for snapping at you. I would feel honored to have my brother's mate in my company." Before she could give much of an answer with him looking, Owl turned and began to walk back towards the cave, hiding his smirk from view.

[{Lunarstar}]

Ash watched Owl go and decided she'd say goodbye to Ruby and follow him. She also made a metal note to ask Owl about the song sometime. She walked to the grave and pressed her muzzle into the soft grass. "Ruby...be well. Blessed be and merry meet again..." she whispered softly, using wierdwords that flowed easily off her tounge. She understood what they meant though. She followed Owl back to the cave.

At the cave Ash immediately found Twig and went and laid beside him. She was so tired, it had been such a long day.

[.:*Hawkstar*:.]

Owl looked to his side as he felt Ash's presence. The smirk was gone now, but the warm feeling remained in his belly. He walked silently with her until the cave, where the she-cat quickly left his side to go to the side of a sleeping Twig.

Owl nodded a goodnight to the tortoiseshell, but he didn't go to lay. Instead, he turned back around and sat at the mouth of the cave. His violet orbs closed and Owl sighed, dragging the breath out for a long moment.

"Maybe song true," he murmured to himself. "Maybe when we do go astray, we'll know... Thank you, she-human." With those words, the tomcat turned and went over to his nest, curling up comfortably for the first time that night.

[{Lunarstar}]

OOC: This done? Oh, make Kahl appear. Beechy said. And Ash is SO bored!

[.:*Hawkstar*:.]

OOC:: Yeah, this is done.... I'll make Kahl pop up now... I wanted to finish my posts with my ghosts before I did... I apologize for Ash's boredom...