Private Thread Watered Roses

What are you afraid of losing if nothing in the world actually belongs to you.

~･ﾟ: *~･ﾟ:* 🫧 *:･ﾟ~*:･ﾟ~

Goosesong had decided to check the perimeters after the storm and hadn't seen anything too out of the ordinary after a storm like what had been experienced not very long ago. Well nothing that he noticed at first anyway, the usual mundanity until... crrrrackk the sound of ice giving way to a weight reached his ears as they perked up, his aqua eyes shifted to the direction of the sound and noticed a uniquely patterned warrior pull her way from the river.

ThunderClan, Goosesong gathered without scorn, as it was from ThunderClan's side that she appeared. The large silver warrior watched as she padded miserably through the snow for a moment. Goosesong's head tilted for a moment, she looked drenched and he assumed that she would be humiliated, but he couldn't let her pass without detection, not when he was there.

Goosesong slipped into the bushes and followed the ThunderClan warrior in near silence, his body pressed down so he would be less likely to be ambushed detected for an attack, but he doubted that she would notice him given how it was an unfamiliar territory with more unfamiliar scents.

"A bit far from your own territory, ThunderClanner" came the silver tabby's gravelly voice, though there was no real bite behind it, it wasn't like he was going to ridicule her for getting drenched in a river. "Is there a reason for that?" he questioned, twitching the tip of his tail in indifference

Spawn of flame, Thunder-struck, from the ashes I rise
──●◎●──

Leopardrose froze, ears snapping upright as a voice cut through the cold air. The voice was deep, sort of gravely, but not outright hostile.

She turned sharply, her teal gaze locking onto the silver tabby lurking in the undergrowth. RiverClan. Of course. Her tail lashed, flinging a few stray droplets of icy water from its sodden tip as she straightened, doing her best to shake off the indignity of her situation.

His expression was unreadable...neutral, if anything, but that didn’t make her bristle any less. Leopardrose sniffed, lifting her chin as if she weren’t standing there looking like an intruder. "I was hunting. There are small mouths to feed." She said simply, as if that explained everything. "The squirrel ran onto the ice, and, well... turns out it's not as frozen as I thought." The rosette painted she-cat flicked her tail toward the cracked river behind her.

She gave her leg one last shake, then met his gaze with a half smirk, a fraction of her usual confidence slipping back in. "Unless you're planning to chase me off, I'll just be on my way. You can escort me if you'd like. You probably know the river better than I." She stepped lightly to the side, testing how much room she had to maneuver without making this more of a confrontation than it already was.

What are you afraid of losing if nothing in the world actually belongs to you.

~･ﾟ: *~･ﾟ:* 🫧 *:･ﾟ~*:･ﾟ~

Goosesong's ear flicked, watching how the trespassers fur bristled in his presence, the silver and white tom raised a brow at the bristled body of the ThunderClanner. He wasn't exactly acting aggressive, or at least he didn't think he was and his long fur lay calmly flat on his back and tail. "We all must feed the young of our clans" he said again, his eyes no less stoic and neutral.

His expression of neutrality left no room for any judgement or any sympathy, it was simply, by definition, neutral. "However, you are still technically trespassing and I must treat you like I would any other border crosser" Goosesong, instead of making any move to invade her space, stood a fair distance away and left room for the she-cat to breath. "You breaking our borders, as much as it is an impeachment the code of our clans, was accidental, so there is no need for harsh reprimand, especially from me" he added

"I'll walk you upstream, the ice is still thick enough for you to cross up there if you tread lightly." he explained, starting a path with his large pawprints to guide the ThunderClan she-cat forward, but he did not leave his back unaccounted for, as he flicked his dull aqua gaze over to Leopardrose every few steps, to both ensure she was keeping pace with him and ensuring that any potential attack, if any, would been seen coming.

"Take this as a one an only warning, step across the border again and you may not meet a cat as... understanding" He added, twitching his tufted ears for a brief heartbeat. "Making up for... my lack of pleasantries, my name is Goosesong, I'm sure my name was, quietly handed around at gatherings"

Spawn of flame, Thunder-struck, from the ashes I rise
──●◎●──

Leopardrose flicked an ear at his words, her tail giving a slow, thoughtful lash as she padded after him. His neutrality was… disarming. No sharp edged accusations, no smug remarks - just plain, even offered logic. It was almost irritating how unshakable he seemed.

"How generous of you..." Came her considering purr, stepping carefully where his large pawprints broke the snow. "Not every warrior would be so willing to let a 'border crosser' off so easily. Even if it was an honest mistake."

She watched him from the corner of her eye as they moved, noting the flicks of his gaze back toward her, the careful way he kept her within sight. Smart. Even when showing leniency, he wasn’t careless.

At his warning, she let out a short, amused breath. "Noted. Though, for the record, I’d rather not take another plunge just to see who else I could run into." Her whiskers twitched, still faintly annoyed at the whole ordeal.

His introduction made her pause for a beat, before she gave him a sidelong glance. "Goosesong." She tilted her head, feigning thoughtfulness as she toyed with the syllables in her maw. "Hmm… I might’ve heard it once or twice. Not nearly enough to have formed an opinion." She let the words hang, then gave a small grin, the edges of her eyes narrowing with shrewd interest. "Leopardrose, in case my name hasn't made the rounds in RiverClan yet." She picked up her pace slightly, shaking out her still damp tail as she focused ahead. "You seem much more agreeable than your deputy, to be sure."

What are you afraid of losing if nothing in the world actually belongs to you.

~･ﾟ: *~･ﾟ:* 🫧 *:･ﾟ~*:･ﾟ~

Goosesong twitched one of his ears at the name she had given him, so this was Leopardrose? Goosesong's eyes narrowed slightly, not in aggression, but in thoughtfulness. "Your name travels it seems" the silver warrior spoke with no malice, just well sustained neutrality "However, it is rare to hear yours, one wouldn't be able to forget it so easily, there is something unique about it" he added, not breaking his stride.

Still glancing behind him on occasion, both to make sure that Leopardrose wouldn't plot an attack on him, and to ensure she was following him upstream. "It wouldn't be fair to be punished for an accident unless harm was caused or if prey had been stolen" Goosesong twitched his ears, glancing forward for a moment "But ThunderClan doesn't seem the fishing type" he added, meaning it as light hearted banter of sorts, but it came out more serious then he intended it to.

Goosesong studies Leopardrose's frame for a moment, she was lighter than he was, simply by appearance, and parts of her pelt were broken up by scars, but that was not his story to enquire about, and it would never be, he would much rather just get Leopardrose back to her own territory before some... different warrior found them and accused a alliance of sorts.

"You should be able to cross fine if you tread carefully and lightly, as you've noticed, Ice is slippery and can break under your pause at any moment, I'd hope a lesson be learned from that experience"

Spawn of flame, Thunder-struck, from the ashes I rise
──●◎●──

Leopardrose’s whiskers twitched as Goosesong mulled over her name, her teal gaze flicking toward him with growing amusement. His words were measured, carefully neutral as ever, but she could sense the way he was turning thoughts over in his head.

She let out a soft hum at his remark. "That’s because I’m named after a great cat, and you’re named after a goose." The rose marked she-cat quiped, her voice carrying an easy, almost teasing lilt. "Not much mystery in that, is there?"

She kept pace beside him, still mindful of the slick ground beneath her paws, but not so much that she missed the way he assessed her. She wasn’t unfamiliar with that kind of scrutiny. Normally, she’d brush it off, but there was no edge of condescension in Goosesong’s gaze. Just… observation.

At his attempt at humor...if she could even call it that...Leopardrose raised a brow. "ThunderClan might not fish, but I’d wager I could catch one if I tried." She tossed a smirk his way before flicking her tail dismissively. "Maybe when the River thaws out. By Sunningrocks." A part of her wanted to gauge his reaction to that long contested piece of ThunderClan territory. Every other RiverClanner seemed to take issue with it.

His warning about the ice earned him a scoff. "You sound like a mentor..." The slits of her similar aqua colored eyes teased in his direction. Every word he spoke wasn't lost on her, even if it was gentle reprimand. She paused on the edge of the icy bank, her claws sinking into the surface to catch her footing.

She made sure to cross gently as if she were stalking fowl, hardly a sound as she heard the brief whisper of water beneath her paws. So far so good. If what Goosesong said was true and this part of the river usually froze thicker, it might be a good bit of knowledge to take back with her. She shot back a sly sort of look once she was about halfway across and stepped onto a partially submerged, and frozen, branch.

What are you afraid of losing if nothing in the world actually belongs to you.

~･ﾟ: *~･ﾟ:* 🫧 *:･ﾟ~*:･ﾟ~

"Being named after an ancient ancestor does not make you as great you know" Goosesong spoke, there was a certain truthfulness in his voice, and still, somehow, it held not malice or bite to it; just flat neutrality. Goosesong felt that he shouldn't be showing too much emotion even if he was feeling so much as indifference in this situation, though he did track the teasing lilt in her tone, though he wasn't sure if he should be amused or annoyed. "Your name has spread for, less noble reasons"

Goosesong raised a brow at Leopardrose's certainty of her catching a fish after the river had melted, he did admit to himself that he found her confidence.. endearing but not enough to make any real judgment to her just yet. Not unless he was able to speak to her more, and he wasn't sure if that would even happen again aside from exchanged words at gatherings.

With a flick of his black tipped ear, he turned his gaze to Leopardrose again. "I wouldn't make any wagers, but I don't doubt you either, ThunderClan isn't a hopeless bunch of incapable mouse-brains." he spoke evenly and with a usual flat tone, which might had made him seem more honest in his opinions, lifting his chin for a moment before looking down at her "Despite some debate on that" he added, this time the joking tone came a little more naturally under his usual lilt.

He didn't say near as much as he could have and perhaps he was thankful for that, let a warrior know too much and they would be able to use it against you, so he was careful with what he said "I am a mentor" he replied flatly but not cruelly to her reply to his recommendation. "But if you have no more to say, I'd say this would be a goodbye and an... interesting report to Coldgaze and Boldstar" He finished, twitching his whiskers as he watched the dappled she-cat cross over the ice, keeping his eyes fixed on the ice below her moving paws.

Spawn of flame, Thunder-struck, from the ashes I rise
──●◎●──

Leopardrose’s smirk lingered, though her whiskers gave the smallest twitch at his remark. Less noble reasons, huh? No surprise there. Cats always talked. She flicked her tail, shaking off the words as easily as she did the droplets clinging to her fur. "I never claimed to be great..." She reiterated stepping lightly across the ice. "Just better named than you."

His even tone, his careful neutrality - it was all so deliberately measured. Even when he joked, it was with restraint, like he was holding something back. It almost made her want to push, just to see if she could pry something loose. But as his words turned to departure, she decided against it.

Leopardrose reached the other bank, claws gripping onto the firmer ground before turning back to him. "A mentor and a warrior with a sense of humor..." Her eyes were wide with exagguration, tilting her head. "Perhaps RiverClan isn’t all fish-brains after all!" With a flick of her tail, she turned and disappeared into the undergrowth, leaving her paw prints on the snow dusted bank behind as well as a warrior who may still have her on his mind.