::TGB:: Kronk | Chione [CH.1 Over the River] 2

[ Blue-Fire | Kronk | The Stepping Stones ]

Kronk rolled his eyes as she went on being a smarty pants. ‘Well excuse me for being new’ the young tom thought bitterly. There were rules and they sound like they could start wars if these rules are ignored. Even with general information like that, surely its enough to come up with strategies to counteract them. Though that’s for the leader to worry about. ”You don’t know me, I can do what I want with the information,” he mewed, not liking her overly friendly nature with him one bit. It ticked him off in more ways than one.

”I will be the judge if some place is interesting or not,” Kronk mewed, not that he would actually trespass into her territory. He didn’t react when Chione went expressionless, he treated it as though it was normal, not caring what she could do. ”Hmph, your soft paws won’t survive the heat of fire’s lands,” it was strange. But Fire-Tribe had the power to conquer the heat, much like how Water-Tribe conquered the waters. He kept a close watch on Nassie, this would be his first time to see an Air-tribe’s potential… and he remember a certain she-cat’s words. And upon seeing the lightning, which made his fur ripple slightly along his back with unknown emotion, he understood what she meant. This wasn’t something a cat without powers could fight against… It was a cruel world wasn’t it? To engage in wars like these… It was no wonder so many exiles rather join the fight than to be against them. ”It wasn’t that powerful… but your aim is good,” was that a compliment or not? Didn’t matter, ”You’re an air triber right? Show me how fast you are… how about we race over the stones? Not the large one of course, the smaller ones where we have to jump.” he challenged her.

{ Pink-Orange Air | Chione | The Stepping Stones }

Chione shrugged indifferently at his words, "If you tell anyone then that's your problem, I suppose." she said, although her eyes were sharp with irritation. "It was a privilege for me to show you. I did it because I'm a nice cat. I'm generally not one to judge, but that'd be a pretty rude choice." she finished with a snort, eyeing him with fiery eyes. He was so of like her brother Linken, irritating to her yet somehow likable. She sniffed to herself, suppressing a laugh. She smirked as his fur ruffled upon his spine. "Trust me, that blast was enough to knock you off your paws long enough for me to get in there and claw you." she said, her voice not at all confident, but factual. Chione was in mid-stretch when she heard him issue the challenge. She peered at him owlishly for a second before she grinned happily.

"A race, eh?" she queried, excitement within her eyes. One of the things she prided in herself most was her speed. Despite not being a secondary, she was naturally fast and loved to race other cats. And her muscles were already warmed up from the run that resulted in her meeting Shade, so she was ready. She nodded, "I accept the challenge." Chione said, voice almost as pleased as the smile upon her dark face. She turned towards him, crouching down. "3.....2.....1!” she shouted, before going off in a burst of impressive speed.

[ Blue-Fire | Kronk | The Stepping Stones ]

Shade shrugged, didn’t she just say that information was general and useless? Well didn’t matter, that conversation was over, and it wasn’t like he had many friends to tell it to anyways. He would just tell Ink if she could sit still long enough to listen to him. ”Well, I am a secondary user, I can just block your attack,” he mewed as he stretched out his muscles, cracking sounds coming off his bones. Though he didn’t know how to use his powers yet, but she didn’t need to know that… if only his mentor would teach him a little faster…

The young dark tabby padded to stand next to Nassie, ready to sprint over the stepping stones across the lake! He knew he would lose of course, he was never the fastest cat with his heavy load and big paws, he just wanted to see what he was up against. He noticed the she-cat enjoying this, that was a good cover.

"3.....2.....1!”

Shade took off after Nassie, and while they started at the same, the she-cat had already pushed ahead! Impressive for a small cat. He pushed on after her, jumping with ease once they reach the stepping stones! Everytime he landed, his eyes had to find the next stone to jump on. This was his first time, so he didn’t know the usual route. Once he found a good path to take, which was only a few short seconds, he jumped with a steady speed of his own, trying to catch up to the she-cat who was ahead of him. He kept his breathing under control, barely panting as he ran and jumped.
{ Pink-Orange Air | Chione | The Stepping Stones }

Unfortunately, Chione forgot about her size, or lack of more so. She, of course, was ahead of him by quite a lot, fur streaming out behind her. The Stones grew closer and soon she was leaping through the air. She quickly bound over the stones until she underestimated the jump. Chione's eyes widened in surprise as her claws slipped on the moss surface. "Noo-!" she yelled before she plunged into the water. Water churned in her fur and rushed past her ears. She attempted to surface but met water, coughing harshly as it went roughly down her throat. Paws flailing in the water, she finally surfaced and gasped in a harsh breath before being submerged yet again. Finally she snagged upon a branch and dragged her head above the water and onto the branch. She wheezed in breaths, eyes closed, looking completely and utterly dead. Chione felt a tiny bit of blood dripping from her ear and a stinging pain, but she was too waterlogged and tired to care.

She slowly cracked open her eyes, vision swimming in a nauseating fashion before her eyes. Her stomach churned and heaved before she finally vomited up the disgusting river water. She felt a tiny bit better then, and ventured to crack her eyes open wider, She peered around, looking for a way to get to the bank. Seeing as there was no way to go without swimming, she snarled to herself with frustration. She dragged her waterlogged body onto the branch she was clinging to and stared tiredly at the shore. "For S-Spirit's sake." she rasped, eyes narrowed. She shook out her fur and walked forward shakily before she burst off the log and leapt through the air like a black comet. She landed in the water, paddling hard. She wheezed and coughed before her claws finally snagged upon the shore. She let her face smack the sand and groaned, eyelids fluttering. She pulled her body out of the water before her legs crumpled and she slumped to the ground, bordering on unconsciousness. Little spots of red spattered the ground from her ear, spinning in her vision. Her eyes closed and she breathed deeply, coughing lightly.

[ Blue-Fire | Kronk | The Stepping Stones ]

Shade was always a smart one, and studying a terrain was his specialty, so he didn’t have any slip-ups as he ran and jumped across the stepping stones. That was until he spotted Nassie up ahead slip into the water! His eyes widen in shock and slight panic and he picked up the pace. Landing neatly on the rock from where the she-cat slipped. He looked to see her floating down river and he would have jumped in but he saw the cat swim to a bigger branch. He continued jumping till he got to the other side and ran along the shore where she jumped from the branch and swam back to dry land and collapsed there.

”Nassie!” he called and a moment later reached her side. All the while thinking how clumsy and stupid she was! But… it made sense since she did bump into him earlier pft. He circled her quickly, worry prickling his fur, thinking she could die or something… but, she did cough out the water, she should be fine…

The young dark tabby-tom pressed his warm body against Nassie’s much colder one, keeping her warm since the water was cold, then started to lick at her fur in the opposite direction it grew, in order to dry up. ”Hey, don’t pass out,” he mewed softly, sounding determined. ”You’re gonna be fine, just rest then I will take you back to your tribe…” he continued to keep her warm and dry her fur with swift swipes of his tongue.

{ Pink-Orange Air | Chione | The Stepping Stones }

Chione's eyes fluttered open again, narrowed but staring with focus at Shade. The darkness was pressing at the edges of her vision, but she was determined not to look weak and stupid....again. "Spirits....this is a new low for me..." she said softly, snorting lightly, "I screwed up two things today..." Her body felt incredibly fatigued, along with her mind, but she was sick of her weakness. She grimaced visibly, jaw grinding together tightly you could hear her teeth cracking against each other, as she tried to stand. She was successful, even though her world spun unsteadily. "I've already ruined your day enough, Shade, I can....go back to my tribe by myself." she said, her voice cracking but determined. She slowly began to limp forward, breaths a terrible struggle. Her chest felt tight and soon the darkness pressed closer.

'Well damn.' she thought, thinking of the harshest curse she knew, as her legs wobbled and her world tilted sickeningly. There was definitely no way she was getting back to her tribe, but if she could find somewhere nice to pass out... Nope, apparently not. Her amber-y eyes fluttered before she suddenly slumped forward, becoming a mound of silver and dark-grey. Within her mind, she screamed with frustration, eyes sparkling with tears. This was so embarrassing for her, and it made her feel weak and helpless like a little kit. She had a faint hope that maybe Shade would be her friend, but after making a pathetic example of the weak cat she was, there was no way he'd like her. She mentally sighed, maybe next time she could do better.

[ Blue-Fire | Kronk | The Stepping Stones ]

”I wouldn’t say you ruined my day exactly..” Shade rolled his eyes when the she-cat tried to look stronger than she was, to him it was a pathetic attempt. He was stubborn himself so he didn’t like others who were as well. They should just ask for his help instead of pretending to be fine. But he wasn’t going to let a helpless cat just go on her way by herself when she already has trouble walking straight. Whatever, he went ahead and helped her walk by shouldering up her side.

”Just shut up and let me help you, its not like it will kill you to let another cat help you home,” the young tabby tom mewed as he stubbornly helped her walk back towards Air-Tribe territory. ”I still say its better you rest for a while, until you get your strength back…there’s some long grass by the river, it can provide shelter so you can sleep…”

{ Pink-Orange Air | Chione | The Stepping Stones }

Chione sighed, eyes tilting down, displaying shame and anger. When she was younger, it was considered a foreign emotion to her, but now it was one she tended to experience often. Now that her mind wasn't as muddled and her senses dulled, she became aware of a sharp pain in her ear. She sighed disdainfully, great, probably another scar. From the way it felt and the fact is was still bleeding sluggishly implied it was rather rough and probably not the prettiest. She looked over at Shade, amber eyes dull, before asking, "How bad is it?" her voice rather hoarse. The ear, to one's eye, was ripped and shredded, as if one had violently swung their claws at it. The wounded ear flesh was pink-ish, bordering on red, as if inflamed. The scarlet color of blood was all too apparent on the she-cat's left side of face.

Luckily for Chione, the want to just flop over unconscious was fading. Her vision was still blurry, but wasn't tilting like a crazed dance floor. Her legs were shaky and her breathing was fast, but she was otherwise unscathed, well, except for the ear. She sniffed at his words, eyes yet again downcast, "Yeah, I know, but it makes me feel weaker than I already am." Her forehead creased, probably with anger. But as soon as it had come, the expression of annoyance faded and she looked up, smiling half-way, "But thanks." she spoke, voice quiet yet warm.

[ Blue-Fire | Kronk | The Stepping Stones ]

The young cat was just focused on getting the slightly bigger she-cat to walk straight, his ginger eat flicked at her sudden question. ”You mean your ear?” he figured that was what she meant when she asked. He was not one to linger on an answer, so he bluntly said. ”Its in pretty bad shape, its all shredded… you must have caught it between rocks or something, you should have a Healer look at it,” he mewed, not that he thought a scar would be ugly. He wouldn’t mind someday earning a scar himself! But he would be happy to have scorched paws in the future from blacksmithing~

”Is that all you can think about? Being weak?” Shade mewed with a disdain look on his face. Then he shook his head, it seems a lot of the cats here only care about being strong and hiding any weaknesses. Sure you should since it can be a harsh world but doing it all the time and in times like this make them just irritating to be with. Especially when he didn’t really see her as ‘weak’... only just clumsy… really clumsy. ”Well you’re welcome,” he mewed with a shrug and continued on their way to Air-Tribe territory, slow but moving along.

{ Pink-Orange Air | Chione | The Stepping Stones }

Chione sniffed softly, eyes burning holes in the Earth. "Yeah, well, I was a huge cry-baby as a kit. And I see now that you can't go through life being a crybaby. I don't want to disappoint my mom or dad, and even Auntie Vitani and Uncle Warrun. My siblings teased me as a kit and I hated it, so I want to put myself out there as a cat who doesn't want to be teased." she said stiffly, looking up at him with eyes that burned like coals. It was quite a frightening face for her. With dried and wet blood upon her face and her ragged short fur and fiery eyes, she seemed like a cat who could be dangerous. Of course, she wasn't, but she was trying and failing to be more assertive.

Chione turned her eyes away, staring at the horizon. Her paws struck the ground in an uneven gait as her focus was lost. She pouted ever so slightly before she came out of her thoughts and turned back towards the tom. "Probably not in my place to ask, Shade, but what was your life like?" she said, voice still rather quiet but curiosity poking through. One ear twitched, the injured one, and she winced visibly. "Oww, that's going to hurt tomorrow." she said with a snort, rolling her eyes.

[ Blue-Fire | Kronk | The Stepping Stones > Air-Tribe’s Border ]

Shade’s ears twitched at the mention of his Mother and Father, first time he heard their names from another cat that wasn’t his Uncle Kitty-su. He had known he had relatives and even older siblings in these tribes, but he didn’t think he would be able to tell who they were. But Nassie did say Auntie and Uncle… not a sibling, but was she related? Hm. ”I see… but all kits are cry-babies,” he shrugged, though he wasn’t himself, since he was the big and healthy tom-kit and he needed to be strong for his weaker and smaller siblings, so he matured pretty quickly and grew out of playing after 5 moons. He was concentrating on walking so he didn’t see when Nassie looked at him. Even if she did, he would be unfazed, it wasn’t like Nassie could attack him at her current state.

”Me?” The young tom mewed, looking at the she-cat to see her stare at the horizon before them. ”Hm, its just a nicked ear, it would be fine by tomorrow,” he sighed then went quiet for a moment as they neared Air-Tribe’s border and he wondered if he should help her to camp entrance or not. ”Well, I haven’t been living on these lands for long, before me and my sister settled in Fire-Tribe, we lived in wooded areas with our family… the ones you mentioned earlier as Vitani and Warrun… my parents,” he started, looking at the lands beyond Air-Tribe’s borders. ”It was pretty simple, and since I was just a kit, me and Ink mostly played but once a while, Rossifur would take us out for a hunting lesson or we learn to climb trees from Warrun, I can’t say much happened, just typical cat stuff… then my parents decided to leave Ink here and I stayed with her,” he mewed, not going into detail why.

{ Pink-Orange Air | Chione | Air-Tribe’s Border }

Chione shrugged, scowling, "My brothers Dove and Altair teased me a lot, and the fact I'm.....rather on the small side as it is doesn't help." She sighed one more time, but then smiled, "I do miss them though. Well no, Altair lives in my tribe so I see him often. Dove is in Water-Tribe." Her tail flicked back and forth until it came to a dead stop. "Vitani and Warrun....are your parents?" she asked, eyes wide. So they must have had more kits! Chione grinned, looking at Shade happily, "Ever heard about Sooka and Seraphiel? I'm one of their kits. We lived with your mom and dad till we were apprentices." she explained, grinning broadly, all remnants of her ideal seemingly gone.

Despite her excitement, she listened silently to his explanation. So he had a sister... I'll have to meet her… she thought, smiling to herself. "How's Auntie Vitani and Uncle Warrun? I haven't seen them in nearly 9 moons." she asked, hoping they were alright. Chione hoped one day she could go back and tell them everything that happened to her and her siblings. I wonder if Shade has any other siblings… she thought, curiosity brightening her gaze.

[ Blue-Fire | Kronk | Air-Tribe’s Border ]

Shade frowned when Nassie spoke about her brothers, how they teased her instead of taking care of her. He supposed light teasing was okay, but the Toms of the litter are meant to protect their family, not degrade them to the point of making them feel worst. He shook his head in disapproval. He would never intentionally hurt Ink’s feelings and when he did, he would do whatever to make her happy again. He blinked, they had stopped by the border of Air-Tribe now. ”Oh yeah they are, there’s actually six of us, but just me and Ink came to the tribes,” he mewed with a curt nod. He didn’t expect Nassie to be so… happy about it. But as she went on, he understood how she knew them.

He nodded at the mention of Sooka, but not truly Seraphiel… that name didn’t come up as often though it sounded familiar. Seraphiel didn’t leave with Sooka when she left the Tribes from the Spirits betrayal to her best friend, leaving the young queen to care for kits without a father for the first few moons of their lives. ”I only remember Sooka being mentioned from my mother’s stories,” he mewed with a shrug. He remembered some of the stories, but they never interested him as much as the stories of what the lands the Tribe lived in was like. ”Hm, why did you leave to live with the tribes? Wasn’t life in the forest enough?” he asked with a tilt of his head.

Then nodded. ”They’re fine, we still lived in that tree trunk around the forest area. We don’t come across predators that often so we lived a quiet life. Rossifur is always cautious though, he and Warrun would do daily patrols to keep us safe,” he mewed proudly of them. ”When I was a kit, there was six of us, and most of us were born weak, so they had to make sure nothing would stalk us at night,” he added and purposely widen his eyes. Then blinked them to his normal expression as he looked out to Air-Tribe’s territory. ”Other than that, they are pretty much the same, Mom is still obsessed about cleanliness, Ross and her have daily quarrels, and Warrun is still…” he shivered at the thought, ”...you know, all that weird love stuff…it had gotten quite crowded in our den because of it… so many kits...” though of course he meant himself and his five other siblings pft.
{ Pink-Orange Air | Chione | Air-Tribe’s Border }

Chione listened intently, listening to his sort-of life story. Chione shrugged at his question, "Well, at that point my mom, my brother, and sister had left for the tribes. Only....Altair was left with me. I was ready to join them, and to really meet my dad. Luckily he was made my mentor, so I got to know him quickly." she smiled at that, recalling when she stumbled to the border and hoping she had made it to the right place. Chione laughed at his talk of the 'weird love stuff' "My mom and dad are like that too. I don't understand how two could be so...cuddly."

She peered out at the land, eyes taking in the scenery of her territory. "I...I think I can make it back on my own now." she said, smiling. She turned back to Shade, "You seem pretty cool, Shade. Maybe we can talk again sometime? Hopefully I won't drown again." she laughed bashfully at the last part, flushing under her fur. "I-if you ever see uncle Warrun and Vitani again...could you let them know Nascha said hi, and that it's Chione now?" she was aware she had just revealed her spirit name, but she didn't care. She wished she could let them know she and her siblings were alright. Chione turned back, and with one last grin thrown over her shoulder, she began her trek back to camp, with a "Bye!" following.

[ Blue-Fire | Kronk | Air-Tribe’s Border  ]

Kronk nodded. It made sense why Nassie decided to leave, he would only ever follow Ink around. He worried for her health and he was her big brother after all. He would always be there for her when she needed him. He shook his head as the she-cat continued on to say her parents were the same. Jeeze! How gross…

Shade dipped his head, if Nassie says she can make it on her own, then so be it. He didn’t reveal his disappointment, but that was really only because he wanted to see Air-Tribe closer than just from the borders. Maybe someday he will see it for himself, hopefully a chance comes by. ”Yeah sure,” he mewed, if he bumped into her, he wouldn’t mind spending the day, as long as she doesn’t trip in his direction. He nodded, keeping that in mind and realizing she revealed two names… he didn’t say anything though but guessed Chione must be her true name. ”Bye,” he mewed and got onto his paws and made his way back to his own tribe, deciding to do some training instead.