can it be? all this time, you were right in front of me (private)

Twigleg inhaled deepy. She secretly enjoyed the smell of the earth. She wasn't quite as thrilled about it when she started the job, but there was something about being in the cool earth that made her feel whole. She almost felt pity for her clanmates that didn't understand it. "You can feel your whiskers against the walls. It'll help guide you in the dark."

"Whaaaaat?" She sarcastically asked, teasing the she-cat. She padded behind Twigleg, letting only her scent and the occasional light brush of her long tail against her cheek.

Twigleg let out a purr of amusement. "Gingersplash!" She giggled, nudging the she-cat playfully on the shoulder with her nose. "Okay, just make sure to be careful where you put your paws," she reminded her softly before stepping ahead. It got dark almost instantly. There was little light that shone into the mouth of the tunnel that lit a few pawsteps of the way through, but the light quickly disappeared.

"Alrighty then!" She meowed, carefully stepping into the tunnel, avoiding the thorns and some seemingly loose rocks. She looked around and breathed in the fresh earth. She always had a bit of a fondness for that smell, which she found a bit odd but enjoyed nonetheless. She stopped for a moment, to wait for Twigleg to walk up beside her. "Yeah, you had better go in front, I would get lost quicker than a Sunclan cat would let a kittypet into their clan" She joked

Twigleg let out chuckle at the she-cat. She couldn't help but to silently admire her humor. It was something she didn't get enough of with the diggers. The she-cat lead her through the frosted heather and toward the small clifted mound until they reached a bramble patch that guarded the entrance. "It's here. We put these brambles over it to keep predators out. We caught a fox trying to nest in one of our tunnels once." The tabby she-cat lifted the unattached bramble carefully with her paw, making sure not to prick herself on any thorns. "In you go!"

"Yes ma'am" She joked. She stood up and trailed behind Twigleg. "Lead the way!"

Twigleg nodded and delightfully leaned down to take a bite of what was left on the prey. "Okay," she purred, gulping the rabbit meat down. She began to make her way toward the nearest tunnel. "We have an opening near the training grounds that is being dug toward the forest. It's not finished, so we will have to be careful. Just make sure you don't touch any loose rocks."

(Is it messed up that this made me hungry lmao)

"Oh, it's not as glorious as you might think," Twigleg let out a soft laugh as she leaned down to take a bite of the rabbit. The digger let out a sigh as the mouthful hit her stomach. She already felt less hungry. "But if you want, I'll take you down to the tunnels sometime."

Twigleg could feel a growling in her stomach. "It is tempting," she admitted. Her ears wilted slightly with thought. She knew she probably didn't need it as much as her clanmates, but she hadn't eaten since yesterday. "I can go for a mouthful." She flicked her tail toward the rabbit. "Catcher gets the first bite."

"Thank you!" She meowed in response, dropping the plump rabbit at her paws. "I could always hunt for the elders later" she began, laying down and gave her chest fur a quick lick, cleaning up a bit of debris the rabbit had previously kicked up into her fur. "would you like to share this with me?" She asked, with at tone in her voice that made it clear which answer she was looking for.

Twigleg watched Gingersplash's tactics with warm amusement lighting up her green eyes. She was impressed. It made her paws itch to run after a hare and feel the air run through her fur again. It seemed like it had been a lifetime since her hunting days. She let out a purr and trotted over to where Gingersplash stood with her kill. Twigleg examined the dead figure. The warmth was still lingering to its body and drool began to pool at her tongue. "That looks amazing!" She mewed. "Nice catch."

She jumped down from the rock and lifted her muzzle to began to sniff, searching the air for any sign of prey. Her ears perk up for the faint scent of a rabbit. Without worry, she trots lightly on her paws in order to track it down. As she wandered deeper into the woods, she freezes. A strong scent of rabbit catches her nose and every one of her muscles tense. She looks around and her intense stare locks dead onto a long, light gray pair of ears poking out from the undergrowth. She lowers herself and stalks towards her prey, trying to get as close as possible, hoping she won't have to give too much of a chase, if any. The rabbit chews lightly on some grass, completely unaware of her presence but a few tail lengths away from it. She silently crawls towards it, holding her breath and every instinct within her screaming to lunge at the rabbit. She stops, and freezes for a moment, then tenses her haunches and she launches herself towards her prey. Her claws hook the gray fur and she pins it beneath her, holding the struggling animal under her weight. She quickly takes it's life with a bite to the neck. Her chest puffs with pride as she picks up her fresh kill in her teeth

Twigleg turned herself on the rock she sat on to look at Gingersplash. Her eyes were wide and bright like that of a kit on their first day out of the nursery. She dipped her head encouragingly to her friend.

A purr began to rumble inside her chest, she loved the thought of being able to show off her hunting skills to her new friend. She took quite a bit of pride with being one of the best hunters in the clans. She always had a knack for being light on her paws, making her a perfect hunter

Twigleg purred in response as she moved to stretch once again. She could feel her muscles bunched up and tensed. She didn't know why she felt so odd around the she-cat, but her stomach was bubbling with familiarity. "I've got an idea while we're out here. I haven't hunted since my apprenticeship. I'd love to watch you, if I may. I think the elders would appreciate a warm meal."

Gingersplash blushed a bit more and looked away, her brows slightly furrowed, almost scolding herself for what she had done. "I-- sorry about that" She stammered, looking back up at her.

Twigleg almost appeared stunned at the she-cat, but began to chuckle. It was funny, how she was so confident at first and then began to question herself and became shy. "Hello," she whispered back, unable to help the laughter. "Are you getting tense on me now?" Her tail brushed up the she-cat's flank.

Gingersplash smiles at her response. She sits up with Twigleg as she leaves her side, but steps a bit closer to groom her cheek and ears for a few moments longer, preserving any type of affection she could get from her. From every lean into the stroke to each vibration from her gentle purrs. It made her feel a twinge of regret backing away after she finished grooming her. Gingersplash looked up at the slightly taller cat some how instinctively leaned forward towards her and craned her neck just a touch. Her cheeks burned as she touched the slender she-cat's nose to her own, and holding it just for a moment. She let herself relax and sit back into her original position until she realized what she had just done. Her face burned hotter and she wanted to apologize but the only thing she could get out was a shy and sweet little "Hi.." as she looked up into her beautiful pine green eyes

Twigleg blinked at Gingersplash, giving a purr. "No, it's actually kind of nice..." She murmured. "IT takes me back. You remember those days when you were a kit? It's refreshing." Twigleg stretched her limbs and gave her pelt a shake as she sat up.

Gingersplash noticed her sudden shifting and gets a bit nervous, immediately stopping in her current stroke and lifts her head up, though not moving away. "Oh sorry, do you want me to stop?" She says a bit shyly, hoping she is enjoying the affection as much as she is.

Gingersplash's tongue combing through her fur helped to stir her a bit, but she was enjoying it. It took her back to her days in the nursery when her mother would groom her fur. She never sat still, but she wished she had once she realized warriors usually weren't up to licking their clanmates on random occasions.

Gingersplash licked the top of her head, grooming Twigleg gently, mostly trying to keep her awake. A louder purr rumbled inside as she groomed her new found friend. Stopping for a moment only to nuzzle her. She looked around to make sure Jumpwing was nowhere nearby, then continued to groom her.

Twigleg relaxed, letting her eyes glide over the falls, watching the droplets land among the rocks they rested. Mist lightly sprayed her face, but she was okay with the cool liquid, as she was warming up besides her denmate. She was so comfortable that she started to drift into sleep. Her eyes kept blinking open frantically as she would forget where she was for a moment, but then they would become heavy and close once again.

She smiled, and simply gave a gentle "yeah" in response, just happy she was okay with the gesture. She shifted closer and rested her head on her shoulders, pressing up against her completely. She breathed in her sweet scent and began to purr

Twigleg didn't see any reason to move away. She was comfortable, and the warmth from Gingersplash would keep her from freezing to death. In all honesty, it felt okay. More than okay. It felt right. "I didn't know what kind of friends I was missing until we became locked up in our own camp," she chuckled.

"Haha, me too. I haven't laughed this hard since I was just a kit!" She sighed. As they faced the water, Gingersplash gazed into the water. She followed the mist dancing in the air as it shot up from the impact of the falls. As the gentle water droplets blew against her face, she smiled and looked over at the brown she-cat next to her. Then in that moment, she decided to make a daring move. She shifted her body to get closer and slightly pressed herself up against Twigleg. Her fluffy tail swished a bit and laid the tip onto her's, hoping she'd accept her sudden affectionate action. Uncontrollably she began to purr gently, feeling Twigleg's warmth against her hip.

She couldn't help the laughter that burst from her chest. And honestly, the more she thought about how silly it was, the funnier it became to her. After a few minutes she was finally able to calm herself. "I feel a little lightheaded," she chuckled, putting her chin on her paws. She didn't take her eyes off of Gingersplash and began to wonder what the she-cat was thinking. It seemed like they had been looking at each other for quite a while, but it didn't feel wrong. On the inside, she could feel a similar feeling, but she knew she felt this before, twice to be exact. Once with Rockpelt, and again with Shellbreeze. She knew that feeling all too well, but she told Shellbreeze she would never love someone the way she loved him. She flirted with the idea, but pushed it down rather quickly.

Gingersplash smiled slyly at the she-cat and tried her best not to break character... for about a second, then the two cats burst out laughing. She felt a bump right on her snout giggled a bit and the accidental contact and felt her cheeks heat up and she smiled back at her. "It's.. it's all good." She chuckled and lowered her head a bit, but kept looking up into Twigleg's beautiful pine green eyes- a cute little smile displayed across her face. Her big round eyes stared up at her, admiring her beauty, what was this new feeling in her belly? It was strange, it was like having having a million butterflies inside her. It was curious, but these new and amazing feelings made Gingersplash want to explore it

"Oh my," she played along with a purr, lifting her paw to her chest as if she were breathless by the "tom's" alluringness. She batted her eyes at the she-cat, over exaggerating a bit. "Oh tom Gingersplash," she meowed loudly, throwing her head back. "This daisy is so beautiful, I shall have your kits and name our first born after it!" Twigleg moved to take the daisy from Gingersplash, accidentally bumping her maw against the other's. "Sorry," she simpered.

Jumpwing listened in the distance, frowning at Twigleg's words. Oh StarClan, he thought, cringing slightly. She-cats.

Twigleg let out a breath. "Yeah, it's just... memories," she gave her a weary smile. The she-cat was taken off guard when she gave her a lick on the cheek, and she could feel heat grow beneath her fur. "Gingersplash," she purred. The she-cat felt oddly comforted by the warrior. "So, Gingersplash. We have a lot of nice toms in our clan." The older warrior blinked, mischief glowing in her eyes, unable to resist the urge to tease her. "Do you think any of them are mate material?"

"Haha no!" She giggled as they sat down on the gray, polished rocks. "Are uh, are you okay though?" Her smile faded and her eyes filled with worry as she sees Twigleg's bristling fur. She nuzzled her neck comfortingly and gave her cheek a gentle lick.

As they neared, she could see the waterfall and the mist spraying around the stones. "Swimming?" She echoed, her fur bristling slightly. She remembered the last time she was submerged into water, and it had left a mark on her forever. The she-cat shook herself. "Er, that's great! You're not secretly from ReedClan, are you?" She let out a giggle and nudged her playfully with her muzzle.

"Oh no worries. Truthfully, I honestly enjoy wading into the cold water from time to time, even completely swimming on some rare occasions" Gingersplash giggled a bit in embarrassment, aware of her strange tendencies. "So cold doesn't really bother me much. I've been told that I can be quite warm when others are cold, almost like a blanket" She finished

The digger looked over at her clanmate in surprise, wondering to herself if it was an accident. She could feel a tingling in her pelt, but assumed it was from the warmth against the frozen air. She gave the she-cat a warm smile. Truthfully, she never thought of another she-cat romantically before, so her first impression was that the younger warrior was just being friendly towards her. "I hope it's not too cold out here for you," she murmured, her breath coming out as a cloud swirling in the air.

Gingersplash was smiling ear to ear, and a slight blush filled her cheeks. She walked close to the pretty brown tabby, though slightly annoyed by Jumpwing trailing behind as the two cats trailed out of the camp. As they walked, Gingersplash had an idea pop into her head. She fakes a yawn and looks up, stepping to the side to become closer to Twigleg. Their pelts brushed together and Gingersplash smiled to herself, and looked up at her, seeing what her reaction would be

A purr rumbled in her throat. "Is that so? Well, maybe we'll be there long enough to see the sunset. That is, if the diggers don't need me." Twigleg began to pad toward the exit. "Jumpwing, we're going to Lasting Falls," she called the sitting near the rocks. She didn't see any reason to make Mousestar fuss, so she figured they could allow the striker to stay near, just far enough to let the two breathe.

The digger hummed in thought, tilting her head to the side. "Maybe we can go to Lasting Falls?" She suggested, her ears standing in excitement. "I know it's cold, but the rushing water calms me."

The tall warrior angled her ears back when she heard the padding of stone shortly behind her. A familiar scent came near and she recognized it instantly. Ever since their confrontation with Mousestar, the two had spent a little more time together. It gave her some relief, since she didn't spend much time with her son since he moved out of the nursery, and most of her friends had duties to attend to much more frequently than they had to stick around chat. Twigleg looked to the side as Gingersplash came near. "Good morning," she mewed with a soft smile.

Gingersplash curled her tail, feeling for the warm body that had lay next to her the previous night. She opened her eyes to empty nest next to her and looked up to see a white tipped tail exiting the den. A small bit of disappointment ached inside her, but sat up to let out a big yawn and stretched her relaxed muscles. She blinked a few times and cleaned herself vigorously followed by a rough shake from her head all the way down to her tail, attempting to fluff her fur up as much as possible before padding out of the warm den.