Silver Lining [open]

[Silverstar]

The air was cold with the chill of Leaf-bare, the deadly season of sickness, so far DuskClan had done well, there wasn't much sickness, the kits looked healthy, but the lack of cats was a sadness and depression act when Leaf-bare struck.. It just made the Clan seem colder with this chill of Leaf-bare. Silverstar climbed up to the Rock Pile, it was cold with the smooth stones, a big pile where ceremonies were done, this place was more favor in New-leaf and Green-leaf, when the stones were warm, but for now, it had no matter to the mood of Silverstar. "This Clan is cold and now Leaf-bare maybe soon over, but it could be long." Silverstar whispered to herself.

Her blue eyes looked to the grey sad sky, she remembered that some were up there, gone, never to return, but she wasn't going up there anytime soon. She looked back down at her paws, they were still grey, like the sky. However more silver they may be, it was still cold and depressing now, how sad it could be to see an empty Clan.

[Loinfire]

Leaf-Bare, Lionfire thought, drains the colour from the world.

From where he was standing Lionfire had no trouble believing that thought. From beneath his paws spread a thin blanket of snow, a dazzling sheet of white that hid the drained grass from view. The snow fell in drifts from a grey sky; thick black clouds hid the once bright sun. Some flakes had come to rest on the branches of dilapidated trees, their bark the colour of ash.

Most prey had turned to hibernation, hidden beneath the frozen soil and bleak grey stones and pebbles of the earth. Even the rivers had given up their bright blue to Leaf-Bare, before they froze they were a reflection of the sky, a tremulous grey thunder cloud beneath their paws, now they were a frosty half-white, the grey water beneath showing where the ice was weak.

Lionfire stood to one side of the rocks, he had developed a Leaf-Bare coat to battle the cold and amongst the lack of colour the shock of orange was hard to miss, for once Lionfire was grateful for it. Even if it turned him into a poor hunter, there was nowhere left for colour to hide, all prey spotted him from pawleaps away. But he didn’t mind, it meant Leaf-Bare couldn’t take away his colour, he wouldn’t be frozen and hidden away like everything else Leaf-Bare had claimed.

The young warrior had been born in New-Leaf, when the Clan was bursting with colour and life, he’d experienced the drought in Green-Leaf but full of life and warmth Leaf-Fall had hit him harder than expected. Cold. It was cold. A foreign concept that soon stole his very breath with its icy claim. One thing was sure, if this was a mild Leaf-Bare, Lionfire didn’t want to experience a harsh one.

“Silverstar.” The tom called in greeting to his Leader, his paws left imprints in the snow as he moved forwards.

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[Waterclaw]

Waterclaw sat up, seeing Lionfire and Silverstar at the rock pile. Waterclaw got back up on her paws, feeling a chill down her back. Leaf-bare was always cold and hard on the clan, but this leaf-bare has been worse than usual. The light snow came earlier this year and most of the prey was already hibernating. Only a few animals were out like mice. But some of the mice would not go out, leaving us hungry. "Silverstar!" Waterclaw yelled as she saw small pieces of prey in the pile. It was covered in a bit of frost. "The fresh-kill pile should be refilled. I think that some of us should go hunting. Would you or Lionfire like to go with us?" Waterclaw asked.

126 words