TW: Sensitive Content Open The Farm In unum infernus ───〃★ BARN FIRE

[Petalpaw]

{$title} This thread features a large barn fire and possible injury, death of cats! Please be mindful!

Dearly departed - Dig to find where my heart is

To Petal, the barn was safety and security but he knew in his heart Peony despised it. The other would rather be anywhere else, his hints and remarks that they should go and find a new home were not missed to the small lilac tabby; he was mute, not stupid. He didn't understand what drove his brother's paws to itch with restlessness when they had found a new home proper, he didn't understand why the other was still on edge as though they were still at risk. Sure, the farm had its own dangers at times...rats on occasion whose bites were dangerous and painful, he remembers distinctly hearing about a cat who got too close to the hind leg of a horse and was bashed into the ground in an instant by a hoof like stone - dead before they could even register it. But these things were minor compared to what would await them in the wilds, on the roads an wandering, these things could be avoided.
Petal clambered up onto the small loft area they had claimed in the back, the sweet smell of hay and the bitter kerosene from the lanterns left to light the farmers work made locating Peony a struggle at first before he spotted the pale coat laying alongside the side of the wall and peering out the slot of a loose board into the distance.
He tapped a paw roughly against the ground three times for attention, frowning as his brother finally raised his head to look at him and the tiny tabby's tail lashed in unease as he shook his head, What's wrong?

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Cause I'm buried beneath all the dirt & debris - the only flower left in your garden.

✿ Petal

—⊱ Barncat (Future WindClan Tunneler)
—⊱ He/Him
—⊱ SH Lilac Tabby w/blue eyes - Is Mute.

 

[PEONYPAW]

Peony is restless, evident in the endless back and forth he puts his body through; from one wall to the next, the light of the lantern helping him avoid butting his head into anything. Petal is awake — Peony can't decide if that's a good thing or not. His brother is always so perceptive, so it's not like he can escape this, not without talking about it. But with how many things press down on him right about now... well, Peony has a bit of a temper. Talking more often than not just makes him angrier.

"Are you happy here?"

The question escapes Peony's mouth before he can even think about it. It makes him stop dead in his tracks, looking like a deer caught in headlights, except the headlights are just Petal's familiar blue eyes. Peony shakes his head and returns to his walk.

"No, nevermind, that's not..."

he trails off. The wooden boards underneath him creak, even though his weight is pitiful when compared to the amount of hay that provides them some shelter. The noise drives him a little crazy, because otherwise the night is quiet, save for the occasional snore cutting in.

Certainty strikes him like a foe.

"I know you want more."

Peony had known; their general disagreements over this community had been just the base for the reality that now settles in. Petal would certainly not mind staying here for all eternity and play the part, befriending cats until they are no longer strangers but friends, providing and caring and loving like a grotesque painting of what family is. The whole thing scares him.

"Why? Is it not enough that we are together?"

Peony cannot imagine life without Petal. He had not imagined life without mother and father either, but Peony can only endure one set of tragedy.

To lose his brother would be like losing himself. Peony had taken it upon himself to be responsible for them both. Petal does the same too, of course, but Peony's protective strides have taken more of a toll on him, it seems. All he wants to do is curl up beside his parents and let them take the reigns once more.

He will never be able to do that.

"I've been trying... I've been trying to make things better for us. To keep us safe, at least. It doesn't feel like it's enough."

The words come easy now- or at least, they pour like a waterfall pours over the lip of a cliff, free of any obstructions and ready to destroy whatever else may try to intercept the water. It does not feel liberating. Peony's head swims.

"Am I not enough? That's what it is, isn't it? I'm never enough! I can't replace-"

Our parents, is what he wants to say. He doesn't get the chance to utter those damning words because his paw whacks against something cold and hard, and Peony hisses in response. He is about to round on whatever has come into his way and take his bubbling feelings out on the sorry thing, but there is no need. It's already broken.

The glass that has kept the flames contained within the lantern is broken.

Suddenly, Peony's eyes do not need to take on its night vision mode to see Petal. Everything becomes crystal clear; the fragile wood hugs the now-free fire, and the flames spread so quick. It lights up the entire loft within heartbeats.

And all Peony can do is stare, his mouth still agape and his eyes stunned with shock.

"Petal,"

he breathes into the night air around them, almost soundless. The instant danger has not yet registered in his brain.

What have I done?

 

[Petalpaw]

Dearly departed - Dig to find where my heart is

Is that what this is about? He has never cursed his inability to speak more than he does when it comes to disagreements with his brother, there are things he wants to say, to express, that he could never truly convey without words and its frustrating to a point that leaves him constantly on edge. Petal wants to tell Peony, so much, that he doesn't HAVE to be their parents-just being him is enough, just being his brother, and he shakes his head as if to try to push that thought that meaning outward to no avail - Peony is already getting worked up again. The lilac tabby's silence causes more harm than not, the other lets his imagination and projections fill the void that words might would have. The mute tom's jaw tightens, he swallows hard and fights down the natural impulse to cry; tears were an easy emotion to express, it wasn't hard to get his feelings out when he cried, it was so easy to tell that he was hurting or unhappy when they were shed but it was also miserable knowing that sometimes he had to cry just to get that point across. He matches Peony's strides, pacing side to side with him with firm shakes of head and eyes blinking back the water brimming there - he hopes it is enough to make clear that he doesn't agree with anything said, that he wasn't blaming the other but its so hard to match Peony's energy when he gets this upset and like a fire he often has to wait for it to die down before getting close or he'd be burned. Like a fire.
Petal's ears flick harshly, pin back to his skull as he hears the crash and like his brother it does not yet register to him what has happened. The oil lantern, the contained flame, those lights the farmers used to look around the barn in darkness when the outside world was drenched in night and they could not see otherwise. Often they would not leave them sitting out here, not that he'd ever given them much thought, but now he sees the shell holding the blaze was fragile. Breakable. Blue eyes widen more, he traces the path of blistering heat to the pile of hay nearby and in mere seconds it is ablaze, creeping upward, grabbing at the walls, the black smoke that burst forth was blinding and he wheezes with a cough before finally snapping to his senses. Oh no. Oh no...
For once it is Petal who acts first, he pushes forward and shoulders his brother hard, hard enough to knock him back into his senses, to bring him back to focus and then he is brushing alongside the pale pelt with an urgency. Run. Run. They had to run! His mouth opens, closes, opens again and he clenches his teeth tightly in horror - he can't even scream, can't even raise the alarm.

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Cause I'm buried beneath all the dirt & debris - the only flower left in your garden.

✿ Petal

—⊱ Barncat (Future WindClan Tunneler)
—⊱ He/Him
—⊱ SH Lilac Tabby w/blue eyes - Is Mute.

 

[BUCK]

Buck liked to tango with danger. It came naturally to him — throwing himself into situations he shouldn't be in, taking every opportunity to sate his curiosities, letting the elements soak and ruffle and whip his pelt. He was only a small cat in comparison to the force of nature; this he knew, this he respected, but he tended to chase his fears straight on as opposed to avoiding them.

Fire, be it naturally occurring or not, was not something he took lightly.

As soon as he ingests the stench and his eyes begin to water, he knows that this is a bad situation. Fire liked hay, which this barn was full of. It seemed to be eating the wooden paneling quickly too, crackling and hissing aggressively as it engulfed everything in its path. "FIRE!" Buck shouts at the top of his lungs, chocolate tabby fur bristling warily as he briskly makes his way toward the exit of the structure.

"EVERYBODY UP! WE GOTTA GET OUT!" The tom shouts again before spiraling into a coughing fit, the ash and thick billowing smoke polluting the air. However, Buck was not intent on leaving until all of the barn residents were safely evacuated. Where were the old-timers, like Hoot and Cowboy? What about the caregivers and their kits?

𝐑𝐈𝐃𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐌 ✹ . + ˚ · 𝐑𝐔𝐍𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐎𝐔𝐆𝐇 𝐌𝐘 𝐕𝐄𝐈𝐍𝐒

• 

• 

  — buck / 28 moons / he/him pronouns
  — loner / barncat
  — sh chocolate tabby w/ orange eyes, bite marks on left foreleg, nick in left ear & scratch on right side of lip
  — click for tags

​

​

 

[Hollowmumble]

Hollow, -- 34 Moons / Barn Cat
Black spotted ghost tabby with bright amber eyes.
She is friendly, yet quiet, and always willing to help.]

Tagging @Merry

---

FIRE!

The scream made Hollow jolt awake, heart pounding as she lurched to her feet, head whipping around to look upon the loft around her, blinking as she parsed to comprehend what she had heard. And then the stench hit her nose, and she gagged and reared her head back a little, but the smell didn't go away... no... it was everywhere. her claws flexed, ears pinned back as she took a cautious, far too slow step toward the edge of the loft and looked down.

The barn was on fire.

Her heart raced, and she gasped before reeling over and coughing at the smoke that she had inhaled, shuffling awake from the edge as her senses came to her. Everyone needed out! Now! She whipped around, blinking away the burning in her eyes and watched as some of the other cats who slept in the loft started to awake, the barn filled with noise as cats rushed to try and get out and wake everyone up.

Before she could think it through, she ran to one of the sleeping cats that she knew probably wasn't awoken by the abrupt, loud yell. She leapt onto the haybale, almost falling over the other side in her rush before she roughly shoved Merry. "WAKE UP!" she yelped, "There's a fire! We have to get out of here!"

 

[cloverbloom cloverbloom]

Clover didn't know if it was Buck's loud shout of "Fire!" that had woken her, or if the heat of the rapidly spreading flames had broken through her sleep. She looked around, watching the flames creep closer to her little nest of hay, taking far too long to register the imminent threat. Run, run, that's what you need to do. Run! It took too long for her paws to respond, for her situation to finally sink in as the smoke started to cloud up her vision.

She tried to run, as fast as she could, catching only flashes of familiar colors through the smoke that felt like it was choking her out. A brown pelt here, a black one there... Was everyone going to get out safely? Should she try and help the smaller cats, or focus on getting herself out... Once again, the panic muddied her brain, tugging both of her paws in different directions... Cats raced by her while her paws seemed to freeze in place, until she felt a hard nudge on her rump, shoving her closer to the big door of the barn. She took off again, turning back to see who had shoved her.

A familiar face - like hers, but not quite, the same red tabby fur splotched with cinnamon tones Clover didn't share - disappearing right as a flame-engulfed rafter collapsed, spraying miniature cinders across Clover's muzzle. She had been standing, right there... She would have been caught under it had she not been shoved by her mother. She froze in horror, hoping to see the same face emerge, to see her mother take off running with the rest of the cats... she wasn't even sure how long she just stood there, frozen, or how long passed before she let out an anguished wail. "Mama!"

__________way down deep inside ✿ there is a real me___________

• "speech" - thoughts
  

• 

• Clover(paw) she/her & windclan
  ✿ lh red lynx mink w/ white spotting
  ✿ 8 moons
  ✿ Peaceful and healing powerplay permitted.
  ✿ Slight suppressed southern accent
  
  
  penned by pastelskulls
  template by scarlet
  template art by redskiez​

 

[Dustystar Dustystar]

✯

indent Dusty is having a terrible dream. Something is weighing down her chest, restricting her breath. She opens a stinging eye and sees a cat standing over her, placing the full weight of their front paws onto her ribcage. The face is blurry and indistinct, but despite her faded memory, her heart knows who it's meant to be.
"Mama... you gotta let me up, Mama." Dusty struggles against the weight, but she's weak, kitlike. Her mother watches on, her blurry face expressionless and uncaring.

indent Dusty wakes in a cold sweat. She didn't understand the call that woke her, but recognized the voice as Buck's all the same. She's about to scold him, tell him off for waking her up, when she fully comes to her senses. The Barn is hot with flame and filling with smoke. The horses have already woken up, squealing with fear and slamming their heavy bodies against the doors to their stalls in a desperate attempt to escape.
Where were all the cats, though? There was no formal sleeping area, and everyone had spread themselves throughout the barn to spend the night. Her friends and family could be anywhere.

indent"Peepaw, Meemaw!" Dusty calls, desperate. She can't see them through the smoke. The thought of losing the last of her family in the blaze tore at her heart. Coyote, too, was worrying her. The little tomcat was her responsibility, she wouldn't be forgiven if he dies on her watch. "Coyote? Where are you!"

-calling for @cowboy @chicken and @Coyote -​

✯

 

[MAREMANE]

That night, Lucille was in her own feelings, unknowing of the brothers above. Her half-lidded eyes watching the barn doors like they were going to flap open and the wind that would hiss in would be an answer to her situation. The barn was warm, but not a comfortable warm. A stuffy discomfort. Stifling her, choking her as the snores of the barncats surrounded her. She tossed the crown of long hair she had away from her eyes, brows furrowing as if her thoughts were bothersome flies.

This barn was nothing more than sleeping quarters. It wasn't the home many of her peers claimed it was. Her wings were being clipped the more she stayed. Lucille knew there was something greater out there… And the wilds never judged her or expected her to provide anything back. She could never leave through a honest farewell, though. There were two paths for her if she told anyone she was leaving. Miley would be surely heartbroken if she knew her sister chose to explore on her own, or she would follow and Lucille would spend every waking minute afraid to pursue the thrill of being a loner, fearful Miley may get hurt or die.

Disappearance was her only option. She had teased the idea before. Left and hunted on her own without telling anyone, to ensure her community was changed minimally by her going missing. At night, standing by the barn doors, not on sentry duty but practicing the departure. Every day, the one-sided tension between her and these cats grew stronger. They talked to her, appreciated her efforts, driving her further into familiarity with the barn residents.

She needed to get out before someone really liked her.

Lucille shifted, feeling heat rise in her head. This barn kept heat well with all of the hay, and it would prove useless in the spring. The barn walls became lighter, the doorframe glowing. Was this a sign that this was the night she left forever?

"FIRE!" Buck's voice split through the sea of her thoughts. That wasn't an otherworldly sign; the barn was about to crumble!

She was up on her feet before she could shift her mind, and the concepts merged together: run away. Lucille was good at that, so she did, tail streaming behind her as she erratically moved towards the door, climbing over hay bales in a stupor. The fire sent flaming debris at her heels. Her mind was zeroed in on the field outside, grasses reflecting orange.

 

[Peafowlpaw]

He slept easily well into the night: comfortable and content, as he always was in the safety of the barn. The walls were as tall and strong as the roof that protected them from the elements. All the cats gathered inside ready to tackle any threat looming in the distance that would threaten their way of life. It was routine and secure and there was never anything worth worrying about that the kitten could possibly imagine. Somebody would fix what went wrong, swiftly and surely. Life would continue on.
The threat of fire was not something Peafowl ever could have predicted. His young mind couldn't fathom the danger in something he didn't understand to begin with. He'd seen the flicker of flame. He wondered what it felt like or what it tasted like. If it was warm like the house it lived in, or if it were really cold and that's why it's house had to be so warm.
It would always dance, like it had feelings it couldn't contain. But Peafowl knew- Peafowl was told sternly- the fire is right where it belongs. It wants to stay in there, it's happy there the way he's happy in the barn. It's safe where it is.
Never once did he wonder what it could be capable of outside of it's house. Would it regret what it did?

Peafowl's throat felt irritated. It wasn't like he accidentally swallowed a flick of hay in a moment of restless sleep, no. The soft reflex of a cough couldn't clear his airways, it only seemed to irritate the issue further and further until he stirred and the sounds of panic slowly but surely reached his ears. The kitten's tiny form rolled over with a coughing groan. He felt… so sick. He was woozy. Surely something was wrong, but the grogginess of sleep met his lack of understanding of the circumstances midway and left him laying there waiting for someone to check on whatever cold he seemed to catch.
His backside twitched slightly with another cough and he opened his eyes, only for a moment before closing them tightly again. They burned so, so much. He continued to blink and blink the burning away but it only got worse and frustrated, he stood, looking out into the barn to find any cat he could whine to for comfort in his ailing time but…
It was… strange. Something was wrong– something had changed. Peafowl struggled to look out into the barn through burning, tearing eyes he could hardly open to begin with. Another cough shook him where he stood, dumbfounded. It was hard to see, like his vision was clouded. He knew he was no longer sleeping. Peafowl was very much awake, but this moment was dreamlike.
"What happened…?" His voice was a quiet rasp in the chaos.
Fire.
Fire.
Fire.
He squinted hard at the barn walls through yet another series of coughs. He could hardly see through the film of black and brown, but he connected the dots. Something was wrong. The fire escaped.

you'll find me in the broken folds ∅ i'm never leaving you alone

• "speech" thoughts
  

• 

• peafowl he/him, barn cat, four moons, 10.13.24
  ∅ long haired blue smoke chimera with bright amber yellow eyes
  comically large, fluffy ears and a long tail with black striped markings
  maine coon genetics
  always smiling. ever optimistic
  ∅ mentored by x
  ∅ open to all bonds
  ∅ peaceful and healing powerplay permitted
  ∅ penned by idola / / tag @.idola appreciated
  

OOC
Peafowl is sleepy and confused from smoke inhalation!
Offering @Meadowpaw and/or @nutmeg ♡ priority for getting him out of the barn, but if that changes, I'll mention in discord!

 

[CHERRIE CHERRIE]

He has always been known to sleep in a tucked away corner. Away from too many and keeping his own warmth to himself. It's just something he has always done. Quick to sleep and so so late to rise. His chest rises and falls slowly, head tucked underneath his paws as he slumbers. Always there is not a care in the world for him and why would there be given how easy and peaceful the barn has always been. But the sudden shouting is what jolts him awake. Eyes wide and alarmed because this is different. Strange and unnatural. The smell of smoke clogs his nose and he jolts up to his paws, stumbling and fumbling to get his bearings. "What's happening!?" He calls out sharply as he starts to move forward. But the sudden roar of the fire in front of him makes him his sharply. What the! It burns, it's too close and he scrambles back against the wall. Where and how did this even happen. His eyes cut around to try and find an escape and he quickly pushes his way underneath the corner of a haybale. Of course not the smartest idea but it's all he has. "HELP! SOMEONE HELP ME PLEASE!" Fear tinges his voice sharply as his claws scrap at the wooden flooring. The small tunnel through the hay not really meant for a cat his size. He kicks and tries anyway, forcing the hole larger, clawing at the straw to make it widen faster. But he isn't sure if he will he fast enough. The fire is hungry and it's eating at everything around him.

Gasping he hopes someone heard him. They wouldn't leave me! They wouldn't! His thoughts are light wild screams as he fights desperately for his life. Then pain, heated, biting and burning against his tail. He's on fire. He can feel the fur on his tail alight, the skin melting. His flesh cooking from the fire that dances with happiness at the fuel it is given.

- someone can save him! If not then he will escape on his own!

 

[Merrystalk Merrystalk]

—————————— Dreaming along in a pace you'll understand. ✦

Curled up, almost wedged amongst the hay bales, Merry slept sound as he always had. Comforted in his cradle of wheat, it prickled his skin when caught in his fur, but that familiarity was welcome. It reminded him of his home, the comforts of a barn that held him dear and watched him grow from a youngster. It was safe. It was home. In that home he was able to sleep deep and content, waking him would take a lash of thunder or the roar of a tractor approaching.

This was why the thump of paws into his side, stirring him awake, led his mind to remain blurry. His eyes parted open, looking up to see his dear friend Hollow looking frantic, she spoke but in his state he couldn't quite tell what she was saying. "Wh- What's all the rush for Hollow- What's the matt- er..." He breathed before his mind tuned into the chaos evolving around, cats yowling and shouting to kin and friends alike.

FIRE.

FIRE.

FIRE.

​

All at once Merry stood faster than his mind could comprehend, his mind going foggier by the second as it dawned on him how smokey the loft was, how. How hot it'd become. The tom coughed, acrid smoke filling his mouth and nose with a whine. His eyes began to water from the discomfort of it all, staring to his friend with bleary eyes and panic on the edge of each word, "Get outside. Grab folks from the entrance but whatever ya' do don't come back in. Ya' hear me. I'll meetcha outside I promise but get yerself to safety." He essentially demanded, he'd helped Hollow all those moons ago, they'd kept an eye on each other all this time and he wasn't about to lose a friend to a freak accident, but he wasn't about to leave himself yet, the sounds of panicked yowling not too far from them both. He headbutted Hollow's side, urging her to leave. "Please. Go. I'll meetcha outside."

He had faith she would listen as there was no time to waste, he didn't know shit about how to handle a fire, but like hell, he was gonna leave a cat to panic and suffer up here if he could so help it. For a moment, he hesitated, Sparrow and Chick, Starling and Coyote. Were the youngsters safe, too? Meadow and her family? He swallowed hard. The barn was full of cats with the same willpower as him to save the others; they would be okay. They had to be. Sparrow and Coyote were a smart pair; they'd figure something out.

Shaking that moment of hesitation, he bound through the smoke, trying not to breathe as much as usual as he bolted through whisps of smoke with fire licking the wood all around. This place, their home was doomed. At least the cats could be saved. That fire only seemed to grow as the cat's yowls grew closer, his blood running cold, a beacon of reality that cleared his mind for a moment. A reddish tail and flailing paws trapped half under a hay bale that was flickering light with fire, as was the poor soul himself. The cat seemed in a frenzy, digging under the hay; he needed to get them out and fast.

Steadying his thundering chest, the tom launched atop the hay bale, wincing as the heat from the fire licked his paws, it grew along the hay with little resistance and he had to act fast if his plan were to work. Digging claws into the bale and anchoring himself against the barn wall, Merry began to heave some of the hay off the cat. His skinny form wasn't all too useful, especially as the fire nipped at his fur; the gut-wrenching scent of burned fur and flesh permeated the air. It was enough to find the strength to turn the smaller bale enough to give the poor cat an out from under the hay. But that burned flesh, the horrendous sight of a cat burning before his eyes, beyond his own sense, he grabbed the yowling thing, no younger than he was, by the scruff and dragged them from the corner; he squirmed and cried, yowling in pain. The fire, raging and cruel, grasped and clawed at his fur, the hay that once clung to the strands of his fur burning like nothing. He was just barely able to keep any smoulders or cinders from setting alight his own fur as he dragged the other cat just far enough from the fire.

"Shit..." He breathed before coughing with a gag. The scent of burning flesh was enough to have made him sick if he wasn't in such an awful dilemma already. He had no strength to drag a cat his own size out of the barn, but he could try his damnest to save them. Some old sack, a heavy material but empty and abandoned, lay mostly untouched by the fire, which threatened to catch up with them both. Patting out the smouldering corner, he threw it over the poor cat's tail. Thank fuck, it was just enough to suffocate the fire, but the damage was more than done to the tom - Cherrie - he recognised him now.

The smoke clogged his vision as he stared at the other cat, he couldn't drag him down the loft, they were the same size and like fuck he had the strength for it. Merry adverted his gaze from the garish wounds the other would likely end up with, staring at him with a plea. "Get outta here, ya' hear me. I'll an' follow ya' out; there's cats outside they can help ya' lad. But ya' gotta go-" His words interupped by a cough erupting from his lungs, the smoke started to get to him at that point. "Get out, you'll die if ya' don't." The tom wheezed, realising the irony of it all; he'd die too if he weren't careful.

But knowing when to stop wasn't something he was capable of.

"ANYONE STILL UP HERE?" He cried out. Tears pricked his eyes, taking the weight from one paw to another; he'd scorched them amidst the rescue attempt, eye flickering to the tom, hoping he'd take his advice. But his gaze didn't stay still. Ice and Holly slept in the hay loft, too. Had they gotten out? Who else panicked and trapped themselves? 'Please God tell me Goldy got out...' The thought raced past, his chest aching, what would he do if Goldy didn't survive... "Goldy... GOLDY?" The tom cried out, like a kitten left alone, he couldn't lose Goldy too, not now. Not like this...

— And it's harder than you think,

Telling dreams from one another. —

• @Hollow / @Lassie
  @CHERRIE / @rhosmari I hope this is okay !!! feel free to bonk me if i went too fast with anything but wanted to help cherrie :3
• 
  Merry
  ✦—Barncat | 25 Moons
  ✦—He/Him
  ✦—"SPEECH", 'THOUGHTS', ATTACK
  ✦—A skinny, tortoiseshell cat with bright green eyes and pelt speckled with hay.
  #9D6E46

 

[Hollowmumble]

Hollow, -- 34 Moons / Barn Cat
Black spotted ghost tabby with bright amber eyes.
She is friendly, yet quiet, and always willing to help.

Tagging @Clover

---

Hollow almost, almost refused to leave, but when Merry shoved her side and pushed her away, she had to listen to him and run. Heart pounding, she made her way down from the loft the best she could, fear yanking her down the post and sending her scrambling across the wooden floor, now partially alight with flames climbing the walls and exploding when they found nice, dry grass to feast upon. She hurried, skirting around and trying her best to find the spot that weren't lit up, following other cats toward a path out.

An older cat faltered ahead of her, heaving and coughing as the smoke got to him, struggling to move forward and she rushed over to lean against him and support his side so they could keep moving. "We're almost out, it's okay!" she yelled over the crackle and pops of the overwhelming heat and flames.

The touch of the cold, dew-covered grass outside almost made her weep from relief, finally free from the tortuously hot fire that felt like it was nipping at her back, even when she was many cat-lengths away. She heaved a bit, and struggled as she coughed and took in as much fresh air as she could, though it was still clouded with smoke and dust. She turned her head, watching cats struggle and help others get out of the barn, listening to the yowls of everyone as they called out to one another. Red hot cinders floated through the night sky, lighting it up almost like stars. One landed on her ear and she flinched, moving back a little.

There weren't enough cats free. She knew there were more inside. The grass felt like it was biting her as it urged her to move, to not listen to Merry, to jump up and run inside as fast as she could. Hollow had started to take a step forward, worrying about the kits and the young apprentices, some of them didn't have family to grab them as they fled- everyone was panicking! What if some of them were trapped!? She needed to go back in-

A flash of orange caught her eye, but not from the fire itself, no. It was a smaller cat standing far far too close to the barn to be safe. Clover!

She jolted, paws having a firm destination now as she changed course and ran toward the younger cat and called out, "Clover! Get away from there!" The fire was so, so close, and the barn was slowly weakening, looking like it could collapse any minute, and she felt like lightning has struck her as she realized that a couple of beams had already collapsed, ahead of Clover.

She scrambled to a stop in front of Clover, using her body to shove her back and encourage her to move away and get back on her feet, they needed to get farther away!

 

[cloverbloom cloverbloom]

Clover was far too focused on the flames to notice anything going on around her, watching in horror as more beams fell and scattered cinders into the air. Every second that passed, every moment of waiting, she felt her hopes be crushed further and further down. Her mother would emerge, right...? Someone would save her from the beams and drag her out, maybe hurt and burned but still alive... That was what she was hoping for. In spite of it all, in spite of all the pain and heartbreak and tears she'd felt at their rejection... She felt like a little kit again, waiting and hoping to see her mother's face again.

Hollow's voice broke through her thoughts, causing her to turn around to face the darker she-cat, willing the tears to leave her eyes for just a second. "She's still in there! Mama... she's still in there, stuck under a beam! Someone needs to save her!" Her usually-calm voice was frantic, sounding much higher than usual with a tinge of desperation. She shoved back just a little, trying to get back to where she'd been standing and watching, waiting for her mother to reappear from the flames. She couldn't just run.

__________way down deep inside ✿ there is a real me___________

• "speech" - thoughts
  
  tagging @Hollow
  

• 

• Clover(paw) she/her & windclan
  ✿ lh red lynx mink w/ white spotting
  ✿ 8 moons
  ✿ Peaceful and healing powerplay permitted.
  ✿ Slight suppressed southern accent
  
  
  penned by pastelskulls
  template by scarlet
  template art by redskiez​

 

[Hollowmumble]

Hollow, -- 34 Moons / Barn Cat
Black spotted ghost tabby with bright amber eyes.
She is friendly, yet quiet, and always willing to help.

Tagging @Clover

---

Hollow felt like her heart was breaking in two, hearing the desperation in Clover's voice. She whipped her head around to look at the slowly collapsing barn, flames licking the wood and the posts. She was trapped. No one would be able to lift a beam off of her, and she was certainly already dead if it fell on her hard enough. If her mother hadn't made it by now, she wouldn't be coming out at all.

She turned back to Clover, trying to block her view of the barn, and stumbled over her words. She opened and closed her mouth, struggling for a moment. She tried to keep her voice steady, but the shakiness of it couldn't be denied when she finally said, "Clover. She isn't coming. We have to go."

 

[Pebblespaw]

Pebble had been sleeping soundly, curled up in the comfort of solitude. He wasn't nestled beside Ice or Alder tonight, he'd wanted to be brave, to prove he could rest on his own. He was getting bigger now.

But then there was smoke. Heat. Shouting.

A sudden, suffocating shift in the air ripped him from sleep. His dreams shattered into chaos as his lungs gasped in acrid air, his heart pounding wildly in his chest. " What's happening? What's going on? " he yelped, blinking through the thickening haze.

The air was hot, wrong. Shadows flickered wildly as fire licked at the walls, creeping closer, consuming everything in its path. Panic set in. Pebble scrambled to his paws, his tiny frame quaking. He ran. Blindly. Frantically. " Ice? Alder?! Meadow?! Coyote?! " he screamed, voice cracking with terror.

Where were they? Where was everyone?!

His small paws stumbled, kicking up embers as he searched, darting past flames that roared like beasts in the night. The smoke burned his throat, stung his eyes, but he didn't stop, he couldn't stop. He had to find them.

Without warning, there was a deafening crack. The ceiling groaned above him.

Pebble barely had time to look up before a mass of flaming debris collapsed in front of him, cutting off his path.

" N-no... no, no, no! " he cried, skidding to a halt, heart hammering wildly against his ribs. He was trapped. He spun around, only to find the flames closing in, sealing him in a circle of fire. The heat was unbearable. The air was suffocating.

His chest heaved, terror gripping his small body like a vice. He could hear his own panicked breaths, the crackling of burning wood, the distant screams of those still fleeing.

He had to get out. He had to find them.

But the fire, the fire wouldn't let him go...

Ooc: no pretty post for now bc mobile posting!! But due to his panic, he doesn't see a way out! Someone feel free to drag the kit out

 

[SOOTPAW]

Soot laid curled up in his nest, beside his littermate and old siblings. He was seemingly in a deep slumber, probably dreaming about chasing a rabbit, or racing outside in the barnyard fields. But even in his deep slumber, the young tom's senses couldn't ignore the smell of smoke. His nose twitches as the barn fills with a black plume of smoke, and his dream fades away as he opens his eyes. He blinks a couple times; and his ears wake up as nearby cats screech, and running of paws catch his attention.

"What's going on-"

Soot asks with a tired yawn, but his words are interrupted with a cough as the smoke in the air entered his lungs.

That cough turns into a coughing fit, and if that doesn't wake his littermate and older siblings, then either the smoke or his nudges will.

"Wake up!"

He lets out another cough as he tries to speak,

"We have to get out, now!"

And while he feels panic rising in his chest, he can't begin to explain why this feels familiar to him. He can feel his heart weeping, but for whom? He shakes his head, as he tries to fight another cough that rises in his throat. It doesn't matter right now! He practically yells in his mind, as his panicked gaze turns back to his family.

"Come on, we got to go!"

​

𝐨𝐨𝐜 ෴⚘෴ 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭

• @cinder. @GRACKLE @RAVEN ahhh i hope this is okay as a starter!!
• 
  

  ---

  credit to raphaelion (via da) for the artwork <3​
• 

  SOOT

  — future apprentice of windclan, barn cat
  ⚘ 6 moons — he/him — ages realistically on the 1st
  ⚘ speech is

  "#3b614f"

  — thoughts are #75a991 — attacks are underlined
  ⚘ shorthaired tortoiseshell with pine green eyes
  ⚘ peaceful & healing powerplay permitted — underline & tag when attacking
  ⚘ penned by vvin — vvinsoli on discord — open to plots & dms
  

 

[owlbear]

Owl is shaken out of sleep by the acrid smell of smoke and the sound of panicked meows- she stirs, her round belly making her slower and awkwarder than usual. When her eyes finally open it's to blazing fire all around. Where is- where is her lover, her Daz? And where is Hoot and Chickenscratch? She gets up, looking around wildly as she calls out-

"Daz?! Daz, where are you?" he'd been right next to her when they fell asleep, but now– "Dad! Chicken–" a beam falls behind her, cutting her shout off abruptly. Shit! She had to get out, fast, but not without her family– where were they?

i can't look at the stars

they make me wonder where you are

• ooc: lookin for @DAZ @Hootwhisker and chickenscratch!
• 

  Owlbear, - 50 moons / windclan warrior
  peaceful powerplay allowed

 

[HoneyflowerHoneyflower's icon]

Slow Down, Just Breathe

It's the sudden warmth that first begins to rouse her from sleep, as if it was the oppressive heat of summer and not still the gentle beginnings of spring. Buck's screech is what wakes her fully- Honey startling awake and sluggishly removing herself from the tangle of limbs and tails that is her and her mate's nest before it dawns on her what the tom had screamed out.

Fire.

The barn.

Their home.

She's up on her feet in an instant, shaking awake the black tom beside her with a paw. "Sweet! Sweet get up! We have to run, the barn-"

A spark from a cinder flies up to the rafters from below and lands on the calico's nose, and she lets out a yelp of shock and pained surprise before panic finally takes over and she's shoving @Sweetnose to his feet. There was a roaring that she couldn't tell at first if it was the fire or the blood rushing through her ears before she coughed painfully. Smoke. The fire. They couldn't stay a moment longer. Pressing against her mate with her tail draped over his back to nudge him in the right direction, shaky paws clumsily, frantically made their way to where the barn doors stood.

Where was Swift? Hornet? Where was her brother? "Everyone, this way!" She couldn't run back inside and try to help, couldn't risk leaving Sweet behind and not walk back out.

She'd just have to trust that everyone would get out in time.

xxx

All We Have Is All We Need

Tags

Honey

✿—Future Moor Runner Of WindClan
✿—She/Her
✿—"SPEECH", 'THOUGHTS', ATTACK
✿—Dilute Calico Shecat With Green Eyes And A Floppy Ear
#a4e1ba

 

[Dustystar Dustystar]

✯

indent Dusty scans the chaos, looking desperately for her family. She can't see them through the smoke, or hear them through the commotion. She does hear another scream, though. Pebble was cowering, surrounded by flaming debris on all sides. Though her heart aches for her family, she can't stand by and let Pebble succumb to the fire. They weren't family, but he was still important to her. A constant source of light when things got shadowy.

indentShe pushes towards him, through the smoke, yellow eyes searching for a way out. There wasn't anything she could use to bridge over the flames, or anything she could use to douse them. There wouldn't be an easy way out of this. Instead, Dusty rushes forward, and grabs a smaller piece of burning wood in her mouth. Quickly, before it can burn her too terribly, she tosses it aside, creating a small opening.

indent "Run, Pebb! We'll regorup outside later. Go!" As quickly as she came, she darts off again, in search of her grandparents and her charge. Where are they?

-saving @Pebble -​

✯

 

[cloverbloom cloverbloom]

She isn't coming. The words struck Clover like a blow to the face, and she felt warm tears running down her cheeks. She knew Hollow was right, that she wasn't lying to her, at least on some level... But she refused to accept it. The truth was right in front of her if she looked for even a second, but she refused to listen.

She stomped a paw against the ground, unsure if it was the tears or just anger burning her eyes. "No! You're lying! You're lying to make us leave her!" She yells, before taking off back towards the burning barn. I have to save her... if nobody else will, I have to save her...

________way down deep inside ✿ there is a real me_________

• "speech" - thoughts
  
  tagging @Hollow
  

• 

• Clover(paw) she/her & windclan
  ✿ lh red lynx mink w/ white spotting
  ✿ 8 moons
  ✿ Peaceful and healing powerplay permitted.
  ✿ Slight suppressed southern accent
  
  
  penned by pastelskulls
  template by scarlet
  template art by redskiez​