The Farm May I always be fast and free // Intro

[Peafowl]

{$title} Oh god oh f**k a kit is eagerly heading towards you. Though it's late in the night, he couldn't have come from tooooo far; he's holding up pretty good.

He didn't have the luxury of trekking through the lush fields of green and gold that his mother once described to him. Back when it was warm and the sun was bright. No, it was cold and snowy and it made it really difficult to walk, but he wouldn't let that get him down.
The tiny feline had made a very precious promise. He had to walk and walk and walk until he found…well, anybody! Yup. That was his tiny life's mission. It was a big one for a kit by his lonesome, but he was strong and he was dedicated so he knew he could do it. So long as his legs worked and he had his bushy coat to keep him warm, surely he would see to the end of this perilous mission.

Do you see that light?
He remembered his mother gesturing at the bright glow of a single dot in the night sky, brighter than all the rest.
Follow it, late in the night, and you will find your new home.
If you don't reach it in one night, then wait. Wait for nightfall, find the light once more, and keep going. Very soon, you'll find even more cats who will take you in, and care for you like their own.

Like one big, happy family.

So he marched: his petite form alternating between bounding through untouched snow and delicate hops onto paw prints left before him. Humming a tune with his tail pointed high to the sky: heading ever north until he bumped into another cat friend. With more and more prints found here and there, he knew would see his promise fulfilled. His mom would be so proud if she knew it only took him a little while to actually bump into another cat.

 

[Meadowpaw]

Meadow glanced nervously over her shoulder as she carefully crept across the barn's rafters. Her delicate paws found footholds along the old wooden beams until she reached a narrow window. Though she had made an escape many times before, it never got any less nerve wracking. Every time, Meadow thanked her lucky oats and thistles that Mama was such a heavy sleeper.

Careful, Meadow angled herself down the side of the barn. A soft snowdrift broke her fall with a gentle plop, swallowing her entirely. She popped her head above the surface and shook loose chunks of snow from her mottled pelt, the moonlight catching each fleck like a dusting of stars. Then she padded off on a nightly adventure. The dark was quiet—undisturbed by the usual bustling of the barnyard.

Meadow's first mission was to craft some snow rabbits for the barncats to find come mornin'. A soft smile tugged at her mouth as she imagined the wonder lighting up Chick and Sparrows faces, stumbling upon dozens of the little critters. A whole colony of little snow rabbits.

With nimble paws, she set to work. Each little rabbit was molded with small, rounded lumps. She scavenged the barnyard for things to decorate them with— smooth pebbles for the eyes and noses, and stray bits of hay to serve as ears. So cute! She giggled quietly as she began on one snow rabbit—and then another.

Meadow was so focused she didn't notice the soft pad of paw steps coming up on her. A startled chirp escaped her as something bumped against her. She instinctively flattened her ears against her head, full expecting to turn around to find her Mama's scowling face.
But when she turned, she found a kit with wide, yellow eyes staring back at her. "Oh—I—I'm sorry," She sighed, heart settling in her chest. But… who was he? Meadow tilted her head. It was hard to keep track of everyone in the barnyard, but she was sure she knew most if not all the other kits. Did a new family move into the barn without her noticing?

"I don't think I've seen you around before," She mewed, "Why are you out so late? Didn't get lost trying to get back to your Mama did you?" Not that she was one to talk but still, he looked a bit too small to be wandering around in the dark by himself. He was on the smaller side, probably a few moons younger than she was.

__________There's a place where all the stories begin ✿ Begin with you and me___________

• "speech" - thoughts
  

• 

• Meadow she/her & barncat
  ✿ Black and red tortoiseshell w/ high white and green eyes.
  ✿ 6 moons
  ✿ Peaceful and healing powerplay permitted.
  ✿ Fur smells floral and mildly sweet.
  
  
  penned by Scarlet​

 

[Peafowl]

He did it. He did it, he did it, he did it!
The kitten's face lit up with joy upon turning his attention up from his paws; realizing the structure he bumped into was, in fact, another cat. He tapped his paws in the snow left to right in excitement. "Another cat!" He yipped, "there really are more cats here! I thought I was goin' crazy seeing all them prints comin' up here, but mom was right!"
Mom. Where was his mom?
His expression shifted in an instant, the joy melting in his eyes as they closed shut tight and reopened with hours of repressed tears. "Mom– mom didn't make it. We were walkin' our way up here 'cause mom caught rumor of lots of cats bein' up this way an' she was right." He rubbed his eyes with a cold, wet paw. "Mom wasn't feelin' good for a while, but she kept tellin' me how to get this far on my own by folllowin' that big light up there, an' I took off when she stopped movin'. I said goodbye, but I dunno if she heard me. I'm here now, though. I made it and I dunno what to do next. She never told me, but she was sure somebody here could take care of me."

He finally stopped rambling and took in a big, cold breath, the reality of his circumstances came down on him hard. He was confident and excited on the way here, when he imagined himself a strong cat who was stealthy and fast but now that was over, and the night was still dark, and mom was still gone. It was dawning on him as strong and fast as he once siked himself up to be, and his tiny frame trembled with a flood of feelings.
He… couldn't tell her he made it, huh?

(Mental note to change his hexcolor to something brighter- first time seeing it against the forum bg sobs)

 

[Dusty]

✯

indent Dusty raises a curious brow. It looks like little meadow has found something interesting - a kitten! Dusty descends from her perch on the snow-covered fence to approach the pair. She listens to the kitten's story, and lets out a deep sign.
"Feels like everyday we're pickin' up another kitten. Turning into a damn sanctuary." Her brow is knit and wrinkled now, but she still nods in acknowledgment.
"Yer ma was right though, this ain't a bad place to hole up. It's a shame she couldn't come with you." Dusty knows from experience how difficult it can be to lose a parent. In fact, Dusty reckons she had it easy. Her own died when she was two young to know them very well, and she had her Meemaw and Peepaw to look after her. This little guy seems to have been close to his mother, and now he's all alone.

indent"I'm sure she heard yer' goodbye, kid." Dusty mutters under her breath, more to herself than to anyone else.

indentDusty clears her throat, breaking out of her reverie. "Anyways. I'm Dusty, that's Meadow. It'd be nice to know yer' name." She wasn't sure of they could manage to become this kid's family, but learning his name is as good a start as any. Besides, this kid seems way more open than Coy was. No need for Pebble Deployment.

✯

 

[peony]

"Right?"

Comes the grumpy agreement with Dusty's words. He really ought to mind his own business, but he had been a silent accomplice to Meadow's nightly endeavors for too long now — he knows that if she were to not return one day, he would feel too guilty to ever look her mother in the eye. He had crept along her trail, mindful to keep a respectable distance to avoid suspicion, but quickly threw all that caution to the wind upon her discovery. At least Dusty had joined, too; it's not too hard to believe that more than one cat overhears a tiny, unfamiliar mew from the darkened moor.

Then comes the sucker bunch. Suddenly, Peony is taken a few moons back, terrified out of his mind. Him and Petal are not the only ones stumbling through life without proper guardians... Peafowl would surely not be the last, either.

Whatever had taken Peafowl's mother had not stopped her from thinking straight. Her last bit of advice is now saving her son's life.

Peony's tail lashes impatiently.

"We better head back. It's too cold."

His gaze lingers on the kitten for far too long. Too cold for someone this young. Judging by that trembling frame, he could only guess how many hours Peafowl had still in him. If nobody had stumbled upon him in time...

 

[Peafowl]

Peafowl nodded and nodded along with the commentary from the crowd. He was calming down the more faces showed up. Putting his looming fear that he'd only found Meadow here and still possibly had a way to go on his own. This… this was it. He has to put on his best show so they'd like him.

"My name's Peafowl! Momma said my tail is real fancy for a kitten; like a pretty bird." He spun in a circle, proudly displaying his coat and choosing to soak in the attention rather than risk all the anxiety bubbling back up. "I'm…" Then he pauses. His circling comes to a full halt as he focuses really hard on the snowy ground below him, then looks back up, beaming once more: "...four moons old! I like eatin' mice and chasin' chipmunks and- when I find them- I like jumpin' in hay mounds." Snow mounds too, but unless he made them himself first, he never found any. Kind of took the excitement out of it.
Peafowl finally settled down once more on the subject of getting somewhere safe and warm."I'd like that. I'm really tired…" he agreed. His rush of excitement over the conclusion of his adventure was wearing thin, and it being long passed his bedtime became the new focus of his waning attention.

 

[nutmeg ♡]

Where Meadow went, it wasn't implausible to assume that Nutmeg would be too far behind. A silent protector, no harm would befall her baby without going through her first. She catches her at first when she makes her round to the nest her and her mother shared, in which... She was missing out of. She trudges the scentline, careful not to wake their mother for shes sure both of them would end up getting an earful. When she finds her, so close to an unfamiliar kit, she brushes straight past Dusty and Peony to settle besides Meadow. "Come find me next time, buttercup, I don't want you wandering off by yourself..." though its meant to be strict, murmured towards the little tortie, Meadow would know shes not truly chastising it. She didn't have the heart to.

She tunes in to their conversation with a tilted head before the kit says something that tugs at her heart. Mom didn't make it.

Nutmeg does not have the misfortune of losing a mother... If she did, would she be sad? Would she mourn her mothers death, wretched as she is sometimes? Some type of emotion flashes across Nutmegs gaze, ears pinning back as she shifts closer to her little sister. Would she mourn her like she did her brother? At an age so young, it seems Peafowl hasn't exactly grasped the concept of it yet. I said goodbye when she stopped moving, Nutmegs jaw clenches so tight she can feel stars explode in her head. She closes her eyes, and she can see Hush's limp and broken body behind them. Death, and more death. Something fearful settles in her stomach for a heartbeat and a half. Peafowl says hes tired, and its the one thing that breaks the spell.

She lurches to murmur something akin to comforting, though with how tight her chest feels, she wouldn't be surprised if it sounded more threatening than anything. "We'll find you somewhere warm n' safe." she promises. It is not an empty promise, to her relief.

 

[Meadowpaw]

Shaking off all those heavy chains
Now I will find my own way

.

He said a whole lot. A lot more than she could soak in all at once. But she listened, softening when he talked about his mama. She knew about death—about how every living thing was like a tiny light, flickering and warm. And if the wind blew too hard, the light got snuffed out. Gone. No more talking, no more seeing their families, no more anything.

The thought of that happening to her mama—to Nugmeg—made it hard to breathe. She didn't want them to be gone like that. But she looked at Peafowl, and he seemed okay… at first. Then something shifted, brushing over him like a cold gust of wind. Meadow parted her mouth to say something but before she could, a voice rose behind her—and then another.

She whirled, to find Dusty hopping down to join them and Peony not far behind. The other barn cat's words were not exactly the most reassuring, but not wrong either. There were a lot of kits lately…

Meadow's tail flicked as she turned back to Peafowl, feeling the chill creep deeper into her paws. "It is cold…" She murmured in agreement with Peony. The calico leaned forward, smiling softly. "Hey, it's gonna be alright. You can come inside and get warm. I'll…" She trailed off, claws scraping at the snow trying to think of something—anything—to make this better. But how was she supposed to make something like that better? She couldn't, could she?

"I'll show you around the barn tomorrow! An—and you can have some of my food. Then it won't be no trouble at all! Right?" She looked over her shoulder at the older barncats, searching for some kind of approval, only to find her sister instead.

Her ears flicked back, not in fear, but in surprise. Nugmeg spoke to her but there was no ire in her gaze, or the sharp scolding tone Mama used when Meadow got caught doing something she shouldn't.

Meadow lowers her eyes, "I know… I didn't mean to make you worry..." It was only supposed to be a quick outing, just long enough to make a few snow rabbits… but then she ends up finding a stranger.

Meadow presses closer, pulling a bit of warmth from Nugmeg's pelt. She looks up at her sister, a small frown settling on her face. "It's not right for him to be alone, Meggie… Who's gonna look after him?" There has to be some way to help. She knew Mama wouldn't be happy about them bringing in a stray, but that didn't make it any less wrong to leave Peafowl by his lonesome, even If they already invited him in. She

Speech, thoughts/emphasis

6 MOONS

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BARNCAT

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bio

 

[Petalpaw]

Dearly departed - Dig to find where my heart is

It was always sad finding a kitten out alone, he wondered what became of their parents - he wondered if they were loved or lost, if they were abandoned or simply orphaned by fate, it was cruel and unfair and had happened to him and Peony so it was a pain he was familiar with. The young lilac tom ambled forward with his head low before stopping alongside his brother to lift it up along with a paw in a light flick of a wave to say hello. As he listened to the others it became clear he had missed the kits initial introduction and his thoughts on the parent wrapped back around to an almost tearful realization that left his eyes misting; she was gone but she had sent her kit to safety. That was the kind of love you didn't see often anymore, a shame because it was the best kind, a selfless and devoted love like the sorts you hear in stories of proud heroes.
The tabby brushed against Peony to get his attention, head jerking back in gesture of the barn with a curt nod - it really WAS cold and the kit was much more frail than any of them are so it was probably for the best to get moving now. Once he had his brother's attention he also glanced over at Meadow, brow raised and a smile on his maw as he tilted his head quizzically: was Peony tailing her again? Nutmeg was here already so she clearly didn't need a kitsitter so much but despite his brother's best efforts to appear otherwise Peony always was going to be a softie, it was only his good fortune Petal couldn't talk that kept him from being teased too relentlessly.

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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.

 

[Pebble]

pebble

I'm on top of the world, 'ey, waiting on this for a while now, paying my dues to the dirt

There was a commotion.

That much, the drowsy kit understood as he groggily lifted his head, blinking sleep-heavy eyes. He could hear pawsteps, someone was leaving? Stirred by curiosity, Pebble clumsily tumbled out of his nest with a big yawn and an even bigger stretch. Gosh, gosh, gosh… What's going on? The snow-filled sky stretched above him as he blinked blearily around, his gaze eventually settling on the small gathering ahead. Meadow, Peony, Dusty… even Nutmeg and Petal were there. But, huh. There was someone else, too.

A cat he didn't recognize.

Pebble rubbed a paw over his eye as he padded closer, peering at the stranger. He's so young… even younger than me and Ice, right? That much, he was sure of. But where was his mama? Had he come alone? He'd missed most of the conversation, catching only the last traces of Meadow's words.

Alone… And who's going to look after him?

Oh.

Pebble's ears twitched. He knew his own parents were gone for now, but they'd come back, one day. And in the meantime, Mama Alder kept him and Ice safe. But this little one… Was his mama not coming back at all? For a moment, he just stared, thoughts swirling, before finally offering a sleepy smile. " Hi. " His voice was soft, warm. " I'm Pebble! Welcome to the barn! It's nice and warm inside, way warmer than out here. And there's lots of hay to lay in, too. " His tail gave a tiny flick. " Do you wanna come in? "

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[Dusty]

✯

indent Dusty is (mostly) unsuprised by the small crowd that gathers. News spreads fast here, and any sort of action quickly earns itself an audience. The arrival of strays, while increasingly common, still isn't an everyday occurrence. Cats will want to meet the newcomer, want to know what's going on. Petal and Nutmeg, of course, wanted to know what their family is getting up to.

indentShe hangs back as Peafoul is led into the warm barn, out of the cold. The interior is warmed by the body heat of cats and horses alike, and sheilded from the wind and snow. 'That's good, he oughta warm up in no time. The weather is no good for a kid like that.' The entrance wakes Pebble, who comes to meet the newcomer. On instinct, Dusty opens her mouth to tell Pebble to 'go easy on the new kid', but she stops herself. Peafoul seems more than bright enough to keep up with Pebble's boundless energy. And besides, Pebb is still half asleep now, not even at full capacity. He'll be fine.

indent Instead, Dusty stretches casually, cracking her back. "It seems like you'e all got this handled." she mews. "I'm gonna hit the hay, let me know if you need anythin'." She wasn't really the kitten-rearing type. She could do her best to impart them with good sense, but she's helpless to provide warmth or comfort, and that's what she's sure Peafowl needs most. Leaving the group, she heads towards the ladder to the hayloft and ascends, quickly choosing a nest among the bales of soft bedding hay. If she was needed, she'd surely be called upon - 'till then, she's more than happy to take her beauty sleep.

✯