Hold Me Close: Don't Let Me Fall

[Blazy]

The sun was rising over the winswept moorland. The weak rays of light painted the sky crimson, but steadily faded to pink and orange hues. The warmth of the sun melted the frosted blades of grass on the hilltops, but the frost lingered in the shadows of the gently sloping valleys between the rolling hills of the landscape. The pale form of a solitary feline could be seen traversing the land in the early light. Her pawsteps were precise and quick, closing the distance between the frightened hare fleeing from her, and her eager claws. It did not take long for the lithe feline to catch her quarry, the terror-filled shriek cut off with a swift, killing bite. Lightfall picked up the dead hare, and turned back to camp, delighted to have found such plump prey this late in leaf-bare. She retraced her path from camp, keeping a sharp eye out for any other prey as she returned to her clan.

Only slightly disappointed that she didn't find anything else on the moor, Lightfall slipped into camp, laden down with the fat rabbit she had caught, and deposited it in the fresh-kill pile. She turned, ready to go back out to find more prey, when another feline caught her eye.

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

"Hi, Lightfall." Brackenfall trotted toward her, his ear twitching friendily. "Leopardmoon asked me to join you." He eyed the rabbit and flicked his tail. "Nice catch. I hope there are a few more out there like that. We'll feed the clan for a week."

[Blazy]

Lightfall dipped her head at the approaching tom, "I was just heading back out, we can look in the opposite direction I just came from, since I didn't see anything else on my way back in." She replied, flicking her ginger tipped tail as she exited the camp. "Or you could pick a different direction. I'm not terribly picky right now."

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

"That's fine with me," Brackenfall said, still sounding a bit formal. "I'm not picky either."

[Blazy]

Lightfall dipped her head at his response, and led the way back out of the camp. Once she fully exited the clearing, and strpped out onto the snow covered moor, she took off in a fast run. She glanced over her shoulder, "Race you to that lone tree over there!" She called back, laughing.

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

"Oh, you're so on!" Brackenfall took off, his long legs giving him leaping strides, his tail streaming out behind him. His ears tilted back slightly as he pelted forward, a gleam in his green eyes. He focused on the tree as he raced across the moor, not glancing around to see if Lightfall was keeping up with him.

[Blazy]

Lightfall stretched out into her fastest pace, her paws seemingly never even touching the frosted earth as she practically flew over the moor. She threw a quick glance over her shoulder to see if Brackenfall was even following her, and was surprised to see how close the tom was to her even with her head start. Determination poured through her lithe frame, and she pushed herself into an all out sprint. She shot across the moor, her legs screaming for her to slow down, but Lightfall had a competitive streak a mile wide, and she did not want to lose to the tom. Unfortunately, this race was never meant to be finished.

Lightfall turned to glance over her shoulder again, feeling triumphant at the increasing distance berween her and Brackenfall. Unfortunately, she was not watching her paws, and so she missed the partially exposed rabbit hole. Her right forepaw landed in it, wrenching the feline to a complete halt. She let out a yowl of pure agony as fire licked up her limb.

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

Brackenfall's momentum carried him past her, but he skidded across the grass, his claws digging into the soil. As soon as he could, he whirled around and ran back to her. "Lightfall! Are you okay?" Horror filled his olive eyes as he watched her, unsure what to do.

[Blazy]

Lightfall panted heavily, her form quivering and shaking as she collapsed near the rabbit warren. Her blue eyes were wide, glittering with pain as she looked up at Brackenfall. "I-I think I ju-just wrenched my p-paw." She stuttered after a moment, "I di-didn't hear a cr-crack." She shivered uncontrollably again, the cold working to their advantage as it slowly numbed her twisted paw.

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

Brackenfall's stomach twisted. "Do you think... think you can walk?" he asked. The sooner she got to a medicine cat the better. He could run and fetch the medicine cat, but he didn't want to leave her alone and injured on the moor.

[Blazy]

The cream colored she-cat nodded, her entire form still quivering with the residual shock from the pain from her paw. She placed the injured limb on the frozen ground, and tride to put some weight on it. She immidiately crumpled and fell in a heap on the ground. "Maybe I can't..." she murmured, frustrated with the situation.