Strategic Placement (Open to Anyone)

[Deleted]

Michael needed a den.

It would seem his younger sisters were not going to budge. They were here in Deathclan to stay. As such, Michael would need a den in order to watch over them properly. He found a decent place to claim as his den that was roughly equal distance from where'd he found Azrael and Ariel had settled.

Michael had managed a decent moss-lined nest under a tree that had seemed to be partially uprooted. It had needed some extra digging, but it seemed fairly stable and made for adequate shelter. 

He emerged out of his den, shaking some of the dirt out of his silvery fur. Then he heard pawsteps. He narrowed his eyes as he gaze snapped to the approaching cat.

He fixed them with a harsh icy stare.

[Raven]

Raven was just on her way to find a permanent settlement. Perhaps she could find one up in the trees, where she felt most comfortable. She climbed up the first tree she found and looked for any sort of hollowed out hole, which she found none. So she climbed back down and continued her hunt.

As she made her way towards a small cypress, she noticed a cat emerging from an uprooted cypress' roots. She surveyed the tree and noticed a small hole in the trunk. She wandered over and locked eyes with the harsh eyes of a tom. "Well, hello there", she meowed, sitting in front of him.

[Dove]

She was minding her own business, taking care of borders lately. Ever since the meeting, the tabby was more alert. She knew of how much cats wanted to rank up around here, but so far, none caught of her interest. Maybe Natalia and Pain, but she was unsure yet. She did not want to show preference after all. Amongst the trees, a smell carried heavily, and it was Deathclan, though she was not yet able to detect who it was. A youngling, obviously. The leader curled her tongue and knew that she would have to show authority around here. Especially to those who never met her before.

As she followed the trail, she noticed a silver tom settled in a nest and a black she-cat standing out of it. It was clear that the tom already claimed the lot as his own.

[Deleted]

The cat before him had a much darker pelt than Michael's.

They locked eyes with Michael, seemingly unaffected by the tom's icy stare. He was not particularly friendly to those outside of his family. She shot over a greeting.

He simply narrowed his eyes. "I have claimed this space." He stated firmly, clearly not wanting his claim to be challenged. His icy eyes briefly snapped to another silvery cat who seemed to be watching at a distance before returning to the darker she-cat.

[Raven]

Raven turned to see what the tom was looking at and saw Dove, the newest leader of Deathclan. "Hello there, Dove", she called, waving the she-cat over with her tail. She then turned back to face the male cat. "I see that. But I was wondering if I could just peek into that hole in your tree, just for a moment", she said with a small smirk on her muzzle. "And no need to get hostile my friend, just making idle chatter with another loyal member of deathclan. No hostility here, whatsoever", she purred, that smirk still on her muzzle as she stared at the tom, waiting for his answer.

@angelicgrace

[Deleted]

Michael narrowed his eyes.

His attention was focused on the dark furred she-cat before him. She'd briefly shifted her attention to Dove who was nearby, before returning her attention back to Michael. "No. It does not belong to you." He growled, still hostile.

He lashed his tail behind him. "That does not force me to include you within my loyalties." He snarled. "And as such, you are a stranger to me. One that I am not inclined to allow into my den."

[Dove]

weird how even though you tagged me, I didn't get a notification? o:

'I have claimed this space.' Dove watched with interest, seeing how the tom was trying to make it clear that he wanted them out of his lot, though the other she-cat seemed to have other plans. An inspection? The leader tilted her head, still keeping her ground. It was best to just keep her distance rather than terrorizing the tom after all.

The tabby nodded her hello back to the younger cats and settled down to a lying down position amongst a tree stump. 'He's going to have to be more persistant than that. They're both so determined to do what they want to though. And he's right - she's a stranger, he doesn't have to be loyal. He's starting to show some aggression, while she's still trying to be-' Dove stopped her thought process, hitting a sense of nostalgia - 'my younger self?'

[Raven]

Raven tsked in shame at the hostility of the young tom. "I understand it doesn't belong to me, but if I recall the whole tree isn't exactly your's either. You seemed to have only claimed the den underneath, or so it seems to me, anyhow", she paused, getting up to move closer to the tree, eyes now looking at the hole in it, "and why won't you let me just take a peek? We could be neighbors! Now how fun would that be?" Her eyes returned to the tom, alight with a childlike glow.

She sat down, eyes still on the tom. "My name is Raven, what's your's", she asked with a small smile.

[Deleted]

Michael folded his ears back.

"My name is Michael." He deliberately moved to place his body, to obscure the hole underneath. He narrowed his eyes. "As this den is mine, it would only be logical for me to defend some of the immediate surrounding area from others." His gaze was icy cold. "From those who wish to infringe on what belongs to me." He bared his teeth, his claws sliding out. He would not back down. He needed this spot to appropriately look over his siblings.

He would not fail, especially not because of some random stranger. He had the desire and drive to back up his words. "It would be in your best interests to back off."

[Raven]

Raven smiled as the tom got all hot and bothered. "It is very nice to meet you, Michael", she said kindly. She watched the male take a step towards her, claws sliding out. "There's really no need for that, I know a lost cause when I see one. I've abandoned all longing to "infringe on what belongs to you", and would now just like to make possibly an acquaintance. But I now see that we've gotten off on the wrong paw, sorry about that Mike", she said simply, taking a step backwards. 

[Deleted]

Michael did not return Raven's kind and calm demeanor.

In fact, his gaze only became icier somehow. "My name is Michael. Do not shorten it. To do so, is to do disrespect." He snarled at the she-cat. Though, thankfully the she-cat seemed to cease trying to steal away and throw his mission off course. His claws slid back into their hiding place, as the tom straightened his stance so he was standing tall and proud. However, he had no intention to be friendly with this cat.

[Raven]

Raven purred at Michael's uptight manner, never seeing that in a cat. Her smile only grew wider at his proper words. "I'm sorry Michael, it was never my intention to be disrespectful. I'm quite the proper she-cat, as you can tell", she snickered with a sly smirk. This cat was a hoot. "Let me tell you, you're a one in a million sort of cat, Michael", she laughed.

[Deleted]

Michael did not enjoy Raven's behavior.

It made him feel as if she were attempting to play games with him. All in all, rather uncomfortable. It reminded him of spending prolonged periods of time around Zachariah. Who while he was a brother who was under his protection, had a rather unpleasant personality.

He flattened his ears. "Your actions say otherwise..." He muttered, ignoring her last statement. He did not care about compliments coming from outside his family.