Strangers - Open

[Ashfall]

Ashpaw picked his way into the apprentice's den, stepping carefully to avoid trampling anyone who might be sleeping, and to keep from accidentally messing up somebody else's nest. He had a wad of moss in his jaws, to line whatever nest was open and make it more comfortable. He ended up finding one near the edge of the den, while still being close to the entrance, which seemed empty, since the scent on it was stale, and it looked as though nobody had bothered to tidy it up in a while. He set to work, weaving new moss with old as best he could, removing old dry bits and rolling them in a small pile to take out later.

Once he was finished and had sat down to admire his work, the tom heard pawsteps from nearby. Perhaps somebody was entering the den? Maybe he just hadn't noticed they had been there in the first place. It wouldn't have been the first time. "Hello?" he asked. "The name's Ashpaw," he introduced himself, removing the uncertainty from his voice and covering it with a more boastful tone, as though his name by itself was something to be proud of. Ashpaw had to admit he liked the sound of that better than 'kit,' but even so it wasn't all that notable to anyone else. "I'm one of the new apprentices."

[Finchwhisper]

(Mind if I post? /even though Finch isn't exactly a stranger xD/ Anyway, someone else could certainly feel free to post too.)

Ever since Finchpaw had been obliged to move into the apprentice's den because of the rank change, she had taken on little duties, small things to contribute to the well being of the den and denmates, as a small way to feel accepted by them, even if she was really not. She didn't need the kind of rather shallow relationship that many referred to as friends, she didn't need to be treated with pity, she didn't even need any support most of the time. But, there was thing the young cat needed, and that was to feel accepted by these new denmates, so as to have something to have small ties of loyalty to, for even shadows stuck with what formed them and what made them appear. Doing small little things that were barely noticeable satisfied these instinctive urges. And that was what she was doing now. by collecting small bits of old moss or dead plant remnants from various places, mostly by all of the nests. The small apprentice wasn't completely doing this for such selfless purposes, but it was part of the reason of why she was collecting such material.

Finchpaw had not yet reached the nests and the old nests that might have old moss to take out in the front, because while there were not many empty nests, there were plenty of dead plants and bits of moss scattered about. While doing this in a silent and nearly unnoticeable way, she saw an apprentice enter, a tom. Her eyes widened with reasonable curiosity, but she soon realized that it was one of the newer apprentices, like her. It was one she had encountered before in the nursery, too. She watched as he began to improve one of the older nests, and for a while she simply focused on her task again. The young cat glanced at the other apprentice, Ashpaw, and saw how he put the old moss in a pile while improving the nest.

Undoubtedly it would be useful to take care of the old moss for the other cat, so she decided to do so. She padded closer to the cat, and the nest, but froze when he spoke out, apparently noticing the quiet sounds of her pawsteps. She felt ashamed, for she hadn't wanted to be noticed, yet she had been. She simply let out a small grunt to announce her presence, then padded closer. She then ducked her head down, and reached downwards to grab the old moss bits, grabbing them and clutching them in her teeth firmly, before straightening and backing up a few steps. She hoped that the other cat wouldn't mind, but either way she was just being a small assistance, nothing more.