Smallpines

[Hexict]

[ @BILL. ; @Delta ; @Gemini ; @Starfall ; @RedHead ]

Ears twitched as the warrior heard faint voices from the lush forest. She instinctively stiffened, her tail tip gave quick lashes, difficult to see unless you were behind her. Mistfall took a few steps towards Firehawk and Honeychirp. "Thunderclan patrol," she whispered in a hushed voice. The molly was cautious of all the clans right now. Thunderclan was the least of their worries, but Mistfall felt bitter that Thunderclan had stood aside and let the others drive Riverclan from their home. In all honesty, she wasn't sure how she would have gone about the whole situation, but that didn't make her feel much better. Besides, the clan was weak right now from the fighting, lack of prey and absence of a medicine cat, so she refused to let herself be trusting of Thunderclan or any of the other clans. The molly stayed closer to her two companions now.

Mistfall kept her gaze on the Thunderclan patrol as they approached the territory. For a moment she wasn't sure what to do. "Hello Flintspirit, Tallmarsh" she dipped her head slightly to two of them. "Hello," she greeted Doeflame, a warrior that she did not know. Though the molly offered a smile, there was a distance in her gaze and a slight edge to her tone that she could not hide. She wasn't out-right being hostile to the patrol, but upon further investigation there was reasoning to believe she was not interested in being friends.

[ @Alphafury ]

The apprentice watched as Ashpaw jumped in fright and was taken aback by his presence and yowl. His pale gaze narrowed and watched her cautiously as she became angry with him. The tom took a step forward. "It's too close to the border," he stated, like it was obvious. After a few moments he continued. "You could have ran across the border chasing it, then you would be breaking rules. Besides, if it's a squirrel, then it was most likely Thunderclan prey anyway," even as he said the last part, the tom knew that it was, in fact, mouse-brained. No matter where the prey comes from, it belonged to the clan of the territory it was on. But the tom wanted to make sure that Riverclan knew of their boundaries and did not dare to hunt in Thunderclan territory. Leaf-bare was toughest on Riverclan and he was not going to allow them to take any of Thunderclan prey. Plus, he wasn't sure how well they had re-scented their borders and wasn't sure if some of the Riverclan cats would not notice the border.

But the tom felt embarrassed suddenly. The border had been properly re-established by Riverclan, and his explanation of why he stopped her was not really a good one. But Tempestpaw was a proud tom and was cautious before stating that he was wrong. "Why is Riverclan hunting so close to the border, anyway?" Attempting to subtly switch attention off of himself.

[Freesia]

[ @Hexict @BILL. @Gemini @Starfall @RedHead ]

Tallmarsh had wanted to go on an herb hunting trip, and somehow she had managed to find herself with the deputy and the one cat who seemed to hate her the most. She could feel Doeflame’s intense glare burning her pelt as she swept her eyes back and forth for the familiar yellow flowers she was currently searching for. She could stand to be with Flintspirit—at least he was funny—but Doeflame? She was already itching for a fight again. “I didn’t ask for you to come,” she snarled at Doeflame with an angry lash of her long tail. “I don’t need my looks to scare off a fox. You must’ve forgotten I was a warrior for almost my entire life before I was a medicine cat.” Why he hated her was beyond her. She’d had her fair share of enemies in her life, but never anything like this. Usually she was on the opposite end of the angry remarks. She flicked her tail again, this time towards Flintspirit as an annoyed thank you. She didn’t need his help to diffuse the situation, and she sure wasn’t going to admit that she appreciated it. She had come to accept the tom’s dorky jokes and whatnot, since she knew that they would be working side-by-side for a long time.

Tallmarsh instinctively bristled upon hearing the voices across the border. In light of the recent events, everyone had been on edge, even those Clans who had fought together. The medicine cat’s fight with Doeflame definitely proved that. She returned Flintspirit’s hard look but understood what he meant: no fighting. Considering she still had healing wounds from her last fight, Tallmarsh had no intention of starting a fight with these cats—unless she had to. It would just mean more cats for her to heal, and she already had too many patients as it was. She forced her fur to lie flat as the RiverClan patrol came into view. “Hello,” she returned, her short and flat tone betraying her annoyance. While her face seemed calm, her eyes were fierce. She was more annoyed that she was angered by this encounter; she wondered if hoping that nobody got hurt was too much to ask for.

[Alphafury]

@Hexict //

The mollys ears flicked at his response her eyes just as narrowed as his. “I would never run onto another clans territory! I know where the boundaries are and if the squirrel had run across it I wouldn’t have followed it! After all it’s not worth the conflict it may cause!” The tuxedo cat mew taking a few more steps away from Tempestpaw. “Besides! The prey belongs to what ever territory it’s caught on! I personally would never steal prey even if it was in a paws reach on another territory. My mentor has told me that it’s disrespectful.” She spoke further lowering herself into a sitting position as she cautiously watched the other cat still threatening to bolt if he tried anything.

Her eyes remained focused on him as her rounded ears rotated to face him as she listened to his words. “And if you so curious about why I’m around here, it’s because I wanted to practice my skills on hunting and land prey is plentiful In this area. Unfortunately I can admit I’m a terrible huntress since I spend almost all my time fishing but I want to prove that I’m more useful than I seem to my clan. Which..can be tricky...especially for someone like me who has tainted blood.”

[Hexict]

[ @Alphafury ]

The tom was initially annoyed by her response. The molly yelled back at him, informing him of what he already knew. It was annoying and embarrassing to be called out by someone else. As her annoyance fueled his, he flattened his ears in response. But the tom's ears perked back up when she stated that she wouldn't dare break the rules and cross into another clan's territory. Interest flicked in his gaze, watching as the molly informed him that she was a not thief and would not steal prey that did not belong to her. Tempestpaw found himself relaxing a little when the Riverclan apprentice began to take a sitting position. She didn't seem like a threat at all now. Ashpaw had seemed genuine when stating that she had no intentions of crossing over the border and didn't hold a threatening position. Yes, the molly did still seem annoyed, but Tempestpaw could tell that she wouldn't try anything and that was a relief.

"..." He fell silent after Ashpaw told him that she was practicing hunting prey on land. Do Riverclan cats do that? It was new to him. He had heard that they disliked the taste of land-prey so they hunted fish. Though personally, fished seemed repulsive to the tom and he could never understand why they would voluntarily eat it. "Do Riverclan cats know how to hunt on land?" Confusing clear in his gaze and he tilted his head. He was told that they couldn't really hunt on land, unless it was something like a water vole. Tempestpaw gave a quick look around. He realized that she was right; this would be a place where land-prey is plentiful. Much of Riverclan was marsh lands except for the borders with the other clans, and not much that could be easily hunted lives in the marshes.

Tempestpaw lowered himself into a sitting position as well. "'Tainted blood'?" For just a split moment he was even more confused, but he quickly figured out what she meant. He shrugged this off. "What do you care what your clan-mates think?" Although he was extremely loyal to his clan - would die for it without a second thought - his clan-mates themselves did not have his loyalty. They had to earn it themselves. It wasn't like he wouldn't protect them or help them out if they needed it, he just didn't care about their personal lives unless they involved in his, and he definitely didn't care what they thought or had to say if the matter wasn't important.

[Alphafury]

@Hexict //

“Well some do but most perfur not to hunt on land. I wanted to learn because it may prove useful in future if we have a harsh lead bare and the water freezes over.” She shrugged in a matter of fact manner.
“After all thunder clan also know how scarce prey can be during that time and if we are unable to fish then hunting will be our only option. Even though we aren’t very good at it at all, it’s still worth knowing how to hunt.” She explained with a small frown, the idea of learning how to hunt was purely for the benefit of her clan if they ever fall on hard times and fish is out of the question.

How ever while some other warriors already knew this and had learnt to hunt the rest of the clan completely seek to shrug off the idea.
She tilted her head up as the tom expressed his own opinion on her tainted blood. “I only care because I want to be seen as a worthy and loyal cat to river clan! Some other cats think I shouldn’t even be in the clan just because I was found and not born into the clan.”

[Hexict]

[ @Alphafury ]

Tempest had to admit that admire her loyalty to the clan and determination for trying to learn a new skill. He was sure it was difficult to learn how to hunt on land when there wasn't really anyone to teach her. For him, hunting was easy. He did have to learn to more silent than most other cats since his white fur gives him away, but he was now able to hunt pretty well. But the molly probably had no idea what she was doing. He hadn't really noticed her technique before scaring off her prey, but the molly seemed to be sure that she wasn't all that good. Knowing that Riverclan had been through a lot recently, the tom felt a bit sympathetic at the thought of them not having much food. He knew that leaf-bare was extremely rough on Riverclan more than the others, but this was the first time he was actually talking about it with a Riverclanner in person. He offered a nod of understanding, feeling guilty for scaring off her prey.

The tom laughed at her explanation for why she cared so much about what her clan-mates think. Tempestpaw never had that problem, so he didn't quite understand how she felt. He was born to Snowsong, who had been leader at the time of his birth, and had instantly been treated with respect. He was expected to become a great warrior. Not only was his mother a leader, but his father was also a respected warrior of Thunderclan. So he could not understand how Ashpaw felt, how she was expected to be nothing more than what she was when she joined the clan. "You're clan-mates sound like a bunch of mouse-brains," he muttered. "If they can't see you trying your best to help them, even learning to hunt on land by yourself, then they don't deserve all this effort you're putting in," his tail lashed in annoyance. He found it strange that she cared so much about what her clan-mates thought, and he found them stupid for how they thought of her. "They don't deserve you time."

[Alphafury]

@Hexict //

The blue and cream she-cat let out a small but soft chuckle the toms words. "if only i had the nerve to tell them all that. but you are right, they aren't worth my time." Ashpaw stated with a slight flick of her bushy tail. She was almost confused to how civil the thunder clan apprentice was acting, far as she was concerned other warriors aways called them fox hearts and harsh cats but tempest paw seemed to throw those expectations out of the window.

"but at least some of my clan mates do applicate the effort i put in, especially my mother and mentor without them i probably wouldn't be so enthusiastic." she mewed shaking her head as offered a subtle but friendly smile towards tempestpaw since she wasn't really sure how to react in the situation she had gotten herself into. Was she being too open to this other apprentice that she had only just met? it was likely since ashpaw was the kind of she-cat was did tend to over share and be overly open. Oh well it was too late now but it didn't really matter anyways. With that the thick pelted she-cat decided to change the subject as she awkwardly kneaded the ground with her paws.
"sooooo...your a thunder clan apprentice, whats it like? I've never spoken to a thunder clan cat before."

[BEAR.]

"Honeychirp," Firehawk greeted her as she approached, ears twitching as he glanced at Mistfall. It seemed everyone had caught up, and he finished marking their side of the border. The scent of ThunderClan was growing stronger along with voices, and at Mistfall's warning, his eyes flicked across the boundary at the entourage of ThunderClan cats.

He recognized two of them off the bat: Flintspirit and Tallmarsh. They were unmistakable as deputy and medicine cat, respectively, but the third cat was unknown to him. He looked familiar, and Firehawk assumed he had seen glimpses of him at the Gatherings.

"Hello," he greeted them as he stepped back from the border line. "How's it going in ThunderClan?" Firehawk was a bit wary given Clan tensions, but it wouldn't stop him from trying to be polite. ThunderClan had helped them get their home back after all.

@Starfall @RedHead @Delta @Hexict @Gemini

[Hexict]

[ @Alphafury ]

Tempestpaw offered a small smile and a nod of approval when Ashpaw agreed with his words. He honestly couldn't understand why people worried so much about what others thought. The tom couldn't care less if his clan-mates respected him or not - after all, they hadn't earned his respect yet. Of course he believed people should be loyal to their clans, but some clan-mates were just so annoying or mouse-brained. The tom never expected someone to be loyal to their clan-mates by default. He was aware that everyone was different and believed that everyone should earn the way that they are treated. Respect is a gift, not a right. He wished that cats would stop acting like he should love everyone in his clan. Tempestpaw knew that they only saw him as Snowsong's and Stormstrike's son. To them, he was hardly his own person.

The apprentice watched as Ashpaw spoke of her mother and mentor. The tom felt a twinge of jealousy, thinking about how his mother and mentor were both gone now. Though he did receive a new mentor, one who seemed kind and caring. But it still stung to think about them. The tom tried not to let his tail lash at the jealousy. "That's good," he begun, trying to keep his emotions under control. "Finding motivation is a good thing, it must be difficult to try to hard for the clan when most of them don't care?" He still struggled with his clan-mates. He didn't really have anyone that cared for him as a person. Right now it seemed as though he only had Caliaflame and possibly Blueberrytuft. And whatever Cloverpaw was to him these days, friend or enemy? It was difficult to keep track of with her.

He was taken aback by her question. It seemed silly, asking what it was like to live in Thunderclan and outright stating that she's never met a Thunderclan apprentice before. As he thought more on the matter, Tempestpaw realized that he didn't really speak with cats from other clans either. He had only been to a few gatherings and never approached a cat on the border like this. For a moment he wondered if it was strange that they were talking, quickly becoming more comfortable. But he shrugged this off. It's not against the rules to be friendly with cats from other clans, the apprentice reminded himself. The tom was also aware how annoying his clan-mates could be and that Ashpaw did not seem to bother him all that much. Plus, Ashpaw didn't have many friends in Riverclan either. "I enjoy the forest," he glanced at the trees and bushes behind him, smiling as he thought of how lively it would look in new-leaf and green-leaf. "Plus, it's mostly dry," his nose scrunched up as he then turned towards the Riverclan territory, aware of the marshy terrain that the plants were hiding. "We hunt a lot of mice, squirrels and birds, and if we're lucky we can get rabbits. We don't have a river or anything like that, but we have some cover from the sun. Seriously, how does Windclan do it? Having nothing over their heads?" A small chuckle escaped at the last part.

[Alphafury]

@Hexict //

A chuckle echoed from the She-cat and nodded at the toms words. “I can understand where you are coming from, I don’t know how they cope in the rain and wind all day and night without some kind cover.” She replied as her mind wandered briefly what thunder clan camp and territory looked like as well as wind clans.

She shook off and lost her train of thought as he turned back to the silver tom. “Thunder clan does sound nice and pleasent but I honestly wouldn’t be able to live in a forest if I didn’t have access to water. I know most cats hate getting their pets and paws wet but I just find the feeling of swimming so calming and it’s the only thing I’m really good at besides fishing. If I was in thunder clan I would be as much use as a while of mouse dung!” She laughed softly, she commonly would make jokes ether about herself or about other things as long as she knew that it didn’t cause any offence. It was probably one of her many tactics to lighten moods and strengthen friendly relationships. “Oh well! Hopefully I might get a glimpse of thunder clan one day, of course only if I had permittion too though! It’s not worth risking fragile relationships between clans just to go and explore now is it? To me I think the gathering will be enough if I don’t get sent on any missions in my lifetime.”