WindClan: Life Before 2023's Fire

[Zero]

Originally Posted by Haunted Rainbowsprinkle

Yellowpaw tipped her head,” Oh yeah! And won’t the wet leaves just mold?” She was a little worried her questions would either make him annoyed or think she wanted to become a medicine cat.

Surgestorm started toward the territory, talking as they went along. "If the leaves we collect are wet, I'll dry them in the afternoon sun later so that most of the moisture will be gone," He explained merrily, glancing over his shoulder to make ure she was keeping up.

(You can just reply in the territory!)

[Fuzzy]

Originally Posted by The Ghostly Robin

A chilling breeze swept through the open grasslands that were the hunting grounds, ruffling the tomcat’s fur and making a shiver run up his spine. The cold season of Leafbare was almost upon them and soon enough, all this grass would be covered with piles of white snow that would make his paws numb and hunting would be ten times harder than usual. However, this was nothing more than the usual routine of the forest that all the clans went through. Hawkfeather watched as Harepaw crouched low to the ground like he had instructed, but before the male could seek out any flaws in their current pose, the youth was already on his way towards the rabbit that he had recently scented. Soon enough, the young warrior was gifted with the scene of his apprentice sprinting across the plains after the rabbit as full speed. “For goodness sake..” Hawkfeather muttered, breaking into a run after his student, hoping that this would end with the successful catch of the hare that the younger male now went after without even a mere second thought.

Harepaw thought he heard his mentors paws on the grass behind him but didn't look back. He was going to catch this rabbit! Hard on the rabbit's tail, he could almost taste it. He jumped towards the speeding mammal, barley catching it. He tried to pin it down a few times to kill it but it kept fighting. Finley, after some tussling with the rabbit, he killed it. Pecking it up he ran up to Hawkfeather, holding it proudly. His green eyes shining with joy. He dropped it. "I caught it!" He purred. His gray tail swishing behind him.

[Mango]

@Zero to Hero
Yellowpaw gave a nod of understandment, and walked in silence searching among the shrubs and ground for the herbs he named, finally she saw something,” Surgestorm, there’s a cobweb, your about to walk into it.” She meowed unsure of how to take a cobweb down without damaging it.

[Aquarius]

Originally Posted by Empress Of Evil

An Abyssinian stumbled out of the apprentice’s den, a hostile look in her gaze as she glumly padded over to the fresh kill pile. She walked in her usual manner, a mopey prowl. Her head drooped downwards and her eyes glared at the ground while her tail dragged limply behind her. This was how she normally walked nowadays. A few moons ago she would’ve had a good posture and walked with pride and confidence in her stride. But now she couldn’t be bothered to do so.
The she-cat picked a small sparrow from the pile of prey. She had done her hunting for the elders earlier that morning and now she was free to eat. She had little an appetite these days and nearly always picked something small from the pile. She was thinner than she should be and thinner than most of the cats in the clan for that matter.

Clutching the sparrow between her paws, she walked away from the fresh kill pile and plopped down on a particularly lush patch of grass. She dropped the sparrow between her paws and started to take small, quick bites out of it. That was another thing that had changed about Caracalpaw in the past moons. Her way of eating. When she was younger, she would take her time and tear off big chunks of flesh. Now she chewed quickly and ate as if though she only had a few minutes to finish eating. A lot of things had changed about Caracalpaw in the past few moons. And it was all because of ThunderClan. The more specific reason for it was that ThunderClan had given her former mentor the wound which killed him. That was the thing that really got her fired up. For a few weeks after Shrikecall’s death, the apprentice had spent her days dwelling on the fact that they had killed him. But now she no longer so any reason to continue thinking about her mentor’s death. Sure, she was still looking for a way to avenge him, but these days she imagined fighting and killing every single ThunderClan cat that there was. The apprentice wasn’t one for happy thoughts.
It annoyed the she-cat to know that there was nothing she could really do to make a difference. There was nothing major that she could do to have an impact on ThunderClan. The most she could do was pick fights with as many border patrols as possible. That’s what she tried to do whenever she felt like it nowadays. She didn’t really care if the warriors or her mentor disapproved. She probably wouldn’t even care if Blazingstar found out that she had a taste for picking fights and was appalled by her behaviour. She had grown to be rather rebellious. The way that her superiors thought of her didn’t matter at all. Their thoughts and opinions didn’t matter, especially that of her mentor. Caracalpaw had no respect for Onyxwhisper whatsoever. In her eyes, the ebony she-cat was never going to succeed. She considered her mentor weak and she couldn’t really see why she had been made deputy. Most cats would think of it as an honour to be the deputy’s apprentice, but the she-cat felt as if though it was punishment. She didn’t want to be stuck with Onyxwhisper. After all, she had no respect for her and honestly, Caracalpaw couldn’t see why she bothered to train her. The she-cat knew how dislikable she had become. She would just never admit it outloud.

In the shade a little ways away from the molly, Dewpaw saw another apprentice, a little older than her, collapse into the grass of the camp. Suddenly she felt her ears perk as she saw the faint russet-pelted apprentice, and her fur bushed up. Quickly she managed to take a few bites out of the morsel in front of her, feeling the warmth of the fresh prey spread through her veins in a river of warmth. Cherishing it, she gave a little bounce on her paws as she stood up, her tortoiseshell fur neatly groomed as she usually kept it. Purring quietly to herself so no one else could hear, she buried the bones of her prey in a silent show of respect to it's life, and stood there on that very patch of dirt for a few seconds before shaking herself out of her daze. Bringing herself back to the present reality, Dewpaw had her mind set on talking to the older apprentice. She didn't know her name, because Moonsong often didn't leave her to go train with other apprentices. Although her mentor was kind, she was surely not one to be lenient. Shrugging to herself, she gave her paw one final lick before going over to the abyssinian.

Clearing her throat to make herself known and as not to startle the she-cat, she stopped in her tracks as her mottled tail whisked around her paws. In an attempt to look friendly she smiled lightly at Caracalpaw, and let out a small purr of greeting. Quickly she sat down, curling her tail neatly around her paws. "Hello!" She greeted cheerily. She saw the cat's face clearly the first time. Caracalpaw's eyes were dull, her expression full of distaste and other emotions that Dewpaw failed to read. It took all she had not to inquire about the apprentice's dour appearance, but she bit her lip carefully so she wouldn't sound rude and prying, when in general, she was just bubbling with curiousity. Resuming her demeanor, she added to the conversation so she wouldn't leave the other cat hanging. "I'm Dewpaw. I've seen you around, but I don't quite know your name." She awkwardly chuckled. "Sorry."

The naive young apprentice never really thought about approaching another cat, she just rarely did it. Never had she stopped for the fact that her appearance was usually well-received. By that, that means that no one had ever turned her away or dismissed her, and had indulged in a conversation of at least a few minutes. She hoped that this fellow apprentice would do the same, but by seeing her face, she didn't quite know and felt a little bit of fear and embarrassment fuel up in her chest. Carefully she shuffled her paws in the dirt beneath her, eagerly awaiting a response.

[oats]

Originally Posted by woly

it was true, all of the words he spat. he was nothing without him. he was less then a being--no better then the dirt that they stood on. he was a puppet, eager to to be used and to be ordered around like a slave. he was a minion, not a lover to this tom. but he accepted it, why? because he loved cuckoosnarl. he loved him so much. in the begining, when they were happy, everything seemed so different. the way he would look at him when he thought lark wasnt looking, how caring her was, how he took care of larkfall. the definition of "taking care of" has been changed as time went on, obviously. no adays he had to ask to even do anything. he thought if he breathed wrong there would be a follow up punishment afterwards. his eyes widened at a single line. Talking to other toms? are you freaking serious? Larkfall had been scared out of his mind to even look at another tom--much less talk to one. cuckoo knew that. cuckoo knew that he wasnt talking to other toms. he knew what power he had over him, driven by fear and violence. this wasnt love. but larkfall loved him, so it obviously was,right? but it made him feel hurt, hearing cuckoo lie about what he was doing. he wasnt talking to other toms. he knew that--he was obdient. he was a good kit, all for his mate. he wouldnt do something like that. he stared at him wide eyed, stuffling down sobs and preventing his tears to fall. he wouldnt cry, he couldnt. hed be hurt for it. he back ed away more, in fear. his calm posture only made him more tense, unable to decipher what he was feeling. he backed away, standing up, ears pinned to the back of his head.
"im not lucky."

“Damn right, you aren’t.” Cuckoosnarl growled, seeing him step away. The falsehood was but a test; how far would Larkfall go to stop himself from questioning him? How deep did his control go? Not far enough, it seemed. It was never enough. The tension held in the calico’s pelt told him more than the words he spoke-- Lark was reaching the end of his rope, and Cuckoosnarl would be damned if he didn’t ensure he was the one who brought him crawling back. “Can you prove to me you didn’t do any of what I said, then, boy? You think you can take me for a fool? Don’t think your snivelling will get you anywhere. I’ve known how to deal with you long enough.”

His thin tail lashed, the imposing shape of him cutting against the sunset. Baring his teeth, he took another step towards the smaller tom. “Go on, then,” he purred, words oozing like blood from a wound. “Cry wolf. Tell everyone what I did to you, what I’ve been doing to you. How I’ve almost killed you so many times and made you feel like you’re worth nothing. You know why I’m asking you nicely, Larkfall, hm?” Leering closer to the smaller feline, Cuckoosnarl smiled, his expression misleading as anything. “Because I know you’ll never do it. You’ll never react. You’ll never respond. Because you love it; you love me. You love everything I do to you, for all you do to convince everyone that you don’t.” Every sentence was tripping over the other, becoming quicker but landing the exact blows he meant them to. Maybe he forgot to veil the poison with honey this time, but whatever prompted the tirade hadn’t passed. In a terrible voice, he continued, “Why don’t you admit it? That you love me-- and love this?”

He struck.

[lone]

Originally Posted by woly

the question made larkfall stop for a moment, he honestly couldnt remember the last time someone had asked him how he was doing. ¨o-oh! um-..¨ please help me. hes going to hurt me. ¨i-im doing good ! had a long night of..er-hunting. been hard with the lack of prey lately.¨ i couldnt sleep. he wanted to scream to this tom that he felt so scared of his mate, that at any moment he was going to hurt him, but he couldnt. it would get back to cuckoo some how, and larkfall didnt want that. afterall, cuckoosnarl loved him--didnt he? thats why he smelled of other toms all the time? out of love? if larkfall was seen even glancing at another tom he would be taken into windclans territory and given punishment. his mate didnt like that. but obsidiansky seemed nice and kind. he had a warmness in his voice that seemed welcoming, someone who didnt want to harm him. larkfall looked over his shoulder, looking to make sure his mate wasnt around before making nervous eye contact with the other warrior,¨howre you?¨ he gave a forced smile.

"Yeah, yeah, I definitely get that," The dark tom smiled in a friendly manner. It was nice to talk to another tom for once. He hung out with she cats a lot and, well, as much as he enjoyed his friends' company, there was always drama surrounding them. It was like he couldn't go anywhere without getting a bunch of that drama. But he loved his friends, and he would never want to get rid of them or change them - just their situations, perhaps. If there was a way to go back in time and make it clear that he WASN'T going to have feelings right away for any of them, or somehow trick them into having feelings for someone else, he would do that too... because it was a problem for the tom. Yes, she cats could be complicated. And toms could as well. He was more complicated then he cared to admit, as was his past, and he was careful not to talk about it. Lies were surrounding it, and as much as Obsidiansky hated lying, he was actually good at it. For someone who had the virtue of honesty... sometimes the dark tom didn't act much like he did. "Hm? Oh, I'm doing good," He mewed with another bright smile. There was something off about Larkfall - except Obsidiansky couldn't pinpoint it. There was just something that felt... well... wrong.

[BluBunnie]

Originally Posted by Ghostly Myik

Together was a term Bluetalon wasn't sure of. She nodded her head, but she had a hard time coping with her claws. The molly unsheathe her paws as she looked over at the rabbit.

Onyxwhisper crouched and began to stalk her way behind the rabbit. Her plan was to chase the creature right into Bluetalons claws. She waited for a few moments in the grass before she pounced towards the rabbit, it quickly dashed the other way towards Bluetalon.

[fresh]

Originally Posted by Charmer

Thistlepaw rolled to his feet, and shook the grass and grit from his fur. "Ok, I have a better idea this time. Here I go." He was feeling confident now. In spite of the fact that Ambercloud was clearly the better fighter and he'd been pinned, every mistake he made gave him new ideas of how to hone his fighting. Without and pageantry this time, he came at her again, his shoulder's hunched and his body low, making himself a smaller target, but rather than face her head on, the tom hopped to the side, then again, then back. He kept his footing fast and made himself a moving target, and when he saw an opening, he struck out his paw with all his speed, bring it back and leaping to the side again. Never for more than a moment, was the little tom in one place.

The molly nodded. As she waited for him to begin, pride welled up for the feisty little tom. He's already come so far... But the thought was cut short as he began to close in.

Ambercloud's eyes darted around wildly, and she hopped around aimlessly, hoping to confuse Thistlepaw as much as he was confusing her.

[Zero]

Originally Posted by Haunted Rainbowsprinkle

@Zero to Hero
Yellowpaw gave a nod of understandment, and walked in silence searching among the shrubs and ground for the herbs he named, finally she saw something,” Surgestorm, there’s a cobweb, your about to walk into it.” She meowed unsure of how to take a cobweb down without damaging it.

Surgestorm skidded to a stop at her words, his eyes taking a moment to focus on the tiny threads just inches from his face. "Nice save," He meowed, slightly breathless. "That would have been a waste." The medicine cat backed up, looking around. He spotted a nearby stick and grabbed it carefully in his jaws before returning and wraping the cobwebs gingerly around it. "Let me know if you spot any more with those young eyes of yours," He meowed, his words slightly muffled.

[SuspiciousMindz]

Originally Posted by tawny~

Flarekit's ear twitched as she thought. Well, their were things she could do. Like play with some moss-balls, but no kit was in sight, so she couldn't play with anyone. And played alone was... borrrrinnnngg. Then their was catching butterflies, which was.. not her thing. Though other kits seemed to enjoy them. Well, dragonfly's too, which was the same deal. She blinked, looking up slightly at who had spoken, her optics narrowing slightly. "Huh?" Flarekit frowned, lowered her head slightly, "Yeah, kinda..." She replied, tail flicking as she finally responded. She was bored. Really, really bored. Nothing to do, no cat to play with, her siblings doing StarClan knows what to get them in trouble. And, right when she was taking a break from them too. It is so hard to put them in order, so they don't do something absolutely mouse-brained... She thought, shaking her head inside her mind. She didn't actually do it. Maybe she could find some crickets and mess with them later. That was a much better idea. Her siblings could get out of trouble themselves, if they could do it themselves.

It appeared the kitten didn't recognize him at all. No reaction to talking to the leader, no reaction to the idea he was her older brother or perhaps she chose to ignore it? Blazingstars ears twitched as it appeared she had started to think about. Who knew what went on in little kit's minds when they were bored. Nothing but mischief in his experience. "Do you know who I am?" he inquired, raising a brow towards the fiery kit. "Because I know who your mother is, and your father, and you!" he gave her a small smile before he realized how creepy he may have sounded. That was when a small frown crossed his face and his stumbling voice tried to save himself. "I'm sorry, I meant only because we're a lot closer than you think we are! I'm sure you'd be shocked," he spoke quickly. It was no use, the damage was done and it was up to Flarekit. Whether she caught to creep or not. Either way, it was sure to be amusing.