[TheNyanCatMinecart]

(Moonraven said I could go ahead with my Twistedpaw post!)


~ TWISTEDPAW OF WINDCLAN - AFAB SHE/HER ~

Small, skinny black she-cat with a light gray belly and tail-tip, a crooked jaw, a mangled tail, and one blind eye.

Twistedpaw tried not to cringe as she thought of the glare Swiftfire had shot at her mentor. She could almost feel those pale yellow eyes burning through her matted, touseled black fur. Even though it wasn't aimed at her, it was for her. Swiftfire doesn't want anything to do with me. The leggy tortoiseshell-and-white she-cat had made that abundantly clear in the few moments they'd shared. Guilt pricked at her paw pads, and she had to swallow an instinctive, uncomfortable apology. Her intuition told her that acknowledging the situation would only make it worse. Batglare wants me to be with other cats, even if they're... if they don't like me. Because they're bound to not like me. So I should... try to get used to it.

Grief shot through her with a hearty dose of regret, but what could Twistedpaw do? It seemed like StarClan had destined her to come out wrong and create all this... this trouble. She just had to live with it.

The long, deep breath Swiftfire took - probably to prepare herself to deal with Twistedpaw - grated against her ears. She tried to suppress the skip in her stomach, focusing her working eye on the warrior. It was cold. The wind had an extra bite, raking claws and teeth across her bones and numbing her flesh. She could feel her jaw and tail grow stiffer by the moment... Hopefully, they wouldn't mess her up. They couldn't mess her up. Not now. I need to prove myself to Swiftfire. I need to show her that I can be a warrior. What made this especially hard was that Swiftfire had every right to doubt her.

She tried to block out the cold - to little avail - as Swiftfire's gaze slid to her. Although her eyes were harsh and there was a bite to her voice, Swiftfire's promise that she wouldn't try to harm Twistedpaw helped her relax. A little. She wouldn't go crazy like Willowsky had. That was a relief.

Wait, Swiftfire was one of WindClan's best hunters? Twistedpaw's eyes rounded, and her stomach jolted, nearly rocking her on her paws. I have to prove myself to such a great hunter? One who didn't like her, no less... Fear began to claw up her throat, and trepidation shone in her clear grayish-blue eye. This was quite the task. A terrifying one, at that.

But Twistedpaw shoved her fear aside. She had to listen. Her numb ears pricked, and her gaze grew focused as Swiftfire broke her lengthy silence and began to speak.

Oh. They were moving. Twistedpaw tried to crush a wave of embarrassment as she followed Swiftfire to a shallow dip in the ground. It was made up of a glistening patch of sickly-looking earth. The sight evoked a slight shudder. But Twistedpaw clamped down on her fear. I have to do this.

She resumed her attentive position as Swiftfire spoke, only pausing to obey. She had to get in the dip. Got it. Twistedpaw sidled forward, unable to suppress a gasp as the ice pressed against her tight belly. Another wave of embarrassment sluiced through her. Humiliating. Everything she did was a mistake-

But I have to focus. She turned back to Swiftfire, nodding once the warrior had finished speaking. Anticipation made her stomach swirl and her paws, numb as they were, tingle, but she pushed it down and nodded. "I-I'm r-ready," she stammered, hating how thick and distorted her words sounded. Her jaw was really getting stiff now. And painful. Yet another reminder that she wasn't normal.

Swiftfire vanished. Twistedpaw's chest constricted. Her throat closed up. Every time a puff of air rose from her distorted pink nose, she felt a flicker of fear. She couldn't afford to miss this rabbit.

It seemed like forever passed in an instant.

Then it appeared.

Twistedpaw's heart thundered in her throat, and she barely remembered to keep her head down as she spotted the rabbit thundering toward her. Swiftfire was hard on its paws, but she drew up a few fox-lengths away, as promised, letting Twistedpaw take the rabbit.

Time seemed to slow. She hadn't realized her long claws were digging into the frozen earth until she felt the ground splinter beneath their sharp tips.

Three.

Two.

One.

Now!

Twistedpaw gathered her haunches and sprang for the rabbit - but her hind paws slipped on the ice! Yelping a curse in her shock, she listed sideways, and the rabbit stormed past her. No! Surprisingly, though, Twistedpaw's brain didn't shut down in shock. Rather, it spurred her to action. She quickly found her footing and hared along after it.

The rabbit let out a terrified squeal as it tried to get away. I'm not going to let it. Twistedpaw had to catch this rabbit. It felt like everything depended on it. Swiftfire, Batglare, her validity...

Yet the outside world was shut out as the apprentice zeroed in on that rabbit. The cold wind searing her pelt, the life gradually sparking back in her paws as the run heated her blood - all those were mere whispers in the back of her conscience.

Twistedpaw was aware, however, of the awkward thump of her crooked jaw as it slammed against her neck and her tiny ears flattening against her head. The ice beneath her was slippery, and it was all she could do to stay upright, especially with her mangled tail trying to press her this way and that. Pride burst in her chest at how well she was staying on her paws. So focused on her task, it was difficult to grant any strength to the doubts and fears constantly crowding her mind. Catch that rabbit. I must catch that rabbit.

But it was drawing further away. Twistedpaw wished she could grit her teeth together as she pressed even harder against a clump of semi-dry grass, her primal instincts telling her when it was clear to do so, as she didn't wish to slip and fall. Her dreaded tail was making her fall further behind, and the ache in her crooked areas was only becoming more powerful, pressing into the focused haze covering her mind. Batglare told me to creep up on it for a reason. The dying greens and browns of the grass, shining with a contradictory glow that made them look like stars, were starting to come into focus. No longer was the rabbit her primary objective. She could see its fluffy white tail, a cloud providing a beacon as its round body crashed through the greenery...

Frigid air ripped the inside of Twistedpaw's throat and leached into her lungs. Her head spun as the exertion began to weigh her down. The rabbit seemed to be getting farther and farther away. No...! She couldn't let this happen. She couldn't return home empty-pawed to Swiftfire and Batglare. Especially Swiftfire. Then she'd seem like a disobedient, petty apprentice who couldn't follow orders, a pathetic example of what not to do, weighed down by her disabilities. And it was true that her dreadful tail was slowing Twistedpaw down...

But she wouldn't relent. Determination burned through her anew, and she pressed her paws even harder against the earth - on a non-slick spot, of course - and propelled herself forward. She shut out her burning muscles and the exhaustion that plagued her. And by some miracle, the rabbit was actually getting closer! Twistedpaw's eyes narrowed, blind and seeing alike, and she pushed even harder, feeling her muscles protest as they strained to the absolute limit.

Come on! You can do it! Almost there!

The voice that manifested in her mind sounded a lot like Batglare's.

With a prayer to StarClan, Twistedpaw launched herself upward. Time slowed again as the rabbit looked up, panic sparking in its beady eyes. Her claws glinted in the pale leaf-bare sun...

Then they wrapped around the rabbit's throat! Elation thrilled through the skinny she-cat from ears to tail-tip as she killed it with her claws - her jaw was too weak at the time to snap its neck. The rabbit went limp, and excitement seared Twistedpaw, filling her with a warmth that outdid the cold. Not the cleanest kill, but it would do. I caught the rabbit! A genuine smile, lopsided due to her crooked, stiffened jaw, filled her face and danced in her good eye. Its delicious blood-scent filled her nostrils, making drool drip from the slanted side of her mouth. She tried to swallow with difficulty. Her rapid pants and constricting chest didn't help. But hygiene was the last thing on her mind.

I actually caught it! Wait until I get back to Batglare and Swiftfire! He'll be so proud of me. Swiftfire... She faltered, but her happiness quickly returned. I'll have shown to her that I can be a warrior. Some of the self-doubt and fear that had plagued Twistedpaw since Willowsky's outburst and Cowtuft's exile lifted. She was disabled, yes, and that came with many challenges. Judgments. Mistakes. Twistedpaw knew there was something wrong with her. But I can be a warrior, she thought, staring down at the limp brown-and-white body. I can be a warrior. Maybe...

Maybe I can even make WindClan proud of me.

@Moonraven @Tiabirb (You two can make whatever hunting posts you want, but please don't interact with Twistedpaw/find her yet! I'll mention you when it's time for Bat and Swift to come in. Also, Tiabirb, if I misportrayed anything that Swiftfire was doing, please let me know, and I'll change it! ) @Snowyfeathr @celeste @tallulah (It's your time to shine! Twistedpaw hasn't realized she's on RiverClan territory yet. You can do what you'd like, whether you want them to confront her first or attack. For the list of moves you're allowed to powerplay, look here.)