A Sticky Situation! (Private Patrol)

[occultation]

[ @Faline @Wingnettle @valery ]

Shadowfur took them far out into the territory, wanting to find a place that he figured would be quiet and empty. It wasn't quite as hard these days, considering that warriors were no longer permitted to leave camp alone. He kept his eyes and ears open for any rulebreakers, but fortunately he didn't run into anyone.

Eventually, they arrived at a cluster of tightly-growing trees, with scraggly, leafless bushes running in between them. The thick undergrowth would make navigation hard, but it also provided many potential sources of cobwebs. The bush branches would make for suitable sticks- at least, the thicker ones would.

Turning to the three apprentices, he said, "Here we are. Moonpaw, you and I will be gathering cobwebs. Sagepaw and Gentlepaw, you'll be gathering sticks. No more than three sticks each; I don't want any getting dropped on the way back. Look for sticks that are strong, sturdy, and about the thickness of half of your foreleg. Avoid any that are broken or that have splinters sticking out."

Shifting his shoulders, he continued, "All of you are to stay in this general area, within earshot of myself, at all times. If any of you decide to be rebellious and wander off, you'll be taken straight to Dawnstar. I hope I'm being very clear about this."

He nodded toward the cluster of bushes laying all around them. "Go on."

( There will be two posting orders for this patrol. You obviously only need to adhere to the one that your cat is part of:

Posting Order 1: Shadowfur (Cherry) - Moonpaw (Wingnettle)
Posting Order 2: Sagepaw (valery) - Gentlepaw (Faline) )

[val]

sagepaw
he/him
shadowclan / 137/100
white w/ grey-striped tail, green eyes

---

Sagepaw was glad to be out in the territory, and he took it all in eagerly. There were the usual trees out, and bushes. What would it be like without trees? It felt so unnatural. How did WindClan manage being on the moors? Sagepaw would feel so exposed without tree cover. And kinda sad. Running fast was only fun when one had to dodge tree trunks.

Damn, Shadowfur was really picky about what kinda sticks he wanted. Sagepaw had been just slightly inclined to pick up random sticks he found on the ground, so he could spend the rest of his time out here...doing things. Such as goofing off. Guess that wouldn't work out. Both the 'choosing random sticks' and the 'goofing off' parts, because apparently he and Gentlepaw had to stay somewhat near his mentor. Damnit. But if Dawnstar says so...well, Sagepaw didn't want to end up like Heartherrain, did he? Nah. He'd follow the rules, then.

At least he was out here with what had to be the coolest apprentices in ShadowClan. Sagepaw knew this because a) Gentlepaw was among them and b) Shadowfur had to have picked them for a reason. This would surely inflate Sagepaw's ego. Orrrr, with a rather boring spin, Shadowfur had picked 'paws at random. No no, that was definitely more likely. Aww. Then again, he had been paired with Gentlepaw! And while he would've wanted to get to know Moonpaw more, Sagepaw was ecstatic that he got to look for sticks with his new (ish) friend.

Turning to the dark, yet speckled, cat, Sagepaw exclaimed, "C'mon, let's go find some sticks-!" before darting away to the nearest, ugliest, bare bush. "I'm gonna find one before you~" he teased, wriggling closer to the bush (or rather, under) in his eagerness to inspect it for any qualifying sticks. What had it been? Strong, sturdy, aaaannddd- uh. Oh! As thick as half his leg. Oh, and no breaks or splinters.

Sagepaw made a squeaking noise as he almost poked his eye with a branch, backing up some to protect his face. When he did that, he snagged and tore off some of his white fur onto the bush. "The bush- it's eating me!" Sagepaw snorted quietly, looking behind him for Gentlepaw.

---

@Cherry~ just so ya know I posted, @Faline

[Wingnettle]

╔═════════*.·:·.☽✧ ✦ ✧☾.·:·.*═════════╗
Moonpaw (she/her)
Shadowclan
Black calico with half face ginger and amber eyes
╚═════════*.·:·.☽✧ ✦ ✧☾.·:·.*═════════╝



Shadowfur's instructions were clear. Pff, of course, I'm not wandering off! I have never understood how some apprentices could be so mouse-brained to do that when they have a duty. She thought indignantly, slightly puffing out her chest without realizing.

Cobwebs. She was grateful that she wouldn't have to gather twigs and branches because the last thing she wished was to have a wood splinted in her mouth. That would hurt. Like, a lot.
"Alright." She headed off in Shadowfur's opposite direction and started scanning the area for those weird, white silky filaments that looked so fragile and yet resisted rain and snow through leaf-bare.

She remembered seeing them around camp, especially between the twigs of the camp walls. The bushes were a good place for spiders to build their little homes, and Moonpaw didn't know whether to feel sorry for stealing them. Do they even think? Meh. She whirled he tip of her long-furred tail around the first one, small but thick enough.

"I've got one." She commented shortly, noticing the noise Sagepaw was making on the other side while Gentlepaw's voice was more like a whisper. Her ears perked back as she heard him getting caught by... a bush. She rolled her eyes to the sky, but secretly inside she couldn't help but getting a feeling of amusement at the apprentices' fun moment.

•─────⋅☾ ☽⋅─────•

[ @Cherry~ @valery @Faline ]

[val]

sagepaw
he/him
shadowclan / 140/100
white w/ grey-striped tail, green eyes

---

After a bit of a turnaround, Sagepaw freed himself from the grasp of the bush. What?! Gentlepaw already had a stick? "Just so ya know, that stick doesn't count in our race since I got stuck." Not that he was mad or a sore loser or anything. The tom returned his gaze back to the bush, trying to discern what would make for a good, Shadowfur-worthy stick. He looked back at Gentlepaw barely a second later when she requested his help. Sagepaw's eyes widened at the sight of the stick, gasping faintly in awe. "I hope stick finding isn't on the assessment, or I'd be a 'paw forever," he joked, bounding over to Gentlepaw, smiling at her.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Moonpaw with her tail full of cobwebs. He was kind of glad he was picking up sticks. The apprentice didn't think his pelt would ever stop crawling, his mind full of the thought that a spider had snuck into his fur. Not to mention how sticky the cobwebs were. That said, these bushes were almost too prickly for fun. Hah. No bush full of pointy sticks would ruin Sagepaw's fun!

The tom peered at Gentlepaw's stick for a moment. "Hm, I'll pick up the other side," he declared, though he tried to keep his voice down. There had to be a certain focus on this top-priority patrol that required a quieter voice, and Sagepaw would like to find some very nice sticks. He padded over and picked up the branch with his jaws, lashing his tail at the taste of bark in his mouth. Euch. He hoped there was a juicy, tasty bird on the prey pile after this. The white cat wasn't sure if he could handle the taste of the stick in his mouth for very long. Still, this was definitely a good find, so he'd help Gentlepaw. Plus, they were friends. He had to!

---

@Faline , @Wingnettle

[occultation]

【 S H A D O W F U R】

[ @Wingnettle @valery @Faline ]

( Even though Shadow is talking specifically to Moonpaw, feel free to have Sage and Gentle overhear if you want! )

Shadowfur scanned the area for any cobwebs. He sometimes wondered what it would be like to produce web out of your butt; did it feel odd? Spiders probably weren't intelligent enough to recognize what felt odd and what didn't.

Ears perking as he located a web, he reached out with a big paw to grab it. He didn't care for how the stuff stuck to him, but at least the stickiness made it easy to transport.

As Shadowfur pulled the cobweb down and began sticking it to his sides for easy transport, he decided that this was a perfect moment to tell a story to Moonpaw. "You know, sometimes my mentor used to tell me stories when we'd do boring tasks. Just to keep the energy up. Way back when I was a young warrior, a few of my denmates decided that they wanted to go out and try to kill a pair of badgers that were lurking around the edges of our territory. I wasn't entirely certain that it was a good idea, but they convinced me to join them."

He began looking around again, having stuck the final strand of that particular web to himself. "We went out early in the morning, when most of the Clan was asleep. The whole thing was a disaster; two of the warriors died. Myself and the fourth warrior barely escaped with our lives. The badgers lived, and now they were angry at us. We were both lucky we didn't get killed, or worse. It was the only time I ever let another cat talk me into doing something stupid. The whole ordeal was a necessary, albeit hard, lesson on why it's important to always make intelligent decisions, even if everyone around you isn't."

[Wingnettle]

╔═════════*.·:·.☽✧ ✦ ✧☾.·:·.*═════════╗
Moonpaw (she/her)
Shadowclan
Black calico with half face ginger and amber eyes
╚═════════*.·:·.☽✧ ✦ ✧☾.·:·.*═════════╝



Moonpaw felt already satisfied with her work, but why waste any time she still had? Better to look out for more. She thought while heading to another spot where a group of brambles had grown close together.

Shadowfur, however, was quick to pad after her and she noticed his paws were full of cobwebs already. She raised one eyebrow in doubt. How will he walk now without stomping on them? Mah. She shrugged and kept her eyes open for more, but the black warrior had started speaking.

She perked her ears in the warrior's direction but didn't turn and kept on looking for other cobwebs.
Moonpaw let out a faint gasp and finally looked at him with a stunned expression, half mouth opened as he revealed a terrible mistake he'd made as a young apprentice many moons before.

"What... two badgers?" He can't have been so naive!
Two full-grown warriors had died, of course. One badger was enough for a whole clan, let alone two for a few cats. She listened in silence as Shadowfur went on without reacting to her comment, but as he drew closer to an end she felt something weird in his voice.

Why is he telling me this? I'm not stupid. I know how to make my own decisions. Did he know she had already sneaked out of camp several times? But that had been a few moons ago, something she didn't use to do anymore.

She looked at him with an odd expression, trying to read his gaze. She's stopped looking for cobwebs at the moment and was instead searching for some kind of reason behind this story. Which was also meant at her specifically, otherwise he would've let Sagepaw and Gentlepaw join, too.

What a weirdo, this tom.

•─────⋅☾ ☽⋅─────•

[ @Cherry~ @valery @Faline ]

[val]

sagepaw
he/him
shadowclan / 143/100
white w/ grey-striped tail, green eyes

---

Sagepaw had no idea what Gentlepaw had just tried to say. Hurmm? Hur...her...here? His green eyes picked up the movement of the she-cat's ear, taking it as the signal to spit out the disgusting piece of wood. He gave his head a shake, longing for a cold stream to wash his mouth out with.

Seeing that Gentlepaw was already going for another branch, the tom hurried to another snaggly bush to try and reap some rewards from it. He almost yelped in joy when he found just the right stick. It had to be perfect...wait, no. There was a splintered part on it. Sagepaw turned away, looking for a different one. Aha! He dove forward, shimmying a bit under the bush, already knowing he was ensnared in the bush's grasp. It wasn't even fair, his fur was too short for this to keep happening to him!

He thrashed quietly for a moment, hearing some voices behind him and not wanting to cause a break in any conversation by being loudly stuck. The voices were a mixture of Shadowfur's, Moonpaw's, and later, Gentlepaw's. Good, so he was still within earshot of them. No rules were broken there. Sagepaw paused, though his ears didn't catch Gentlepaw's question. Because of his growing disinterest, he refocused on the stick he was desperately trying to reach and continued in his quest to both free himself and grab it.

Sagepaw had a fleeting thought that entailed the idea that he'd be stuck in the bush forever. Maybe his warrior name would become Sagebush. Or Sagebranch. Or Sagestuck. Those weren't exactly endearing names or ones that he'd necessarily like, so the tom gave himself a final lunge toward the stick, probably tearing out even more of his fur, but hey! He got the stick. He awkwardly backed out of the bush and deposited the stick by Gentlepaw's big branch, pausing to look over at the others.

---

@Faline @Cherry~ @Wingnettle

[occultation]

【 S H A D O W F U R 】

[ @Wingnettle @Faline ]

Shadowfur began pushing branches aside, searching for more cobwebs. Moonpaw's incredulous gasp caught his attention; he turned his green gaze on her. She was giving him a rather odd look, possibly trying to determine why he was telling this story. She must realize that I have an ulterior motive for telling this, beyond just wanting to entertain.

His expression remained unreadable. If Moonpaw wanted to know the reason for him telling this story, she'd have to think between the lines and figure it out herself.

Gentlepaw's question caused him to swing his gaze away from Moonpaw and toward her. His right ear twitched as he noticed that Sagepaw was stuck in a bush.

Giving an embarrassed chuckle, he admitted, "We ran. The battle was clearly lost, so we decided to flee back to camp instead of losing our own lives. Honestly, we were lucky our hides didn't get skinned. We were both struck a few times as punishment and demoted for half a moon." He resumed his search for more cobwebs. "It was two season-cycles ago now; I imagine everyone who remembers has long since moved past it. I know I have. I expect cats to judge me for all that I've accomplished since, rather than for the stupid mistake I made many, many moons ago."

[Wingnettle]

╔═════════*.·:·.☽✧ ✦ ✧☾.·:·.*═════════╗
Moonpaw (she/her)
Shadowclan | 9 moons
Black calico with half face ginger and amber eyes
╚═════════*.·:·.☽✧ ✦ ✧☾.·:·.*═════════╝



Moonpaw's ears acknowledged Gentlepaw's question, but she didn't turn her gaze as she searched for more cobwebs amongst the roots of a huge, super-tall pine tree. She was trying to ignore the fact that she was doing chores for Elmshadow and Ivysnake, and remember that one-day Nightshiver or Pinepaw might need these. If the mouse-brain decides to stay, of course. She thought with a prick of frustration.

Shadowfur went on with his story, and her mind rolled back to reality thanks to his deep voice.
"Of course you were punished, that was a really stupid thing to do." She commented without much thought, though she wasn't really judging him or anything. She was starting to lose her attention and wish she would get to do something else instead.

I can't even understand how some cat can think of killing not one, but two badgers alone. I bet not even Dawnstar would order her clan to hunt them down, even if... Well, maybe losing half of her clan would feel worthy to her if she winned two huge pelts in exchange.
Who knows what's in that mad head, huh. She grumbled softly as a couple of webs got caught in her whiskers. She felt everything on her face!

•─────⋅☾ ☽⋅─────•

[ @Cherry~ @valery @Faline ]

[val]

sagepaw
he/him
shadowclan / 158/100
white w/ grey-striped tail, green eyes

---

Something about how Shadowfur sorta laughed, almost as if he were embarrassed, made Sagepaw smile. Maybe the warrior really did have a soul. Wait, of course he did! The apprentice shook his head at himself, wondering why he'd been so quick to assume that Shadowfur was truly as stony as he tended to act. It was nice to see that the enforcer had made silly (but also kinda serious) mistakes in his past as well. The young cat returned to his work, his smile staying despite his strong concentration.

Sagepaw had collected a couple more sticks, trying (and failing) to keep tabs on the running conversation. By now, he felt like he'd collected a satisfactory pile of sticks. Useful enough, and fit the requirements. At least, Sagepaw hoped so. Getting one more wouldn't hurt, though. There was another over there! As the tom padded over to grab the thankfully easy-to-reach stick, he noticed that Moonpaw had gotten a face full of cobwebs. Amusement glittered in his eyes, though he couldn't really laugh with a branch in his jaws. After setting it down, Sagepaw diverted his attention to the other two, feeling like he'd gotten his task complete. Still, he wondered if Shadowfur or Moonpaw had something to say, so he kept quiet so as to not interrupt any more gems of dialogue.

---

@Cherry~ @Wingnettle