Dunepounce returned and dropped his squirrel off at the prey pile before making his way to the patrol place. “Patrol went well, we came back with three pieces of prey. Eaglepaw did a great job hunting.” And with a flick of his ear he padded off.
Owltalon padded in with a brisk pace, the sun blaring in her amber eyes. "Afternoon, Dusklion! Here to report my previous and recently finished patrol." She nodded quickly once she finished her sentence as if nodding to herself.
"Nothin' odd happened, not even a hint of hostility from Windclan. It was a nice outin' though, all markers are now rich with the scent of Riverclan. Though my last patrol was more worrisome. Slatestripe found an odd hole on the Riverclan side of the border. We also found a fox skull, it was kinda weird that the whole skeleton wasn't there, it smelt of rottin' and flesh. I worry that newly made hole has something to do with it." Owltalon flicked her ears her gaze dropping.
"Hopefully this isn't weird, but can I keep that skull? I mean, if it makes everyone uncomfortable I understand. I'll wash it before bringin' it to camp if I can keep it just so it's stench doesn't keep anycat up. Just a thought, that's all." She shifted her paws hoping that she wouldn't be scolded like a kit for taking interest in such odd things.
Two patrols? Oh that's right, the patrols her brother must've sent out. While she was a bit irked at that patrol being so late, there wasn't much Dusklion could do about it now. Plus, outside of this Owls was a good warrior and good Lionheart. And thankfully, a good diffuser to send to the WindClan border since there was no hostility reported. "Good. The last thing we need is more cats... stirin' up trouble..." Embarrassment crept into her pelt hot like flames and she ducked her gaze away. Cats like her...
A weird hole? Dusklion frowned hearing her former mentor's name; Smalls hadn't said a single word to her since that herb patrol she had been put on with him and Mists. Regardless, she'd tell Fades about the weird hole and have him go check it out since she was banned from the border. "A fox skull??" Interest piqued the deputy's eyes grew a bit wider. "Yeah, you can keep it - don't see why not. Could I, uh... could I come see it with you?" She'd never seen a full fox skull before, and it was clear how excited she was at the thought of her Clanmate having retrieved one.
[ hehehe figured this could branch off into a little wholesome outing where the two bond over their interest in skulls/bones ]
Dunepounce returned and dropped his squirrel off at the prey pile before making his way to the patrol place. “Patrol went well, we came back with three pieces of prey. Eaglepaw did a great job hunting.” And with a flick of his ear he padded off.
A little late, but Dusklion wouldn't hold it against the warrior considering they had at least come back with a good haul. "Three? Definitely glad I sent the two of you, then. Nice work." A grin stretched across her face as she glanced at the growing prey pile, then waved at the retreating warrior with the tip of her fluffy tail.
Troutstone padded into camp, the prey he had caught swinging from his mouth in time to his tail. He flicked a lazy salute to Dusklion. "Finished the patrol, dep! Two mice, birds and voles caught 'n not a single suspicious scent to be found! That I found anyway..."
Welp, that concluded the patrol! He nodded to the two apprentices and padded off to go do... Whatever it was he occupied himself with these days.
The next hunting patrol that came back also had quite the haul too, and Dusklion's eyes glowed. She was still a bit irritated with Troutstone but this at least started to make up for it, if not clean her opinion of him. "Nice work, Troutstone. Glad to hear there's no sign or scent of any trouble brewin' with out outskirts neighbors." With that she gave a nod and waved her tail at him in farewell.
Hollytail padded back into camp followed by Heroneye and Rainingpaw. He then went to go find Dusklion. "We're back" he mewed. He then went to go set his rabbit on the pile.
(+1 rabbit and whatever Heroneye and Rainingpaw have)
...That was it? No word on how the patrol went, or how it was with Rainingpaw? Dusklion eyed the rabbit, then Hollytail. "...And? Anythin' else happen? I need more than just 'we're back' Hollytail." Irritation was evident in her tone as she gestured for her Clanmate to come back from the prey pile and finish the report.
Drizzlesnow slunk into the camp with two plump squirrels and a thrush between her jaws, her green eyes glittering with satisfaction. She glanced back over her shoulder to make sure that Birdsnow and Pigeonpelt were on her heels.
Dropping her prey on the fresh-kill pile, Drizzlesnow headed over to Dusklion, who she had spotted waiting. ''Prey was running well, Dusklion,'' She purred. ''We'll have good hunting this newleaf.''
Mind still buzzing from what had occurred on her patrol, Dusklion turned as she heard paw steps coming towards her. Ah, Drizzlesnow. Listening keenly as she reported, she gave a nod. Her blue eyes glanced behind the warrior, disappointed to not see Birdsnow nor Pigeonpelt behind her. Hopefully they would drop their catches off on the prey pile soon.
"Thanks for the report," she replied with a flick of her ear, appraising the catches the warrior had caught. "'N good catch. Make sure to put it on the prey pile." Dusk flicked her tail to dismiss the warrior.
Only two of the patrols hadn't reported back in - one was a hunting patrol and the other was a border patrol. Dusklion found herself more irritated at the border patrol, especially since she had put two senior warriors that she trusted to get the job done. Was this Swirls' way of getting back at her? Personally not reporting a patrol that she had sent out? The thought hurt the deputy more than she cared to admit...
"Mudsmoke! Mornin'mimic!" The two cats for the Lionsbeach hunting patrol that hadn't reported back. Dusk flipped her tail back and forth as she waited for both of them to show. "Neither of you showed to report the patrol. Mornin'mimic, I had placed you in charge, 'n yet not a peep from you about how things went or if either of you caught any prey. Mudsmoke, this is the second time you've not reported a patrol in. Both of you, for the next quarter moon, are demoted back down to Mornin'paw 'n Mudpaw. You'll be confined to camp for that quarter moon, too. I want you tidyin' up the dens, 'n asking the queens or elders if they need anythin' - one of you can do the elders, 'n the other the nursery 'n queens. In a quarter moons' time, you'll come back to me with a report 'n the understandin' of why you think it's important to report every patrol. Understood?"
With this being her first punishment issues as the Clan's official deputy, Dusklion was nervous to say the least. But she didn't let it show as her eyes narrowed on the two demoted warriors before her. Ah, frustrated. That was a good word for what she felt on top of the nerves. With no more words, she gave a flick of her tail to dismiss the two.
[ both morningmimic and mudsmoke have been demoted for two IRL weeks - they are eligible to earn their warrior names back starting on 6/8! they will each need two posts before this date of them attending to either the queens or the elders (they can decide who goes where IC!) before they report back to dusklion! feel free to VM with any questions! ]
Now these were just a tad more important - and made the deputy a tad more frustrated. "Cherryswirl! Starlin'flight! I need to know what made it an okay thought in your mind to not say anythin' 'bout your patrol to our border with ShadowClan. It leaves me inclined to assume that the border was left unmarked since neither of you saw fit to report? ...Please tell me you didn't lose Wisteriawren." The thought of the bubbly she-cat getting lost because two of the warriors Dusk trusted the most to help her and Fades keep this Clan in line was not a thought the deputy wanted to entertain. She would wait to hear their reasoning before assigning punishments - mainly, she just wanted to hear if the border had in fact been marked.
She looked the deputy in the eye, cold and unwelcoming to this attitude. "We reached the border, we marked it, we were on our way back to report." She kept her tone carefully neutral. "Our new warrior stayed close the entire time. One of ShadowClan's apprentice's was getting a tour, it seemed. Too chatty, must be brand new. Now, if you have anything else to add, I recommend saying it so I can give it a good consideration."
She was being passive aggressive, and she knew it. Starlingflight was not going to pretend she was cheerful and upbeat about the deputy's lack of true punishment for making things so much worse for RiverClan. A lot of things were leading up to all of this, but Dusklion's murder had broken the sparrow's back in her mind. The last straw that made everything crumble. If she were to be punished, she wasn't going to care. Let her higher ranks think she was being disrespectful or disobedient, but Starlingflight had already endured a punishment for a late patrol.
And any consideration for 'punishments' would be duly tossed out. What could they do that was worse than what they've already made her witness? The real punishment was seeing Dusklion. At all. How could Fadingsun think that anyone wanted to look a cold-blooded killer in the eyes and act like chums?
Two patrols? Oh that's right, the patrols her brother must've sent out. While she was a bit irked at that patrol being so late, there wasn't much Dusklion could do about it now. Plus, outside of this Owls was a good warrior and good Lionheart. And thankfully, a good diffuser to send to the WindClan border since there was no hostility reported. "Good. The last thing we need is more cats... stirin' up trouble..." Embarrassment crept into her pelt hot like flames and she ducked her gaze away. Cats like her...
A weird hole? Dusklion frowned hearing her former mentor's name; Smalls hadn't said a single word to her since that herb patrol she had been put on with him and Mists. Regardless, she'd tell Fades about the weird hole and have him go check it out since she was banned from the border. "A fox skull??" Interest piqued the deputy's eyes grew a bit wider. "Yeah, you can keep it - don't see why not. Could I, uh... could I come see it with you?" She'd never seen a full fox skull before, and it was clear how excited she was at the thought of her Clanmate having retrieved one.
[ hehehe figured this could branch off into a little wholesome outing where the two bond over their interest in skulls/bones ]
`~Owltalon
She, Her\Lionheart\42 moons\Riverclan
"Are you listening, starchild?"
Guessing by the way Dusklion's gaze suddenly shrunk away from hers, the deputy must've still felt a bit shaken about all the nonsense concerning Windclan. Who could blame her? Everyone was shaken, everyone was more than surprised. Owltalon blinked rather slowly. She however didn't let her own gaze break away as she curled her matted tail over her large paws.
Then Dusklion's expression shifted into... Interest? Is that what she saw? A wide grin stretched onto her face like wildfire. She sprang up to her paws, glad to have her interest not only accepted, but encouraged! What a breath of fresh air, she was genuinely preparing herself for a good scolding. "Yes, yes, yes, of course! It should be, uh, un'er my moss bed. Y'know, in the warriors den? I'd be more than happy to let cha fetch it wit' me." Excitement poured into her voice like rain that roared within the darkest clouds.
"I must remind ya that the stretch really isn't that pleasant, I had to stuff it wit' flowers and such ta keep it from meltin' me nose off." Owltalon began to turn towards the warriors den, her tail high with pride as she weaved her large body through the clearing. "But who knows, them flowers may be wilted by now." She added with a shrug.
(YESSS BONDING TIME)
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-When You Grow Up, Your Heat Dies My Art Shop!
signature picture by @/GreenTheGreat toyhouse / finders
Re: RiverClan Patrols
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