Of Claws and Trees

[Estelle]

Sleepysunrise
[ 14 moons | She / Her | Shc Enforcer | Shadow Fiend ]

Sitting confined within the shadows of the clearing, keeping guard over camp as she so often did from that little corner she called her resting place up until recent - and would surely reclaim once the time came to leave her grandmother's den once more, something she would rather delay for as long as she could. That said, camp was calm today. There had been some kitten recently, or so she heard; Sleepysunrise must have been out patrolling at that time. She would never understand them.

But that wasn't the matter at paw, she lightly shook her head. Camp was calm, and the youngest enforcer knew that meant either something would explode, or, she ought to take the moment to train. And she chose the latter. It was high time she honed her skills and learned new ones, and she knew precisely whom to approach for this endeavour.

It had come to her during their brief grapple upon the tree during Gutsgnaw's assessment, and as the one who so deftly taught her how to climb and jump from tree to tree, who better to inquire about the art of off-the-ground fighting than Hawkbite himself? The Commander could often be found surrounded by kits or apprentices, (stuck like tree sap to Mistlewhiker,) and overall performing his duties throughout the clan -- it wasn't as difficult of a feat to spot him.

Enraptured by darkness she moved forth, avoiding the busybodies of the clan the until she stood near the commander and spoke his name.
"Hawkbite."
She uttered, one of the few whose name she ever spoke. Many did not get that privilege. Stepping out of the darkness, vibrantly coloured eyes gleamed despite their lack of soul as she watched the bigger cat.
"Tree combat."
She added, looking at him expectantly, as though she expected he could understand what she meant by that - read her mind, if anything. He was a smart cat. He could do it.


[ @SuspiciousMindz ]

[SuspiciousMindz]

[Hawkbite]
Enforcer Commander
Shadow Fiend | Agatha Kitty | Kitty Softpaws T2

Hawkbite was busying himself with patting some mud, leaves, and extra sticks to the outsides of the nursery. The dens were still fairly new, not fully insulated since their move into this camp. They definitely weren't ready for the winter that was already settling in on them. So, the last few days were spent packing the walls with more insulation. That was, until hearing his name took him by surprise. Hawkbite would turn his head, searching for the source. Before his Agatha Kitty would kick in, Sleepysunrise made her presence known and he stopped what he was doing to process her words.

It was fairly simple. Two words. Hawkbite would have to decipher that for a moment before it would click in his head. He had trained this feline in the trees during their ambush training -- a poor one at that. So, once that processed, he'd give a simple nod, understanding. "I think that'd be fun. A little spar to better our skills in the trees..." the idea was very intriguing to the tom.

"Alright," Hawkbite spoke, wiping his paws against the ground and shaking out his pelt. It remained fluffed up against the cold. "Let's wander away from here though, I don't think everyone and their mother needs to know this skill. We'd have too many cats falling out of the trees," he huffed, half-amused.

...

Hawkbite had led them towards the denser part of the territory. The pine trees still held their leaves, and their branches would be a good starting point for this training. Maybe later he'd try his paw at the larger oak trees. Right now, it was safer to try it here. "This looks like a good area, yeah? Let's begin."

Without much hesitation, the Commander hauled himself up easily into the trees, keeping to the lower branches for now while they warmed up. "Keep up with me really quick, let's stretch our muscles and get our balance in order," he suggested before running across the branch and leaping into another tree. A smile was found on his lips as he did so. The movements were repeated a few times while he warmed up his muscles and fought off the cold. From tree to tree, Hawkbite would make sure his balance was where it needed to be before he'd pause with some small huff. Squirreling definitely wore a cat out!

Finally, he'd stop, looking to see where Sleepysunrise was before confirming her status. "I think we should stick to the lower branches for now. It would be most logical in a battle, but we're both small enough cats that we can move it up a little later on. Ready?"

@Estelle - Sleepysunrise

[Estelle]

ׂ╰┈➤ Sleepysunrise ✘ Shc Medicine Cat ←
☽ She/Her, 14 Moons ✧.* Petite dark semi-long-furred feline with white tufts across her body, white freckles and piercing blue eyes ☾
Shadow Fiend * CALL ME MONSTER * Purrk * Purrk


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Ever the reliable commander, she knew she had done well seeking him out for this particular skill. Her whiskers twitched, letting him take the lead as they wandered through the territory, softly warming up with new-leaf's arrival. She surveyed their surroundings as trees turned to pines and the old man (not as old as Owlthroat looked) spoke. She regarded the trees from down below, watched as the commander easily pulled himself up into its branches. She lingered down on the ground a little longer, observing, as if calculating her next move. One might think she was too shy to climb the trees, too afraid to fall down. Or not skilled enough? Hah! Her eyes flashed with bemusement, and in an instant, Sleepysunrise hauled herself up high.

She noted how Hawkbite kept to the lower branches, even as he departed squirreling from tree to tree. Sleepysunrise was different in that aspect; while she did not enjoy being watched, she sure did like having a view over the territory - over her grounds. She liked the higher branches and the way some of them dipped beneath her weight when she stood on their extremities, she liked the way the branch would crack or whip when she finally jumped off at the last second. Sleepysunrise had no trouble keeping up with Hawkbite, nimbly jumping between the trees. The feeling of the depth below her belly as her paws stretched out to reach the next branch, the wind up high ruffling her fur and she slipped beneath leaves and low-hanging branches. This must be one of her favourite skills.

When the commander halted and spoke, the medic let a huff of air leave her nose. She stood a branch above him.
"Scared you'll fall down?"
She hummed the tone, lowering herself flat onto the branch, paw hanging down towards him as a little smile played on her maw beneath the lip she was biting.
"I thought you were nimble and strong.... Like a squirrel! ...Ready."
She grinned at her own words, the last coming out in a hushed tone.

How happily she disappeared within the darkness for just a few seconds, only the sounds of intentionally ruffled pines and branches ringing around them; she was letting her tail move their pines, her paw brush against the bark before reappearing on a nearby branch with a small, yet excited smile. Her teeth showed just a little when she suddenly moved forth, jumping from the higher branch which this time faced the commander, paws stretched out to land upon or near him.

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⊹ [ @SuspiciousMindz - Hawkbite | @/mention - Character ] ⊹

[SuspiciousMindz]

[Hawkbite]
Enforcer Commander
Shadow Fiend | Agatha Kitty | Kitty Softpaws T2

He was less surprised when she kept up with him. He didn't expect her to be fresh at this. He expected a lot from Dawnstar's kin, a lot from Lostspark's child. She'd never let him down nor given him a reason to doubt her. Plus, they'd interacted on a more personal level compared to his relationship with previous medicine cats: Elmshadow, Lostspark, and Mossfreckle. Each of the last ones rarely got him on an herb patrol, but here he was training their newest edition. How invigorating.


So, the medic had a sense of humor after all! That was a relief. Hawkbite snapped his jaws in the direction of her paw, falling short of the actual snap while eyeing her curiously. "Nah, I'm afraid you're too new to this, you'll get tangled in some branches up there."

And just like that, she was gone. Unfortunately, Hawkbite's Agatha Kitty was fine tuned. While he gave the impression that she was hidden, his peripheral vision kept tabs on her while she moved within the shadows. She moved swiftly, but not quietly, either. Something he'd alert her about. Even with the breeze rattling the branches and leaves, mechanical noises of moving on the bark gave her away.

"You need to be a tad quieter, kid," he hummed, hopping to the branch above him as Sleepysunrise made a leap towards him. Now, it was his turn to stare down at her, a gleam in his eyes as his paws quickly dipped down and attempted to swipe her ears. Nimbly and silently, the Commander darted across the branch until it started to dip. In the last moment, he'd leap to the next tree, twisting and gripping to the branch as he turned to face her, playing defense still.

@Estelle - Sleepysunrise [800 hawk posts wooo]

[Estelle]

ׂ╰┈➤ Sleepysunrise ✘ Shc Medicine Cat ←
☽ She/Her, 14 Moons ✧.* Petite dark semi-long-furred feline with white tufts across her body, white freckles and piercing blue eyes ☾
Shadow Fiend * CALL ME MONSTER * Silk Spinner * Purrk


﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌

Quieter, or faster? Sleepysunrise cackled a quick,
"Good eyes, old man"
As his body rose from the tree before she could reach him. Perhaps she had been a bit too cocky, announcing her presence by raking her claws over the bark as if he couldn't see her. Usually they couldn't see her. But this was the commander she was talking about, the big bad wolf! Of course he had a few tricks up his fur, and she shouldn't assume this fight won just because she was in her element.

Barely the tip of her ears were touched as he swiped down, Sleepysunrise regarding it more as a playful action than an attack - she grinned in return, speeding up her pace and jumping right after him with practiced ease. She hadn't much thought in how to go about this; she was making everything up on the spot, a vital mistake in any normal battle, she was having fun most of all.

Instead of jumping right at the old man, she propelled herself right up and over his body using a tree branch as her path, opting to try and swipe at his heels from behind once she got down. One of her favourite - or at least, most practiced - techniques. She would make a game of jumping up and down, out of reach and back forth, paws swiping at his heels and ears as she passed.

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⊹ [ @SuspiciousMindz - Hawkbite | @/mention - Character ] ⊹

[SuspiciousMindz]

[Hawkbite]
Enforcer Commander
Shadow Fiend | Agatha Kitty | Kitty Softpaws T2

[going to make it a little vaguer in movements, since they're really just getting a good feel for how a fight would go]

Hawkbite grinned, whipping his tail behind him at her comment. He wouldn't say anything about it, he supposed he wasn't as spry as he used to be, but he wasn't nearly as old as Dawnstar herself! She was still beating cats left and right, so he had no excuse, only show as to how nimble he could still be. "Seasons of practice keep cats on their toes, you'd be surprised at what I could do," he half joked, focusing back in on the movements.

The swipe barely missed, tapping her ears tips before they were bounding about the branches again. Hawkbite played her games, leaping back and forth, jumping up and down to match her speed and learn her style. She was successful at batting his heels, making him slip occasionally, but not enough to drop him from the trees. In return, he'd bat at her tail to throw her off balance. He'd aim for her heels in return, make her learn how to correct herself and better defend her weak points. The learning reciprocated as they went.

And after a while, he was huffing a tad. Smiling, feeling battered, but the ache was nice. It was a good change in pace. "Tree combat could be useful with the right balance but want to experiment something with me?" He'd inquire.

Despite the constant movements in the branches, Hawkbite's brain was always working. It was developing new things, testing the waters with ideas and one of them intrigued him the most. "Do you think we could accurately launch things from the trees down at cats? Shake a branch, drop sticks or pinecones from here? Maybe... drop a dead branch on someone..." the list could continue, but he hoped that the medicine cat got the basic idea.

@Estelle - Sleepysunrise