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❧ Shadowclan Warrior | She/Her
❧ Purrks - Shadow Fiend [Inactive], Kitty Softpaws T2 [Permanently Active], Silver Tongue T2 [Active [acting blind]], Monkey's Paw [Permanently Active] "I once believed that the road of happiness continued forever and ever into the distance. When it was destroyed, I realized for the first time that it lies upon a thin sheet of glass."
alright. she should gather a bit more, yeah? yeah just a little more.
[rolled a 17, 15!]
despite her nose being overwhelmed with the smell of lavender, she managed to find another bush of the purple whorls. she plucked off a flower and looked around. more horsetail, or what she thought was horsetail at least. she padded over to it and plucked another stalk of it, and with her maw full, she returned to the group.
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It was early. Very early, even. But, as the sun began to rise even earlier, so would he. He wasn't sure what had brought him to the Evergreen Grotto, it wasn't his usual sort of place. Maybe he did kind of like the pretty dappled sunlight, that filtered through the canopy. Maybe he thought it looked kind of nice, the way the clearing opened up in the sunlight. How mortifying! He tried to think about it tongue-in-cheek, but he was a little embarrassed. He was a cat of the shadows, not the sunlight. He didn't like giving into softness very often, but today, he supposed, he was. Even if it was just in his choice of hunting spot.
The tortoiseshell skulked along, blending into the shadows [shadow fiend] as he weaved around trees, picking between little pieces of sunlight. Then, came to a stop, as he noticed a little grey squirrel - just about to climb a tree. He readied himself, adapting a typical hunter's crouch, and jumped right out of the shadows. [rolled: 17] Claws sunk in, and he killed it with a small sharp bite. Thanks little guy. You'll be a big dinner, to some teeny apprentice - or kit. He yawned, taking a moment to observe the undisturbed scenery before he searched of his next kill.
The enforcer continued on his hunt, scenting the air and ground as he went. There had to be something more around here at this time. Then, he caught it: more squirrel scent. Nose to the ground, he moved alone, carefully following the trail till it was in hit sights. A little way up a tree. He'd have to jump to get it. [rolled: 11] He crept onward, then, once he was close enough, bundled up his haunches, and lept.
The calico cascaded through the sky, but didn't exactly land on the tree - his forepaws did, but the rest of him down toward the ground. Thankfully, one of those forepaws had managed to spear and grasp the squirrel. He fell to the ground in a lump, but quickly nipped the squirrel to ensure it was dead. What a mess. Thanks for your life, and the tasty meal you'll become, squirrel. Yellow and brown legs clambered back up to stand, then he carried his squirrel over to his collection. Just one more, maybe.
Brown nose lifted to the air, he breathed it in. Some more squirrels seemed to be about, plus there was a hint of mouse. So, he continued to search, padding about the place till he picked up a stronger scent. Mouse - just ahead of him. Newtbelly dropped into a crouch, just in time to see the tiny creature scurrying from bush to bush. It exited another bush and in a flash, Newtbelly darted toward it. [rolled: 18] Claws quickly reached it's fur, and he brought it in for a killing bite. Thanks for feeding ShadowClan, little mouse. He carried it back to his collection. Three was good, but he'd still try for more.
Skulky as usual, he slinked around the grotto, constantly sniffing for a hint of anything. More squirrels were near, their scent dominated the air. He stopped still. The scent was so strong now, it were almost as though they were next to him. Aha! It was scurrying along a pine branch, mere mouselengths from his head. [rolled: 3] He lashed out with his paws, expecting to grasp it with ease, but instead, he went flying over his own paws, and face planted right onto the ground. Ugh. He picked himself up, dusting off and shaking out his fur as best he could. At least he had three pieces of prey. That would do for him.
Newtbelly returned to the hole he was storing his prey in, and grasped it in his jaws. Nothing all that notable, but at least it was something.
Two. Not one, but two — not only had Mistlewhisker given her Hillstrider, the ever-exuberant tom, but she'd also given her Wildpaw. An apprentice who was still, at this moment, probably vibrating with excitement because of his first patrol.
Either the deputy secretly hated her, or found great amusement in such ploys. Maybe it was a test, to see if Briarsplash's thin patience would weather the storm. Maybe it was some punishment by StarClan for the extra thrush she'd eaten last night that'd given her a bellyache — greed and gluttony couldn't be rewarded, she supposed.
But whatever it was, she was here, and would have to manage the two bright suns against the moon.
Briarsplash entered the grotto, inhaling the familiar scents of pine and lush growth that dominated the area. It was one of the more pleasant sides of ShadowClan territory (she'd still never quite gotten used to the marshes, having been born outside of the Clan and having an aversion to... getting wet, in any way). She turned back towards her other patrol members, still trying to keep her composure despite the way she'd always feel Hill's golden eyes searing her fur.
"...Right. Wildpaw, Hillstrider and I are gonna follow behind you so that we can watch and make sure you're, uh... actually able to catch things. We'll correct your form and technique from there. Remember to be calm and quiet — not... whatever that is."
Did she just inadvertently make herself have to co-chaperone this 'paw that was fresh out of the nursery? Yes. But Briarsplash knew Hillstrider was much better with these kinds of kids than her, and besides, he probably wouldn't go far unless she directly ordered him to.
"Meanwhile, we'll catch whatever we can. You think you can handle it, or are you just gonna go for it?" Some guys learned better by 'studying' and preparing a million times before trying something out; others learned best by gunning it and getting corrected later. Briarsplash would teach him more if needed. As she waited to see what Wildpaw would think, the Enforcer sniffed the air. There were definitely hints of various rodents and birds in the area, active in the early greenleaf heat. Good.
Mudslide nodded wordlessly at Roachflare's greeting, the slightest lift in her posture. As soon as everycat was gathered, she headed out. The humidity of greenleaf was somewhat tolerable with her short pelt, less sweat collected on her forehead that way. However, the area was still gravely uncomfortable to maneuver through. The fog only made things more humid and her pelt (which had already felt uncomfortable to wear) rubbed against her skin in awkward ways.
She opted to push past it though, even if it was hard not to notice. Mudslide kept a straight face through it all, pushing her paws through slick ground and noise. She glanced over her shoulder to make sure Houndpaw was still around, but her gaze notably didn't meet his eyes, mainly over his head or something like that.
Once she was certain they had reached the landmark, Mudslide turned and addressed the group. "Close." Having to force speech was such a labouring process, she swore her brain slowed down whenever she tried. She doubted Roachflare would like the apprentice following them around, and that was fine. Mudslide was willing to be uncomfortable with the burn of eyes on her pelt for them. With that, the oriental pressed through foliage, only pausing briefly to butt Roachflare in the shoulder with her head.
Bug was free to go, if bug really wanted to. She'd handle Houndpaw while he got those herbs, then she'd dig for bugs. She ushered the apprentice forward before ducking away in fog, her patterned frame slowly disappearing.
[mudslide rolled a 9, 9, 11, 10, 4]
[ +3 moss]
[mudslide rolled a 14, 2. fumble!!]
Right... No cobwebs. The former enforcer blew out of her nose harshly whilst she batted robotically at ribbons of cobweb she couldn't see. Peeved by their stickyness, Mudslide suddenly paused before sitting down on the muddy flooring. She'd just take ten baths later, it was fine, she'd be fine, totally not itching to tear off her pelt.
Her eyes then focused onto Houndpaw, keeping track of wherever the brown pelted apprentice was. Whatever he was up to, she was determined to keep track of it.
WILDPAW
Shadowclan Apprentice | 6 Moons | Long-furred calico tom with yellow eyes
~~~
Wildpaw wanted to scream. THIS WAS SO AWESOME! He bounced along behind Briarsplash, still absolutely vibrating with uncontained excitement. He had to stop and sniff everything that looked mildly different from what he was used to see in camp, then sprint to catch back up. A pretty flower? Needs a good sniff. Weird shaped rock? Yep, that smells like stone and dirt! Tickly, hairy leaves? Oh, his nose itched, but it was worth the sniff! He wanted to know ALL of it!
By the time that they stopped at the grotto-WHOA, A CAVE?!-A lot of his excess energy had been spent. Still shaking a little bit, but Wildpaw no longer looked like he could explode from the sheer idea of the enforcer looking his way. Which was a good thing, because she turned to him and let him know that she and Hillstrider would be watching over him. HE COULD SHOW OFF HOW GOOD AT HUNTING HE WAS! This was AWESOME! "Got it! CALM AND QU-" a momentary pause as his voice echoed a bit. "Calm and quiet!" He whispered.
Now for the catching! He was ready to catch everything! He'd bring so much prey back, Dawnstar would immediately make him an enforcer apprentice! Oh, wait, that would mean he couldn't be Blackjaw's apprentice anymore. That would be sad. He liked Blackjaw quite a bit. Well, he barely knew blackjaw, but Morningpaw said he was probably cool, and he seemed pretty nice, so who would possibly doubt that?
Hunting! Wildpaw's attention snapped back to the present and he bounced along for a couple steps before he realized he needed to pause and actually find prey. He stopped and sniffed the air. It was damp, fresh and stale simultaneously. That was WEIRD! Anyway, the apprentice did catch the familiar scent of a mouse. He crouched down in his sloppy, but at least balanced crouch. He was certainly better at learning from experience than he was at listening to others talking. He could sneak up on Morningpaw, so a mouse had to be easy, right?
The apprentice stalked forwards, ears perked as he listened for the sound of a nibbling little mouse. He spotted the little brown creature soon enough. Awesome! His first catch was quickly becoming a reality. Despite his steps being fairly quiet, his paws were still heavy on the ground. The mouse didn't even seem to look at the little apprentice before darting away. He tried to race after it, but it wasn't in the stars for him to get lucky, today. It disappeared into a hole beneath rocks, forcing the little calico to skid to a halt.
Wildpaw didn't get it. He looked back at the other two quizzically. He was pretty sure he hadn't made any sound, but the mouse still detected him! That was totally unfair, like there were more factors in hunting than just being quiet, which, obviously, would've been mentioned when Morningpaw was teaching him about hunting if it were the case.
Mosstangle is an Enforcer in Shadowclan! Mention me whenever she is needed! My characters' thoughts, emotions, and actions are simply descriptions and roleplay, and do not align with my personal thoughts, emotions, and actions. *Pockets Full Of Purrkies active!*
Re: Evergreen Grotto
Berryshine is RiverClan's medicine cat! 
