ShadowClan Territory

[Pancake]

@Polaris

Softpelt realized who the other cat was. Willow.. thorn? No, Willowbriar, I think.

Now that she was sure it wasn't an enemy facing her, she let the tension out of her shoulders and exhaled, a smile forming on her muzzle. What was she doing out here? She might as well be honest. What did she have to hide? After all, Willowbriar was her clanmate. "Not much, just trying to catch a mouse without crunching pine needles under my paws." She let out a small laugh, shaking her head at nothing in particular. "How about you? Not that I blame you for being outside of camp; it's a really nice day, after all."

Maybe they could just sit and talk for a little while. Softpelt hadn't really been the most social cat recently, mostly because a lot of cats in ShadowClan were too concerned with their own image to take the time to talk to their clanmates. She wasn't exactly angry about it, though; nothing worth talking about had recently happened to her, which made conversation a bit less interesting sometimes.

[Polaris]

@Pancake

Willowbriar watched the other she-cat, realizing now that it was Softpelt. She had seen her around camp before, but she'd never really interacted with her. No matter how many new cats she met, it seemed there were always more to talk to and become friends with. Seeing her clanmate relax, the young warrior decided to do the same, sitting down and swishing her tail slowly over the pine needles.

So Softpelt had been out here hunting. What a great idea! If only she had thought of that. It was totally something Light would have done. As kits, her brother was always the most excited to learn how to hunt. He always thought it would be amazing to be able to feed his clan, especially the elders, which was something apprentices were expected to do.

Realizing she was going down a rabbit hole, Willowbriar responded to Softpelt with sympathy. "I know what you mean. I struggled with that for a while, and I still do if I'm being honest." She laughed lightly and then sighed, remembering all the hard work she had put in as an apprentice to become a great hunter. Her ears pricked as the other warrior asked her a question. Act like Light. The gray-blue molly perked up, excited to explain what she had been about to do.

"It really is great weather! I had actually just been about to do some tree climbing when I caught a whiff of your scent! I know it might seem a little weird, seeing as tree climbing is something Thunderclan cats normally do, but I've found that it's actually great for strengthening leg muscles and getting your hurt pumping and blood racing!" She lifted a paw, unsheathing and sheathing her claws. Though she was lean, her short pelt revealed that she was pretty much entirely lean muscle. She'd worked hard to get her body into its prime, but she found the rewards worth it. She tried to make an effort to do some sort of training or exercise at least once a day. "It's harder to do with pine trees, because their branches don't really start into you get higher up, but it's more rewarding when you're done! At least, that's what I think." Willowbriar glanced Softpelt, wondering what she would think about her hobby.

After a moment, the green eyed warrior decided to take it a step further. "What about you? Tree climbing isn't that common around here, so I'm just interested in what you think about that topic! If that's okay with you, of course." She gave Softpelt a small smile, glad that she had this time to get to know her clanmate a little better.

[Pancake]

@Polaris

Climbing trees, huh? Softpelt had never really thought about that before. She assumed it was only a ThunderClan thing, but apparently it wasn't. She could see that Willowbriar was excited about tree climbing; apparently it was a hobby, then. Even though it was a squirrel thing, she didn't see any harm in it. And apparently it was good training to practice tree climbing. Softpelt guessed that made sense.

The dark grey tabby lifted her head up to the nearest pine. "Mm. Yeah, I can see what you mean about the branches." That was fine, though. Nothing easy was really worth doing; the reward for working hard usually greatly outweighs the cost.

Softpelt nodded, "Personally, I don't climb trees much.. but I'd be willing to climb a bit! Once as an apprentice, I climbed a tree to get away from a twoleg dog." she chuckled a bit, half shuddering as the barking of the dog echoed in her mind. Looking up at the dappled branches of the trees above her, she felt warm again; it really was a good time to be outside.

[Polaris]

@Pancake

The wind ruffled Willowbriar's fur as she sat in the shade of the trees, immensely enjoying the great weather. The sound of the wind rushing through the trees made her feel at home. She wasn't very surprised to hear that Softpelt didn't climb trees very often. She had thought of it when she was an apprentice after hearing that tree climbing was something Thunderclan was known for. Also, she assumed that if they ever got into a spat with Thunderclan, it'd be nice to understand a little more about their stealth tactics. The blue-gray molly didn't think it would hurt at least.

The young warrior was surprised to hear that her clanmate had been chased into a tree by a twoleg dog. She had heard of dogs running away from their twolegs and chasing cats before, but she never knew something like that had happened somewhat recently, and to a cat in her own clan for that matter. Willowbriar felt a pang in her heart, sad that Softpelt had to go through something like that, and as an apprentice for that matter. She gave the other she-cat a sympathetic smile. If I ever run into a dog with Softpelt, I'll make sure that I'll protect her. As if in response to her own thoughts, another intrusive voice entered her head, rough and low. There's no way you'd be able to protect your clanmate, especially with such a scrawny body. No matter what you do, all the cats around you will die as you stand to the side, frozen. You'll never be able to protect anybody, just like you weren't able to protect your own brother.

Willowbriar seemed to sag a little. Right, what had she been thinking before? How could she ever protect Softpelt. Making a quick decision, the green eyed warrior quickly stood up, shaking her short pelt. Doing so made her push the voice to the back of her mind. "Man, I'm sorry you had to go through something like that. Seems like it would be traumatic! Especially as an apprentice." She shuffled her feet a little, suddenly feeling restless. "Would you be interested in climbing a tree with me right now? I just want to get some energy out. It's such good weather that I don't want to just sit around. If not, we could always go hunting together, if that's alright with you. Maybe, with the both of us, we'd be the best mice catchers in the whole clan! I feel like we'd make a good team!" She gave Softpelt a bright smile.

[Quasar]

Warblermoon | he/ve | @Slushie

A small smile lay on the short toms face as he padded through the forest with his mate. He always enjoyed these moments where they just had time to relax together, but recently theyve had less and less time to do so. He loved Fogkit more than nearly anything else of course, but being a father took up at lot of time. Still, it would always be better to give ver kid the attention she needed then ignore her in favor of ver own wants.

Warblermoon glanced over at the larger tortoiseshell, ver tail moving to wrap around hers, "How have you been, my heart? I feel as if its been too long since we've gone on a walk together" he mewed, a deep purr rumbling from his chest.

[Pancake]

@Polaris

Softpelt sat, enjoying the weather and the conversation; although, she saw Willowbreeze's shoulders droop. Was everything alright? She wondered if there was anything she could do to help.. she wasn't the best at heart-to-hearts, but she could at least try. Before she could ask if the other she-cat was okay, the smile returned to her face. At least she was mostly alright, then.

Softpelt nodded, smiling. "Yeah, I'd love to climb a tree or something. We might be able to see some cool birds, too. They're bound to be out on a day like this." She liked birds; she thought they were cool.

[Polaris]

@Pancake

Willowbriar was glad to hear that Softpelt was okay with climbing trees with her. The blue-gray cat's tail lifted high into the air. She had never really done something like this with someone else. It seemed like it would be fun! And maybe they really would see some cool birds. The molly had never really thought about seeing birds while climbing. But now, while looking back, she could see that she really had seen quite a few birds while climbing. She had never tried hunting in trees before.

"Yeah, maybe we will! We can probably climb the tree I was about to climb before." Willowbriar trotted over to the tall pine tree, looking over her shoulder to make sure that the other warrior was following her. When they reached the trunk, which wasn't really far, the bright she-cat sat down, looking up the trunk. "So, at the beginning, it'll be a little difficult, especially with the lack of branches. What you want to focus on when you first start the climb is a strong starting jump. The higher you can go, the less work your legs will have to do. When you actually get up on the trunk, it's best to use your momentum to keep climbing until you get to the branches. I think pulling up with front legs and then back legs works best, at least for me. We can stop to rest there!" Willowbriar smiled at Softpelt. "Any questions before we start heading up?"

[Pancake]

@Polaris

Softpelt looked up at the tree. It did look a bit daunting at first, but the more she heard about climbing and the more she gazed at the tree, the more confident she became about climbing. She smiled at the mention of birds. And, if they could pull off hunting in trees, maybe they could teach other cats to do so. After all, during leaf-bare there was less prey on the ground, so it might be useful.

Softpelt unsheathed her claws, scraping them against the tree bark. Hmm... Questions? "I don't think I have any questions. It seems pretty clear, if I'm being honest." She tilted her head to the side. "Although, I'll admit I didn't think I'd spend today climbing a tree. I'm surprised not many cats hunt in the trees. After all, claws aren't just for fighting."

[Polaris]

@Pancake

Willowbriar nodded excitedly in response to Softpelt's answer. Finally, someone got where she was coming from! "That's what I was thinking! I mean, all this wasted potential, you know? And who knows, maybe we have a cat in our clan who just happens to be great at climbing? We might have a great tree hunter in Shadowclan who doesn't even know it yet!" The young Shadowclan warrior smiled, all thoughts about the voice in her head gone. Out here, she was free. She was at peace.

"Okay then, I'll go up first, so you can see how to do it. I think it'll be easier for you to do it if I show you first. Then, I'll come back down and you can start up! That way, if you fall or need some help about where to go next, I'll be right here! When you get to the branches I'll scrabble up next to you! Make sure to watch me carefully! Though, just so you know, I'm definitely not perfect at tree climbing..."

Exhaling a breath, Willowbriar looked up at the tall tree before her. It was just a tree like any other. It didn't matter that another cat was watching her this time. Bunching her legs under her, she shook her haunches, readying herself for the leap that she knew would come. Her eyes focused on where she wanted to go. And...now! The gray-blue warrior launched herself off the forest floor, grabbing onto the trunk about halfway up. Her heartbeat pounded in her ears and her blood raced. This was the kind of stuff she liked to do. The kind of thing her brother would have loved to do.

Not stopping for moment, Willowbriar hauled herself up the trunk, claws digging into the pine bark. Well, she was going to smell like pine sap for another moon. At least it seemed like that now. The sharp scent of the pine filled her nose as she continued to ascend. Front paws, back paws, front paws, back paws. She smoothly raced up the trunk, her destination getting closer and closer. Finally, the she-cat arrived at the branches. Though it had seemed pretty long while she climbed, it had only taken a little less than half a minute overall. Peering at the ground below, Willowbriar called out, "You look so small down there! Like a kit!" The warrior laughed. It was true! Softpelt looked like she had shrunk down a size. With a content sigh, Willowbriar lowered herself back onto the trunk, slowly descending from the tree. She landed with a soft thump on the ground next to her clanmate.

"Did you catch all that? I tried to make sure you could see most of it at least. Oh, and when you try it yourself, don't worry if you can't make it all the way up on the first try. It took me a while to get the hang of it!" Smiling and purring softly, Willowbriar sat down on the cushioned ground, excited for Softpelt to try.

[Ziera]

// starry

 

Originally Posted by starry

[CENTER]~ Cinderblaze ~
Cinderblaze was up early, as always. The tom stretched his long body as he advanced out of the warriors' den, amber eyes landing on the sky. The colours of dawn appeared to be stretching across it, but he didn't waste time to look at peaceful sights. This had merely been to check the weather. He stiffled a yawn as he glanced at the fresh-kill pile. Ugh, what were ShadowClan warriors doing these days? Now that Elmshadow and Ivysnake, probably their best warriors, were medicine cat's, the fresh-kill pile would probably never be full again. Letting out a sigh, he moved towards the camp entrance. He'd rather go hunting than rest. After all, ShadowClan needed all the prey they could get between their claws. Cinderblaze really wanted to go pelt hunting again - maybe he could do that sometime this moon, whenever he found the time. Wait... what? The warrior blinked a few times as a figure approached, oddly familiar. Quickly, he realized that this was Dawnstar's former apprentice. Eyebrows quirking up, he muttered, "Sparkpaw?" He was quite surprised to see her again, but it seemed that she was officially back in the clan. Hm, if she was making herself useful, that was good. Cinderblaze didn't mind if cats were missing for a bit as long as they did something for their clan again. He'd just been a little surprised by her popping up since she'd been gone for a while. "Yeah, I suppose we can go hunting."

He gestured towards the camp entrance with his tail. "It's good to see that you're making yourself useful, after so many moons." His tone wasn't very harsh, as he had decided this did not need to escalate. She was back, great, now they could treat her normally again as long as she wasn't foolish. Cinderblaze shook out his grey pelt, bringing his tongue across it once, then readying himself for hunting... until something popped into his mind. "You know how to hunt, right?" Sure, he'd have the patience to teach an apprentice, as long as they didn't act like Frostpaw. Honestly though, he hoped that Sparkpaw knew at least the basics - she'd been around for a bit. She sure had some potential, or at least Cinderblaze expected that from her. Why else would Dawnstar choose her as an apprentice? That was very rare to see. Sparkpaw's innocent tone almost bothered him, but he said nothing.

"We'll head out, then. Do try your best, I'm a bit curious on why Dawnstar chose you all those moons ago. Let's see that." With a small nod, he padded out of camp, not waiting for the apprentice. If she fell behind, then he would not care. It was her request to go out, so she better to her best to keep up.

Sparkpaw decided early on that she liked this one. He was tough, but fair, and he didn't linger on the subject of her disappearance. Like...not at all. A bit surprising there was no interrogation about it. He didn't even try to squeeze her for reasons or even treat her with judgement or disdain -- perhaps thinking that Dawnstar must've done a good enough job already. Or, (Spark's favored explanation), he didn't give a rat's ass about those details! They were irrelevant to what she could bring to the table. Either way, it suited Sparkpaw perfectly.

Because he'd pleased her with this no-nonsense (but still competent) response, Sparkpaw dropped her 'oh poor little me' act, speaking plainly. "You might find this strange - because it is - but I've only ever had a fishing lesson before." Talonstone taught her to swim and catch the slippery fiends. Wildfire, Stormgorse, and three separate battles taught her combat; Dawnstar only had the time to test Sparkpaw's stealth before...well, before the rest. So! Technically, while Spark had seen others hunt and copied them as well as she could, the apprentice had never experienced a real (non-river) hunting lesson.

Cinderblaze padded away before Sparkpaw could reply to the rest, so she bounded after the tom and soon they were level, matching each other stride for stride. Familiarity flooded her senses in the forms of sights, sounds, smells, and she drank them all in. Savored them. A gleam of determination in her eyes caught the sunlight, sharpening the blue.

"If you're curious, you'll have to ask Dawnstar." Nonchalance. "But what I can say is I'm a quick learner, and I always do my best. Nothing less is worth my time," Sparkpaw mewed with genuine confidence, in case he was having second thoughts about taking her along. She was no starry-eyed apprentice afraid of her own shadow -- Cinder needn't worry about that. "I'm certain an accomplished warrior such as yourself could make me into a fine hunter."

Spark grinned her vixen grin. "As you said...it's been moons. Not only do I want to make myself useful, but I want to be indispensable ." It didn't matter how hard she had to work to secure her place. Spark would do whatever it took; self-preservation was a powerful thing.