WindClan: Life Before 2023's Fire

[lone]

Originally Posted by Lilly

The tip of Heathertail's tail switched back and forth as she listened to the deputy, curiously studying him as he spoke. Something seemed to be brewing beneath the surface of the cool Deputy exterior he put on. It had to be a show, having a generalized interest in WindClan, and not looking too close at anyone. The light brown molly was curious, but didn't spend too much of her time on the fact. A small sigh escaped her lips, and she stepped forward, briefly touching her shoulder against Shrikecall's. "Well, let's just be glad no one got hurt, and that we were both here," she murmured, giving him a soft, sweet smile before stepping away. Her eyes shown with relief as she stared at the tom, letting them rest on him a moment longer before looking down the rest of the border's length.

"It would be smart to stick together from now on. In case there's a family around," the WindClan warrior stated, parting her jaws to taste the air around her. The badger smell was beginning to grow faint, and she couldn't detect any other scent on the wind, which indicated to the possibility that there had only been one badger. A relief to her, but she still wondered if they should report the sighting to ThunderClan. After all, she had seen it on their territory. But if it was only it's way to die, then there wouldn't be much point in that. She shrugged it out of her head and looked back over at her deputy, watching him. Something about seeing him now, made the she-cat blink, focusing in a bit more. The way he held himself, how he'd gotten concerned over her. It made her feel... special, I guess she thought with a small smile, becoming lost in her own thoughts as she continued to look at him.

The brown and white tom watched the she cat's movements, almost mesmerized by them as she stepped away from him, her pelt briefly coming into contact with his-- which made him both uncomfortable and pleased-- before she spoke. "Alright." He mewed, shaking off the hypnotic state that he was in and clearing his throat, glancing down the border. The badger was nowhere in sight now, which was good...he was thankful for that. It wouldn't live for much longer, and hopefully no one would be hurt by it if it ran into another cat. He was thankful Heathertail hadn't been hurt-- and glad he had been there, like she had said before, no one had been hurt and they had both been there. Hopefully everything would continue to go alright. The tom looked back at the she cat as she spoke, a thoughtful expression coming over his features for a moment.

"Sounds good to me. Then we can head back-- it probably won't be too much longer." He mewed, glancing around to see if there were any other cats watching. His protectiveness over the she cat, though he didn't really give it another thought, had been embarrassing-- and right now, he was thinking about it quite a bit. She was a fully grown warrior, not much younger then him...and he was quite a few moons into his senior ones. So why had he felt the need to protect her? He couldn't recall an urge like that before. Then again, he'd never really had the need to be urged to protect before. To protect and to defend; those were the strongest forces in his life at the moment. He glanced over at the she cat again, motioning for her to follow, but keeping his pace slow enough so that she could walk beside him if she wished. He had liked the earlier contact...it had been a nice way, in his opinion, to show him if she cared.

[lone]

@fenic!

The brown and white Deputy padded into the clearing, his sharp hues scanning it for a moment before he relaxed. It seemed no matter what he did, he was constantly on the lookout for a hostile face...and knew exactly what he would do if he spotted one. Shrikecall was rarely indecisive, especially when it came to figuring out what to do with a stranger. Though the strangers who had recently come into Camp were still on his mind. He was annoyed that they were here, when they were a threat...annoyed that that warrior was dealing with them...but at least they weren't in his line of sight at the moment. He would get rid of them later. Briefly he unsheathed his claws, digging them into the dirt at the thought of the so-called 'former Deputy--' he'd never heard of her! So what was she doing here? What did she want...to see Dapplestar? Because he had already told them that Dapplestar was gone. And yet they were still here, prevailing in whatever quest they might be trying to accomplish. The tom's tail twitched back and forth as he settled in a more remote part of the clearing where he could be on his own for a moment, undisturbed...unless, of course, Heathertail wanted to come over. Or someone else from his past moons, that he didn't mind quite as much. Shrikecall yawned, feeling quite tired...it seemed to have come on all of a sudden, but perhaps it had really been there for a while. He wasn't quite sure, having not been paying attention to the needs of himself for a short time...he didn't feel like they were important at the moment. And besides that, he felt fine, so why do something that wasn't going to help anyways?

[Ludicrous Lunacy]

Originally Posted by Chameleon eats a doughnut

Yewpaw spat being knocked over and used his sheathed claws to show Rabbitpaw into the snow," Fleabag, ever heard of not treating me like a kit?" he unsheathed his claws and let them glisten in the sunlight for a minute," HOW DARE YOU ATTACK ME!" he spat grinning showing his white teeth," Hmm... Did you know I find joy in fighting and murdering rouges?" It was a partial lie, but he did like attacking rouges and loners, not murdering them. I will save you from suffering any longer, any last words?" he spit onto the ground (Can he scratch her up a little?)

Spitting, Rabbit wriggled to her paws. "It's highly improbable that you will do anything worse than take one or two hairs of my pelt," she hissed, golden eyes narrow and glinting dangerously. "Would you like for me to go chat with Blazingstar to sort you out?" Her gaze was both cold as the snow she stood on and hot as a greenleaf day. "I will not, much as I'd like to, shred you into scraps today, but I would sincerly prefer you not make up little lies to scare me." Suddenly, a devious and satisfying idea popped into the young she-cat's head, and she pretended to slip. Then, the smudged Calico scooped some snow slowly into her paw and suddenly slammed it into the apprentice's face sloppily, nearly slipping.
Hopping nimbly back, she raised her chin and looked defiantly down her nose at the cat. "What were you saying, again?"

[lone]

Originally Posted by SpiralTheRival

Why is she so sad? Sometimes Rainpaw hated noticing things so easily, especially when it was so easy because he knew Heartpaw, and she was sad, scared, and possibly confused. Please don't hate me! Please don't be so scared of me! I never wanted this to happen! It was killing the young apprentice to see the one cat he cared most about to be terrified of him. He truly felt like a monster. He wanted to regret what he had done to Ferretpaw but that was him, he was a jealous, stubborn, angry cat but he wanted to change. If I can remain friends with her, I will change. His breath was shaky as she allowed him to talk and he was extremely worried that she would just blatantly not forgive him and leave forever. He knew Heartpaw was strong on the inside and she could make life changing decisions.


Rainpaw thought for a moment, carefully picking out words before he murmured them, "I'm so sorry." He couldn't resist a scowl as his voice cracked but he took a deep breath so he could sound stronger. "I want-no, I need your help... I was raised by queen's who didn't want me, bullied by 'litter mates', and abandoned by my father." Normally he would've included his mother but ever since Obsidiansky had told him the truth he knew that Ashstorm was trying to protect him, not leave him. But she did by crossing the line and breaking the warrior code by attacking her own clanmate. "I was raised to naturally hate everyone, but ever since I met you..." Rainpaw had his gaze lowered to his shuffling paws before he slowly looked up at her with glistening yellow hues. "I want to get better, but I can't do that alone." He had to stop speaking to avoid his voice from cracking or shaking but he hoped that she understood what he was asking. Please help me. He hated feeling so weak and helpless like he was a kit again but there was no other choice. Losing Heartpaw would be his rock bottom and it would be the birth of a meaner and more cynical apprentice.

What does he want with me now? The thought was bitter, but Heartpaw couldn't keep it from coming. She was confused. The tom had pushed her away-- or had she pushed him away? That was the confusing part that she didn't quite understand. The tip of her tail began to twitch, and she watched the tom. Was he going to apologize to her for what he had done to the smaller apprentice? If that's the case, I'm certainly not going to give him another thought. Why would he do that? She thought, turning her head away from him. She didn't feel like looking at him right now. She knew it was low, and right now she felt horrible, but she was angry with her friend.
Yes, angry. He had done something wrong and he had been too proud to admit it at the moment, not to mention he acted like such a jerk sometimes. Heartpaw swallowed, suddenly feeling very small along with her frustration and anger. Why did she feel so small? She didn't know, but one thing that was very clear. If he wasn't going to make things right with the cat he had wronged, she would do it for him. And then she would break things off. She couldn't be friends with someone who was going to go around doing as he pleased, being so rude to other cats."Rainpaw, don't apologize to--" She began sternly, and then stopped as he continued to speak.
So this wasn't about Ferretpaw at all. This was about their friendship, friendship that he was trying to fix now. At least he was coming to her and admitting that he had been wrong. And needed help. Compassion flooded her blue hues and she lowered her head. So she had been wrong too. "I'm sorry too. I know-- I know what you did was wrong, but I shouldn't have embarrassed you like that by speaking out in front of everyone. I should have waited. And I want to help you, Rainpaw...I really do. But I can't always be there to save you from something like this. This is a battle you've got to fight on your own...but I can try to prepare you for it. Okay? You need to go find Ferretpaw and apologize. You hurt her feelings, and you scared her. There was no need for either-- she didn't expect to be Blazingstar's apprentice, so why would you take it out on her?" Heartpaw's voice was soft, but commanding.
She wasn't trying to be a "mother" towards her friend, but she wanted him to understand that he had hurt the little cat so badly. Doesn't he know saying things like that is wrong? She thought, though realizing his background now, she understood that perhaps he had never been taught any better. Perhaps she was the first ray of light that had entered his dark world, his dark past. And now...she was trying to break open the walls and let lots of light in. Though sometimes a ray was all you needed, and perhaps that would end up being the case with her friend.

[NightWarrior4Life]

Originally Posted by >Pepsi<

(Its ok)
Flamestorm nodded, she let her soft feet take her ton the entrance. "Is it ok if you do the thunderpath when your a bit older?" She mumbled. Her ears pricked at she trotted out of camp.
(We should move into the territory now)

Shinepaw's ears twitched curiously and tilted her head inquiringly. "Why? But you can do what you like, you're my mentor!" She smiled reassuringly, exchanging a comforting nuzzle with Flamestorm.

[Starfall]

Originally Posted by wolybro

The moment his mentor has rested his head on his everything was let go. He buried his head in his mentors chest fur as if he wanted to hid like a shy kit snugged into his mothers belly. He let out quiet sobs,gritting his teeth. He hated to cry,he hated to show emotion that made him look weak,he hated being like this. "I miss him so much Sleepingcloud I-" his voice cracked and quivered with emotions as thin tears slide down his fluffed cheeks. His ears were flat against his head. He felt small,weak,venerable like this but he couldn't help it. He had never properly morning,seeing as his lover died and then a day later he was training with a new mentor. It was overwhelming and he hadn't had a chance to cry, "I never got to tell him I loved him I-I..I could've saved him. I wasn't there." his voice was quiet as he moved his gaze to the ground. "Seeing him dead was the worst thing I've seen in my life,I wish it would've been me." his words were true. He would give anything to see his friend alive,he would give anything to watch Redpaw live out his life happily and growing up and catching rabbits like he always wanted instead of doing it from the stars. He wished he would have told him he loved him,he felt empty seeing as he didn't have much family. Redpaw was all he really had,as he usually shut people out with his rather quiet attitude. Both of them were so young that he didn't know how to handle his emotions,he felt alone and empty. He didn't know what to do with himself anymore. He had lost his purpose it seemed like,he didn't have a lot of family so there was really nothing to live for besides getting a warrior name. When his mentor pulled away he pulled away too,he looked away embarrassed. "I'm sorry,I probably got your chest fur wet." he gave a few sniffles in his speech. His yellow eyes still were fixed on the ground,his ears still pinned to his head. "And I'm sorry you had to go through that,I really am."

{I sowy it's so late ;v; }

The warrior simply listened to his apprentice cry his heart out, he didn't say any soothing words, he didn't try and sweetly lie to the Tom, tell him that everything was going to be okay, that his life would go back to normal. No. He simply stood there and let his apprentice weep, he let him let all of his emotions out, cry to his hearts content. He understood what Mudpaw was going trough, he could Empathize with him, and that's what made his heart ache, his soul quiver. An apprentice shouldn't go through such things, he shouldn't be feeling such raw emotions this soon. Most would argue that love was the best thing Starclan enabled them to do, he believed that, but at the same time, he also knew it was a curse. One was both warm as well as cold, and he didn't like the fact that his apprentice has already experienced the cold part of the warm emotion. The Tom wrapped his tail around the other and pulled him closer, trying his hardest to comfort the Tom, at this point the both of them were weeping. "Mudpaw, I am truly sorry, but I will say this. I am happy you're alive now, I'm glad that you're here with me, and I bet redpaw is too, I bet he's thinking the same thing. I bet he's happy that you've lived, that you're still breathing." he said, his voice wavered he didn't know what it was like to see your loves limp body, bleeding, lifeless, just a few mouse lengths away from you, and in all honesty he didn't want to imagine his beloved dead. He tightly shut his eyes and pulled the apprentice as close as possible, and hugged him as tightly as possible without hurting him, he wanted to believe that he could just squeeze the negative emotions out of his apprentice.

When Mudpaw pulled back Sleepingcloud was still teary, a few streaks fell down his cheeks, his sky blue hues were glossy and filled with joy and amusement, he needed that, they both needed that. Upon the apprentices apology he laughed loudly, his booming laughter echoed within the training moor, he didn't care for the way he looked, he cared for the way he felt, for the way others felt "That's quite alright I don't mind none." he purred, he had already grown attached the the younger Tom, almost as though he believed he was his son, his and Juniperlights son, and he liked that idea, he liked that idea a lot. He looked down at his chest fur and chuckled "Believe you me, I've gotten much, much worse sticking to my fur." he laughed, his whiskers quivered as he thought of an idea "And besides, we could always go and romp in the stream later on." he stated as he suppressed a shiver, it was almost the end of Leaf-bare, which meant that the streams were thawing, but they were sill freezing cold, and he didn't really like that idea whatsoever. He saw his apprentice look down at his paws and he heard him apologize, he blinked and looked at the younger Tom for a few moments before picking himself up, padding over there, and licking the mottled brown toms forehead "Bah, it's alright, we're not worrying about my problems at the moment, we're trying to solve yours." he purred. He then backed up and grinned "Like your fighting problem, let me show you some solutions. Attack me with all you've got" he stated, yeah he knew that they just got over bawling their eyes out, but he cared for Mudpaws future, he wanted to make sure Redpaw didn't give up his life in vain. He was pretty positive that his apprentices love didn't want to see him again in the stars, that's not what mates wish for. No, he'd make sure Mudpaw survives any future battles, but that may also be because of his own selfish reasons.

[yummyluc]

Originally Posted by starfall

{Sorry for late response ;v;}
The orange warrior looked up and looked at the Tom through her eyelashes, her eyes were half idled and her amber eyes shone with annoyance. She didn't want to snap at the Tom, but at the same time, she wanted to cuff the new companion and nag him "No really? I haven't noticed." she stated, her tail tip twitched and she stood up straight once more. She winced slightly and closed her eyes, her brother and apparently the new medicine cat were right, she had gotten a bad cough and needed it checked quickly, and she wasn't excited about being wrong. The flame coloured molly let out a sigh and focused her attention on Honeydust once more, curiosity and annoyance danced in her honey hues "I don't believe I know your name, and that wouldn't do since you're apparently the next medicine cat. My names Emberdust, nice to meet you." she hummed, and she did mean it, in a sense, she always found it nice to meet new cats, she loved picking the brains of new cats, she loved seeing the way others brains worked, how their thought process worked, it intrigued her.

Emberdust looked in the direction of the leader's den and smiled slyly, her plan had been working, she was giving her brother a love life, and she felt proud of herself. He needed something like that in his life, he seemed to be too stressed, and she wanted to help him out slightly. The orange tabby let out a sigh and looked back the Tom, exhaustion waved over her and she finally felt both the sickness and the workout she got earlier kick in "He worries me most of the time, but I finally managed to find him a potential mate. I just hope it works." she sighed, she slumped her shoulders and slowly sank down to the ground, another awful cough ruptured through her body, she felt as though she was hacking up all of the food she ever ate in her whole life, it hurt her, and she hated it, but she had more important things to do at the moment, she couldn't worry about herself at the moment. She looked back up at the Tom through her lashes, her warm glowing honey hues shone with curiosity, usually, most cats in the clan avoided her, he may be new? She had no clue, but she knew one thing, he would regret talking with her later, nobody ever enjoyed having a conversation with her, they all said she was a know it all, and that made her blood boil, so she usually tried her hardest to avoid others, up until this Tom.

[[it's chill, we're both late repliers then -v-]]

Honeydust swallowed, not used to the sudden hostility this molly brought, it was only something he wasn't quite used to. He winced a bit at the snap but didn't take it personally. This cat was sick, anyone could see that she must have heard the same suggestion a thousand times, though that didn't stop Honeydust from wanting to help her. Instad of snapping back and storming off, which he'd seen some cats do, Honeydust smiled sweetly and gave a soft chuckle of a laugh, seemingly unfazed by Emberdust's attitude.

"Oh StarClan, no, I could never be a medicine cat, too short of a memory, and I'd be so clumsy on my paws, I'd probably make my patient worse," The tom joked in hopes of brightening her mood, purring warmly to show he wasn't showing attitude or trying to be sarcastic.

"Honeydust, lovely to meet you, dear." Honeydust followed her eyes, then understood. She was a good sister, and she was hoping to help her brother with a potential mate. She had a good heart, but not too much of it showed on the outside. Honeydust could understand that, he'd seen it in many of the cats he'd met before and after he'd joined the clan.

He sighed, "You poor thing, I wouldn't worry too much about it, I'm sure it will work out, Blazingstar is pretty admirable from what I hear about him, no?" His eyes met her's, and he could feel his heart either stop or thrum harder, either way, he had to catch his breath. Why was she looking at him like that?

[Zero]

Originally Posted by mony

Leopardpaw laughed as Surgestorm seemed to grumble as he was told to clean. She then turned to Moonpaw and nuzzled her. "All right, Moon. Let's see if I learned all this right." she purred. "So, we have catmint, poppyseeds, aloe, comfrey, daisy leaves and dandelion leaves." she recounted the few herbs that she could, but the rest where just jumbled. She separated all that she could and then looked at the big pile. "Geez, I barely made a dent! How in StarClan's name did you get all of this in leaf-bare?" Leopardpaw asked, turning to the Medicine Cat. Her eyes beamed in interest as she awaited a response.

Originally Posted by Lilly

Moonpaw smiled as she watched her uncle sweep the den with rhythmic stroke of his fluffy tail, giggling a bit as the dust began to pile up in his fur. She felt a swell of pride in her chest as she puffed it out just a bit; that was her uncle, her blood, her kin. Her family's legacy would live on even after Surgestorm was gone because of the amazing skill he had of being a medicine cat. A cat who had started on the path to becoming a warrior, but had chosen to stay true to his promise of helping serve his Clan in a different way. She knew that her uncle was aware of how much she cared for him, but it was moments like these, where she was able to watch him work silently, that she felt honored to be related to him.

Snapping her attention back to the present, Moonpaw looked over at Leopardpaw, then down at the herbs that sat neatly at their feet. She listened carefully as the apprentice began to name off the ones that she had already separated, a smile growing on her face. "Yes!" she purred, looking at her friend with excitement dancing in her eyes. She would make a good apprentice, I'll bet she thought, deciding to keep the thought to herself for now. Noticing the big pile that Surgestorm had brought in not too long ago, and remembering that it had been a secret, Moonpaw too turned her curious blue gaze on her uncle, wondering if he was going to reveal where it was. Since she had gone out with him as a kit, and had spent countless hours at his side in the den throughout her kit years, she was intrigued to see where he had managed to find all these herbs with no trace of frost bite, especially the ones that were typically the first to go. Even though most of the snow was beginning to melt, there was still an icy chill in the air that would make plant life almost nonexistent.

Surgestorm ceased his sweeping motions, making a face at his dust covered tail. He took a moment to move to the corner of the den, sweeping the dust into a pile, and then working to get as much of it out of his tail as he could. It wasn't often that he cleaned, but the den was already a bit crisper looking without dust hanging around on the floor. He took a deep breath in and sneezed, waiting a moment for the dust to settle from the air.
Then, the tom went to the patients nest and tidied them up, taking the ruined moss and tossing it on a pile to take out later. As he did this, he quietly began to hum a tune that both apprentices would know well by now. His mother used to hum it to him as a kitten, and now he would hum it under his breath whenever he was doing any busy work in the den. Both Leopardpaw and Moonpaw would have heard it close to a hundred or more times by now, and it was always the same familiar tune. Occasionally, he'd put a twist on the song, but usually it was just plain and simple like now.
The medicine cat took a moment and listened as Leopardpaw listed the herbs, nodding his head when Moonpaw said that she was correct. However, he snapped to full attention at her question, just now remembering that he had a story to tell. "Oh yeah, that's right," The tom hurried back to their sides, a lopsided smile on his face. "You won't believe your ears, when I tell you, but you gotta be sure not to tell anyone where I found them. I could probably get in a lot of trouble." He tried his best to look serious, but it was hard to do when he could barely stand not to smile for more than a minute or two.

[dino.]

Originally Posted by NoireRose

Lakepaw perked her ears and she followed after Larkcry for the rabbit. She put her snout in the air, trying to detect any scent in the territory while sticking close to her mentor. ''Rabbits are pretty fast,'' she commented, but she knew she would be faster when they ran into one.

Larry flicked his tail for her to stop. "Be quiet," he whispered. "Watch and learn." He pointwd with his tail to a black and white patched rabbit. He crouched down, using the scarce bushes for lititle cover. He was a fox length away from the rabbit when it froze. He took off, and the creature raced away from him. He kept his eyes on it at all times, watching for where it would go, digging his claws it the earth. It turned, and he swerved, spraying dirt up behind him. He leaped and his paws landed in its back, breaking it's spine. A high pitched squeal was cut short, and he carried it back over to Lakepaw. "There," he meowed.

[lone]

@Suspiciousmindz

A lone brown and white apprentice sat in the clearing, her tail wrapped about her paws-- and it was obvious she was excited. Happy. There was a certain bright spark in her blue hues, not to mention her posture, both revealing how pleased she was for the upcoming promise of a new day. Her mentor was nice. Rainpaw had apologized-- well, to her, which she would take for the moment being. There was nothing that could bring this young cat down now...especially since her mind was already racing in anticipation of things to do for the day. She hadn't seen Rookpatch yet that morning, though granted, she supposed he was...well...somewhat busy. She could deal with it. The tip of her tail began to twitch back and forth rapidly as Heartpaw glanced out across the Clearing, hoping to spot a friendly face...or even a more sad one that she could cheer up. New friends were one thing that she had really been looking fowards to, but lately it has been just her and Rainpaw. Technically Rookpatch was a new friend, though the brown and white apprentice was still questioning exactly how strong her relationship was with him.