[lone]

Originally Posted by BILL.

Today, Lionstorm wasn't sure what he was doing. Sure, he had patrols and Fawnpaw, but his mind was in a jumble since his last interaction with Spiderpaw. It was.. difficult for him to deal with her, and he was hoping he could steal Fallenstar to discuss his mentorship of the walking skinpatch.

He supposed he probably left camp to clear his mind for his later duties, but the nagging thought remained in the back of his mind - was he a bad mentor, or was Spiderpaw just.. awful?

Shaking his head, he attempted to focus on his surroundings. He was by the river now, and there was a cat.. who was she, Nightsky? He hardly knew her-- she didn't go on many patrols, as far as he was aware. Well, they'd need to change that sometime.

Upon closer look, he was pleased to see a predominately black pelt. He liked that-- darker pelts. They complimented his own. "What's a fine lady like yourself doing out here, all alone?" he questioned as he approached, ears twitching. "The water's been a little unpredictable lately, it'd be a shame if you joined them."

Nightsky had heard Lionstorm approaching before she'd seen him, raising herself back up as he came into her line of vision. She grinned, giving her tail a short flick - several drops of water landed on the top of her head, glistening there like jewels. "I'm taking advantage of this beautiful day," She mewed, before tilting her head to the side and taking on a more flirtatious tone.

"Besides, I'm not alone anymore, am I? I've got the pleasure of your company now, handsome." Nightsky cast an approving eye over the tom in front of her. Everyone knew who Lionstorm was now, except perhaps for a few of the more reclusive elders and the very young kits. Everyone who mattered, anyways. He was built quite well, muscle and a nice golden coat... she was lucky she was in the prime of her life right now.

"Mm, I like a little unpredictability," Nightsky added after a moment, taking a couple of steps towards the deputy. "It makes life exciting, wouldn't you say?"


***

"Hey, you can't be that bad," Amberpaw protested, wishing she could think of something else to say to make him feel better. He'd be okay, right? She didn't want Fawnpaw to get upset over his imperfect swimming skills. "We could try it together sometime, if you want," She offered, her smile returning as she glanced up at him again. "Once I... actually learn how to swim better. I'm not a model swimmer either," She laughed. The subject of her swimming skills wasn't a sensitive one - it took everyone time to learn how to swim, and even the best swimmers in RiverClan had to start somewhere. The SkyClan cats were learning too, which Amberpaw thought was nice... that way, if something happened, they wouldn't have to rely on a RiverClanner to help them.

Amberpaw straightened up out of her fighting stance, although the playful twinkle remained in her eyes. "I'm just messing with you. That's what friends do, right?" She asked, giving him another light poke in the chest, her smile softening to a gentler one. "Besides, I haven't had a lot of battle training, either. Not enough to be a good opponent," She added after a minute of silence. She'd learn how to be a better fighter one day, too. It would take time, that was all. Amberpaw didn't mind waiting - and besides, training could be pretty fun. It wasn't all easy, but it would all benefit her in the future.

"Hey, do you ever think about having an apprentice of your own someday? Like, how would you want to train them?" She thought about that occasionally, in quick flashes (usually when she was doing something Splashcloud had asked her to do for the hundredth time), and she'd never landed on a direct answer. It would depend on who she was in the future, and what her apprentice would be like, of course. Besides, there wasn't much use trying to think too hard about it. She had a ways to go before she would be a warrior, anyways. @Dipper