[nocturnal]

 

Originally Posted by Fuzzy

@bmkmb

Kestrelflame's ears twitched as Lionpaw talked. Was he saying he had nothing to learn in life? As much as she hated the idea, she was fairly sure lied taught cats’ things until they died. However, that was not the point. He was pointing out that he had gone though more than she had. That he was born a loner and run from his home, even if he did join the Clan that ran him off originally. His point was that he had a harder life than her so she could not teach him a life lesson. Or that was what she gathered. “At this point, it does not mater no.” She agreed with his statement about who had originally owned Victory woods.

As the tom went on Kestrelflame just sat there. It was true that cats assumed apprentices knew less, that was because it was the rank for learning, once you were done you were supposed to move up in rank. Not be an apprentice and fully trained. That was why she was puzzled why the tom was still an apprentice.
When the subject was turned to kits and queens Kestrelflame raised her brow. What did she know about queens and kits? Kits looked like a pawful but she did not know how much they really were. Only kit she had even interacted with was the Fizzlekit that had come up to her and asked her questions a bit ago. “I would not know, you spend time with them, are they hard to watch?” She asked him. “It would appear they are hard to watch with them getting out of camp. That, or the warriors are just not doing our jobs in protecting the kits.” Kestrelflame would add. She was not sure, personally the calico had never caught any kits outside of camp, but maybe that was because she didn’t hang out close to camp when she was out and about.
When she was out, she liked to go deeper into the forest and get some more quiet territory to work in. Out there it was easier to carry out a planned hunt or solo battle practice with herself and whatever she decided her target was. At times thin air, other times she would use a shrub. It sounded pathetic when there was a whole Clan of cats, she could spar with but really it was her swap off form training in the Dark forest. A way to train without Clanmates and without the whole being evil thing that came with the Dark forest.

Upon hearing Lionpaw’s “hey” Kestrelflame drug herself from her thoughts and focused on him again. Wait, seriously? How could his formal mentor fail multiple times to tour the territory? “You have not had a proper tour? That is an important part in training. To know every detail, you can about your territory so you can protect it properly.” The calico pointed out. Maybe he had been on enough patrols, but had he really been in every single area of the territory? Been told about it and shown the things every warrior should know? That, Kestrelflame was not sure about, however part of her was excited that she could use that according to plan. Or try to.
“Well,” She started. “We could go on a tour of the Clans territory, or we could go over to Buckstar and ask him why you are not a warrior.” Kestrelflame suggested. Either way she was probably going to go to Buckstar at one point or another and ask for herself but why not offer to go now and get it over with. “That or we just do formal training, you know teach you the way ThunderClan does things instead of loners and rouges.” The calico would add tossing her paw. She did not know at this point.

[So sorry this took me forever...]

His ears twitched as Kestrelflame's remark pulled him out of his thoughts again. This conversation was making him think, and he wasn't entirely sure how to feel about that. Usually, Lionpaw simply spoke, leaving the pathway from his mind to his maw unfiltered, but with Kestrelflame, he had to double check what he wanted to say—partially because he didn't want to offend her too badly, and partially because she asked some seriously thought provoking questions.

"No," the abyssinian responded, "kittens aren't hard to watch at all. They're eager to prove their worth, though, and some warriors I've met are completely useless!" His expression morphed into a scowl as he recalled, "A few moons back, two kits left camp. It wasn't because they slipped past the warriors. They walked straight into one! And guess what he said: 'just come back alive.'" It was outrageous! A warrior letting kits into the territory and telling them to come back alive. He should've at least accompanied them or something!

Now, one could point at Lionpaw's occasional escapades and say the same thing, but that was different. He only left camp for a good reason. Chasing after upset apprentices or reigning in overenthusiastic kittens, for example. Besides! Lionpaw could defend himself. To ban him from freedom regardless of rank was like saying that warriors couldn't leave camp alone during the most peaceful newleaf to date! And if he hadn't left camp, the younger felines he went after might've died… and he'd witnessed two deaths too many.

"Eh… I'd rather not ask him," Lionpaw replied. "He has his reasons, and I'll figure it out eventually." Other than the constraints placed upon them, being an apprentice wasn't too bad.

His glare hardened upon hearing 'the way ThunderClan does things.' "I know how to be more ThunderClan than some of your lesser warriors," the tomcat retorted. "Do you know the first move I ever learned? It wasn't the Forepaw Slash or whatever you call it. I put my paw out and went straight to the Lightning Strike." Lionpaw continued somewhat bitterly, "I didn't know it was called that until I met a thundercat in the woods. He wanted to kill me, but I convinced him otherwise. That cat taught me everything I needed to know about clan life before I even stepped paw into your camp. He's the reason I joined. And in the end, I made a better thundercat than him."

Just in case the information would get someone in trouble, Lionpaw added truthfully, "You won't find him. He's not here anymore." Then, the apprentice grinned again, the cheerful mask back on that always fooled everyone… because he was actually genuinely happy; there was nothing false about it. "So, tour of the territory," the abyssinian prompted. "I've been to Herondive Hollow, Smallpines, the Training Cave, Firefly Grove, the Weeping Tree, Sunkissed Creek; and out of traditional clan territory, Cattail Pond during the last fire, Victory-Rogueland Woods, the majority of the Outskirts, and some of the Twolegplace—I don't ever want to go there again."

He took a breath, then listed, "So! I need to check out the Thunderglade and Muskrat Mire." Lionpaw glanced at Kestrelflame strangely. "Wait… is that seriously it? I'm not missing anything?" Without waiting for her response, the apprentice mused, "Wow, ThunderClan is tiny."