He remained in the lead until they made it to the pond. Every once in a while he shot a glance back to the warrior, and noted how the wind was getting to her. No doubt the reason he was in front. Lucky for the apprentice they had a pretty solid coat of thick fur, even if his was pretty short as well.
The only time he did let up with his fast powerwalk was when he saw water and ice up ahead. It wasn't really a conscious decision, it was his body telling him he should've switched up when he had the chance. Like usual when it came to anything involving water, he ran through his options on how he could avoid it altogether. But ditching a patrol would be a coward's move, and he wasn't his parents (he made damn sure of that).
As Grassheart moved towards the water, he followed in suite. As he picked his spot he took into account what Reedwhisker taught him, and made sure his shadow didn't fall over the water. His eyes gazed down into the water, looking for anything that resembled a fish. He was going to be completely sure there was prey in there before he dared to touch the water. Then something else caught his eye, blue eyes glanced over at Grassheart, who seemed to have half of her body emerged in the pond. There was something he would never do, it didn't matter if there was the biggest fish ever in there. He would sooner let someone drown than get that wet, especially on a windy day like this. More confusing still was when she surfaced with nothing more than cattail to show for her efforts. His mouth opened to ask if she was okay, like mentally, when a glimmer below the water surface stole his attention.
In a much cleaner display of talent than one might expect from someone who hated fishing with his whole being, they hooked the fish with their claws and brought it out of the water. He looked over it after it was dispatched, and a strange sense of pride washed over him. This was his first fish he caught on his own, and sure it wasn't the biggest thing, but it was only slightly smaller than average. It would definitely serve as a meal, for some sucker that wasn't him, because at that moment he suddenly remembered how much he hated such things, and looked away in embarrassment.
#39
__________________
“Whatever you are physically, male or female, strong or weak, ill or healthy--
all those things matter less than what your heart contains. If you have the soul of a warrior, you are a warrior. All those other things, they are the glass that contains the lamp, but you are the light inside.” -Jem Carstairs
haretuft ﹕ he / him
Skinny, unkempt, brown tomcat.
cw: vomiting! open to anyone.
paw prints in the snow trailed behind Haretuft as he walked - stumbled - through the white landscape
He came to a staggered halt at the ponds frozen edge, long ears deafened by the sound of his own racing beartbeat
the pain in his stomach was intense. blinding heat through his abdomen, tummy twisting into impossible knots. The cold, snowy environment began to spin before--
Haretufts breakfast was bought back up and laid in the show before him. His breathting was laboured, maw open as he took in quick, shallow breathes of chilly air.
The intensity of the cramping yielded once the warrior had puked but being the type of tom who rarely ate, he was left to run on fumes.
Haretuft collapsed into the snow, welcoming the chill that dampened his heated core, and laid limply for a moment. At least the sky had stopped spinning... his ear gave a final twitch as he took a chance to gain his stability.
Wavecrash | he/him
The relatively young warrior had always been fond of Cattail pond. It was where he first learned to swim, and Stars knew he made that his only personality trait later on... kidding. Kind of. He just really, really like swimming. So, even though the surface of the pond would be entirely frozen over or simply cold enough to freeze him into a catsicle with a single touch, his paws still carried him there. The crunch of snow beneath his paws was music to his ears - until he heard retching from just up ahead.
Now the only thing on his mind was worry. Was that a cat? Something else? Well, maybe it was reckless of him, but he was going to find out.
And, jeez! This was really not good. Haretuft was out in the snow with an unsightly mess in the general vicinity. It really didn't take much to put two and two together. "Woah there! Dude, are you okay?" he called out, dashing over to the skinny tom.
Grassheart
short-furred white she-cat with icy blue eyes and poor vision
"StarClan..." Grassheart grumbled and shook out her fur, sending flying water everywhere. The she-cat took a moment to groom her fur to try and keep herself warm. She didn't know why she thought it was a good idea to send herself diving into the water in ice cold temperatures. Even if she had caught a whole trout, getting sick in leaf-bare wouldn't be worth it.
Once Grassheart was merely damp but not soaking, she glanced up at Larkpaw to see what he had caught.
"Nice catch! Far better than mine." Grassheart chuckled, adverting her gaze to the pool of water again. She saw movements closer to the surface of the water. She tried focusing her eyes on the potential prey but she couldn't tell what it was.
Grassheart decided to trust her instincts and hook the item out of the freezing cold water. When she glanced down at her paws, she purred with happiness. Sitting at her paws was a perch, not another cattail.
With her pride restored, Grassheart rose to her paws and took her catch in her jaws. "I think this is a good bounty that we've got! Other warriors would dream of catching anything during leaf-bare but look at what we got!" A purr rumbled in her chest as she flicked her tail at Larkpaw, gesturing for him to pick up his prey and begin the walk back to camp.
He watched as Grassheart tried again to catch something, this time with much better success. Her words lent a simple nod from the boy, sparking confusion on how she could be so- okay after being soaked like that. He only got one paw wet and he was chilled. He picked up his fish, following after the warrior.
#40
__________________
“Whatever you are physically, male or female, strong or weak, ill or healthy--
all those things matter less than what your heart contains. If you have the soul of a warrior, you are a warrior. All those other things, they are the glass that contains the lamp, but you are the light inside.” -Jem Carstairs
It had been nice recently, warmer days with skies that were, more often than not, free of clouds. Fine days that Cloverdust approached with bright eyes and a keen interest in experiencing.
Today wasn't so nice. It was cold, as most days in leafbare were, and it was snowy, as most days in leafbare were. Cloverdust didn't care for the cold, sure, but it didn't bother her too much, and she liked the snow—so why was everything feeling so wrong today?
As she trudged through the ever-piling snow without a destination in mind, she thought back to what had happened in the clearing just a few days ago. Blizzardwind had—she'd seen—her former mentor had been lying in the middle of the camp. Dead, she forced herself to think the word. Dimly, she thought back to her days as an apprentice. They weren't the most pleasant, but Blizzardwind was a good mentor, even to her awkward self. It didn't feel right to imagine a world without his presence in some capacity. Her stomach twisted with a feeling she couldn't quite place.
Oh. She'd happened upon Cattail Pond. Cloverdust glanced at the decayed stalks of cattails surrounding the frozen water, a mite of disappointment flickering in her upon noticing that they had yet to spring up for newleaf. But then her gaze wandered, and those thoughts vanished.
She'd never given much thought about death, believing it to be something far away from her, but when she was faced with her former mentor's corpse in the clearing... it felt like everything within her had come to a standstill. He was up in StarClan now. Cloverdust thought back to that conversation she'd had with Nightspark. StarClan was all-powerful, all-knowing, able to protect the Clans and the cats within it—so Blizzardwind would be fine up there, right?
Even with that reassurance, she couldn't shake these muddled feelings that seemed to have a hold over her. She didn't think she was sad. No, that didn't feel like the right word. She couldn't place the emotions swirling through her—all she knew was that she felt off. Cloverdust sat down at the edge of the pond, shivering as the ground sucked all the warmth from her. Snow drifted lazily from the sky, decorating the pond and all the land around it with white.
That deep chill that settled in her bones, numbing her paws and sending tremors up her spine, was a welcome distraction to her confusing thoughts. She settled deeper into the snow, tucking her paws beneath her. She stared down at the edge of the pond and watched the sun's rays on the ice shift as it crested ever-so-slowly across the sky. Perhaps she'd meld with the freezing ground and be freed from the way she was feeling right now.
[ open! ]
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lio was here ♥
Last edited by ameko; March 4th, 2023 at 04:42 PM.
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Re: Cattail Pond
Gingerpaw
She/her
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Gingerpaw sat lazily at the edge of the pond, her head resting on her paws. She watched the wind blow small ripples on the water and observed a hawk flying overhead. Must be nice to fly. Trout. You know, I could really go for some trout. Those queens don't deserve to eat when I don't get to, she thought selfishly, trying to ignore the dull ache of hunger which was eating away in the bottom of her stomach. Instead, she focused on the warmth of the sun, letting the beams of light hit her fur in a comforting manner. Those... queens. I bet if you opened up their heads, all you would see were a bunch of bees buzzing around.
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Gingerpaw
She/her
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Gingerpaw sat lazily at the edge of the pond, her head resting on her paws. She watched the wind blow small ripples on the water and observed a hawk flying overhead. Must be nice to fly. Trout. You know, I could really go for some trout. Those queens don't deserve to eat when I don't get to, she thought selfishly, trying to ignore the dull ache of hunger which was eating away in the bottom of her stomach. Instead, she focused on the warmth of the sun, letting the beams of light hit her fur in a comforting manner. Those... queens. I bet if you opened up their heads, all you would see were a bunch of bees buzzing around.
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Icepaw had been wandering around, she knew shouldnt be out but she couldnt help herself. She noticed Gingerpaw and padded up to her. "Hi! Im Icepaw, what are you doing out here?" She asked with a small grin, placing her fluffy build next to Gingerpaw. "I wont tell if you wont." She said with a smile
Too absorbed in memorizing all the little cracks on the shimmering ice, Cloverdust didn't realize someone else had arrived until she heard a voice nearby. Her ears flicked in acknowledgement, but she didn't move from her chilly spot in the snow and grass. "How am I..." she sighed. "That's yet to be seen. Perhaps I'll know later."
At what Smokethroat said next, she hummed absentmindedly. Cloverdust tucked her paws under her chin, staring out at the pond. "I'm finding it hard to see the beauty right now," she murmured. Any other day, she'd be leaping at the opportunity to proclaim the wonder of the water and the frozen world around it, but today she just couldn't scrounge up the energy.
Light flakes of snow gathered on her face, around her eyes and on the tip of her nose. Cloverdust paid it little mind as she tilted her head to look up at her clanmate. "I take it you're faring better than me?"
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Re: Cattail Pond
Gingerpaw
She/her
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Gingerpaw looked up at the apprentice, squinting at the figure outlined by the sun. Icepaw. Gingerpaw had never personally talked to the she-cat, but she'd seen her around. She smiled at Icepaw and replied, "Of course, I can keep a secret. The warriors would flip if they knew we were out here without supervision!" Gingerpaw let out a cheerful laugh. "I came to the pond because it's always so quiet and peaceful here... a place to get away from your usual Clan duties, you know? And sunset is coming. The place looks so pretty 'round that time!" she said brightly. But I mostly come out here to train, Gingerpaw added privately. She needed to stay ahead of the other apprentices. Many times had she come to this location at daybreak and only returned to camp soon before the sun went down. The pond was usually pretty deserted. She could master her swimming, battle technique, hunting forms, speed, agility, and whatever else needed to be done here. With no distractions. And no speculation. No copycats.
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Gingerpaw
She/her
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Gingerpaw looked up at the apprentice, squinting at the figure outlined by the sun. Icepaw. Gingerpaw had never personally talked to the she-cat, but she'd seen her around. She smiled at Icepaw and replied, "Of course, I can keep a secret. The warriors would flip if they knew we were out here without supervision!" Gingerpaw let out a cheerful laugh. "I came to the pond because it's always so quiet and peaceful here... a place to get away from your usual Clan duties, you know? And sunset is coming. The place looks so pretty 'round that time!" she said brightly. But I mostly come out here to train, Gingerpaw added privately. She needed to stay ahead of the other apprentices. Many times had she come to this location at daybreak and only returned to camp soon before the sun went down. The pond was usually pretty deserted. She could master her swimming, battle technique, hunting forms, speed, agility, and whatever else needed to be done here. With no distractions. And no speculation. No copycats.
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Re: Cattail Pond
Re: Cattail Pond
