Mudpaw

Sitting beside Palewind, he observed as Cicadapaw approached Owlstar to request permission for both of them to venture beyond the camp. Doubt began to creep in, as he questioned whether Owlstar would truly grant them this opportunity. However, a small part of him remained hopeful.

Eagerly, he expressed his anticipation, "I'm so excited to see what lies beyond!" Yet, a sense of uncertainty suddenly enveloped him. Turning to Palewind, he inquired, "What is it like out there, palewind?" his voice filled with curiosity.

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Owlstar
He had been completely lost in his own thoughts, so it came as a bit of a surprise to suddenly hear Cicadapaw's voice behind him. He turned, looking down at the young appruntece. She would make a good warrior one day, he thought idley. Enthusiastic, loyal... Something that Owlstar could definitely appreciate. He was a little surprised to hear that they were actually asking for permission to leave the camp, but it was nice. "Of course you can accompany Palewind and Mudpaw. Make a proper patrol out of it. While you're out there, keep an eye out for Sootpaw and Hawktalon. They're probably out training, but I'd like to know if you run into them."

Owlstar glanced over at the camp entrance, noticing Palewind standing there, her ears drooping slightly. Hmmm. What was that about? The scolding he had given them yesterday? Good. Perhaps she was learning a little about clan structure. His thoughts flickered back to Thrushtail for a moment. If his deputy had only organized the patrols like every other deputy normally did since the beginning of the clans, cats wouldn't have to ask him for permission to leave camp. All he wanted to know was where his warriors were.

Almost as an afterthought, he looked back at Cicadapaw, who was readying to join the patrol. "Be back before too long. Palewind was the one who's getting the prize for the competition, and I'd like to give that out soon." Owlstar smiled down at the apprentice for a moment before turning back towards the camp. A few quick leaps had him sitting atop of his den, which the morning sun was quickly drying. It would make a good, slightly out of the way place for him to watch the clan for a little while.

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Palewind

The she cat smiled at Mudpaw.” It’s wonderful Mudpaw. It’s peaceful when you’re able to relax or have fun. But hunting and patrolling can be peaceful so long as nothing happens.” She stated her eyes watching Owlstar a feeing of irritation rising in the she cat. Mouse brained toms she thought to herself before looking over towards Mudpaw again.” Your mentor will be able to take you out a lot more for training. You’ll get to know the territory very well.” She stated towards the apprentice as she waited for Cicadapaw to join them.

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Phew. Relief filled Cicadapaw up, an additional burst of energy filling her. If she was a kit, she might've bounced up and down in excitement. But that would be incredibly silly, and she wanted to be mature.

So she dips her head respectfully. "Will do! Thank you Owlstar!" Grace forgotten, she bounds off, back over to Palewind and Mudpaw; tail lashing eagerly.

"He said yes!" She announces, like she didn't doubt it for a second. "And to keep an eye out for Hawktalon and Sootpaw. And to turn it into a proper patrol. And to come back soon for the prize award thing!" She was a moment away from darting out of camp like minnows from a cats paw; though held herself together. She had tons of energy to burn, and was excited to use it.

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Nettlesnap

The voices of the clan cats forced him out of his temporary daze. What now? The tom sat up unsteadily, wincing at the numb coldness of his back paw as he lifted himself up with an annoyed hiss. Palewind was going on patrol? He lowers his ears millimetres away from the back of his neck and bit back a hiss of annoyance. She hadn't said anything. His eyes narrowed at the sight of a couple of the clan's apprentices. Cicadapaw and Mudpaw. They were going out to patrol? And the leader had hesitated when he asked. Sure he had an injured paw- but that didn't make him worse then an apprentice.. did it?


Nettlesnap lets out a soft huff and briskly walked over to the fresh kill pile, the scuff of his paws muffled by leaves underfoot that crackled occasionally. His tail tip twitched irritably by his side as he padded over and snatched a morsel of a mouse from the prey pile and rushed back to the warrior's den after sparing a sharp glare in Owlstar's general direction.

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Mudpaw

Mudpaw was just about to reply to Palewind when his ears perked up at the sound of approaching paws.

Cicadapaw came bounding towards them with excitement radiating from her every step. Her fur was ruffled, and her eyes sparkled with excitement. Mudpaws curiosity piqued, and he eagerly awaited her arrival.

As Cicadapaw reached them, she barely caught her breath telling them how it went. Mudpaws eyes widened in anticipation “Great! Let's get going! “ He got to his paws, swiftly stood up, straightened himself out, ready to leave the camp. His heart pounding with excitement.

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Palewind

The she cat nodded.” Let’s go then.” She stated as she rose to her paws and began trotting out of camp. She hadn’t planned on inviting anyone to go with her but decided the apprentices needed the experience. She knew their mentors would take them out much more often than she could but she didn’t mind taking them out today.

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Cicadapaw practically skips out after the two, looking around the territory with interest. She's been out of camp, so she knows the main pathways that everyone takes. She's always kept to them though, never straying off of them unless chasing prey. The thought of getting lost was a concerning one, so she made sure to keep to the spots she knew, and stay away from the ones she didn't.

"Since Owlstar said to make it a proper patrol, are we going to be checking the borders too?" She asks Palewind, regarding the older she cat as the leader of the patrol.

She knew border patrols were all about marking your territory to ward off trespassers, though she certainly hoped that they didn't run into any outsider issues. Surely not though, since Pineclan hadn't seen any strangers since they'd settled here. Well, aside from Sootpaw she supposed; though she brushes the thought off, knowing that thinking too hard on it would just make her worry.


-


After returning to camp, Hemlockshade drops off his caught prey. The beaver catches his eye, and he suddenly remembers the lack of interest yesterday. Well, there was no time like the present.

He tears off a small chunk and chews it....only for his face to admit set into a sour expression. It was...not for him, to say the least. The flavor was too strong, meat too tough and he was never eating beaver again. Not for him, that was for sure.

With a disgusted grumbles he walks away from the fresh kill pile, not even all that hungry. He happens to look and see Owlstar.... sitting atop the leaders den? It was...an interesting perch for sure.

Hemlockshade doesn't really hesitate to pad over and join him, hopping up; making himself comfortable without words. He settles down without a care in the world next to the other. It's pretty nice actually, he could see why Owlstar picked the spot. He scans the camp from his new vantage point, feeling an odd feeling as he looked over the camp. This, not Shadowclan but something else entirely camp that was their home now.

"You seem like you've got a lot on your mind." Hemlockshade remarks, nudging him slightly. "Is it secret Starclan things?"

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Owlstar
He had been watching the clan for a while, when a slight noise beside him alerted him to the arrival of Hemlockshade, who had leaped up to join him perched on the leader's den. The other tom smelled slightly of beaver, and his muzzle was slightly flecked with prey-blood. At least somecat was taking advantage of the large kill. He continued to sit quietly, rather glad that Hemlockshade seemed fine with the continued silence. The sun had finally rose enough to begin burning off some of the still lingering mist, and generally dry out the camp a little. Most of the nests would have to be replaced, an annoying chore for later, but most everything else wasn't any worse for ware.

After a little while, Owlstar paused in his daydreaming when Hemlockshade nudged him, asking a question. "Honestly, I do have plenty of things to think about. Plenty of it's just idle thoughts, but there are a couple important things." Owlstar smiled slightly, before considering the second part of Hemlockshade's question. "No, I'm afraid not. That would be more of a problem for Gentlbreeze, but there hasn't been much, if any word from starclan since we got here." As soon as the words left his mouth, Owlstar wished he could try and claw them back. How would Hemlockshade react to this? Owlstar was almost certain the question had been meant light heartedly, and here he was, casually telling him that they hadn't spoken to starclan since their arrival. Owlstar got his fur to lie flat, and hoped that his next question would be enough to nudge the conversation back to lighter topics.

"You were out hunting this morning, right? How was the territory? Find any interesting spots?" Despite Owlstar's occasional tendency to accidentally offend by going a bit too far, he enjoyed exchanging banter with his clanmates, especially Hemlockshade. He had known the tom almost since kithood after all, and they had made it through shadowclan's collapse together. Not many other cats could say the same.

Toby
He slowly woke up to the sound of Gentlebreeze's purr. It was so nice and warm curled in the nest beside her. He could scent the rain on the air, but his fur was still dry. It was strange to wake up outside of his housefolk's nest, but with Gentlebreeze beside him, it was even more pleasant. He joined her purr, but looked up at her when she began to speak. “Toby, I’ve got to go now.” Toby knew that she had to return to the clan, but it still wasn't what he had hoped to hear. He nuzzled her quickly, before he left the nook, purr still rumbling in his chest as he padded through the dew strewn grass towards one of the small metal bowls left out by his housefolk, which was now filled with rainwater. It was good, clear water, and he felt refreshed as he returned to Gentlebreeze's side. "Be careful." He smiled, but there was a clear hint of worry in his eyes as he nuzzled Gentlebreeze once more.

//reposting toby's part here, sorta forgot I posted it lol

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Palewind

The she cat nodded." Of course Cicadapaw. Of course like I was telling Mudpaw, your mentors will be able to take you two out more and patrol more. Perhaps I'll join you two and your mentors, because I know you two will train very well." she stated as she trotted along deciding to take them to the borders and seeing if they could catch some prey on the way. She thought long and hard about being a mentor, perhaps later on. She figured for one she was too young and still learning but Owlstar probably thought the same thing, actually she figured he'd try to find a work around and say something mouse brained again like 'oh it's not because you weren't born here' like come on who says that?! Palewind thought to herself as she tuned out the apprentices for a moment. Her mind kept wondering why he did say that? why? It wasn't needed and all it did was remind her that she really didn't fit in here. She tried really hard to not think that especially since they had all taken her in but it still lingered in the back of her mind. She sighed softly as she began listening to the apprentices again, she liked hearing the two talk, they were so young still had so much to learn.

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The remark of Starclan caught him...a tad off guard. No communication from Starclan? Well, that certainly wasn't good. Though even in Shadowclan they had been absent, letting cats turn on each other and fight without even trying to intervene. It was certainly convenient for them, using their otherworldly powers for everything else but this. And to think they were all about the clans, until one of them was falling.

He figured that at least Owlstar had been given his lives, so that had to account for something. Though in the grand scheme of things, Hemlockshade had lost faith in them a long time ago. Trusting dead cats with anything was a ridiculous concept; clearly.

"Well, I'm sure Starclan hasn't done anything because things are still being worked on." They weren't quite clan material yet, and he really only said it because Owlstar happened to look so troubled. Aside from mentally grumbling the name in exasperation, something that happened alot, Hemlockshade had sort of given up on Starclan.

"Wet." Is how he replies to Owlstar's question. "Very foggy, though it looks like the fog will be gone soon. I caught a frog, so even in bad conditions, it seems like the prey will run well." Well, if anyone considers frogs and fish to be good eats at least. Well, he knew Owlstar did, something he made sure to express his distaste over.

"Aside from that, things were alright. No foreign cats aside from Hawktalon's brother here. Though speaking of him, what do you plan to do about him?" Sootpaw was a previous clan cat from Shadowclan, but clearly something had happened if he had left during his apprenticeship. And Hemlockshade was willing to bet that it probably wasn't good.


-


Cicadapaw beams when it's mentioned that Palewind thinks they'll train well. She may be one of the younger warriors, but she still looks up to them all the same. They've all been through so much, she knew finding and making a clan was really hard. But it was thanks to their hard work that she was even here. She had her doubts that she would've survived had it just been her and her mother.

She trotted a few paces behind the warrior, noticing her distracted look. Cicadapaw wonders if everything was alright with her? She figured something must've happened, though she didn't want to be nosy about it if it was something serious. Sniffing the air, she comes to the conclusion that there's probably no prey around yet. Though then again, everything smells like dampness, so that's no surprise. Her nose isn't as refined as a warrior, and she's constantly straining her ears to try and hear something remotely 'prey like'.

It was quiet for a few heart beats, before Cicadapaw spoke. "How was the competition yesterday?" She asks Palewind curiously. "Owlstar mentioned that giving the reward to you, so you won right? Was it scary? Or were you not afraid?" She, for one, would've been trembling down to her whiskers! They were scary looking, whatever cat looked at one and decided to fight it must've been crazy.

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Palewind

The she cat smiled.” Yes I did win. It was quite scary, although team work helped take it down. A lot of the warriors helped me to which I’m very thankful for. As you know beavers are big quite big in fact I don’t think any of us could have actually taken down the beaver on our own.” She stated honestly towards the apprentice, she liked the younger cats they were always so full of questions and enthusiasm about their said questions and it was really nice to have apprentices around in her mind especially since she had younger siblings l, it reminded her a lot of them. She glanced around at the mention of the beaver however like its friends were going to jump out of the shadows and eat them. Though she doubted that happening she still kept it in the back of her mind that there had been other beavers aside from the one they had taken down. She turned her attention back to the apprentices now as they continued on,

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"Oh yes, definitely not." Cicadapaw agreed. She wasn't silly enough to think that they'd be able to take the beaver down. That would be just mousebrained thinking. She had seen a few injuries from cats around camp, so she assumed that it hadn't been an easily won battle. Beavers had a particularly scent that she'd been taught to stay away from, so she was certain that they wouldn't have to worry.

She keeps alongside the warrior; following her lead. She wondered what sort of prize Palewind would be awarded. With how Owlstar spoke, she was sure that it would be a interesting one.

"Did you have some of the beaver yet? I liked it! It was really tasty." She mentions. She's quite curious to get to know everyone else in camp, so questions like these are how she digs for information.

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Mudpaw kept close behind Palewind as she spoke to Cicadapaw. He looked around padding his small dark paws against the ground, silently admiring the new world around him. It was a new experience for Mudpaw, as he had always stayed in the camp.

But there were so many different scents! Mudpaw's tiny nose couldn't handle them all. He felt overwhelmed and a little dizzy, he quickly shook his head not wanting to embarrass himself in front of the two she-cats. It was his first patrol and he didn't want to make any mistakes.

'Did you have some of the beaver yet? I liked it! It was really tasty' Mudpaws ears suddenly picked up Cicadapaws statement. He remembered about the incident with the beaver during the rain. He had taken the entire beaver when he had only intended to take a small portion. He felt a pang of guilt and lowered his head in deep thought, flinching at the memory.

...

Wait.

...


That's it! Just small amounts!

Mudpaw slowed his pace and stopped trying to take in all the scents at once. He started to focus on one scent at a time, taking a moment to pause before moving on to the next one. He repeated this process until he felt better.

Maybe it's not about doing everything at once, but taking things one step at a time.

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Palewind

She shook her head.” No not yet. I was going to wait for Nettlesnap to try some. Make sure it’s not poisonous or anything.” She chuckled clearly joking about that. But it was true she found the beaver with Nettlesnap so she wanted her first taste of it to be with him. She perked her ears sniffing the air to try and catch a little scent of Gentlebreeze but nothing. She sighed softly she was hoping they would run into the she cat so Palewind could make sure she was okay and make sure the storm is what kept her away from camp.

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