First Day Out {(--elmo--)}

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    OOC:: I have re-editted this post, so I'll send a pm to alert you. :) But if you're reading this now, then I already did.


    BIC::
    Shuffling her paws, the calico apprentice looked up at Rainlegs as if she had just been struck by lightning. She had never talked to the elders, had never been allowed to or was too scared to step outside the nursery at least, but no, now that she thought about it she hadn't.


    "No, I don't think so," Featherpaw mewed quietly, staring off into space. Her light blue eyes seemed to glaze over with sorrow as memories came rushing back, dragging her into their depths. "My... My mama and dad died when I was really small. They had been the ones who told me stories about the gorge, to prepare me for the outside world, to be safe when danger came. But then badgers came and killed them, and I got this scar." Folding herself over to touch her nose to her chest, Featherpaw gently brushed the surrounding fur to the side to reveal a crescent moon scar. "But that's okay, because I plan on killing any badger I see!"


    NOTE:: Since it's just us two, I'll stop making posts with her template. It's kinda tiresome :P

    The post was edited 1 time, last by Nyte is a Hungry Okapi ().

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    Female | Warrior


    [justify]She gave no sign that she had heard her apprentices story, her dainty paws still carrying her forward, eyes trained on the path ahead of them. Rainlegs had heard many tragic tales of parents and their kits, or hardships in the past, she had experienced her own as well. But never could she bring herself to open her mind to another's point of view, couldn't feel their pain. Didn't want to. Hadn't she felt enough pain anyways? Featherpaw's last words however made her perk her ears and with a click of her teeth she paused, turning to her apprentice.


    "Don't be reckless. Badgers are large creature, taking one down by yourself would be impossible," she growled. Revenge, it was a stupid thing and yet it was a cycle that no one could stop. Flattening her ears she continued, "You only attack something like that when you have numbers to back you up, got it!?"


    The chocolate warrior didn't need her apprentice running off to seek out the large, dark creatures, just to seek some long resting revenge. Turning back around again the Riverclan cat started off once more and it wasn't long before the gorge was behind them. Or perhaps time just flew by when you were training an apprentice.[/justify]

    Featherpaw flattened her small ears to the back of her head, her eyes widening in alarm and fear. Quaking under the wrath of her mentor, the little calico sat back on her haunches until Rainlegs had put two foxlengths between them. As of right now, Featherpaw was too upset to talk anymore, she didn't even look at Rainlegs' tail. Instead she looked at her paws in front of her, padding along quietly behind the large brown she-cat.

    Flicking her tail in annoyance with herself, the little she-cat smacked her front paws angrily against the ground. Why can't I make her proud? Why can't she accept me? Her nose quivered as she scrunched her face up, trying to make it look angry and tough like Rainlegs'. Giving up as a strange, tingling sensation spread over her little face, Featherpaw huffed to herself,

    "It hurts being mad all the time."

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    Female | Warrior


    [justify]The young cats words made the warrior freeze, ocean eyes widening as if she had come upon some great realization and maybe she had. Featherpaw's words did strike a cord somewhere deep, the root of her anger, the reason she was the cat she was today. And although she hated to admit if there was truth to what she said. It was hard to be angry all the time even though that emotion came so easy to her now. It was hard to feel happy unless she was with Eveningsky.


    Suddenly tiered and feeling strange she sank back on her haunches, the gorge though still close no longer on her mind. "I guess you're right." Tilting her head to glance fleetingly at her apprentice she smiled, a sad tilt of her lips that reflected so much. "Although to be honest you don't look like your made at all. Why are you mad all the time?"[/justify]

    The little she-cat's head was still faced downwards and she didn't realize that Rainlegs had stopped until she bumped into her. Looking up at her mentor, her face trying to reflect Rainleg's usually mad glare, she opened her mouth in shock.

    "Oh. So you heard me..." Embarassed, Featherpaw looked at her paws, kneading the ground with them and turning the white fur an ugly yellow with the dust. Ears pinned to the back of her head, Featherpaw was ready to be scolded outright for her rude comment. It was surprising to find none; she had seen other apprentices taken aback by the snarls they received from their mentor for breathing.

    Face turned upwards cautiously to Rainleg, she mewed quietly, "I... I'm not. I just saw that you were always angry, I don't know what about, so I thought that I'd try to be upset too." Scrunching up her face again, the little calico's whiskers twitched constantly as if they were alive. Releasing her face's poor muscles, she sighed, "It just hurts too much to be mad. Why not be happy all of the time?"

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    Female | Warrior


    [justify]Why not be happy all the time? And why not? Because it wasn't who she was, for the longest time she had closed herself off. Her temper was easily aroused and she was never afraid to speak her opinion and why should she? It was who she was and she wasn't about to pretend to be otherwise. She wasn't angry she was impatient and easily angered. Glancing over in time to catch her apprentices scrunched up face she gave a snort of amusement.


    "I'm not angry, at least not all the time. I just happen to be a little more impatient and distrusting then others. I like having my opinions heard no matter what others think."


    Turning her head away a moment she shrugged her slim shoulders, "it's who I am."[/justify]

    Her mentor's words rung in her ears as if another apprentice had just yowled next to them. The little calico knew that she spoke the truth -- why act like some other cat when you weren't them? -- but she also disapproved of the way that she seemed to give up on being happy. Still, she would accept the elder she-cat for who she was, but now that things were settled it was time for some mentoring.

    "I'm not sure that I quite get what you mean, but I'm sure that it's good." Featherpaw was rather confused about the whole 'this is who I am' thing, but whatever Rainlegs said was good to her.

    Gently ramming her head into Rainlegs' side, she mewed playfully, "Look at you. It's almost as if I'm the mentor and you're the apprentice! Let's go look for intruders -- I have to walk Riverclan's territory with my eyes closed one day, remember?"

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    Female | Warrior


    [justify]She didn't expect anyone to understand nor did she care if they did or not. Surprised at the sudden bump to her muscled side the warrior turned to face her apprentice, a nonexistent eye brow raised. Snorting in amusement she pushed to her paws, inwardly startled that she was loosing up this way to such a young cat. Starting off a again she flicked her tail, "your right and we're almost back to were we started, and I believe there is enough time to at least see some things inside the territory."


    The sun was only just sinking so time was on their side. The rivers rushing sound was starting to fill the air once more and already she could see it through a small line of trees. From there she supposed they could make a direct line into the territory's center and then back.[/justify]

    Head nodding enthusiastically, Featherpaw smiled inwardly. She felt good. All warm and fuzzy inside, but when didn't she ever feel like that? The little she-cat was happy that she had turned Rainlegs' face into another direction, maybe not on the outside world, but at least another door was beginning to open for the lean elder she-cat.

    Bouncing up and down, Featherpaw seemed to bubble with happiness. "Right, let's get going then!"

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    Female | Warrior


    [justify]A silence filled the gap between them but it was different from the others not so much awkward as it was comfortable. The area where they had met up was just ahead and so the chocolate warrior veered to the right, into the trees and toward the territory's center. "The majority of our land prey is here but being Riverclan the river is our main source of prey," she explained. Even she a warrior who prided herself in being the best hunter stumbled around like a kit when it came to hunting land prey. Fishing however was a different matter, she could fish better then most Riverclan cats and she was proud of that.


    "I'll teach you want I know of hunting when the time comes but I'll be focusing mainly on fishing."[/justify]

    Featherpaw, who had been silent for the rest of their expedition, pricked her ears up in excitement and her tail immediately sprang upwards in anticipation. Fishing! Oh, what fun! Happiness seemed to eminate from the apprentice again, and she began to purr in strange tunes as she bounded to the water's edge.

    The calico leaned back on her hind legs a few foxlengths before the riverbank, forcing herself to stop. She wasn't dumb enough to rush to the water's edge and scare all the fish away with her shadow! No, she would have pad to the rushing river's side, find out what way her shadow was going, and then attempt to start fishing.

    The little she-cat wasn't sure if she wanted to fish at all -- she had no idea what to do. Her eyes sought out Rainlegs, and seeing that the elder she-cat was in a much better mood than earlier, Featherpaw mewed, "What happens next?"

    | r a i n l e g s |
    desperate for changing
    starving for truth
    i'm closer to where i started
    chasing after you
    i'm falling even more in love with you
    letting go of all i've held onto
    i'm standing here until you make me move
    hanging by a moment by lifehouse


    [justify]Blue eyes seemed to sparkle with amusement as the warrior turned, catching sight of her apprentice at the waters edge. Realizing she hadn't been more in depth with her explanation she flicked her slim tail. "We're not fishing now. We're still all about the territory," she called to Featherpaw.


    Turning before the apprentice could catch her smile, the chocolate she-cat rolled her pretty eyes, how was it she could be in such a good mood? In the presence of this stranger? Maybe having an apprentice wouldn't be that bad? Maybe. "We saw the borders but now I want to show you a little of what's inside," pausing to motion to their surroundings she added, "as we walk point all all the places a cat could hide."[/justify]

    Warmth spread out through calico apprentice's pelt as shame radiated from the little she-cat. Her own powerhouse of embarassment began to mass produce, causing her whiskers to twich uncomfortably and look down at her paws. The she-cat kicked at the dirt, trying to fill in the awkward silence before her mentor continued, her voice growing fainter. Realization hit the young cat when she lifted her head to see Rainlegs padding away, deeper into Riverclan territory.

    Scampering off to fall a step behind Rainlegs, her head at the elder cat's shoulder, Featherpaw mewed timidly, "I- I'm sorry, Rainlegs. It's just my first day and I'm so excited, my parents use to say that I'd always get ahead of myself, but now that they're gone there's no one here to remind me." An awkward laugh followed the fumbling words, and the little calico's tail flicked to a large, rotting, fallen log.

    "A cat could hide there," she informed her mentor, all senses alert and ready to point out any possible hiding places as fast as she can to hide her previous faults.

    | r a i n l e g s |
    desperate for changing
    starving for truth
    i'm closer to where i started
    chasing after you
    i'm falling even more in love with you
    letting go of all i've held onto
    i'm standing here until you make me move
    hanging by a moment by lifehouse


    [justify]The warrior couldn't figure why her apprentice was so jumpy now, strange little thing but then weren't all young cats rather strange? Most especially the kits. Not able to help the sneer that twisted her lips at the thought of them she turned her face away, not wanted her apprentice to see the look. Only when she was once again in control of herself did she turned back to her, paws carrying her forward still. "Don't be so timid, I bite but trust me, you'll know when I come at you."


    Although it wasn't at all a joke she found herself smirking, amused at her own words as she glanced at the log. "Yes, an intruder could hide there."[/justify]

    Nodding, the calico apprentice took note of the other possible hiding places as she padded more confidently forward. Alright. Don't be timid.

    Ears pricking as she heard branches breaking, Featherpaw lifted her nose to the air and opened her mouth. Crow drifted over her scent glands, causing her to salivate. Pushing the thought of food away, she had embarassed herself once already, the apprentice swished her tail to a few tall reeds. "A cat could hide there, but I'd see the reeds swishing. Perhaps an apprentice or two, but definately not a full party of Thunderclanners -- they're much too clumsy." Smirking at her own comment, the she-cat peered at her mentor out of the corner of her eye to await her approval of her mockery.


    [justify]"Ha! That they are," the chocolate warrior agreed. Those forest loving goons couldn't tough it out anywhere, they were more like kitty-pets then actual kitty-pets, and that was saying something. The seasoned warrior was just glad that her apprentice wasn't like those naive cats who believed everyone was equal and that no one should fight. Blah, those types made her sick. Coming to a sudden halt she craned her head around, ears perked as she listened to the forests noises. But whatever it was she had heard was gone and so with a small shrug of her slim shoulders she turned back toward her apprentice.


    "I think that's enough for the day. The sun will be setting soon and there is still much to be done back at camp," she meowed, dainty paws now carrying her back in the direction of home. She was pleased that they had managed to get the entire border, plus a look at the inside of the territory. Hopefully they could get that down pat quickly so they could move on to other things, such as hunting and fighting. Grunting, she called back over her shoulder, "perhaps soon we'll get to start on your hunting."[/justify]

    Heart pounding excitingly, the little she-cat nodded her head with so much enthusiasm that you'd think it would fall right off. The calico lived for hunting -- she was always practicing stalking and mimicing the warriors as they fooled around, her leap was almost perfect from all those times she chased butterflies, and all she knew about water hunting was to keep your shadow from falling over the river.

    "Sounds great!" Featherpaw was gleaming with happiness, and as she padded back to camp beside the bigger, leaner warrior she felt almost like bouncing around like a kit. But that's what kits do, and I'm no kit! Still full of playfulness, Featherpaw swung her head to the side, catching herself in time so that instead of colliding into Rainlegs it was like she was pressing her head into the other she-cat's shoulder.

    Smiling up at the brown she-cat, Featherpaw murmered, "Thank you, Rainlegs."

    [justify]The sudden contact of fur against hers made her stiffen and then with an irritated look she pulled away, feeling rather awkward with herself and the situation. "Er, yeah. No problem," she meowed quickly. Surprises like that didn't sit well for her and neither did touchy feely things, they put her on edge, made her weary. Glanced at her apprentice, eyes sharp and curious, but she said nothing more as they entered camp.


    Only when she felt the drag of sleep on her eye lids did she turn toward the warriors den, knowing she had to be ready for tonight patrol. Loudly she called back over her shoulder, "we'll talk later Featherpaw!" With that said Rainlegs disappeared into the den.


    ((I think that's about it for now. I guess after Rainlegs gets away from the humans we can start another thread with the two of them?))[/justify]

    Featherpaw, eyes blinking slowly in happiness, skipped over to the freshkill pile to talk with some other apprentices.

    OOC:: For sure! Just tell me when she loses her tail :P