Posts by SHADEPAW.

He gave Serpentpaw a quick nod as he retreated to the edge of the clearing, before focusing his bright eyes on Doepaw. He had been training a lot, and learning battle moves was his absolute favourite part of it. Shadepaw adored the thrill of sparring, of the quick thinking, the sudden twists, the triumph he felt whenever he successfully pinned an opponent. The experience was like no other - and while the thought of taking part in an actual battle made the little tomcat apprehensive, sparring was completely fine with him.

A few moments passed, with Shadepaw thinking about what his strategy would be going into this spar. He wanted to win - he always wanted to win. He was a naturally competitive cat, and failure got to him more than it got to the vast majority of his peers. Did he believe he could beat Doepaw? Absolutely. And that was exactly what he intended on doing.

With a sudden burst of movement, the small apprentice ran at Doepaw, racing towards her left side before darting to her right at the last moment, leaping into her side and aiming to push her to the ground, or at least unbalance her. Excitement rushed wildly through the black tom's veins - sparring made him feel alive, and he hoped he could secure victory over Doepaw.

"Speech."

It seemed that Shellpaw wasn't fooled, which just frustrated Shadepaw even more. She has meant to go away, mind her own business, forget she had ever seen any of his weaknesses, but she was still here, asking stupid questions. The small tom dug his claws into the ground.

"Not yet there isn't." He muttered, glaring at his feet. His tail swished backwards and forwards rapidly, and he was aware of his fur spiking more and more. The calm he had attempted to force onto himself had clearly been very temporary. He didn't want Shellpaw to know that he was weak, that something had upset him, but it was evident in his pained green eyes. The little apprentice had promised herself that following his near death experience as a kit, he would never show weakness again, but here he was, making himself look like an idiotin front of his denmate.

Shadepaw wondered if sitting down would calm the raging storm in his stomach, so, breathing deeply in and out, the small black tom flopped to the ground, rolling over onto his back, the harsh sun beating down on his belly. Its rays shone intrusively into Shadepaw's eyes, and he closed them briefly, letting out a groan. "This weather is stupid," he grumbled. "It needs to go away." His tone was becoming angrier and angrier again, clearly angry at something much more trivial than the weather.

Sighing, the black tom turned onto his side, looking up at Shellpaw, bright green eyes fixed on her. "Have you sparred with anyone recently?" He asked. The question would perhaps appear to be quite sudden and unrelated to Shellpaw, but hopefully she would just see it as quite a normal thing for Shadepaw to talk about, as sparring always excited him. At least it had used to excite him. He couldn't imagine going face to face with another cat in a spar now, for fear that he would lose again. Of course, the true reason behind Shadepaw asking the molly such a question was because it was impossible for him to get his mind off Pepperpaw beating him, but she didn't need to know that - she couldn't know that. What if she made fun of him, or thought less of him? Shadepaw was meant to be the coolest cat in ThunderClan. Maybe his Clanmates would decide they liked Pepperpaw over him - stupid, rude, ridiculously strong, unexplainably talented Pepperpaw.

"Speech."

//andmflcl SAME like JUST TELL EACHOTHER aaaaa

His ears pricked at the molly's response - though his heart only became heavier, and he felt his claws instinctively unsheathe, though he quickly sheathed them again. Just Pepperpaw's name was enough to get him riled up. Shadepaw forced himself to focus on the tabby, trying to ignore the screaming inside of him, just at the simple mentioning of Pepperpaw.

Shellpaw had answered in no more than a mutter, her teeth clenched. For a few moments, she looked tense, before forcing herself to relax. Shadepaw understood, and was surprised by the sympathy which rushed through him.

He rolled over several times, so that he was lying a little closer to the tabby. "You seem pretty bothered... you lost, right?" He looked directly into the other apprentice's eyes with startling intensity, almost daring her to lie straight to his face. Shadepaw had lost to Pepperpaw, and from Shellpaw's reaction, so had she. Unless she had actually won, in which case, that made her yet another cat who was stronger than Shadepaw - the small apprentice felt sick and squirmy in the stomach at the thought.

"Speech."

Shellpaw hadn't said anything, but her reaction to his question was enough for him to know that his assumption had been correct. She looked so... ashamed of herself, which Shadepaw completely understood, because that was how he felt, too. Before this, Shadepaw had been certain that he wouldn't admit to anyone that he had lost to Pepperpaw, but with Shellpaw's reaction, he suddenly felt an urge to confide in her, to let her know exactly how he felt about Pepperpaw. He opened his mouth to explain, but then Crimsoncry appeared.

Great StarClan, he couldn't have come at a worse time! It wasn't that Shadepaw didn't trust his dad - he did, he loved and trusted him completely. But Crimsoncry hadn't lost a spar against Pepperpaw, so Shadepaw doubted he would be able to relate his own feelings to his father's as he could now relate his feelings to Shellpaw's. Before answering his father, he gave Shellpaw a quick nod, "Me too." He told her quickly, assuming that Crimsoncry hadn't heard the rest of their conversation and therefore wouldn't understand what his response had meant. He allowed his green eyes to fix onto his denmate for a few more moments, hoping that maybe she would understand the meaning behind the look - We'll talk later. Now that he knew that someone else had lost to Pepperpaw, feeling the same shame and embarrassment that he did, he felt a strange longing to actually talk about what had happened between him and Pepperpaw. A satisfying thought entered his mind - maybe, if Shellpaw was up for it, they could get revenge on Pepperpaw together. The tom's small paws trembled in excitement at the thought, though he didn't voice his idea out loud for now, instead focusing on his incredibly clueless father.

"It's nothing, we're fine, it's just that our hunt isn't going as well as usual," Shadepaw answered as calmly as he could, feeling his tail twitch as he responded. He rose to his paws so that he could stand face to face with his father. "This weather is way too hot for prey, I think they've all gone into hiding. It's so stupid." He dug his claws deeply into the ground, feeling the dirt wrapping around his claws.

"Speech."

Shadepaw was quite impressed at how Doepaw had managed to avoid the worst of the shove, and took note of how quickly she had recovered after dropping to the ground. He didn't let the approval show on his face, though the thought stayed in his mind. She's smart.

The molly then struck at his shoulder, the blow connecting. Shadepaw lost his footing, stumbling backwards, surprised by the strength of his opponent. He took several moments to regain his balance, before focusing on Doepaw again. The small tom, moving at a surprising speed despite his short legs, darted around to the back of Doepaw, before attempting to leap on to her, slamming his front paws onto her shoulders and her back paws onto her lower back, hoping to pin her or at least shock her with the impact.

"Speech."

He felt a smile slip onto his face at the RiverClanner's reaction. He knew that he was an impressive hunter for his age, but still, Okapipaw's reaction, clearly impressed by him, did wonders for the small apprentice's ego. Shadepaw assumed that the cream pelted apprentice was surprised as he was not used to seeing ThunderClanners hunt, but still, it felt... nice to see someone so in awe of his hunting skills. He clawed at the ground, moving enough dirt to create a small hole. The little black tom then dropped his catch into the hole, scraping the earth back over it, making a quick mental note to come back for it later. He then padded back over to Okapipaw, his small paws moving almost silently across the earth. Upon reaching the RiverClanner's side, he placed a paw on his shoulder, speaking quietly, "Cool, right? That's how you go after land prey - drop into a crouch, stalk it, and when you're close enough, you leap," thinking for a moment, the ThunderClanner added, "Oh, and you gotta make sure that if there's any wind, it's blowing the scent of the prey towards you, rather than blowing your scent towards the prey, so it doesn't smell you and run off." He wasn't entirely sure whether there was anything missing from his explanation - after all, there were probably plenty of things Pumpkinstrut hadn't taught him yet, but still, Shadepaw was pretty sure he'd at least given Okapipaw the basics.

He knew that it was now Okapipaw's turn - he wasn't expecting him to do very well, not on his first try, and Shadepaw was already prepared for the RiverClanner to be scaring off some prey in the process. He supposed he would just have to put up with it - he had given this tom permission to hunt on ThunderClan territory, so he'd just have to put up with whatever happened now.

It's better than hunting alone, Shadepaw concluded, And if he does catch anything, I'll be sure to take it back to camp. He didn't know Okapipaw, not really, and it was too early for Shadepaw to form an opinion on him, but he supposed he liked the RiverClan apprentice... sort of, at least. He seemed decent, and he seemed to think that Shadepaw's hunting skills were cool, which made him happy. I wouldn't mind seeing him again. The thought entered his mind - it wouldn't really bother him if he never saw Okapipaw again, but at the same time, part of him wanted to get to know the RiverClanner better. But he guessed it was too early to start thinking about that.

"Your turn," the small apprentice meowed, his voice still quiet to avoid hunting prey. "Find the prey, stalk it, and catch it." He didn't voice his feelings about how Okapipaw's first attempt would go - he didn't want to discourage him.

"Speech."

He was struggling to find something to throw, and he worried that the mouse was going to run off before he had a chance to try out Wilson's suggestion. Frustration burned at his pelt and he dug his claws angrily into the ground - he was going to make himself look like an idiot, that was for sure.

To his surprise, he found the large WindClanner at his side, a twig in his maw. Either he found it on the way here, or he just picked it up now. Either way, it had proved to Shadepaw that his new 'mentor' was a quick thinker, and he had to admit, he was impressed. He wasn't entirely sure what to make of Wilson yet, but he did seem pretty cool. Shadepaw wondered why only one cat in his Clan liked him - there didn't seem to be anything wrong with him. He was smart and skilled, that was for sure. Maybe WindClan were harsher on cats who broke the rules or something. Shadepaw was curious about Wilson, but he knew that now wasn't the time to ask questions. Soon - he decided, if Wilson wanted to tell him anything. They weren't friends, not yet, anyway, though he wasn't sure whether his ebony pelted companion was interested in friendship. Shadepaw was generally down for making friends, and the fact that they were in different Clans didn't bother him at all, but it was going to take more that one... training session, if that was what this was, before Shadepaw truly felt any attachment to the WindClanner.

He felt a little embarrassed that Wilson had had to find the twig for him, but he guessed he would just have to learn to be more prepared next time. Giving the tom a nod, a grateful glint in his eyes, he then turned and watched as Wilson threw the twig in front of the mouse. The mouse, startled by the twig, turned and ran towards the two toms. Shadepaw glanced at Wilson, making eye contact with him for a moment, trying to ignore how nervous he felt about letting his new mentor down.

He then focused on the mouse again, who was swiftly approaching the cats. He braced himself, preparing himself to leap. When the mouse was close enough, he sprang at it, slamming his small paws down on to it before sinking his teeth into the neck of his prey, ending its life in one quick bite. Triumph and relief rushed through him at the successful catch, and he turned to Wilson, eyes gleaming with excitement. "Man, your crazy idea actually worked!" His tone was eager, though he kept his voice low - he had only been apprenticed quite recently, but he still had a brain, and he knew better than to make a racket and startle any other prey that could be hanging about nearby, such as the rest of the mouse's family.

Scraping at the ground and making a hole, Shadepaw then dropped his catch inside, smiling proudly before using his small paws to cover the hole back over with dirt. Nose twitching, still aware of the strong scent of mouse hanging in the air, Shadepaw continued to follow the scent, gesturing with his tail for the WindClanner to follow.

As he walked, stepping carefully to avoid making too much noise, Shadepaw attempted to make conversation with the other tom. "You said before that you only have one cat in your Clan who likes you," he meowed quietly. "Why is that? You seem pretty cool - I know plenty of cats who seem a whole lot worse than you."

"Speech."

He listened carefully as Wilson spoke - usually, he wouldn't be so attentive towards a cat that he barely knew, but this guy was interesting. For starters, he came from outside of ThunderClan. Shadepaw honestly didn't believe that the different Clans were all that different - they generally all lived under similar rules and had similar values, excluding BloodClan. But still, he was bound to have different experiences, and it felt nice to be talking to someone who wasn't his Clanmate. ThunderClan were great, and he had quite a few friends there, but he saw them lot everyday. Wilson was somebody new, and to Shadepaw, he felt like a breath of fresh air. It certainly helped that the ebony WindClanner was as chill as he was about breaking rules, crossing borders, and heck - mentoring a ThunderClan cat who he barely knew. It was true, Shadepaw didn't form proper opinions on cats this early on, but he really did seem pretty cool.

Brightshine. Shadepaw didn't know the molly personally, but he knew that she was WindClan's deputy. At the tom's second statement, the little apprentice answered, "Then aren't they just being ungrateful? You couldn't have let her die, you were doing a good thing," the black tom shrugged, as he continued to walk, nearly stepping down on a twig, which would have alerted any nearby prey to his location. He walked a few steps past the twig, before retreating again, stooping down to pick it up, holding it in his jaws. Shadepaw wouldn't be caught out the next time he found prey, and Wilson wouldn't need to help her. He had come prepared. "Some cats are just like that," the ebony tom continued, his voice muffled as the twig still rested in his jaws. "Hey, at least one cat likes you - and I'm sure you'll find more." He let out a snort. Shadepaw did believe what he was saying though - he was sure that Wilson would make more friends in the future. Perhaps he was quite new to WindClan - his unusual name was a pretty strong indicator that he had not been born in a Clan. Maybe he just needed more time to get along with his Clanmates. Shadepaw couldn't imagine having only one cat who liked him - from the moment he had started walking and talking, he had spent plenty of time socialising with others. He had quite a few friends now - Ivorypaw, Moonpaw, Doepaw, Serpentpaw... he trusted them and he liked them, and he hoped that they felt the same way about him.

He then narrowed his eyes, swiftly dropping into a crouch, as he spotted a mouse, this one a little larger than the former, scurrying to the north. Its movements were swift, and it was moving away from Shadepaw, so he knew that he needed to act quickly. Relieved that he had been smart enough to collect a twig beforehand this time, he then flung it towards the mouse, grinning to himself as it landed straight in front of his target. The mouse spun around, running towards Shadepaw, who grabbed it, making an even cleaner catch than the time before. He felt the warm blood of the mouse pulsing under its pelt as he sank his teeth into its neck, ending his life. As he had done before, he dug a hole, dropped the mouse in, and covered it over.

"I think I'm getting the hang of it, it felt a whole lot easier that time," Shadepaw commented, feeling quite proud of himself for mastering the new trick so quickly. He had to admit, Wilson was a pretty impressive mentor, and his trick did seem to work pretty well. "You're smart, and I already saw earlier that you're a pretty good hunter even without throwing twigs and all that. Do you have an apprentice back in WindClan? Even if your Clan hate your guts, they must be able to see that you know what you're doing." Shadepaw wondered eagerly if his Clanmates would be impressed by his new trick. Of course, he wouldn't tell them how he had learned it, and would instead inform them that he had just made it up himself, giving himself all of the credit in the process. Maybe it was a trick that the warriors taught to their apprentices when they were a bit older - Shadepaw wouldn't know. It did seem a little strange that Wilson, a WindClanner, would come up with such an idea considering that his territory was so empty and bare compared to ThunderClan territory, but maybe he had used the trick back when he had lived as a rogue or loner or whatever he had pressumably been in the past.

"Speech."

Shadepaw was pleased that his move had succeeded, as Doepaw crumpled to the ground, wiggling in an attempt to free herself. The molly then began to strike out at him with sheathed claws. The small apprentice did his best to ignore her blows, trying his best to not get pushed away from her. He was fairly good at keeping his balance, brushing off the hits well, focusing on making sure that his opponent didn't free herself, although it was getting hard to ignore the molly batting him, one of her blows connecting quite strongly with his left shoulder. He moved backwards slightly, though he attempted to stop Doepaw from escaping by pressing down strongly on her back with his paws.

"Speech."

//ahhhh it's ok, happens to all of us! Please take care of yourself and I hope you feel better soon!

Shadepaw watched carefully, watching as Okapipaw dropped into a crouch. Shadepaw had picked up the scent of squirrel, and assumed that the cream pelted apprentice was going after it. His suspicions were confirmed as he spotted a squirrel digging in the soil.

The black tom resisted the urge to leap into action as the squirrel darted towards a tree. If it gets too high up, there's no way Okapipaw will be able to catch it. However, his bright eyes widened in surprise as he took note of how quickly the RiverClanner shot into action, leaping, snagging his claws into his target's tail, before slamming it to the ground, killing it with a bite.

For a few moments, Shadepaw was silent. It hadn't been the cleanest catch, and the squirrel had very nearly escaped, but Okapipaw had managed it first try. A sudden feeling of admiration rushed through the small apprentice's pelt as he stared at Okapipaw's catch for a moment - Shadepaw hadn't managed to catch forest prey on his first attempt, but this guy had. Well, maybe not exactly, perhaps he had attempted stuff like this back in RiverClan, but this was probably his first attempt after being properly taught, and he'd managed it.

Snapping himself out of the daze he had put himself in, Shadepaw gave a quick nod, unable to hold back a smile as he spoke to Okapipaw. "I'm surprised - I wasn't expecting you to get it first try. Not bad," he padded over to the RiverClanner, sniffing at the squirrel, feeling his mouth water a little. "I can come back for this later." He quickly dug out a hole, grabbing the squirrel, dropping it into the hole and then covering it back over. The shorthaired tomcat then turned to look at Okapipaw again, flicking his tail for his companion to follow him.

Continuing to pad through the forest, keeping on the lookout for prey as he did so, Shadepaw asked, "So what's it like in RiverClan? I spoke to some RiverClanners at the last Gathering, but I never really got around to asking them."

"Speech."

Shadepaw tried to resist, but he couldn't hold on to his friend any longer. As Doepaw shoved upwards, the small apprentice felt himself being knocked off. He landed on his feet, being fairly balanced, and recovered quickly, facing Doepaw. She was clearly on the defensive, her fur visibly ruffled, and Shadepaw felt as though he was in a fairly good position right now.

For several moments, Shadepaw remained still. He stood up straight, just watching Doepaw with his bright eyes. He appeared fairly calm. Then, with a sudden burst of movement, Shadepaw shot himself straight towards Doepaw, reaching out with a front paw and aiming to slam it down powerfully on to the molly's head, hoping to daze her.

"Speech."

Spotting his parents resting underneath a rocky outcrop, Shadepaw pondered on whether or not he should disturb them. They looked relaxed, with Crimsoncry lovingly grooming his mate's pelt. The small black tom snorted to himself at the sight. The idea of finding a mate, settling down with them and being in love... surprisingly enough, he wasn't opposed to the idea at all, he just found it unrealistic. Spending the rest of my life with someone? Wouldn't I get bored of them? Wouldn't they get bored of me?

Concluding that distrupting his parents's moment was an approproate thing to do, the little apprentice padded over to Crimsoncry and Featherlight, tail raised. "Hey, lovebirds," he teased, flopping down by his parents, rolling onto his back and kicking his short legs up into the air. "Hope I'm not disturbing anything." He grinned playfully, bright green eyes gleaming.

"Speech."

Shadepaw hadn't seen much of his mentor recently, and honestly, it had frustrated him a little. He was determined to become a powerful warrior, but how was he meant to do that if Pumpkinstrut wasn't around? He knew that it wasn't the molly's fault - she had been recovering from injuries caused by a dog, but still, Shadepaw was a naturally impatient cat, and it felt like forever since he had last seen his mentor on her paws.

His thoughts drifted briefly, as the thought of a certain WindClan warrior crossed his mind. He had been occasionally meeting Wilson by the border. The WindClanner had been training with him, teaching him things, and Shadepaw was grateful towards him for that. Still, Shadepaw was glad that Pumpkinstrut was back - the more training he got in, the better. He hadn't really even gotten a chance to get to know his mentor at all. One moment Flamestar had been naming Pumpkinstrut as his mentor, and the next, she'd managed to get herself beaten up by a dog, unable to complete her duties.

Well, she was back on her paws now, and Shadepaw supposed that was all that really mattered. He noticed a scar on Pumpkinstrut's neck, though he didn't give it much thought. It was natural for a warrior to recieve scars, and Pumpkinstrut had earned hers in an honourable manner, facing off against a dog. Shadepaw thought about his own scars for a moment - the scar on his muzzle, and his torn ear. There's no proud story behind those. Shame rushed through the tom.

As he padded over, spotting Shellpaw, Shadepaw was reminded of even more humiliating memories, such as when Pepperpaw had recently beaten him in a spar. Shellpaw had experienced the same thing, and seeing the molly had brought back the memory. A growl rumbled in the ebony pelted tom's throat just at the thought of Pepperpaw, and he stopped in his tracks for a few moments, forcing himself to calm down before continuing to approach his Clanmates.

"I see that dog left you something to remember them by." Shadepaw commented, nodding towards Pumpkinstrut's scar, coming to stand next to Shellpaw. He offered the apprentice a smile - he barely knew her, but he felt as though he related to her, in a way. We're both Pepperpaw's victims, he thought to himself dramatically.

Facing his mentor again, his tail began to swish. "I've been training super hard while you've been recovering," he told her, trying to ignore the insecurities that clawed in his stomach. The face of the rogue who had attacked him as a kit flashed briefly in Shadepaw's mind, before morphing into Pepperpaw's face. The small apprentice dug his claws into the ground for a moment, before swiftly sheathing them. "And if you two are checking up on one of the borders, I'll come along."

"Speech."

The last thing Shadepaw had been anticipating was for Doepaw to go shooting up into the air. The sight amused him for a split second, but then a hiss escaped his mouth as her paw hit him roughly on the shoulder as she descended, snapping the black tom out of his thoughts and knocking him off balance. He staggered a little, strugging to regain his balance, and focused on recovery, taking a few moments to steady himself while keeping his bright eyes on Doepaw, prepared to dodge whatever her next move may be.

"Speech."

The RiverClanner was smart, keeping his voice low. That would decrease the chances of them scaring away prey, or attracting the attention a ThunderClan patrol. Shadepaw wasn't entirely sure what sort of story he would come up with if a patrol caught him with Okapipaw. He was sure he would think of something, he just wasn't entirely sure how convinicing that something would be.

The black tom listened to Okapipaw's response, nodding as he spoke. RiverClan sounded fun, although not while the river was drying up, it didn't. Shadepaw knew however, that he wouldn't trade ThunderClan for the world. While many of his Clanmates didn't matter a whiskerlength to him, ThunderClan was home to Shadepaw's mother and father, Featherlight and Crimsoncry, as well as Shadepaw's friends - Ivorypaw, Moonpaw, Serpentpaw and Doepaw. There were cats in ThunderClan that he knew he would give his life to protect, as while Shadepaw's loyalties were reserved only for a select few, his loyalties, his feelings, were strong, and he felt a great level of attachment towards those he cared about.

"Sounds cool," Shadepaw commented, "Though I don't envy you lot right now, with the river drying up. Still, I hope you can use what I've taught you to help out your Clanmates." After walking for a few more moments, the small apprentice added with a playful smile, "When StarClan decides to stop playing pranks and end the drought, maybe you could teach me to be a better swimmer," he nudged Okapipaw. "Y'know, just a little payment in return for what I've taught you." While Shadepaw had described it as 'payment,' he was subtly suggesting to the cream pelted tomcat that he would like to see him again. He had nothing better to do, and Okapipaw seemed decent. Maybe, hopefully, they could even meet again before the drought ended. Shadepaw didn't see any reason why not, unless Okapipaw wasn't interested in seeing him again...

A sudden rush of insecurity ruffled Shadepaw's pelt. He was generally strong and confident, but occasionally, he did question his self worth. Ever since he had been beaten up by a rogue as a kit, left with a scar running across his muzzle and a torn ear, Shadepaw had always felt a little insecure. Of course, he didn't voice these insecurities out loud, but they were very much present, and they still messed with his brain.

"Speech."

The little tom snorted at the RiverClanner's question, his torn ear twitching, eyes glinting with amusement. "Dunno, why don't we go leaping into that dry river right now?" he meowed sarcastically, before giving a proper answer. "Once the water's comes back, whenever that is."

Spotting a vole, the ebony pelted tomcat dropped into a crouch, stalking his prey, before leaping, sinking his teeth roughly into his target's neck, ending its life. As he had done before, Shadepaw dug out a hole, dropping his catch inside, before pawing dirt back over the hole.

He walked for a little longer, before halting, clambering onto one of the roots of a large tree. Facing Okapipaw, he spoke casually, "Y'know, nobody knows when the water is gonna come back, so if we wait till then to meet again, it could be ages," he hesitated before adding, surprised by the slight nervousness that pricked at his pelt, "Maybe you'd like to meet before then, to do something? Something fun? I don't know what, but if you'd like to see me again," the small apprentice leaned against the tree slightly, trying to appear as cool and casual as he could. "We could arrange a meeting," he laughed a little at the statement, "Great StarClan, that sounded so formal, but you get what I mean." His bright green eyes fixed on Okapipaw, awaiting a response, hoping that his offer wouldn't be rejected, as that would be pretty embarrassing.

"Speech."

Shadepaw was relieved that Okapipaw seemed okay with his offer - he wasn't sure what had caused him to feel so nervous, but assumed that it was just down to his insecurities. Either way, it seemed as though he would be seeing Okapipaw again pretty soon, which excited the ThunderClanner for some reason which he couldn't describe.

"Glad you're down," he smiled, still not taking his eyes off of the other tomcat. "We can hang out here for a bit longer, if you'd like, but I'm thinking... we meet at the border in a quarter moon, or sooner, if you'd like? Maybe at night next time - we can let ourselves relax more then." Shadepaw had enjoyed spending time with Okapipaw much more than he had expected to, but at the same time, it kinda sucked that they had had to stay so on guard to avoid being caught by any ThunderClan patrols. Shadepaw was sure he would be able to find a way to sneak out of camp - if he had managed it as a kit, he could certainly manage it as an apprentice.

"Speech."

//second page woop! I usually try to keep them alive hahah. So what do you want to do with these two now? Shade thinks that Okapi is pretty cute and would totally be down for something short term with him, if you're cool with that too. But how do you think we should go about it?

He gave the RiverClanner an eager smile at his positive response - it seemed that Shadepaw would be seeing Okapipaw again pretty soon after all. The small tom watched as Okapipaw leaped onto the tree root, settling not too far away from him. For a few moments, Shadepaw just stared at the creamy furred apprentice, before quickly blinking, looking upwards, pretending to be watching the shape of a sparrow flying about in the sky, way too high up for either of the cats to have a chance at catching.

Shadepaw liked Okapipaw - he didn't know him well, not at all, but he seemed pretty cool, and there was nothing wrong with meeting him again. He would just get to know him better, maybe become friends with him, see how it went. His tummy did feel a teeny bit weird, and felt even stranger as he quickly glanced at the other tom again, but he chose to ignore the feeling for now. It probably didn't mean anything - it didn't have to mean anything.

"Glad you're up for it," Shadepaw answered. "A quarter moon, at moonhigh, at the border. I'm sure we can find something to do."

"Speech."