Mud and training (Swift)

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((OOC: I'm very very sorry this took so long, Swift. Dx
Tags: @swifttail))


Hawkstrike settled down in the Hollow, relaxing as he felt the cool mud seep into his fur. He positively loved this place; it was cool, peaceful, and not to mention absolutely filthy- if it was one thing he loved it was dirt. The way it caressed his pelt, warming him on cold nights, hugged him like something motherly; it was all just splendid. This was where cats belonged, with the earth and the rainwater and the narrow part of the river rumbling gently in the background. With nature. They belonged with nature.

Of course, he'd never allowed his secret love of the earth to be discovered; if it got out that he adored mud...

... Frankly, it'd be quite embarrassing.

The tall StormClan warrior sighed and settled down to wait for his apprentice to arrive as the sun appeared on the horizon's edge.

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Pinetail padded up to the edge of the Murky Hollow and was about to call out to see if anyone was there when he noticed Hawkstrike sinking in to the mud. Pinetail hid behind a bramble and watched the powerful tom caress the mud as if it was a precious kit. Pinetail was just retreating from the Hollow when he loosened a pebble. It clattered down the side of the Hollow and Pinetail froze as Hawkstrike looked him sharply in the eyes.

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((OOC: Well, not sure where Swift ran off to, so...))


Hawkstrike's head snapped around sharply and the huge tom found himself fixing Pinetail with an alarmed stare. Quickly standing and shaking the mud from his fur, the senior warrior fixed the younger tom with a startling glare.

"What do you think doing?" he growled, frantically shaking earth from his short brown pelt. He might as well have said "tell me how long you've been there or I'll rip your fur off"; you could practically feel the ice and embarrassment in his searing amber eyes. Such a thing was rare for such a quiet, gentle cat, but this. This was humiliating.

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Pinetail backed away slowly and stammered "O-oh hey there Hawkstrike. I, ummmm, didn't see you there, uhhhhh..... I was tracking a....ummmm....squirrel. Yeah, I was tracking a squirrel! Well, I.....best be off." He smiled nervously and began to pad slowly away into the forest.

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This poor idiot is a bad liar...

Sighing, Hawkstrike watched him walk away, prepared to let him leave. However, after glancing around at the empty clearing, he felt a sudden prickle of loneliness, and raised his tail, calling after Pinetail:

"Hey, it's alright, I don't bite." Hesitating, the senior warrior added, "Come talk with me for a bit." He hadn't been this social for moons, so he couldn't remember the last time he'd talked so much. If a couple of hesitant sentences counted as "much". Attempting to look more friendly, Hawkstrike sat back down and lowered his tail to rest more comfortably on the ground. With the sudden realization that he didn't want to wait for an apprentice that might never come, he'd also noticed that Pinetail, despite being many moons younger, was just as socially insecure as he was (if perhaps in a more noticeable way). Suddenly desperately hoping that Pinetail would turn around and come back, he settled back down, and for the first time, cared that his long sandy pelt didn't blend too well with the dark brownish-black of the mud that still clung stubbornly to it.

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Pinetail stopped. Hawkstrike wanted to talk? Pinetail was expecting some sort of punishment. He looked nervously at the big tom and mewed " O-okay." Suddenly the russet tom skidded down the hollow's edge, spraying mud all over the senior warrior. Pinetail flashed him a playful grin before pelting across the clearing and hiding be hind a rock, every now and then kicking up some mud that flew onto Hawkstrike.

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Socially insecure? I think I might've been a little mistaken.

Welcoming the feeling of mud seeping into his fur, Hawkstrike sprang to his paws, a spark of rare playfulness flashing within him. This might be a little funner than talking, yes?

A single bound and the sheer power of this huge cat was obvious. Muscles rippling beneath thick brown fur, long legs stretching out in front if him and hitting the ground strongly, shoulders flexing smoothly- Hawkstrike was like a well-oiled muscle machine. How many hours did he spend running or climbing trees or swimming to up his strength? How was it possible to really be so tall and muscled and sleek at the same time? Was this thing taking steroids? Do we really want to know the answers to these ridiculously dramatic questions?

Taking pleasure in the feeling of earth spraying his face,  Hawkstrike pounded after Pinetail with frightening power and speed, then pretended to be thrown off when the younger tom darted behind a rock. He didn't follow him. Instead, he slithered atop the rock as if he was a pointy-eared snaked and poked his head over the edge to grin smugly down at Pinetail. "Where are you going to run now, you squirrel?"

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Pinetail gave a mock squeak of terror before mewing "Well up a tree I guess." He lept up and landed on an overhanging pine branch. He bounded across to an oak that was next to him. Pinetail mewed with surprise as the branch bent under his weight and with an earsplitting crack he was thrown to the ground. The russet warrior rubbed his hind leg and mewed " I think I'd much rather be a cat than a squirrel. I prefer my paws firmly planted on the ground."

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Hawkstrike watched with mild impressment as Pinetail bounded along the branch. but suddenly, it broke, and he tumbled to the ground with it. A spark of surprise and worry lit in the senior warrior's chest, and he quickly leaped from the rock and bounded forward to sniff at Pinetail's hind leg, which he seemed to be having a spot of trouble with.

but after a moment, he realized that it wasn't even bleeding, much less sprained. Hawkstrike sat back with a relieved whoosh of breath and eyed the younger warrior, the expression on his face showing amusement. "Yes, you seem a bit less of a showoff sitting on your tail in solid ground."

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"Hahaha, very funny." Mewed Pinetail. He got up and shook out his fur, spraying dirt everywhere and covered his pelt in swift licks. He then flashed Hawkstrike one of his playful grins and lept at the senior warrior, pinning him to a rock. 

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Hawkstrike felt mild surprise at Pinetail's sudden attack, but knowing that they were only playing, was careful to keep his claws sheathed. When his back hit the rock, it impacted a little too hard, knocking the wind out of him and temporarily stunning him. but after only a couple of seconds, he couldn't help but grin as well, glancing into the laughing eyes of the young face in front of him as he kicked out strongly with his back paws to push him off, then attempt to tackle him. Pinetail might have been strong, but Hawkstrike was like- well, in our human terms, a bit like a bodybuilding football star. He might not be too swift, but his strength would be hard to overcome even as he was going easy.


((OOC: Hurr hurr, my autocorrect keeps wanting to make Pinetail Ponytail.))

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((OOC Hahahahaha))

IC:

Pinetail skidded across the hollow and when he had got his breath back Pinetail ran at Hawkstrike, leaping over him at the last minute. The russet tom spun around and lightly ran a paw over Hawkstrike's flank. Pinetail bounded away and waited for Hawstrikes next move.

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His tackle met empty air, and Hawkstrike's head whipped around just in time to see Pinetail's forepaw pass over his flank. Well, I've got a bit of a disadvantage here... Giving him no time to anticipate his next move, Hawkstrike immediately slammed his paws down into the ground and spun on his forepaws, then struck the ground once more with his hindpaws, propelling himself towards the younger warrior to slam into him as effectively as possible, forgetting for a split second that Pinetail was probably pounds less than he and could easily get hurt this way.

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Pinetail gasped as Hawkstrike slammed into him. The russet warrior, instead of fighting against the older warrior, wrapped his paws round Hawstrike's waist and went limp. That should do the trick, thought Pinetail. He mewed " Now who's the squirrel?"