Paws Off My Tail!

[Carotius]

Tags: @snowykcnomre
Muse: Average, considering it's late at night
OOC: They start out at camp, then head out to the forest?

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Dusk. The time of the day when the sun began its slow descent into the horizon, to give way to the gloomy moon until the next day. Most living things would take to their nests at this hour. but some didn't - the golden tabby warrior knew of a pawful of creatures that roamed the moonlit territory, hunted by the nightmarish talons of owls and dark hunters. Yet moonlight wasn't until another few hours, so they had to settle with dark orange rays of light for now.

Sparkleap finished grooming out his fur, the stubborn clumps on his shoulders and tail finally relenting to his vigorous licking. The golden warrior had taken an afternoon nap to sleep the heat off, consequently missing the sunhigh patrol that he was originally assigned to. He may have been excused, but he felt really terrible for his actions, and sought to make up to it. And that was what he was going to do right now - a hunting patrol. Or maybe a border patrol...

Who will I take with me...? The thought of finding cats to go with him intimidated the young warrior by a substantial amount. He wished Rowanstrike would come with him, or better yet, lead this intended patrol of his. Sparkleap swallowed the lump in his throat as he glanced around the camp, hoping to spot cats he might have a good rapport with after this patrol. His amber eyes settle on two toms sitting by the warriors den, sharing tongues.

"Misteye! Blazepelt!" he vaguely remembered their names; it was a little difficult to remember all his Clanmates' names when there so many, but he could learn them all another day. "Do...Do you guys wanna go on a hunting patrol?"

[Deleted]

"Misteye! Blazepelt!"

The two toms looked up. Misteye could not see anything but he could hear something.

"It's just Sparkleleap," Blazepelt murmured. Misteye faced Blazepelt, giveing him an annoyed flick of the tail. "Just because I'm blind doesn't mean I can't smell!" He mewed.

"Do...Do you guys wanna go on a hunting patrol?"

Misteye faces Sparkleleap's direction and nodded.Blazepelt agreed cheerfully. He and his blind friend padded to Sparkleleap.

[Carotius]

OOC: SPARKleap, not Sparkleleap. XD

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The golden warrior's eyes lit up in delight and relief when his Clanmates padded up to join very willingly. Now for the next part... He stood there awkwardly, a forepaw scuffing the ground ahead of him; he was waiting for one of them to lead them out to the territory to begin their hunt, but none budged. Sparkleap swallowed another lump.

"Let's go, then!" his voice nearly squeaked. Clearing his throat and briskly turning away, he headed out the entrance. "Open to ideas for places to hunt."

[Deleted]

"Open to ideas for places to hunt."

Blazepelt cracked a half smile. Misteye groaned inwardly. Knowing Blazepelt, the orange tom had something totally mouse brained planned. Misteye guessed that Blazepelt was about to suggest the Thorn Bushes. Misteye predicted correctly. That is what happens when you've been on Blazepelt's adventures since you were a kit. "We should hunt in the Thorn Bushes! There is normally an abundant amount of prey," Blazepelt mewed enthusiastically. "Not the Thorn Bushes!" Misteye protested inwardly.

Blazepelt's eyes sparkled when Sparkleap asked his question. "The Thorn Bushes would be a perfect place to hunt, not to mention a fun place!" Blazepelt thought. He could tell, just by the face Misteye was making, that the blind tom already knew what Blazepelt was thinking about suggesting. Blazepelt shrugged off his friend's look and told Sparkleap about the Thorn Bushes.

[Carotius]

OOC: Misteye is completely blind, right? Then how could he see Blazepelt's smile or eyes?

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"Th-The thorn bushes?" the golden tom swung his head around in surprise, to stare the orange tom straight in the face. "You can't be serious!"

Hunting the thorn bushes? The last time he was near a thornbush, he had barely gotten out with majority of his fur, some of it claimed by the grasps of the prickly things. The other portion of it had been torn out accidentally by his apprentice Kinkpaw as they tried to get them off his pelt; the curly-haired apprentice hadn't been taught in the ways of thorn removal at the point of time. Thinking about it made Sparkleap turn to lick his shoulder fur vigorously, as if he had just lost a clump of his precious golden tabby fur right that instant.

When his tongue had finished rasping down the same clump at least five times, the tom's amber eyes finally blinked in realisation. My pelt's fine.. Errrrr... He gulped down a breath, then lifted his head up to his two Clanmates, half-expecting them to give him the strangest looks. He blinked again as he looked towards Misteye, whose hazy green eyes seem to look straight at him. As if that wasn't the least bit creepy...but Sparkleap thought it was interesting. You won't judge someone the first time you see them. Ever.

It took the meek tom a while before realising he needed to say something. "Oh! Uh..." There wasn't a better place to search for prey in greenleaf; it was, unfortunately, the best. Sparkleap heaved a sigh - he had to take Blazepelt's suggestion. "Thorn Bushes, then. That's where the most prey is, and I'm sure the previous patrol have tried elsewhere."

Muttering to himself, he plodded on through the forest.

[Deleted]

Blazepelt blinked twice. He looked at his friend who was already walking behing Sparkleap. Blazepelt trotted ahead to catch up to his friend. He watched Misteye as the young tom walked around a stump and as he slid through bushes without hesitation. A sad feeling enveloped Blazepelt. The blind warrior would never be able to enjoy LeafClan territory, which was springing with beauty. but Blazepelt looked at Misteye again, and he changed his mjnd. Though Misteye could never see, that never hindered Misteye. The blind warrior loved his life and probably felt lucky to be a warrior. Misteye had known no other and Misteye wanted no other life. That was what was most important.

Misteye followed after Sparkleap, wondering why the tom had brushed his pelt. Misteye may have been blind, but he wasn't deaf! He sped up so the two were side by side. "Do you have a problem with Thorn Bushes? We don't have to go there," Misteye mewed gently.

[Carotius]

Misteye had appeared next to Sparkleap's within a few heartbeats of them agreeing to head to the Thorn Bushes, and the latter practically jumped in his fur at the sudden appearance. The striped beige warrior could navigate the territory's grounds much better than most other cats, and that was saying something. For a moment, Sparkleap's amber eyes looked into Misteye's hazy green ones, hardly believing this cat was really blind. You're special, in a way.

Misteye seemed to be looking at him in concern. "Do you have a problem with the Thorn Bushes? We don't have to go there."

"I don't really mind.. It's the best place for prey right now, since...you know, greenleaf," Sparkleap despaired at his inability to phrase anything in a sensible way. He shook out his pelt, keeping his pace. "It's not really a problem... Just that my brother and his friends once pushed me in when I was younger; had a couple of scrapes that hurt a few days."

He really hoped Misteye wasn't going to laugh at him. Or judge him, even. In fact, he wished he didn't say anything about that memory, of his embarrassing incident that left him looking like a mange-pelt. Maybe Blazepelt would be the one to laugh and bring back the story to the Clan, and then Sparkleap would have to relive it all over again. Would Hawkfeather approve of his son's apparent clumsiness? He wouldn't... but as Sparkleap focused his attention to the section of their path that led to the thorns, he couldn't help but feel Misteye's eyes still on him in consideration.

Would he be different from everyone else?

[Deleted]

Misteye broke out into a grin. He started laughing, thinking about his memories. How long had it been since Blazepelt dragged him to the Thorn Bushes? A snall chuckle from behind Misteye erupted. Blazepelt not soon after appeared by Misteye's side. "Sometime ago, when I was a young apprentice, somehow or another, Blazepelt convinced me to come with him to the Thorn Bushes. We raced to see who could catch the most prey... That was a stupid idea! Blazepelt and I got caught in the Thorn Bushes. Both of us had a hard time escaping," Misteye mewed. Blazepelt nodded in agreement. He was about to tell about the time he went solo hunting in the Thorn Bushes, but first he had to walk into a tree. A mrrow of amusement escaped Misteye. The blind warrior could hear his friend bumb into a tree. "Come on, tree bumber, let's head into the Thorn Bushes!" Misteye called out to his friend, clearly amused.

The ginger tom strolled contently behind. He laughed cheefully when he heard Sparkleap's story. It reminded him of his apprenticeship. It was quite funny, actually. Not surprising, Blazepelt was always getting scolded. Blazepelt caused so much mischief as a young cat. He sped up so he could hear Misteye speak.

[Carotius]

The golden tom let his lips curl into a smile. A genuine one. When was the last time he ever had a good talking session of silly memories with anyone? Long ago enough for him to feel that this was so different from his usual lifestyle. Sparkleap was beginning to feel a kind of warmth being around these two toms, even though they'd only been out for less than an hour thereabouts, but already did the former feel as if he had actual friends.

Ones that don't really make fun of you, anyway. He shrugged his shoulders. The Thorn Bushes held many memories for LeafClan warriors from their apprenticeship, some even from the days they were (very naughty) kits, both good and bad. Were there worse ones, he didn't know. but maybe he was in store for an amusing one today. Maybe.

"I'm hoping for starling or a pigeon today. I'm in the mood to have feathers in my face," he turned to look at Misteye, then at Blazepelt who was catching up to them. "Maybe.. Maybe a pheasant, if we're lucky."

[Deleted]

The ginger tom grinned. He happened to know that birds mainly stayed above the Thorn Bushes and normally it was tricky to jump up and catch them. He had tried it once. but it wasn't too late to try again! Blazepelt's attention moved away from his thoughts and to his friend. The grey tom didn't wear much of a face. It was kind of blank, like he was contemplating on a matter. Which one, who knew? "That sounds fun!" Blazepelt mewed cheerfully, not mentioning on how hard it was also. He shot a glance back at Misteye, hoping the grey tom wouldn't reveal how tedious (Too strong of a word?) catching birds in the Thorn Bushes was. It just so happened that Misteye had been watching him when he tried to catch birds in those thorns.

Misteye sighed inwardly. Catching birds? In the Thorn Bushes. He still remembered when Blazepelt had been trapped when the ginger tom attempted to do that. Misteye akready knew about Blazepelt's skill when it came to hunting. Despite his little attention to his mentor, Blazepelt happened to be a skilled hunter. "I hope we don't get stuck in the thorns!" Misteye thought. Two sides of himslef formed. One was on the idea of leaving Blazepelt and Sparkleap, and the other wanted to come with them. With these two sides arguing, he barely heard Blazepelt meow.

Carotius

[Carotius]

With a sigh of relief, Sparkleap broke into a run, remembering his pawsteps of long ago that led to the prickly patch of shrubs that had given him his first bad fur day. Maybe they could find a curious pheasant pecking around in the Thorn Bushes, unaware that it had already been targetted as prey of the day by the LeafClan warriors that dominated the birches of the forest. The golden tabby could almost taste its delectable flesh between his teeth, slathering all over his tongue in what could be greenleaf's most epic feast.

It didn't take long before they sighted the patch of bushes. Sparkleap ground to a halt, his tail high in anticipation of prey and fear for being rammed into the prickles. With them, surely we can catch something big for the whole Clan to feed on! Speaking of 'them'... The tabby swung his golden head around, amber eyes wide with confusion as he searched for his Clanmates. Had they fallen behind or something?