SplashClan/Roleplay/Archive 03

Archived 25/04/20
Contains info from April - May 2019

With a flick of her white-tipped tail, Otterthorn padded from the den she shared with Divestar, breathing in the dry air that heralded the near onset of greenleaf. That season came earlier and earlier every year, and the moorland Clan often struggled in the dry weather. For now, it was bearable, and for that reason, Otterthorn intended to take Silverpaw out for an assessment. Patrol planning came first, however, and she cast her olive-toned eyes around camp as she thought of who to send. "Rockrose, Sandrattle - border patrol to BreezeClan. Ashfeather, you can hunt, wherever you feel best. If Divestar chooses to bestir themself you can bring them, if not you're welcome to try and talk Sealblaze or Skyflower into leaving the nursery. Silverpaw, Larkshade, we'll patrol the Tribe border and then try some battle practice, we could all use a refresh on two-on-one battle moves." the deputy called out, a little less confident than usual. However, with the dry heat, her old injury troubled her less and she was able to contribute a little more.
That fact made her more and more conscious of the way she'd been neglecting her duties lately. That was the source of the slight drop in confidence, she was sure the Clan had noticed and would respect her less. Snagging a mouse from the freshkill pile, Otterthorn settled down near Silverpaw, indicating Larkshade was welcome to join them if she wished. "We'll head out once everyone's eaten," she explained; hoping that keeping a more neutral tone would reassure her gentle apprentice.
Divestar was content napping, though Otterthorn's brazen tone roused them from the pleasant half-sleeping state. "I'll hunt today, no problems," they responded cheerfully, nodding to Ashfeather and following the stocky warrior out of camp. Ashfeather pointed out that the hunting grounds were a little stretched lately, though there were no rules against hunting in the neutral zone. With that in mind, the two set off for that marshy area, there was some drier land alongside the GladeClan border and apparently, there were a few vole nests in that area too.
Shellskip was recovering, slowly as was the nature of psychological damage. He'd been visiting the nursery sporadically, he enjoyed Skyflower's company and the kits were growing on him though he couldn't bring himself to think of them as his own. With that in mind, the soft-furred tortie tom padded from the medicine den, shepherding Sparkkit along ahead of him - the lilac tom-kit had had a mild case of whitecough and was now ready to rejoin the others. Glimmerkit hadn't been so lucky, he remembered somberly. Burying so small a body was always hard, and Shellskip still had difficulty processing any feelings about the kits at all.
The medicine cat entered the nursery, moving a little awkwardly in his uncertainty about his role here. He licked Skyflower's cheek affectionately, settling down beside her and nudging Sparkkit over to his siblings. "Sparkkit seems well enough now," he began awkwardly. Honestly, he still wasn't sure how to carry a conversation.
Sparkkit bounced ahead of his father. Glimmerkit's death had been a shock but at such a young age, the kits didn't quite fully understand death, only that their sister lived in the stars now. The ticked-tabby tomkit pounced, gnawing on Skyflower's toe playfully in his eagerness to rejoin the cat he knew as his mother. "Hi! Shellskip's den is stinky, I wanna come back now. Can I? Can I?"
One riot,one ranger! 09:47, April 28, 2019 (UTC)
Larkshade lay awake in her nest with her eyes half open. She felt no need to get up, but she'd awoken a while ago, having first opened her eyes when the last star disappeared from the sky. Hearing Otterthorn call her to head out along with her and Silverpaw to the tribe border, she lazily nodded her head and slowly rose to her paws. Her long legs gave her a bit of height compared to most others, but as she padded out of the warriors' den, she was reminded that Otterthorn was still taller than her. It no doubt peeved her a bit, but she still could not help but admire her. Otterthorn's hardworking personality was an inspiration for her to work even harder than she did, trying to better herself every day. It didn't matter if others thought she was a lazy jerk, as long as she knew she was doing her best for her clan, just like Otterthorn did.
She padded over to where Otterthorn and Silverpaw sat and grabbed the bird that happened to be her namesake, somewhat enjoying the irony, then lay back down and dug into the brown-feathered bird, not before saying a quick hello to the other cats.
I don't get *older* , I level up. 01:27, May 4, 2019 (UTC)
Silverpaw lifted her head and blinked at Otterthorn, she had been more attentive as the weather warmed up, not wandering off to the neutral zone as much. Silverpaw tilted her head, what happened there was no business of the young apprentice, so long as she got her training. Nodding, she picked up a mouse from the prey pile and wandered over to Otterthorn's side, placing her chosen prey down and digging in. As Larkshade joined them, she blinked in a friendly manner, greeting the other cat.
Skyflower let out a delighted purr as Shellskip walked in with Sparkkit, reaching over she gave the kit a loving lick over the ear, purring more as Shellskip greeted her in a kind manner. She flicked her tail out and ushered her foster son toward her, "Of course you can come back, Sparkkit!" she meowed happily, "The nursery wasn't the same without you, Isn't that right kits?" Shimmerkit lifted her head and squeaked in delight, launching herself at the pretty tortoiseshell tom, "Shellskip!" she mewed. "Can I come back to the medicine den and help you?" she blinked up at the tom with glowing golden yellow eyes, eager and hopeful. A light shines best in the dark..
Ashfeather padded along just ahead of Divestar, his tail slightly flicking with annoyance at his former mentor for sending him out in all this heat. He could feel the sun beating down on his back, and had he been simply lying in it, it would’ve been a wonderful feeling, but instead, he was moving at a steady pace towards the neutral zone, his thick fur trapping the heat against his skin. He grumbled under his breath about the heat as they continued along, before glancing back at Divestar. “How’re you doin’ in this heat, old man?”
Larkshade turned towards Silverpaw as she finished off her meal. “Do you think you could take down two cats at once?” She asked, rolling onto her back to let the sunlight warm her belly fur. The warmth and the sound of waves nearly lulled her into a half-asleep daze, but she kept her mismatched eyes open and her head tilted towards Silverpaw to avoid looking at the sun. I don't get *older* , I level up. 02:57, May 5, 2019 (UTC)
Otterthorn would've raised an eyebrow if cats had them. "Well at the very least, she's got to be able to hold her own until someone else can step in and even out the fight. It's highly unlikely an apprentice or junior warrior, or even most of the older warriors - could win a two-on-one fight. The best way to do it is defend until a Clanmate helps out, or make an opening to escape." she drawled. Divestar had taught her that - two-on-one battle moves weren't about winning.
Delicately, the cinnamon she-cat dismembered her mouse and lapped up the pieces before settling to wash the blood from her paws. "Don't get too comfortable there, Larkshade. We'll head out once Silverpaw's finished eating," she added, resisting the childish urge to prod the brown tabby's exposed belly.
Divestar snorted, swatting Ashfeather over the ear lightly. "Well, Otterthorn never managed to drill any respect into *you* did she?" they retorted. "And watch who you're calling old," the leader added, though the masculine epithet did grate slightly. They'd become used to simply ignoring the Clan's occasional mistakes, though some in other Clans were more than just ignorant.
Rather than prodding the smoky tom further, Divestar was content to continue in silence; their ears pricked for any snapping of branches or sucking pawsteps in the mud that might indicate prey. So far, nothing. The chocolate tabby picked up the pace, moving into a steady lope around the Neutral Zone's drier patches, heading for the land near GladeClan. As they neared it, the musky scent of mole reached them. "Well, the others were right. That definitely smells like a vole nest."
Sparkkit's brilliant blue eyes lit up and he took a flying leap at Skyflower, snuggling up under her chin. Then he took off again, a few skipping steps out of her reach to take up his favourite game of hunting Skyflower's grey-and-white hind paw and then proceeding to chew on one of her toes. The little tom's over-long tail swished and he growled ferociously, tiny claws sliding out to grasp onto the paw. "Aha! I have captured her, the fiercest rogue warrior! At my mercyyyy..." he yowled - though the speech was a little muffled. After a while he lost interest in the toe and scrambling up Skyflower's side to chew her ear instead, scrabbling on her shoulders with his hind paws as he struggled to avoid slipping down her sleek fur.
Shellskip snorted softly, the kit's enthusiasm was infectious. He bumped his nose against Skyflower's cheek, still a little uncomfortable but that was fading. The kits were impossible not to love. "Is it alright if Shimmerkit comes with me, then? I think I put anything dangerous up out of her reach." he mewed, a faint purr creeping into his sweet voice. Shimmerkit's irrepressible enthusiasm to learn was sometimes overwhelming, but it was becoming clear as she grew from a stick-tailed wiggly ball of mewling fluff into a cat in miniature that she had a real desire to heal and serve the Clan. He'd consult Huntermoon at the next half-moon, but he already had a strong suspicion that she would ask to be his apprentice. One riot,one ranger! 22:42, May 5, 2019 (UTC)
Ashfeather shook his head as Divestar swatted his ear, “She tried,” he said, before cringing as he realized what he’d called Divestar previously. “Oh.” He turned toward the leader with a shameful look on his face. “Sorry Divestar, my mind blanked for a second there.” He joked around, but he never had any intent to actually hurt anyone, and it saddened him when he realized he’d hurt someone with his rude comments. He picked up his own pace as Divestar moved faster in the direction of GladeClan. Catching the sent of vole in his nose, he slowed, moving quietly to where he thought the smell was strongest.
Larkshade nodded her head. “I am aware.” She smiled. “I had the same mentor as you, and they taught me just the same.” She wiggled a bit, trying to get an itch on her back. “I was just seeing what Silverpaw believes she can do. It is good to have confidence!” She rolled back onto her stomach and stood up as Otterthorn told her to avoid getting comfortable. “Don’t worry about me getting comfortable! I will remain uncomfortable all day long.” She lay down with her paws tucked under her oddly as if to prove her point, before quickly standing back up when she decided she didn’t want to be *that* uncomfortable. I don't get *older* , I level up. 00:58, May 6, 2019 (UTC)
Silverpaw blinked at the other warrior, "Definitely not, but I might be able to protect myself enough until I can be helped?" She licked her lips as she finished the mouse and quickly washed her face. Standing up, the young she-cat flicked her tail, before bounding toward the entrance, "Come on Larkshade, Otterthorn!" she meowed in excitement. Eager to start her assessment. A light shines best in the dark..
Divestar snorted good-naturedly. "That's Otterthorn. For a couple moons she was in my ear with complaints about the most annoying apprentice on the planet. Still, seems you didn't turn out too bad, and I appreciate the apology." they teased, pitching their voice low as they recognised Ashfeather's mind was now on a different task. Slowing to a cautious halt, they lowered their lean frame into a hunting crouch and fixed their intense hawk-gold gaze on the nest, ready to step in if Ashfeather needed a paw.
Otterthorn smiled wryly, standing in a fluid motion and stretching briefly to set off after her apprentice, leaving Larkshade to follow as they headed south for the Tribe border. The dusty red she-cat shook her head, both amused and annoyed at Larkshade's prickly smart-answering - though if it wore on too long her mood would shift from the former and closer to the latter. The ground grew colder underpaw as they traveled towards the Tribe, and Otterthorn looked over at Silverpaw. "Alright, Silverpaw. Run over what we'd do if we encountered a Tribe patrol. All scenarios please, including hostile." she instructed. One riot,one ranger! 00:11, May 18, 2019 (UTC)