A First For Everything? {For Willow}

Pepper sighed, she now understood how tired Bat was when they needed to restock herbs, she often had to pull herself into burrows to keep warm before venturing out again. With a mouth full of sour dock leaves, she huffed. The she-cat could see small snowflakes appearing. She'd need to get back fast, stuck in this wind with sharp snow lashing at her would not be fun in the slightest.

Redpaw, a young apprentice, hopped across the cold ground. She was out exploring on her own, getting to know the lay of the land. She stopped for a moment and sneezed as a snowflake landed on her nose. Parting her jaws, she tried to take note of all the scents around her. Her thick ginger fur bristled in surprise when she caught the scent of a cat who carried a distinctly non-WindClan smell. Redpaw's ears were poised, straining to hear for any signs of the cat ahead. The scent is fairly fresh, so this strange cat must be not very far ahead. She continued forward at a slower, much more cautious pace.

Seeing something moving in the distance, she narrowed her eyes, if it was a hare, she'd be fine. However, this pelt was too dark to be a hare's. The ginger pelt must belong to a cat. She crouched low and began pulling herself towards the barn, glancing back at the dark blot that was creeping closer. The snow was growing deeper and harder to walk in and the cripple struggled to get to shallower snow drifts, her breath fogging and getting lost in the gradually thickening snowflakes.

The accumulating snow forced Redpaw to hop the rest of the way towards the black and white cat. She lifted her fluffy red tail in the air and hoped she looked bigger than she was. With a pounding heart, the young she-cat realized just how potentially dangerous this encounter could get. It was her duty to her Clan and the Code to keep other cats off of their territory, but she had no desire to fight this stranger alone.

Now only a few tail lengths away from the intruder, Redpaw raised her voice above the wind and said with all of the confidence she could muster, "You there! What brings you to WindClan territory? Why have you trespassed on our land?"

OoC: I apologize for the late response! I was out of town with family. It's a bit difficult to come up with a good post between food, presents, and entertaining little cousins. ^.^

OOC: no prob!

Pepper placed down the leaves, pinning them with a paw while she spoke. "I just needed herbs! I'm leaving now, you don't need to worry." she meowed, she couldn't stand this cold much longer! Half her body was always in the snow, she had been chilled all the way through. She gripped the leaves in her jaws and willed her only two workable legs to drag her body forward and away from the apprentice. The trees that lined the barn were getting closer now. She'd be home soon.

Redpaw relaxed and at the same time even felt a pang of sympathy for this she-cat who struggled against the cold with her bundle of herbs. Realizing she really meant her or her Clan no harm, Redpaw thought to herself, surely it's in keeping with the Warrior Code to help any cat who is so obviously in need. Redpaw cleared the rest of the distance between her and the stranger.

"I'm Redpaw." She offered as she came up beside her. "Let me help you carry some of that. Besides, I better make sure she really does leave our territory. "You don't cary the scent of any of the four Clans. Where are you from? What's your name?" Redpaw's barrage of questions came out all at once out of pure curiosity. She was typically a quiet cat, only speaking when spoken to. But, there was something about this black and white stranger that made her want to trust her, get to know her.

She gave the apprentice a wary look, she had been tricked too many times to not feel paranoid now. "I come from the barn, just past the border. My name is Pepper." she put the dock leaves down and looked at the apprentice. She looked so tired and weak, the apprentice probably wouldn't have helped her if she didn't look so pitiful! Shivering, Pepper looked towards her home.

Redpaw dipped her head in greeting. "Nice to meet you, Pepper." She lowered her head again to pick up the leaves from the snowy ground. Seeing the other she-cat shiver, the ginger apprentice pressed her pelt against Pepper's, suddenly thankful to have a bit of warm company for herself as well on such a cold day. "So...how are you faring this leaf-bare?" Redpaw asked. She new the harshest time of the year was hard on every cat.

She smiled when the apprentice pressed to her. When she asked about how she was doing, she frowned. "Not very well... we were ambushed not too long ago.." she sighed, moving forward. She kept the rest of the details to herself.  This cat most likely didn't want that burden.

"Ambushed!" Redpaw echoed in surprise. No wonder she's gathering herbs. "You said we... do you live with other cats?" She kept pace with her new acquaintance, talking through the leaves she carried.

Redpaw hesitated when they reached the barn, following after Pepper slowly with flattened ears. The wary little she-cat dropped the leafy bundle on the floor. "There are so many strange smells!" She mewed. Redpaw watched Pepper shake the snow from her pelt and the apprentice did the same, flinging snow in every direction. The warmth of the barn seeped into her skin and made her feel like she had been frozen by the leaf-bare wind but was now able to thaw out.

Pepper chuckled, moving the event herbs with the rest in a burrow. She glanced at the fresh-kill pile and then at the windy moor. "You can stay for a bit if you want, before there were five or six if us so, there's plenty of room for you to warm up. Thanks for your help." The loner said, grooming down her chest fur and giving the wounds on her limp hind legs a worried look.

Mobiiile, sorry for the wait, this topic somehow slipped right past me.)

Redpaw, appreciative for the chance to bask in the barn's warmer air for a little while longer, mewed her thanks before following Pepper's gaze to the black-and-white she-cat's wounded leg. "Is there anything I can do for that?" The ginger apprentice was no medicine cat, but she couldn't stand to see a cat in pain, especially one she was starting to warm up to, and that leg would likely effect Pepper's ability to hunt for herself. She couldn't very well leave this cat unable to take care of herself. Perhaps I should get Beetlepaw. But what would he say about me being so friendly with a cat outside of WindClan?

OoC: Haha, that's alright, wasn't sure if you forgot or were all done :-)

Pepper smiled sadly, "It's permanent, I'm afraid. I was hit by a monster, took out both of my hind legs. But, during the abush, they got sliced. I've been treating them to prevent infection. Going out it this weather probably isn't good for them." She sighed, the barn had empty nests strewn about, most of them in pieces or loosing their shape. It only made everyone the barn feel more hollow and lonely. If she could use at least one of her hind legs, she could have followed Bat to DarkClan.

Pepper guessed Jaguar had left to do something. She picked up a mouse and dropped it by Redpaw. "Why did you help me?" She asked, genuinely curious.