Time For Some Fun (closed)

Mossfoot grinned as she padded into the apprentice's den. It'd been so long since Mothstrike had earned her warrior name, and it was about time, she figured, she had another apprentice. She was determined to do a good job. Though she had grown up and learnt how to hunt in ThunderClan, she hoped it wouldn't hinder Quailpaw's training. She was a WindClan cat, through and through, after all.
"Ay, Quailpaw!" Mossfoot called. "We're training today, you ready?"

Quailpaw perked up when she heard her mentor's call. Though she knew some of her Clanmates didn't enjoy having the previously ThunderClan she-cat with them, the apprentice thought she had the best mentor ever. She got to learn things that not even Smokepelt knew, and Mossfoot was as kind a she-cat as the deputy's daughter could ever hope to be. "Comin', Mossfoot!" the gray speckled she-cat responded happily, bounding over to her mentor. "What're we doin' today?" she queried excitedly.

Mossfoot grinned at Quailpaw's enthusiasm. "Well, love, we'll be going out on a border patrol, then we'll try and squeeze in a bit of hunting practice. Sound good?" As an apprentice, Quailpaw was probably the best she could have ended up with. She was excitable, she was energetic and eager. She reminded the older warrior of her younger self, when she was known as Mosswing.

"Come on, let's go!" she meowed, motioning with her tail for the younger cat to follow.

"Sure thing, Mossfoot!" Quailpaw responded easily, trotting along behind her mentor. "Which border are we goin' to- ShadowClan or... RiverClan?" There was a slight hesitation and apprehension in her voice as she mentioned the fish-eating Clan led by Fishstar, the evil she-cat who had broken her father's jaw and tried to make his mother exile him. Cedarfur told the scariest stories about RiverClan- not that Quailpaw was scared, of course. If any of those fish-breaths tried to do anything to WindClan, she could fight 'em off single-pawed!

Mossfoot thought for a second. "ShadowClan border. It smells like foxdung there, but at least we won't be risking getting pushed into the gorge," she chuckled. "Ay, just because I haven't been 'ere long doesn't mean I don't know what's happened between WindClan and RiverClan." The warrior strode alongside Quailpaw, leading her to their destination. "Never liked RiverClan myself. I've gotten myself into more than one border squabble at Sunningrocks over there."

"RiverClan- those prideful, vain brutes," spat Quailpaw in agreement. "If everythin' Cedarfur, Dad an' Ashstar have said is true, they'd as soon kill one of our apprentices as see one." She followed behind her mentor thoughtfully, white paw following gray paw as she walked across the muddy ground towards the marshy pine forests of ShadowClan. "ShadowClan? Their leader is Thrushstar, right? How's WindClan's relations with them, eh?" The gray apprentice wrinkled her nose as she smelled the crowfood-like stench.

"Not great, either," Mossfoot frowned, "-but better than RiverClan, that's for sure! We'd better be careful anyway." The warrior wrinkled her nose as the pair reached the Thunderpath, the hard black surface reeking like Twolegs and carrion. "Urgh. Certainly not sunshine and daisies here, hey? Just across here is ShadowClan. Their territory is marshy and deep with mud, and they're excellent at hunting and attacking at night. Don't ask me how they can live like that, anyway."

"Mud? Urgh," Quailpaw shuddered. "Gross. I don' understand why they can live there, of all places. Even Twolegplace'd be better, I think." She stared curiously at the strange Thunderpath, probing it cautiously with her white paw. It contrasted sharply with the hot, sticky black of the alien substance. She quickly withdrew her paw, making a face. "Twolegs're so odd. I wish they'd jus' leave our forest alone. What is the purpose of this path anyways?"

"Twolegs use it," Mossfoot replied, "-for some reason. Don't see the point of it myself." The warrior glanced at the path ahead. "Let's get a move on, love. Any questions about ShadowClan, ThunderClan, RiverClan or anything? I know a fair bit about 'em, especially ThunderClan, and I'd be happy to answer." She smiled and continued along the border, flicking her tail to show Quailpaw to follow.

Quailpaw stood thoughtfully, wracking her brain for questions. "How do RiverClan cats swim? Why does RiverClan hate us so much? Do ThunderClan cats climb like SkyClan? How are they different? Has Fishstar always been such a fox-heart?" She rattled on as they continued walking. "How.... How good of a leader is Ashstar compared to other leaders?" The last question came quietly, almost hesitantly out of the normally fierce she-cat's mouth.

Mossfoot laughed. "Whoa there, slow down! Well, I honestly don't know how they swim. They do eat a lotta fish though, which makes there pelts kinda water-resistant. RiverClan's always been a rival, probably due to kerfuffles about borders and territory, but that incident with Smokepelt and that apprentice really means they've got a bone to pick with us now. It's not without reason, that's for sure. And yes, ThunderClan can climb trees and stuff, though we're nowhere near as good as SkyClan. ThunderClan is a lot more focused on ground prey like squirrels, mice and voles. Occasional rabbit too. They're all quite stocky over there, though I've gotta say I'm less so than others. My father was a SkyClan cats, that must be where I get it from. Anyway, where was I? Oh yes, Fishstar. I'm not incredibly fond of her either, but to be entirely fair, well, WindClan's done a fair bit to make her clan upset as well. Ashstar, ay? I like 'er. She's lovely, though...even I think what Smokepelt did was wrong. I have my doubts about him sometimes, but I trust Ashstar. She's certainly better than Fishstar, and Thrushstar's a raving lunatic. Crowstar....I don't know much about him, but Darkstar was my mentor. She was lovely too, if a bit....distant." The warrior took a breath. "Whew! So, love, do you want to do a spot of hunting?"

Quailpaw listened with wide blue eyes as Mossfoot gave a rapid-fire stream of answers to her questions. "Yes, I'd love to hunt," she meowed excitedly. "I've been twice before, but I'm a fair long ways from perfect yet. I think y' know that. Can you each me how ThunderClan hunts too, though? I really want to learn!

Mossfoot grinned. "That's a good thing you already know! I've chased down a fair few rabbits in my time but you born 'n bred WindClanners do it better. As for hunting like ThunderClan, I'd be glad to show you. Keep an eye out for any prey as we walk, alright?" The warrior continued along, this time turning in towards the territory. She figured they'd probably have a better chance of encountering prey further into the territory, as opposed to right by the Thunderpath. "I know WindClan hunts be chasing down their prey, but ThunderClan prefers to be a little bit stealthier. We liked to sneak up on our prey, crouch down on our haunches and spring onto the mouse, vole, bird, whatever it was. Rabbits were tricky using that method, but it's certainly possible."