All That Glitters Is Not Gold (closed training topic)

Ashstar breathed the brisk morning air, letting the frosty leaf-bare chill ruffle her gray fur. It was still damp with sweat from the latest nightmare- her Clanmates turning against her and allying with RiverClan and SkyClan, Falconstone leading WindClan, the death of her loyal Clanmates, who called out for help as they were brutally murdered and the leader could do nothing to stop it- and it ended the same way as always. Fishstar, teeth bared in a bloody snarl, ripping out her throat, feeling the warm blood spatter her face, watching the horrified look on her son's face before the same was done to him. Perhaps training with her grandkit would help keep the bloody terrors her brain invented off her mind. "Ryepaw," she called into the apprentices' den, "time for training."

Waking with a jolt, Ryepaw lifted his head to see Ashstar peering into the den, most likely wanting to go on a patrol. Getting up, the tom's deformed hind legs sent pain shooting up his back and he let out a growl of annoyance as he tried to make his way through the sleeping apprentices, dragging his left hind leg along with him and let out a yawn, his eyes still adjusting to the morning light.

Unlike most cats, Ryepaw hadn't been able to get a good nights sleep in what felt like moons. He'd tried to convince himself that pains that he constantly woke to were simply growing pains, but even he knew better than to lie to himself. Though he didn't want to accept it, his left hind leg would never heal and the random stiffness that occurred in his paws was most likely never going to go away either. The again, it seems as though Smokepelt and Ashstar hadn't been sleeping too well either, so maybe regular sleep deprivation just ran in the family.

Slowly but surely, Ryepaw made his way out of the apprentice den and over to Ashstar. Not saying a word, the shy little tom looked everywhere but the leader's gaze, not being the confrontational type.

Ashstar gave her apprentice a reassuring grin as he made his way out of the den. Ryepaw certainly didn't give up easily, you had to give him that. Training him would be a challenge, definitely. But if the tom was dedicated enough and worked hard, it'd all be worth it. "We're going to the ShadowClan border," she told him clearly, gesturing in the border's direction with her fluffy gray tail. She preferred taking new apprentices to the ShadowClan border first- while the Clan was hardfhardfly their allies, they were much less likely to be attacked- and took experienced apprentices to the dangerous, and sometimes frightening, RiverClan border. She bet all the kits in the nursery had heard the tale at least three times- well, at least it'd keep them from running off over there. StarClan forbid. "Then maybe we can learn some hunting afterwards. Sound good?" she continued kindly.

Giving the leader a nod, Ryepaw didn't say a word as he limped along side Ashstar, dragging his useless left hind leg along with him, and could tell that today was going to be a long and excruciating journey, the tiny two cat patrol already starting at a slower pace because of his problems. Slowly but surely, the two of them made their way out of the camp and onto the moor, new sights and scents hitting him in the face like a smack to the face.

While most apprentice's were ecstatic when on their first patrol out of camp, Ryepaw found himself becoming overwhelmed and didn't know what to think of any of it. Tall field grass towered above, surrounding him on all sides. From what sounded like a little ways away, the sounds sounds of birds crying out and randomly darting out from the grass rung in his ears, and his thoughts started to whirl around, becoming jumbled together. There was no escaping the strange smells that stung his nose and starting to breathe heavily, the little white and grey tom tucked his tail under his legs, eyes wide, and ears flat on his head.

Snapping his head around whenever he caught the sound of an something or someone shuffling through the thick forest of grass, the fact that he couldn't see through the moor brush made his paranoia even worse. Was someone watching him? He was hunter... but was he about to be the hunted?

Feeling as though the world was closing in on him, Ryepaw crouched low to the ground, practically laying down as he tried to be as small as possible. He tucked his legs under his pelt, though his limp hind leg stuck out awkwardly. Breathing fast and in short breathes, the little tom rested his head on the ground in front of him and closed his eyes, praying that when he opened them, he'd be back at camp, in the safety of his mother's presence, and away from this overstimulating nightmare.

Ashstar looked back to see Ryepaw panicking on the ground, looking for all the world like he was trying to make himself look as small as possible. He seemed to be having some kind of anxiety attack. The gray-furred leader ran back over to her apprentice, trying to help him calm down. "Shhh. It's okay, Ryepaw. Nothing here can hurt you with me around. You're safe here." She put her tail over him like her mother used to do when she was scared as a kit. She started humming one of her mother's lullabies, murmuring some words to the nonexistent melody whispered by the moor wind. She wasn't exactly singing, but her voice had a melodic quality to it.

"Summer in the hills, those hazy days I do remember.... We were running still, had the whole world at our feet." Memories of Icestorm flooded her mind, patrols with the warmth of the summer sun on their pelts, racing across grassy moors under an endless blue sky. "Watching seasons change, our roads were lined with adventure; mountains in the way couldn't keep us from the sea." The simple joy of those moments washed over her, memories of better times. "Here we stand, up in arms- this is home where we are, ever strong in the world that we made." A breeze rushed by, ruffling the leader's fur. Ashstar closed her eyes. It smelled like spring, like wildflowers... like Icestorm. "I still hear you on the breeze, see your shadows in the trees- moving on, memories never change." The leader breathed in the sweet scent and gazed reassuringly at Ryepaw.

OOC: https://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=B7xai5u_tnk

Still squinting his eyes shut so much that little white dots raced around the darkness, Ryepaw's heart practically jumped out of his chest when something wrapped around him. Was this the end? Was he really going to die like this? Alone and scared... without Hazefur to comfort him? That was no way to die, well, then again, what did he know about death?

Praying to StarClan like he'd never prayed before, the apprentice waited for the shock of pain to set in, but to his surprise, it never came. Instead, a familiar scent and calm voice filled the air round him. Slowly opening his eyes, Ryepaw craned his neck to see Ashstar sitting next to him with her tail wrapped around his small body. Staying quiet as the older she-cat began slightly humming something, Ryepaw didn't know what to say or do. Was she trying to comfort him? And why did what she was melodically speaking sound so depression and emotional? A bit too emotional for his taste.

Standing up, Ryepaw turned around to the she-cat with a blank face. Not really knowing what to think about her comforting him, the apprentice was as blunt and stoic as ever. "Les go," the crooked jawed cat mumbled softly and turned around so that he faced away from the leader. Part of him appriticated her trying to help, but he didn't want to look like a kit, even though he had just been acting like one.

Ashstar stifled a smile of relief and nodded, getting up as if nothing had happened. She continued onwards across the territory, approaching the ShadowClan border. The piney, marshy, musky smell that some described as similar to crowfood hit her nose as they drew near, bringing with it instead a nostalgic sense of home. Ryepaw probably wouldn't like it, though. She stopped when they reached the border, looking out into the other Clan's territory. Towering pine trees, green as always, reached for the sky. The muddy ground still had pawprints impressed into the squishy soil. A recent patrol, she assumed. The WindClan leader took a deep breath of the scent, inhaling kithood memories as she did so. She had come a long way from where she began, and she knew her parents were proud of her. They had told her she had a destiny in WindClan, after all, and they had certainly turned out to be right.

The gray-furred she-cat turned back to her apprentice. "ShadowClan live on the other side of this border," she informed him. "Though we aren't on stellar terms with them, they're definitely friendlier towards us than RiverClan. A patrol has been here recently, so it's not likely that we'll run into one. What else do you know about ShadowClan?"

Making their way to the ShadowClan border, Ryepaw wrinkled his nose at the horrid stench of what looked like the Thunderpath. Why in StarClan's name did it smell so bad and how could Ashstar scent out ShadowClan over it?

Giving his head a shake and trying to adjust to the overwhelming smell, Ryepaw looked up to the leader and then back to the line of trees that sat across the border. "Shabowclam..." he repeated to himself softly, trying ever so hard to recall what he'd been told about them, his memory not the sharpest that it could be. "Bey are abwake at hark," the tom mewed softly, keeping his ears perked and eyes alert for any movement.