bundles of joy [o]

Ferretpaw pushed past the shrubbery and into ShadowClan camp, carrying a plump thrush by the tail feathers. She paused for a second to catch her fleeting breath; she had been hunting from early into the morning, but luck hadn't sided with her. A mouse, which she had eaten on her way back, and the bird she was currently carrying. The russet tabby tilted her head back, blinking as she watched the position of the sun in the sky. The kits usually got up about this time, starting their daily dose of adorable wreckage.

The apprentice, still carrying the piece of fresh-kill, made her way towards the entrance of the nursery, hidden cleverly by layers of greenery. She nosed around the entrance and placed the food down, licking her muzzle to rid herself of the unpleasant aftertaste of feathers. Crouching, the cat went inside, blinking to adjust herself to the dim light filtered by leaves above. The air was humid and thick, and Ferretpaw sucked in a greedy breath as she settled down on her haunches.

The giant leopard-pelted warrior was crouched down, each careful pawstep taking him closer and closer to his prey. Though this prey wasn’t a normal victim targeted by cats, it was seen as a predator to all. All but this warrior, the mightiest of all warriors was going to bring a dog in as fresh-kill and be seen as a hero. His steps were silent in the trees, and his victim was completely unaware of their demise that was soon to come. The warrior, soon in close vicinity, bunched his strong muscles in preparation, unsheathed his blade-like claws, and att-...

Jolting from his sleep, Leopardkit lept to his feet hissing as if he were that mighty warrior in his dream. Huffing in disappointment, the kit looked around the nursery at all the sleeping figures and the half-awake cats he had awoken. The tom was bored, and he couldn’t just wake everyone up that he wanted to play with as that would definitely result in some very unhappy queens. Plus, sleepy kits were no fun to play with, they always wanted to just go back to sleep. So the tom stretched out his tired bones, yawning before he hopped from his nest and tiptoed around the queens and other kits. He had to find something to do or he was just going to die of boredom, even if it required him to sneak out of the nursery.

Before he got to the entrance to the den though, Leopardkit saw the shadow of another cat entering and saw his chance. Darting behind a nest closest to the entrance, he dropped into a crouch. Or what he thought qualified as a crouch. His hind quarters were raised high in the air, and the front of his body close to the ground, his tail flicked as he waited for the other cat to stop moving. Once the she-cat rested down on her haunches Leopardkit lept forward onto the she-cat’s tail, attempting to pin it down with a playful yowl.

ooc;; do you mind if I join this?

ooc;; not at all

Her eyes adjusted to the light, and the figures of sleeping bodies came into focus. She looked over every one of the kits, small, big, dreaming sweet or sour, with the same, sweet gaze, and a gentle smile etched on her face. Nothing seemed out of place, and everything was in perfect, cozy order. The sight brought a twinge of sleep to her, and she yawned, brandishing her otherwise impressive canines.

Determined not to fall asleep though, the fluffy she-cat flicked her tail and shrugged, bringing herself back to reality from the dream she was threatening to slip into. One flick, two flicks, and suddenly, something held her tail down. Ferretpaw whipped her head around, eyes narrowed at whoever was responsible. Her scrutinizing gaze softened when she noticed the bundle of fur that was Leopardkit. His crouch was everything from clumsy to unsteady, but from his determination alone the apprentice saw a fierce warrior in the making. He reminded her of herself a lot.

"Impressive, bub." the russet tabby chuckled, her face speckled by the light filtering inside the nursery, bringing out the red in her coat. "What's a fierce warrior like you doing in the nursery?" Ferretpaw continued, her tone overly dramatic, amusing herself.

Careful to keep his tiny, needle-like claws sheathed, Leopardkit chuckled at himself as he continuously pinned down the tail of the she-cat. His primary ambition in life, however short his life so far has been, was to be the very best warrior in ShadowClan. To be the strongest, fastest, best hunter, and best fighter. He wanted to be it all. So, as the voice of the older cat reached his ears, he sat up with his chin high. A purr rumbled in his throat as he grinned at her question, so he quickly responded, “I’m just waiting on my apprentice ceremony. The queens say I’m not old enough or big enough yet, but I think I’m ready.”

Of course the young tom was incredibly cocky in his haste to grow up already and be a warrior, it was every kit’s dream to be a warrior. It has to be the greatest honor to be able to help out their Clan, and Leopardkit wanted to be the strongest warrior ever. But then he remembered the cat in front of him and quickly began a bombardment. “Oh! Who’re you? Are you an apprentice? Or a warrior? What’s it like? I bet you have so much fun!” The excitement was bubbling in him, only for the fact that he potentially was talking to a warrior, so maybe Ferretpaw could tell him all about the life outside of the nursery.

The gentle smile lingered on her muzzle, and, wishing to entertain the youngster, the she-cat flicked her bushy tail up and down continuously, watching him trying to pin it to the ground. She stifled a laugh. "You're in an awful hurry." Ferretpaw mused through an exhale, her words drifting away as if they were never spoken. She cast a glance away from the kit and to the sleeping ones, as if she was just daring any kind of danger to threaten them.

"Hm? Oh, I'm an apprentice. But think I'll become a warrior soon." the russet tabby responded, a spark of excitement lighting in her heart. As much fun as it was training with Lizardtail, she couldn't wait to enter the new stage of her life, and maybe train her own apprentice. Even have her own kits...

ooc;; sorry for the awful writing, i'm a bit rusty eheh

The large leopard-pelted kit moved to sit in front of the apprentice, sitting down but continuously moving and flicking his tail in excitement. This was a real apprentice talking to him! Someone he aspired to be like. He absolutely could not wait for the day of his apprentice ceremony, the day he began his journey to becoming a warrior. Leopardkit wanted to be in the place this she-cat was, so close to being a warrior. But, he didn’t want to completely scare her away with all the bombardment of questions, so he spoke as calmly as the bundle of excitement could possibly speak. Though he failed in the process. “Oh, that’s so cool! I can’t wait to be an apprentice. What all do you do? I mean, I’ve heard stories but I’m not sure which ones are true and which ones aren’t.” Then, through a couple deep breaths, the tom tried to calm himself quite a bit. Warriors didn’t act like this, they were always cool and collected. They didn’t freak out when someone they aspired to be walked in and was talking to them...did they? Either way, he tried to play everything off a bit better, just to keep a good image of himself.

“I’m Leopardkit, what’s your name?”

ooc;; it’s not awful at all!