teenagers [c]

Applepaw had spent the past few days working to re-organize the abandoned camp, and he had to admit he’d enjoyed being helpful to his clan. Not. It seemed like he was purposefully given the dullest tasks, and by the time he’d finished his share of the work his paws were so muddy you couldn’t even tell they’d once been white. At least the bulk of the work was over. He ducked out of the apprentice den, narrowing his eyes against the harsh wind and looking around the camp for something to take his mind off his almost mind-numbing boredom. As he looked, he noticed another apprentice, Moonpaw, specifically, and made his way over. He’d seen her in passing but never really taken the time to get to know her, so he supposed now was as good a time as any. Besides, maybe if he made himself look busy it would keep his mentor from popping up to give him more boring work to do.

”Hey Moonpaw.” Applepaw greeted, plopping down beside the other apprentice and beginning to wash his paws.

"Weather's kind of dreadful, don't you think?" He said between licks, attempting to make conversation. He didn't find the topic of the weather particularly interesting, but he'd eavesdropped on overheard plenty of the warrior's conversations, and they seemed to love complaining about it.

Moonpaw had been released from her duties upon returning to camp after hunting, and had sat near the edge of camp, trying to meticulously clean the mud from her paws with a grimace. Focused on her own task, she jumped a bit at the sound of another voice calling to her, glancing up to see one of the other apprentices who had sat and begun to groom his own paws. "Hello uh... Applepaw, right?" She'd been more focused on her training... Hopefully that was the right name. It would be embarrassing if it wasn't.

"It is... So's this camp, honestly. I don't know, I expected it to be... More, I guess. And not as muddy." The dens were coming along, albeit slowly... But the camp still looked and felt like a mess. "It's better than highstones or whatever, don't get me wrong. I just... Sorry, I shouldn't complain." She shook her head.

"Don't worry, I think it's kind of a dump too." Applepaw shrugged. "I dunno why everyone was in such a hurry to get back to this, but maybe it'll look better once all the repairs are done. It's bad enough having to do such dull work, it'd be nice if we at least got to see the sun while doing it." He grumbled, casting an annoyed glare at the dreary sky as if that would somehow cause the clouds to part.

"So what's it like, you know, your mom being deputy and all. I bet she tells you all kind of top secret info on the other clans. When I'm deputy I'm gonna tell my kits all kind of stuff, like the best places for ambushes, and I'll even teach them my super-secret totally rad battle moves!" His tail lashed excitedly, and if he hadn't been in the middle of cleaning his paws he would have given Moonpaw a firsthand demonstration of the super cool moves he'd come up with when he was confined to camp.

"It doesn't feel all that much better than highstones, honestly. But at least we'll have warm dens to sleep in." Eventually. Not soon enough. "The lack of sun just makes the muck and damp feel worse, somehow." She added in agreement.

"Leopardsun? She's great. She's the best! I wish she was my mentor, but Iceheart is good. I just know mom'll show me the best places to hunt when she gets a free moment." Moonpaw felt her chest swell with pride. "...Who says you'll be deputy instead of me?" She retorted, tone cheerful, but a gleam of competitive spirit in her gaze. "My uncles' the leader, it's practically in my blood." She boasted.