Ripped Webs {Closed For Rippedsky}

Webtail stood on one of the many stone ridges throughout the territory, trying to let his numb paws warm up again. He had dusted off a part of the stone and scented the air, catching the scent of another clan member. His large ears perked up as he looked around for the other. He saw part of a black and white pelt and tried to figure out who it was. The mouse and vole he had caught were laying on top of his perch with him.

"Oh, hi, Webtail," Rippedpaw greeted the warrior as he padded up. He'd been out exploring the territory and practicing his tree climbing when he smelled another cat. The apprentice hadn't been expecting the former Shadowclan warrior, and he didn't know him all that well. But they were still clanmates and he had been interested in getting to know all of the cats that he now shared a clan with. It was weird to him that Webtail used to be Shadowclan. He hadn't ever had too many experiences with Shadowclan warriors. I guess it doesn't matter now. We're all Skyclan anyways. As Crowstar said...

Webtail smiled, "How's your training going?" He nodded towards the trees. For a former WindClan cat, he imagined climbing was deathly new. "If you need any help you can ask me." He meowed, looking up into the pines. The usual sharp jab of needles that had made his pads tough was blocked by the fluffy snow that coated the ground, he wasn't complaining. Snow in ShadowClan consisted of slush or ice. Never this pleasant kind unless you went to a border.

"I could definitely use the help," He admitted with a sigh, "The different battle moves and hunting techniques have come easily, but despite all of Crowstar instruction, I'm still awful at climbing. We didn't have to worry about trees in Windclan..." Rippedpaw looked down at his paws. Between admitting his weaknesses and reminding himself of Windclan, he felt a little uncomfortable. Every now and then he would bring up his birth clan, but he usually tried not to think about it. That's in the past... He reminded himself silently.

Webtail nodded and looked around for a tree that would be easier to climb, spotting one that slanted to the side. "No worries, Rippedpaw. I doubt anyone expects you to miraculously know it right away! I think you're being too hard on yourself. How about we try that one first? That way I can see what you know." he meowed, nodding towards the tree he had spotted and returning to his prey to bury it for now.

Rippedpaw followed the warrior's gaze over towards the crooked tree. He nodded and padded over, flicking his tail anxiously. The apprentice awkwardly made his way up the bark. Thankfully, he didn't have to deal with having a bulky figure to hold him back. However, he wasn't used to the motions of scrabbling up the tree and always came up a little uneven. Once he reached a branch to settle on, he stopped and dug his claws into the bark in frustration.

Webtail let out a soft chuckle as the apprentice scrambled up the tree. "While I admire your effort, you've made this too hard for yourself. Wrap your forelegs around the tree and use your hind legs to push yourself up. Then do it backward to get down." the tall tom meowed, he jumped the thicker part of the tree and then the sound of his claws scratching bark broke the winter silence where birdsong used to be.

As he held on with his paws, he pushed himself up to a branch near the one Rippedpaw had gotten to. "If the tree is too thick to get up, I either wouldn't do it or try to find hollows in the trunk to hold onto." Webtail meowed. His long tail draped from the branch and pine needles brushed his face and sprinkled onto his shoulders.

"Since you're already up here, use your tail to balance you when moving in the branches. If you fell, you could use your tail to help turn around and land on your feet.'' he said, smiling at Rippedpaw.

Rippedpaw stuck his tail out, feeling a little awkward as he did so. Although, he felt his balance improve drastically. He attempted to haul himself up the trunk as Lighteningstrike instructed. His long legs wrapped around the bark and he dug his claws in tight. Within seconds, he was a few tail lengths higher than before. The apprentice stopped, panting with effort, but smiling at the fact his technique was already improving.

"Like that?" He looked down at the warrior, a smile over his features.

Webtail nodded and heard the flapping of a bird as it landed on a branch nearby. It upset the snow on it and soon, Webtail got a face full of it. With a sneeze, he hooked his claws into the wood to keep himself grounded and shook some of the snow off his face. With an embarrassed smile, he looked at Rippedpaw. He shot the sparrow a glare when it flew off and sent another dust of snow onto Webtail. His whiskers twitched and he turned his attention back to the apprentice. "You're doing rather well, I think you just needed someone to put the process into words. It just gets easier from here now."

Rippedpaw let out a soft mrrow of laughter as snow fell down on Webtail, but he tried to stifle it.
"Thanks, Webtail. That really helped," His eyes were bright with happiness at the fact he'd finally been able to climb a tree. And not badly too, thanks to the warrior's help. The apprentice's features darkened slightly though as he added, "It's been hard trying to fit in with the Skyclan cats. This is definitely my home now, but I was built for running the moors. It's tough to fit in with those so different sometimes. Especially since some of them hate me..." He sighed as he looked down at the ground. Rippedpaw hadn't meant to say so much, but it had been weighing on him for some time now and he felt more comfortable around Webtail than the others.

Webtail's gaze softened. "I know it's hard, my father is the deputy of ShadowClan. He disowned me just before I left. But, I see my mother at gatherings and along the border and my son feels more comfortable here even if his kits are still back in ShadowClan. I couldn't have it any other way, he's never openly smiled before now." he meowed, remembering how stone-faced his son had become after Ferretshine declared her hatred for him and disowned him. "Give the others some time to adjust, how would you feel if a rival clan cat was sleeping in the same den as you? They're just being cautious and doing it in the only way they know how. It was like that when I was a leader too." he meowed. "Besides, no one will truly try to test Crowstar's judgment, he trusts you." the tom added. "That's something to keep in your head when times get tough. If the leader of SkyClan thinks that you can adapt, perhaps you have hope, hm?"

"You're right..." Rippedpaw was grateful for Crowstar's support. Webtail was right. While some of Skyclan didn't like him, the leader had always seemed to have some hope in him. It felt great to have another cat that understood. The warrior had probably seen even more pain than him as he'd been disowned. Rippedpaw had only brought his birthclan's hate upon himself. He shot Webtail a sympathetic look and added, "I'm sorry."

Webtail gave him a quizzical look and then smiled. "It kind of looses significance after three times, besides, he never spent any time with me. It isn't really a loss." he meowed, much worse things had happened than a cat who never gave him more than a glance to finally say out loud that he wasn't his child. It hurt when Shimmerheart showed pure hatred toward him and mocked him, it hurt when his daughter said that her only family was Webtail's murdered mate, it hurt to see Lightningstrike suffer in silence, it hurt to always be talked down upon by his sister, it really hurt to se that his sacrifice to join the Dark Forest had not saved his broken family and clan but only broke it more. Lepoardfang- Lepoardfang couldn't hurt a hair on his pelt. The only thing he truly felt from that was anger, Lepoardfang had carelessly brought up the brother he had lost at birth, saying he was their only son. He hoped Shimmerheart had found another tom to share her nest with, Lepoardfang only cared about Thrushstar dying so he could lead. Dawnflower would be there for his mother and the two clever elders would live happy with each other's company.

Rippedpaw nodded in understanding. He'd never really known his parents. They never were close to him. He felt as if Windclan had raised him as a whole instead of having parents for guidance. Instead of growing up with his littermates, he'd grown up with his denmates and friends. Oh Sprucepaw and Twistedpaw, He thought to himself. Thankfully, at the last gathering his old friends didn't seem to hate him. Although, the rest of his birthclan did. Rippedpaw settled into the branch and stared out over their forest. He understood why Skyclan cats liked being in trees.
"Do you ever miss it? Shadowclan?" He asked, thinking of his own birthclan.

"Sometimes, but, only parts of it. There was always this looming feeling of uncertainty." he meowed. "How about do? Do you miss WindClan?" he asked, moving closer to the tree trunk so he could lean against it. From the trees, he could just see where the snow got darker as it was tainted with the marsh and the trees grew lower. He remembered how he had to help clear out the slush from the tunnel and clearing with the other apprentices. He wondered how Amberclaw was doing, was his former deputy even still alive?