Keeping The Thunder Behind The Line [Open Patrol]

Sootwhisper stretched as he padded out from the warrior’s den after a nice night of sleep. He was assigned for the dawn patrol that would focus on the ThuderClan border. After the battle against WindClan, most patrols her been directed to the border located at the gorge and leaving the one in the river somewhat unattended. That had to change soon unless they wanted to give Sunningrocks to ThunderClan as a gift, alongside any portion of territory they felt like taking.

He looked around camp, wondering if anyone else had been assigned to the patrol or if he had to look for more cats on his own.

Smokeface yawned as he emerged from the den behind Sootwhisper. He had barely arrived back to his clan, but he was trying to blend in again. He greeted the warrior with a smile. "Sootwhisper, hello. Patroling or hunting?" he greeted the tomcat, slightly anxious.

Tawnystorm strode up to Sootwhisper and Smokeface. She was glad he'd returned, and having him gone had only made her realise how much she needed him. Maybe they could make amends this morning. "Mind if I join you two?"

Greygaze padded up to the crowd. "A patrol? Can I come? She asked.

Lilacpaw padded over as she had heard the mews of other cats asking about joining a patrol "Can I join?" she mewed with a large smile. If this patrol was a little too crowding she got that, but she needed to get some fresh air and explore the forest, she hadn't been out in a little while.

“Dawn patrol to check and mark the border with ThunderClan” His voice was low and emotionless, just like always, as he greeted the approaching cats with silent yet respectful nods. Once enough cats were gathered around him he finally started to walk out of camp, leading the group of cats “Let’s go, if anyone else wants to join they’ll need to catch up with us”

Smokeface nodded and turned to follow Sootwhisper, padding besides Tawnystorm. "You've mentioned something about you and Aspentail argueing?" the tomcat asked as they strode through the thick and powdery snow.

Lilacpaw opened her mouth forming a smaller smile. She curled her tail up and trotted slowly as she stayed at the very back of the patrol. She felt the breeze flow through her rough and dirty fur, she needed to groom herself sometime soon. Besides the dirty and rough fur, she was happy.

Tawnystorm followed Sootwhisper with a small nod, staying up the front of the patrol and beside Smokeface. "Unfortunately, yes. Tension, to say the least. She seems to think she's better than everyone, and I see how unpleasant and selfish she can be. She reminds me of my younger self, almost. I try to help her, she rejects me." The warrior sighed. "I just think she's lonely. I mean, it seems like she's been trying to be nicer lately - ever since she met Dawnpaw. They seemed to have really hit it off. I'm glad she seems to have a friend now, anyway - and as a mother, what else do you want for your daughter than for her to be happy?"

Smokeface purred at her words, nodding his head slowly. "Hey, I'mmsure you'll hit it as a mother. As well since I messed up as a father..." he said hastily, still wondering what made Morningfog take the decision to mate with a stranger and hide from him.

Sootwhisper said nothing on the way to the border, and though he tried very hard to not focus on the other cats’ conversation, as he was not a fan of gossip, several words managed to get in his ears and in the end he just turned his head and raised an eyebrow. He wasn’t asking for silence nor judging them for what were probably personal situations, but it was clear that at this point even he had his own thoughts about said situations. It was good that they were already arriving to the border by then, as it would save him from any kind of questions towards things that were far from his control or even knowledge he lacked given how reluctant he was to interact with other cats at all. Plus, his answers tended to be brually honest and blunt as he never learned to soften his words before and it could only do greater harm on situations where caution and slow approaches were needed “We’re here”.

Lilacpaw stopped at Sootwhisper had said they were at the border. She looked around and looked for the spots she could possible mark.

(Shortness.)

"Borders don't seem to be breached, which is good. We'll just refresh the scent markings and get a move on." Tawnystorm nodded in acknowledgment of Sootwhisper, before returning her attention to Smokeface. "You've raised...four? Five? Argh, I've lost track of how many kits you have. Well, they all turned out lovely, strong and smart, didn't they? You did parenting right, at least for the first batch. Sure, you could have been in their lives a whole lot more, and be there for them more, but overall, you're a pretty good dad, with a family that really does love you. Morningfog too, even if she's kinda iffy on you right now. And plus, you're much better than me on the whole patience thing. There's a reason I don't have tens of thousands of kits!" Tawnystorm smirked a little. "Squirreltuft and all that lot - I know she loves you. I just don't know if she understands. I guess I've had it alright - I've raised three of my own, two of which, well, I wish I'd been in their lives more, but they turned out fine and I love them. I love Aspentail, but I feel like I've just failed, trying to help her grow and mature and all that stuff. She's like parenting myself, but with a complete disregard for rules." The elder warrior chuckled a little. "Well, Smokeface, you're also better at me at actually raising kits with a mate. I mean, I've been flying solo. Crowclaw died only a few days after Otterleap was born. By the time I fell in love again now, they're all grown up."

Smokeface stopped and nodded to the cold warrior leading the patrol. Sootwhisper was a qiuet one, he'd have to give him that, but in the end, it was better to respect he might not have his lace in this discusion. He scented the air only to pick up the faint trace of a patrol that might have been there the other day, the least. It was good, overall. "Should we hunt on the way back?" the gray warrior suggested, stopping to groom his chest fur just a bit. I guess that's where Squirelltuft got her reckless fur. he thought and a smile tingled his muzzle. He turned to his best friend and flicked his tail over her muzzle gently with a smile.

"Honestly, your name should have been Talkactivestorm. You're worse than all of my kits at once." he joked, smiling.

I've been told," Tawnystorm laughed. "Hunting sounds like an excellent idea. We're in the height of Leafbare, so any catch is a good catch." She turned back to Smokeface. "Feel free to rant, mate. I think I've just talked myself out!"