On the Edge Freedom

Clearpaw barely waited for his apprentice ceremony to be finished before he was racing from the camp; he didn't speak to his new mentor, he didn't stick around to be congratulated, his paws carried him swiftly through the tunnel and out into the forest of their own accord. As soon as he was out of the tunnel, he scanned the forest around him; the leaves were bright green, the sun shone through them, shifting and dappling the ground. A bird chirped, then took flight, flying from one tree and disappearing elsewhere in the thick canopy. Clearpaw's eyes lit up excitedly and he took off again, his pent-up energy propelling him through the forest and eventually into the top branches of a large tree. He dug his claws into the trunk and hauled himself up, until the branches were too small to support his weight. He looked down at the ground below, his eyes round as they tried to keep up with the shifting patterns of sunlight. His fur felt warm in the sun, and he felt light on his paws, enjoying the sensation of the wind blowing through his fur, the feeling of freedom that came with being above the restrictive undergrowth below.

Hawkpaw trudged through the greenery, sniffing a mouse someone had left behind. His tail swung and his eyes narrowed. Glancing around, he continued on his way to find something suitable for battle moves. He spotted a tall tree trunk. The rest of the tree laid on its side in the grass. Gliding along the ground, he shot up and pounced going just over the trunk, he dug his large claws into the other side of it, leaving claw marks down the trunk. Landing on the other side, he looked over his work and gave a curt nod. He was getting better. Now he had to find a way to use his weight as a weapon. The tom crouched for another attack when an acorn hit him on the top of the head, he looked up into the branches of an overhead tree and saw no other than Clearpaw up there. "How did you get up there?" He meowed, deep voice filled with curiosity.

Sunpaw padded out of the tunnel and through the forest, following the scent of two or more cats through the forest. She purred with pride as she found what she was hunting- Hawkpaw. Her eyes traveled up and spotted Clearpaw perched in a tree. She walked slowly out from the bush she had hid in, watching Clearpaw with admiration. "How'd you get up there?" She mewed curiously.

Clearpaw blinked slowly as he looked down at Sunpaw and Hawkpaw, his expression blank. However, after a short moment, he focused on the two cats as they asked him the same question, and his eyes filled with recognition. "Hi!" He called down, "I just climbed, it's not so hard. I really like climbing trees. I bet I could climb the tallest tree in the world." Carefully, he began climbing back down the tree, and a moment later, was back on the forest floor with Sunpaw and Hawkpaw. "Don't you guys like climbing trees? It's so pretty up there!"

Hawkpaw gave the tree a skeptical look, "I've never climbed a tree, only the lof- logs from the treecut place." he corrected himself. How was he supposed to fit in when he mentioned the loft or the barn or his parents or.. or anything. He looked at the tree trunk he had cut into, wondering if either of them had seen him do it. He stretched before eyeing Clearpaw. Wasn't he rogue-born? Certainly; there wasn't a cat who looked like him in camp. Interested, he figured he'd entertain some small talk for now. "When did you learn to climb trees?"

"I've never tried it..." The small she-cat admitted softly, still looking at Clearpaw in wonder. She gave her head an experimental shake.
She looked up the tree again, watching as it slowly narrowed to the top, which was out of sight. "What if I fell?" She mewed anxiously and shuddered, her fur standing on end as she imagined herself crumpling on the ground, broken and lifeless.

Clearpaw's expression suggested that Sunpaw and Hawkpaw's words were the most outrageous thing he had ever heard--or close to it, at least. "You've never climbed trees?" He mewed, shocked, "No way! It's beautiful up there, you can see everything." He seemed lost in thought for a brief moment, before he abruptly returned to reality, hearing Hawkpaw's question. "When I was really tiny." He explained, "I don't really remember why though."
Looking over at Sunpaw, he tilted his head, as though the idea of falling out of a tree hadn't occurred to him. Clearpaw wasn't typically held back by fear of anything physical, but instead, propelled forward to the edges of cliffs, tips of trees, always seeking out something new. He couldn't imagine being afraid of these things, so he struggled for a moment to think of what to say to Sunpaw. "You just have to be careful," He mewed, "I bet you wouldn't even be scared when you got to the top!"

"I guess..."
The golden apprentice looked now eagerly at the tree, excited to attempt a climb to the top. She lowered her haunches and leaping at the tree, clawing at the tree's bark. She pulled herself up onto the lowest branch and flopped onto her stomach, panting. "It's a lot harder then it seems..." She admitted breathlessly, looking down proudly at the two other cats below her.

"Mn, perhaps you're brave enough to climb." Hawkpaw meowed to Clearpaw​ before flashing a grin of mischief. "But so am I!" He leaped at the tree, wrapping his foreleg around as much of the trunk as he could. He pushed with his hind legs, giving out a grunt of effort and setting his sights on a thick branch up ahead. He grew higher until he reached it and spread his body weight out over it. It was.. tiring but when did he ever admit defeat?

She purred a greeting to Hawkpaw before leaping up the side of the tree, using her claws for leverage and her tail for balance. She struggled past the next few branches before settling down on a particularly high one, out of breath but very proud. She looked down challengingly at the other two.
"Beat that!" She yowled.

Clearpaw purred excitedly, launching himself up the tree after his two newfound friends. It was harder this time, since he was a bit worn out from climbing the first time, so he settled onto a lower branch than the others had for the time being. "See?" He mewed happily, "It's not too hard!" He glanced around them, wondering if he could jump into the other trees from there--he thought about what Sunpaw had said about being afraid of falling. Certainly, there was a pretty good chance he would fall if he tried that, so he decided to practice on some lower branches another time, an act of caution that was rather unlike him. "So what're you guys doing out here?" He mewed curiously, after climbing to a slightly higher branch where Sunpaw and Hawkpaw would be able to hear him a bit better.

"I wanted to practice my leaps, battle moves and stuff." Hawkpaw said, looking down at Clearpaw's interesting pelt pattern. "How about you Sunpaw?" He meowed, watching a bird fly by with cooing noises. "Why'd we find you out here?" The tom mewed, his large tail hanging down the branch.

Sunpaw slowly backed down the tree. "Tracking you two," She shrugged. "It's my first day as an apprentice, so I thought I'd explore a little..." The small golden apprentice turned to Clearpaw. "Why're you out here?"

Clearpaw nodded--he supposed that he would be learning battle moves, too, and he decided to try and find a good place to practice them. Preferably, as far away from camp as possible--he felt as though it had been moons since he stretched his legs, and he was enjoying this escape. "Oh, I was bored in camp." He shrugged, "My apprentice ceremony just finished, and I was dying to get out of camp. It's so boring there!" Even now, Clearpaw ached for more exploration, but he was enjoying conversing with his friends, so he stayed put.

The she-cat nodded excitedly. "Let's go explore. This is my first time out of camp, so I haven't been anywhere!"