Like Talking to a Friend [Closed]

Blizzardstar was helping to finish the reconstruction of the warriors den, though it was obvious that the past events had led her to be more cautious and even feel a constant worry for those cats that went missing, she was determined to not let herself get carried away by such emotions. Yes, it was true that she wouldn’t forget about those that had gone missing and she was going to go as far as it was needed for her to fulfill her promise of doing everything in her paws to bring back those that had been taken away by the mist, but she couldn’t forget those that were still in the camp and needed her guidance and leadership.

She could’ve kept working for as long as it took the den to be fully repaired, but she had to step back and give her spot to another warrior that continued where she had left off. This was mostly so everyone could help with the reconstruction but also had enough time to do other duties such as patrolling, hunting, training or simply have a bit of time to not get overstressed with all the work being dumped on them.

With the thoughts of her work that had been occupying her mind finally gone, she found herself staring at the territory beyond the walls of brambles through the entrance of camp, ears a little low. It was Greenleaf, but the food was having to be rationed like it was Leafbare thanks to the fire. For now they were managing to survive with what they had, but even she knew that the forest would need more than just one season to heal…and the future was starting to worry her.

Just as she was about to sink in the worlds of What ifs, regarding what she was supposed to do about this situation, some movement caused her to turn her head, bringing her back from her thoughts as she spotted one of the newest members of the clan and also a former Tribe cat. Shadowleaf.

Being the curious cat she had always been since she was nothing but a kit she had always wanted to share a couple words with her, know more about the Tribe, how it worked, why her original name was so different from the one she had taken after joining ThunderClan. However, there was always something that had managed to get on her way. If it wasn’t Rockthorn it was a fire, if it wasn’t a fire it was an illness…but maybe this time, even if just for a bit, she would be able to talk with her.

With that thought in mind she finally started to walk towards her, wondering if she would prefer to stay in camp or take a walk while they talked. If it was the latter they would need to stay very close to camp, as with the reports of that weird mist she wouldn’t feel safe going too far, at least not if it was just the two of them “Hey Shadowleaf” Her greeting was casual and calm, something usual in her “Are you busy right now?”.

Shadowleaf perked up when she had heard her name from the new leader of her clan. She had just recently helped other finish up with the nursery so she was taking a break. She figured she could use her free time to go out hunting to try and find some more food for the clan. The white and gray she-cat shook her head in response. "No I'm not particularly busy. I was just planning to go out hunting again. If anyone has the best chances of catching anything I think it's me." She wasn't saying that to be cocky or anything, she just had so much practice with hunting in bad conditions.

Shadow of the dancing leaf's amber eyes looked at the new leader. "You can join me if you would like, I could teach you some new tricks to hunting, and we could teach them to the rest of the clan if they are good enough." She hoped it would be, it could help them in their situation for now, and maybe some other bad situations in the future.

Blizzardstar’s ear immediately perked up when the hunting techniques were mentioned. Being a cat trained in ThunderClan by her father, who was a SkyClan warrior, she had managed to find a unique kind of balance between the two techniques of the clans, having the strength and bulk of a ThunderClan warrior and some of the agility and climbing skills of a SkyClan warrior, though obviously not as developed as if she had grown in SkyClan instead. Having learned from both sides had led her to feel curious about the ways of the other clans, even if she knew that they would never reveal her secrets to her. And now, a cat from the Tribe, a group of cat she didn’t even knew existed until not too long ago, was offering this kind of knowledge to her.

“I would really appreciate it, Shadowleaf. If there is anything you want me to teach you though, don’t hesitate to ask” If she remembered correctly, she had mentioned to be something the tribe used to call Prey-Hunter, or something like that…did she knew how to fight? Would she be able to defend herself if any predator, just as hungry as the cats of ThunderClan, dared to attack them? Or worse, if another warrior decided to attack them at some point? She guessed that the Tribe should at least teach basic fighting to their hunters, but now she was starting to worry for her safety in a territory so far away from her original home “I…uh…don’t want to sound disrespectful or anything, but…do you know how to fight? Would you be able to handle a warrior from another clan on your own if you ever had to?”.

Did she know how to fight? Well yes.. though it wasn't too well. Not as skilled as the rest of the warriors. Her fighting was around an apprentices level. "Yes I know how to fight.. but I'm not on the level that your warriors are." The former prey hunter said. "Don't get me wrong I can hold my own. I can fight a hawk out of the sky if it lets me gets my claws on it. I can chase off a single cat.. but when it comes to actual long fights like I have heard stories about? I don't know.." The gray and white she-cat stood up, and shook out her fur.

"In the tribe we have two separate roles. The prey-hunters which do all the hunting for the tribe, and the cave-guards. They guarded the old home we used to live in, they did all the fighting. Back then I didn't know anything, the cave guards would protect use while we hunted, it didn't matter what they had to do as long as we caught the prey." The she-cats amber eyes remained on the ground. "But when our journey started, cats were dying and disappearing. Some of us had to step into the other role. We couldn't spare the protection for the little remaining cats we had left so I had learned to protect myself. I didn't want to take from the cats who needed the protection more than me."

She was a thunderclan cat now, she had to do both and she was glad too. "Should we go hunting now?" She didn't like to recall the things that happened to her tribe. It was.. terrible to say the least. Hunting was the one thing that cleared her mind no matter what.

Blizzardshine lowered her ears slightly as she listened to Shadowleaf’s tale. Even if she tried her best to understand her, she knew she probably never know the terrors and agony that she and her tribe had to go through during their travel from the mountains to the clans. The concept of cats hunting while others fought was kind of understandable even if completely new to her, but if she put some thought on it she could see I as being fairly efficient in an environment where rival clans wouldn’t always be out there alongside the possibility of them attacking you at any given time for one reason or another. Hunters would be able to sharpen and even creating new and more efficient ways of hunting down the prey they used to hunt, while guards would be able to do the same with their battle techniques, not bothered by having to ever take the other’s role…but now that they were there, what once was an advantage could become a disadvantage in times of need.

The while leader took a deep breath, the curiosity that had been her constant drive since she was nothing but a kit was throwing question after question at her, but her more logical side was whispering to her to be prudent with her words as to not open the slowly healing wound “Sure, we’ll need to walk for a bit though, prey is still somewhat scarce and will continue to be until the forest recovers from the fire” She pointed at the entrance of the camp, allowing her to take the lead “If you would like, I could train you in ThunderClan’s ways to fight. It may be different from the tribe’s, but if you ever find yourself in a dangerous situation it could prove useful” She wasn’t really sure if Shadowleaf would take her offering, though she really hoped she did. She was just not willing to let the chances pile against her if a battle ever took place, after all, regardless of the origins of the white and grey she-cat walking at her side she was now part of ThunderClan, and she would protect and care for her just like any other of her clanmates.

"That would be nice to know different ways of fighting." The gray and white she-cat said to her leader. She had her advantages for knowing the tribe way of fighting but it wasn't enough to for her being part of the clan. Maybe by herself but not int this situation.

The former tribe cat lead the leader out of the camp. "I know the forest did a number on the forest, but there are still places you can find prey. I have been getting a bit lucky these past few days." She hoped they would be able to find some. It would really help the clan, especially the queens and elders. They really needed it.

Blizzardstar smiled at Shadowleaf, glad that she was willing to learn some of ThunderClan fighting techniques. Learning how to battle like a warrior probably was going to be a bumpy ride for the former prey-hunter, but at least it would definitely let the white leader feel a bit calmer, knowing that if she ever needed to she would know how to defend herself against the potential dangers of the forest and the other clans. Yes, it was true that she wished such confrontations didn’t need to take place in the first place, but many experiences in her past had forced her to accept that not everything could be solved through words and fair negotiations “If you feel up to it, I think we could start your battle training after hunting. If not it can be done tomorrow after a good night of rest”.

Her paws softly stepped over the still damaged forest floor, already used to the feeling of soot and ashes. However, the first signs of undergrowth growing once more could be seen here and there across the previously grey and black floor. It was like Newleaf had arrived to ThunderClan’s territory again despite being in the middle of Greenleaf, which caused troubled emotions deep within Blizzardstar’s chest. While it brought her hope for the future it also made her feel clearly worried about the closer times ahead of them. Would the territory be healthy enough to sustain the clan once Leafbare arrived if in the middle of this supposedly prosperous season, where most clans usually could relax and don’t worry about prey as the fresh-kill would always be full, they were struggling to keep the clan well fed? What was she supposed to do if this wasn’t the case?

Before more dark thoughts could come rushing to her mind and add to the troubles her clan was already experiencing she shook her head a bit and focused on the words that Shadowleaf was sharing with her. Getting lucky while hunting clearly meant that prey were returning to certain spots of the territory, she would really need to remember these spots for later on “Would you mind leading me to one of these places you’re talking about? If we can bring something to the clan today I’m sure there will be several cats in camp that will be deeply grateful”.