I'm Still Learning [Open-Border Patrol]

Coyotepaw stared out into the forest near the camp entrance. He had been told he would be patrolling with some of the other clan cats. His tail tip twitched anxiously at the thought of patrolling with cats he did not know all that well. Thunderclan was filled with a ton of great cats. However, given his history, the grey-ish tabby could probably count on one paw the handful of cats he trusted. Blizzardstar, Leafstorm, and Barkpaw. At first, trusting his mentor had been quite a stretch, but the two had begun to get along quite well. Coyotepaw found himself looking forwards to them instead of dreading the time spent away from his kin and adoptive mother. The thought of Blizzardstar was always a complicated one. She had seemed to try to take the place of his mother after Wolffang had left. He trusted her, and respected her, yet still always found himself aggravated with that fact. She means well, he told himself for the hundredth time as he mulled over the subject.

The sound of pawsteps caused his head to whip around. At the sight of another cat, he meowed, "Are we patrolling together?"

Sharppaw sighed, dragging her paws. "Sure, I guess." She mewed roughly, looking over the apprentice with one tired eye. It was early, and she was exhausted from her late-night training session with Leopardclaw. Still, orders were orders.

The fluffy apprentice sat down heavily, still looking at the tabby. She heard he was a rouge and Leafstorm was training him, but that was the extent of her knowledge. Leafstorm was her mother's friend and an honorable cat, but she'd have to see if his apprentice was noble enough to be a Thunderclanner.
"Any idea who else is coming on this patrol?"

"I will be coming." Plain and simple- just how the young she-cat liked it. Dipping her head to her daughter she turned on Coyotepaw, her brow quirking and her maw pressing together as she evaluated the young tom. "You're Leafstorm's apprentice, aren't you?" If it even was possible Specklefang seemed to judge the tom more, but she was relentless. "You're such a small thing, Blizzardstar didn't choose well. Leafstorm is much too soft, as much as I like the tom he isn't the right cat for training rogues and half-breeds." Disdain dripped into her voice as she crowded in on the apprentice.

"You'd have been much better as my apprentice, learn discipline and how to really fight." Specklefang prided herself on her battle skills, the need to fight without claws or teeth since they weren't always reliable. Specklefang looked down at her daughter and checked her over briefly before bending her neck down and licked at her forehead and ears lovingly, though she was quick to smack her tail against Sharppaw's legs. "Don't be rude." It was a quick reprimand; the massive she-cat didn't wish for her children to make enemies too quickly, a mistake she had made with countless cats.

As Specklefang padded over to them, the apprentice stiffened. She always intimidated him. There was something in her soul that reminded him terribly of of his father. Reno's ruthless fighting tactics and harsh means of speech would be something he would never forget. The city rogue had been forever ingrained into the memory of his kithood. When she asked of his mentor, Coyotepaw simply nodded. Words did not form on his tongue right away. Internally, all he wanted to do was shrink away and hide. He was used to the promise of claws behind insults. But he had learned to control the pathetic urges. Despite all of his unpleasant ways, Reno had trained the coward out of his kit. Or rather trained him to stuff it away under a cool facade.

Her words struck him as sharp as claws. It was literally as if his worst nightmare had been resurrected and stood before him. He was a worthless half-breed of no real value to the clan. As a kit, the tom would have cowered at the paws of his mother and wallowed in the self-hatred. Now, he fought to keep it inside. There was a steely look in his eyes as his maw remained neural. In the most mild-mannered tone that he could manage, Coyotepaw spoke, "I supposed I should take note on this patrol then."

OOC: I'm super sorry that I'm so late!
IC:
Sharppaw winced at Specklefang's reprimand but nodded obediently. Rouges and half-breeds?
Coyotepaw looked scruffy, but he certainly wasn't a rouge. Rouges had scars. Rouges broke the code and were ferocious. Coyotepaw looked as intimidating as a kittypet with a broken leg.

She padded past the two, her pelt brushing Coyotepaw's in a reassuring manner, surprised at her own daring.
Although the apprentice wasn't used to being affectionate or even friendly to most cats she felt like Coyotepaw needed to be protected.
A warrior's job was to protect the weak, after all.
She shot him a quick, deep look over her shoulder.
Be careful.

She trotted into the forest, her ears swiveling as she listened and sniffed for prey, tentatively trotting towards a strong scent.
"I... I think there's something over here?" She mewed, turning back to her mother, hoping for reassurance.

"Well if you want you can go check it out, but this is a border patrol so make it quick." Muttered Specklefang, her brow quirking as she followed her daughter before turning back on Coyotepaw. "Go with Sharppaw, maybe you can learn something." She ordered curtly her green eyes watching the young Tom, putting a sort of odd trust in the half-breed to be even close to her daughter. She made sure to make sure that Coyotepaw knew that she would be watching and she didn't trust him very much in the form of a warning growl.

Coyotepaw padded stiffly after his clanmates. The greenery of the forest was incredible this time of year. How the leaves had begun to change with the seasons was certainly something to look at. The apprentice could not help but try to take it all in. Everything was so much more beautiful than in the city. There, everything was simply a mild grey stone year round. His eyes seemed to take in every little detail. After a moment, he opened his mouth to fully take in all of the scents. Leafstorm had taught him to always be wary of his surroundings; you never know what was lurking in the shadows. I''m sure Specklefang is more terrifying than anything hiding out there. He had to keep his whiskers from twitching at the mildly funny thought. She was pretty scary. He would not want to meet her on the battlefield that was for sure.

Sharppaw spoke and his eyes instantly darted over to look at her. When her mother spoke, the apprentice simply nodded and followed after his denmate. He couldn't help but feel a little out of place. These were cats he was not quite comfortable around yet. It was strange. Ever since he was little he had been around those he knew or trusted. Even in the clan, he stuck around Leafstorm, Barkfall, and Blizzardstar. Right now, Coyotepaw felt incredibly exposed and alone. Ignoring the feelings, he followed Sharppaw. The worst thing to do would be letting himself seem pathetic in front of the gigantic warrior. So, he said nothing. Once close enough, his nose twitched at the scent. It was familiar... like, "Is that fox?" A quizzical look crossed his features. This was something he hadn't known before the forest and he hoped he was right.

Sharppaw lead the way, her ears twitching. Leafbare was coming- although she'd never lived through one, she'd heard stories of bitter cold and hunger. She thought some food would be helpful, but Specklefang probably had a reason they weren't hunting now.
She glanced sideways at the older apprentice, who's mouth was hanging open. She tilted her head but followed suit, surprised at how that made a difference to what she smelled. She could actually learn something from this strange cat.
Her whiskers twitched at his question and her ears swiveled in the direction Coyotepaw was facing. A warm, earthy smell hit her nose. Something she'd never smelled before.
"Fox... maybe Badger." She mewed, feigning knowledge. "Nothing we could hunt, although it might be fun to chase it out."

The fluffy apprentice fought the urge to turn to Specklefang. Although she was the greatest warrior of all time, she needed to leave her mother's sometime. Instead the apprentice swung her head forward.
"Let's just... keep going."

Squeak had found his way into the forest. The last few days had been quite odd indeed, silently watching these structured cats. There was borders, and they seemed to patrol it often, checking for intruders. The rogue had not crossed the lines yet. He was no fool. He could not take on three cats by himself. However, he did always hover next to the line, almost taunting those who came by. His tattered ears pricked as the sound of young voices carried muddily through the leaves. With a grin, the large tom rocked back and forth, making a loud crunching noise on the twigs and fallen leaves.

Specklefang's ears pricked, and her eyes scanned the undergrowth. Her bulky body became rigid as her green eyes shifted to slits, her claws unsheathed as she shot towards her kit and that scum that she dared let even close to her daughter. A growl tore from Specklefangs throat, intent on hunting down Coyotepaw. But as she came upon the two, the smell of a rogue that wasn't Coyotepaw wafted by her flared nostrils. Looming over the two with rage in her eyes she shot towards the nearby border without a word or a hint of hesitation.

For a fat, bulking tree that Specklefang was, she was fast... in this instance. Spotting a large, rough looking tom by the border she immediately curled up her neck and slammed into the scruffy rogue, her maw bearing teeth and scrunching up her face as spittle sprayed. Specklefang's throat seemed to vibrate as she yowled and growled at the tom, her head dipping to grasp the rogue by the shoulder and shaking her head viciously. The she-cats fur fluffed and her tail bushed, the fur around her throat seeming to expand to resemble the tales of Lionclan.

As she released the grip on the toms shoulder her voice grated as it forced a growl as she spoke. "Get away from Thunderclan territory, rogue scum." With the tom on the ground, she was much, much bigger. She suspected even the bravest of cats would be urinating themselves.

Coyotepaw had scent the strange cat right before he saw him. His eyes widened in shock as he realized this was no Thunderclan warrior. Instinctively, whether or not he planned on using them, the apprentice's claws slid from their sheaths. In the city, strange cats always meant bad news. Although, this one did not seem awful. The tabby tom stood next to his denmate and stared at the scruffy cat, "Who are you?" It was a question of more genuine curiosity than any sort of challenge or anger. There was no reason to be mad at a cat for simply standing near their territory. This rogue had not even crossed the border. Coyotepaw quickly realized that he felt probably as much allegiance to this cat as he did to his supposed clanmates- it was just another cat trying to make his way though another day. They were the same in that way.

As his gaze bore into the other tom, he found himself being bombarded by that rush of thoughts. Suddenly, Specklefang, the brute she was, had him thrown back against the ground. Frustration rose up in his chest. "What the hell is she doing?" Coyotepaw hissed lowly, mostly to himself. However, it was probably loud enough for Sharppaw to hear. The young tom's ears flattened against his head and he backed away a couple of pawsteps. This was not something the new cats he lived with was supposed to do, they were supposed to be more civil than the uncontrolled brutish behavior of his birthplace. Images of Reno slashing at his mother and tearing the throats of intruders came into his head almost instantly. This insane creature, albeit her physical attributes, was the spitting image of his father. Coyotepaw wanted to spit at her in anger, but he was too frozen by his own memories of terror to move. And there was the possibility she could turn on him too.

Sharppaw's eyes widened as the rouge appeared and her mother leapt into action. She darted forward, trying her best to separate the two.
What the hell is she doing?
What was her mother doing? What was she proving by defeating this weak-looking, skinny rouge?
She grunted and finally managed to pull the rouge away, tossing him onto the ground. Although she didn't want to hurt him, she still had to teach him a lesson before her mother did.
She flexed her claws, but kept them away from his body.
"What are you doing?" She snarled, pushing the rouge's shoulders into the dirt.
She huffed angrily. "Why in the name of Starclan are you even here? Clearly your brain is rotting away like old Fresh-Kill." Spit flew from her mouth as she ranted angrily. "Do you honestly think stuff like this is funny? Do you have a death wish? Why on Earth are you hanging around the border?
A clan cat could kill a rouge like you in a second. You better thank your lucky stars that you didn't run into someone else, or you'd be without your pelt."
She stepped back, still glaring daggers at him. "Go."

She turned back to Coyotepaw, her expression melting back into a lopsided grin as she padded back to him.

Squeak had been laughing to himself when it sounded like a monster had gone off the pavement and was burling at him. It felt like it too, when he connected with what was coming at him. He went flying into the undergrowth, and came to a hault after skidding on the leaves. He gasped, the wind knocked out of him. He shook his head, before stumbling to his feet, fighting for his breath. Finally, he turned and growled at the bigger she-male. "How dare you." he growled.

He barely had time to catch his breath before he was thrown to the ground again by another cat. He growled in frustration. If the she-male hadn't completely wrecked his strength they wouldn't have been able to. His eyes traveled to Coyotepaw and noticed he looked... rougeish. Straightening up and smoothing his fur, he tried again. "I heard about the Clans. I just wanted to see if the rumors were true... I've always wanted a family...." he trailed off and trained his eyes to the ground in somber thoughtfulness.

"Well family is something we have." A gray and white she-cat said as she approached the group. She was hunting near by when she heard the commotion. Well they were right to attack the tom he did cross into the territory, but if he was curious about clan life then there wasn't a need for the aggression.

The gray and white she-cat walked forward putting herself closer to the rogue tom creating something of a barrier. "So you are curious about us yes?" She asked. She may have been tribe but she had been accepted into Thunderclan due to Blizzardstar, she was sure the leader would accept this young tom if this is what he wanted. If not then she would escort him out of the territory. He wasn't another clan cat, so he didn't deserve to be treated with such aggression.

Specklefang turned on Shadowleaf in a flash, Squeak momentarily forgotten. "There is no 'us' Shadowleaf. As long as you are around that is. Tell me, what use is a warrior if they don't fight for the prey they bring in? Certainly not a lot of use, I bet you've never laid a claw on another cat that wasn't obviously evil like Smokefang. You wouldn't have what it takes to defend the borders, you'd rather roll over and bare your belly out of fear. All you want to do is live a soft, happy life where you barely have to contribute! If you really wanted that you might as well have run to the two legs and be a kitty-pet! Do us all a favour Shadowleaf and get lost already. Leave this to the real warriors." Specklefang loomed and growled, her eyes narrowing.

"You don't give a single care for the warrior code if you knew what it said you'd know it said to challenge every cat that comes to our borders. I am doing exactly that. Your disrespect for the code is almost as bad as Rockthorn's was. Who do you think you are anyway? You didn't grow up in Thunderclan, you just moved here and now you think you're the leader!" Specklefang turned back to squeak, her tail lashing once more. "If there's any cat that will let you in, it's tainted blood, not clan-born." Advancing on the tom with an arched back she spat. "I don't care. Your... kind is not welcome in Thunderclan, you can find another clan that'll except you and create a family there. Take Shadowleaf with you, she seems to show an interest in low lives without any respect or consideration." Specklefang spat, her back bristling.