perseverance [closed]

Frigid bouts of Northern wind plagued the moorland, buffeting the weak grasses of half-dead heather and grasses with a vicious intent. Despite the terrible winds that raced across the browning territory, the late morning sky was crisp and clear- with hardly a hint of clouds visible within pale blue sky. Screwing up her face against a particularly sharp gust of wind, Brindlewhisker remained seated beside the thorny gorse barrier that former a protective lining around WindClan's camp, her teeth chattering slightly. Although she would of liked to wait until a more forgiving day to take Jaypaw out to explore the territory, the Deputy knew that the momentary break in the snowfall was their best chance at a full day of training. Wrapping her tail tightly around her shivering form, Brindlewhisker leaned into the prickly barrier slightly, her ears perked as she waited for her son to appear.

Jaypaw had just finished up his field mouse, and was returning from the prey pile when he saw his mother waiting for him at the camp entrance. He knew that his first day of training was this morning, but he didn't know that he it would be right away in the morning. "Hello moth...Brindlewhisker." He figured since he was an apprentice now, he should start behaving like a functioning part of the clan. "What is the plan for this morning?"

Twisting her around around at the sound of Jaypaw's voice, Brindlewhisker greeted the young grey tom with an affectionate brush of her cheek. "You can still call me mother if you'd like," She mewed with a hint of amusement, "There's no need for such formalities." Shaking out her short fur once more, the Deputy rose to her paws beside the young tom and gave each of her limbs a careful stretch before answering her sons question. "Today we're going to explore the territory- and maybe work in a quick hunting lesson if the weather holds." Brindlewhisker answered eagerly after a moment, striding towards the camp's entrance.

OC: bleh, sorry for this sorry excuse of a post

Jaypaw didn't want to be looked at as soft, but his mother was the deputy of all cats within the clan, so he let his affection show. "I will remember that." He chuckled, but he listened up when his mother laid out the agenda for the day. "Great! Sounds fun!"

bump

ooc) no need to bump ;) I didn't forget

Ignoring a particularly sharp gust of wind that rattled the frail barrier until the very gorse stalks trembled, Brindlewhisker slipped out of the protective entrance to camp and out into the brisk chill of the day. Shaking her head to hopefully send the blood back to her painfully numb ears, the Deputy set off at a brisk pace, her gaze occasionally flicking back to check on Jaypaw as they continued their little excursion. "Now, tell me Jaypaw," Brindlewhisker called, her tone still retaining the eager note from earlier, "Would you rather see the Gorge or the Thunderpath first? Both are equal distances from here, so I'll leave the choice up to you."

Though the snow had stopped, the wind had yet to let up, and with barely anything to break the gusts in the territory, Jaypaw would have to learn to toughen up, or fatten up for the Leafbare months. With every strong slap of the wind, the grey tom would flatten his ears, he didn't know if he would every get used to it. He looked at his mother who had given him the choice of destination. Jaypaw thought about it for a heartbeat, but said "The Gorge." Both were equally scary, for a kit of course, not for a strong cat like Jaypaw.

"Good choice," Brindlewhisker answered shortly, a faint hint of wariness edging her clipped words, "It's always a popular destination for both our Clan and RiverClan- for a multitude of reasons." She always tended to avoid the Gorge to keep away the foul memories of what had happened at the jagged cliffs all those moons ago, but she knew it was necessary that Jaypaw visited the turmoil-plagued border. Avoiding a rough patch of partially frozen patch of heather that would of been rough underpaw, the brindled she-cat gave her apprentice a curious glance after a moment of thought. "Can you tell me what all you know about the Gorge?"

Jaypaw purred when his mother agreed with his choice. "All that I know is that it is our border with RiverClan." The young tom continued to follow his mother to The Gorge.

"Correct, that's the basics of it." Brindlewhisker softly agreed, the faint rumble of fast-flowing water now evident, "It's one of our busiest borders as well." The half-dead grasses around them slowly began to thin as they continued to approach the Gorge, instead giving way to rougher and rockier exposed terrain. The smooth pebbles beneath the two WindClanner's paws clacked and rocked together softly as they drew to a halt beside the ancient gaping wound in the earth. Peering at the jagged stones that marked the sickeningly high drop, the Deputy gazed at the frothing water that spilled down into the chasm below with an unreadable expression.

"Once, many moons ago, our kin Smokepelt wrongfully attacked a RiverClan apprentice and broke his jaw- right where we're standing." Brindlewhisker suddenly mewed, raising her voice over the constant drone of falling water, "A great battle between WindClan and RiverClan happened because of it." The skin beneath her fur flushed in an unpleasant manner at the memory of the battle, but she instead focused her gaze on Jaypaw, watching her son take in the sight of the blood-soaked border firsthand.

Jaypaw noted that this was their busiest border. The gray tom followed his mother's gaze down into the gorge and his stomach churned. He thought about all the cats who had fallen, all the cats who would be so careless to fall in the future. Jaypaw looked to his mother as she began telling him about the history that took place at this border. He took it all in. He hoped that he would not encounter another cat from WindClan who wrongly began a fight.

ooc: blah, sorry

"Though thankfully, for the time being, it seems that RiverClan has turned a blind eye to those transgressions in favor of shedding fresh blood with ThunderClan." Brindlewhisker mewed after a few heartbeats of simply observing the thin fingers of ice that framed the edges of the ever-moving falls, her whiskers uncomfortably twitching as she spoke. The tensions and accusations that had flown at the last Gathering had not fallen upon deaf ears. This Leafbare would not be a pleasant one, if the previous Gathering had been an indication of anything. Turning to look at Jaypaw once more, the Deputy gave her kit an inquisitive glance before speaking, "Are you ready to keep moving? Or would you like to stay and look for a little while longer?"

Jaypaw sighed when he thought about the battling clans, and from what he heard WindClan had been possibly pulled into the situation by ThunderClan. Of course he would fight, but he didn't know if he would be able to fight for another clan as proudly as if he were fighting for WindClan's cause. "I think we can move on." The young tom nodded.

"Alright good." Brindlewhisker hummed, her shoulders twitching uncomfortably as she tried to shake away the fine coating of mist that now clung to her, backing away from the jagged edge that sloped before her. Flicking her tail to gesture that Jaypaw should follow suit, the brindled she-cat picked up a hurried pace as she guided the little duo away from the Gorge and deeper into the heart of WindClan's territory once more, "The Thunderpath is quite impressive in its own right- but it's rather unpleasant to be around." Brindlewhisker warned as they continued to trek through the heather, the sun steadily rising above them.