Midday Hunting Patrol

Softpaw sat at the edge of camp, restless energy burning through his veins. He wanted desperately to leave the camp and hunt, but you couldn't have a hunting patrol with only one cat, now could you? But unfortunately, Softpaw was too shy to try to band together a group of cats. So instead, he sat near the main entrance to the camp, hoping some other cat would go hunting so that he could tag along. Softpaw tapped his tail against the snowy ground, watching the snowflakes fall off his feathery tail before repeating the action impatiently. Windclan's territory was the only place the he felt he could truly be himself, racing over the moors like a lightning bolt in the sky, so fast that he felt like no cat could catch him, silent except for the thud of paws against the ground... Softpaw's adrenaline spiked just thinking about it, and he sighed wistfully.

"Hi, little brother," a voice Softpaw hadn't heard in a long time meowed. Fernfeather padded over to the apprentice with a kind -- and for once genuine -- smile. "You look like you could use someone to hunt with you. Mind if I came along?"

She had spent far too long feeling sorry for herself that she almost forgot she had an apprentice and siblings. No matter how hard it would be for her to change her attitude back to the peppy cat she used to be, she knew her family needed her back in their lives, especially shy little Softpaw.

Softpaw flinched at the voice, but brightened once he realized it was his sister. "Fernfeather!" He purred quietly, nuzzling into her flank. "I haven't seen you in quite a while." He cleared a bit of snow from where he had been sitting with his tail, patting it in an invitation to sit with him. He looked up at her with sad, concerned eyes. "Why haven't I seen you around much? Is everything okay?"

Fernfeather had to kickstart a purr, but once it started she was able to keep it going easily. She nuzzled Softpaw's cheek. "Nothing you need to worry about. I'm just sorry I haven't been spending as much time with you as I should have. You must've been so lonely and uncomfortable without me around..." What kind of sister was she to do such an awful thing to her family? She really was just as horrible a cat as she always told herself she was...

"U-uh, I mean..." Softpaw stammered, watching his sister's mood deteriorate. Did he say something wrong? "Yeah, it was uncomfortable, but I'm learning to be better at interacting with others! ... I think. A-and, I made a friend! His name is W-wolfpaw. H-he's..." Softpaw felt his face heat up, and he looked down at his paws. "... really nice. Um! D-do you think anybody else is going to join us, or should we go?" Softpaw said quickly, trying to change the subject off his crus-

Friend. His friend.

Now her purring came easier. She was still new to relationships, and her relationship with Swiftstep, so she couldn't tell anything was out of the ordinary for Softpaw other than he had made a new friend. She stood up. "Well, since no one had come around by this point, perhaps we should head out now. It'll be nice to catch up with you again." With a smile, she padded to the gorse tunnel and slipped through into WindClan territory.

Softpaw was relieved when his little slip-up went unnoticed. "O-okay! Let's go then!" With that, he stepped out of camp. Already, as he heard the sounds of Windclan life fade behind him, he felt at ease. Just him and his big sister, set free onto the moors... yep. Life couldn't get any better than this. Softpaw catches the scent of a rabbit on the wind, and he slowly approaches until he can see it's figure rummaging around in the snow. After a short chase, in which Softpaw relishes the feeling of wind in his fur, the rabbit is caught, and he returns to Fernfeather with a rabbit in his jaws and a twinkle in his eyes.

The member 'SillySunshine' has done the following action : Dices roll

---

'Hunting Dice' : 3

Fernfeather smiled as her little brother made his first catch of the day. She then gazed wistfully out across the moor. She wished she could run across the soft snowy grass without hurting so much. Lately, she had been heavily regretting what she had done to her pads on rocks and sharp-ended sticks that made it nearly impossible to enjoy a good run or chase. Even though she began seeing Mottleheart and Featherlight about her paws, she didn't know if they would ever completely heal.

Her thoughts were cut off by the scent of a bird, and she spotted a sparrow pecking at the ground a few tail-lengths away. She crouched down and began stalking towards it, then broke into a sprint. She tried with all her might to ignore the pain in her paws, but she ended up stumbling when her paw landed on a stone underneath the snow. The sparrow spotted her and took off with an alarmed cry. Fernfeather stopped running, panting from lack of exercise, looking very crestfallen.

(OOC: BTW, not sure if you know, but now disabled cats have penalties for hunting as well, so Fernfeather may not be taking any of her misses lightly XD)

The member 'Yoshachu' has done the following action : Dices roll

---

'Hunting Dice' : 8

Softpaw smiled gently. "It's okay, Fernfeather. You can't catch every bit of prey." He mewed, turning to continue hunting. He smelled a hare nearby, and crept after its telltale scent. He saw it digging through the snow a few tail-lengths away, and once he was close enough, gave chase. It only took a few paces before he had caught up to the hare, and he felled it with a sweep of his paw and a bite to the neck. He loved hunting rabbits and hares... though, because of his speed the chases often didn't last as long as he wanted them to.

The member 'SillySunshine' has done the following action : Dices roll

---

'Hunting Dice' : 4

Fernfeather straightened up, trying to smile for her brother again. Maybe she could still catch something out here before they went back to camp. She truly hoped so. She walked around, sniffing the air, until finally a lizard attracted her attention. While not the tastiest prey there is at all, fresh-kill was fresh-kill. She crouched and stalked it, and finally she lashed out a paw to scoop it up and toss it into the air. It landed, stunned, on a rock, and she nipped its neck before it could gather its bearings. The strange taste of its blood made her gag. Well... maybe someone can enjoy it.

The member 'Yoshachu' has done the following action : Dices roll

---

'Hunting Dice' : 2

"Oooh, a lizard! Nice catch." Softpaw cheered quietly. "I've never much liked their taste myself, but I know that there's some cat at camp who will love it." With that remark, Softpaw left to find another hare. He steadily accelerated until he was pelting across the moors. He smelled a few birds or lizards here and there, and he actually leapt over a mouse. But he wasn't looking for something that could be caught quickly and easily; his main love for hunting came from the thrill of running, and a chase for a hare or rabbit filled him with adrenaline. Should he feel bad about not catching what he could to provide for the clan? Probably. Did he care right now? No. Because out here, in the open, he could forget he had a clan, forget that other cats existed, forget that there was such a thing as wars and fights and social interactions. Out here, it was just him and the wind. But eventually all good things must come to and end, as Softpaw realized just how far he had strayed. He skidded to a halt, sniffing the air. Good, he was still on Windclan territory. He also detected the scent of a rabbit, and he crept forward. Softpaw broke into s sprint once he was close enough; the rabbit didn't even have time to run. Vaguely disappointed, Softpaw took the rabbit into his mouth and sprinted back to his sister, hoping she wouldn't be upset that he had wandered off.