Patrol for Finchpaw (closed)

Sitting near the camp entrance, Ryecloud waited for his apprentice to wake up and join him. Today, he'd take the younger tom on a border patrol, and while he wasn't exactly the best warrior, seeing as though he was a cripple, he would still try and teach Finchpaw all he knew, seeing as though the clan's younger generation still needed to be trained.

With a yawn, Finchpaw sat up, gazing around sleepily as he took note of his surroundings. The orange tabby spent the night curled up under the sky, quite a change from the sheltered nursery he was used to. Grinning, Finchpaw realized he liked sleeping out in the open better, thinking it was a brave thing to do. A testament to how strong Windclan is! Finchpaw thought, giving himself a good grooming before weaving his way between grass tufts to find his mentor. The young tom's paws were trembling slightly, as the excitement of what they were about to do finally hit him. The apprentice rounded a crest, and caught sight of Ryecloud sitting near the camp entrance.

He sure looks like he's seen a lot of battles...
Finchpaw had been thrilled when Ryecloud had been named his mentor, thinking such an experienced warrior should have thousands of stories to tell. As he approached the gray and white warrior, Finchpaw murmured a greeting. "Goodmorning." The apprentice dipped his head respectfully, using this opportunity to get a full glance at his mentor. I wonder what happened to his leg? And jaw? Or maybe he was born like that? Finchpaw opened his mouth to ask, then thought better of himself and closed it, swallowing. He secretly hoped that his mentor's deformities were battle scars, or testaments to his experience as a warrior. That would be very cool!
Finchpaw blinked, realizing he had been staring. "Where are we off to today?" The apprentice asked, his curiosity about his mentor fading as his curiosity about the territory took hold. The orange tabby lifted his head to survey the open moor beyond, shivering from anticipation. I can't wait... Finchpaw thought, smiling. The fields of dry grass and crops of rock called to him, as if whispering his name. Finchpaw knew this is where he belonged, and couldn't wait to start exploring!

OOC: posts are gonna be short 'cause I'm in a ton of topics atm, pls forgive ><

IC: Glad his apprentice joined him so swiftly, Ryecloud stood up. "Thunberpaff borber," the crooked jawed tom mewed. With that, he began to hobble out of the camp entrance and out into the open territory, heading in the direction of their first destination.

OOC: it's totally fine lol! It must be hard to be a leader and roleplay 5 cats on top of that - I don't know how you do it!


IC: Thunderpath border... Finchpaw thought, having to think twice about what the tom said. As the two cats began the trek through the moor, a thought sprung into Finchpaw's mind. The Thunderpath. He heard tales of it from elders, and his mother before she left the nursery to return to her warrior duties. It was rumored to be a never-ending trail of hot stone, a path used by huge monsters whose pelts were shiny and glittered in the sun.

Finchpaw wondered whether he should find it scary or exciting. The apprentice glanced at Ryecloud, slowing his pace to walk beside his mentor. He probably doesn't find the Thunderpath intimidating... Finchpaw thought, deciding that if Ryecloud wasn't scared of it, that he wouldn't be either. A breeze ruffled through the orange tabby's fur, and he lifted his nose to catch the tail of it, a spark of exhilaration flashing through him. Finchpaw realized that they were now walking farther and farther away from the camp, and that the territory Finchpaw now saw, was territory he had never set eyes on before. And it's all Windclan's! A strong feeling of pride and loyalty hit the apprentice, a grin forming on his face. He felt proud to be part of such a strong clan. His paws itched to run, to take off into a full sprint like he never had before. But Finchpaw stayed near Ryecloud, matching his pace with his mentor's. Soon... Finchpaw thought, closing his eyes with a smile.

Hobbling through the territory with his apprentice at his side, the pair soon made it to the horrible smelling path and he wrinkled his nose in disgust. He'd never get used to this place, no matter how many times he patrolled it. "Bhat do you bow abouf mit?" the crippled warrior asked, turning to his apprentice.

Finchpaw imitated his mentor's movements, and wrinkled his nose as well, overwhelmed by the stench of the Thunderpath. His eyes grew wet and the apprentice took a few steps backward into the wheatgrass, feeling as if he should distance himself from the path. It cut like a black snake through the moor, parting the dried grasses mercilessly. The trail stretched farther than Finchpaw could've ever imagined, and endless streak that rode over hills and dipped into the forest. Eerie.

Narrowing his eyes, Finchpaw began his explanation to Ryecloud, hoping his knowledge of said path was sufficient. "I know it's dangerous. The elders have told me cats have died on the Thunderpath, killed by monsters." The apprentice shivered a little, thinking of what a Thunderpath death would look like, with blood, and the hot stone... The orange tabby winced. Not for the faint of heart... "The warriors say that monsters are huge, and are somehow even more repulsive than the path itself..." Finchpaw, gaining courage, took a step forward, tilting his head sideways so his vision could traverse the side of the Thunderpath. A red speck arose on the horizon, glittering a little. It moved so fast, Finchpaw had a hard time comprehending what was happening, until the huge beast had zoomed past him, leaving a trail of smoke in its wake. The tabby fell backwards, eyes squeezed shut and ears flattened against his head. He found his paws quickly, rising up above the grass that swallowed him, and gave his mentor a look of pure shock, exhaling harder than he ever had before. "Whoa..." Was all Finchpaw could manage, feeling as if Starclan had just rushed through him.
Shaking his head, Finchpaw sat down, pelt hot with embarrassment. "That must've been a monster..." He mewed, staring at the ground, eyes narrowed, hoping Ryecloud wouldn't notice the shock the red beast had given him.

Listening to the apprentice, Ryecloud squinted his eyes closed as a monster roared by, shaking the earth in which it ran on. No matter how much he watched and listened to the monsters race by, they were always so overwhelming and would never cease to make his fur raise. "Y-yesh," he mewed and have his pelt a shake. "Met's mo to ba gorbe," the warrior spoke and began heading in the direction of their next destination. That was enough Thunderpath for one day and they might as well get moving before another Monster came along.

Finchpaw was glad to leave the Thunderpath as he and his mentor padded off in the opposite direction. The gorge was their next destination, and Finchpaw couldn't decide if it, or the Thunderpath, was more dangerous.

The legends about them equally intrigued Finchpaw, and he wondered how many great scenes had taken place in their midst. Battles on the hot path of monsters, or two, lovestruck cats separated by the cavernous gorge, or maybe a scene of betrayal, one warrior throwing another into the jaws of danger, in front of a monster, or into the deep of the waterfall. The thought of it made Finchpaw shiver. The land he and his clanmates lived in was filled with endless possibilities, and exploring it with his mentor had already been so eye opening. There was no place he'd rather be.

The orange tabby slowed his pace to stride alongside Ryecloud, still wondering if he should ask him about his deformities. His mentor's bad leg had made their journey quite the long one, but Finchpaw didn't mind, and instead thought of it as an opportunity to view the territory better, which he had fallen in love with along the way. Still curious about Ryecloud, Finchpaw decided instead to ask the warrior about the gorge rather than his disabilities. "Do you have any stories about the gorge?" The orange tabby questioned, head cocked to the side.

Listening to the apprentice's question, he thought about it for a few moments. Besides the time his father almost started a war by jumping over it to fight a cat, he didn't have much else to say. But of course, he wasn't going to tell Finchpaw about something so negative from the past and simply gave a shake of his head. "No," the crooked jawed cat mewed. The last thing he wanted to do was bring up Smokepelt's downfall, even if it would've answered his apprentice's curiosity more than a simple 'no.' "Bery danberous, bay back," Ryecloud warned. One faulty footing and a cat could go tumbling into the raging waters bellow.

Finchpaw's breath caught in his throat as they reached the gorge. It was impossibly deep, sheer walls of rock cascading down to reveal a river below, rippling from the waterfall. The orange tabby felt that not even the legends from the nursery could prepare him for this. His paws trembled a little, standing so close to the edge. Finchpaw took a step back, never letting his eyes leave the ravine. Amazing... The apprentice thought. Feeling a stir in his heart, as if every little aspect of this land was a new face that Ryecloud introduced him to. Part of him almost wanted greet the gorge as he would a new friend. Tell it that he couldn't wait for the adventures to come.

Shaking his head, as if to tell his conscious No Finchpaw, that's silly, he turned toward Ryecloud watching him intently. The orange tabby thought that Ryecloud's "no" was way too abrupt. He couldn't possibly have no stories about the gorge. Such an experienced cat? With no tales of the ravine? Impossible. Every bone in Finchpaw's body wanted to press his mentor for more information. But in the end, he decided on silence, not wanting to upset the gray and white cat.

"Where are we off to next?" The apprentice questioned, letting the wind run through his short fur.