Rising Sun (Closed)

"Hurry up kid, we don't have all day!"

Backing out of the narrow apprentice-den entrance, Fernpetal sniffed irritably; she was not too fond of training apprentices.  Sure, she had only had one so far, but her first had been so lazy and laid back she could barely get him out of camp, and if Sunpaw turned out to be the same...  Shaking her glossy pelt, the pretty she-cat sat down beside the prey pile and licked one of her forepaws, ears pricked.  The only upside was the possibilty that this kit may be smart enough to actully understand her point.  True, he was a son of Tinystar - making him her uncle, oddly - but if she could influance at least one cat to see the truth lying right beneath their muzzle, she would be happy.  StarClan wasn't real, and this kid may be her gateway into fulfilling her mission.  First though, he needed to hurry his tail up before she hurried it for him!

Snapping his head up from a voice that suddenly woke him up, Sunpaw groggily looked around to spot Fernpetal leaving the den. Knowing he didn't have a choice in the matter, the tall, lean apprentice stood up and gave his pelt a shake, ridding himself from moss that clung onto his sides.

Tiptoeing his way out of the warmth of the den, he made his way over to the she-cat and gave her a nod of greeting. "H-hello," the meek tom mewed softly, looking down to his paws. While his self esteem and confidence in everything had always been particularly low, his father's recent doings had made him even more fearful for himself and family, seeing as though Tinystar wasn't necessarily a clan favorite anymore. Of course, Sunpaw had nothing to do with it himself, but being the loyal son that he was, didn't disagree with what had been done either, which made him an even bigger target if any cat found out. Luckily for him, he wasn't a very outspoken apprentice.

At long last, the little white-pelted tom appeared, and Fernpetal greeted him with a narrowed gaze and irritated sniff.  Ever since...the event a couple days ago, the usually grumpy she-cat had been in even worse of a mood than normal; the loss of one of her closest friends mixed with an unpleasant task by her standards resulted in a less-than-zero tolerance level for...pretty much everything.  Family especially.  Pfft...nice of you to show up.  Come on, public murder or not, we still need food.  Let's get it over and done with."  Tail tip so low it almost dragged upon the frosty ground, the bi-color tabby warrior pushed her way out of the snow-bound camp entrance and led the way into the rocky forest beyond, not sparing any glances behind for her much smaller companion.

With his abnormally large ears hot with embarrassment, Sunpaw kept his eyes to the ground as the warrior mewed bluntly to him. "O-okay," the tall apprentice spoke as he trotted out of the camp after Firflower. Not being a very talkative cat, he kept quiet with his head low. Even if he did have something to say, it wasn't like now was the time for small talk, so keeping quiet was most likely the best choice of action anyway.

After a few minutes of careful scenting, Fernpetal managed to pick up the scent of a bird coming from a nearby bramble bush.  Murky green eyes narrowing to concentrated slits, the slender she-cat crouched down and waited in the shadow of an old elm tree for the feathery creature to show itself.  Her tail tip twitched impatiently until, finally, a beak peeked out between the leaves, followed by a red-tinged breast and dark brown wings.  A robin, pretty healthy looking too for this deep in leaf-bare!  Teeth bared, the bi-color tabby began to slowly pull herself forward when, suddenly, a loud crashing noise interrupted her perfect scene of stealth.  She didn't know what was coming, but one thing was for sure; it wasn't getting her catch!  With a growl, the she-cat launched herself upward through the air after the robin as it took flight, claws outstretched as her strong back legs leaped with everything she had.  Her pink paw pads brushed the bird's soft wing...but it slipped through her grasp.  Her angry hiss quickly turned to a yelp as she fell onto her side into a patch of bracken, and felt sharp claws rake down her flank.  Growling, the warrior jumped to her paws and turned to face her opponent, the stupid stinking raccoon who had scared away her kill with his noisy paws.  "Sunpaw, get over here, we have a score to settle!"  With a mighty leap, Fernpetal crashed into the ring-tailed nuisance and bowled it over, rolling onto the ground as the overgrown rat shrieked and kicked, trying to break free.

Raccoon used Quick Swipe, dealing 20 damage and costing 10 stamina

Raccoon:
30/30 HP
290/300 SP

Fernpetal:
25/45 HP
160/160 SP

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Fernpetal used Jumping Strike, dealing 10 damage and costing 20 stamina

Fernpetal:
25/45 HP
140/160 SP

Raccoon:
20/30 HP
290/300 SP

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

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'Hunting Dice' : 10

What was once a simple patrol turned into chaos withing moments. First they were going to simply hunt, which Sunpaw could bear with, but once that raccoon showed up, he wanted no part in whatever happened next. Without even thinking, the lean apprentice shot up a nearby tree and clung onto a branch where he overlooked the battle bellow. Quaking so that he made even the branch wobble, the white and cream tom shook his head. "W-what is it?!" he yowled down to his mentor as he crouch on his perch above, eyes wide with fear. Surely not all prey was this fierce and angry?

After getting in a few good strikes, Fernpetal leaped away from the raccoon, leaving it to struggle to right itself as she turned to see where Sunpaw was...just in time to watch as the tom scrambled up a tree, gazing down at her with wide eyes like a scared owlet.  What in the name of...  "Are you stupid?!  It doesn't matter what it is, just get down here and help me!  Too late, in her moment of shocked indignation, the ring-tailed animal had jumped up and began to hit her with another volley of strong blows, knocking the wind out of the tabby and white warrior and knocking her down onto the ground.  She could feel blood from the cuts begin to soak into her fur, but she swiftly returned to her feet.  Fury coursed through her body, giving her strength as she lifted onto her hind legs and swiped viciously at the raccoon's face, issuing a series of pained cries from her victim.  Soon enough, after one of her unsheathed blows caught his ear and tore the skin, the fat-bodied nuisance finally turned tail and fled from the clearing, leaving Fernpetal standing with pelt raised, panting.  For a moment she was silent, recovering from the encounter, before turning around to face her apprentice, face twisted into a mask of rage.  "You!  Get your furry behind down here, now!"

Raccoon used Quick Swipe, costing 10 stamina and dealing 20 damage

Raccoon:
20/30 HP
280/300 SP

Fernpetal:
5/45 HP
140/160 SP

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Fernpetal used Upright front paws, costing 20 stamina and dealing 11 damage

Fernpetal:
5/45 HP
120/160 SP

Raccoon:
9/30 HP
280/300 SP

The Raccoon was chased off.

Watching as the older she-cat battle the creature, Sunpaw didn't dare move from his spot up in the tree, frozen in fear. "N-no!" he squealed, defying Fernpetal's orders completely. He didn't want to disobey his mentor and of course felt horribly guilty about doing so, but he also didn't want to die. "I don't wanna be eaten!" the apprentice yowled down to Fernpetal, who in his opinion, seemed to be doing fine against the beast on her own. "And I... I'd only get in your way," he mumbled to himself, shivering at the thought of being the reason his mentor was eaten by this unknown predator, whatever it was.

Fernpetal rolled her eyes, brown tabby and white patched tail lashing furiously; "You mousebrain, a raccoon wouldn't eat you!  No matter if they do or don't though, your actions today would've surely tempted it to!  What are you Sunpaw, the predator, or the prey?!  Warriors do not run from a battle they need to fight!"  For a moment, the she-cat thought she could hear her apprentice mumble something else, but bushed it off with a hiss.  "No backtalk, just get down.  In case you've been too busy fretting like an old queen to notice, the overgrown rat is gone!"  Turning away, she glanced off into the distant trees, listening for a moment before shaking her head.  "Fox dung, all the prey around here got scared off...fine."  Not bothering to look back up at her cowardly charge, the scratched molly whipped around and began padding off in a new direction, tail lifted high in the air.  "C'mon, let's go find a new spot...unless you'd rather I return to camp and report your mutinous behavior to Tinystar?"  Her face cracked in a slight grin, fully aware of the sensitive topic she was treading upon, yet she cared not for the tom-cat's emotions or his opinions.  Pfft, like Tinystar would disgrace his own son...it's clear that the only cats that matter to him these days are those that share his blood.  If I reported it I would probably get berated, and told what a precious little kitten he is, and that I should be proud to train my kin...

Maybe Nightstorm had the right idea after all.

With the raccoon gone, Sunpaw shimmied his way down the trunk of the tree and plopped himself clumsily on the ground bellow. Ears flat, the tom flinched at Fernpetal's harsh words. She was right, he was a total mousebrain, being such a coward. But he couldn't help himself! Through all the training he'd watched and been a part of, fleeing was the only thing his body would let him do in treacherous moments, especially when they were life threatening moments.

As his mentor continued, the apprentice's throat grew tight as he tried to hold back tears. 'Don't cry, don't cry,' he repeated to himself over and over again, trying to distract his emotions. Unfortunately for him, his emotions were just as weak as his stomach and when she mentioned bringing him to his father, he became complete mush as guilt consumed him.

"I-I'm sorry!" Sunpaw sobbed, tears streaming down his pale colored face. He hated to see someone so angry over something he did. Not helping his mentor fend off a predator... he might as well have been brought to his father and been punished. "I-I know I'm a-a coward," he heaved, his lungs aching from the cold air plus the energy it took to half cry and not completely lose it.

Sunpaw's sobs halted Fernpetal's footsteps, and the fuming she-cat cast her gaze back over her shoulder, watching her apprentice through murky narrowed eyes.  Boy...he really is pathetic, isn't he?  Why do I keep getting stuck with the weakest of the bunch...well, obviously?  It's my punishment, for speaking my mind of course.  Jeez...  Turning around all the way to face the lanky white tom, the bi-color she-cat's anger faded a bit as he admitted his faults, but not entirely.  Thus, her voice was still sharp when she finally spoke, but there was a new layer as well; encouragement.  "Sunpaw, let me tell ya, we were all cowards at one point.  As little tiny kittens, we all shrunk away from anything, relying on our mothers or...foster mothers for protection.  When you grow up though, you gotta learn how to fend for yourself.  I've had to for my whole life, and so can you!  Just because you're still stuck in the mind of a kitten now doesn't mean you're beyond saving, you just have to face your fears and...you know...be brave.  Try it sometime, it's quite a rush.  Always look out for your safety though; just because I can fight off a raccoon single-pawed, thankfully, doesn't mean you can.  You'll never learn though if you don't try."  With a half-smile, the strict she-cat quickly returned to her usual form, and flicked her tail.  "Now, go hunt.  To make up for your actions, I expect at least three pieces of prey, no matter how scrawny."

Sniffling, Sunpaw met his mentor's gaze. The softness in which she now held on her muzzle surprised him, but he wasn't about to take it for granted. At least she wasn't yelling at him. Nodding his head to show that he understood what she'd said, he was going to thank her for such advice, but before he could, she'd returned to her normal state and demanded that he go and hunt. Great, one more chance to make a fool of himself. "O-okay," he mewed softly in reply, not having the guts to possibly protest.

Walking away from the she-cat, a shiver was sent up his spine as he scented the air. What if he ran into another predator? Would he be able to fend it off without Fernpetal? Probably not, but hopefully it wouldn't even come down to that. There was enough pressure on him as far as being able to hunt at all, so he needed to push away such harrowing thoughts.

After a few moments of stalking around with his maw open and head extended, Sunpaw picked up the scent of what he thought was a bird and the tweets that sounded as he got closer confirmed his suspicion. Lowering his abnormally tall body down as far as he possibly could, the tom made sure to keep his tail low, even though the end of it twitched in anticipation. Spotting the bird a foxlength or so away, he bunched up his haunches, his heart beating faster than it ever had before. He couldn't let his mentor down, he just couldn't. Yeah, he was a coward, but if he couldn't even catch a piece of prey... he'd be a complete disgrace to his family's name, which he couldn't afford.

Stalking forward, he readied himself and after a few moments of simply waiting and watching the bird eat berries off the forest floor, he lunged forward, claws extended. Landing squarely on the bird, he'd even surprised himself but knew he had to act quickly. Pushing the bird down under his weight, he sunk his claws in. The bird's shrill squawks and squeals filled the once still air around him and before it could make anymore noise, he bit it's neck, putting a swift end to it's misery. While he was proud of himself for actually managing to catch something, killing his first piece of prey wasn't all that great, and a pit of guilt grew in his stomach. He'd just killed something... granted it was for his clan's welfare, but he couldn't help but feel bad for the poor, unsuspecting bird.

Shaking away the thoughts, he stood up and quickly buried his kill. He had a job to do, even if he hated it.

Making his way away from the area in which he'd been hunting at, Sunpaw continued to search for more prey. After a little while of sniffing around and wondering if there was even any prey left in the forest after his initial sloppy hunt, a new scent hit his nose; something more sweet and fulfilling this time. Getting low and using the same technique in which he'd used before, he leapt forward and swiftly killed the piece of prey in which he assumed was a squirrel. Before burying the fluffy animal, he closed his eyes and silently thanked StarClan for what he'd be bringing back to the clan. He wasn't able to stop hunting, but he could at least be respectful and thankful.

Making his way through the forest, he soon made another kill, this time another squirrel. After thanking StarClan and burying the prey in yet another spot, Sunpaw gave his short pelt a shake, a chilly breeze ruffling what little fur he had. "I-I'm done," he called out, looking around and wondering where his mentor was. Hopefully she was nearby or had been watching so that his hunting wasn't all for nothing.

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

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'Hunting Dice' : 5, 6, 6