sparrow and the song [closed]

ooc: takes place after october’s gathering, before burninglight + what we really are

Early though it was, it apparently wasn’t too early to start assigning patrols. Two traitors and the leader’s apprentice. They made a strange group—a group led by Lightfang, at that. Still, Lightfang wasn’t one to complain, especially when that group included part of his family. With practiced ease, he picked his way through the mess of nests in the warriors’ den until he spotted his brother’s cream-striped pelt. Then he gave Swallowflight a flick on the shoulder with his tail. ”Hunting patrol. Meet me by the camp entrance.” Though the words were stern, Lightfang couldn’t help the hint of warmth in his voice. They disagreed on the matter of Cardinalpaw—clearly; Swallowflight’s reaction at the Gathering was proof of that—but as she was still his sister, Swallowflight was still his brother.

Next was the youngest member of their patrol. Lightfang knew Beanpaw well enough to distinguish his black-and-white fur amidst the other apprentices in the den; the moon he’d spent in camp had done quite a bit to help him memorize his Clanmates’ names and faces. That was where his knowledge ended. It was unfair to think Beanpaw was Tinystar just because Tinystar had trained him, and so Lightfang pushed past his apprehension and tapped the apprentice exactly once with a paw. ”Beanpaw, you’re on morning patrol. Meet me by the camp entrance.” With that, he hurried out of the apprentices’ den to wait. Lightfang wasn’t wholly at ease with the idea of leading this patrol, but he seemed to be doing things right so far. Maybe that was a good sign. Seating himself, he set about grooming the fur on one of his forelegs.

Beanpaw just wanted to sleep.

Why in Tinystar's name was he not allowed to sleep? It was the only thing that he wanted at that moment, and Lightfang wasn't going to allow it. Why? He wouldn't actually catch any prey anyway, he was far too lazy for that. So what was the point? Was his presence really needed? Groaning, he got up as slowly as he possibly could, grooming out his long black and white fur. The sun had just risen, and he was already frustrated. Great. Slowly, he padded out of the apprentice's den, and met Lightfang at his side and sat down. He didn't even both with pleasantries, just a large and obnoxious yawn.

By the time the first of his patrolmates emerged, Lightfang had fixed the fur on one foreleg two times over and made considerable progress on the other. A black-and-white shape caught his eye. He raised his head to see Beanpaw dragging himself across camp, looking more asleep than awake. That made it considerably harder to be intimidated by him. ”Good morning,” Lightfang meowed with an uneasy smile. Swallowflight still hadn’t appeared. It wasn’t that early, was it?

Giving Beanpaw a parting nod (and privately wondering if he was conscious enough to notice), the pale tabby poked his head into the warriors’ den one last time to find Swallowflight out cold. Lightfang considered nudging him again. Then he remembered the Gathering, how obviously hurt Swallowflight had been, and…well. It was hard to think of badgering him into waking up after that. A two-cat patrol was hardly doomed for failure, anyway. ”We’re leaving now,” Lightfang said as he trotted back to Beanpaw’s side—and past him, moving toward the camp exit, trusting his quiet announcement alone would convince the half-awake apprentice to follow.

Today, rather than help him relax, the early morning quiet served to remind him that he was in charge of this patrol. He nearly missed the small shape amidst the rocks. The lizard didn’t notice him as he crouched; it did notice when one of his paws came down right on top of a particularly crunchy leaf. In the brief moments it took for him to identify the noise, the lizard vanished deeper into the forest. Lightfang stared after it, ears warming. Was it too much to hope Beanpaw hadn't seen that? Finally, he braced himself and looked back over his shoulder.

Lightfang attempted to catch Lizard, using 3 stamina. The attempt was a failure…

Lightfang
60/60 HP
197/200 SP (-3)

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

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'Hunting Dice' : 9