Hunting Nerves

Dappleshine swallowed hard as she waited by the entrance to camp for the tom that would be joining her. When Raventail had announced the assignments, she had stared hard at him, eyes almost begging him to flick her shoulder with his tail laughing, explaining he had been teasing her. It never came though, and her throat had gone dry as the sun rose to it's peak in the sky. A sunhigh hunting patrol, not too bad.... With Grousefrost? Who had despised her from the moment she walked into WindClan's camp for the first time? Okay, not great, but maybe once they got to know each other he wouldn't be too bad... Raventail and Grousefrost had known each other for a long time, his anger and misgivings were understandable.... But at the Gorge of all places? This would be the first time she had even approached that side of WindClan's territory since leaving RiverClan behind, and she was not looking forward to seeing it.

As much as she dismayed the thought of going, though, she didn't want to be late. So instead, she found herself waiting at the entrance for a bit as the sun rose higher. She had heard a lot about Grousefrost and his efficiency, and with finding herself on his bad side already there was no way she was going to take any chances. He was the patrol leader, so she would follow him, but would not hold him back. Not in countless moons would she give him a reason to hate her.

He was not ready for this. Grousefrost glared coldly at Raventail as he passed the black tom. His silver and white body sleek and well-groomed like usual as he padded over to where his patrol partner was waiting. The she-cat that reeked of fish. His nose wrinkled as he neared her, his paws stopped directly in front of her.

“You’re unlucky. I’m your patrol partner today, and you’d better not slow me down.” His blue eyes narrowed at her, ice cold as he picked over her pelt with his gaze. Those paws seemed too soft and wide for good traction on the moor, her pelt was too long, but at least it was the right colour… if a bit too shiny. He huffed. There was nothing to be done about it as he stalked towards the golden fields, pausing to look back into camp, towards his family for a moment with a glimpse of fondness before it hardened again and he leapt out of the camp.

“I’ll show you once. Then I expect you to do the same, unless Raventail has been useful for once and shown you how to hunt the moore way.” He glanced at her, expecting an answer before he veered off sharply at a flash of brown and white that flickered briefly in his vision.

All at once, his pelt seemed to vanish into the grass as he launched himself at full speed after the rabbit that seemed confused and bewildered. It turned and slipped as Grousefrost bared down on it, claws open as it slapped it off balance further and abruptly ended it’s life. His head lifted as he breathed deep heavy breaths that billowed in the early leaf fall air.

Grousefrost lost -3 SP from the hunt.

The member 'Cays - The musical' has done the following action : Dices roll

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'Hunting Dice' : 7

The way that the tom wrinkled his nose as he approached was a little uncalled for, but she shrugged it off. It was the words that stung more than his look, as she had heard what the other clans thought of the fishy smell RiverClan cats carried with them, even if she had always considered it normal. He seemed to look over her, and she remained still and silent as he made his judgements. With a final huff, he turned and stalked into the golden moor land, and the flicker of warmth as he looked back at his family did not go unnoticed. Maybe he wasn't so hard and icy as she had initially thought.... Or maybe that icy wall could only be warmed by the light of his sun-furred mate and their kit.

As they traced through the moors of WindClan, she watched and mimicked his steps and movements. He seemed to know the land around them like the back of his paw, and she took note of the tunnel entrances as they passed them. Wondering for a moment what all they were used for, she met his gaze as he spoke. He paused, seeming to wait for a response, so she mewed quietly. "Yes, Grousefrost." This wasn't her first time trying to catch a rabbit, but it certainly was the first with such a prickly partner. Suddenly, the tom lurched forward, and in an instant was gone. She had to acknowledge his speed and finesse as he captured the rabbit, ending it's life before straightening in the cool air.

Blinking at him for a moment, she turned her attention to her surroundings. Blue eyes searched for movement, the flicker of a tail, the scuffle of paws. Finally, an odd shape stuck out from the moors. Dropping into an evenly balanced crouch, she took note of the wind before circling slowly around the hare, taking care to stay out of it's line of sight as she positioned herself. Eyes staying locked on her target, she sprung forward, pushing herself to run as fast as she could. As she neared it, she could see it's eyes dart one way, and she dashed the same way it's eyes had gone. In a flash, she had the hare between her jaws, hanging limp as she trotted to a stop near her original position. Setting it gently on the ground at her paws, she raised her eyes to meet Grousefrost's once more.

Dappleshine attempted to catch Hare, catch was a success. -3 SP.

237/240 SP

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

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'Hunting Dice' : 2