I Was Younger, So Much Younger Than Today

The sound of Ivybrook’s paws falling against the light, freshly fallen snow was barely heard as she crossed camp, the crisp morning air ruffling her thick grey fur. There were only slight patches of white covering the ground, partly melted away but the newly risen sun. She’d just finished her first patrol, a quick yet successful hunt, bringing in two small squirrels that she laid in the freshkill pile. She’d been doing a bit of extra hunting since Torrentstar’s accident, saying that it was to make up for his lost time whenever someone asked. She’d never admit that it was truly just to get herself out of camp, to get away from the usual hustle and bustle that being around her Clanmates entailed. zit wasn’t so much that she didn’t like them; more so the fact that she preferred the peace she could get while away.

After taking just a moment to stretch, the deputy’s gaze landed on the familiar pelt of her former apprentice, Honeytongue. It wouldn’t be too much longer before they were due to set off on a patrol, so she padded over to the warrior and sat down. ”Whenever you’re ready, we can set out for the River.” She said simply, curling her tail over her paws.

It took everything in Honeytongue to keep from pacing as she waited for the deputy. It was...Hard. Dealing with things. Her father's accident and Redmask...She was alone. All of her siblings were gone. Leafkit, Tigerpaw, Redmask. At every stage of her life, she had lost one. And her father was stuck cooped up in his den as he recovered, she couldn't see how he was doing. How he was taking things. How... A sigh escaped her, eyes flickering close as she forced herself to take a deep breath. She had made a promise to herself, to not get weighed down by whatever happened. She had to be there for her father, for her Clan. Going hunting with Ivybrook...It would help get her mind off of things, focus on what was important. Her eyes flickered open at the sound of the deputy's voice, quickly jumping to her paws as she nodded. "I'm ready!" she mewed as she scurried over, tail lashing in excitement as she eyed her, waiting for Ivybrook to take the lead.

Glad that Honeytongue was eager to begin their patrol, Ivybrook got to her paws quickly and led her small patrol out of camp. The silence didn’t bother her as she made her way through the myriad of small streams and reeds, pushing through tall grass as she made her way towards the River. Conversation wasn’t something that Ivybrook was fond of, and unless it was necessary she didn’t plan on starting a new one. After all, her thoughts were her own and no other cat needed to bear the weight of what had been happening recently. ’Six kits,’ a phrase that seemed to repeat itself over and over in her mind no matter ehat activities she busied herself with. Six kits. The silver deputy continued until the pair had reached the river, pretending that the pestering voice in her head wasn’t there at all. ”We’ll hunt here for a while, if that’s alright.” After a quick glance in Honeytongue’s direction, Ivybrook approached the edge of the water, daring to dip her toes in the clear, cold liquid. Closing her eyes for a moment, she let the water flow over her paws. When she was at the river, she felt at peace. Opening her eyes, she watched carefully for the inevitable shadow of a passing, quickly dipping her paw in the water when one grabbed her attention. When she felt the weight of it tugging on her claws, she swiftly tossed it onto land and bit down, creating a pile that would only grow for the remainder of the trip.

Ivybrook caught a fish, using 3 Stamina Points.

Ivybrook:
100/100 HP
277/280 SP

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

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'Hunting Dice' : 8

Honeytongue was somewhat thankful for the silence as well, dreading the idea that perhaps Ivybrook would ask how she was handling things and she wouldn't be able to lie, to hide the burden she was struggling to bury so that she could focus on the others around her. She followed faithfully, eyes focusing on the peaceful territory around them and taking everything in before it would be covered in snow for the next couple moons. She knew she was a tad lucky, having somewhat long fur so that the cold wasn't bothering her...And she could only hope that their prey would stay running, having heard about the river apparently...Freezing, at certain points which would make fishing impossible.

She halted as Ivybrook spoke, blinking in some surprise that they had already made it to the river, having not been paying attention to the length as she had tried to focus on the smaller details. She nodded her head, stepping up to crouch next to her as she peered into the water. Carefully, she dipped her paw into the water as well, shivering slightly at the coldness of it brushing over her pawpads as she drew away. She couldn't imagine the fate of a cat from another Clan falling in - the coldness would sap their strength and the water would weigh them down...While Honeytongue's long, repelling fur would protect her from both. She sighed, shifting her weight as she watched the faint movement of fish below the surface. Her gaze flickered over to Ivybrook at the flash of moment, seeing the deputy quickly capture a fish herself, before she went back to waiting...And waiting...Until finally, a fish drew close enough and she darted her paw forward into the cold water below.

With a swift flick of her paw, the fish came sailing out, scattering water droplets around the two she-cats as Honeytongue quickly ended the fish's life before it could flop back into the river. She smiled, a happy sigh escaping her as she gently nosed it over to the pile that Ivybrook had started before settling down to wait for another fish to pass by.

Honeytongue caught a fish, costing 3 stamina.

Honeytongue:
60/60 HP
197/200 SP

The member 'Snow Honey Badger' has done the following action : Dices roll

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'Hunting Dice' : 2

Nodding after Honeytongue added her own catch to the pile, Ivybrook continued to gaze down at the water. She'd occasionally steal a glance at her reflection, her glimmering green eyes staring right back at her. Every time she looked, she could only see everything she'd lost. She'd see her six kits glaring at her, Berrycloud and Jaystar. No matter how much she tried to avoid it, they were always there. They were absolutely inescapable.

Her thoughts were abruptly interrupted as the shadow of a fish passed right under her gaze, and she quickly maneuvered her paws to catch it. When she did, she quickly ended it and tossed it gracefully into the pile, waiting on Honeytongue to attempt another catch before she continued.

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

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'Hunting Dice' : 6

Honeytongue rocked back and forth on her paws, shifting ever so slightly into a more comfortable position as she waited. The patience that it took to catch fish - it was certainly one aspect of their life that they could brag about but it also left time to muse on ones' thoughts...She wasn't so fond of that, a soft sigh escaping her as she thought about all the losses that RiverClan had face. Just when it seemed they were growing so much...They had lost everything in one fell swoop it felt like. Her eyes closed, thinking on the faces of everybody that had been lost before she flickered her eyes open to once again focus on the fish...Before striking out at one.

It was an easy enough catch, adding it to the pile. As she shifted to return to her spot, she paused to stare at Ivybrook. For a second, she thought about opening her mouth, to ask if the deputy was alright...Before slowly closing it as she returned to focus on fishing. They could talk later, she supposed. It was more important to focus on the fishing and prepping for leaf-bare.

Honeytongue caught a fish, costing 3 stamina.

Honeytongue:
60/60 HP
194/200 SP

The member 'Snow Honey Badger' has done the following action : Dices roll

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'Hunting Dice' : 1

Painfully aware if the golden warrior’s eyes resting on her, Ivybrook shifted to get a better position in the water, narrowing her eyes against the glint of the sun. Perhaps StarClan intended to take everything away for her, maybe they had a reason for all the pain, all the suffering. Shaking her head, she dismissed the thought. She had no other solution but that they simply had it out for her- perhaps because of her parentage, or the fact that she wasn’t able to help her family when they needed it the most. Her thoughts were once again interrupted by the passing of a trout, one that she quickly struck out at, adding yet another catch to the pile.

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

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'Hunting Dice' : 6

Honeytongue stared at the water, watching the ripples disturb the surface from Ivybrook's catch before it settled. There was something...Strange about water, the way it moved. There was nothing quite like it and it was so vital to their everyday life. Her tail flickered as she leaned in closer to inspect the river...Followed by sudden sharp pain. She yelped as she jumped to her paws - but something was weighting her tail down and it brought sharp pain in it. She glanced over her shoulder to see...A turtle. She hadn't seen it approach, when had it approached? Had the two just mistaken its shell for a rock? But it had drawn close enough to the fishing cats that when Honeytongue's tail had swished - it had taken the opportunity to bite and latch off. "Get off!" she hissed as she twisted to bring claws down on its head, grimacing at the pain. It if ruined her tail....

Wild Turtle used Gripping Bite on Honeytongue, dealing 10 damage and costing 30 stamina. The turtle is attached for 2 more turns.

Honeytongue used Upright front paws on wild turtle, dealing 12 damage and costing 20 stamina.

Honeytongue:
50/60 HP (-10)
174/200 SP (-20)

Wild Turtle:
138/150 HP (-12)
420/450 SP (-30)

Before Ivybrook had much of a chance to continue her fishing endeavors, Honeytongue’s yelp of surprise and pain caused her to immediately turn around, pushing herself from the river and directly onto their newfound opponent- a snapping turtle. Hoping that she’d managed to hit something beside the hard outer shell of the turtle.

Ivybrook used Underwater Push-Off, dealing -17 Health Points and using -15 Stamina Points.

Ivybrook:
100/100 HP
256/280 SP

Wild Turtle:
121/150 HP
420/450 SP

Honeytongue snarled at the turtle as she tried to lash her tail free, being forced to give up as it only brought more pain as the turtle's biting grip tightened at the movement. As Ivybrook dashed forward to help, Honeytongue took the moment to make a leap at the turtle, front paws slamming into its shell as she forced it to the ground. Its shell was smooth, but she was used to walking on wet, slippery rocks and knew how to adjust her grip. She could feel the turtle wiggle underneath her weight, but she only hoped that she would distract it long enough to free her tail.

Wild Turtle continued to use Gripping Bite on Honeytongue, dealing another 10 damage and costing 30 stamina. The turtle is attached for 1 more turns.

Honeytongue used Leap-and-Hold on wild turtle, dealing 11 damage and costing 10 stamina. Lasts for 1 turns.

Honeytongue:
40/60 HP (-10)
164/200 SP (-10)

Ivybrook:
100/100 HP
256/280 SP

Wild Turtle:
110/150 HP (-11)
390/450 SP (-30)