The Flint that lights the Flame (closed)

Sitting near the camp entrance, Daisyflame listened to the almost completely silent, evening air. An icy breeze ruffled the tom's sleek, white and ginger splotched coat, which sent a shiver up his spine as he waited for some cat to join him. Moments ago, snow had begun to flutter down from above, blanketing the camp in a light layer of cold, white powder.

To keep himself busy and keep his mind off of recent events, Daisyflame had found himself going on more patrols than usual, and while he could've just sat around camp and rested, he'd decided to help out and lead an evening hunting patrol. When he thought about it, what he really needed to do was sit down and chat with his mate, Ravenmist, about the looming guilt from killing the SkyClanner that swirled around in his head, but she was busy with her own duties and so he’d have to wait just a little longer.

Flintshard limped his way out of Mothglow's den, blinking into the faint light that filtered its way into the ShadowClan camp. His leg ached as he gently tested putting weight on it, huffing when it was clear it still couldn't support him. His injury was an annoyance more than anything, having been trapped in the camp - Mothglow's den, to be exact - since he had been dragged in here. He had finally been given the freedom to leave the camp, but he knew it was dangerous to do so alone until he could defend himself. It was...Annoying, to be certain. Mostly when he didn't really want to talk to others.

He found himself glancing around the camp, not really looking for much but he halted at the sight of Daisyflame sitting, waiting, at the entrance of the camp. It wasn't hard to imagine why - he was, or at least wanted, to go out. The injured warrior stood there frozen as he tried to weigh his choices, either being stuck in camp or perhaps seeing if he could go out with Daisyflame and...Ugh, perhaps needing to make small talk. He didn't know the white and orange warrior all that well which meant that he was certain that the warrior, who had seemed rather...Polite, would want to get to know him better which meant talking. But Flintshard hated talking, he was never good at it. It always led to awkward silences but...

A huff escaped him as he finally forced himself forward, limping across the camp toward Daisyflame, deciding that it was worth the price to get into the quietness of the territory once again. "Are you going out?" he meowed as he approached, tilting his head in slight curiosity. "Would you mind if I tagged along? I...Need to test out my hunting," he muttered. He had no idea how he was going to hunt with his injury, he could barely move without a heavy limp and that meant noise. He was no longer able to move with silence as ShadowClan cats often prided themselves with and it was an annoyance. But...He had to try. Mothglow had said something in her rambles about staying active would help the healing or...Something.

And honestly, Flintshard just wanted out of the camp in general for once.

Ears swiveling in the direction of approaching pawsteps padding through the soft layer of snow that rested on the ground, Daisyflame stood up and presented the younger tom with a purr of greeting. "Yes and of course," he mewed with a smile. He could understand that Flintshard would want to stretch his legs after being stuck in Mothglow's den for so long and what a better way to do so than with some hunting.

With that, the two tom made their way out of camp and into the marshlands, heading to nowhere in particular in search of unsuspecting prey. "I'm glad to see you back on your feet and ready to hunt. I can't imagine having been stuck in the medicine cat den for as long as you were. Even after a couple of sunrises I probably would've gone crazy," he commented with a chuckle as they walked alongside each other.

Flintshard nodded his head in relief as the older warrior agreed to go out with him, falling into step behind him as they headed out into the marsh. He had to hold back a sigh as Daisyflame started to talk, wishing that there wasn't going to be any small-talk but...He knew what he had been getting himself into when he had approached the tom. "I liked the peace and quiet," he responded with a slight shrug of his shoulders, at least as well as he could as he limped along. After that, he found himself falling silent, unsure of what else to add - what was needed to be said. This was the part he hated about talking with others, he rarely had an idea of...What to say. He didn't like wasting breath, it was easier to just be short and get to the point but it made things...Awkward. And he hated it. So, he slowly tried to focus on the sounds of the forest, to try to get an idea of where the prey were hiding so that he would know where to head once the two found a good hunting spot.

"That's good, that's good," Daisyflame mewed in reply. Opening his maw to comment once more on the subject, he was stopped by the sudden scent of nearby prey.

Crouching down, the tom stalked forward, soon spotting an unsuspecting mouse nibbling on its dinner. Slowly creeping forward with his haunches and tail low, the large tom crept forward, keeping as quiet as possible. After a few moments of waiting, he pounced, his large white paws landing squarely on the rodent and with a swift bite, it was done for. Trotting back over to his accomplice, Daisyflame buried the mouse near where Flintshard was standing.

"I suppose we should begin hunting then, yes?" he mewed with a smile, glad that the night had begun so successfully already.

Daisyflame attempted to catch a mouse and was successful. -3 SP

Daisyflame
HP: 80/80
SP: 237/240

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

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'Hunting Dice' : 7

There was a slight sigh of relief from the tom as Daisyflame's attention was stolen away and the conversation stumbled to a clumsy halt. He was sure the tom would have kept bringing up his injury but Flintshard had no big..Feelings on it. It happened, it was annoying, but Mothglow said he was recovering well and he was back to his duties. What else was there to talk about? He curved away as Daisyflame padded over to hunt whatever had caught his attention, tracking a mouse that he had heard scurrying nearby.

But as he drew closer with his limp,  he startled to feel even more...Awkward. It was hard to keep quiet when his gait was so uneven, when his leg ached when he placed weigh on it as it wasn't used to it anymore. But despite the pain, he tried to balance out his weight as he dropped into a crouch and started to stalk - all so awkwardly - forward toward the mouse before he made a leap, making sure to have his good leg outstretched in an effort to catch it.

As his paw landed on it, pinning it to the ground with a squeak escaping its throat, he quickly lurched forward to end its life. As he drew back and stared at his caught prey, he felt a flicker of pride through him. He had done it, he had caught something despite his injuries. Perhaps he would fully recover - or at least be able to return to his duties with no doubts - soon enough after all. He gently leaned down to pick it up, turning as he limped back to where he had left Daisyflame to find a nearby spot to store his catch before heading out to see what else he could find.

Flintshard succeeded to catch a mouse, costing 3 stamina.

Flintshard:
55/55 HP
167/170

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

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'Hunting Dice' : 6

Having buried his prey, Daisyflame moved onward, soon catching the scent of more prey.

Stalking through the tall grass, the large tom took his time following a field mouse, until he decided he'd stalked the little rodent long enough. Calibrating himself, he pounced and easily took down the mouse who hadn't suspected him at all. This time, he didn't bury his prey and instead made his way back to where he'd left the squirrel.

Digging up his prey, the warrior made his way to where him and Flintshard had begun their hunts, and waited for the tom, as he figured he'd done enough hunting for now.

Flintshard's ears were perked as he slowly limped through the territory, determined to try his paw at hunting again before they headed back - almost a test to see if his previous caught was a fluke. He came to a clumsy halt as he stumbled upon part of the marsh where it was more water than ground, tasting the air as he spared a look around. An area like this would be somewhat dangerous - he knew he would have to be careful of where he placed his paws but it was also a good spot to find frogs... There was a flicker of movement that caught his attention, gaze snapping over to see just what he had been hoping for, a frog on the shallow part of the marsh.

Slowly he fell into another crouch, moving forward as carefully as he could. If he could catch this...Then it was a good sign, proof to his mother that he was well on the road to recovery...And perhaps could finally be allowed out of the camp by his lonesome, if he was lucky. He drew as close as he dared, hesitating as he tried to judge if he could make the leap before he gave it a shot. With some relief, he landed square on the frog and was able to kill it easy enough with a single bite. He gently picked it up, giving a soft nod of acknowledgement of how good of a sign this was toward his recovery before he turned, heading back to where he had last seen Daisyflame. As he padded into the clearing, he dropped his frog as he glanced at the warrior. "Are you done hunting?" he inquired as he turned, padding over to where he had tucked away the mouse he had caught. "I'm ready to head back if you are."

"Yes, let's head back," Daisyflame mewed with a nod. Picking up his mouse and squirrel, the large tom gave his fluffy pelt a shake as the chilly evening air began to nip at his pawpads. The two of them had had a successful time hunting, even with it being Leafbare and he was glad that they'd be going home with prey in their jaws for the clan. Even with Flintshard's injury, the younger tom had been able to make a couple kills, which was a blessing to ShadowClan, having yet another able-bodied warrior during such a harsh season.