bonding and battling

Wolfcall stretched and yawned in his nest. The night had been a peaceful one, warmer than usual and filled with plenty of things to chase and hunt. And he'd curled beside Murkpelt in the early hours of the morning, grateful for the lack of bitter chill that had permeated even the deepest corners of the warriors' den during the harshest of Leafbare nights. The sun filtering through the woven brambles was what woke him, and after a quick wash, the deputy forced himself to his paws and headed out into the camp, lit brilliant yellow by the high sun. Taking a moment to bask in the warm rays, Wolfcall paused and stretched again, tail high, claws flexing into the dirt. Then, meowing a hello to any cat he passed, Wolfcall headed towards the leader's den.

It was long overdue for some quality time with his father, and since the day was young and the weather was nice, he opted to drag Spottedstar along with him on a border patrol hunt. It wasn't strictly necessary, since the fresh-kill pile was looking better than it had in moons, but the clan was still gorging themselves after the harsh of Leafbare, and no amount of prey at this time was too much.

Poking his head into the leader's den, Wolfcall cleared his throat. "Spottedstar?"

Spottedstar's ears flicked to attention when his eldest son's voice rang in his den. He'd been napping intermittently, all too aware of his inaction during the past moon. His illness had been a good excuse for a while, but it had long since passed and now Spottedstar was simply unmotivated. A distraction from staring at the roots that formed the wall of his den was equal parts exasperating and welcome. "Wolfcall, come in." He meowed warmly.

The deputy was young like Foxfire had been. Technically, Foxfire was still young. He even considered himself young. Wolfcall met and even exceeded the call to duty, though, and the ginger leader was more than pleased to have such a reliable support in trying times - although Spottedstar could not remember a time where the situation was not trying. He supposed with StarClan's threats being leveled at every clan except his own, things were good for SkyClan in ways they had not been for a while. "What do you need, son? How is the clan fairing?"

The leader's last question was almost enough to draw a frown from the deputy - of all cats, Spottedstar should know how the clan was faring, but, he realized that his father had a lot on his shoulders right now, so he simply offered a tight smile, dipping his head in greeting. "Everyone is fine," he told him. "It's quiet, for once," he said, echoing the leader's thoughts. "Nothing's going on. Come hunting with me?"

He phrased it as a question, but he would be relentless in insisting if Spottedstar declined. They both needed some time away from camp, and besides, Wolfcall wanted to speak to his father about the pretty little she-cat he was sure he was falling for.

"Good." He paused, unsure of what to say next. Spottedstar needed to stretch his legs, and a little sunshine and fresh air would probably do him some good. Plus, he was quite fond of Wolfcall. The tabby always had something positive to say, like a natural counter to the leader's bad dreams. "Alright, then. I guess the clan will survive without us in camp for a day." He meowed, smiling and getting to his paws. Spottedstar leaned forward, dipping into a deep stretch, and then padded out of his den and into the bright sunlight. He walked through camp alongside Wolfcall, taking special care not to look at the warriors' den lest he accidentally make eye contact with Murkpelt, and made a mental note to ask Firflower if she would like to move her nest into his den. It had been empty and lonely for the past several moons.

The deputy smiled, following his father out of the den and down into the camp, brow raising as he noticed Spottedstar's pointed avoidance of the warriors' den. He still hadn't pried, at either his mother or father, about what had caused their falling out. Part of him wanted to do so today, but he was also reluctant to immediately turn the tide of conversation into what could be a potentially negative direction. Perhaps he'd press Spottedstar for information later. Together, they left the camp and headed in a random direction. During the early stages of Newleaf, they prey was abundant nearly everywhere... so there was no reason to gravitate towards the sections of the territory with the best hunting in Leafbare.

"It's been a while since we've been out together," he noted with a sigh. That was, of course, by design, as it wasn't optimal to have both leader and deputy out of camp at the same time. Still, he missed it. Seemed like Blossompaw was the only one he'd been spending any sort of abundance of time with - even his own apprentices had been reluctant to cooperate lately, dragging their paws and making it frustratingly difficult to finish off their training. Wolfcall flicked his ears, glancing sideways at his father.

"I, uh... I've been spending a lot of time with Blossompaw lately," he mentioned. "Hunting. Training. I just... wanted to make sure that wasn't an issue? With you?" His words were slow and lacked any sort of committal information because frankly, he was still confused about the situation, himself. "I don't want to disrupt your training schedule or anything like that..."

A spooked mouse darted across their path and Wolfcall didn't waste a beat, springing after it. His paws landed atop it with expert precision, and he dispatched it with a quick bite to the neck. Scraping a furrow in the cool dirt, the deputy dropped the mouse and covered it with dirt, jogging to catch up with Spottedstar.

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

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'Hunting Dice' : 2

Spottedstar would have answered sooner had the mouse not disrupted them, but he wasn't upset at all by the chance encounter. Wolfcall's reflexes and clean kill had been impressive, and it was effortless. The leader found himself beaming with pride as he thought of his eldest son and all he'd accomplished in his short life. He thought about Blossompaw and her training, and meowed a thoughtful response, "Well, I suppose as long as you're not tiring her out or letting her get injured, then I don't mind." He'd seen them in camp and he was pretty sure he was on to them, but he didn't want to let Wolfcall know it. He could be wrong, after all. "Blossompaw is quite useful to have around. She's especially skilled in warding off foxes, should you find yourself in trouble." He allowed a mischievous smile to cross his mouth, remembering with some embarrassment his own death in the jaws of one such creature. It was no secret, but he hadn't really spoken of it to anyone but Sagelight afterwards. No doubt Blossompaw had reported it to Wolfcall during one of their 'training sessions.'

He fell silent. There wasn't much else to say. If it was something more than friendship, Spottedstar couldn't help. He'd had his apprenticeship crush like everyone else, but unfortunately it was forbidden. It had become so close to becoming real that the spotted tom had experienced love in a capacity that he'd never felt before and was certain he would never experience again. And she left, taking a piece of him with her. Blossompaw was far from the type to flee, but then again, his former love had been devoted to the clan for as long as he knew her. Things could always fail. Spottedstar didn't wish that on his son; he didn't deserve it. He was too good for those kinds of scars.

Gentle birdsong drew him from his wordless musings, and the distant look on his face melted away as he pinpointed where it was coming from. A thrush sat on a low branch, calling out to other unseen creatures in the trees. It was on the thin side, but Spottedstar wasn't picky - a meal was a meal and everything counted after leafbare. He crouched, then sprang into the tree next to his target. He sailed from one branch onto the other, neatly pinning the thrush and squashing its throat before it could sound an alarm to the rest of the forest. Jumping down with his bird in his mouth, Spottedstar quickly placed it in a small hole at the roots of the trees.

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

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'Hunting Dice' : 3

"I'd never let her get injured," Wolfcall vowed perhaps a little too seriously, eyes lifting to follow a sparrow as it flitted from one tree overhead to another branch nearby. Too out of reach to bother going for. The deputy flicked his tail thoughtfully, then watched as Spottedstar drew away from him to catch his own bird. His father had just landed with the prey in his mouth when another few birds nearby took flight, alarmed. Wolfcall's head tilted, and he stared in the direction of the disturbance. Spottedstar's thrush hadn't lived long enough to spook those other birds. But something had.

Flaring his nostrils, Wolfcall padded past the leader as he buried his catch, wondering if they'd crossed another hunting patrol, or... perhaps an intruder. StarClan's recent activities had made crossing borders significantly more dangerous than usual, but still... that didn't mean it would stop everyone. "I think... we might not be alone," his words were quiet, still with an air of confusion, as he padded towards the thicker underbrush. The wind hit him from behind, blowing their scents towards whatever had spooked the flock, and Wolfcall crouched down to peer into the bushes at the base of an oak.

Two dark, beady eyes stared back.

"Badg-!" he started to call, but the beast bolted out from the underbrush as soon as their eyes met, slapping Wolfcall with one massive clawed paw and sending him sprawling several fox-lengths along the ground. Instantly the deputy was on his paws again and sprinting back into battle. He sprang up the side of a tree, pushed himself off, and aimed as he fell, at the badger who had now turned its attentions on Spottedstar.

With a snarl, he landed atop the beast's broad back. His weight made the badger stumble, one foreleg collapsing underneath it and sending them both to the ground.

Badger used Heavy Blow against Wolfcall, dealing 25 damage and costing 20 stamina.

Wolfcall used Leaping Bound against the Badger, dealing 12 damage and costing 10 stamina. Badger is stunned for one turn.

Badger:
108/120 HP (-12)
300/320 SP (-20)

Wolfcall:
75/100 HP (-25)
280/270 SP (-10)

Spottedstar
120/120 HP
300/300 SP

Spottedstar's attention shifted quickly to Wolfcall when he warned of company. Then he glanced at the sky as his son had done, seeing the last of the birds retreating to safety. Whoever or whatever was near had not tried to stay hidden. He licked the blood from his lips, curiosity and foreboding making his toes itch. Then he watched Wolfcall investigate the disturbance, reasong in his head that nothing too dangerous was capable of being stealthy.

He was wrong. The badger's paw flashed out of the brush just after Wolfcall, batting the young tom a rather impressive distance away. Spottedstar gasped, surprised and outraged at the same time, but even his reflexes weren't as fast as Wolfcall's. His son was up and on the badger faster than the leader could act, but he didn't hesitate for a heartbeat and joined in on the action. The badger would regret that blow.

Spottedstar used Belly Rake on the badger, dealing 20 damage and using 10 stamina.

Badger:
88/120 HP
300/320 SP

Wolfcall:
75/100 HP
280/270 SP

Spottedstar:
120/120 HP
290/300 SP

As the badger hit the ground, Wolfcall leaped off, landing in a crouch and whipping around to see his father speed in and make his own attack. The badger, stunned, could only shake his head wildly, snarling and slobbering. The deputy charged back in, rearing up to slash his claws across the badger's face.

The badger is still stunned. Wolfcall used Rear-up-to-Slash on the Badger, dealing 17 damage and costing 15 stamina.

Badger:
71/120 HP
300/320 SP

Wolfcall:
75/100 HP
245/270 SP

Spottedstar:
120/120 HP
290/300 SP

The tomcats were an effective team, each clawing especially sensitive places on the badger while evading its thrashing. While Wolfcall went for its face, Spottedstar ducked and struck repeatedly at the creature's stomach. His ginger paws became dark red with his opponent's blood, and he wondered just how much of this punishment it would take before tucking tail and fleeing - or would it be like that fox and fight to the very end? 'Well, I'm not looking forward to it, but killing this thing would be better than letting it roam the territory,' He thought, grunting with the effort of raking his claws through the badger's thick black fur.

Spottedstar used Rending Front Paws, dealing 20 damage and using 25 stamina.

Badger:
51/120 HP
300/320 SP

Wolfcall:
75/100 HP
245/270 SP

Spottedstar:
120/120 HP
265/300 SP

Finally regaining its senses, the badger reared up and away from the spotted tabby that was doing so much damage to his soft underbelly, but that didn't save him from the darker cat, who continued to assault him from above. With a bellow of surrender, it landed heavily back on two paws and whipped around as fast as it could manage to begin loping towards the river. He had bitten off far more than he could chew with this pair of cats.

Wolfcall gave chase, the thrill of the fight pounding through him. He had never managed to take joy or pride in fighting other cats, but this was different. This badger, the owl who had attacked him and Juniperpaw, the raccoon he and Foxfire had killed when he was just an apprentice, he felt no mercy for these animals, no kinship the way he did with the other cats of the forest. This was an enemy by every means, and it needed eliminating. So he didn't hesitate to pursue, batting the badger's rear with bloodied claws as it fled. He'd stop if Spottedstar called to him, but otherwise he was in this until the end.

The Badger is attempting to flee. Wolfcall used Front Paw Strike on the Badger, dealing 14 damage and costing 10 stamina.

Badger:
37/120 HP (-14)
300/320 SP

Wolfcall:
75/100 HP
235/270 SP (-10)

Spottedstar:
120/120 HP
265/300 SP