Land Fish (open!)

Turtlefur sat uneasily by the reeds of the camp entrance. He was a warrior now and was free to do as he pleased outside of assigned patrols, but he knew he was expected to provide for the Clan as well. He decided to do just that, but he was hesitant to go out into the territory alone. It could be a dangerous place out there - he knew that from experience. So the short tom awaited potential patrol buddies, too shy to directly approach anyone first.

Bringing food to the elders was always such a treat. She liked them well enough, but she was prone to restlessness, and after listening to the stories between bites of prey, her paws were itching to do anything that involved leaving camp.

Luckily, she spotted an older cat hovering near the entrance, and she was quick to scurry over. "Hi," she mewed, briefly bowing her head. "Are you heading out? I'd love to come if so!"

Bearspirit himself was a newly named warrior and determined to prove himself to his clan. Upon seeing Turtlefur and Cloverpaw at the edge of camp, looking like they may possibly be leaving for a hunt, the young tom trotted over to join them. "I'm not doing anything, I'll go with you if you want." Two newly named warriors and an apprentice... it would be nice to not feel like the kit tagging along with the more skilled warriors for once. Of course, there could always be more coming.

Fortunately he didn’t have to wait long. An apprentice he’d seen around approached quickly, and he dipped his head in return. “Sure, I’d be happy, erm...?” Turtlefur paused awkwardly as he realized he didn’t know her name and froze. What kind of warrior didn’t know his clanmates’ names? Fortunately the gap in conversation was broken by another new warrior’s approach. The other tom had been named a bit before he was, so his name still stuck in his mind: Bearspirit. It was hard to forget a cat with such an intricate and unusual pelt. “Yes! Ah, yes. I’m Turtlefur...” he meowed rather awkwardly, trying to fill in the silence. “I was thinking of hunting ‘round the beech copse, I’ve been practicing land prey.” The small warrior turned abruptly and started out of camp, wading through the shallow stream that protected the camp and trotting at a fairly swift pace.

When the gnarled trees came into view, he flicked his half-tail to get the other two’s attention. “I’ll go around that way,” he tilted his nose towards one side of the copse. “And you two can... go the other way, I guess? Or come with me?” He trotted to his chosen side, slowing down and switching into a soft stalk as he entered the shadows cast by the leaves. A crow with magnificent black feathers sat on a twisted root. Turtlefur had caught a few during his time as a barn cat, particularly when they pecked at the twolegs’ gardens or ate another animal’s food. The twolegs seemed to appreciate it and he grew to enjoy the taste of crow. It was very unlike fish, but it was much, much better than the kittypet kibble he had to eat when he didn’t catch any pests. The Clan certainly wouldn’t have a problem with him bringing a bird home, right? Food was food no matter if it had feathers or scales. That’s what he thought to himself, at least.

He crouched, bunching his legs beneath him, and watched carefully as his target hopped and pecked. The feathers were so sleek and shiny. He wanted them. He would have them for his nest. Turtlefur’s eyes gleamed when the crow unknowingly hopped within his grasp. The warrior pounced, pinning those pretty wings to the ground and sinking his teeth deep into the crow’s neck before it could send out an alarm.

SP: 117

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

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'Hunting Dice' : 2

Bearspirit had joined them, and for a moment, it seemed odd to regard him as a warrior. She hadn't known him well as an apprentice, but still.. it was strange to see the cats her age growing up. She didn't have much time to dwell on it though, as Turtlefur was speaking again and the three of them were pushing out of camp.

The walk through the territory wasn't quiet, but the she-cat didn't mind — it gave her time to think about the hunt ahead, about what she'd learned from Ivystar and what she might try to catch. Soon enough, the line of trees had come into view, and Turtlefur had announced he'd been hunting a few fox-lengths. Just as well, anyway; Cloverpaw was looking forward to getting to try hunting on her own.

Padding around to the opposite end of the trees, she parted her jaw, breathing in to scent for any prey. She quickly picked up the scent of a squirrel and crouched down, ears twitching as she listened for any of its telltale chittering. Something squeaked not far off, and she swiveled her head to spot the little creature, back turned to her. Grinning, she crept forward achingly slow, pawsteps as gentle as she could manage, right up until she was in pouncing range.

Overeager, she sprang at the creature, but overshot and lashed out wildly at it, nearly falling onto her nose as she stumbled to regain her balance.

Cloverpaw attempted to catch a squirrel! Attempt was unsuccessful. -3 SP.
20/20
77/80

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

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'Hunting Dice' : 8

Bearspirit nodded once at Turtlefur, though he'd known the warrior's name already and had heard Cloverpaw's name being tossed around camp. He followed after the two clanmates into the Beech Copse. He'd had more practice hunting land prey recently in his attempts to impress the Windclan she-cat, Swiftspirit. He wasn't about to tell anyone else that though. Bearspirit noted Turtlefur's lack of confidence in his ability to lead and thought about volunteering to fill in the gap. He hesitated though, as he didn't want to make his fellow clanmate feel snubbed. It wasn't long before Turtlefur was already on the hunt, so Bearspirit kept his words and actions stifled. He'd give the other warrior a chance to settle into the role of lead hunter of this patrol and would only take over if it became necessary. He watched as Turtlefur caught a crow. Bearspirit's eyes then went to Cloverpaw and watched as she stalked a squirrel. Unfortunately for her, the squirrel darted away as she overshot it.

Bearspirit sprang into action immediately, not minding being the back-up hunter in the patrol for now. He too went after that squirrel, kicking hard off of the ground and racing after it as it made a desperate dash to a nearby tree. Bearspirit's long, skinny limbs and big paws gave him the form of an awkward cheetah with maybe half the grace and a fraction of the speed as he ran. Still, his heart and mind were in the right place and he was determined to not let the squirrel escape.

Bearspirit attempted to catch the squirrel! He was Successful! (+2 to Hunting Rolls makes 5 or lower a success) -3SP

His large paws knocked the rodent from the air as it leaped for a tree trunk and pinned it to the forest floor. Bearspirit's teeth came down onto the back of the tree rat's neck like daggers and dispatched it swiftly. He doubted it felt much pain, if any at all. He picked it up in his jaws and thought about where he should bury it. A thought crossed his mind and he looked at Cloverpaw sympathetically. "You did good, Cloverpaw. They're not easy to catch. Try again." Maybe it was a weak attempt at encouragement, but it was the best he could do on the spot. He would watch for more prey, or predators, as the other two clanmates of his continued to hunt. If anything escaped, he would try to intercept. If a predator appeared, he'd throw himself at it with the fury of a bear protecting it's cubs.

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

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'Hunting Dice' : 4

He peered around a tree trunk to watch Cloverpaw and Bearspirit’s combined hunting efforts. The other warrior’s quick reaction was impressive, and Turtlefur also appreciated his positive words to the apprentice. There wasn’t much he could add except a nod in agreement as the crow still rested in between his teeth. When Bearspirit glanced around, he dug a shallow hole for his crow and with extra space. He offered a nervous smile. ”We can bury our prey in one place so we don’t forget where we put them. There’s probably room for some more?”

Of course Turtlefur himself was the most likely out of the three to forget where his prey was, but he wasn’t going to admit that. Instead he lifted his nose to scent for more prey when a flash of brown caught his attention from the corner of his eye. It was a toad that had hopped into the shadows of a tree and burrowed slightly into mud. Toads were edible, right? It was said ShadowClan ate toads. Would it be weird if he brought it home? Perhaps choosing to hunt at the beech copse was not a good call. Turtlefur found himself sinking into his hunting crouch even though the doubts were crowding his mind. It still didn’t notice him.

It was strange and squishy in his mouth - like fish, kind of, with bumps and the lingering taste of mud. It wasn’t bad, but he’d understand if none of his clanmates were too interested in having it.

SP: 114

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

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'Hunting Dice' : 4

The young cat had looked particularly dejected after losing her supposed-to-be catch, and she shrank even more when Bearspirit darted past her to snatch the squirrel before it could reach the tree it'd tried to escape to.

With a little huff, Cloverpaw shuffled a bit, trying not to let her wounded pride show. She was still learning, she figured, and older warriors missed catches all the time.. Bearspirit's attempt at reassurance only served to cement her thinking. Giving him a nod and flicking her gaze briefly toward Turtlefur, she turned away, eyes narrowing as she scanned the clearing.

There! The undergrowth shuffled, and a little mouse lifted its head, tiny whiskers twitching as it looked around. Eager for a second chance, Cloverpaw repeated her crouch, conscious of where her weight landed this time.

Hardly a heartbeat before she could pounce, the creature seemed to sense something was wrong, as it craned around to look at her and shot away squealing. Losing sight of it as it disappeared into denser grass, Cloverpaw stood back up straight, ears flattening as she watched it go.

Cloverpaw attempted to catch a mouse! Attempt was unsuccessful. -3 SP.
20/20
74/80

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

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'Hunting Dice' : 8

Now Bearspirit was getting annoyed. Not at Cloverpaw, but that things seemed to just not want to cooperate with her today. He stifled the growl in his throat before he went after the mouse. A part of him wanted to miss, to show her that not everyone could catch everything all of the time. At the same time, he also wanted to whack the mouse out of frustration. He flexed out a paw and aimed for the silly creature, but he wouldn't feel too bad if the mouse proved to be some sort of tiny ninja and escaped him.

Bearspirit attempted catch the mouse! He was Successful! -3SP

He swiped it and flung the tiny creature against a trunk so hard it was dead upon impact. He huffed, then approached it and picked it up in his jaws. He was determined to help Cloverpaw catch something this time. He dropped the mouse into the hole and went to Cloverpaw's side. "Don't let this get you down. Everyone has an off day. Today is just yours. Want to stalk something together and I'll chase it toward you?" He really really hoped she wouldn't take offense. He didn't know how else to help her, but he wanted to assist... somehow.

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

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'Hunting Dice' : 5