early morning jaunt [close for lapis and lil rippy]

Loudnose and Waterlily padded alongside him as they headed through the forest. A chill had set in, ruffling his short pelt and effectively quickening his pace. Given the pale morning sun had just passed the horizon, the brown and white warrior still felt sleep fogging his brain and clouding his thoughts. Stoatfur loved nothing more than contemplation and speaking but neither before the sun was high in the sky.

"Keep up now. The sooner we get this over with the sooner we get back to our nests." Stoatfur muttered as he padded on ahead. He suddenly it was his former mentor in tow, one of the few cats he truly respected and flicked his tail, mumbling a low apology, "It's too early. I've never liked mornings. Certainly Thrushnose has to know that by now." He never spoke of Thrushnose being his mother; it meant nothing that she was deputy other than she deserved it, but she had known him the longest.

The young warrior that joined their patrol was one that he hardly knew and as much as he typically longed to gather information about every cat, in that moment he could not have cared less. That would be a task later. Who knew, maybe the newly-named tom would surprise him. He shrugged away the thought and focused on putting one paw in front of the other.

Waterlily padded along side her old apprentice and Loudnose.  The she-cat understood why Stoatfur would have liked to get back soon, she would too, but she was not about to say anything.  She nodded in agreement to his comment.  "I understand," she spoke softly and kindly.  "Hunting when the sun is just coming up is always a struggle."

She did not know Loudnose that well either, but she hoped to get to know him.  Her ears twitched upon hearing crinkling leaves under paws that were not anyone in the group.  She walked away for a moment, moving swiftly towards the sound.  A fox was around, nibbling on a rabbit that it caught itself.  She quietly walked up to the animal, eyes not moving from it.  Stoatfur and Loudnose were fairly close to her.  She leaped out and landed on the fox's back.  She sunk her claws into it and bit down hard on it's neck.  The fox yelped in both pain and surprise.  The fox grabbed her paw in it's teeth and pulled her off, causing skin to tear and blood to spill on both sides.  It threw her down to the ground.  Her paw was filled with blood, almost looking more red than black.

Waterlily used Jumping Strike, dealing 10 in damage and using 7SP.
The fox used Iron Bite, dealing 17 in damage and using 30SP.

Waterlily
33HP / 50HP
113SP / 120SP

Fox
50HP / 60HP
150SP / 180SP