Apple of my Eye [closed]

Stoatstar's decree to the clan still bristled under her pelt. His rationale certainly seemed to be slipping when it came to the Clan over the last few days, and she felt rather lost on how to help him. Of course, it wasn't exactly her job, but on one paw... She felt a need to ensure Stoatstar maintained some wits about him. As Minnowfin's mate, a lot of his concerns were also her own, and taking care of the both of them was on that list. Mottlerose had opted for giving the leader space while she hoped they both would work to clear their heads. The small tortoiseshell walked about the camp as she thought for a moment, only to shake out her pelt. She'd gotten the go-ahead from her mate to go out hunting with another cat earlier in the day, but just who exactly she would bring with her was still out in the open. Morningsun was one of the first cats she had thought of, but she didn't want to bother her son. He'd just gotten his warrior freedom... only to be kept to camp.

It was the flash of a familiar pelt out of the corner of her gaze that brought her the idea. Appledapple was the other cat closest to Stoatstar, but truth be told, she had rarely interacted with the other warrior. Dipping her head in greeting, it was probably the best choice she had, unless she wished to stay in camp all day. "Greetings, Appledapple. Would you like to go out on a hunting patrol with me? Minnowfin gave me the clear, I just need another cat to accompany me." Her tone was somewhat formal, but still friendly. They were denmates, after all.

Once more, Appledapple was torn. On one paw, she hated being confined in camp. She was upset that Stoatstar would blame all his Clanmates for what had happened instead of the actual culprit. She was upset that he seemed to accept her comfort, and then continued to act closed off. On the other paw, she understood why he wanted to keep everyone safe. She saw the grief that haunted his every step. She was glad he allowed himself to feel emotions. And... those words he said followed her everywhere. "Stay with me." For some reason, one she couldn't name or explain no matter how much she thought about it, that was one of the things she wanted to do most. She wanted to be by Stoatstar's side. She wanted him to confide in her, to talk to her, to trust her. But why? And why was he so busy?

These thoughts and more raced through her mind as she began to pace unthinkingly around camp. Usually she would just walk around in the territory if she needed time to think, but that wasn't really an option right now. However, she was drawn out of her reverie by a sudden voice. Mottlerose. The young she-cat she always heard about from Stoatstar; Minnowfin's mate. Had they ever had much conversation together? Appledapple blinked, a little bit taken aback to be approached specifically. Then she remembered that they couldn't leave camp alone, and she probably just needed someone to hunt with. Oh, that makes sense. I doubt anycat other than Starlingflare or the kits would approach me normally. After considering for a moment, she nodded. "Sure, why not? I was itching to go hunt anyway." With a flick of her tail, she began walking out of camp, assuming the other she-cat would follow. She was honestly a little sour that Mottlerose had yelled at the leader during one of his worst moments, likely making him want to retreat into his emotional shell even more. However, she did understand why. It wasn't like Appledapple hadn't yelled at him before, anyway.

Mottlerose dipped her head, a slight smile on her maw as the other warrior agreed to accompany her. Given that she had been the one to invite Appledapple out on a hunt, she had assumed to take the lead - but as the other molly went to signal her to follow, she quickly fell behind and matched her pace without so much as another thought. As they passed through the entrance of camp, the smaller tortoiseshell would match strides beside the calico. Height differences between herself and the rest of the Clan were something she quickly grew accustomed to, although it was quite amusing that she stood almost equivalent to the leader. Speaking of which...

It was hard to ignore the caring, motherly itch that seemed to simply be her personality. "Is he alright? Oh, one moment..." Her voice trailed off as a strong scent of a squirrel trickled into her maw, and her focus honed in. The joy that newleaf brought at least was easing one of the fears the Clans had - food no longer was as scarce. A lot of the rodents were coming out from their winter hibernation, which meant rather fat, thick prey. It was a nice way of the forest making up for the starvation and hardship they were enduring. Thankfully, the rodent also seemed to have little awareness, meaning it was a swift kill for the experienced warrior. Bringing her item back to where Appledapple had resided, the molly set it down to speak. "Sorry. Can't pass up easy prey. But ... Have you seen Stoatstar at all? Is he well?" She had made it a bit of a point to avoid the small leader after her snap at the gathering. Guilt prickled at her paws for what she had done, but ... the words she said were unfortunately true. The small tortoiseshell felt hurt on behalf of many of ther clanmates at how Stoatstar seemed to punish the Clan when they all were hurting in current times.

Mottlerose caught a squirrel!
Mottlerose:
50/50 HP
117 / 120 SP -3

The member 'Kitty' has done the following action : Dice roll

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'Hunting Dice' : 5

At least going out in the territory was something that never changed. Recently, the days had begun to lengthen, so the sun had already been up for a good amount of time. Light dappled through the branches onto the mossy ground, which was no longer half-frozen but not yet muddy. The sparse deciduous trees were beginning to have some new growth, but nothing that could be called a leaf. Mostly pine needles filtered the sunlight. Once more, the forest was filled with the chattering and chirping of small animals, rather than the eerie snow-blanketed silence of the previous moon. Forgetting about her companion for a moment, Appledapple closed her eyes, inhaled the sweet air, and exhaled. It was good to be out of camp.

Her mind was brought immediately back to the present by Mottlerose saying something. He... Who? Stoatstar? Wait, how should I know? There was no time to give an answer, since the smaller she-cat had immediately darted away at the sight of a squirrel. At least this gave Appledapple some time to think. She had probably meant Stoatstar, given that she apparently cared so much about him that she would yell at him in front of the whole camp. Why ask her, though? An attempt to avoid awkwardness? That did make sense, at least. After a few moments, Mottlerose returned with a fat squirrel and clarified that she did, in fact, mean Stoatstar. For some reason, the question irritated her. "I've seen him around as much as any cat, I guess," she huffed, flicking an ear. "He tends to hole up in his den when he's in a bad mood. You should know that, though. He's not been in a good mood since before the Dark Forest came, and Thrushnose's death certainly didn't help. I'm surprised it took him as long as it did to finally let all that out, honestly."

Feeling her pelt begin to prickle up, Appledapple was glad for the distraction when a sparrow hopped down to the ground nearby, looking for worms in the dead undergrowth. Her eyes slid over to it, and she dropped instinctively into a hunting crouch. It was only a few steps away. Thankfully, it didn't hear her coming, and her paws landed squarely on its back so she could pin it down and kill it. Finally. I was getting so tired of leaf-bare and missing every catch I saw. She padded back to Mottlerose, put the sparrow down safely, and sat to groom one of her paws. Its fur had gotten slightly messed up with the catch. Her gaze slid over to the other warrior's. "Why not ask him yourself?"

Appledapple attempted to catch a bird. Success! -3 SP

The member 'Ash' has done the following action : Dice roll

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'Hunting Dice' : 6

Mottlerose's head tilted in its signature fashion as she took the time to listen to every word that Appledapple spoke. She was genuinely concerned for the small tom. All her mind thought about was wanting to make sure that he was okay, to figure out whatever way possible she could somehow ease his burdens. It was a gesture she had come to extend to every member of the Clan that she could, and her mind momentarily flashed to her son. Morningsun had risen to the status of a warrior, and it made her so joyful... but she saw he followed in her paw-steps in that regard. Wanting to care for every single member of the Clan that he could, no matter what it took upon himself. There was a certain bit of pain that came along with that, and it took every ounce of her being to fight wanting to stop him. They had to make their own decisions now, both of them. Accepting that they actually do grow up was one of the hardest parts of raising kits for the molly. She truly couldn't accept it some days. Her children weren't the tiny bundles of fluff nestled to her belly anymore.

Despite her thoughts drifting for a moment, she continued to take to heart a few of Appledapple's comments. She nodded at the other calico's note about how long it took for him to let up all that was bristling under his fur. Thrushnose had been her mentor, and she too was hit by her passing. The question of Why not ask him yourself? sat in her mind for a bit longer than she would have liked, taking the time to pick out the words that she truly wanted to. "He's hurting... So am I." A brief chuckle escaped the molly as her amber gaze drifted away from Appledapple, opting to search for her next piece of prey. "My son taught me as much at the gathering... There's no use sharing words when emotions stop them from being heard. I wish Stoatstar would realize that his clan is here just as much for him, as he is for us." Her words tumbled forth, the thoughts that typically floated around her mind being shared and confided in with the other she-cat. After all... Appledapple was a clanmate. Yet another scrap of prey caught her eye, and her whiskers twitched as she dipped down to catch it.

Mottlerose aimed her body downwind of the light breeze that passed over the forest, so she could continue talking and Appledapple would hear her as she moved to strike. "For Starclan's sake... He's had a hand in the teachings of every apprentice. Every single warrior is being shaped in some way by his paws, apprentice's don't simply forsake the work their mentors have done. No leader will be flawless... no mother even is flawless. Not even the stars are flawless." It seemed her rambling had distracted her prey, even though she attempted to stay quiet, as the small mouse that had been her target caught sight of her and scurried away. Given that it was a fitting example, the small tortoiseshell sat up, turning to face the older warrior yet again. "But we don't punish ourselves, much less our Clan, for our mistakes. I can't face him until he realizes that. I can't get through to him, I'm not even sure if Minnowfin could."


Mottlerose attempted to hunt, but was unsuccesful.
Mottlerose:
50/50 HP
114 / 120 SP

The member 'Kitty' has done the following action : Dice roll

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'Hunting Dice' : 9

Appledapple continued grooming her paw, meticulously putting every hair in place, as she listened. As annoyed as she was at the she-cat's actions, Mottlerose did have a point. Every cat in ThunderClan was hurting; some more than others. That much, at least, was obvious. Every cat should be able to tell. Stoatstar knew that everyone was struggling, However, that was one of his flaws... putting others' pain not in conflict with his own, but alongside it. Cats could struggle together without needing to compare their problems. Thinking back to the first ever yelling match she'd had with the tom, that had been what started it-- him bottling up his emotions and sulking instead of sharing, despite knowing that they were going through the same thing. Even now, it almost made her pelt prickle. That mouse-brain. And still he's learned nothing! Scoffing lightly to herself, she looked critically at the front paw she had been grooming and began to clean the other one instead.

Indeed, this was the biggest problem with ThunderClan's leader. For all her lack of foresight in calling him out in front of the Clan, Mottlerose at least had that right. He refused to let other cats in, to share sorrows, to let anyone take even a little of the burden he selfishly hoarded himself. He tried to carry the weight of the Clan on his shoulders, despite their best efforts to help, then yowled at them when it broke his back. "He's always been like this," Appledapple grumbled between licks of her paw. "Minkstar even told him to trust other cats, and what does he do? Close himself off again. I swear, one of these days he's going to explode." At Mottlerose's words about the stars, the tortoiseshell blinked, feeling slightly guilty. Did any of her Clanmates know she had been part of the Dark Forest before they had arrived? She didn't think so... and she would keep it that way. "We all have flaws. Stars, I know I'm one of the worst cats in this whole Clan. But I think most of us would jump at the chance to help him. Kind words don't seem to work on that mouse-brain.... One of these days I ought to smack some sense into him. I know that wouldn't work either, but it's worth a try at this point."

Noticing the mouse scurry away, Appledapple began paying more attention to her surroundings, trying to hear or see if there were any more prey nearby. Due to the recent newleaf sun, there was plenty to go around. In a few moments, she heard something. One ear flicked behind her in response. Vole. It didn't seem to notice her; it was close, rummaging around in the undergrowth for something. There was no time to stalk it-- she would have to be fast. Without thinking, she turned around and lunged, claws outstretched, in one fluid movement. However, since she hadn't been looking, she hadn't noticed the owl that had been swooping for the same piece of prey. With a hiss, she felt sharp talons dig into her shoulder, and lashed upwards reflexively. "Stupid bird," she snapped, shaking her head to get her bearings. What lousy timing.

Appledapple tried to catch a vole, but an Owl attacked! -3 SP

Owl used Swoop, dealing 9 damage and costing 15 stamina. Appledapple used Front Paw Strike, dealing 10 damage and costing 7 stamina.

Appledapple:
51/60 HP
134/140 SP

Owl:
20/30 HP
75/90 SP

Mottlerose:
50/50 HP
114/120 SP

The member 'Ash' has done the following action : Dice roll

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'Hunting Dice' : 10