Step out of your comfort zone(please) [closed]

Looking from across Windclan's portion of Fourtrees, Smallbean's gaze rested on an apprentice he'd noticed may be trouble. The deputy sat watching the young tom, Fuzzpaw, for a few moments, trying to figure out how to go about talking to him.

Smallbean wasn't one for confrontation. He'd go as far as to say he'd rather eat crowfood than make a direct confrontation (even if it was a lie). Fuzzpaw, Smallbean observed, seemed to have an attachment to the fresh-kill pile. One that, although didn't have an effect now, certainly would within the next few moons. Leaf-bare's claws were beginning to clasp the forest, its remnants being left within the swirls of frost that covered the ground after a particularly chilly night. It wouldn't be long until much of the prey was hidden within their burrows for the season and the clans were struggling for scraps, and Windclan couldn't have Fuzzpaw spending all of his time digging through their fresh-kill, especially since he didn't see the tom go out often to replenish it.

The plan Smallbean had come up with was to try getting Fuzzpaw out of camp to hunt, and bringing up the topic nonchalantly. Even though he had the authority to order the apprentice to hunt, it didn't feel right to him. This seemed far better, he wanted to stay on good terms. (This was also the option he favored over asking Silverwing to deal with it.)

Pulling himself to his paws, Smallbean walked across the clearing, mustering up a small smile. "Hey um.. Fuzzpaw. Why don't you and I go hunting... yeah? Sound good?"

With the belly of a vole stuffed in his mouth, Fuzzpaw looked up as Smallbean approached him and mentioned wanting to go hunting. Great StarClan, he was just a popular cat these days apparently, seeing as though he could barely get a moment to himself around here...

Finishing his snack within a few strong bites, the plump apprentice didn't bother to move and simply met the deputy's gaze. "There's enough food already here, why hunt?" he mewed, tilting his head to the pile that sat beside him. "Besides, aren't there warriors for that?" the grey tom mewed with a sigh before licking a blood-stained paw. He never even seemed to get enough time to clean himself and he didn't understand why every-cat always seemed so busy all the time. Couldn't they just chill a bit?

Apprentices almost always agreed to go hunting with him, the fact that Fuzzpaw denied was a slight surprise to the deputy. If this were any other apprentice, though Smallbean would understand and go out on his own, sure that they had a reason to want to stay in camp. Fuzzpaw, however, was just lounging around, and shifted the responsibility to the warriors.

The short tom flicked his ear. "Um... the warriors aren't just here to do the duties that are shared with apprentices..." He mewed slowly, trying to hide his slight agitation. "You're supposed to help with duties like hunting... It's part of your warrior training. You'll be an apprentice forever otherwise." Hopefully mentioning warriorhood would motivate the apprentice. Smallbean shifted his weight uncomfortably, waiting on a response from Fuzzpaw. "So... Why don't we go out hunting? The fresh-kill pile could always use a wider selection."

Listening to the deputy, he realized while the smaller tom seemed meek in nature, it didn't seem like he'd budge on wanting to go hunting. Letting out a long sigh, Fuzzpaw heaved himself up. "Fine," he mumbled. 'But I'm not just hunting for the clan,' he wanted to say aloud, but kept his maw shut seeing as though he was with the deputy of all cats. 'And I'm not going to have a good time out there,' the grey apprentice got close to adding, but continued to stay quiet.

"Let's hurry and get this over with," he exhaled with a deep breath with his head hanging low between his shoulders as he turned to look at Smallbean.

The way Fuzzpaw reacted made Smallbean uneasy, the attitude he carried in his disposition and tone stood out to the deputy. Perhaps going to Silverwing would have been the better option after all. He'd already committed though, and he'd persuaded Fuzzpaw to join him, even if he wasn't enthusiastic. "Okay... Well... I'll just go ahead and lead the way...then..." Turning away, he carefully walked across the clearing and out of Fourtrees, pushing through the underbrush and out onto the moors. As soon the trees were behind him he was greeted with a heavy gust of wind, which he stood sturdy to, relishing the feeling of it as it ruffled his fur. Fourtrees had been suffocating, he felt like he couldn't really breathe without the open sky above him. He'd almost gotten caught up in the feeling, and after a quick look behind him he was reminded that he was taking Fuzzpaw to hunt.

Continuting across the territory, he pretended that Fuzzpaw wasn't there, attempting to ignore the fact that the apprentice likely held some kind of indignation for him that made his stomach turn. As they walked further, though, the silence seemed to grow louder, louder than the sound of the wind rushing in his ears. Slowing down to match Fuzzpaw's pace, he attempted conversation. "Sooo... Um- How's Silverwing as a mentor? Is she fun?" Although it was thoughtless conversation between a deputy and an apprentice, Smallbean secretly wanted to know Fuzzpaw's thoughts on Silverwing, if he held a dislike for her like he himself did. "She's quite um... enthusiastic, yeah?" His tone was lackluster, clearly portraying his opinion of the warrior.

Across the moors, the deputy spotted a pair of rabbits. With his ears turned toward the apprentice for an answer, he made note of them - he planned to try catching one when he'd received an answer.

Walking behind Smallbean, Fuzzpaw couldn't help but let out an audible sigh at his question. Why did every cat want to know about his mentor? Weren't all mentors given the same jobs; doing their warrior duties and training their apprentices? So just why was Silverwing so interesting? Well, whatever the answer was, it wasn't his place to pry nor did he truly care what the answer was, so he'd give the deputy what he knew and saw, no extra fluff or anything of the sorts.

"She's fine," he huffed as the continued onwards. Where exactly were they going again? "Does her job and yeah, a bit excited about things, I guess" the dark pelted, plump apprentice mewed nonchalantly with a shrug on his shoulders.

Smallbean frowned at Fuzzpaw's response - well... Lack of response. If Fuzzpaw wasn't going to put any effort into their conversation, then neither would he. Besides, he'd much rather the apprentice put his effort into hunting instead of conversation. "I'm going to start hunting... let me know if you need anything." He said, turning to pursue the rabbit he'd spotted heartbeats earlier.

Slinking through the tall grass, he stayed low, trusting his sense of smell to lead him to the rabbit. The grass opened up on a small hill. The ground beneath his paws was squishy and soft, and a few holes could be spotted once he'd looked around. A new warren, he supposed. The rabbit had moved since he last saw it, now a few fox-lengths further away. No problem, though. Within the blink of an eye, he darted from where he was crouched and sprinted after the rabbit, which quickly noticed him, closing the space between them in a matter of heartbeats. His jaws closed around the rabbit's throat, and it was dead before it could alert any other nearby prey.


Smallbean attempted to catch rabbit. Attempt was success, costing -5 SP.

Smallbean:
155/160 SP [-05]

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

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'Hunting Dice' : 3

Oh right, he'd forgotten about the hunting part of their little adventure. Watching as the deputy trotted off to begin the hunt, Fuzzpaw let out a deep sigh. He was no good at hunting, so why did he have to do it? Every other cat was nimble and able to be fast when it came to chasing and capturing prey, and he just wasn't any of those things and disliked wasting his time doing something he wasn't very successful at. He didn't necessarily feel down in the dumps at himself for being the way that StarClan made him, but found it to be more of a bother than anything. If only he could figure out a better way to hunt than whatever he was doing. Maybe then he'd be able to catch more... which meant more food for him, right?

Making his way around a clump of rocks and brush, a familiar scent hit the plump apprentice's nose. Stopping in his tracks he lifted his maw, but before he could pursue the scent more, the prey in which he'd noticed hopped out from under a rock nearly a fox-length away from him. Not having seemed to notice him yet, a rather small, unsuspecting mouse sat just paces away from the hungry feline, twitching it's whiskers and brushing its face with it's tiny pink paws. Standing as still as possible, Fuzzpaw couldn't believe his eyes. Had it thought that he was a nearby boulder? Well, no matter the case, StarClan must have been listening to his thoughts and decided to bless him with such an easy snack, even though it seemed a bit pitiful as far as being able to fill any-cat's stomach. 'Maybe send a larger mouse next time?' he thought silently to himself in hopes that his ancestors above would get his message.

Not bothering to crouch down as he didn't want to give away his position, the grey tom lunged forward with extended claws. Landing square on top of the mouse, it let out a squeal before going silent. 'Gotcha!' the apprentice thought happily, keeping his paws on the prey, his short fluffy tail swaying back and forth. Leaning his head down closer to his paws to see the damage he'd done, he slowly opened them to peak inside. ...

Without warning, a flash of fur lept out from the little cave that his paws had made. Going straight for his nose, the mouse bit down, it's little razor sharp teeth digging into his skin. Letting out a yowl of surprise as the mouse held on to him, Fuzzpaw jumped back and flung his head every which way, the scent of his own blood filling his senses. Great Silverpelt... this certainly wasn't the scent that he'd hoped to be smelling on a hunting trip. Wasn't he supposed to be enjoying the scent of the prey's blood? Giving his head one last swing, he released himself from the mouse's grasp as it flew across the clearing, hitting the side of a rock with a good amount of force.

Breathing heavily and legs shaky, Fuzzpaw glanced around with wide eyes and raised hackles. Was the killer mouse going to want a round two?

Luckily for him, the fight was over. Laying at the base of the rock in which it'd been thrown at, was the the mouse. Fuzzpaw didn't notice any movement or breathing, but he couldn't be too sure, and so he stalked forward ever so carefully. Reaching the prey, he hesitantly stuck out a fuzzy paw and prodded its side. Not getting a responce, he poked it once more. Nothing. So he'd successfully gotten a peice of prey, even if it had been a bit of a kerfuffle. Well, it was one watch to catch prey, he supposed.

Letting out a sigh of releif, he plopped his rump down and sat by his kill. He was still a bit worked up from the matter and the top of his nose continued to bleed, but the apprentice found himself proud at his accomplishment, no matter the cost. This called for a celebration! Leaning down he opened his jaws, ready to gobble up his well earned prey.


Fuzzpaw attempted to catch a mouse. He was... successful! -5 SP.

Fuzzpaw
SP: 55/60

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

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'Hunting Dice' : 2

Rabbit still held tightly in his maw, Smallbean raised his head and looked behind him, delighted to see that Fuzzpaw had left the spot they came from. Carefully, he retraced his steps though the grass as to not alert any other prey on the moors, tucking the rabbit beneath an exceptionally broad and low-hanging bush. Turning, he lifted his nose to the wind, freezing where he stood when an upsettingly familiar scent reached him. He was no longer a medicine cat, but his nose was still keen enough to pick out even the faintest scent of blood. Not yet fully panicked, he followed the scent, which him straight to Fuzzpaw - who was unscathed. "Are you alright? I smelled blood." He said, approaching the apprentice. When he was close enough to see his face, a puzzled look crept onto his features. "...What happened to your nose? Did you run into some brambles?" It was nothing serious, the bleeding was minimal, it could wait to be treated. It just confused the deputy how Fuzzpaw managed to get himself injured on a hunting patrol.

In addition to his injury, Smallbean noticed that Fuzzpaw was sitting in front of a freshly killed mouse, jaws wide as if he was prepared to eat it. "Don't eat that!" He hissed, practically snatching the mouse from Fuzzpaw's mouth. "You're not to eat until we return to camp. The elders and kits need fed first." Not only did Fuzzpaw lack self-control when it came to digging through the fresh-kill pile, it seemed that he didn't even know the beginning of apprentice etiquette. Had Silverwing taught him nothing? Originally, Smallbean was going to thank Fuzzpaw for his cooperation and willingness to hunt, but his lack of restraint with trying to eat prey he'd just caught replaced his satisfaction with annoyance. Turning back toward where he'd hidden the hare, he carried the mouse in it's direction with the aim to conceal them under the same bush.

"Hey!" Fuzzpaw hissed, his small ears pinning back against his head. Before he was able to take a bite, Smallbean had snatched the mouse away and began to reprimand him. Not eat? He'd worked hard for that meal! Getting up, he lumbered after the deputy, not about to let it go that easily. "I worked for that, even got injured because of it!" the plump tom protested as he slowed his pace and watched as his catch was hidden under a bush. The mouse wouldn't be fresh by the time they got back to camp, what a waste of a perfectly good snack.

Smallbean swiftly padded away from Fuzzpaw, approaching the bush where he'd been stashing prey. He pushed back the discolored leaves to find...nothing. Did he misplace the rabbit? Furring his brows, he muttered to himself. "Huh... I was sure that I put it here..." It took a moment of shuffling around in brittle stalks and branches for him to find the correct bush, which shielded his catch. Hm. Adding Fuzzpaw's mouse to his rabbit, he stepped away, just in time to meet Fuzzpaw's oppositions. "...Your nose is. fine." He said, shortly, squinting at the apprentice before turning away to hunt again. If Fuzzpaw wanted to eat, he could wait until the kits and elders were fed, just like everyone else.

Releasing a heavy sigh, he went back the way he came, nose raised and eyes scanning his surroundings. He knew there were other rabbits nearby, he'd just have to look for them. Creeping through the stalks he was able to spot another. Staying low, he crept closer until there was a clear path between them. Suddenly, the rabbit dashed away, despite it never having seen him. Puzzled, Smallbean raised his head and ears, noticing the sound of grass crashing behind him. Flattening himself, he crouched just in time to dodge the snapping maw of a weasel, which sailed over his head before landing on the earth in front of him. It occupied the spot where the rabbit had just stood. With wide eyes, the deputy called upwards. "Fuzzpaw! There's a weasel!" A weasel was nothing that he couldn't handle, he knew that, but he could never be too sure.

With quick movements and even quicker thinking, Smallbean dashed toward the weasel before diving beneath it. It seemed that the weasel was faster than even him, though. Before he was able to slash at it's underside, it jumped away, but not before leaving some wounds of its own. Hissing in pain, he scrambled to his paws, analyzing his wounds. Blood oozed from a few gashes on his shoulders, but it was nothing urgent. As much as he abhorred the apprentice, his help would be useful.


Smallbean attempted to catch rabbit. Attempt was... unsuccessful, costing -5 SP. Smallbean has encountered a Weasel!

Smallbean attempts belly rake. Attempt was... also unsuccessful dealing -5 HP to himself and costing -25 SP!

Smallbean:
65/70 HP [-05]
135/160 SP [-05 + -25]

Weasel:
20/20 HP
135/135 SP

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

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'Hunting Dice' : 10

effect die  for belly rake :0