The Not-moor and Unempty Spaces [closed]

Shadepaw paced around the makeshift camp. The elders were looked after, her clanmates still looked drawn and dulled from the horror-filled moons that stretched behind them and the lonely ones that stretched before them. There was very little to do except sit in the sun. Which was nice for about five minutes before Shadepaw got bored. The apprentice growled once, to make herself feel better, and relieve some of the tension that kept getting stuck under her pelt. It was suffocating to hang around camp sometimes, with ShadowClan slinking by so close, and her own clan moving about their lives muted and heavy.

Finally done with her pacing, Shadepaw did another survey of camp and this time spotted a small calico warrior. Coyotegrin! Shadepaw stalked over, lifting her feathery tail in greeting. Things had been difficult for everyone, but Shadepaw could pickup on the extra strain it caused her mentor. “Maybe we could get out of camp for a bit? I’d like to hunt some.” She suggested, craving the wind in her whiskers and something warm and soft between her teeth.

No matter how hard she tried, Coyotegrin never seemed to be able to settle down. It had been a very close time for her as she was queen, but unfortunately the bliss of motherhood was cut short with the quake and her kits had to leave her nest in a manner she deemed unsuitable for her children and in such a fashion that stole the proud moment of a mother watching her children turn 'paws. But alas, it couldn't be that good for her. Recently, she also received an apprentice again, Shadepaw. It had been quite some time since her last apprentice, but she did so much extra training for the tunnels and fine tuning that it wasn't a hard thing to fall back to. Except for time management of course. Her paws ached from the hard stone instead of the soft moor and rest was in her sight when Shadepaw came hustling up to her, requesting a hunt. Holding in a sigh of frustration and exhaustion, Coyotegrin simply nodded and waved her tail happily. "Of course! That sounds like an excellent idea right about now. It'd be dangerous for you to go alone." StarClan, it was dangerous for anyone to go at all. "There's a lot of hares out here, not much different than rabbit. Let's see how quickly you can find one." With a nod, she motioned with her head for Shadepaw to lead.

With a purr of gratitude, Shadepaw bounded out of the makeshift camp and down the rocky slopes to the openness beyond. She was used to the terrain by now, though Coyotegrin did not need to know about her horrendous hunting venture with Fuzzpaw. Maybe this time she would actually catch something. Already she felt more centered away from the uneasy haze of ShadowClan scent. The leaf-bare wind made her paws tingle with energy. She wanted to bolt off into nowhere, race the wind for a bit, squeeze the ache of homesickness from her chest. But instead, she scented the wind as instructed. Just as Coyotegrin said, it wasn’t long before the prey scent settled on her tongue, heavy and warm. She waited for a few long heartbeats, statue still amid the stubby grass. She noticed a flash of brown pelt in the grass and dropped easily into a crouch.

She had caught a rabbit before in the disastrous hunt with the fox, and she had stalked her unsuspecting littermates enough in the moons long past that it came easily. She crept forward, a predator’s patience in each careful paw step. The pebbles were hard to avoid, but the hare was distracted enough by its meal, maybe she wouldn’t even have to give chase-
Her tail lashed, distracted by the anticipation of the kill, and brushed along the grass. Fox-dung. Rookie mistake. She didn't even wait for the hare to take off, she knew the game was up.

Shadepaw bolted after the hare, long legs covering the ground in easy strides. The leaf-bare wind stings, yanks her whiskers back, but the apprentice was uncaring, hyperfocused on the drag of her breath, the hare tearing across the rough landscape. She didn’t mind the rocks that scraped her pads or the grass that wedged itself between her claws, there was nothing but the hammer of her heart, the thrill of the chase. She was a long shadow against the grass, gaining ground, and with a powerful push of her haunches, the apprentice launched herself at the hare, claws outstretched and glinting.

Her claws sunk into the hare's soft sides as she dragged it back toward her. A sharp spark of satisfaction bounced off her ribs. She grabbed it by the soft throat, pulse feathering quick and panicked under her teeth until she killed it. She bounded back to her mentor, the hare dangling from her jaws like a trophy, tail aloft in victory. She dropped the hare, a smile that was all bloodied teeth and satisfaction on her face. Easy as skinning a Thunderclanner. She purred.

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

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'Hunting Dice' : 5

Coyotegrin held her position in the back, crouching to watch her apprentice closely as she stalked the hare. A tail lash gave away her position, causing the hare to take off. The experienced and fast warrior took off after the chase, following along carefully between boulders and sharp rocks. As Shadepaw neared, she slowed to a halt for a nice clean kill. With the returned apprentice, Coyotegrin gave an approving nod. "I think you already know your mistake with lashing of the tail, but you recovered and caught the hare anyway. Your speed reminds me of myself. Would you like to try again, but this time with the challenge of finding a bird?" Her head tilted with the question.