A vicious cat and a brave mouse [O]

Darkspirit didn't do his usual routine of waking up early and taking of on his own. He was up early... but he walked out to the center of camp and sat. His sleep schedule wasn't about to allow him to sleep any longer. He surveyed the camp as the stirring of his clanmates began. He would give them patrol orders here... which he still couldn't wrap his brain around that he could actually do this now. As the sun climbed only a bit higher, warriors began to emerge from the warrior's den and gather their apprentices. Darkspirit took a deep breath. He could do this... he could do this.

He told them he'd get to know them, so any of them that approached and spoke could do just that. They had a few minutes before patrol assignments were to start. He'd rather get to know everyone's strengths and weaknesses, but also know what they themselves desired to do. He'd do his best to make them happen.

Sleep was an odd thing to the mottled warrior. She'd found herself rising earlier and earlier in the day, practically to the point where she could say she stirred at moonhigh, and found herself crawling into her nest at sunset. It made a fantastic time for catching prey in the dead of night, when those that thought it was safe to lurk in the forests shadows would be met with an otherwise untimely end. Unfortunately, it had led her to miss the ceremony providing an evening's eventful news, but that didn't mean she wouldn't be able to quickly make up for it. News spread quickly among clanmates, and the apprentices that had thought they were being sneaky in staying awake in late hours of the night had slipped her the information. Darkspirit was now deputy, as Thistlemask was too sick and had to step down.

The chimera tom was one she'd certainly seen mutliple times within the warriors den. It was hard not to pay attention to him with the unique pelt and appearance that he had, sticking out easily among the crowd of cats. Even if his coloring at its base matched a lot of Thunderclan's tortoiseshell or calico pelts, it was the way they seemed to split perfectly down the middle that caught any cat's attention. It'd caught hers, certainly. But that didn't mean she ever had the ability to talk to him, save for the seldom patrol she may have gone on with him.

Her self-assigned 'patrol' that had her checking their borders for nighttime invasions had concluded, and so she found herself returning early to be available for whatever patrol she would be assigned for the day. In truth, it was nothing more than a walk, one that saw her sometimes even attempting to climb a tree or two. It was to keep Murkyripple in the best shape she could be, to continue pushing her body to be able to work in any way she needed. After all, if she didn't stay fit, how would she be able to serve her Clan? How would she be able to be the best possible warrior that she could? Protect her siblings? Her mother?

None of that mattered as she spotted the dual-tabbied tom, and instantly, her body assumed a slightly more confident posture. This was no time to show the natural sleepiness that slightly tugged at her muscles that came from her outing. Approaching, she dipped her head just slightly as a sign of respect, a quiet hum leaving her throat as a way of alerting the new deputy to her presence. "Congratulations, Darkspirit." She offered politely, though ultimately much more monotone than she would have otherwise intended. "Are you working on patrol assignments already? Did I miss them?" Given how few cats were about, it only meant one of two things. Murkyripple had missed assignments, or she'd caught him before they'd started, and the rest of the clan still mostly seemed to be slumbering.

Darkspirit smiled at Murkyripple as she approached. Smiling was... weird. And he was definitely out of practice. His smile was almost a somber looking thing really. He couldn't say that he minded her monotone voice. It was early, and Darkspirit tended to be up very very early compared to most of the clan. He didn't expect, or want, a bubbly, explosive "good morning!".

"Thank you Murkyripple. You haven't missed anything. I'm usually up before the sun is and its not a habit I can break I'm afraid. I'll be giving patrol assignments shortly, but there is no rush." His ear swiveled in the direction of Sparkpaw. Apprentices... He thought with amusement. If she was a kit, he might have let her think she wasn't heard to boost her confidence, but she was an apprentice and she needed to learn. Cold reality would be upon her soon enough.

"Oh, Sparkpaw, you'll have to try much harder than that to sneak up on an experienced warrior like me. Good try though, niece." Darkspirit then put his eyes on her and smirked. He couldn't say he blamed her for her shyness, if that's what it was. Dayquill, his brother, had been sent to the elder's den early and Darkspirit hadn't been able to attend. It hurt him too much, and for that, he felt guilty. Well there was no running now. He'd have to get acquainted with the rest of his family as deputy.

"Come over here. You'll be on the dawn patrol as well since you're up."

Murkyripple gave a slight dip of her head towards Darkspirit at his responses, but that was short-lived as others within the clan began to stir. She watched with curiosity as Sparkpaw came, another apprentice who had been appointed to Thistlemask. Truth be told, the molly couldn't tell if they'd shared training sessions together, as much of that time in her life was now a blur in her memory. The tortoiseshell's feathery tail swayed, but as her sister appeared, she seemed to sit up just a little bit straighter. As her older sister, Murkyripple held quite a bit of respect for her, even if they didn't get to see each other much.

"Morning, sister." She gave another dip of her head in greeting, her tail moving to curl around her paws. "Thistlemask would be glad to see you out training, Sparkpaw." The feline spoke simply. She had no intent on joining the dawn patrol, but if that was where Darkspirit ultimately wanted her to go, she wouldn't complain.

Darkspirit watched as Briarrose approached and he dipped his head in greeting. Was that his heart beating faster? It was like a mild panic attack upon seeing the... very pretty tortoiseshell she-cat. His tail tip twitched and he struggled a bit to keep his face neutral. He'd seen her a few times but they never spoke. He'd always liked looking at her, but he knew enough to not stare for too long.

"Of course you can come on dawn patrol, if you're feeling well." ... Why did that sound so stupid? He uncomfortably turned his attention to Sparkpaw and Murkyripple. He did manage to notice Sparkpaw's stiff movements. As amusing as it was, he had to wonder why the apprentice wasn't thrilled with him. Maybe because he had taken her mentor's place as deputy? It would work itself out, he was sure. And if she ever wanted to talk, he would gladly allow her to speak freely.

"I'm sure you'll do fine Sparkpaw." He said simply, ready to get moving all of the sudden. Briarrose made him nervous. If cats could sweat, he'd smell horrible right now.

"I think this is enough for this patrol. If you'd like to come along, Murkyripple, you're more than welcome. If not, I can put you on the next patrol closer to sunhigh." His tail flicked. Tail, you stop that right now. It was something he did sometimes when he got nervous. He hoped it would stop taking on a mind of it's own, as it sometimes did.