[Hellion]

i'm headed straight for the castle

THEY WANNA MAKE ME THEIR QUEEN

Amber eyes glanced around the camp, taking stock of their surroundings. Lounging near the fresh-kill pile, Firestar waited to catch a glimpse of Weaselpaw. The tom-cat had been her apprentice and an unfortunate victim of her ambition. She hadn't taken the time to teach him properly and despite him being almost forty moons, he hadn't yet earned his warrior name. A failure that Firestar took full responsibility for.

At first she pushed the blame off on to his injury and near permanent nest inside the medicine cat's den. However as the moons went on and Weaselpaw still hadn't earned his warrior name, Firestar gradually became more and more distracted. She often got caught up in her deputy duties and no longer checked on her apprentice, almost completely ignoring his health.

Her rise to leader of LightingCaln didn't allow her much spare time. She still worked all hours of the day, only going to the medicine cat den when she was herself was sick or another cat was gravely ill. Firestar didn't have a fear of of the medicine cat den, but she did avoid it. The fact she had let Weaselpaw slip past her careful eye was a show of her character as leeder. Something she truly regretted. Even when Weaselpaw went back to living on his own, she hadn't made much contact with him.

Her patchwork pelt moved as she rose to her paws, finally seeing the black tom-cat remerge into camp. "Weaselpaw! Firestar called out to him, crossing toward him with her head high. She walked ahead of him to cut him off where ever he was going. "It is importnat you and I talk, it is about your warrior name," She told him, her short tail wagging to expel the extra lingering negative energy she harbored form being a failure as a mentor.

FIRESTAR

background image | castle | table by phoenix

Amber

[Deleted]

HE'S GOT LIONS IN HIS HEART, A FIRE IN HIS SOUL

HE'S GOT A BEAST IN HIS BELLY THAT'S SO HARD TO CONTROL

NOW LIGHT A MATCH, STAND BACK, WATCH HIM EXPLODE

The skinny black tom padded slowly into camp, a ball of moss clamped in his jaws. He had just finished rolling his old bedding out and was bringing in fresh moss to replace it. Before he could reach the partially-dug rabbit hole he called home, though, a familiar voice called out to him. His ear flicked back and his eyes narrowed slightly, but he turned to face his leader.

"It is important you and I talk; it is about your warrior name."

His eyes narrowed even more and he felt a brief flash of anger. He stalked off, moving toward his den. He dropped his moss off at the entrance before turning back to Firestar. "I don't want a pity ceremony, if that's what you're offering." He would not accept his warrior name just because she felt bad that he still walked around with --paw tacked onto his name. Eyes still narrowed, he turned and focused on breaking up the mosspile and pulling it into his den. His movements were stiff, his displeasure obvious as he all but ignored her. Hopefully she would see that he was busy, and either leave him be or accept that she would have to have this talk while he worked.

Hellion
206 words

WEASELPAW

[Hellion]

i'm headed straight for the castle

THEY WANNA MAKE ME THEIR QUEEN

Firetar's eyes widened in surprise as his words. Weaselpaw had grown up quite a bit, despite his short comings to have a strong tongue. Her first reaction was to reprimand him for speaking to her in a such a way, but Firestar let it slide. He must feel neglected in likely not very excited to talk to a mentor that failed him so.

Instead of pushing the idea further, Firestar sat down near the tom and watched him for a moment. Devising a plan on how to talk to him without angering him further. In that moment she realized his name sake was fitting. Temper like a weasel.

"Weaselpaw I won't give you a pity ceremony, I came here to talk about what can be done in terms of your training. What you are capable of doing. I want you to earn your name instead of it given to you." She told him, moving to stand closer to him.

"I want you to feel proud that you are a warrior, not forced into being one," She added trying to offer him a small smile.

FIRESTAR

background image | castle | table by phoenix

[Deleted]

HE'S GOT LIONS IN HIS HEART, A FIRE IN HIS SOUL

HE'S GOT A BEAST IN HIS BELLY THAT'S SO HARD TO CONTROL

NOW LIGHT A MATCH, STAND BACK, WATCH HIM EXPLODE

Admittedly, Firestar's silence stunned him. He'd expected to be reprimanded for lashing out, but no retort came. She didn't leave him, though. He noticed her sit down, felt her eyes watching him as he slipped in and out of his den, carrying his bedding in bit by bit to rebuild his nest.

"Weaselpaw, I won't give you a pity ceremony." 'Good.' At least she had heard him. "I came here to talk about what can be done in terms of your training, what you are capable of doing."

'Not a whole lot.' If he was honest with himself, there wasn't a lot he was capable of. Sure, his health had improved slightly, but there was only so much he could learn on his own without proper instruction. He had become skilled at locking away blame Firestar was properly entitled to for his lack of training, but having his mentor asking him what could be done about his own training threatened to weaken those locks he'd built.

"I want you to earn your name instead of it given to you." At least they could agree on that.

Pushing the last bit of moss into place, he circled in his nest a few times, patting it down and making sure it was suitable settled. A single deep breath was all he allowed himself before he slipped out of the den. He came out face to face with Firestar as she took a step closer. "I want you to feel proud that you are a warrior, not forced into being one."

Weaselpaw held his narrowed eyes a moment longer before releasing a slow breath and looking away. He stepped aside, flicking his tail out behind him to release a little tension. Without looking at Firestar, he began to speak.

"I've trained as well as I could on my own. I usually practice fighting alone; I know it's not ideal, but I've at least learned how to perform without dissolving into a coughing fit." It had been a while since he'd last had to stop just to regain control of his lungs, and that was something he was actually proud of. Once he'd learned that panting and gasping did him more harm than good, he'd focused on training and controlling his breathing, making the most of his scarred lungs. He'd learned that deep, steady breaths through his nose were best, and had learned to adjust his intake when his body demanded more oxygen without resorting to opening his mouth and gasping for air. It took a great deal of self-control and took him moons to master, but he was proud to say he had succeeded in that at least.

"As for hunting...rabbits remain out of my reach, but I've learned how to hunt the slower prey." Rabbits were fast and near-impossible for him to catch, especially alone. But mice were slower, and he was light and had learned how to sneak up on them. The trial and error it had taken to get his techniques right, though, was a little embarrassing. "It's possible that my techniques, battle and hunting alike, are sloppy, but they get the job done." He shrugged. He didn't really have someone holding his paw and guiding him into the proper stances his entire apprenticeship, not even for the full six moons he should have, so it was more than likely at least some of his techniques were flawed. Still, he was happy enough that he wasn't completely useless that he wasn't too worried about whether his stances were pretty or his crouches perfect. If Firestar wanted to help him correct that, then he'd accept her advice. If not, oh well. He wouldn't lose sleep over it. He was done losing sleep over being a failure of a cat.

He turned his golden eyes to Firestar. The earlier hostility had faded, and he no longer stared at her through slits, but he was still guarded and waited to see what her next move was going to be.

Hellion
666 words

WEASELPAW

[Hellion]

i'm headed straight for the castle

THEY WANNA MAKE ME THEIR QUEEN

Firestar kept her distance from him, seeing that he was clearly capable of taking care of himself. For a moment she marveled at the sight. Even without her intervention on his behalf, he had manged to come this far. Her amber eyes studied him for a moment and as he replied to her question Firestar nodded.

It was no surprise that Weaselpaw had limited abilities. While the true nature of his condition was unknown to her and perhaps too complicated for her to understand without taking half the day to explain, Firestar took his word. However, it didn't excuse her from the guilt. It was her fault he had fallen so far behind. Something she'd never be able to forgive herself for.

Watching him push the moss into place and create himself a nest, Firestar felt as if she was again failing him. By not offering him help in the most basic of ways, but perhaps it was the feeling that Weaselpaw had a lot of pride. Firestar felt he would decline the offer.

As he started to talk to her, Firestar's ears flicked forward to ensure she caught every word. She felt it was admirable that he managed to do so much without her help. It made her feel a tiny bit better but not enough to excuse herself.

"I am proud that you have managed to do learn the basics and are clearly capable. She offered little praise to him, wondering if he truly cared for her opinion of him.

Learning of his hunting abilities also put Firestar at ease. Rabbits were the choice prey of her Clan, but there were other prey populations that made excellent meals. Firestar knew it would be unfair to expect all her warriors to be faster than rabbits. The simple fact that Weaselpaw had been able to learn how to hunt was enough to please her.

"Technique is really only important when you first start learning. Even my own hunting crouch is no where near what the apprentice are taught now. Over time you learn to adjust to work better for you. As long as you get the job done and are able to feed your fellow clan-mates," She told him, offering perhaps a little bit of comfort.

"I am sure that you and I can come together and figure out a way to ensure you are made a proper warrior. Ensure you have earned the name. Would you still want that?" She asked, looking at him with a soft mothering gaze, not at all unnerved by his guarded nature. She had seen plenty of that in her moons, Weaselpaw in comparision was no true threat.

FIRESTAR

background image | castle | table by phoenix | Amber