[Deleted]

Mousefeather - TreeClan Warrior

The sun struck the trees just perfectly, brilliant rays of sunlight seeping deep into Mousefeather's fur, sending a pleasant tingle of warmth down across her spine. The small cat let out a rippling purr as she danced under the gentle sway of trees, her large paws carrying her across the soft mossy ground in a graceful waltz. The small warrior slowly made her way towards the fresh kill pile, making sure to appreciate her surroundings, rather than move with sole intent. Gingerly, Mousefeather picked a small vole from the pile, and quickly set to work, trying, with best intent, to eat around the thick wiry fur. 

As she finished her meal the warrior let out a very satisfied meow, turning her attention to the many cats that were populating the camp. An apprentice stood out in particular, as he meowed loudly about his recent adventure on patrol with Lionstar; One word in particular caught the small she-cats attention: Trees. In a whirl of excitement, Mousefeather pounced across the clearing, her heavy paws catching her and cradling her silently as she landed from her large bountiful hop. The she-cat's large eyes lit up like the moon as she listened to Finchpaw's story about climbing one of the tall trees near Nightclan's border, recalling her own similar adventures with many similar trees, perhaps even that very tree, trying to catch a glimpse of what lay way beyond in the distance. 

The apprentice turned at the new warrior's arrival, a pride filling his chest as he towered over her, his large Maine coon frame, seemingly dwarfing the little she-cat. Mousefeather noticed his amber eyes fill with a sort of fire and he continued to speak, glossing over what she had previously overheard to have been quite the stumble. A sudden idea rushed to her mind. Leaping up from her resting position, the warrior couldn't help but mew with excitement at the new prospect that invaded her mind. "Say, Finchpaw right? I know I'm not your mentor or anything-- Goodness knows if I was the only thing you'd learn was how to climb-- but if you wanted, I'd love to give you some tips. I-" Mousefeather paused briefly for a moment, her eyes grazing across the apprentice's flaming pelt, before continuing: "I'd love to help. If you ask me, there's never enough cats in the Trees." 

For a second, the warrior was sure that the larger cat might just dismiss her, but perhaps she had underestimated this Finchpaw whom after a moment of silence agreed, mentioning only that he needed to talk to his mentor, Gorsetail about it. Mousefeather's eyes widened as the ginger tom spoke, cutting him off with a loud purr and a flick of her short tawny tail. "Please, I insist, Let me." 

With her words the she-cat turned on herself sharply, facing in the direction from which she could hear Gorsetail, her skin flushing under her golden coat. She shook her head briefly, trying to push back the thoughts flooding forward through her mind. After all, it was hardly her fault that Gorsetail had stumbled into her sights during one of her many tree escapades, and it was hardly her fault she couldn't help but admire the tom. With a small nod, and a second wind to her determination, Mousefeather bounded forward, her limbs moving soundlessly as she approached the deputy. She let out a cordial meow as her eyes traced their way to Gorsetail, approaching him with a feigned ease.

"Gorsetail, Greetings." The she-cat licked her lips awkwardly, trying to prevent the soft crack that she felt in the depths of her throat, "I just stumbled across Finchpaw, and I couldn't help but overhear-- Well you know how I am-- Trees." She let out a nervous laughter, in an attempt to lighten the load of her following question, "Well I was wondering if you might let me help Finchpaw learn to climb properly. I can't really have his ruining all the tall trees in our territory with those claws-- My goodness, just the thought of him squandering all our lovely trees-- Anyways, If you'd let me, I'd love to tag along, maybe show him a few ways to not cause complete chaos on his descents." 

She couldn't help but let out a brilliant smile at the thought of having a valid excuse to climb, a purr rumbling in the depths of her chest, as she hung off of Gorsetail's words to come, hopeful that he might agree to her idea. 

#754 Phoenix
Notes: As Promised <3

[Phoenix]

Gorsetail

Deputy of TreeClan

i wish everyone was loved tonight
and somehow stop this endless fight

When he spotted Mousefeather leaping toward him, Gorsetail had just glanced up from looking over the fresh kill pile with a critical eye. As it seemed to be slightly on the small side of acceptable, he had decided that he would take Finchpaw out and see what prey the forest had to offer that day, but the tentative plans for that afternoon evaporated as the she-cat bounded forward and heart skipping a beat, he instinctively braced himself for a collision that never came. (In his defense, the deputy was a small cat, and when faced with high-energy, larger cats – even if it was only in stockiness instead of height – running toward him, he could never be sure if they would manage to stop on time.) However, the she-cat slowed to an easy pace before reaching him, and he returned her greetings with a pleasant, ”Hey Mousefeather. Can I help you with something?”

As he ducked his head to give his chest fur a quick lick and his heart the opportunity to stop racing, he listened to her response with some interest, recalling at that point that he, too, had had Finchpaw on the mind. Given the apprentice’s last nearly disastrous encounter with a tree (yes, he had heard the tale from Lionstar not long after he had returned to camp himself), Gorsetail had been somewhat reluctant to give the younger tom another opportunity to get all four paws off the ground. But tree climbing was an important skill to develop, and if he could pick any cat to teach his apprentice, Mousefeather would certainly be toward the top of the list. Of all the cats in the clan, she was the one who seemed more at home in their leafy boughs than on the ground, a little personality quirk that the deputy considered with some fondness. Although he could not claim to be a master climber in any capacity, he certainly appreciated the views from up high.

”That sounds like a very nice idea,” He agreed pleasantly, tail flicking as he worked through the mental calculations. If Mousefeather was going to join them this afternoon, then it made more sense to focus on climbing rather than hunting, but perhaps they could catch something on the way back to camp? Granted only some of the hunting patrols had returned to camp, but he found himself rather reluctant to come back later with empty paws. ”You can certainly come along and give Finchpaw some climbing tips. I daresay you could give better advice than me.” His words were spoken with a warm smile. ”Thanks for offering. Shall we go find him?”

Waving his tail lightly, the deputy waited for her to fall into step beside him before directing his paws toward the small crowd of apprentices off to the side of camp. As he approached the group, he realized that he recognized the tale with which his own had captured the attention of his peers, and with the corners of his lips turned upward, he shook his head slightly while Finchpaw recounted his version of the events that Lionstar had told him. It was very interesting how two cats could take the same event and tell two vastly different stories, and perhaps it was this retelling, he realized with a glance toward the she-cat at his side, that had prompted Mousefeather to approach him. ”Finchpaw,” Gorsetail called out, beckoning the younger tom over. ”Mousefeather offered to give you some climbing advice, and I think that would be a good way to spend the afternoon.” He turned to address both of them. ”And on the way back to camp, we can hunt a little as well.” There was a brief pause as green eyes met blue. ”Mousefeather, do you have anywhere in particular that you would like to go?” Naturally, trees were rather ubiquitous in TreeClan territory, but there were undoubtedly some that were easier to climb than others. If any cat knew about them, then it would be the ginger she-cat in front of him would.

@minxxy

better days | background image

[Deleted]

Mousefeather

33 Moons She-Cat TreeClan Warrior

Mousefeather blinked widely, her tail moving with her breathing ever so slightly as she waited for Gorsetail to reply. She could almost sense a sort of softness in the tom's eyes, whether it be towards her or Finchpaw or something more than likely purely fictional, Mousefeather couldn't help but let out minuscule purr. After a considerable silence, the she-cat was still nothing but ecstatic as Gorsetail replied, a shiver of energy rippled down her spine. ”That sounds like a very nice idea,” she heard the tom say, albeit calmly; Her reaction however was none of the sort, her eyes grew widely and a smile stretched across the she-cat's lips as she desperately tried to contain her excitement.

Mousefeather's mind wandered as she began instantly tracing the steps she would take once leaving the camp, finding her mind instantly wandering to the great maple. The great maple was a tree unlike any other, its branches and bark old and strong as mountains, with a large canopy of heavy leaves, resilient to the wind and perfect for adorning nest with. Mousefeather also found herself thinking about the surrounding grounds, the mossy ground heavy with years of leaf rot, a sweet albeit somewhat strong odor that covered most scents of prey, and yet if you knew what you were looking for the Great Maple was a place like to no other to find creatures of all variety to bring back to camp. With a mental nod the warrior found herself agreeing with herself, no tree was quite like the maple and if she was to be given the choice that is where they would go.

Mousefeather blinked back the grandeur that had begun to take root in her mind, turning her round eyes back on Gorsetail, listening intently to his words, as if they themselves might be branches she would find herself hanging onto. ”You can certainly come along and give Finchpaw some climbing tips. I daresay you could give better advice than me. Thanks for offering. Shall we go find him?”

The warrior found herself nodding enthusiastically, unable to suppress her innate excitement over the subject matter of their patrol. As an afterthought, seemingly somewhat caught in her own vines of thought, she added, "I would hardly say better than yourself, Gorsetail. If anything, I'd be content with think we could even see eye to eye," she purred with a coy wink, before setting in line to follow after the deputy, careful to keep up with his pace despite her stocky nature.

The duo approached Finchpaw, once again, who seems to still be enveloped in his tale, meowing about it to all that should cross his path. Mousefeather could do nothing to prevent herself from letting out a small sigh, accompanied by a roll of her clear eyes, as she heard the story once again, recalling the damage that she imagined Finchpaw had dealt to the tree he bragged about assaulting. And yet here he was, talking himself up as if he were absolved of wrong. The audacity. She bit back her words of pain, ready to speak up for the trees, when she noticed Gorsetail preparing to say something; she stilled herself.

Mousefeather's eyes that were trained momentarily on Finchpaw quickly turned, their attention taken up completely by the deputy as he spoke. At the mention of hunting the warrior couldn't help but smile, recalling her previous mental decision, nodding in agreement, of her own thoughts, as she spoke, "The great maple is the perfect place to learn to climb-- And it's resilient." The small she-cat used this brief silence to draw a glare over at Finchpaw, who looked more than surprised at the accusations thrown subtly his way.

The apprentice stretched his muscles, flexing his claws as he prepared to retort, only to be stunned in silence at the smaller cat's sudden burst of attitude, "One day you'll be a great Treeclan warrior, Finchpaw. One day. And to be a great Treeclan warrior you have to not only train to fight, you need to learn to respect said trees. Treeclan" Mousefeather emphasized, dismissing Finchpaw with a quick shake of her figure, dwarfed in contrast to his. Turning back to look at Gorsetail briefly, she quickly veered to cast her gaze out into the expansive forest on the outskirts of the Treeclan camp. Finchpaw stood still for a minute, his amber eyes blank as he attempted to figure out a reply, turning to his mentor with a soft silent plea. Save me.

Finchpaw let out a small grumble as he adjusted himself, ready to follow the two senior cats in an unusual silence as he contemplated a way to properly reply to the shock of the warriors words. Mousefeather, however, seemed only pleased with herself now that Finchpaw had stopped talking about the chaos he had caused to the grove, looking over her shoulder sweetly. "Very well! Let's go! Trees and prey, prey and Trees and cats. What a wonderful day!~"

"Learn character from trees,
values from roots,
and change from leaves"
_{Tasneem Hameed}

_{Table Made by Fawn}

#853  | Phoenix | Notes-Do Not Mess with the Trees, man. 

[Phoenix]

Gorsetail

Deputy of TreeClan

i wish everyone was loved tonight
and somehow stop this endless fight

Gorsetail blinked back at Finchpaw, simultaneously surprised and yet not surprised at the same time by Mousefeather’s outburst. He hadn’t intended to sign his apprentice up for an afternoon of thinly veiled lectures and accusations, but perhaps he should have expected such a passionate defense of trees given her reasons for wanting to teach him in the first place. Still, even if he felt a little bad about the reprimand, this was perhaps the first time he had ever seen Finchpaw utterly speechless, and the older tom knew that startling the younger cat into silence was no minor feat. With a mind only for trees, Mousefeather herself seemed to neither realize nor care about her accomplish, instead turning away to gaze out at the forest around them. Bemused green eyes watched as the she-cat made her way over toward the camp exit before glancing back at his apprentice in something like a silent apology for the afternoon of tongue-lashing he might have sentenced the other tom to.

Briefly tapping him on the shoulder with his tail, the deputy nonetheless indicated that they should follow after the warrior. If there ends up being more lecturing than teaching, he told himself, then I’ll step in. As far as he could recall, the young warrior had yet to train her first apprentice, and in a sudden burst of insight, the tabby tom realized that this could be a good learning opportunity for the both of them. Mousefeather could figure out how to share information and teach a younger cat, and Finchpaw would be able to practice his climbing. Yes, this could work quite nicely.

As the interesting trio of cats picked their way through TreeClan territory toward the Great Maple, Gorsetail broke the fairly companionable silence by addressing the warrior slightly ahead of him. ”You’re in a good mood today, Mousefeather,” He commented idly, by no means begrudging the other feline her pleasant mindset. ”Any particular reason why or are you just excited to be able to climb some more?” While he fully expected it to be the latter, he was always willing to listen to what was happening in the lives of his clan mates; when there was cause for celebration or a good mood, he wanted to be able to offer his congratulations or share a smile. If he could control the world, then there would never be reason for sadness and grief. Tail flicking lightly, the deputy glanced across at his apprentice, wanting to include him in the conversation as well. ”And what about you, Finchpaw? Did you enjoy your morning off?”

@minxxy

better days | background image

[Deleted]

Mousefeather

35 Moons She-Cat TreeClan Warrior

Finchpaw's step halted, his amber eyes caught in his mentor's gaze, almost unwilling to leave the clearing without having Gorsetail as some sort of physical buffer between himself and the tree-obsessed warrior. With a soft tap of his mentor's tail against his shoulder, the tom re-positioned himself mentally, and slowly padded forward, his face twisted into an air of determination so strong, you might confuse it for anger. His facial expression, however, was quickly dissolved as Mousefeather reared her head, in an almost owl like manner, her round eyes locking on the apprentice,softening slightly. "Finchpaw, you're named after a bird of the sky; Tree climbing its in your claws, I know it."

The apprentice, lost in his own thoughts, shifted uncomfortably as the warrior spoke, nodding slowly at her words, a new found will burning in his ginger fur. He would be the best, He would. He Had to. The apprentice's eyes were lit ablaze, like dry leaves amidst lightning strikes, and in a quick second his entire demeanor changed. With a new found ease, the apprentice followed after the she-cat, his long and tough muscles rippling under his thick coat, that caught the sun in a dance of flames. He quickly found how easy it was to keep up with Mousefeather, his strides almost doubling hers, and adjusted himself accordingly, his eyes wandering over to his mentor, curious as to what the older tom might be thinking.

Mousefeather's ears pricked as Gorsetail spoke, her eyes instantly diverted in the tom's direction, incapable of hiding the joy that was emanating from her body. ”You’re in a good mood today, Mousefeather,” Gorsetail commented, a soft series of word that embraced Mousefeather softly. For a moment she closed her eyes, wondrous images of trees taking hold of her, roots wrapping their way around her most intimate thoughts, bringing them forward in a gush just as Gorsetail finished speaking. "There are many reasons to be happy today." the she-cat commented, her pace turning into a series of excited bounces as she continued, "While, yes, I'm excited for the climb we are about to endure, I can't help but also simply appreciate our surroundings today. Green cough is done its rounds, the sun is warm, the prey is plentiful, and, on top of it all, I get to share my tree climbing with a cat who has yet to experience all its wonders." She nodded in Finchpaw's direction, catching the apprentice's gaze.

"And also, Good company. I'm often left to my own devices, but I'm not just a tree zealot, I mean, I am but, It's more than that. It's not just about the trees, but about the freedom that you feel only from the top of the boughs of the branches., that inexplicable fullness, like no other inner qualms matter." Mousefeather's ramblings came to a close, blinking back her excitement and wonder, almost apologetically. "Today is a good day." she concluded, turning to look over at Finchpaw, curious as to what he might have had to say; she had yet to see much of the apprentice's inner workings and couldn't help but find herself curious as he slowed his pace to accommodate his words.

"And what about you, Finchpaw? Did you enjoy your morning off?” The apprentice looked over at his mentor, his eyes fiercely baring into the older tom. In place of what would have regularly been anger or annoyance, Finchpaw couldn't help but find his step lightened after Mousefeather's words, impeding his own wisdoms on his mentor and the she-cat warrior. "I mean, Amberpaw still hates my presence. but in the end, I guess it could be worse. I'm going to surpass Thornpaw when it comes to climbing so badly, that even I could be his mentor."

There was a smugness as the apprentice spoke, his ears jutting out forward in an alert expression, ready to undertake the task ahead, despite the fact that Mousefeather seemed very specific in her ways, as long as he didn't upset her, the apprentice was sure that she would teach him, if not for his sake then for the trees themselves. "Days off are good and all, but as the future leader of Treeclan there is not rest for me. Even of days off, like today, adventure finds me, Destiny finds me. " Finchpaw flicked his heavy plume tail with his words, demanding a sort of admiration from the she-cat that was leading the group, however instead of silence Mousefeather found herself giggling softly amidst a series of purrs. It wasn't meant any sort of disrespect, the she-cat simply found herself unable to contain herself.

"An honour it is to accompany you then, future leader of Treeclan." Ahead the forest laid out in front of the trio of cats, the canopies overhead allowing for a flicker of light against the mossy floor's surface. Ahead, Mousefeather could nearly sense the Great Maple, a ripple of excited shivers making their way down her spine. In an attempt to manage her sheer excitement, the she-cat turned onto Gorsetail, her eyes wide with wonder. "And what about you Gorsetail? How are you? How is your day off? Surely you too must feel the awe of Finchstar-to-be's presence?" she teased.

"Learn character from trees,
values from roots,
and change from leaves"
_{Tasneem Hameed}

_{Table Made by Fawn}

#894 Phoenix Notes: Tree posts are long posts.