[ash]

Redpaw padded into the apprentice den, flopping onto his nest with a deep sigh. It was warm here, at least, and a welcome change from being out in the cold and wet all day. He snuggled into the warmth of his nest and glanced over to where Nettlepaw sat. He had one friend he knew he could trust, at least.

"I've been a total mousebrain...I've ruined it with Brighteyes. Worst day in history." He muttered to her.

There was a long silence before he spoke again. "She's so pretty! Understanding, clever, a good teacher..." He trailed off at his confession. "And she didn't get angry at me, or anything, but I could tell from the look in her eyes. She didn't like what I said. I should have just kept my mouth firmly shut."

Word count: 135
Notes: Really short post, but I have no idea how else to start...

[vert]

Nettlepaw let out a long, deep growl from where she lay enclosed in a thick next of warm moss. Her ears were nearly flat against her head in irritation, a clear warning sign that if Redpaw didn't apologise he would be in trouble. Big trouble. It was bad enough that her friend had dared disturb her rest, but then to go rambling on about some she-cat warrior to her? Didn't he have some tom-friend in the clan he could complain to instead of her, in desperate need of a rest and peace from the countless mouse-brains that were in her clan?

The apprentice sighed as he began gushing about Brighteyes, flicking her fluffy tail over his mouth in an attempt to stop him from speaking. "Don't say another thing," she warned in her usual attitude, though there was a bit of unknown emotion mixed into her words. "She's just another cat. She'll forget all about it - hopefully - and so will you. Why were you with her anyway?" Nettlepaw raised her head off of her paws to sneer at him, pink nose wrinkling up.

Words: 185

[ash]

"Just another she-cat." He murmered, something in his eyes. Longing? Love? He'd never felt it before.

He snapped back to the present, banishing images of Brighteyes from his head. "I was trying to sneak around the river. You know how much I love water... She noticed me. We were friends before then. Until I blew it." He shrugged, then noticed his friends expression, and back peddled quickly.

"Please, Nettlepaw. Don't be angry with me. I'm just being grumpy as always." He sighed deeply. "I'll just go shove my mouth in some dirt. How was your day?" He made a feeble attempt at getting off the Brighteyes subject.

Word count: 117
Notes: x

[vert]

<sub>Her eyes narrowed at the sudden change of subject, but she was glad about it. "I'm the grumpy one around here, but I couldn't be angry with you if I tried. You're too..." Nettlepaw tried to find the right words, but couldn't, so she just shrugged and lay her head back onto her small paws with a solemn expression, claws sheathing and unsheathing into the soil and moss.

"And... er... let's not talk about my day. You know how they usually go," she snorted, looking at him sideways. She stayed quiet for a while thinking, before suggesting, "Do you want to hunt? I'm in the mood for hunting down a few ignorant squirrels." A hopeful gleam entered her gaze as she thought about sprinting through the forest and trees, splashing through a few streams, listening to the songs sing and the wind ruffle the leaves. The taste of warm flesh was almost real, the salty tang of blood sleeping onto her tongue...</sub>

Word Count: 162

[ash]

"I'm too what?" He challenged her, grinning slightly, then flopping further into his nest. "Endless energy. Does your mentor ever wear you out?"

He laughed, flicking his tail over hers to show he meant it jokingly. "I bet you'll be given the really energetic apprentice when you're a warrior. And Starclan help us if you become leader! You'll have us all prancing around camp from sunrise to moonrise."

He chuckled, lost in his thoughts.

Word count: 80
Notes: Really small posts (I know :L) but I really can't think :/

[vert]

» Nettlepaw «


"Leader? That's a bit far ahead, don't you think?" Nettlepaw stood up, stretching out her long front legs and letting out a small groan. Her legs felt as stiff as the dry bedding she had collected earlier, or perhaps even the thick brambles that could be found in the territory. She grunted and heaved her back legs out of the basket, an angry scowl plastered on her lips.

"You must have practically no stamina to be worn out already." Her blue eyes glimmered with the taunt, though not in the mean way she might choose to do to other cats. "Please come? Please, please, pretty please?" She batted her eyes, turning the scowl into a sickly sweet smile and prodding at his belly with a small paw. Nettlepaw tilted her head prettily, knowing that if he refused to move she would find a way to drag him out some way or other, even if she was half his size. "We might not be apprentices together for too much longer! Please?"

A cool breeze entered the den, ruffling Nettlepaw's golden fur the wrong way and chilling her quickly. She ignored it, though gave a small roll of her eyes, gritting her teeth to keep the smile. If anyone walked in right now and saw her pleading to go outside, she'd have to think up some excuse so she didn't look crazy. But leaf-fall wasn't all that bad. You could leap up and catch a delicate orange leaf between your paws, dive into scattered leaves, perhaps find a squirrel collecting nuts and birds feeding on ripe red berries. It was a good time of year, she concluded, to become plump on meat-covered prey before leaf-bare made itself known.

Word Count: 286
Notes: 'Tis ok

[ash]

"'We might not be apprentices together for too much longer!'" He mimicked Nettlepaw's voice, higher than his, but overdoing the squeakiness a little. "We'll always be together, Nettlepaw, no matter how many times you try to bite my head off." The look he gave her was sincere, but perhaps he didn't quite mean it the way it must sound to a pretty she-cat...

"Besides, surely we can afford a few more hours in here?" He poked her in the stomach with his tail. "How about we go hunting tomorrow morning? Hey, maybe I could come and watch your apprentice training, and tease you from the sidelines?" He chuckled. "It'd be better than standing in the middle of a lake all day. Then, anything is better than standing in a puddle all day. Even just sitting in a den with you."

He realized the unintentional hurt behind the words, and hastily tried to undo them. "I mean, not like that..." he sighed in frustration. "I would like to spend time with you over anything, even if Starclan themselves came and gave me a moons supply of fresh kill."

[vert]

» Nettlepaw «

"Please just shut up, mouse-brain," Nettlepaw rolled her eyes at him and sat beside his nest. "You really should learn to think about what you're saying. Otherwise you end up making less of a point than a rat talking to a goose."

With a loud grunt, she stretched out on her belly, gangly legs spread out across the slightly dusty ground. Her tail flicked over a small patch of grass repeatedly until she mewed, "Don't you dare tease me during training," in a quiet grumble. "You'd end up with a shredded tail and a missing ear. Could ruin your good looks." A small twinkle entered her gaze and she glanced up at Redpaw, leaning forwards to nudge his ear teasingly.

Words: 132 D:

[ash]

"My good looks?" He grinned sheepishly. "N'aww. You're so cute when you go all mushy."

He was teasing her on dangerous territory - no doubt she'd cuff him over the head if he didn't stop - but it was how they worked. They would tease each other until they fell asleep, then wake up and carry on teasing.

Life without Nettlepaw would be so...dull. He sighed, resting his head on his paws, glancing at her. "Oh, stop it, you're embarrising me with your multiple comments." He darted to his paws and began a mock bow, then pretended to look down his nose at her, tail held high. He lifted each paw and placed it down gently, trotting around Nettlepaw in circles.
"Oh, Redpaw, you're so amazing!" He squeaked, over exaggerating her walk with a slight swagger. "You're so handsome and so talented!"

He grinned like an idiot, knowing he was going to get a cuff over the head.

Words:--
Notes:

[vert]

» Nettlepaw «

Nettlepaw let out a half-playful-half-annoyed growl. She gave a quick wriggle of her haunches, muscles bunched, and then leapt nimbly onto Redpaw's back, every single pointy claw sheathed. A heap of moss that she guessed was her nest flung out behind her, leaving scattered moss on the floor where her sleeping place one was. Nettlepaw gave a small snort. Someone else could clear it up for her.

"I do not walk or talk like that!" She began her protest, just managing to balance on his back. If he moved, just a little bit, no doubt she would tumble off - either onto a nice, soft nest or the hard ground beneath his paws. "Besides, I'm the pretty one out of us two. Don't forget that. And please, I'm begging you here, do not go all snobby on me!"

Nettlepaw flicked her tail and prodded his side, wobbling slightly on her legs, feeling too unstable for her liking.

Words: 181

[ash]

"'I so do not talk like that!" He copied, shaking her off. "I don't walk like that either!"

He licked his fur delicately, making it go in the right direction. "Does my fur look okay? Do I look okay? Do you think the other toms find me attractive?" He fluttered his eyelashes as much as possible, looking up at her with big eyes. "Oh mighty Redpaw, will you do me the honour of being my friend?" Amusement twisted through his eyes, and he chuckled. "You, my friend, are too easy to tease."

He flopped back onto his nest, and cocked his head. He watched her through wide eyes, still grinning to himself.

Slowly, he stretched and yawned. "I guess I should check that Brookrun and her kits are alright. I haven't visited them in awhile." He got to his paws and stretched once more before getting to his paws.

Notes: As you haven't posted I'll end it here.
Word count: -