[Taxx]

Smokestorm

This gal right here's gonna rule the world
No, I won't sit still and look pretty

It was sunhigh when Smokestorm stirred in her nest, green eyes blinking open to gaze out the entrance of the warriors' den, the warmth wrapped around her despite the scent of snow in the air. She rolled to her belly and yawned, stretching her forelegs out and curling her toes, reveling in the supple feel of her muscles as she rose and arched her back before finally extending each hind leg in turn. That done, and moss groomed out of her pelt, the diluted calico stepped out of the den.

The Clan was busy as usual; she'd taken the dawn patrol and set up the day's chores among the rest of the Clan before taking a small mouse to eat and settling for a short nap. With a quiet nod, Smokestorm padded over to the nursery, intending to ensure that the queens hadn't been forgotten by any apprentices- as if they wouldn't make a fuss if they were- and to share a few words with her mother and sister. She sat with them for a moment, sharing news and enjoying their company before ducking out once more- she had someone waiting on her and she couldn't keep him waiting much longer.

He was sitting by the entrance; Smokestorm stifled a purr at his obvious readiness and padded toward him, Ravenshade and Cloverspring, also tagged for this outing, quickly falling in behind the deputy. "All ready, Beetlepaw?" Smokestorm asked. "Did you eat? Even a small meal is better than none, to give you energy."

Deputy of StoneClan

Fawn Notes

[Fawn]

BeetlepaW

Will you be my breath through the deep, deep water

Another dead Clanmate. It wasn't someone Beetlepaw had known personally, but he watched the faces of his peers - those older than he was and those in his age range - bore witness to tragedy rippling through camp again. Flintfang, Mothflight and Dustclaw had been taken in by StoneClan when they were still young. As such, Beetlepaw didn't see the usual grieving parents when he stepped out of the apprentices' den, bleary-eyed and crabby from lack of sleep.

Some of that crabbiness was simply nerves fizzling beneath his skin like a fever. Hard to believe it, but this was his first hunting patrol with Smokestorm leading the way. He'd tried to sit with her at the leaf-fall gathering, and apart from a few courteous nods from him to her, they hadn't interacted much - not since the fox attack. Then Eagletalon had died... and it just never felt like the right time to approach her.

And what would you even say to her, stupid furball? 'Thanks for not letting the fox chew off BOTH my feet'.

Dustclaw nearly collided with him was the lean warrior emerged from his den, looking even thinner with the weight of grief pressing down on him. Beetlepaw murmured his condolences, pelt prickling as he hobbled out of Dustclaw's path, away from the circle of grief settled there like fog. Maybe it was selfish, but he felt better sitting by the entrance; he could focus on his own immediate troubles.

While Beetlepaw had been caught up in agitated focus on hunting techniques, Smokestorm appeared leading Ravenshade and Cloverspring to meet him. She was slender, thinner even than Beetlepaw's mother, Skunkspots, but she cut an impressive figure at the head of the group. Beetlepaw's tail flicked nervously, but he stood up straighter, praying to StarClan that his strength held out for this hunt. He wouldn't go back to camp early because he got too tired or too cold. He couldn't let Smokestorm think he couldn't do this.

"What? Oh, I'm not hungry." Beetlepaw grimaced. He wasn't much in the mood to choke down a few mouthfuls, not when he was this nervous. "I'll eat when I get back." Maybe he'd find Skunkspots and ask her to share a meal with him. It would be even better if he caught it himself - but Beetlepaw wasn't holding his breath on that.

For now, Beetlepaw watched Smokestorm, letting her know through posture and a ready expression that he wasn't going to hold anyone up.

Can't stay in the shallows, please tell me I won't wash away

Taxx || 15 Moons || StoneClan || 411 Words

[Taxx]

Smokestorm

This gal right here's gonna rule the world
No, I won't sit still and look pretty

With a silent shrug of acceptance, Smokestorm pushed on. If he didn't want to eat, that was his choice. And she could understand why... her gaze drifted back toward the body lying in the middle of the camp and then to Dustclaw; she might have to talk to him, if she could find the right words; he had been her first apprentice and she knew, all too well, what it felt like to lose someone close.

With a deep sigh and a passing glance noticing the elders begin to appear from their den, Smokestorm beckoned to the two warriors and Beetlepaw to follow as she slid out of the camp into the cold air of the territory, setting a steady pace as she headed for the Woods. She kept her eyes open along the way, pausing when she spotted a small flock of birds fluttering about- possibly feeding on something they had found.

"Ravenshade, Cloverspring, go around them, try to herd them this way. Beetlepaw, with me." Falling into a crouch, Smokestorm held herself still for the moment, waiting for the other two to get into position. She tensed, hoping that the birds would react as she hoped, flying toward she and Beetlepaw, away from Ravenshade and Cloverspring, and low enough that she might be able to grab one.

"Get ready," she directed the apprentice, tensing as the other two edged toward the birds, who finally seemed to notice something other than the food they'd been focusing on, and the alert quickly spread through the flock as they took wing and did just as Smokestorm had wanted, heading away from the danger in a direction they believed safe.

She hurled herself upward just as the first flew overhead, claws catching in the belly feathers of one bird and dragging it back down with her, quickly killing it with a surge of pride; glancing over her shoulder, she looked to see how Beetlepaw had fared.

Deputy of StoneClan

Fawn Notes

[Fawn]

BeetlepaW

Will you be my breath through the deep, deep water

'Beetlepaw, with me.'

The apprentice's stomach twisted up tight as an old tree root, nerves making his paws feel hard as rock yet useless and flimsy as featherdown. You'll mess up, whispered a voice in the back of his mind. You'll mess up and Smokestorm will see how worthless you really are. As if bitten by a snake, the venom coursing through his veins with every pulse-pound, Beetlepaw was frozen in a crouch. Doubts chewed on his heels, making his useless stump feel heavy, like it was trying to drag him down. Trying to keep him from being a warrior.

"Get ready," said the deputy, and the loathesome spell was briefly broken. Beetlepaw sharply flicked his tail as if he could shuck those wretched feelings out of him, or at least push back the tide enough to give himself some breathing room. To give himself a chance to prove he wasn't worthless. Wasn't useless. He could hunt.

This isn't so tough, thought Beetlepaw, wishing his voice of confidence sounded even half as certain as his voice of doubt. Just leap and catch. He had three good legs. Three strong legs, and he pictured them propelling him into the air, praying hard to StarClan that he didn't embarrass himself in front of Smokestorm.

The flock moved, driven towards them by Cloverspring and Ravenshade. In one mighty effort, Smokestorm threw herself into the air; he wanted to witness the epic catch, but he didn't have the time to get starry-eyed. While she caught one of the first few to take off, Beetlepaw's claws collided with a straggler. They tumbled to the ground in a mess of teeth and feathers, Beetlepaw panting, pain shooting up his leg where the thin-skinned stump collided hard with the rocky earth.

Beetlepaw killed the grackle before it could escape, though he felt no pride. Instead, he struggled back onto all three paws, embarrassed of the entire messy display.

"Are you alright?" asked Cloverspring, eying him as if he might fall apart like a robin's egg tumbling from its nest.

"I'm fine!" He snapped, shame stinging beneath his pelt. "I caught it, didn't I?"

Cloverspring sniffed, her sympathy vanishing at his rudeness. Beetlepaw mentally cursed, shaking out a feather trapped in one of his claws. Sorry was never an easy thing to say.

Can't stay in the shallows, please tell me I won't wash away

Taxx || 15 Moons || StoneClan || 381 Words

[Taxx]

Smokestorm

This gal right here's gonna rule the world
No, I won't sit still and look pretty

Smokestorm looked back just as Beetlepaw hit the ground in a tumble of fur and feathers; the grackle scrabbled, trying to orient itself enough to escape, but the apprentice pinned it and killed it before it had a chance. Turning as Cloverspring spoke up, asking after Beetlepaw, she frowned at the snapped reply and stepped forward.

"Don't be rude, Beetlepaw," she scolded first, looking him over a moment. He was ruffled, but he was on his paws, and Smokestorm turned her gaze to Cloverspring next. "He's fine; he's strong. A warrior, like Valiantstride. And he caught it." She gave him a nod for that; it might not have been the neatest catch, but any prey, especially now, was good prey. "Come on, let's bury these and keep going. Our Clanmates should eat well tonight."

She dug a shallow hole in the snow and fetched the bird she had caught, dropping it and Beetlepaw's into it before pushing more snow on top to conceal them. A nod to each of the other three and she set off again, hopeful on finding more prey before they had to return to camp once more.

Deputy of StoneClan

Fawn Notes