[KARAZHAL]

From Glacierpaw's jaws hung a small rat, and he followed Pumafang through the wide entryway of TreeClan camp. The long-legged tom ducked through the curtain of dead moss and inhaled deeply at the welcoming scent of camp. It was frigid outside, and he was glad to be out of the open air to warm up and get a bite to eat after a successful hunt with his mentor.

He and the deputy parted ways at the fresh-kill pile. Glacierpaw took a squirrel from the base of the pile. He loped through the sequoia's hollow tunnels until he reached his fellow apprentices. His bed, empty beside Asterpaw's, looked mighty inviting. Shed hair blocked all the gaps and crevices in the wood. Of course, it was the apprentices' job to collect fur clumps they saw and patch up the spots that were windows in the other seasons. The medicine cat warned the Clan that the first snow of the season would be falling today.

"Good work, everyone, it feels great in here," he said, congratulating whoever had helped insulate the den. His big ears seemed to catch drafts the most, and he was grateful to those who'd done the work.

Once he'd seated himself in his den, Glacierpaw nudged Asterpaw to get his deaf friend's attention. The silver tabby's long snout indicated the squirrel laying on the bed. He gestured to Asterpaw and himself with a white-socked paw. His toes were bloodied from where he'd pounced on his rat. "Would you like some of this?" he asked. "I'm sorry it's cold, but it can't be helped." While his facial expression didn't change, he seemed embarrassed from the way his head sunk into his bony body. He pulled back his filthy paw to groom it and lick feeling back into his chilled pawpads.

When he was satisfied, he placed it on the squirrel and nudged it, so Asterpaw would know he was talking again. "Have you been outside yet, Asterpaw? Falconstorm reckons it will snow soon. I'm told it looks like your fur is falling out and all over the ground."

ooc remarks: tagged for ♛ 𝔽𝕒𝕓𝕣𝕚𝕔𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟 - figured they could go look at the first snowfall after some snack

[♛ 𝔽𝕒𝕓𝕣𝕚𝕔𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟]

Asterpaw

10 Moons || TreeClan || Apprentice

The white tom felt blustered by the cold. While the camp walls mercifully blocked most of the winds, the biting chill of Leaf-bare still wriggled its way into the camp like a pesky worm. He felt somewhat sulky as he regarded the prey that Birchpaw had brought back to camp. His odd-eyed brother already looked moons older than Asterpaw himself, and he held his catch with gleeful pride. His eyes slid mockingly towards Asterpaw’s empty paws, and he felt heat rush into his muzzle and turned his own gaze pointedly away. The sparrow that hung from Birchpaw’s mouth was unusually fat for Leaf-bare, its black throat stained red with the sweet-smelling blood of a freshly killed bird.

While Asterpaw now understood the basics of scenting and stalking prey, creeping up on highly alert animals when there was an entire world you could not perceive was challenging. Often, he was not aware he was being too noisy until he felt a twig give way beneath his paw, or the mouse he had so meticulously stalked had perked its ears in alarm and scattered away among the frigid undergrowth. It had been immensely frustrating, and the TreeClan apprentice was growing increasingly impatient with his own failures. It seemed so easy to Birchpaw, and the desire to outdo his brother and catch something impressive, like a rabbit, had led to instances where he gave up stalking prey and tried to dash after it like a LightningClan cat. He did not, however, have the impressive speed and agility of a LightningClan warrior. Every rat, rabbit and mouse in the forest outran him with ease. It did not help that Birchpaw sometimes joined these hunting exploits, and regarded Asterpaw with such an expression of blatant pity that he spent the remainder of the evening pacing in outrage outside the apprentice den. He wanted to prove to his brother, to Foxfur, to everyone, that he was more than just some stupid useless outsider. Most of all, he wanted to prove it to himself.

Unable to look any longer at Birchpaw with his sad dead sparrow, he pushed himself in among the comforting walls of the apprentice den, a place that had quickly come to replace the nursery as his home. He privately missed the rasp of Appleshade’s tongue lulling him into a peaceful sleep, but the smells and atmosphere of his new den nearly gave him the same warm feeling of safety and comfort. He sat himself in the corner, ignoring the rumble of his own stomach. He most certainly was not going to eat Birchpaw’s sparrow. Perhaps it was petty. But having been the runt of the litter and the odd one out since birth, the thought of being the only cat he knew that couldn’t catch a bird or a rodent or a rabbit was disconcerting. Earlier, he had helped the other apprentices stuff fur and other bits of material into the crevices of the den, not entirely certain why they were all doing it. Confused as he was, he knew it was what they wanted him to do, so he had set about the task with eager paws. It was nice to feel useful.

Movement caught his eye. Glacierpaw slipped into the den, his grey fur contrasted against the vibrant colours of the other apprentices. He looked like the herds of deer that moved through TreeClan’s land, with long legs and bright, alert eyes. He could probably catch anything he wanted. True to his suspicions, a large squirrel hung from his mouth, and it smelled delicious. His stomach rumbled again, his mouth watering at the prospect of a juicy bite from a fresh squirrel. He turned his gaze away. He felt stupid, eating what other cats caught when he could never contribute to the neat pile of dead animals that lay in the freezing camp. A nose nudged his side, and Asterpaw turned his blue eyes in surprise to see that Glacierpaw had approached. The squirrel was placed neatly at his side, its limbs twisted in a stiff position. It was clearly half-frozen, but most fresh-kill seemed to be nowadays. He studied Glacierpaw’s face in that searching way he always did, trying to understand the other tom’s intentions. To him Glacierpaw looked abashed, his head retreating slightly like a ruffled bird. Puzzled though he was by Glacierpaw’s shyness, Asterpaw saw no pity in those incredibly vivid green eyes. Giving in to his own hunger, the white tom offered a distant smile and bent to take a bite from the squirrel. The frozen meat crunched beneath his teeth, but it was food nonetheless. His stomach quieted.

Silentsong was teaching him the art of communicating without a voice, but still he found it to be difficult waters to navigate. There was a lot a cat could say to another without uttering a single mew. The tail, the expression, the emotion in the eyes. Asterpaw had always spoke this way. It was trying to figure out what others were trying to say that was his issue. Even if he did know exactly what Glacierpaw had said, word for word, he had never seen snow. He was born towards the end of Leaf-bare, and by the time he opened his tiny blue eyes the snow had all but thawed away. Grateful to Glacierpaw for sharing the squirrel with him, but uncertain how to show him that, he gave a short rumbling purr and brushed against Glacierpaw as he slid past him. Then, settling down beside him, he lay with his paws tucked under his chest and nodded at the squirrel. He hadn’t asked for a friend. But if he was to have one, he intended to be a good one.

Can't you see I'm trying ?

953 || KARAZHAL || Notes

[KARAZHAL]

Although Asterpaw had never once been a bratty neighbor, there was always a tiny fear in Glacierpaw's mind that another cat would reply to him but with his baby sisters' haughty voices instead. As if he'd be watching them speak and suddenly they'd be a ventriloquist's dummy, jaws moving and lip-synced with their prissy tones. They certainly would not have approved of a half-frozen squirrel. Glacierpaw sighed in relief as none of that happened; he was realizing how his sisters were truly outliers in how cats should respond to one another. Timberfrost had told him, of course, but it took Glacierpaw making friends to really get it.

With such expectations as "don't be anything like my sisters", it was quite easy for Glacierpaw to love his fellow apprentices unconditionally. They were all older than him. In many ways, he looked up to them, since they'd gone on more patrols and hunts. However, he spent quite a lot of time around Pumafang, especially in the past moon. His mentor drilled hard everyday, no exceptions to weather, and recently training focused on speed and endurance. He spoke of outrunning even Glacierpaw's own shadow.

As such, he only really spent time with his friends if they were in the apprentice's den together, trying to eat or get some rest in between training sessions. Robinpaw probably understood, but he and Asterpaw never had a verbal conversation. Hopefully his friend would understand that Glacierpaw wasn't avoiding him. He was glad they had a chance to eat together.

His eyes closed in delight at Asterpaw's sudden short purr. Leaning down, Glacierpaw's wedge-like head butted against his clanmate in return, and he too settled down beside the partially eaten squirrel. Opening his mouth to reveal his long incisors, he hooked them into the cold meat and bit down hard to tear it free. Once he had his fill, he nodded to the exposed haunches and licked at Asterpaw's ear. Eat some more, his gesture urged.

Beside the pure white tom, Glacierpaw's long body was mountainous. His front legs were stretched out in front, so long they draped over the edge, and his fluffy gray-white tail curled in a wide arc, like a sleeping ermine.

ooc remarks: ♛ 𝔽𝕒𝕓𝕣𝕚𝕔𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟 - sorry for the wait!!!

[♛ 𝔽𝕒𝕓𝕣𝕚𝕔𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟]

Asterpaw

10 Moons || TreeClan || Apprentice

The squirrel was a little crunchy, the cold making the meat firm and difficult to chew. Asterpaw was not one to complain, however, and he ate the food diligently and with an air of silent gratitude. It was nice to be able to share. Birchpaw had never much been keen to share, always bustling in to grab an extra morsel. He felt the brush of Glacierpaw’s fur and noted how cold it felt. The forest had gotten much more frigid lately compared to when he first ventured beyond the camp walls, wading through the sheafs of freshly fallen leaves. He was going to miss the way the rotting foliage broke beneath his paws, a satisfying movement against his pale pink paw pads. Closing his eyes, a wave of contentment washed over him as he lounged next to his friend, the most peaceful he had felt in moons. With a gentle exhale of breath, he took another bite of the somewhat unpleasant squirrel and decided that he would give Glacierpaw his fresh prey the moment he managed to catch anything. So far, the wildlife of the forest had been too cunning for his clumsy paws.


There was a tiredness about Glacierpaw that caused the white tom concern. He could see that the younger apprentice was always low on energy by the time he slumped back into the den, and wondered if the adult cats had him running around the forest after mice, too. But then, Asterpaw was never as tired as he was when the sun finally kissed the horizon. He always missed Glacierpaw when he was out for so long, but welcomed him back to the den with delight each time he stumbled home. Asterpaw was out quite often himself, for Foxfur brought him out as often as he could to practice, considering he seemed to find simple training so much more difficult than the other apprentices. Before he could close his eyes and return to that place of gentle peace, Asterpaw noticed with a start that one of Glacierpaw’s toes was stained bright red. His blue eyes sparking with worry, he pushed his little pink nose at it, then prodded his friend as if to ask, “What happened?” The only other time Asterpaw had ever smelled blood was when he himself throd on a thorn and Falconstorm kindly removed it. This didn’t look like a thorn at all. In fact, there was more blood and the injury was on top of his paw, not on the bottom. It didn’t make much sense to Asterpaw, and he was alarmed by the prospect of his friend being wounded. Had that big black tom hurt him?

Can't you see I'm trying ?

444 || KARAZHAL || Notes

[KARAZHAL]

Glacierpaw's warm eyes closed in slow repeated squints, and he basked in the comforts of relaxation and company. He seemed ready to take a nap sprawled across two whole beds. However, it didn't seem like the cold squirrel would be eaten without a trace. Glacierpaw shifted sluggishly, steeling his legs back into action after they'd gotten so comfortable folded up beside Asterpaw. It was then that his companion started and nosed the red tinge on Glacierpaw's toetips.

He cocked his head and turned his paw over, back to front to back again, and unsheathed his claws to show Asterpaw he was unscathed. He arched his body and pounced down on their bedding. He pushed at the moss with his claws digging in, and Glacierpaw bent his face down to the squirrel again. "Hunting," he said. He batted at the skull and mimed digging in the air. "I'm taking this to the dirtplace to bury it. Want a quick walk?" he offered. After the digging gesture, he motioned for Asterpaw to follow him and picked up the tail and legs.

The tom carried the useless leftovers out of the apprentice's den wearily. As he exited the hollow tree, he wasn't paying much attention to his surroundings and wandered to the dirt-place on autopilot. The ground was cold, but he didn't have to dig hard, for the earth was already disturbed for a fox-length. He buried the remains and turned around to face the way he'd come.

"Whoa..." he whispered. A round snowflake suddenly landed on his nose and melted immediately. Not enough to dust the ground yet, the first snow of the season was falling in TreeClan. Glacierpaw's green eyes widened with wonder. His breath clouded all around him. "Asterpaw, it's... snow!" He made sure to face his friend and repeat the word. "Snow!"

ooc remarks: ♛ 𝔽𝕒𝕓𝕣𝕚𝕔𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟 - glacierpaw and asterpaw make snow kitties someday

[♛ 𝔽𝕒𝕓𝕣𝕚𝕔𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟]

Asterpaw

10 Moons || TreeClan || Apprentice

With the taste of meat and blood still on his tongue, Asterpaw felt like going asleep himself. With a dosy yawn, he stretched out his paws, giving his head a shake. He felt Glacierpaw shift beside him, and purred softly, remembering the warmth and comfort of being a young kit nestled in with his littermates. But that comfort and sleepiness had quickly drained away at the realisation that there was blood on his friend’s paws. The gangly grey tom unsheathed his claws to demonstrate that he was perfectly fine, but Asterpaw was still sceptical. The slightly younger apprentice got his paws, and pounced on the bedding with claws unsheathed, looking at Asterpaw expectantly. He understood. He had seen Foxfur take down prey like that, so he knew that was what hunting entailed, and that was what Glacierpaw was trying to communicate, that he had been hunting. Satisfied, Asterpaw nodded, despite not having properly caught what exactly the other tom had mouthed. The other tom claws at the ground as though digging, and gestured to the squirrel. He wanted to bury the remains? The ground was so hard and frozen because of the cold, it would take more than just Glacierpaw to scoop out a decent hole. So, Asterpaw decided to go with him to help. He nodded again, a common gesture of his to indicate he thought he understood what it was the other cat wanted to do, and stretched out his legs with a luxurious yawn.

Following his friend out into the open air allowed Asterpaw to realise just how well his denmates had insulted the apprentice’s den. It was much colder out in the middle of camp, and he gave a slight shiver at the sudden chill. The sad, stiff remains of the squirrel dangled from Glacierpaw’s jaws, and he began to lead the way to where every cat went to make dirt or dispose of waste. This made more sense, and Asterpaw was surprised he hadn’t thought of the dirtplace. Cats dug here all the time, so the ground would be looser and easier to dig in. Regardless, he opted to help Glacierpaw anyway, his pristine paws disturbing large wads of dirt as they worked. As soon as the squirrel’s corpse vanished under the earth, Asterpaw gave a satisfied twirl of his tail and followed after Glacierpaw, his ear tips growing numb with the cold. Suddenly, the grey apprentice halted. Asterpaw glanced at him in confusion, not having seen what had happened. The snowflake had melted on the other tom’s warm nose by the time he looked. But it wasn’t long before that one snowflake was joined by hundreds of others. Asterpaw leapt back in surprise as the tiny flakes landed on his pale pelt, completely blending in with his own snowy fur. His mouth opened in a delightful grin, and he looked upwards with kit-like excitement. Glacierpaw poked him, and when he turned to look at him their misted breath formed a shared cloud between them, fading into the air with the melting snowflakes. “Snow!” Glacierpaw mouthed, and Asterpaw smiled so warmly he was sure he no longer felt the biting cold. He whipped around and brushed his tail against Glacierpaw’s shoulder as a playful gesture, dashing into the centre of camp and rearing up on two legs to try and catch the delicate little flakes with his paws. Snow.

Can't you see I'm trying ?

564 || KARAZHAL || Notes

[KARAZHAL]

The whole sky was gray, and from it poured cold fluffs swirling down across camp. Snowflakes caught on the tips of Glacierpaw's pelt like spurs. His big eyes bugged out in delight. The snow spotted their log home in white that quickly melted away. He couldn't believe how beautiful Leaf-bare could be, even if it came with half-frozen squirrels. Glacierpaw let out a breathy ha-ha as Asterpaw's tail playfully swatted against him. He immediately leapt into play mode and dashed after his friend. Those long legs crossed ground in seconds. Seeing Asterpaw's smile (a stark difference from his sisters' pouts and his mentor's perma-scowl!), Glacierpaw ventured to try. His stony face broke tradition for once and his muzzle cracked into an expression that felt so strange. Smiling...? Yes.... because it was fun. Glacierpaw liked having fun. He loved having fun, especially with his friends like Asterpaw. As long as he didn't smile in the elder's den, where Mistylight was, then he wouldn't get yelled at. But he could smile with Asterpaw around. Asterpaw wouldn't tell Mistylight that Glacierpaw smiled.

Leaping up completely off the ground, the athletic apprentice hooked his paw around a snowflake and swatted it like he would a moss-ball. It melted on his pawpad immediately. "Snow! Snow! Snow!" he chanted excitedly, prancing around Asterpaw. He saw a big fat one hit the ground and threw himself at it tongue-first.

ooc remarks: ♛ 𝔽𝕒𝕓𝕣𝕚𝕔𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟