« peace.of.mind «

[Fallenheart]

The churning river’s pace had been quickened drastically, and the water now splashed over the sides of the drenched banks, the frigid snows having melted and flooded the waterway. The sweet song of a robin fluttered through the growing forest, new buds popping up everywhere. It wouldn’t be long before the trees were green and full again. There was a flutter of pale brown wings, and with a trill, the bird flapped into the warm air, escaping from whatever danger it had sensed. There was an aggravated sigh, and a broad-shouldered black form appeared out of the fonds of bracken. Powerful muscles rippled with frustration, and the cat stalked angrily towards a gray mass ahead, hoping for better luck there. The water gurgled in greeting beside him, and the tom’s sharp gaze was briefly directed to a different course, looking across the border, to what land lay there. RiverClan, the enemy, that was what; he couldn’t help but feel a thorn of resentment work its way into his heart, and with a growl, he continued on his way. Sunningrocks came up swiftly, and with a bound, he found himself on top of the boulders, scanning the area for prey. A pink and black nose flared, hoping to catch some whiff of prey-scent. But it seemed the robin had spread the word that a predator was about, because he saw, heard, or smelled nothing.

The feline grumbled, with a shake of his head, and was about to leap off to somewhere else when he heard a faint squeak. Body frozen, the tom pricked his ears forward, just able to catch the sound of a vole trudging through the grass and dead leaves that had yet to be cleared away with the winds of newleaf. Inhaling a shaky breath, the night black cat crouched down, dark claws tapping against stone. Sunlight crept up, making his coat shimmer like ebon fire, but he stayed in that crouch for a long time. Flies buzzed past him, annoying little insects that they were; a bird landed on the rock next to him, but he banished the thought of trying to catch it, for it would alert the vole he had found, and he couldn’t risk moving to capture the flying creature without scaring it. That too flew away in time, but he could still hear the rodent scurrying around. Tail tip twitching, the apprentice wriggled his rump in anticipation, sucking in another breath of air. It was now or never.

With a soft hiss, he launched himself into the air, landing squarely on his prey, and killed it with a quick bite to the throat, before it ever had a chance to cry out. With a nod of satisfaction, Sootpaw scuffed dirt over it, hiding it from any scavengers that were looking for an easy meal. Like rogues, for instance. Or loners. With a blink, the ThunderClan cat began to slink to another area, always on the lookout for prey. He would be a warrior soon, and though his mentor had died moons ago, he was still able to learn about the warrior code and honor, and fighting and hunting; all that was stored in his mind from listening to mentors give their apprentice’s lectures, and joining in on mock battles and training sessions.

With a tug of excitement, he sank into day dreaming, unaware that he was being watched.

[Lily]

A shaft of streaming sunlight shone crimson on the apprentice’s pelt, giving off a copper sheen that masked its darker hue. Her white-tipped paws sifted hastily over the bases of the sun-warmed stones, obscuring the contour of her body against the forming heatwaves. She was also hunting; if hunting consisted of tumbling flat on your face several times and cantering over stray roots in the ground. Her inexperience as an apprentice cursed her luck, but it wouldn’t kill to try catching something, however inept she may be. Yet the young tabby's patience was wearing thin, growing angry and tired after hours of nothing but redundant chasing games. She opened her maw to emit a frustrated scream when a distant rustling noise caught her attention.

The makings of a snarl sounded deep in the apprentice’s throat as her eyes latched on to the raven-pelted apprentice, retracting her claws into the earth as if to hold her firmly to the spot. It seemed as if every cat in this clan was set on making her miserable, teleporting all throughout the territory just to get in her way when she wanted to be alone. By herself.. without company.. did they not understand the concept of alone? She hesitated for a moment, and then lowered her small form within a narrow crack of twin boulders, watching as he caught the vole with ease. Jealousy stabbed through her heart as she wished she could do the same. But in her case, shameless pride was more dominant than resentment.

"Y'know, you could’ve caught the bird in the first place if you weren’t so slow.”

A callous smile graced the apprentice’s features as she lifted her scrawny build out from beneath the shale that had served as a makeshift hiding spot. Bent on causing trouble, the she-cat decided that the older apprentice was her unfortunate target today. Everyone else had abandoned camp to take part in various patrols, save the vile-scented elders and screeching, whiny kits. And Amberpaw would have sooner picked unnecessary fights with fellow apprentices rather than stick around long enough to be recruited into dipping her paws in mouse-bile for the tick-riddled elders. Or be forced to entertain a bunch of hideous kits as they nipped mercilessly at her tail. She shut her eyes tight as if to block away such images.

Any day now.

She wouldn’t have to put up with them much longer.

[Fallenheart]

He was just about to take off when a familiar voice beckoned to him, and ears pinned against his head to show his displeasure at the sudden arrival of the one person he couldn’t stand. With his tail lashing irritably, the older apprentice whirled around, rounding on her with unmasked anger in his eyes. Why did she always seem to ruffle his fur? He was, quite frankly, tired of it! Every time he tried to escape from her hold, she always seemed to find him again. With another shake of his head, he felt claws begin to unsheathe, and clenched his jaw together to tightly you could see the muscle working as he grinded his teeth together in an effort to keep himself at least somewhat contained. With a snort, the tom cast her a glare through intense green eyes, and his broad shoulders tensed in readiness. His mind kept running back over her mocking words, and a furious expression crossed his usually reserved one, visage livid. "Y'know, you could’ve caught the bird in the first place if you weren’t so slow. StarClan, she infuriated him to a point where he thought he actually might implode. With a roll of his eyes, he told himself she was just jealous. She was seven moons, of course, and would obviously be envious of someone four moons older than herself, and who would be a warrior in a few moons.

“At least I could catch somethin’, Brat,” He mewed, gazing at her with barely suppressed annoyance, though his ears flicked lazily as if he couldn’t be bothered talking to her. With a grumble, he began to walk away, not wanting to get caught up in another argument with the argumentative she-cat. He didn’t have time to deal with a rebel now, wanting to prove to his Clan that he could deal being an apprentice without another mentor. Shoot, he’d lasted three moons without hadn’t he? What excuse did Shroudedstar have for one, not giving him a new mentor right after his previous one died, or two, making him into a warrior now? He was loyal, strong, brave, all the things necessary for being a warrior! So what if he was just eleven moons? That was only a moon off the usual mark! With another mumble, Sootpaw was once again wrapped up in his thoughts, frustrated. And if he was made into a warrior, he might be able to escape Amberpaw. With a grunt, he glanced towards the younger cat, that thought cheering him up at least. Then with a horror-struck thought, he turned back and continued stalking through the green forest. The warm breeze carried the scents of spring, relaxing him slightly, and his paws drummed upon the ground, inhaling the familiar scent of earthy soil. What if his leader finally decided he was mature enough to handle tons of responsibilities? And gave him an apprentice? With a shudder, the tom glanced over his shoulder one more time, starting to feel bad about his snappy attitude with the amber-eyed apprentice. It wasn’t her fault she was born moons after him, or that she was so aggravating. No, actually, that was her fault. But still! White maw opening, the apprentice called out to her.

“Hey, Brat! Want me to give you a hand in training?

Betcha didn’t expect that.

[Lily]

The anger emphasized through his voice caught her off guard, but she did not let it show. Instead, she made sure to reflect it accordingly with a seething glare of her own. It was very difficult under the heat of his spiteful gaze to form a coherent answer; Amberpaw couldn’t decide if it was sustained amusement or equal frustration that was triggering such a hesitant reaction out of her. The hatred that voided between the two relatively shared two different elevations. To her, it was just a perk to make fun of someone so freely, especially when convinced that one day she would never have to see the sour look on his face again, or anyone else’s in the clan for that matter. But the unfaltering seriousness portrayed through the way the black-pelted tom tensed his muscles made her wonder if it wasn’t a joking matter for Sootpaw, if he really did indeed hate her. She had to bite down on her tongue to prevent an impulsive laughing fit. “Brat? Oh burn Sootpaw, definitely one of your better insults.” Her voice was thick with cynicism but the smile had long since vanished from her face. It was replaced with a look of mordancy, of tattered satisfaction that she was making the volatile apprentice even angrier. At the height of her own vexation, Amberpaw’s morbid gaze even strayed over toward the racing torrents of the river, wondering how fast she could…

No. She stopped herself before she could even think it. As tempting as plotting the ill-tempered apprentice's demise might seem at this moment, Amberpaw knew it wasn’t something she should be joking about or even contemplating. After all, what would her uncle think of her if he was to find that she murdered someone during his absence? She could feel the days closing in when she would see him again, although a part of her feared he would never send for her. She’d be stuck in this hellhole of a clan for the rest of her life, with enough enemies to ensure her discomfort. Sneaking a glance up at the sky, the young apprentice studied the accumulating hazy clouds that were nearly blocking the sunlight’s path. She stuck her tongue out at Sootpaw's back before getting ready to depart back to camp; let him get his fur wet like a drowned rat. Just another escuse to humiliate him.

Hey Brat! Want me to give you a hand in training.
Oh he dared. Implying that he was essentially better than her. That she should feel privileged to be graced with the expertise of such an advanced attribute to the clan. And even worse, that she was simply incapable of teaching or doing anything worthwhile for herself. It did not even cross her mind that his offer was a friendly one, for never had a friendly word or anything close to it passed between the two. Thoroughly convinced he was mocking her, she offered a fake smile. “Ch-yeah whatever. Grace me with your nonexistent skills, then.”

[Fallenheart]

His ears merely flicked at her next sharp statement, and his broad head shook in aggravation, clearly fed up with the she-cat. Looking away, he listened to her prattle away with an angry twitch of his whiskered, claws retracting slowly and hesitantly. Why was she so infuriating? It seemed she only had to open her mouth for his fur to be ruffled! Struggling to place an indifferent expression on his face, the older tom turned to face her again, head cocked to the side. She was glaring at him with hatred, and he flinched to see the heat of contempt in her eyes. “Brat? Oh burn Sootpaw, definitely one of your better insults.” An unintended hiss escaped from his throat, and he leaned forward with a warning in his visage. One more, that was it! One more rude comment like that and she could go drown in the river, for all he cared! StarClan, he wanted to flay her right about now. He almost send a clawed paw to cuff her on the ears, but managed to hold back, if only by the slightest bit. “Why, Amberpaw? Why must you be so obstinate all the time?” Sootpaw snarled, whirling away. Why should he care about her? She could take care of herself, couldn’t she? She’d been an outsider too, and you have to learn to take care of yourself in a life other than a Clan one. Furious, her next set of words finally pushed him over the edge.

“Ch-yeah whatever. Grace me with your nonexistent skills, then.”

Usually, he wouldn’t be so flustered by a comment like that. But it struck so close to home, so close to his fears, that he couldn’t the look of dread on his face, and he glanced away, ashamed. Was it really just his own fears then? Or did the Clan really just think of him as a nuisance. Feeling trapped, he looked back at her, and snapped, “If you learned to shut your mouth once in a while, you might actually have some friends! I don’t see why I bothered trying to be nice to a sniveling, selfish brat like you!”. Then he tore away from her, scrambling up onto Sunningrocks, expression one of horror and shame and fear. Bright green eyes closed as he jumped from stone to stone with careless grace, coal pelt glowing like obsidian in the sunlight. What would happen, really? Would he denied his warriorship, because he was the son a rogue? He dimly recalled the gentle tabby she-cat who had been his mother, just able to remember her soft whispering as she sang him to sleep. Feeling comforted by the vague memory, tense muscles relaxed, and he gaze his chest a few licks, tail sweeping around his body. Maybe life would have been better if he had stayed with his dam. Why hadn’t he? Suddenly, a dark form loomed above in his memories, and emeralds snapped open, a breath sucked in hastily. Drat! Every time he recalled something about his family, that blasted nightmare creature had to pop up!

With a snort, Sootpaw glanced back over his shoulder, dismissing the thought of Amberpaw readily. He had more hunting to do, anyway.

OOC: Eww, short.

[Lily]

She didn’t react much when he hissed at her, the dark mordancy in her eyes only growing more apparent as he looked about ready to snap her neck. Obstinate, he was the obstinate one. Yelling and sneering at her like it was his second nature, stupid bastard that he was. StarClan, all she had said was that he was a bit slow in catching the bird and he had to completely blow it out of proportion and make a fool of himself. But now a severe sense of malice was developing toward the tom, matched neatly with an envy of his nearing warrior ceremony. She smiled darkly when she intercepted a weak spot, studying Sootpaw intently as he looked pointedly away and hesitated at her last comment. She was frightened to find that she almost pitied him, but that feeling passed very quickly. “Using big words now are we? You’re quite the warrior, too bad Shroudedstar begs to differ.” Amberpaw was beginning to grow tired of the fighting, tired of the redundant name-calling that only made her contempt of the tom rise to a boiling point. The teasing ambience had completely altered into a belligerent rage that the young apprentice could not seem to contain whenever conversing with this cat. Whenever conversing with anyone. Perhaps it was just in her nature to detest them all.

If you learned to shut your mouth once in a while, you might actually have some friends! I don’t see why I bothered trying to be nice to a sniveling, selfish brat like you!”.
She was surprised at how much that bothered her, having learned how to build up immunity to such biting words long ago. Her voice was so silent, it was almost intended for herself, “What do you know about friends, you don’t have any.” She had plenty of them. Probably more than he would ever meet in his lifetime. They just didn’t live here. She let the words roll off her exterior, more intent on studying his mixed expression as, once more, he turned and ran away. That pissed her off the most; she didn’t mind being called selfish. Or a sniveling brat. Or even accused of having no friends, which in the sense of ThunderClan, was true. But no one, not one of their sorry miserable souls got the last word in except her, and the fact that he darted away before she could respond shattered the glass on her temper meter. Any tolerance she might have had left to withstand his existence completely drowned out in her anger. “Don’t run away from me, you egotistical freak!” Amberpaw inevitably followed him once more, deeper into Sunningrocks this time. Her paws scuffed haphazardly over the smooth texture of the boulders, struggling to keep up with the more agile apprentice ahead of her. The clumsy she-cat nearly lost her balance once or twice, but managed fine until Sootpaw stopped and she didn’t. In an attempt to swerve off to the side, she flipped over in front of him but gained her composure swiftly; there wasn't enough time to be embarrassed. Her white-tipped tail lashed back and forth with a fury that matched the malicious thunder crackling far off.

“Nice, alright. If screaming at me and arguing against every blasted thing I say is considered nice, then sure. Otherwise you’re a liar.” The words came out so quickly that her nostrils began to flare, her eyes glowing so bright and stretching so wide that thin crimson streaks began to pop out against the outer golden irises. "Why don’t you just leave? No one would miss you anyway, do us all a favor and go get yourself killed.” An inner satisfaction rose but it was mixed with an uncertainty. She hesitated for a moment, “On second thought, if you want anything done around here, you need to do it yourself.” Silently, she pinpointed her glare unto his shoulders and prepared to spring, a deadly smile crossing her features. “Still on for that training lesson, Soot?” Concentrating on a maneuver she had long ago been taught, Amberpaw sprang lividly off her haunches and aimed her sickle-like claws at the tom’s shoulders, channeling all of her building resentment in the speed of her release. All the moons of obediently holding herself back, biting her tongue in the presence of their elders, digging her claws into the earth to withstand the temptation; oh how she had waited quite a long time for this.