#cactuspaw

[nmirah]

Cactuspaw!!!!!!

[fibbug]

art dump

CactusPaws arrows should say "son of"

[wild-winds-clangen]

Moon 1 -

Events of the moon -

Sheriff Dune looked down from atop the stack of crates he was standing on, watching the cats of his clan gather for a clan meeting. CactusKit shuffled in excitement as she waited for him to call her name. She had tuned out everything he was saying until she finally heard him call out “CactusKit! Please approach the Tall Boxes! “

She perks up and eagerly runs up to the crates, the other cats of the clan watching in amusement at the kitten's excitement. The Sheriff smiles down at her, his hat covering his eyes with shadow.

“CactusKit, you've reached six moons, and it's time for you to be apprenticed. From this day forward, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as CactusPaw. Your mentor-”

“Wait!”

Dune paused and looked at her in surprise, the cats in the crowd murmuring in shock at the sudden interruption. CactusKit only got more determined as the Sheriff looked at her.

“I want my mentor to be RueHeart!” She mewed up at him. There were even more whispers from the crowd as Dune blinked a couple times.

“Well, I reckon there's nothing wrong with that,” He says slowly, as if still thinking about it. He looks over to RueHeart “Do you agree to this?”

RueHeart looked surprised to be called out, but soon calmed down and smiled as she answered the Sheriff with a firm nod.

“Alrighty then! As I was saying,” He cleared his throat to get back into the proper mood. “Your mentor will be RueHeart! I hope RueHeart will pass down all she knows to you.”

CactusKit beamed in anticipation as the Sheriff continued the ceremony. “RueHeart, please step forward.”

Once the she-cat sat next to CactusKit the speech continued. “RueHeart, you are ready to take an apprentice. You have shown yourself to be responsible and honorable. You will be the mentor of CactusPaw, and I expect you to pass on everything you know to her.”

CactusPaw was bouncing in excitement as she touched noses with her mentor. She was unbelievably happy to have gotten the mentor she wanted. She purred as she heard the clan call her new name. “CactusPaw! CactusPaw! CactusPaw!”

She eagerly turns to RueHeart. “When can we go training? Now? Please?” She only gets a light laugh in response from her new mentor.

—-------------------

Sheriff Dune looked over the camp with pride. He'd been able to help make this. He'd been able to help these cats start to thrive. He was lost in his thoughts when he noticed PrickleKit playing nearby while all the other kittens were eating prey brought to them by RueHeart, ever the responsible cat. He got up and padded over to the noisy she-kit.

“I reckon you should grab something to eat if ya haven't already, don't want to go hungry all day!” He suggested. PrickleKit seemed surprised he approached her, letting the pebble at her paws fall still.

“Oh! You're right! Thanks Sheriff!” The she-kit gasped as she realized what he was telling her, looking over to see the other kits eating already. She scampered off towards the other kits, calling out for them to wait for her. Dune purred lightly as he watched, happy that he'd helped another cat of his clan yet again.

—-----------------

Sheriff Dune, WindDrift, and SandRustle were hunting together across the desert filled territory of the Clan. WindDrift chases after a rabbit, leaving SandRustle and the Sheriff alone together. Dune was about to go after WindDrift when SandRustle spoke up.

“Hey, Sheriff, I've got something I could use your advice about.” The tom spoke up carefully. Dune paused and looked to him in silent curiosity. “I think I got a vision from StarClan last night. It was a weird dream, but a serious weird, not a random dream weird.”

“Oh! Of course I can help ya!” Dune straightens up and comes to sit next to SandRustle, motioning the other cat to sit down as well. He felt determined to help his clanmate figure out what the stars had shown him. “Tell me about it.” He urged.

“Well, in the dream I was walking through the territory when I saw a fox! A big ‘un! I don't know, it just made me worry when I woke up. Thought I oughta tell ya.” The orange tom admitted. Dune thought about it for a few moments after SandRustle finished.

“Sounds like a warnin’, I'll be sure everyone keeps an eye out from now on. Don't you worry, we'll handle this no problem!” He reassured the other cat with a confident smile. SandRustle visibly relaxed at his leader's words.

“Thanks, Sheriff. Knew I could count on you!” He laughs easily. Dune nods as WindDrift comes back with the rabbit caught between his jaws. They all quickly returned to their hunt, every cat at ease.

—-----------------

NightBright padded through the desert looking for lungwort. With newleaf here, it was a perfect time to go looking! It's the only reliable cure for yellowcough, making NightBright determined to find some to keep the stocks of it full. He's still unsure of his own abilities as a medicine cat, but that doesn't mean he's going to let it stop him from helping his clanmates. He searches long through the day until he feels like he'll fall over from soreness, but can't see any of that green and purple herb he's so desperate to find. He returns to camp disheartened. Of course this would happen, why did Dune chose a cat like him to be the medicine cat? He's about to give up when he sees his kits playing across the camp. No, he couldn't give up! He'd have to look more once he's rested. He has to be prepared so he can keep his clan, and his kits, safe and healthy.

—-----------------

As SageSpeckle, RueHeart, and her apprentice CactusPaw work on training the young she-cat, a slight argument breaks out.

“No, CactusPaw. You'll get thorns in your paws and I'm not gonna be the one taking responsibility for it when you go crying off to NightBright.” SageSpeckle huffed, annoyed at the apprentice's suggestion.

“But if I learn how to climb the big cactuses now I'll be able to help better in patrols! I could surprise prey, and- and I could use it to watch over the borders safely!” She complained. She had a brilliant idea that nobody else had, and she's getting shut down immediately! It's not fair! It'd be so helpful for the clan if they could use even the more dangerous part of their territory safely!

“RueHeart, tell her this is a horrible idea! I know you don't want to be scolded for her mistakes either!” SageSpeckle complained to the other adult with them. CactusPaw looked pleadingly to her mentor, surely she'd see how smart this is!

“How about this,” she started, looking at the other two cats calmly. “We'll stick to regular training for now-” CactusPaw looked devastated as SageSpeckle nodded happily. “-But!” She added, surprising them both “Why don't we bring your idea up to Sheriff Dune later, and if he agrees to it, we'll bring NightBright with us and let you try it.”

“YES!” CactusPaw cheered, looking full of energy as she did a little happy dance, tip-tapping on her front paws. SageSpeckle looked skeptical but didn't protest. If NightBright was with them, then there wouldn't be so much to worry about. RueHeart smiled as everyone got back to training, argument quickly smoothed over.

—-----------------

SageSpeckle(Grumpy, Good speaker) chats with NightBright(Insecure, Ghost Speaker) about his day. SageSpeckle and WindDrift(Loyal, Keen eye, Great hunter) realize they have a more in common than previously thought. WindDrift wonders who will give him nine lives.

SageSpeckle was sitting in the shade of one of the old rundown buildings the clan used as dens. NightBright and WindDrift were curled up next to him as they shared tongues. The grumpy warrior spoke about his day with the other cats.

“-and CactusPaw has the crazy idea to climb a cactus to hunt! I don't understand it, but RueHeart calmed her down.” He complained. NightBright sighed, obviously mentally preparing to deal with future cactus-thorn related injuries.

“That could be a good idea if it could be mastered, but I agree, it's far too reckless for a new apprentice to try it.” WindDrift meowed. SageSpeckle nodded respectfully. It seems the deputy shared similar values to SageSpeckle. Keeping younger cats from doing reckless things really can be tiring.

“At least you had a productive day. I couldn't find any herbs.” NightBright sighed, embarrassed by his own failures. SageSpeckle put a paw on the other tom's shoulder to reassure him.

“Don't be so hard on yourself, we live in a desert. Herbs will be tough to find any day. You're doing your best.” he said. NightBright purred quietly at his words, nodding. He appreciates the grey cat's care. Eventually the medicine cat bid the other two goodbye as he went to spend time with his kits.

[blossompuppy]

Getting the hang of role playing my new kitten, Molekit! She’s VERY fun so far

Gray and hairless kitten belongs to @gilbertsdumbblog

Splotchy brown cat belongs to snarksadoodle

Big ol mountain Lion belongs to @flyingeevees !

[exocynraku]

*squshes you like one of my air stressballs*

I need to hear about the Gingkostar x Twistripple lore!!! I would gladly sit on their couch while they grab a brick thick book filled with pictures of the two and pictures of Shadowmist, and listen to them talk about memories the photos give them like an elderly married couple.

gets all squished and wonky

ginkgopaw grew up with parents too busy to care for him and quite a mean mentor so the only other cat he really talked to was his best friend cactuspaw (cactusdash) there was also another apprentice at the time, twistpaw (twistripple) but at first he thought the goofy, mysterious med cat apprentice was a littttle weird. him and cactuspaw were a troublesome duo, loving to play pranks on their leader and raid the med cat den. eventually, all 3 apprentices received their full names! gingkostars warrior name was ginkgobranch btw

twistripple’s mother died during his birth, so she grew up with only a father. twistripples childhood actually wasnt that horrible, but they were teased because of their pelt; normal thicketclan pelt colour are usually dark black, browns and greys so when she was born. like that. thicketclan knew he wouldnt do that great as a warrior so they kinda pressured them into becoming a med cat (which they didnt rlly mind)

ginkgobranch always held a slight resentment towards bayclan, not liking the fact they were always well fed and clean while thicketclan had waves of starvation and constantly messy pelts due to the land they live on. this hatred came into full flourish after it was found out that bayclan executed cactusdash and his mate, estate. thicketclans leader also found out, but did nothing other than threaten bayclan at the next gathering, much to ginkgobranch and twistripples distaste. after an omen from “””””starclan””””” and a secret plan, thicketclans leader was killed by twistripple. but, before their leader died, the made a choice they would soon regret. changed the current deputy to ginkgobranch.

once he received his 9 lives, ginkgostar waged war on bayclan. he brought in rouges, loners, even kittypets to build thicketclans numbers, and commanded attack after attack on bayclan. during this time, love was forming. inbetween attacks and during leader/med cat meetings, ginkgostar and twistripple would start becoming closer and closer, eventually becoming mates. this sadly, was against the code; agaisnt the code ginkgostar helped make. realizing his mistake, ginkgostar decided to keep their relationship entirely secret. even though they did this, some cats still spread rumors about.. something going on between them, but no cat ever truly found out  day after day, night after night, after hatching many different plans to defeat bayclan, they did it. bayclan’s last cat, their leader was killed after twistripple tricked them into falling into a pool of mud, and ginkgostar finishing the job. (dont worry though, they arent gone forever :)) ) thicketclan then took over their territory, moving their camp to somewhere MUCH bigger and finally beginning to thrive.  ginkgostar and twistripple lead together for many moons, before twistripple succumbed to a horrid bought of an unknown disease, and ginkgostar lost his last life in a battle between thicketclan and a rouge group. even after death, ginkgostar and twistripple still  love eachother very dearly. they also get to meet with cactusdash and estate in the dark forest! (estate isnt actually in the DF they just go hang out there 99% of the time) they’ve trained many MANY cats in the time theyve lived there, including batshriek. then, they adopted shadowmist, becoming their parents and helping them avoid starclan anddddd thats as far as ive gotten this silly story LOLLLLLL 

[argenti-spirit-jpg-deactivated]

Top Left: Chervilpaw || Top Right: Cactuspaw Bottom Left: Garlicpaw || Bottom Right: Wigeonpaw The Quad of Idiots, feat. the Only girl that likes girls, the Lovestruck Deputies Apprentice, the Gay idiot, and the Non-binary Med cat app that gets nauseous at the sight of blood! Chervilpaw is the eldest of her Siblings, and is deeply in love with Sandpaw, her best friend, who happens to be with her brother, Cactuspaw. Chervilpaw is the levelheaded one, and is the best at hunting in the Oceanclan territory. Her Mentor is Wavethorn. Cactuspaw is a Chaotic Lovestruck idiot, who is currently courting Sandpaw, although it’s rather one-sided on her side, as Cactuspaw is fully crushing on his mentor Puddlegaze. I mean, Cactuspaw Is almost a warrior, and Puddlegaze doesn’t have a mate or kits, so it’s okay, right? Garlicpaw is a huge dork. He’s Head over heals for the nearby Tribe To-Be Clover, and is probably the cheekiest apprentice ever. He’s always in trouble with his mentor Barknose, who’s the Eldest warrior ever! Garlicpaw tries his hardest, but he finds his heart is in the right place at the wrong time. Wigeonpaw is tired. they have a hard time relating to their clanmates, especially Puddlegaze and Stormpounce. If you train as a medicine cat, you can’t go back to being a warrior, right? Especially deputy. Wigeonpaw really wants to do their best for their clan, but learning the herbs is troublesome, and the sight of blood makes him want to faint. Trying their hardest to  make their mother proud, and to not get in trouble is Wigeonpaw’s overall goal.

[frogmanwritings]

Whiteheart’s Decision | Chapter Twelve

List of previous chapters here.

Fandom: Warrior Cats Words: 7,259 Rating: Teen Links: Deviantart, Fanfiction

"There you are. Legs feeling good?" Dogface's brittle tone asked the apprentice, who only nodded in response. "You and I are going to do some battle training with Russetfox and Peachpaw. Russet says that Peach has been progressing well in her training, so hopefully the two of them along with me can get you back on track." With that, the scarred warrior got himself back up onto his paws, giving his fur a quick shake before heading for the exit. Whitepaw followed behind, seeing Fernheart speak with Pantherpelt, her belly looking very round at this point. Soon.. He thought, knowing she was going to kit very soon. Which would mean that he's soon to be not the youngest cat in the clan. There was optimism to find there, along with being able to see life born into the clan for the first time, but there was something missing in all that. The father. Fernheart still refused to say who she mated with, and no male in the clan has spoken up about it. The mate-less toms are the prime suspects, Sunsight, Pantherpelt, Firefrog and Duckthroat. Dogface... didn't seem like the sort of cat to settle down with a mate, Duckthroat had a previous mate that passed, which left Pantherpelt and Sunsight. Fernheart though seemed to hate Sunsight's guts, especially after having an outburst after the Swiftclan battle, and Fernheart and Pantherpelt were friends, so he seems to be the most likely. But a few had speculated that Fernheart was unloyal to the clan and mated with a non-Darkclan tom. Whitepaw remembered Smoothstep remarking a time where a queen in the clan when he was just a kit didn't disclose who the father of her kits was and it ended up being a Swiftclan tom. He also said he heard about it happening a few other times in other clans, though he didn't know the exact details. "So, there is a Gathering tonight.." Dogface's voice broke up Whitepaw's thoughts, which the apprentice silently thanked him for. "..with your legs healing up well, Redstar wanted me to inform you that you're going to come... if you want." He finished, shrugging awkwardly as the two padded along the forest. "Sure.." Whitepaw clumsily responded, "Things are going to be pretty awkward with Swiftclan there.." Dogface only nodded his head with a snort, "Yeah.." The warrior seemed content in just walking silently to where he was told to meet up with Russetfox and Peachpaw, but with the subject on Swiftclan, Whitepaw felt that this was the best opportunity for an explanation for what he did in the battle. "Dogface-" Whitepaw called to make sure he had his attention before continuing, "-why did you and Burrclaw try to kill that kit?" He finally asked, wanting to get an answer that made the situation less horrible in his mind. Dogface didn't reply at first, almost as if he didn't hear the question, before a sigh escaped his mouth. "Do we need to talk about this now?" "Yes." Was Whitepaw's answer, stopping in his tracks and sitting down, much to the frustration of his mentor. With a exasperated grunt, the scarred warrior turned back towards his apprentice and stood mere inches from him, his broad muzzle so close to Whitepaw's that he could smell Dogface's gross breath. "It was Burrclaw's orders, alright? She tossed the poor thing at me and I think you saw the rest." "You never listen to Burrclaw!" Whitepaw growled, meeting his mentor's gaze. There was a few seconds of silence afterwards, with Dogface's gaze swaying to his left and right. Finally Dogface spoke once again. "She told me it was direct orders from Redstar. In the heat of battle, I wasn't thinking clearly. If Redstar had given special orders, he wouldn't have given them to just Burrclaw." He tried to explain, "But I listened because I thought she was telling the truth. With all the fighting, I didn't have much time to think." Whitepaw sat in silence for some moments, letting what Dogface just told him process in his head. His explanation did make sense, Burrclaw was perhaps the meanest cat in the clans, watching the way she taunted a young cat like Eelpaw on the patrol battle already had gave the apprentice a bad first impression with her. But now with her pinning down a queen, forcing her to watch her kit nearly get murdered... there was little questioning where she leans on the good to bad scale. But Dogface had also seemed to enjoy tormenting the kit, tossing it around before finally trying to apply the finishing blow. And the way he almost killed Groundpaw and almost attacked Cactuspaw... he wasn't exactly 'nice' either. "Can we get moving now?" Dogface asked, already beginning to walk away, "Russet and Peach are going to wonder where we are." He added in, and with a big sigh, Whitepaw sat up and began to follow. "Yeah.." He reluctantly answered, padding alongside his mentor. I'm keeping an eye on you. He silently told Dogface, not entirely convinced by his answer. Training had gone good, besides the awkwardness of Whitepaw and Dogface's conversation beforehand. Peachpaw bested Whitepaw in each and every test, her reflexes and quick thinking often beating out his routine battle moves. Thankfully, she was humble in victory, leaving only Dogface looking at him like he was a loser. Whitepaw didn't care much though, she was two moons older than him and had more training time, he would catch up eventually. Russetfox had brought up she and Peachpaw had caught the scent of some badgers not far away, think they're the same that Fishstar warned them about, which worried Whitepaw. Hopefully they just travel through. The four returned to camp, their training session taking a few hours, so the sun had begun to set. Below Redstar's den was a small group of cats, Whitepaw immediately recognized the ginger pelt of Blazesong among the crowd, along with the dirty fur of Ocelotfur. Others like Pantherpelt, Blackcloud and... Clawpaw were among the pack. "I'll let Redstar know about the badgers, you go down into that group." Dogface told him before turning and heading the way of Redstar's den. Slowly walking forward towards the crowd of cats, Whitepaw couldn't help but notice Peachpaw sticking to his side. "You... going to the Gathering too?" He awkwardly asked, to which the she-cat proudly nodded. "Going to be my first Gathering! Russetfox said I was doing so good in training that I earned it." Whitepaw blinked, furrowing his brow. "Your first?" She had been an apprentice for quite a few moons now, why hadn't she gone to a Gathering before? Peachpaw shrugged, "I'm not sure, I just guess I wasn't doing good enough before to go to one, but Russetfox made sure to praise me these past few days, so I think Redstar thought I was good enough in training to go now." She answered, soon after letting out a purr. "I guess you can help me how to behave at a Gathering!" "Uh... are you-" The white tom began to speak, only to get cut off by a third party entering the conversation. "I wouldn't recommend that, Peachpaw." Ocelotfur's high-pitched voice's was the one to come and ruin any sort of enthusiasm Whitepaw potentially had in the encounter. "Don't you remember? Whitepaw went and sat with most of Clawclan his last Gathering, lucky he came back with all his whiskers. You'd be better off learning from someone like Clawpaw or just sticking with Russetfox." The young warrior told the apprentice, shooting a half-sympathetic look over towards Whitepaw. "Oh.. ok. Talk to you afterwards, Whitepaw." Peachpaw said, a small pout crossing her face before it was replaced with a smile, bumping cheeks with Whitepaw before trotting back over to Russetfox, words being exchanged between the two, the two glancing back towards him before they walked further away over towards Firefrog and Cactuspaw who were playing, with the spiky black tom wrapped near fully around the body of his mentor in a tussle, inciting unheard chuckles from the she-cats. Ocelotfur then padded over to the cat whom he had interrupted, rising a slim paw to flick his ear. "Don't worry, I got your back." He stated with a grin, only to tilt his head to the side as the apprentice developed a perplexed look on his face. "What was that for?" Whitepaw asked, the confusion on the warrior's face telling him that he didn't mean anything malicious by the act, but it was still.. rude of him to do. "I thought you weren't comfortable. She was sticking to you like a burr and you looked off." The dusty-pelted tom explained, even raising a paw over his face and put on a rather odd face, which he supposed was suppose to be him mimicking. "Seemed like you weren't quite up for the date." While Whitepaw did feel, well, just a bit awkward with the closeness of the she-cat, it wasn't something he particularly disliked. Plus getting that confidence in going to the Gathering would've been appreciated, since his last time was such a disaster. But having that point being brought up once more and deterring a potential partner, he found himself not looking forward to going back as much. "Besides, maybe it's best you just stick to someone who is more experienced in Gatherings. I know it can be pretty distracting, all the unfamiliar faces, but I'm sure you more than anyone wouldn't want a repeat of last time." Ocelotfur continued, his words while not carrying any crudeness, still did sting just a bit, causing the apprentice to glance away momentarily. "There won't be a repeat of last time." The deep voice of Redstar came to his son's defense, and the imposing leader eyed up the brand-new warrior with a piercing gaze. Right away, Whitepaw noticed that while Ocelotfur was now a warrior, he still hadn't fully outgrown his apprentice body, Redstar greatly outsizing him, and the weight behind each of their voices holding a great difference too. And it seemed that Ocelotfur wasn't quite prepared for his leader to intervene either, seeming a bit flabbergasted before speaking up. "Oh, of course. I was just suggesting that maybe Whitepaw should have someone more experienced accompany him?" He suggested, tongue running over his teeth anxiously while those near-scarlet eyes bore into him. "Or maybe-" "I think I will make that decision, Ocelotfur." Redstar soon cut him off, raising a paw to silent the dusty-furred tom. "I understand that you're a new warrior, but.. try not to get too antsy around cats not assigned to you. Maybe when Fernheart's litter is born and is of age, you can make decisions for them." That answer lit up the eyes of the young warrior, Whitepaw being able to tell he was just imagining being a mentor by the swishing of his tail. "Uh, sure thing Redstar! ... Say, think I could lead a patrol anytime soon?" Ocelotfur, clearly excited, asked, earning a grunt of annoyance from who he was asking, and the white-furred apprentice couldn't help but snort. The warrior clearly still had that youthful excitement to him, and a spirit that matched the speed of his legs sprinting through the woods. And while that could be seen as endearing to some, Redstar's reaction seemed the opposite, just annoyed and irritated. But a look over at his son, who couldn't help but side with Ocelotfur on this manner, and he sighed and relented. "If I let you lead the dawn patrol tomorrow, will you leave me to speak to my son?" A quick nod and the newly-assigned warrior was off, running into the chatting group of Brownfur, Firefrog and Cactuspaw, seemingly to share the news, finally leaving the two kin alone, at least for the moment. "Maybe I should've waited longer before giving him his name." Redstar sighed, though not without a hint of amusement glinting in his eyes which was rare, especially after their defeat to Swiftclan just days ago, before staring down at his son, amusement replaced with a bit of adoration and seriousness. "But... he does have the right idea, I think it'd be best if someone stuck close to you for this." Whitepaw, while a bit disappointed, couldn't really complain or protest without feeling dumb, and thus a small nod followed. "Good, I'll have Oakpaw stick with you. You two are friends anyway, so it shouldn't be much of a 'punishment'." The leader stated with a small purr, uncharacteristic kindness coming from him that the apprentice last recognized from when he was just a kit, being shown how to take down leaves. "And... well, you and I haven't spent much time together ever since your apprenticeship, so I was thinking that we could go on a patrol where I could see how your training has came along." That perked up Whitepaw, his tail waving from side to side in excitement, only for Redstar to chuckle and shake his head. "No, it's not going to be an official evaluation." That sapped a bit of irrational excitement out of him. He knew he was too young for such a step in his apprenticeship. "It's just... you were happy when I was training you as a kit, right?" The black tom asked, glancing away for a few moments before meeting his son's eyes again. "Of course...?" He answered with uncertainty, confused by his father's sudden softer and unsure side. "Good, good... Swiftclan was an unseen conflict, I hadn't thought that they'd invade our territory so soon after our last battle... I know you didn't like it, a lot of cats didn't.." Redstar's eyes then raised over, and following them, Whitepaw found the two of Duckthroat and Pantherpelt speaking together while eating a robin and a mouse respectively. He remembered what Duckthroat had told him before the battle, to run away if he was hurt. And maybe if he did, Elkheart would still be alive... "Maybe it was a bit much and I'm sorry, but leadership, it's... stressful. But the point is that I haven't spent as much time with you as I would've liked. The only reason that you aren't my apprentice right now is because of potential backlash. A father, let alone the leader of a clan mentoring their son? I was already showing you plenty of favoritism making you an apprentice before you were 6 moons." "Where are you going with this?" Whitepaw couldn't help but ask, not wanting to be rude but his father was seemingly rambling at this point, and the Gathering was set to start soon. "Point is.. I love you, Whitepaw. So, you and I on patrol tomorrow, you show me what you've got, I teach you some things, and we just spend some time together like father and son?" Redstar finally offered, looking down into the apprentice's blue eyes with his own amber gaze, hopeful. And well... how could Whitepaw decline? His father had practically spilled his guts out to him in a brand new act of care and honesty, having only seen the meaner sides of him ever since earning his '-paw' name. He missed that gentler side from when he was a kit, protecting him from bullies, teaching him, letting him sleep in his nest... "Sure thing, father." Whitepaw answered with a purr, which was returned with a purr of the black tom's own, however Redstar's response was cut off by the approach of Blackcloud. "We're all ready to go, Redstar." He stated, to which he earned a nod in response. "While you're here, why don't you go and fetch Oakpaw? He'll be joining us." The leader then ordered, the gray and black warrior returning the nod and padding off to the apprentices' den. "So... are you really letting Ocelotfur lead the dawn patrol?" Whitepaw couldn't help but ask, purring as a smile curled on his father's face. "Well, co-leader isn't too bad, is it?" "So... when another clan cat approaches you and asks for clan secrets, you...?" "Tell them everything you know in fear of conflict?" "Good, you're on the right track! Now how about when they ask for you to join their clan?" "Well I don't like anyone here, so might as well see what their cats are like." Whitepaw and Oakpaw were chuckling as they, along with the rest of the Darkclan party, were walking their way over to the Gathering area. Oakpaw was 'testing' Whitepaw on just what to do in certain scenarios at a Gathering, and so far, he was doing excellent! "And what about when another clan cat sits with your clan?" The brown tom then asked, stifling a purr as his friend put a pout on his face at the reminder of his actions his last Gathering. "Oh.. now that's just unacceptable! You pounce on them and give them a few slashes, rules be damned!" Whitepaw said in a deep, mimicking voice, dropping into a pouncing position momentarily to the amusement of Oakpaw, who's whiskers were twitching and tail swishing behind him. "But seriously..." "I know!" The two kept talking, their back and forth earning some attention from their clanmates. Peachpaw shared her brother's amusement, while Pantherpelt let out a purr or two to their antics. Others weren't quite as amused however, Clawpaw had ran forward to avoid hearing the two talk, though Whitepaw could've sworn that he heard him chuckle before passing, while Brownfur simply let out some annoyed grumbles. "Hey, just making sure you do!" Oakpaw said in his defense, bumping shoulders with the white-furred apprentice. "At least we're going early, so we'll have some time to actually chat with the other apprentices before needing to get back to our side." With that sentence, Darkclan finally arrived at the Gathering, passing through some bushes into the open area, a hare gnawing on some flowers noticing the group and instantly bolting away. Whitepaw was half tempted to give chase, but as per Gathering rules, there were to be no hunting on the grounds. "Great..." Redstar's groan caught Whitepaw's attention, and turning his head, he noticed that the rabbit had bolted in the open moor where Swiftclan resided... and there was Swiftclan, led by Mountainstar. Their group of cats halted once in the area surrounded by forestry, and right away, their leader locked eyes with Darkclan's. Moments passed, and the tabby-spotted tom walked over, sitting down by the four stones in the center, tongue digging the grass out from between his paws. Things got rather awkward quickly, most of each clan sticking away from each other, though some hisses and growls were exchanged between the warriors. No doubt they hadn't forgotten what had occurred just days ago, when Darkclan invaded Swiftclan's camp in an attempt to vanquish them, only for things to go poorly and they were forced into a retreat. The act of invading another clan's camp was cowardly and against the Warrior Code, but not only that, but they had killed their deputy, Elkheart. While Whitepaw was just trying to save his mentor from being killed by her, he still couldn't help but feel guilty over the matter, having blinded her and leaving her defenseless to the attack of Dogface's. "Well... let's go talk to 'em." Oakpaw whispered to Whitepaw, who let out a snort and stretched his haunches, legs a bit sore from all the walking it took to get here. But that green gaze remained on him, not a twinkle of sarcasm or amusement in his eyes and he soon realized that he wasn't joking. "Are you serious? They'd tear us up!" The leader's son protested, only for the brown-furred tom to remain still. "At a Gathering? I don't think so. Plus it's not like Forestclan or Clawclan are going to show up anytime soon, so we might as well try." A grunt escaped Whitepaw's muzzle, but eventually, he stood up fully and nodded, walking beside his friend over towards a group of smaller cats. The apprentice instantly recognized the wide body of Groundpaw among them, who glanced up from the chatting group to eye the two cats approaching them. Those gleaming yellow eyes narrowed down suspiciously, but not with much caution. Among them were also a black and white she-cat, a long-legged brown tabby and a calico she-cat that Whitepaw recognized from the border battle as Eelpaw. "What are you two up to?" Groundpaw's voice alerted the others of the Darkclan's apprentices, who turned their heads to meet the two. "We just wanted to chat, Groundpaw. I.. know that you don't quite like us right now, but maybe-" Oakpaw began to speak, staying strong in the face of four cats who clearly did want to see him right now. However, the growl of one of the apprentices cut him off and the dusty brown tom stepped forward between the five. "It's Groundrunner now. Helping running you invaders off helped get me that title." The newly crowned warrior spoke, locking eyes with Oakpaw. "Secondly, your clan invaded our camp, wounded us-" The tom lifted up one of his forelegs to reveal a tuft of fur missing underneath, a scar in its place. "-and even killed our own deputy. Elkheart was a great cat, she was even my mentor, and I wouldn't be nearly the cat I was without her. Not only me, but the rest of the clan." Whitepaw gulped, ears flattening and shoulders slumping at the mention of the deputy, but he kept his mouth shut as the newly named Groundrunner kept speaking. "I even recognize you two from the border... just before we were attacked. I've not been around long enough to know what you and your clan is about, but the point is, we're here just want to enjoy ourselves. This is my first Gathering as a warrior, Longpaw's and Grasspaw's first Gathering as apprentices and Eelpaw has a big announcement once all the clans are here." Oakpaw himself looked guilty from the glint in his green eyes, but he kept a firm stance and kept his gaze on Groundrunner. "Well... in any other case, I'd congratulate you, but obviously you don't want that. So.. at least from me, I'm sorry for what's happened." He meowed with a sad smile, turning to Whitepaw who nodded up in agreement before letting himself get brushed away from the Swiftclan cats, already whispering about the encounter while the two apprentices made their way back over to the Darkclan cats. "Well that sucked." Whitepaw sighed, Oakpaw nodding in agreement while Clawpaw stepped forward, shaking his head. "Now why did you think that THAT was a good idea?" The brown and black tom asked, and for once, the white furred apprentice couldn't disagree. Of course Swiftclan cats weren't going to want to talk to Darkclan cats in a casual setting. "I thought maybe we could apologize to them and they'd at least... tolerate us? Show that we aren't the meanies that they think we are?" Oakpaw shook his head, stepping forward for a shoulder rub with his brother, who instead took a step back. "We don't have anything to apologize for. They went onto OUR territory first, remember?" Clawpaw insisted, narrowing his eyes. "We didn't force them out of their camp, but we sent a big enough statement to make sure they don't try it again. That's just more lives they're risking." Whitepaw couldn't help but roll his eyes. Even though the obnoxious apprentice had a point, he went about it in such a... aggravating way. "And we aren't risking anything by invading their territory in return? Rainstorm is dead, Clawpaw. I nearly died during that battle! If you weren't there.." Oakpaw slowly trailed off, looking again to his brother for comfort, but being declined once again. "But you didn't! And if any cat tries that again, I'll rip them in two, I promise." "But what if you aren't there next time? What if you're assigned to stay in camp while I go and attack a patrol because one of their cats decided to take a mouse from us? What then?" Oakpaw seemed almost desperate in how he spoke to Clawpaw, and Whitepaw couldn't help but feel bad for him. He was trying to get sympathy, some sort of empathy out of his kin, but they just... refused. He was turning into a Dogface or a Burrclaw. Battle first, feeling later. The shaking of some bushes caused Whitepaw to raise his head up to see the pretty tortoiseshell coat of Cloverstar leading Forestclan into the Gathering area. Perfect. "Come on, Oakpaw. Forestclan is here." Oakpaw needed a distraction, and, well, he DID want to talk to the other clans' apprentices while they were here. White fur pressed against brown, Whitepaw lead the apprentice away, giving Clawpaw a final glare before turning his head to focus on the new group of cats that arrived. "Don't let him get to you, he's just a mousebrain." "He isn't, that's what's frustrating. He should know that this isn't the way to go... right?" Oakpaw sighed, welcoming the feeling of his friend's fur on him. "Hey, maybe we're the mousebrains, who knows? Right now, let's just focus on meeting some apprentices and having a good time." Whitepaw insisted, and his companion just nodded solemnly. And it was a good time, relatively. Oakpaw's spirits raised quickly chatting it up with Dirtypaw of Forestclan, while Whitepaw inquired about Splashkit to Cloudear, happy to learn that his adopted daughter was doing great, almost ready to become an apprentice and having enough energy to tire out a bear. Quickpaw, Forestclan's only other apprentice, hadn't been able to make the Gathering, so speaking with a warrior instead was alright, Cloudear being kind enough to tolerate the apprentice. Eventually, Clawclan arrived, which meant there wasn't much time before the four leaders assembled and called the clans together. "You know, Dirtypaw... he's kinda cute." Oakpaw chuckled while speed-walking over towards Clawclan, Whitepaw following and eventually taking the 'lead'. "Really? But he's literally called Dirty!" He responded with an amused purr, to which the apprentice nodded his head. "Mhm, and Blazesong was belly deep in mud from her last patrol around the lake, but I didn't see you complain!" "We're comparing Dirtypaw to Blazesong now?" "Why not?" Whitepaw just snorted and shook his head, eventually reaching the Clawclan group and being able to recognize a few cats from them. Snarl-Lip, Tanstripe and Smallpaw, all three from his patrol by the lake in which he learned about Ratstar, who was killed by rogues at that border. Along with them was a bright orange tabby tom, a yellowish she-cat, a black tom with white stripes and a dark gray she-cat with bright green eyes. "Hey, don't worry, I think you're cute too." Oakpaw then whispered teasingly, before bounding over to introduce himself to the gray and white apprentice. Whitepaw, at first was amused, and then slowly realized that... maybe he was serious? He just thought that he called Dirtypaw cute for the joke of it because of his name, but now? Well, he wasn't too sure. The concept of a tom liking other toms was new to him, but not necessarily bad or anything. Maybe I'll talk to him later about it. For now, rather than question his friend's tastes, he stepped forward to also greet Smallpaw, noticing a fang jutting out of his mouth, as sharp as a claw. He was called 'Smallpaw' for a reason, given how he could still pass for a kit, but he wasn't about to say anything about that. "So you're Whitepaw, the underaged apprentice?" Was the first thing that Whitepaw heard the Clawclan cat say to him. Well, so much for respect. "You're one to talk with those legs, you look ready to curl up with Antheart right now." Oakpaw chuckled, taking the direct approach rather than Whitepaw, who was trying to think of a more... subtler way of putting it. And instead of being angry or annoyed, the apprentice just shrugged it off. "Got me there, I do miss the early rest times and the body warmth. But I could still kick your flank, Oakpaw." Smallpaw playfully growled to the Darkclan tom, who responded with a swish of his tail. "But you know what I mean. Sandpelt, or Sandpaw as you knew him from your last time, said that a Forestclan cat said you were too young to become an apprentice." He continued, to which Whitepaw shook his head. It was true, but he wasn't about to tell Clawclan cats that. "And you believed him? That cat probably had too much smell of oak in his head to think clearly. All those trees can't be good for you." He defended himself, trying his best to look cool and confident about it, though also turning around to make sure the cat in question, Cloudear, didn't actually hear what he said. Smallpaw just shrugged in response, "Hey, I'm not taking any sides, I'm just asking." He meowed, glancing up towards the large stones and purring. "Uh oh, looks like you better hurry your way back." Turning, Whitepaw's eyes widened. Redstar, Mountainstar, Fishstar and Cloverstar were all each on their stones, and it seemed that they were exchanging a bit of idle talk before calling the clans together. "Move, move, move!" Oakpaw told Whitepaw, shoving him forward over towards Darkclan's group, to which he happily moved forward, practically sprinting his way over. "Clans, gather!" Cloverstar's call happened just as Whitepaw skidded and halted behind Blackcloud, Oakpaw soon following him, sitting on his haunches. "Proud of you." The warrior turned back to tell the white-furred apprentice, who just nodded his head, looking eagerly up towards the leaders in anticipation. He just caught the gaze of Redstar who had picked him out of the crowd and nodded his head towards his son with a smile. "Thank you all for making it to this Gathering." Cloverstar spoke loud, addressing the four clans while standing up straight. "Mountainstar has declared himself to be the first to tell you how Swiftclan is doing, promising big announcements to the rest of us. Mountainstar.." The tortoiseshell she-cat then stood back, nodding her head towards the slim tom, who then stepped forward. That anticipation soon turned to anxiety, having forgotten about the Swiftclan conflict for the brief time he and Oakpaw took talking to the other clans, and now, that glint in Mountainstar's eyes... there was no way he didn't tell the rest of them the truth now. "Thank you, Cloverstar. Firstly, I would like to apologize to you all. Apologize for my dishonesty in how I addressed you before and the lies that I told in order to try and protect my clan." The tabby-patched tom began his speech, claws dug into the stone and his voice unwavering. "Moons ago, I said that a border patrol of ours was attacked by rogues. That was a lie. Instead, it was Darkclan that had attacked that patrol." Murmers broke out in Swiftclan and Clawclan, as well as the feeling of eyes being put directly onto the Darkclan group. Whitepaw's clanmates themselves were quiet, while Swiftclan kept mostly quiet too, seemingly knowing just what their leader was going to tell everyone. "In an act of peace, and what others may see as an act of cowardice, I lied about this encounter, in hope that further attacks wouldn't occur. I told my clanmates to not act in any sort of revenge towards Darkclan, and while some of my clanmates disliked this, I know it that they listened to my word." "That's a lie!" Clawpaw shouted out, which only prompted more reaction out of the other clans, to which Whitepaw couldn't help but hunch his body down between his shoulders, ears flattened to his head. Really had to shout that out, huh? "You know we never touched your side of the border!" The large gray she-cat by the name of Steelfur yelled out in retaliation, seemingly half-ready to pounce into the crowd of Darkclan cats to shut up the apprentice. And just looking at Clawpaw, he seemed eager for a scrap, because of course he was. "My warriors said otherwise, Mountainstar. My own examination confirmed that your cats had crossed the border." Redstar finally spoke up, his voice just a pitch quieter than Whitepaw was used to do. "Or perhaps you just smelt what you wanted to do. Everyone here knows that you aren't shy when sending your warriors to battle, I'm sure your own cats would admit such." With that last statement, the apprentice glanced over towards Pantherpelt, who he recalled speaking of the harshness of living in Darkclan previously. The dark blue tabby however didn't show any emotion from the sentence, orange gaze firmly on the Swiftclan leader. "But moving on, this is an act that you can't deny. Just days ago, my clan awoke to a frail elder in our camp. Rainstorm was her name. She looked lost, afraid.. in need of help. And I was ready to provide such until the wind alerted us of... others. Practically all of Darkclan were ready and waiting and swarmed our camp." Mountainstar continued, his last words enticed shock out of the two other clans, as it should. An ambush on another's camp was just plain wrong, no matter how you tried to spin it, and the hisses and growls that came from Swiftclan's side was justified. That didn't mean that Whitepaw had to like it. "An attack on our own camp. Such a frail elder such as Rainstorm never stood a chance, and was killed in the beginnings of the battle. Only a coward would've put her in the center of it all, and I feel nothing but grief for her, dying like that. Not only were our warriors and apprentices attacked, but also our own elders, our queens and even our kits. Windkit is proof of this, having his tail torn from her body by Darkclan warriors while his mother could do nothing but watch. He is now called Tornkit, as a reminder to us of the cruelty that we had faced that day." Tornkit...? Whitepaw shuddered at the name, surely to become 'Torntail' when he was older. The mention of the attacks on the kits near caused an outrage between the clans, the matter turning so close to conflict that the apprentice could almost feel the bits of saliva fall onto his fur from the hissing Swiftclan was doing. "And in the end... I'm sure you all have noticed that my deputy, Elkheart isn't here. That is unfortunately because she too, was killed in this. She died defending the nursery from the savages attacking it, even with the wounds that she had endured in the border ambush. She was a proud and noble warrior and would've made a fine leader when it came time. Thundertail shall take her place as deputy, though nothing will be able to replace what Elkheart brought to Swiftclan." The hissing briefly stopped as Swiftclan cats lowered their heads to grieve their fallen deputy, and Whitepaw couldn't help but do the same. Elkheart.. Starclan, whoever's up there.. please forgive me. The feeling of fur pressing against his flank led him to look up however and notice Oakpaw keeping close to him in comfort. Did he even know why he was so upset? Regardless, he welcomed the closeness, needing it right now in the face of scrutiny. "Thankfully, we were able to drive Darkclan out of their camp with no more fatalities, and in the wake of this cowardly attack, I was able to crown ourselves a new warrior for their exceptional bravery in such conflict. Groundpaw, without him, there may have been more lives lost, and I couldn't be more thankful and proud of him. From now on, he shall be known as Groundrunner." The Swiftclan leader continued, the announcement of the new warrior earning brief cheers, though most were still in shock about the news of the ambush. "Along with him, we are preparing for the worst, another attack, and thus.. against the Warrior's Code, we have two new apprentices, both under six moons in Longpaw and Grasspaw. Steelfur and Elderclaw will mentor them respectively." There was a bit more shock there over the Warrior's Code being broken, but obviously, Swiftclan was getting more sympathy than outrage over this decision. They have every right to be cautious... plus it wasn't like they were the only apprentices who were under six moons at one point. "Finally in news of ranks, Eelpaw has diverged from her warrior training and is now under mentorship to both Rockshade and Ravencall. She showed great promise in the aftermath of the battle, helping our two stressed medicine cats in helping our injured cats, and when asked, she happily accepted this opportunity." So that's the big announcement. Whitepaw thought, unable to bring himself to look over towards the calico she-cat to see her reaction to it all, only knowing that she looked nervous during his only experience seeing her in combat. But even then, that was against Burrclaw, the nastiest she-cat in the clans, everyone flinched on occasion when she looked their way. "And with that, I would like to say that while wounded, our clan is still strong, our medical supply had dwindled, but we should be able to restock it for winter. Our warriors will be ready for any attacks, and anyone of those that do decide to attack us will see that for themselves." Finally Mountainstar wrapped up his speech, stepping back and sitting down, leaving the clans and even the leaders stunned at his words. Cloverstar looked over towards Redstar, who met the gaze head-on, but it was difficult to tell just what emotion was in the two's eyes. And just glancing around, the aggression had slowly dwindled down, but the burning distrust in the other cats towards Darkclan was unmistakable, and honestly, it really sucked. "I.. well Clawclan would like to start by saying that we are deeply sorry to Swiftclan for the casualty of Elkheart and to Wind.. Tornkit and his mother. We would be happy to donate prey, medicine or fortification to them if Mountainstar would allow such?" Fishstar stepped up to talk, glancing towards the Swiftclan leader after his last statement, who nodded his head. "That would be very kind of you, Fishstar." The young leader then returned the nod before facing back towards the clans, "Now, onto Clawclan, we have been doing great as of late. Prey has been prosperous, our younglings are growing strong and we have welcomed new life in the clan. Queen Frostflower has given birth to two bright kits, named Squirrelkit and Spottedkit!" Clawclan of course was proud of that announcement, and while others cheered, it was clear that emotions weren't very positive after the previous announcement. "Not only that, but we've got two new warriors that have passed their tests and shown that they were more than ready for the upgrade. Sandpaw shall now be known as Sandpelt, while Dustpaw will now be known as Dustcloud. Those who wish to test Clawclan will see for themselves how far they've come and how we're only becoming stronger by the day." Fishstar wrapped things up, light blue eyes looking towards Redstar, no doubt telling him that they'd be ready if they were the next victims of an attack. And the black tom responded with a firm look of his own. Even in the face of adversity, Redstar wasn't about to show that he was shook. The rest of the Gathering went by without anymore drama. Cloverstar shared the passing of elder Bluesky, as well as news of plentiful prey and that Mossyfur's litter of kits were about ready to become apprentices. Redstar didn't share much, only stating that the badgers were still present in their territory, reiterating the passing of Rainstorm, as well as mentioning Ocelotfur and Blazesong becoming warriors. Warriors being announced were usually cheered, but there was barely a peep among anyone this time... thankfully neither of the two were there to witness it, something that Redstar probably saw coming and saved them the embarrassment. Once he was done, Darkclan couldn't leave quicker, rushing out and back to camp. Whitepaw kept close to Oakpaw, thankful for his presence, even if he could feel that the tom wasn't in very high spirits himself. Then again, neither was anyone else. Having everyone get told that your clan was horrid and a group of ambushers... it sucked for morale, but... there was always tomorrow, even if he wanted to just do nothing but sleep....

[feline-artist]

@frogmanwritings requested their oc Cactuspaw, so here he is!

[the-broken-code-rewrite]

your clan is barkclan. their leader is emberstar, who is a mostly-orange tortoiseshell with a chubby shape, a missing ear, and a twisted front paw. their deputy is sweetleap, a pale blue-gray cat with a small nose and deaf ears. their medicine cat is nuthatchstream, a charcoal tabby with deaf ears and a massive scar covering the left side of their face. They have a medicine cat apprentice, too, who is named pollenpaw- they are a black british shorthair with a smug face. here are their warriors: spikestalk(a bicolor cat), furzeshine(a little black cat), snailblaze(a ragdoll cat), vinewing(a gray british shorthair), voleleaf(a pale tabby with a long white fang), reedslip(a silvery cat),and slatespots(a ginger tabby with a white mark on their belly). there's also the apprentices, cactuspaw, a pale blue-gray cat, oakpaw, a silky brown tabby, tulippaw, a pale tabby, spiderpaw, a solid fawn cat, and floodpaw, a black and white british shorthair with a small nose. their queens are moletail and spanglefur; and they raise the kits of the clan , like goldenkit, a ticked tabby. they also have elders; windclaw, a big lynx point cat with orange eyes, and cherryslip, a big calico with yellowed whiskers. this clan lives where the old territories used to be, and has a medium-sized territory. they believe that dead cats' spirits become plants. they are very paranoid and constantly believe each other to be traitorous, their last leader was a tyrant- even though this leader was exiled the clan worries they will return, and prophecies state that a gray cat will save them all

Time to make an AU with them. They're rivals with WarriorClan

I guess I'm gonna end up writing a WarriorClan novella or even Super Edition

decided to make a generator that generates an entire clan- a set of cats, a location and territory, a belief, and some other key facts about them and their culture/politics. tell me if you get anything Interesting

[kidcorekitty]

anyone with the app “snow” wanna add me?? my user is cactuspaws

[scotrick]

#paw #cactus #cactuspaw (at Mountain View, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/BrGvaTbntRG/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=14mq206y4fn85

[frogmanwritings]

Whiteheart’s Decision | Chapter Nine

"Ah, what the hell are you doing?! Get off!" Whitepaw's eyes shot open as he felt the voice echo in his ears and paws pushing against his back. Shaking his head, he stood up and took a few pawsteps away, his head dizzy and vision still somewhat blurry. Thankfully as he looked around, he found himself still in the apprentices' den. A dream... Looking backwards, he saw the angered look of Clawpaw, a snarl curling up his upper lip and fur bristled. Ocelotpaw and Peachpaw were looking onward, stiffling giggles, turning Whitepaw's pelt hot.

"What's going on in here?" Blackcloud's head poked through the den's entrance, looking over the four cats before his gaze landed on Whitepaw. "Dirtface Whitepaw just jumped on me while I was resting!" Clawpaw answered, standing up and shaking his prickled fur, keeping a nasty glare on Whitepaw as he stretched his legs. "But I didn't.." Whitepaw tried to speak up for himself, only to be interrupted by a purr of amusement from the warrior. "Well uh... save that for the enemies today, Whitepaw. Besides, you guys needed to get up anyway, almost time." He told the two, before stepping back out, leaving Whitepaw with the three other apprentices.

Ocelotpaw and Peachpaw then walked out, leaving Whitepaw alone with Clawpaw. The brown apprentice's angry glare as he looked down soon turned into a somewhat amused gaze, an edge of humor crossing his muzzle. "Sorry man, I uh... really didn't mean to... just a bad dream and all.." Whitepaw tried to explain, but Clawpaw simply shouldered past. "Yeah yeah..." His deep voice brushed off his denmate's apology, stepping out of the den towards the other apprentices, his head lowered to face the ground.

Finding no need to dwell on the incident, Whitepaw soon followed afterwards, the sky still a dark, almost colorless blue, a few stars still visible with the moon poking atop the trees. Everyone was gathered and chatting, with a few practicing battle moves, while others were primed on battle strategy.  Among the crowd was Rainstorm, her mind clearly not changed in the day, her dark gaze eager like an apprentice's, though that's where the comparisons with youth end. Her teeth were yellow, gray fur riddling her face, and each step she made looked painful on her small paws. She posed little to no threat to any cat, let alone an entire clan who are going to do their best to defend their camp, even if that meant to kill.

Starclan give her strength. Whitepaw quietly prayed to his ancestors, stepping forward to meet up with Oakpaw who was talking to Fiercespirit when he caught his own father walk towards him, his pitch black pelt smooth against his slim frame. "Hello Whitepaw, are you ready for this?" He asked, his voice gentle, but the implication of what was going to happen next sent a shiver through Whitepaw's back. Before he could answer, Redstar spoke once again over him, "I know others don't like this, but would they rather let Swiftclan take claim to more and more of our forest until they are the ones invading our camp?" The leader asked his son, his red gaze faced towards the groups of cats with suspicion. The white apprentice reluctantly shook his head, quietly agreeing with his father.

"You're smart, Whitepaw. You know this needs to be done, right?" Redstar then faced towards him again, his scarlet eyes gleaming with confidence in his kin. Put on the spot, Whitepaw gulped and opened his mouth, trying to fight against the urge to speak against his dad's plan. Seeing the look in his eyes, the apprentice knew he wanted him to say yes, but his instinct fought against that, knowing that the battle was cowardly and wrong by so many levels. "I... wish it didn't come to this.." Whitepaw finally spoke, his voice shaking nervously, trying to remain neutral on the subject while also not disappointing his father. Redstar blinked in response, to Whitepaw's fear, looking disappointed."As do I. But we need to do this now or else it could be too late."

Before Whitepaw could utter another word, Redstar had already turned his back to him and walked away, heading towards Burrclaw and Blackcloud. Another shiver went through Whitepaw's back, both of guilt and fear, knowing that this was apart of his duty as a clan cat but still terrified of the prospect of dying. If the tales he was told were true, he'd go to Starclan and live for the rest of eternity in the stars with all of his kin and friends, endlessly hunting with no pain or worry. But what if they weren't? What if when you die, you just fall into the abyss, never to see any of those that you loved ever again?

Trying to keep his mind on positive thoughts, Whitepaw walked forward, raising his brows in silent greeting to Oakpaw. "Hey Whitepaw! Those springs going to be ready to go for the battle?" The brown apprentice asked teasingly, something that flew over Whitepaw's head for a brief moment before he let out a groan of realization.  "Hopefully... has Fiercespirit gave you any battle training?" He asked his friend about his father, who had walked away towards a group of warriors at this point. "Of course! He said that apprentices will focus on getting the other apprentices out of the way for the warriors to fight each other." Oakpaw explained, "They'll be faster than us, but we're stronger and more durable than them. If we land some good shots, they should run away like the hares they chase all day!"

That's a good idea.. Whitepaw thought to himself. Though just as he was about to voice his approval, Redstar's call from the top of camp shut his mouth and had his blue eyes looking upwards towards his father. The clan did the same, not one peep out of their mouths after the leader's voice echoed throughout camp. "It's time. Everyone who is able, follow me. We shall strike down this evil that is trying to invade our forest once and for all!" Redstar's heavy voice called, "There will be one warrior staying behind. Pantherpelt will stay here to defend the camp in case of any intruders." The leader then announced, his red gaze set on his brother, their amber eyes meeting for a brief moment with unknown emotion before Pantherpelt nodded his head in knowledge and looked away.

"Now, let's go!" Redstar then shouted, hopping off of his den and walking towards the exit, cats from the crowd below beginning to disperse. Gulping, Whitepaw soon followed behind, climbing up the ledges, his heart beating hard against his chest. This is it. Whitepaw thought ominously to himself. Either Clawclan would win this battle and send Swiftclan running, or they lose and... Or what? He didn't know of a outcome of them losing, would they be killed? Chased out of the forest like they planned to do to them with the plains? The unknown both terrified and motivated Whitepaw, as victory was needed in order to not find out any of the dark outcomes.

"Alright, we're as close as we're going to get without being noticed. Time to split up." Redstar called to his clan behind him, the harsh winds blowing dramatically against their pelts. Whitepaw grunted as his whiskers occasionally blew against his nostrils and lips. "Sunsight, you and the apprentices will go east. Warriors shall go with me west. Rainstorm, get into their camp, distract them, then let out the call when you smell us." Redstar ordered the clan, who nodded their heads, and soon they all split into the two assigned groups, with Rainstorm purring and rubbing her head against Redstar's cheek, before running forward, soon disappearing in the hilly terrain.

Whitepaw let out a deep breath as Sunsight shifted his head to his right and began stalking his way forward, the apprentices following him step for step. Looking around him, Whitepaw noticed a few eager faces. Clawpaw looked excited for everything, his claws unsheathed and digging into the ground with each paw pad he took. Ocelotpaw also had a smirk cross his muzzle, and Cactuspaw even had an excited glint in his yellow eyes.

Meanwhile, Peachpaw was pressed against her other brother, Oakpaw, her ears twitching nervously. At least I'm not the only one. Whitepaw thought, sending a reassuring nod in the direction of the she-cat as the group stalked, soon finding a patch of tall grass to hide their bodies in. He could only just make out a gap in the moor, grass turning to dirt and earth. That must be it. Sunsight's razor sharp gaze looked back at the apprentices' behind him, Whitepaw making out him silently counting the bunch, making sure they were all there before facing back towards the camp.

"Hey! What are you doing?!" The voice of a warrior scared Whitepaw a moment, thinking they were found out, before then realizing that Rainstorm must've made it into camp. "Pl-Please... I come in peace..." A crackly feminine voice responded in return, Rainstorm playing the innocent elder fairly well, with fake fear dripping from her tone. "Rainstorm? What brings you here?" Whitepaw could make out Mountainstar's soft tone, recognizing it from the time he went to the gathering, though this time it was much calmer and collected, probably not having to deal with an ambush on his patrol.

"You're hearing her out? Clawclan scum aren't ones to be peaceful!" "She's just an elder, what can she do?" Bickers came back and forth between the clan, Whitepaw feeling sorry for those who were sticking up for the elder, knowing that her intentions weren't pure. The arguments would continue for a bit longer before they were silenced by Mountainstar. "Enough!" He called out, the bickering voices then stopped. After a few seconds of silence, the leader then began to speak again, "Rainstorm..." until he was cut off, not by any voice or cat.

"Crap.." Sunsight's silent voice growled, and Whitepaw then felt the heavy winds blowing right against her rump and back. Their scents were blowing right into the camp! "...you brought friends with you.." A growl came from within camp, followed by gasps and hisses from the other cats. Then, a shriek came, and Whitepaw knew that had to be Rainstorm. "Clawclan, attack!"

[frogmanwritings]

Whiteheart’s Decision | Chapter Seven

"Psst... Whitepaw..." A gentle whisper awoke Whitepaw from his slumber, a few rough blinks clearing his vision just enough to see the soft brown fur of his denmate and good friend, Oakpaw. At least he hasn't developed an attitude... He grumbled to himself, stretching out his muscles before slowly getting up onto his paws. It had been a few days since his encounter with Dogface, and his incident with Clawpaw, and thankfully he had to deal with neither of them ever since, with his pads taking longer to heal than they should've. He just spent most of those few days resting in his nest, while Dawnsight was kind enough to keep Dogface and Clawpaw away from him whenever he could.

"Dawnsight wants to check on your pads, and Duckthroat said if he gives you the ok, me, you, Dogface and Fiercespirit are going to do a border patrol around the lake." Oakpaw explained, the mere mention of the lake giving Whitepaw a chill. The lake, also known as the border between Darkclan territory and Clawclan territory, was a dangerous place, not only for the obvious threat of another clan on the other side, but because of the danger that comes with the rushing waves of water that has been known to catch uncareful cats and swallow them into its grasp, never to be heard of or seen ever again.

"Hey, I don't like that part of the forest either, but we gotta do it. You think Redstar got where he is right now by dodging scary patrols?" Oakpaw's teasing tone helped ease Whitepaw's unspoken fear slightly, though it was still stuck in the back of his mind. Whitepaw reluctantly walked out of the apprentices' den, just being able to tell the time of the day of early morning despite the dark gray clouds covering most of the usually bright blue sky. "So much for no more rain, huh..." Oakpaw's kind voice perfectly voiced Whitepaw's thoughts, hating the rain just as much as anything. It makes almost everything in relation to clan life more difficult, except maybe thrist, and was just a massive bother.

Entering Dawnsight's den, Whitepaw's blue gaze rested on the medicine cat tidying up his herb supply, keeping each different leaf, stick and flower perfectly organized and easy to grab in emergencies. "When you are done here, meet us at the Tall Stump" Oakpaw whispered into Whitepaw's ear before racing off. "Ahem..." The apprentice let out of his mouth as he entered, not wanting to wake anyone up. "Ah, Whitepaw, you thinking those pads are good to go?" Dawnsight answered with a question, waving his tail to invite Whitepaw further inside. "They... feel good I guess?" He answered unsure, never really thinking of the condition of his paw-pads before the incident and even afterwards they never felt that bad. "Heh, well they can feel good, but what we need to know are if they are healthy enough for a border patrol." Glasspaw's teasing voice caught Whitepaw off-guard, and he turned to see the blue-gray she-cat enter the den from behind him.

"And they are, and I think we both know that." Dawnsight's suddenly strict tone then surprised Whitepaw again, waving the thin-coated apprentice closer inside. "Our pads often take a lot of abuse, Whitepaw. They are built to be durable, and injuries to them almost never keep you away from your duties for as long as you were." The medicine cat explained, keeping his gaze locked onto the confused apprentice. "And I know what you are thinking, so no need to bring it up. Why? Because I know of what happened before your... dangerous entrance into the camp. Cactuspaw told me, the whole clan knows what happened." Dawnsight told Whitepaw, who's gaze widened. He knew Cactuspaw had a large and loud mouth, but he thought the 'discipline' from Dogface was enough to keep him quiet. "You tackled your own mentor and aggravated him to nearly attack you. While it was in the defense of your own clanmate, I recommend you don't stick your nose in such incidents again. Often times it will get you hurt or even worse and the clan can't afford a casuality right now nearing leaf-fall. I wanted to protect you to make sure Dogface didn't do anything rash in his rage, but there is only so much I can do." The medicine cat's explanation ran a chill throughout Whitepaw's spine, Dogface did seem angry when he had looked him eye-to-eye during the incident, but if he didn't attack him in that moment, why do it afterwards in the camp? Why was he about to go on a patrol with him if he could just want to use it to punish him for his disobidence?

"Dogface won't have forgotten about what you did, but I suspect he won't attack you. He gets angry, but he also respects bravery, and you were brave enough to jump right at the dog's drooling jaws in order to protect your friend. That's something that hasn't happened in moons." Dawnsight finished his explanation, giving Whitepaw a pat on the ear with his tail. "Now go on, keeping him waiting won't help your case. Oh, and if anyone asks, I checked your pads and said you were fine to continue your duties. This conversation never happened." He then gave a strict look at Glasspaw who was watching the entrance, who nodded her head and entered further into the den.

Whitepaw was frozen to the ground for a moment, trying to take in everything that he was just told. But he knew he couldn't just sit there forever, and one last look from Dawnsight set him off out of the den and towards the entrance of camp, climbing up the convenient ledges and racing towards where Oakpaw told him to go. The Tall Stump was exactly what you'd think it would be, a tree stump that was as tall as a badger. It used to be the tallest tree in all of the forests, but a heavy storm caused it to fall. After a few minutes of running, Whitepaw finally spotted his three clanmates for the border patrol, Oakpaw and Fiercespirit speaking together while Dogface sat on the top of the stump, his narrow green eyes looking out, either looking for dangers.. or for him.

"Hey Whitepaw! Those pads feeling good?" Fiercespirit seemed to be in a good enough mood, which was rare. He wasn't nearly as bad as Dogface or Burrclaw, but still, he often acted like HE was the leader of Darkclan with his sour tongue. Oakpaw probably had something to do with that. He always seemed to be in such a better mood around his kits than when on a normal patrol or a normal chat with clanmates that weren't his kin. "Come on, no time for conversation." Dogface hissed, hopping off of the legendary stump and silenting any answer Whitepaw may have given to the warrior's question. Fiercespirit and Dogface then took the lead of the patrol, heading west towards the river while Oakpaw and Whitepaw followed behind. "Must've been a long checkup, huh?" Oakpaw's teasing voice usually comforted Whitepaw, but with the long conversation he just had with Dawnsight, it only made him more nervous. What if Dogface found out what Dawnsight told me..? The white apprentice fearfully thought, keeping a straight face as to not get Oakpaw to ask anymore questions. "Well... Dawnsight and Glasspaw just got talking about herbs and such while he was checking up on me, so it took longer." Whitepaw lied, shrugging his shoulder as he started to hear the rushing waters of that dreadful border.

Thankfully Oakpaw didn't pry into it anymore, changing the subject. "So who did you think is the father of Fernheart's kits?" He asked, waving his tail back and forth. "They aren't born yet.." Whitepaw brought up, in which Oakpaw nudged his shoulder with a chuckle. "You know what I mean!" The question got Whitepaw thinking, since Fernheart still refused to answer any questions in relation to who was going to be the father of her kits. Usually when a queen refused to release that information, it was because of a break-up or some sort of accident, so Whitepaw just left it at that, but he was still curious as to who was Fernheart's mate, even for a brief moment. "Sunsight hasn't said anything on the matter, could be him.." Oakpaw then brought up, not letting Whitepaw answer, though he was a good candidate. Never had a mate, around the same age as Fernheart, though he didn't seem like the sort of cat to have a mate, and his personality didn't really fit well with Fernheart's.

"I'm sure whenever she feels comfortable, she'll let you gossipers know. Now shut up and keep your eyes ahead of you." Fiercespirit meowed aggressively behind him, which was enough to shut both apprentices' mouths for the moment. There’s the Fiercespirit I know. Whitepaw's eyes then made sure to stick in front of him,  beginning to see the trees far ahead of him slowly stop appearing. We must be close. He thought to himself, the bank leading up to the river with only one tree standing beside it, and the roar of rushing water becoming apparent in Whitepaw's ears. "So what's the point of marking the border with the water meaning no one could pass?" Oakpaw asked curiously, tilting his head as Whitepaw could almost see the thoughts swimming around in his head. Dogface's ugly mug then turned to face Oakpaw, but luckily before he could spit a nasty comment, Fiercespirit spoke up. "Can never be too safe. Remember, we aren't only marking our side of the border, but also checking for potential threats, like foxes or badgers." That seemed to satisfy Oakpaw enough to simply nod his head and Dogface grumbled quietly, turning his head back towards the rushing waves of the natural border between the two clans. "Rain won't help..." Dogface muttered, Whitepaw only then noticing the small specks of water splashing against his nose and back. Great...

"Got to make this quick then, right? Don't want any soggy coats and colds..." Oakpaw's bright voice didn't help Whitepaw's mood of the weather, only hoping he could hide his head back under the apprentices' den and nap until it was all gone. "Right. Make sure to keep a steady foot and don't run unless there's danger. Slipping and falling into the lake is the last thing we need." Dogface instructed with his dim green eyes firmly on Whitepaw, who simply nodded his head. As if I would do that! Whitepaw huffed in his mind, but not wanting to do anything to get Dogface angry. "How about we split up? There's a lot to mark, and we'd get it done quicker if two of us each went the opposite direction." Oakpaw then suggested, in which Fiercespirit gave him a proud look. "Good idea. Mentors with apprentices?" He then asked Dogface, and Whitepaw flattened his ears against his head. "No. Let these two go west, we'll go east." The scarred warrior answered flatly, giving Fiercespirit a hard look. "West is much less distance for them to cover, plus if they know how to mark a damn border and don't have ice for paws, they'll be fine. Let's get moving." The tan tom made sure to shut up any more disputes or questions to his order as the four then stood on the beginning of the smooth bank, only one tree planted in place right beside the water despite the stories of several floods crashing and destroying all other trees that sat close to it. It was clear the water had risen higher than it was not long ago, the feeling of wet soil and mud sticking to his paws unpleasant, and grass was ripped from the ground thanks to the strong waves.

But of course, the thing that caught Whitepaw's attention the most was the actual lake. With rain, the water would surely rise in some time, but even without it, it was still a scary sight. There was little to nothing a cat could grab onto if they fell in, and even if they did find something, climbing back up onto shore would be a significant challenge, only a few roots acting as pawholds for climbing from the tail-length gap between walkable land and waves of water. "Well, let's get going..." Oakpaw spoke towards Whitepaw, who was able to take his eyes off of the rushing black water for the first time since arriving on the bank and look towards his friend, who was already walking along the shore, with both Dogface and Fiercespirit already out of sight. Quickly, Whitepaw shook his head of his anxiety and rushed towards Oakpaw, who was already beginning to mark Darkclan territory.

Whitepaw didn't feel much up for talking, and thankfully Oakpaw seemed to notice that and kept quiet, silently walking along the dangerous border and making sure to keep her mouths open to catch any unusual scents. It was soon until they reached the edge of their border, looking out towards more forest that was unowned by any clan cat and any twoleg, thankfully. "Do you think Dogface would want us to meet back with him where we began or should we go back to camp?" Oakpaw asked, giving his pelt a proper shake to clean as much rain as he could, in which Whitepaw did the same. "Well, we should go back to the beginning just to be safe.." Whitepaw answered, in which Oakpaw nodded his head in agreement. Can't wait to get some rest... Whitepaw thought to himself, letting out a small purr as he imagined curling up in his nest and napping away the rest of this forsaken rain!

"So is this where Ratstar died?" Suddenly, Whitepaw was able to make out a voice from across the lake, and looking over, he was able to spot two fully grown cats and one small cat. Two warriors and an apprentice? Whitepaw guessed, assuming so since they were on Clawclan territory. Wait, who's Ratstar? He also thought, never having heard of a Ratstar in any of the stories Darkclan elders and warriors told. "Yes Smallpaw." One of the warriors answered, a tall calico tom with a gnarly scar running up his upper lip to his nose. "Do we know who did it?" The apprentice asked once again, a small light grey with a small overbite, a fang sticking out of his mouth and resting against his muzzle. "No, but maybe they do!" The other warrior answered, a tan tabby tom, and Whitepaw was surprised to see the warrior point over towards him and Oakpaw, not knowing the three were knowing of them being there.

"Uh, we didn't do anything to Ratstar, sorry!" Oakpaw yelled over, shaking his head as if to help his point. Why engage them... Whitepaw growled to himself, knowing they couldn't just walk away after that. "Of course, you two were probably still inside your mom's bellies when it happened, and even now you pose no threat to any grown cat!" The tan warrior snarled, causing Whitepaw to bristle up his fur. "But who else but the dirtiest cats in the forest to kill a leader in coldblood! Darkclan scum are a bunch of no good, murdering pigs!" He then accused from over the lake, getting Whitepaw's blood boiling. "How dare you!" Whitepaw yelled out in anger, slicing his claws along the earth below him, wanting nothing more than to teach the opposing warrior a lesson for ever saying something like that about his clanmates. "Exactly Tanstripe." To Whitepaw's surprise, it was the calico warrior who spoke up for the other clan, "Ratstar's death is a tragedy, but how dare you accuse another clan of the crime? Everyone in the clan knew there were scents of rogue near the lake, and Ratstar still went out by himself." The other warrior lectured the smaller tom, who was simply shaking his head in frustration in response to.

"We should get out of here..." Oakpaw whispered to Whitepaw, who couldn't agree more, quickly jogging back into the forest as the lecture continued on the other side of the lake. "So do you know who Ratstar is?" Whitepaw asked his clanmate, who shook his head. "No, Fiercespirit never told me about him, or any of the elders." He responded, which only confirmed Whitepaw's thoughts of the clan never speaking of the former leader. "Ratstar?" Fiercespirit's voice caught Whitepaw by surprise, and he turned his head to see the brown and white warrior looking at the two in confusion. "How do you two know who that is?" He asked, turning towards his son, probably knowing he was much more talkative and open than Whitepaw, especially to his own father. "Some Clawclan cats from across the border were talking about him and then accused us of killing him.... well not us specifcally, but one of our clan." Oakpaw explained, seeming more curious by the verbal engagement than angry like Whitepaw was. Immediately, Fiercespirit turned from curious to angry, his claws unsheathed. "Don't believe a word of it, Clawclan cats would rather believe one of us would 'dare harm their leader' than his own imcompetence being his own undoing. Now let's go." He explained with a growl, flicking his tail for the two to follow him back to camp, in which Whitepaw was glad about.

Back at camp, he saw his father speaking to Burrclaw and Sunsight, amber eyes narrow but intent and the fur along his spine bristling. What now? Whitepaw groaned to himself, after getting yelled at by some Clawclan warrior, he didn't want anymore trouble and the opportunity to simply rest. "Let's go and see what has happened." Dogface's deep voice caught Whitepaw offguard, especially what he was saying. "What... isn't this a concern for senior warriors?" He then asked, though the hard stare of Dogface shut up any protests. "Redstar wants you to become more involved in clan decisions." Dogface only said, and Whitepaw reluctantly followed his mentor forward to his father, a glare from Burrclaw making him flinch. "When do we attack?" Clawpaw's annoying tone then turned Whitepaw from anxious to annoyed, seeing his irritating face spit about fights like they were nothing!

" 'paw's got a point. We already taught those rabbit-chasers a lesson one time, and they are still dumb enough to invade our territory and steal our prey! Perhaps we leave more than a few scars for them to attend to." Burrclaw's bitter tone surprisingly backed up the apprentice, her brown gaze staring into Redstar's, almost begging for a chance to fight. "Swiftclan again?" Whitepaw asked, finding himself a seat in the small crowd. He could see that Clawpaw was about to say some sort of comment in response to him, but a quick snarl of Dogface shut those thoughts up quickly. "Yes, we found their scent all over the east side of the forest. Probably scared off every single mouse and squirrel there they didn't catch." Sunsight explained to the newcoming apprentice. "No way an unorganized patrol would have just done that in danger of getting in trouble with Mountainstar and how adamantly he tells his warriors to abide by the code. It was planned and instructed by Mountainstar, we simply can't let that slide." The warrior then told Redstar, who had his dark pupils on the sky.

"We've attacked a patrol and that wasn't enough for them to back up, we need to hit them harder." Dogface's deep voice sent a chill down Whitepaw's spine, seeing the sadistic eyes of Clawpaw and Burrclaw egging Redstar on. After a few more silent moments, the leader spoke once more, his tone clear as his claws dug into the ground below him. "Very well. You all made good points, which is why at dawn two sunrises from now, we will raid their camp. We will tear them apart and wipe them from the plains."

[frogmanwritings]

Whiteheart’s Decision | Chapter Six

"What on earth was that?" Dogface's bitter voice rung in Whitepaw's ears as his face was planted into the ground, paws outstretched to try and catch a mouse. It had been 2 full moons since his last gathering where he was yelled at by his father, and ever since then, Dogface was super strict with his training. Training was something that Whitepaw looked forward to when he was a kit, but now he was starting to see why Blazepaw always complained about it after each day. Today, he was on hunting patrol with his mentor, along with Cactuspaw and Firefrog, and he was excited to show off his skills to his denmate, who always bragged about the prey he caught on patrol. And he was THIS close to snagging the rodnet with his claws and killing it, but it dove down into its hole just in the nick of time. Now he just felt Cactuspaw's teasing eyes burn deep into her fur as he slowly got up from the ground.

"It's no problem Dogface, the mouse won't be down there forever, I'm sure Whitepaw will get the next one." Firefrog kindly stated to the angry warrior, giving the embarrassed apprentice a flick on his shoulder with his tail. "Worry about your own apprentice, Firefrog..." Dogface simply grunted to the orange tabby, stepping away from him and glaring at Whitepaw. Even with Dogface's angry and disappointed glare looming over him, the apprentice gave a small nod to Firefrog as a thanks for the nice words, forcing himself back up onto his paws.

"Well that thump probably rung in the ears of all prey around here, how about you two-" Dogface snarled in the direction of the two apprentices, "-go south and see if you can't bring back anything. My paws are aching, having to carry this patrol..." Oh please! One little bird and he thinks he's done all the work! Whitepaw quietly retorted, simply nodding his head in acknowledge as he looked at Firefrog. "And me?" Firefrog quickly asked, just before Dogface disappeared behind a bush. A cringe went throughout the warrior's scarred body, as if those words just hit him with a pile of snow. "You... can mark the Swiftclan border then come back.." He muttered under his breath, just barely reaching Whitepaw's ears. "And if I see some Swiftclan cats?" Firefrog once again asked, sending a stronger shudder throughout the annoyed warrior's body. "If they are on their side of the border, there is no issue, just mark it and leave. If they are OUR side, then use those legs and run back to camp, do I seriously have to baby you through this?" He angrily instructed, beginning to walk away.

"Hey!" Cactuspaw's loud voice came out of nowhere, surprising Whitepaw as he had almost forgotten his denmate was there. Looking over, his friend had a mischevious look on his face, as if annoying the senior warrior was funny. Oh no.. Dogface almost didn't stop, wanting nothing more than to just leave and lay in his nest, but he did stop.  Not only did he stop, but he turned around and stomped his way over to the cocky apprentice, broad face hovering over his. "What?" He asked in a gritty, menacing tone, long claws unsheathed and the beginning of a snarl on his muzzle. It seemed that Cactuspaw immediately regretted his decision, the look of mischief on his face replaced with fear. "..N-..N..othing.." The spiky apprentice's stuttered words were forced out of his mouth, ears flattened and tail curled in between his legs. It seemed that answer wasn't enough for Dogface, lowering his head even further, forcing the apprentice to then flop down onto his belly. "No, you are going to let me know why you just called me back here, or else..." He bitterly snarled, those sharp, yellow teeth bared and looming over Cactuspaw's face, small drops of saliva dropping down from his jaws.

Whitepaw desperately looked over towards Firefrog, to see if he would do anything to stop this. It seemed the ginger warrior looked just as disgusted by the act as Whitepaw was feeling, but he kept sat behind, not daring to defy the powerful tom. He's your apprentice, do something! He silently willed on the young cat, but it was no matter, he simply sat still. Looking back at Dogface and Cactuspaw, it seemed no progress was being made. The spiky apprentice refused to speak at all, not being able to come up with an excuse, while Dogface seemed to be waiting for the excuse. Suddenly, there was movement as Dogface then lifted up a paw, claws extended. Cactuspaw was frozen in place, all he could do was close his eyes as the senior warrior prepared his strike.

No! Whitepaw thought in shock, acting on reflex as he pushed his hind paws into the ground and springing them towards Dogface, slamming right against his chest and using all his strength to shove him away. Thankfully the warrior was taken by surprise, sent backwards several tail-lengths, his striking paw only catching a tuft of fur on Cactuspaw's shoulder. "Cactuspaw!" Firefrog called out, now rushing over to his apprentice to check on him. Whitepaw let out a grunt as he worked his way back onto his paws, shaking himself clean of dust, only to see his mentor do the same. Cactuspaw was still stuck in place, limbs shaking as his head tilted to face Firefrog. Dogface's glare would look towards his attacker, seething with rage at what just happened. He had never looked more like a rabid dog as he did in that moment, teeth bared in anger, huge claws digging into the ground as he stared hatefully at Whitepaw.

Whitepaw was just about to bolt off in order to not get slashed into pieces, but it was then when Dogface gave himself a final shake of his coat before walking away, back towards camp, as if the incident never happened. There was a few moments of complete silence, the apprentice almost expecting the warrior to jump out from the shadows and attack him, but nothing... "A...are you crazy?!" Were the words to break the silence, coming from the cowering Cactuspaw. Whitepaw quickly rushed over, thankful to see the strike only caught fur. "No... I just didn't want you to get hurt..." He answered in a small tone, embarrassed to say it but not wanting to lie. "You two should go back to camp, I'll do hunting and bordor patrol." Firefrog ordered, using a paw to help his apprentice back up onto his paws. "But what if Dogface..." Cactuspaw began to ask, only getting his words muffled by Whitepaw's tail. "Thanks Firefrog." He simply stated, before nudging Cactuspaw the way of camp.

Thankfully, Cactuspaw didn't budge, walking alongside Whitepaw back to camp. It was silent once again, except for the occassional bird chirp, just teasingly out of reach for an outstretched paw to swipe and shut it up. Every few steps, Whitepaw would look over to his side to see how Cactuspaw was doing, and each time he couldn't read his expression. He had calmed down from before, but there were still some dots of fear in his sunny gaze. Soon, they had reached the bushy entrance to camp, Whitepaw feeling the wet leaves of the entrance damp his flank. It had rained the previous night, irritating the white tom to no end as the constant drizzle constantly interrupted his well-deserved rest. Having his nest right next to the entrance of the den didn't help, droplets of the cursed water falling right onto his nose just as he began to doze off. Dawnsight said there were going to be some more drizzles coming up in the following days, but none as heavy and loud as the previous one, thankfully.

"Thanks." Cactuspaw's voice then interrupted Whitepaw's thoughts, and the next thing he knew, he was standing alone at the entrance of camp with his spiky friend hopping down the ledges to the clearing, meeting up with Amberleaf. Whitepaw then let out a small chuckle, his mind free from the near-fight with his mentor as he saw the two brush their cheeks together and go to the fresh-kill pile. Cactuspaw was practically still a kit with his attitude, and yet he had managed to snag the interests of a young and pretty warrior in Amberleaf, and he wouldn't be surprised to hear of the two becoming mates the second Cactuspaw became a warrior. Luckily for Whitepaw, Amberleaf had grown much more mature in her few moons after her warrior ceremony, leaving her cruel pranks in the past and becoming a warrior of loyalty, though she was still a bit snarky.

It was a nice thing to see two cats getting along so well, as some of the others faces in Darkclan were a complete opposite. Dogface and Burrclaw were always at each other's throats in arguments over the smallest of things, Ocelotpaw, the oldest apprentice in the clan, often bickered with the other apprentices, even the leader and deputy of the clan, Redstar and Duckthroat, exchanged ill-intended words on occasion. Even the new queen in the nursery, Fernheart, refused to let others know who the father of her unborn kits was, and gave a nasty spit in the way of anyone who asked. It was odd, since she was usually very sweet and quick to help others out.

"Move it, dirt-for-brains!" Suddenly a high-pitched voice came from behind Whitepaw, and he couldn't react as he had a head knock right against his flank, knocking out from the entrance and into the clearing. It wasn't a dangerous fall, the gap from the entrance to the floor was around two fox-lengths, but it still wasn't pleasant to get knocked down like he did. Luckily he was able to balance himself and land on unsteady paws, sliding along them a few tail-lengths, burning and scrapping his paw-pads in the process against the earth. Quickly, Whitepaw gazed up towards the entrance to see just who did the mean act. "See, he's fine! He's not that much of a mouse!" Clawpaw called behind him from the entrance, before safely hopping down the earthy ledges set along a slope down into the camp. Following him would be Burrclaw, Pantherpelt, and Blazepaw, all of them carrying prey except for Clawpaw.

Clawpaw, ever since his apprentice ceremony where he was given Redstar as his mentor, had been nothing but a complete nuisance to everyone with his entitlement. Beforehand, he was a curious, yet quiet kit who wasn't such an annoyance to be around. "Hey, watch where you are going, dingus!" Whitepaw angrily yelled in the direction of his pusher, who was heading the way of Cactuspaw and Peachpaw sitting at the entrance of the apprentices' den. "And the mouse speaks! Thought you had lost your tongue there!" Clawpaw loudly stated, gathering the attention of everyone in camp.

Great.. Whitepaw thought, feeling the curious gaze of all his clanmates burning down onto him. He wouldn't mind an argument with the cocky tom, but not with most of the clan now eagerly awaiting the next exchanged words. Surprisingly, it wasn't neither apprentice who broke the silence, but Glasspaw, who had padded up next to Whitepaw. "Me and Dawnsight should check on your pads, skidding along the hard ground isn't good for them." Her delicate voice told Whitepaw, who nodded his head, happy to try and get everyone's sight off of him. "Yeah, that's right! Go away and get your tiny paws looked at!" Clawpaw's annoying voice rung in his ears as he followed the medicine cat apprentice into Dawnsight's den, who then began to take a look at his paw-pads. Now if things could be as calm and cool in here as they were out there... Whitepaw quietly thought to himself as Dawnsight and Glasspaw silently worked together to treat his scrapped pads, his mind drifting to the idea of becoming a medicine cat, though he knew he would never be able to remember every single herb Dawnsight had to know, as well as far away they seemed from the rest of the clan. Whitepaw wanted to have friends and possibly a mate, be a strong warrior who served his clan with his teeth and claws, not his herb knowledge.

"Now, go ahead and rest for the rest of the day, your pads should be as good as new by tommorrow, though not if you just drag them in dirt." Dawnsight's calm voice ordered Whitepaw, who had no problem in exiting the medicine cat's den, going into the apprentice's and resting himself in his nest, flattening his ears against his head to muffle the usual commotion happening outside as he slowly drifted off to sleep.