Closed The Colony I Can Fit Two || Mentoring

[GravelPath]

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This time of year, there's no better place to rest than high in a tree. When the ground becomes cold with frost and snow, retreating onto a branch is the perfect place to sleep, if you want to keep your fur dry. You could sleep in one of the dens, of course, but with the colony in the state it's in, you'll likely be awoken from some scuffle or argument. Gravel simply doesn'thave the time or energy to waste with other cats issues, so the bare forest trees serve them well as a roost.

It comes with entertainment, too. The high perch gives Gravel a clear view from quite a ways off - not that they need to look for to find anything worth watching.

Beneath the tree, Eagle is stalking a sparrow. Gravel watches through lidded eyes as the young tomcat crouches down low, shifting his paws underneath him as he moves into position. In an instant, he leaps forward, claws outstretched, towards his prey. As soon as his paws leave the ground, the sparrow startles, and flys out of the brushwhere it hid- with the rest of the flock following suit. Gravel covers their ears as their perch is consumed, just for a second, in the sound of wingbeats.

Gravel can't tell you what possessed them to do what they did next. If asked, they would say it was a sense of pity for the youth of their colony, forced to hunt prey above their means just to fill their bellies. Perhaps the real answer is simpler - the commotion had woken them up, and there was little chance of falling back asleep. Maybe they just wanted to see what would happen.

"You'll never catch anything like that." Gravel called, as they made their way back down the tree. "And if you go scaring away all the birds, nobody else will catch anything either"

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[eaglepaw]

Ugly post, I'm tired I'll fix later//

Eagle was starving. While others ventured further, he found his paws staying near to the camp. He didn't know what was out there, and though curious, he knew his way around here. And if he was close, he could protect Currant better. His sister was his everything.

It was as if someone was wishing him luck, for he found a flock of birds. The grumble of his stomach was enough to drive him forward. Claws outstretched, he'd leap without thinking, and take a nosedive into dirt. Birds flew up around him, and as he shook the dirt from his frozen pelt, teeth gritted in the cold, golden eyes would look up to gravel, eyes widening at the help he offered.

If he took it, he could get help and bring prey to him and his sister, so with greed in his heart, he took a step forward to where the other climbed down. "Then show me! I, I tried my best!" He said, the small boy insistent on that fact. He thought he did it perfect, but they were startled to quickly.

 

[GravelPath]

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------ Gravel meets Eagle's sparkling gaze with a cool smile. The little tomcat's earnestness was awfully endearing. An attitude like that was sure to cause him trouble later on, but for now, it may been a boon to him.


------ "Well, there's surely nothing left here to hunt, with all of that noise. Come with me." Gravel flicks their tail forward, in a gesture to follow. Without looking back, they lead Eagle farther and farther from camp. Before they fell asleep, they had seen a small hunting party move just north of camp - which means that Gravel and their protege should head just north east of them.

"Here -there's a party hunting just upwind of us. Anything they lose should run down this way. Stay sharp. And be quiet." Gravel opens their mouth to taste the air, following the trail to a pile of discarded branches. "Can you see it?" they whispered, dropping into a crouch. There was a vole in the pile- based on the metallic smell, it had already been injured.

"You should go to the other side, and try to hunt it from there."

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