Open Territory IT GETS BETTER ʚɞ hunting attempt

[SWALLOWBREEZE]

once upon a time, swallowbreeze hunted for her own meals like the rest of the warrior apprentices. their gorge wasn't bursting at the seams with prey, but enough patience granted you a skinny mouse. she had the will to wait for something to scurry in the underbrush, although young swallowpaw didn't have the skills to actually grab catch it. every attempt ended up with her making a fool out of herself with only her mentor as witness.

while out in the territory, swallowbreeze catches the scent of something she almost never does— a rare squirrel, minding it's business a few tail-lengths away by a tree. the urge to try and pounce at it tugs at her brain, and she realizes common cat instincts never goes away, even if you're devoted to the opposite.

she crouches awkwardly, heart pounding in her chest, tail hanging loosely above her. swallowbreeze inches too closely, makes too much noise, and miscalculates her jump. instead of catching a squirrel in her jaws, swallowbreeze's head collides with a thud against the bark of a tree, leaf litter and dust kicking up around her. how she managed to mess up that badly is beyond her, she rises to her paws in defeat, rubbing the spot on her head where it'd struck.

"uh—i slipped!" she squeaks out, ears swiveling when she hears the sounds of clanmates nearby. pelt burning with embarrassment, she tries to clean up the area around her, shuffling even more bits of leaves and dirt around her.

 

[Quailstep Quailstep]

Quailstep is out for just a little stroll, feeling confined by the dour air in camp after the Gathering, when she hears...

Oh, no.

They see Swallowbreeze right as she thumps into the tree, and Quailstep can't help but flinch at the sound. That's gotta hurt...

Best to pretend she didn't see it actually happen.

"You'll get the next one for sure!" she calls, padding over with a spring in her step. Her teeth close around a stray leaf on the medicine cat's fur, and she lets it flutter to the ground. "Want some company?"

OOC PROFILE

• 
  Tagging: @SWALLOWBREEZE
  
• 
  SkyClan Warrior
  35 moons || she/they
  SPEECH || THOUGHTS
  

 

[brightnose!'s icon brightnose! brightnose!]

Brightnose treads carefully through the territory, not wanting to make a sound as she follows the scent-trail of prey. She often goes on hunting excursions, especially in this warmer weather; the sunlight feels as though it's seeping into her very core, filling her with energy that she in turn uses to aid her Clan.

When Brightnose spots her target - a squirrel, blissfully unaware of the cat that's stalking after it - she notices another presence in the form of a fellow Clanmate. Pausing, Brightnose observes her, tilting her head with curiosity. She remains in her crouched position, deciding to watch Swallowbreeze's attempt to catch the squirrel... only for her to unceremoniously slam her head against the trunk of a nearby tree with a sound that's ringing even in Brightnose's head. Ouch.
Despite her initial recoil at the sight of Swallowbreeze's blunder, she has to hold back her laughter as she decides to rise from her crouch and approach the other cat. "Are you alright?" she asks. "That looked like it hurt..."

She watches as Quailstep attempts to encourage the poor medicine cat and offer her company. "That's not a bad idea," Brightnose says. "If you're unopposed, I wouldn't mind accompanying you myself. At the very least, there'd be somecat around to make sure your head's okay."​

 

[DUSKPOOL]

DUSKPOOL​

Duskpool couldn't help but wince at the fumble, brow quirkin' toward the molly, silently questionin' if the youngster was alright. "Ain't got a concussion now, do ya?" He rumbled lowly, havin' dropped the squirrel from his solo huntin' expedition with Sweetpaw. It ought to have hurt, both her pride and her noggin'.

Peerin' closer, the wooly-furred male could only huff in amusement, lips quirked. "Can't say it was all too bad." He remarked gruffly, wooly plumage sweepin' in Sweetpaw's direction, beckonin' the kid as he padded forward, subtly lookin' for blood, only to find none, easin' the old man's consciousness. "Can't be too put off by it. Reckon I'd forget what herbs to use, becomin' a medicine cat n' all that ain't a good look for me." He snorted.

His molten iris drifted to Brightnose and Quailstep with a flick of his mangled ear, "Takin' a walk ain't too bad. Reckon the lot of ya have fun, eh?" He mused after a heartbeat, chin tiltin' in Sweetpaw's direction, "Got a few more things to do before I let the squirt loose." He rumbled.

we're only haunted by the things we refuse to accept

ooc

information

main ref

• @sweetpaw
• 

  DUSKPOOL stands like a storm given flesh, broad-shouldered and unyielding. His frame was built from the bloodlines of a Norwegian Forest and Maine Coon, every inch steeped in the weight of a life hard-lived. His pelt is a wooly black smoke mantle, thick as winter fog and marked with faint mackerel stripes. Old scars score his flanks and shoulders like lightning carved into the night sky, with each one telling a story that was paid for in blood.
  
  One molten-copper eye burns fierce and unblinking, sharp enough to cut through lies, while the other is nothing but a hollowed ruin. A sunken relic of a battle he walked away from when he shouldn't have. His tail is a heavy, swaying banner of shadow, and his paws are silent despite their size, measured by someone who's learned patience the hard way.
  
  He carries himself with the gravity of an old war-chief, regular in ruin, yet brutal in beauty. His very presence is a warning that some storms don't pass. They wait. And they return.
  
  

  "there's two kinds of cats in this world. those who learn from others' mistakes, and those who are the mistake."​

  
  senior sun guard of skyclan during coffeestar and hawkstar's reign (mentor to sweetpaw)
  eighty-three moons; ages on the 1st of every month
  brother to outlawbite & thistlestrike; half-brother to flowercloud; father to almondpaw & cinderpaw (wolfstorm & lostmoon)
  his voice is a low, gravel-rough baritone, measured and deliberate, carrying the weight of old battles and unspoken truths
  his scent is a deep grounding mix of cedarwood and patchouli, laced with the sharpness of pine and a lingering curl of smoke
  pinterest | playlist | theme song
  speech thought action
  peaceful/healing powerplay permitted
• ​

 

[SWALLOWBREEZE]

the worst case scenario... another clanmate approaching out of concern. quailstep is a generous tabby to be caught by at least, but swallowbreeze's ears still heat up from the commotion. she offers a small hum in response, rubbing a paw over her head to push off any remaining leaves.

"i'm fine." she admits when brightnose comes out of the bushes, rubbing the spot where the pain had bloomed, checking for a comical bump. "company would be nice, thank you, both... it gets boring out here alone. besides, i don't think i'm going to hobble over." swallowbreeze tries to add some light humor, but overthinks the implication of their healer suffering a head wound, and silently takes it back.

duskpool's rumbles remind her to at the very least, take some raspberry leaves over poppy seeds when she gets back. "maybe we can uhm... go in the direction of my raspberry plant." her muzzle quirks into an awkward smile, shoulders bouncing in a forced chuckle.

 

[brightnose!'s icon brightnose! brightnose!]

♡

BRIGHTNOSE - SKYCLAN WARRIOR

Brightnose looks a bit relieved when Duskpool judges the damage to be minimal - amusing or not, if the fumble had caused any kind of bad injury for SkyClan's medicine cat, it'd spell trouble. She smiles at him when his gaze moves in her direction, nodding in agreement with him.
"Agreed - it's a lovely Greenleaf day, best not to waste it cooped up in our dens."

She chuckles a bit at Swallowbreeze's joke. "I'd sure hope not." She gives a playful flick of her tail, and she pads closer upon Swallowbreeze's suggestion of going toward the raspberry plant.
"Sounds good to me - lead the way," she says, waiting patiently to follow her through the territory.

CHARACTER INFO

Basic info Detailed info Tags

• 
  
  
  Brightnose | she/her | SkyClan warrior
  
  "A gray striped tabby cat with patches of white on her paws, tail, and face."
  
  age - 19 moons old
  
  main skills - hunting and tracking
  
  traits- quiet, curious, loyal
  
  "speaking" | thinking
  penned by jharmonia
  
  
  
• Brightnose is a mostly gray she-cat, with lighter fur on one side of her face and darker, swirly stripes along her pelt. She also sports white patches on her face, right ear, chest + belly, tail-tip, and paws. Her eyes are forest green, and her skin is a salmon pink. Her left ear has a couple tears in it, and her nose has a small scar, from an incident that occurred during her apprenticeship.
  Brightnose has always excelled more at hunting, thus this is where she feels most confident in aiding her Clan. When it comes to fighting, however, she can fall a bit short despite trying her hardest. Conflict worries her, and deep down she fears that she might not be able to protect her Clanmates properly if she needs to.
  Though she is sociable, she tends to keep to herself, valuing her alone time when not on patrol or other assigned duties. She enjoys spending her evenings in the corner of camp, catwatching (and sometimes daydreaming). Due to her curious nature, however, she does have a tendency to listen in on conversations that she's not a part of. This can occasionally lead to trouble, as some things aren't meant for her ears to hear...
• [tags here]

 

[Quailstep Quailstep]

Quailstep chuckles, refraining from offering her shoulder for the medicine cat to lean on. Instead she looks quietly to her other Clanmates and then dips her head to Swallowbreeze.

"We'd be happy to help," she mews. "Lead on!"

OOC PROFILE

• 
  
• 
  SkyClan Warrior
  35 moons || she/they
  SPEECH || THOUGHTS