still a bit sleepy [TC patrol]

[snowpetal]

snowpetal♥‏‏.

Waking into the sunny morning, snowpetal spread her mouth wide in a yawn. it was going to be a hot day, and snowpetal couldn't get herself to get out of her nest and face it. she wasn't particularly a big fan of heat, and staying here in her soft moss-filled nest seemed a lot better than going out into the forest. but of course, she didn't really have a choice. standing up on all fours and starting to stretch, snowpetal walked out into the clearing. the sun was well up in the sky, and she hadn't realized how late in the day it was. most of the cats were already moving about, and the patrol that she had been assigned to was supposed to meet right about now. actually, she was probably a bit late. to her surprise, none of the other cats in her patrol were gathered yet. she let out a sigh and sat down in the center of the clearing.

Laying her fluffy tail across her paws, she yawned again. it was strange, she was never this tired. shaking her head and blinking her eyes to wake herself up, she started to lick her fur clean. there were a few stray bits of moss from her nest still in her fur, and they were annoying her, just hanging from her gray locks. now just to wait for crowflight, wolfstep, sunstreak, and ghostpaw. laying down and closing her eyes, she yawned for the last time and fell asleep, bored from waiting.

puppet;; snowpetal
count;; 253
muse;; horrid, just wanted to get it started
directed towards;; TealClan patrol: Ghostpaw, wolfstep, crowflight, and sunstreak

[sunstreak]

Sunstreak

A she-cat, upon catching sight of Snowpetal, made her way over to the pretty gray figure waiting for the rest of the patrol in the clearing. She almost quickened her step, afraid that she was late but when she got closer and realized only Snowpetal was present, she took a deep breath, her shoulders dropping in relief. It was hot today and she didn’t realize how hot until she stepped out of the shadows into the full glory of the sun’s scorching rays. A slight humid breeze rippled through her ginger pelt like flickering flames, the copper streaks in her coat blazing in the light.

She smiled and nodded a hello to Snowpetal when she got within sight, sitting down beside her and curled a long ginger tail around her back legs. She wasn’t the smallest, most willowy she-cat around, sitting next to Snowpetal made that comparison very clear. Her stockiness made her very self-conscious at times, especially when sitting next to dazzling slender she-cats, delicate and graceful and enough to make any tom’s head turn. It was a wonder in itself that Wolfstep even took a second glance her direction.

Speaking of Wolfstep, her rich brown eyes scanned over the camp, seeing no trace of the long-haired gray tom she had come to lov--...well like very much, she thought to herself stubbornly. Old habits died hard…and it was difficult for her to admit that she could fall victim to an emotion as crippling as love. To surrender herself into the arms of another cat, to rely upon another for protection, security, happiness, was a luxury that previously, Sunstreak would have never thought to be possible. Growing up as a rogue, well…love was laughed at, one made the best choices in the current situation and if another, more appealing opportunity came along, you dropped whatever you had, regardless. Sunstreak was sure that was how she came to be abandoned by her mother, and only by good fortune, was taken in by TealClan. She owed everything to the cats that changed her life, Crimsonstar, Eveningrain, and especially Wolfstep. Why he even took an interest in the scruffy ginger apprentice that she was, she would never know, or at least, she thought it was interest. While she was becoming an experienced warrior, she was incredibly behind in the matters of the heart…how did toms act when they liked a she-cat? Things had been alluded to, but she couldn’t help but think that if he just spit out what he was feeling exactly, this would all be a whole lot easier. She could grasp, “I like you very much Sunstreak.” It was harder for her to interpret lingering glances and rosy-hued cheeks.

She sighed at the thought, wondering if she really was destroying her chances with him—if that’s what she wanted, she was never exactly sure about her feelings—by not being more open about her own thoughts. Perhaps she should just flat out tell him, she shifted her weight uncomfortably at that idea, and she could hopefully lift this veil of confusion that seemed to have descended upon their relationship. Everything seemed easier when they were playing together when she was an apprentice…she smiled at the thought, while searching in vain once more for his familiar gray pelt. It just seemed like they never had a moment alone, and Sunstreak still wasn’t sure whether she could pluck up the necessary courage.

She turned her head to Snowpetal. “Hopefully everyone comes soon, it would be better to patrol while its cooler,” she commented, glancing again over the camp.

[ghostpaw]

they were surprisingly similar. there was the blocky-shouldered warrior with his pale tabby fur and beside him the nearly-grown apprentice in his long dark locks. the apprentice padded along with a lightness that was wholly unlike him. usually at that hour of the morning, he would have complained aloud to starclan for having to wake so early. but for the time being, he pranced alongside wolfstep, a mouse hanging from his jaws. the warrior, on the other hand, was moving in a graceful, rolling gait with his dark eyes lost in some sort of thought.

this was supposed to be a win-win situation. neither of them particularly liked or disliked the other, but they simply weren't very similar types of cats. wolfstep was overly-quiet, ever lost in thought. he obeyed every order without a word, loyalty and devotion shining in his dark eyes when it came to serving his clan. ghostpaw, on the other hand, could not have been more different. every other sentence out of his mouth was a complaint of one type or another. he was angsty and angry half the time and half-asleep the other half. but there was a dreamy air about both toms that made them so vaguely similar. most cats never got the chance to see it, but ghostpaw would spend hours at night staring up at the stars long after his clanmates had slipped away to sleep. it was in those dark hours of the night that he was most reasonable, most charitable and friendly. so perhaps the reason he was so awake was because he hadn't yet gone to sleep at all that night.

they had left camp when the sky was still dark. neither had really said anything. they had simply looked at each other and felt the same stroke of genius. both were hoping loststar or crowflight would be somewhere around when they pranced into camp. ghostpaw wanted to be seen waking early and taking incentive to hunt for his clan. wolfstep wanted to be seen spending time with one of the clan's few apprentices. ghostpaw wanted to be made a warrior, and wolfstep wanted to become a mentor. so it really was beneficial to the both of them.

as ghostpaw padded closer to the camp, his mirth evaporated. he had just recalled that he had a patrol to take part in. he had banked on being able to make his little show of hard work, then go sleep until sunhigh. but, no, now he had to stay up probably all day. he made a small noise of annoyance as they slipped past the large boulders and into the lake-clan's camp. two she-cats were already seated in the center of the clearing, obviously waiting for the patrol to begin. to top it all off, ghostpaw didn't catch sight of either the leader nor the deputy. what a waste. he dropped his kill in the fresh-kill pile, glancing backwards as he noticed the warrior wasn't at his side anymore. the dark apprentice smirked.

wolfstep kept his face down, trying to hide the expression on his face. but ghostpaw was close enough to see the strange glow that hid there. the younger tom glanced back over his shoulder towards the two she-cats. lovely gray snowpetal was yawning quietly, sleep still evident in her eyes. the pretty she-warrior, ghostpaw knew, had already caught the eyes of several toms in the clan. but he also knew it wasn't for her that wolfstep's eyes filled with emotion. at snowpetal's side, the rising sun had set a cat afire. sunstreak was recognized as one of tealclan's most loyal, hard-working warriors, not as a beauty. but ghostpaw could vaguely understand. the sun caught on her dark ginger fur, and she seemed to glow gold from where the two toms stood. she looked like a starclan cat inversed: instead of haunting and pale silver, brilliant gold and so very much alive. and wolfstep's eyes had mirrored the glow that seemed to radiate off her compact frame.

" g'morning, ladies, " ghostpaw purred, turning back to them and padding to sunstreak's side. " sunstreak, tell wolfstep to hurry up. he's been dragging his eyes since we got up this morning. "

he didn't miss the strange look the tom-warrior shot him: both accusing and amused. the dark apprentice returned the expression with a smug glance.

" where's crowflight? the deputy himself is late! " the apprentice exclaimed with a purr, his cheer returned in part by his teasing words.

[crowflight]

{CROWFLIGHT}

the clouds swirled high before, in a mist of faded color that seemed mismatched against the shimmering blue of the sky. when crowflight had gotten home from his walk along the border and his unplanned meeting with one of cherryclan's own warriors ,the tom had found himself free in those moments -- mostly due to the fact that he had miscalculated and forgotten that his patrol was assigned to the sunhigh patrol, rather than the dawn patrol. so, quietly, he had slipped out of camp again to do some hunting before the time came.

recently, crowflight found himself spending even less times in camp. he wasn't honestly sure why it was, just that he felt uncomfortable and almost fidgety when he was in camp, that prickle of uncertainty creating a rising discomfort in his spine. it was more liable that there, in camp, memories of a forgotten warrior - bathed in moonlight colors of water-blue and forest-green eyes - would come rushing back, along with that familiar twist of his heart.

somehow, he didn't think he could try that and risk her memories coming back to haunt him, if she weren't to accompany them. yet, for more moons than he could count he knew that oceansong had done the very same, haunted him in his life and in his dreams -- yet he hadn't been deterred by that at all, hadn't let it faze his life, neglect his training or other such work, hadn't let his responsibilities pay for the price of it. he remembered her ghost a smile, her sweet lavender scent, and everything about her as though his former-love were still alive and with him. even if she didn't occur nearly as frequently, now that he had found himself refreshed and broken by another she-cat.

it seemed, however, he couldn't take eclipsedmoon though. she was far from dead, but based on his own memories it seemed as if she was. crowflight had made sure, by now, to fight all memories of her through fear that if she did reappear, he wouldn't be able to function properly. he was running away, he knew it, but there wasn't anything he could do to stop it.

the silver tom sighed again, before straightening his shoulder as the camp came into view. the deputy had a feeling he was late, but if the firmness in his step and that glint in his eye was any condolence, he wasn't disturbed by it. he padded into camp, past the patrol, dropped the prey he had caught on the freshkill pile, and turned around again, his ears twitching as he caught ghostpaw's words. this was done in the very silence he was well known for, just like whoosh of air or a crow's soundless wings, and with that very same quietness, he padded up behind ghostpaw. "have something to say to me, ghostpaw?" he meowed softly, though his voice crackled like ice.

the tom watched the younger apprentice for a moment, instantly recognizing the same features in him that were present in nightpaw and symbolized them as kin, before his expression eased slightly. (somehow, though, he wasn't concerned with the fact ghostpaw might find offense in his frosty reply) there was a moment of silence that lingered before crowflight lifted his head again, caught the rest of the cats in the patrol with the same coal-blue gaze, and flicked his tail. " shall we start?" he asked, almost pleasantly.

even if his mind was whirling with stress, he was determined not to let her get to him. the solution had struck him on his way back to camp. it was simple. he would forget eclipsedmoon. entirely.

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`what would that accomplish? *

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[sunstreak]

Sunstreak

She laughed brightly at the young apprentice’s comment. While she knew that many other warriors would be irritated, impatient, or even be insulted by Ghostpaw’s casual and occasional snarky commented, Sunstreak took it all in stride, remembering that not too long ago she was the same cynical and hard-headed apprentice.

“Really? Well it’s a good thing you were there to get the furry lump out of bed,” she remarked, flicking the gray apprentice good naturedly with her tail. Ghostpaw didn’t seem so bad after all. A little cocky and moody perhaps but nothing a good mentor and some worldly experience wouldn’t fix right up. It seemed to her that he could use a friend here anyway.

Although a cheerful grin beamed brightly down at Ghostpaw, her eyes were all for the warrior beside him. Perhaps Ghostpaw was right, Wolfstep did look a bit dumbfounded, as she turned her dark brown eyes to him, surprised to find he was staring back, just as intensely. As if she might disappear at any second, untouchable, illuminated in his eyes in this one quick moment. Her face heated up and she privately thanked StarClan for her dark ginger fur. Hopefully he wouldn’t see her awkwardness under his gaze that made her feel dazzling and uncomfortable homely at the same time.

Missing the exchange between the two toms before her, she walked over to Wolfstep’s side, brushing her cinnamon-colored pelt against his slate fur and leaning into him ever so gently.
“Ghostpaw’s right, you look a little dazed,”she commented, half teasingly, half worryingly, before the familiar form of their deputy came into view.

Moving away from the warrior beside her, she nodded towards Crowflight and moved to the front. “C’mon Ghostpaw, let’s see if there is a warrior behind all that talk,” she commented with a laugh. She didn’t think Crowflight was actually offended, his frosty demeanor was something that was used often to put apprentices in their place. It would be interesting though whether Ghostpaw would maintain a respectful silence or continue to step over the line.

It was all she could do though to keep her mind off Wolfstep. It wouldn’t help her chances for an apprentice if Crowflight saw her tripping all over herself just because a tom was there. She had to learn now, especially if she and Wolfstep ever got together…if…that was definitely a big if. The ginger warrior wasn’t sure if she could make it any more clear. Friends didn’t casually brush up against each other…or did they? Her lack of social experience was continuing to be her downfall. What good was loyalty and fighting skills if she couldn’t even understand social interactions?

"Where are we patrolling today Crowflight?" Sunstreak asked, turning her dark gaze to the dazzling blue gaze of her deputy.

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