The fragile heat spell that had graced the moor soon fell away, leaving behind a familiar nip in the air. The very night that the patrol had set out, in fact, was the night of which the chill set in.
Doepaw hated the cold. She had thought that they were done with it for the season, and she saw no reason as to why Leaf-bare needed to make a surprise appearance.
Her fur fluffed out to twice it's size (which wasn't actually that large), Doepaw watched from the apprentices' den as Willowpaw fetched a moorhen for them to share. Her sister had no problem with any kinds of temperatures, it seemed, and was happily engaged in a conversation with Creampatch, her mentor. Doepaw felt like yelling at her to hurry up, but that would've just been rude.
Willowpaw seemed to notice the impatience that her sister was giving off, and waved her tail in a hasty good-bye. The two sisters moved a bit deeper into the den to share the meal. Doepaw would have to admit - the one good thing about the insulation was the warmth that this place retained. The space had gone from cramped to cozy in a matter of degrees overnight.
"I'm going out on dawn patrol," Willowpaw mentioned, sinking her teeth into the fat on the stomach of the bird.
Doepaw nodded. "Who's going with you?" She prompted. She preferred the meat on the wings, personally, but she didn't really enjoy birds in general. She preferred rabbits and mice, as well as others that fit the category of rodent.
Willowpaw finished chewing before she spoke. "Creampatch, obviously, Toadsong, Frostwhisker, and me."
Doepaw's stomach fluttered at the sound of his name. She couldn't help the look in her eyes - oh, why did toms have to be so cruel?
Willowpaw seemed to notice rather quickly. She skipped over the introductory piece and went straight to her list of concerns:
"Isn't he a little old?"
"I thought he liked Nettleclaw-"
"She's twice his age, dingbat," Doepaw cut in.
"O-oh, uh, well how old is he?"
Doepaw made a shrugging motion and took a bite. The thorn poking at her stomach was becoming insistent, now. "Does it matter?" She mumbled through the moorhen.
"Well, you wouldn't go off and have kits with Bearstep, would you?" Willowpaw asked incredulously. She was starting to get rather loud, now that she was losing the argument.
"What about me?" Bearstep asked, his massive head poking through the opening to the apprentice's den.
Willowpaw's patches of white fur seemed just a bit paler in that moment.
"We were talking about last night's eagle watch," Doepaw said swiftly. "Willowpaw thought that you had gone on it, and I had to convince her otherwise." She had to hold her tongue to keep from laughing.
Willowpaw sent her a look of gratitude, nodding along to the story.
"Well, Willowpaw, the dawn patrol is waiting," he meowed. "And I think your mentor was looking for you, Doepaw." He back out of the den, probably off to administer the hunting patrols for the day.
Doepaw gave a small sigh, stuffing as much moorhen into her mouth as she could before following Willowpaw out of the den. She was still hungry, but at least she wouldn't have to trek across the territory again. With luck, she would be practicing something small, like her hunter's crouch.
Riverstripe meowed a terse 'good morning', obviously tired as well from the adventure last night. Doepaw yawned in response. The two cats watched as hunting parties set out, silence stretching between them for a while.
"We'll be battle training with Lilypaw," Riverstripe meowed.
Doepaw cursed under her breath. While she had grown close to the older apprentice, her muscles still ached from all the walking she had done. She voiced that complaint, muttering about the pains in her paws with vivid vocabulary. Riverstripe seemed amused.
She followed after the tom, anyways; she may have been complaining, but she was compliant. The two padded through the grasses, following nearly indiscernible pathways, treaded for seasons but still only known to CloudClan alone.
The training area wasn't too far from camp, just a short walk towards a clearing in the grasses underneath a small aspen. The space was large enough to accompany a large crowd, and could compensate for the rolling and twisting that came with battle training. Lilypaw and her mentor, Bearstep, weren't there yet for obvious reasons.
"What'll we be learning today?" Doepaw asked. A lazy, white butterfly fluttered overhead, and she couldn't help but reach up to bat at it with sheathed claws.
"How to defend yourself from foxes," Riverstripe meowed back, getting comfortable beside the tree.
Doepaw's interest spiked at that, and the butterfly flew off, forgotten. It was well known that many tribes and colonies of foxes had taken up the space directly north of the three clans of cats. Their clan's closest neighbor, the Colony of Neaniti, was one of the smaller, more peaceful groups. They had gotten lucky.
Still, conflict erupted from time to time, and it was useful to learn strategies one could use against the larger, more powerful creatures. Doepaw was surprised that Riverstripe had thought she was ready this early into her training.
"Lilypaw already knows the basic techniques, but it will be good for her to brush up on them. When we leave, she'll be learning some of the more advanced techniques," Riverstripe meowed.
Doepaw nodded, licking her chest fur nervously. Though she wouldn't say anything just yet, she was a bit nervous about facing Lilypaw. It would be hard to beat the more experienced apprentice. She was glad that their claws would be sheathed.
"Sorry for being so late," Bearstep called as he padded into the clearing, Lilypaw trailing behind him. She seemed to be having trouble keeping up with the larger cat, and had to lengthen her strides just to remain in his vicinity.
Lilypaw flicked her ear in greeting, sitting down next to Doepaw much like their mentors did. Both pairs conversed quietly, one a bit more excited than the other.
"Isn't this great? I love the idea that we could potentially bring down something so much bigger than us. It's a bit inspiring, you know?" Lilypaw rambled.
Doepaw gave a meek nod, not willing to share her insecurities about the fight to her partner, who was becoming louder by the second.
Riverstripe gave a nod to Bearstep, who kneaded the earth with his claws impatiently, and the silver tabby approached the apprentices.
"When fighting foxes, you need to use their size against them," he began.
Doepaw didn't understand that. How would you use something's size, of all things, against them? If you pitted Bearstep against Lilypaw, the older tom would obviously win unless his apprentice fought dirty.
"Foxes can't move as fast as we can. If you can take advantage of that, there is a chance of beating them. I personally wouldn't advise you to go up against a fox on your own. You should find a partner to battle with.
"Just like cats, foxes have vulnerable underbellies. Eyes and ears are a good target as well. Tails, too, if you don't mind getting a mouthful of fur." Riverstripe swiped his tongue over his muzzle as if reminded of the sensation.
"But that's not the point. If you can find a weakness, you and your partner-" Lilypaw and Doepaw shared a glance. "Must be in perfect synchronization whilst fighting. Since we don't exactly have any foxes with us, Bearstep will be our target."
The huge, grey tom stretched luxuriously, his eyes amused at being named a fox for the day. Doepaw felt her mouth go dry.
She had thought that she would be fighting Lilypaw, not this brute of a cat! StarClan forbid if she ever had to go up against a cat of his stature in a real battle...
Riverstripe padded over to the aspen, leaping up onto the lowest bow, where he would be safe. Doepaw wished she would be able to join him.
Bearstep crouched low in front of the two she-cats, his tail lashing in anticipation.
"Begin."
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Author's Note:
Guess who needs to work on battle scenes. Anyhow, I'm a bit disappointed by the length of chapters. I want to make them longer, but I'm not sure. Are they alright? I don't know. Anyways, thanks for reading!
-Cresci