Fight for it! {Rainpaw}

[Mirrored Light]

Dirt and brown spots mixed together along the she-cat's pelt, paws practically drenched with dry, flaking mud. She came to a halt along the edge of the silent Thunderpath, the lack of light in the distance indicating to the warrior that no monsters were patrolling tonight. Her blue gaze, bright and ice-colored against the darkness, turned back toward her own territory. "Come on, Rainpaw." She waited for the young cat to join her as she turned back to the reeking solid path in front of her, senses heightened and aware of everything around her. Scarpath stepped along the edges of the Monster's territory, meowing, "This is the Thunderpath. During the day, monsters often roam around here which is why we usually stay away. This is also the border that divides us from ThunderClan; we don't cross it. Ever."

[~Spring~]

Rainpaw happily pranced up behind Scarpath. It seemed like those days of playing in the nursery were so long ago. Now, he was exploring with his mentor. Where does the time go? He thought wile sitting down next to Scarpath. He stared at the Thunderpath, in awe. Wow.... He thought, his eyes revealing a curious expression. Rainpaw took a few steps closer to the Thunderpath before sitting down again. He looked across the Thunderpath, and asked, "So that is Thunderclan territory over there?"

[Mirrored Light]

"You bet your next moon of prey it is." The warrior flicked her tail, indicating for Rainpaw to follow, before leaving a marker on the edge of the Thunderpath. This would be a patrol and a learning experience for the she-cat's apprentice. Her paws were being placed calmly, even with the discomforting scent of monsters Scarpath let her expression be relaxed. Finally, they came to an extremely wet area, and across the Thunderpath, the end of the deep woods. "Across from there is RiverClan's home. Memorize the fish-lovers' scent as well." Her blue gaze focused on the river, calmly flowing through the forest, reminding her immidiately of Jayflight. The she-cat closed her eyes, and then changed direction to look at Rainpaw. "What would you do first if any enemy cat crossed the border here, and what advantages of the territory would you use if it turned into a fight?"

[~Spring~]

Rainpaw closely followed Scarpath, almost tripping over a few large sticks. He watched his mentor, who was so calm, and he tried to match his footing to hers. He almost tripped once more, when he came to a wet area. He sniffed the air, and picked up other cat's scents. "Riverclan." He said while sniffing the air again. "So far we have looked at Thunderclan and Riverclan territory, right? Isn't there one more clan?" Rainpaw said. He looked up at Scarpath and replied, "Well, If an enemy cat crossed the border, I would.... uh.... ask what the cat is doing and.... um.... see if a warrior is nearby?" He mewed timidly. Rainpaw continued and said, "If it turned into a fight, I would probably try to stay out of the water, since I don't think I can swim...."

[Mirrored Light]

"The last Clan is WindClan, you'll meet them at the Gathering. However, for now, fourtress is between our borders." Scarpath informed the apprentice, flicking her ears at his answer. "The first thing you do, is challenge them of course. Ask why their there, but remind them that this is our home." Her tail flicked, "The water in ShadowClan is low enough that even most kits can stand in it. We use the advantage of where the mud is located; most other Clan cats will have low movement and balance when in it." Corrected the warrior, before she nudged him in the shoulder gently. "Don't worry, its only you're first day." The she-cat made a curve and turned onto the next border, which was most made of dense wood, but as the two cats went on, the air began to grow sickening.

[~Spring~]

"Oh... Ok..." Rainpaw mewed quietly. He could not help but feel rather discouraged, but he shrugged the feeling off and followed Scarpath to a border of dense wood. "So the four clans are, Shadowclan, Thunderclan, Riverclan, and Windclan?" He said timidly. Rainpaw thought back to that day when he was still a kit, and that Windclan warrior Lightsky came into camp. He looked up at his mentor, and asked, "Where are we now?"

[Mirrored Light]

Wrinkling her nose, the she-cat meowed, "We're on the border with outside of the Clan territories. There's also a short cut to High Stones, which is where the leaders go to get nine lives and the Medicine Cats to speak with StarClan, but its dangerous. Most rogues live up ahead, at Carrion Place, with the rats and crow-food there." As they pressed on, the warrior flattened her ears, aware of the presence of a rogue cat. Of course, they weren't in the territory, but it was simply annoying that the Dead Plains ventured so close to the border. "You've got your living Clans down at least, but don't forget our fifth Clan. They watch over us." Finally, they came to the mesh wiring that made up one side of Carrion Place. The warrior kept her distance, well aware the material was like a claw, able to rip through a cat's pelt and flesh. Her blue eyes narrowed, observing the distant cats. "We usually have fights here with rogues, so its important for our Clan to enforce this border."

[~Spring~]

Rainpaw followed Scarpath and mewed, "Those are the rouges over there?" He looked over at the cats, then curiously looked back up at his mentor. Rainpaw took a hesitant step forward to the strange wall in front of him. He looked up in awe and asked, "What's that?" Rainpaw shifted his attention to the distant cats, and took another step closer. However, a question was bugging him. "Also, what are the Dead Plains cats like?" He mewed quietly, looking back at his mentor.

[Mirrored Light]

"The twolegs built it to keep us out; but there's a huge opening on the side," meowed the she-cat referring to the fence around the rotting place. As they approached her steps slowed to a forced motion, for the she-cat had always despised the fowl smelling area. "Dead Plains are a group of cats who only live to kill, they live like a Clan but follow no code, and they don't look out for each other except in battle." Scarpath answered him as honestly as she could describe them, but it would be an insult to call the filthy band of rogues a Clan. She had only fought with them once, of course, and never spoke to one but she picked out the truth in rumors in order to make the most accurate description. "I really wish that we didn't have it on our border, we have to watch out for rats. They carry disease and make cats sick, which is why they are not prey except to crow-food eaters."

[~Spring~]

A gleam of curiosity shone in his eyes, and Rainpaw ran over to the opening in the wall and took a step inside. Remembering his question about the Dead Plains cats, he looked back at Scarpath and mewed, "Didn't they invade our clan a while back?" He sat down and leaned his head a bit, pausing for a few moments before asking another question. "Oh, and what's next? Have we explored everywhere yet?" He impatiently shifted his paws around in the dirt and looked up, with a playful expression in his eyes.

[Mirrored Light]

The she-cat gave a low growl, remembering the battle, before offering a quick nod. She hated the idea of their Clan looking weak by a loss to cats who weren't even part of a Clan. Her tail twitched before she nudged the tom's shoulder to lead him away. "Next, we start with your chores," Scarpath answered, as they came to a spot with a bit of undergrowth. "We need to fetch moss and needles for the elders bedding. Don't worry, I'll help you with it today." She padded over to a leaning branch and peeled of the tendrils of the gray plant and carrying the bundle in her jaws. "Don't take too much, because we need to change beddings constantly."

[~Spring~]

His playful expression faded, and Rainpaw grunted a little bit, as he reluctantly started to grab some bedding. He was hoping that he could explore a little more, but he carried the bedding over to his mentor. "So what now?" He asked as he dropped the bedding in front of his paws. Rainpaw still wanted to explore some more, but he tried not to complain. He looked back at the Carrionplace, revealing a hint of curiosity before turning back and looking down at the needles and moss.

[Mirrored Light]

The she-cat flicked her tail indicating for the tom to follow her, and began padding confidently in the direction towards camp. From where they were, camp would only be over a few hills, with no real territorial delays. Scarpath rose and fell over the ground, her blue eyes constantly scanning for cats and prey. At last, they had gotten close to the camp enetrance, where the warrior turned to Rainpaw to speak. "We usually just drop off bedding in its spot and take away the old bedding. It shouldn't be too hard a task; its always important." Scarpath meowed through her own bundle. Finally, she entered the clearing of ShadowClan camp.

(sorry: Only 100 words or so, since I'm being a bit lazy. Rough day.... -sighs-)

[~Spring~]

Rainpaw trotted happily after Scarpath, his gleaming eyes indicating that he was very much enjoying his apprentice training. He had already begun thinking about becoming a warrior, even though he was barely an apprentice. Rainpaw walked into Shadowclan camp and looked around a bit before he mewed "Ok!' He dropped his bundle of bedding, and ran off to the elders den, looking back once at his mentor, mewing, "Are you coming?" Without waiting for an answer, he entered the elders den and started clearing out the old bedding.

(OOC: That's ok.)

[Mirrored Light]

She helped him with the chore, dropping her moss in the enterance and taking the old bedding out of the camp. She showed him how the elder's sleeping arrangements were made, before getting to a quick-pace of work. As they were doing the task, Scarpath started a conversation. "Rainpaw, what drives you to be a good warrior?" The she-cats answer was immidiate for herself, spite. She wanted to compete and become strong if only to spite her childhood. Striving to be good didn't mean that you had to be pure of heart; it was just a matter of understanding the difference between good, evil, right and wrong. The deep thinking was making her head throb, so the warrior decided to stop drawing back to that thought and listen to her apprentice's response.

[~Spring~]

Rainpaw dropped the new bedding in the elders den, and turned to Scarpath, his eyes looking curiously at her. "Well, being a good warrior is not just about being a good fighter and hunter, right?" He picked up some more bedding and dropped it in the elders den before trotting over to Scarpath. Rainpaw sat down in front of her, and thought, I don't think it's only about fighting and hunting.... He swished his tail around, and looked up at his mentor.

[Mirrored Light]

"Of course not! If you can fight and hunt, you could be just a rogue... you have to show loyalty, skill, and intelligence. We are different because we support and protect each other, and thats still just being a Clan cat." Being a warrior, something she had often thought about, barely out of sharing a den with Rainpaw herself. She gave him a friendly nudge before continuing, "To be a warrior, you need experience first. You have to care for your Clan, respect your answers, and learn to self-control." She returned to work in silence, flicking her tail and ignoring the fact that he had dodged her question; the tom was young, there would be no rush for him to figure out his role in the Clan. Yet, she would be proud to see Rainpaw grow up.

[~Spring~]

Rainpaw looked up at her, and gave a small nod to signal that he understood. "Loyalty and skill and intelligence are just as important as fighting and hunting." He mewed under his breath. "Oh! I want to be the most loyal clan cat ever! That's my goal." He continued, his voice trailing off at the end of his sentence. He ran to pick up some more bedding, and dropped it in the elders den. "I can't wait to become a warrior...." He said quietly as he continued his chores.

[Mirrored Light]

(ooc: Omigosh I'm getting so busy >< I will post, I promise!)

[~Spring~]

((OOC: It's okay. ))