octopus's garden

The sun beat down on his caramel coat, turning darker features to gold as Crakepaw slipped through the reeds of RiverClan's camp. A gentle wind tickled the tufts of fur on his elongated ears, carrying the beautifully salty scent of rain and cooler weather with it. Casting a glance up the sky, he was moderately appalled to find a lack of clouds dotting the sky, an azure sky meeting his gaze instead. Letting out an ill-tempered snort - he wasn't in the mood to sweat through every layer of his thick fur - he stuck to the shadows cast by willow trees, feeling his paws gradually take him to a familiar place. Large boulders rose up on the other side of the riverbank, casting shadows into the water that he noticed the occasional silver glimmer arise from.

Padding downstream a little ways to avoid frightening any prey at Sunningrocks away, he fought off a delighted purr as the water carried him, paws churning in rhythm as the slow-moving current gently deposited him on the bank. Choosing not to shake out his fur, liquid cascaded off his long fur as he trotted the few fox-lengths up to the warm rock formation, droplets meeting dirt and sand on his way over. Upon all four paws being firmly planted on the stones, he rubbed up the side of one that rose far above his height, feeling the sun and ground underpaw leech away what water remained in his coat.

Crakepaw wasn't the only apprentice heading towards Sunningrocks. Leopardpaw was enjoying his new found freedom - padding along the bank of the river as he lazily watched the river ripple as it curled around the loose stones that broke its surface. He was taking a small break - with Lichenstar herself as his mentor, he had a lot to live up to. He was certain that somebody was great as him would do her proud...But he also couldn't risk being anything less. So he was practicing his hunting the best he could on his own - it was the most effort he had put into...Anything before, but it would be worth it. To his annoyance, his jaw soon opened in a large yawn - noting that he had been out here for quite a while but he wasn't done yet...

There was a flicker of movement on the other side of the border that caught his attention, watching as a cat stepped from the river. He recognized the pelt and soon realized that he had reached Sunningrocks, watching Crakepaw rub against one of the stones. He hesitated for a moment before he slipped into the water, quickly coasting across the stream until he reached the other side and stepped onto the shore. "What are you up to?" he questioned, as he gave his pelt a shake, although water rarely liked to cling to his short fur. He wasn't sure why he was bothering - it would have been easier to continue on his own but...Well, he suppose some company wouldn't hurt and would make things a bit more bearable. Barely. He didn't know Crakepaw all that well thought - he hoped he wouldn't be somebody who got on his nerves but that was asking a lot when nearly everybody was an idiot.

His golden gaze was settled firmly on the water rippling not far from his paws, eyes cutting through the stone-cast shadows to the pools of liquid beneath, claws itching to sink into any of the silver scales that occasionally caught the sun. Waiting patiently, he drew up a paw and waited for one to flirt with fate a little more; to dart within range of his poised paws, white toe-tips stretching impatiently. Within heartbeats one of the many scaled prey had drawn close, and lightning fast reflexes allowed the apprentice to rake in a dace, muzzle immediately tilting to deal a killing bite and remove it's ability to escape, to slip along the slick stones that met the water and away. As he did so, a soft purr bubbled up in his chest - sure, he had been confined to camp for quite some time, but Nettlesplash had taught him well and his blossoming skills hadn't faded in the slightest; evident by the prey laying at his paws. Moving it to the side and away from the edge of the bank, a vaguely familiar voice made its way into his ears, and Crakepaw sat up and turned around.

Ah- What was his name? The silver apprentice stood in front of him was familiar, that much was certain, but with how much knowledge he had on the tom he may as well be from another clan- something he would've readily believed if it wasn't for his scent, as there was a gentle amount of hostility coming from him. "Fishing, you're more than welcome to join," his invitation was rather flat, more out of obligation than an extension of what he genuinely wanted, although he wasn't necessarily opposed to company. "You're apprenticed to Lichenstar, right?" he took a stab in the dark with that one, Nettlesplash had mentioned Lichenstar taking on new apprentices, and by the looks of him he was... relatively new. "What's that like?" thinly veiled curiosity bubbled in his voice, especially as he tossed over the various things his mentor had to say about their leader.

The member 'oryx' has done the following action : Roll Dice

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'Hunting Dice' : 1

Ah, fishing. Yeah, that made sense he supposed. He wasn't so keen on spending time with Crakepaw but he was out trying to work on his training just so he could impress Lichenstar... He shrugged as he padded over, settling down not far from Crakepaw as he peered into the river himself. "Hm? Yeah, I'm her newest apprentice," he meowed as the other apprentice questioned about his mentor, glancing over to give him a grin. "I mean, its only fitting that I get a great mentor. With her training me, I'll have no problem being the best warrior in RiverClan." There was a flicker of movement in the corner of his eyes, glancing back at the river with his paw automatically reaching out for the fish that had been swimming past. As his paw-pads brushed against scales, he curled his paw and swiped it from the water, easily ending its life. "Not that she has a lot to teach me, that is," he added as he pawed the fish further away from the bank, to start forming his own little pile of his caught prey. But as he did so, he paused to let out a heavy sigh."She does like to run me ragged thought. She expects a lot but...Ah, I'm sure I'll be her prized apprentice once my training is done! I guess being the best can't always be easy, even for me."

The member 'Badger' has done the following action : Roll Dice

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'Hunting Dice' : 5

His brow raised and he fought off a chuckle at the arrogance that oozed from the other toms voice, the self assertion and horrifically genuine belief that he was truly the best. "My oh my, I'm sure even badgers and owls will tremor in fear of the best warrior of RiverClan," Crakepaw had to fight off a snort, instead turning his head and letting out a deep sigh, an unfortunate side-effect of refusing to laugh. Disregarding his previous boastful statement, the caramel apprentice opened his mouth to praise his catch, instead being interrupted by more self-appreciation, and the tom had to swallow a pang of annoyance. Yeah, this was definitely a mistake, he thought, flattening his large ears a little as he was forced to listen to another round of bragging. "Ah right, of course. No cat - or predator for that matter - can stand a chance against Lichenstar's favourite!" Crakepaw chirped sarcastically, turning his attention back to the water, claws curled out as he waited for a fish to dart in close. StarClan praised, a minnow took the place of his previous catch and in a flash he had snagged it on his claws, slamming it onto the stone before adding it to his pile. You've been good to me StarClan, do me one more favour and keep me from attacking this self-conceited apprentice fresh out of the nursery, he thought with a wry twitch of his whiskers, casting Leopardpaw a distasteful glance. "May I ask what happens if you're not Lichenstar's favourite, or if you fail to be the best as you so delicately put it, O Great One?"

The member 'oryx' has done the following action : Roll Dice

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'Hunting Dice' : 4

For a brief second, Leopardpaw was happy with the praise that Crakepaw gave him...Until he paused and recognized the tone to be sarcasm. He groaned, rolling his eyes as he leaned forward to wait for another fish, one ear turned to listen as Crakepaw went on. He raised a paw, waiting for a fish...Before Crakepaw questioned what would happen if he failed to be the best. That rattled the apprentice, causing him to slap the water as he jumped to his paws to look at Crakepaw. His fur stood on edge, baring the teeth but it wasn't hard to see that there wasn't just anger in his position, his face...But also the tiniest bit of fear. "That can't happen! I am the best," he snapped, his voice cracking as he lashed his tail but quickly his fire started to fade. It...He didn't like the idea of himself somehow failing. He had been told over and over growing up by his  mother how his bloodline was filled with great warriors, that he was going to be one of them as well. He...He couldn't disappoint her, let her down. He couldn't be a failure because if he wasn't the best...He wasn't sure what he was anymore.

However he quickly hide his fear once again with anger, snorting as he turned away to lay down at the bank again. "Of course, I guess I can't expect you to understand. Its the simple truth, I will be the best warrior. It just makes sense," he grumbled, eyes fixing once more on the water as he waited for a fish to swim by. Finally, one swam past and he easily caught it, adding it to his pile. He paused, ears slicking back a little. "But..Tsk, I guess I could live without being Lichenstar's favorite, I guess there are more to have a favorite than them being the best. I mean Mothpaw is an idiot but I guess on some level he is a lovable one."

The member 'Badger' has done the following action : Roll Dice

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'Hunting Dice' : 2