Prideful Playing [Open]

There was a small thumping sound as Leopardkit sat crouched outside of the nursery, his tail whacking the ground in annoyance. He was bored. He wasn't old enough to leave the camp and there was nothing to do in the camp. He hated it, not being old enough to be an apprentice but also not young enough to be a stupid kit. He knew what they would tell him to do to pass the time - play. But he was old enough to think for himself and he had found that none of the other kits could live up to his standards. They were all idiots in his eyes, all happy enough to play and roll around in the dirt and... He sighed, huffing. He really wished he was an apprentice, if only so he could have an excuse to get out of the camp and away from everybody.

But at this point, he was starting to get bored enough that maybe he would humor the company of another cat but even that was a stretch.

Despite how early it was, Fennelkit was wide awake. Usually, she could sleep until sun-high, but for whatever reason, she was feeling extremely energetic today. She'd spent her entire morning thus far prancing around the nursery, making sure every kit and queen in sight knew that one day, she was gonna be the best leader RiverClan ever saw. It was only a matter of time before she caught a glimpse of Leopardkit's tail swishing madly right outside the nursery, and when she did, a smirk immediately took place on her tiny maw. Readying herself, the little kit tried to imitate the crouch she'd seen apprentices practicing, her rear high up in the air and tail pointing straight up. Then, she couldn't contain her excitement any longer. Bursting forward, she bowled out of the nursery, crashing clumsily into Leopardkit's shoulder. Quickly, she managed to regain her balance and pin him underneath her, her voice taking on a mocking tone as she looked down at him and mewed, "Gotcha, beetle-brain!"

The sound of pawsteps didn't escape Leopardkit's ear, turning his ears in the direction of the nursery entrance. He wasn't sure who it was but he honestly didn't care that much - but he wasn't about to make it look like he was excited to see them. But then the pawsteps came to a stop, catching his attention as he started to turn...Then the pawsteps suddenly turned into thumping as he saw a familiar pelt coming busting from the nursery. He yelped as Fennelkit crashed into him, her body slamming into his shoulder and throwing him off balance. His tail waved widely as he hit the ground with a grunt but he didn't have time to even roll onto his stomach before a heavy weigh landed on his stomach. All air escaped him as he flopped to the ground, tail lashing as he tried to regain any sense of competence as he glared at the larger she-cat that loomed over him. "Get off of me, you turtle!" he snapped, hind paws uselessly kicking at her belly as he tried to find the leverage to knock her away. Fennelkit, of course it had been Fennelkit. The other kits were at least tolerable but she...She was the worse, always getting into his business and being rough. She had no respect for him and he certainly had none for her. "Don't you have other kits to push around?"

Fennelkit shrugged off Leopardkit's mild insult with a laugh, pushing herself off of him with force. "Oh, I definitely do. You're just my favorite, little Leopardkit. Doesn't that make ya feel great? You're somebody's favorite!" Fennelkit stooped back into a crouch, wiggling her rump in the air as she aimed for a nearby beetle. But then, another thought occurred to her. A little gasp parted from her maw and she looked to Leopardkit with excitement. "You're coming with me! Her voice had sunk to nothing more than a quiet whisper, and she remained in a crouched position as she waddled her way over to the tom, pushing him forward with her nose. "We're going to the big river!" Fennelkit continued to push her "friend" forward, ignoring any attempts to stop her. Soon, the duo would successfully sneak out of camp, and they'd bring back tons of fish for the Clan.

A sigh of relief escaped Leopardkit now that he could actually breathe with her off of his chest. "Oh yes, because being a favorite of a toad like you is praise," he snapped back as he rolled onto his paws, standing up as he tried to shake the dust and sand from his pelt. Ugh, she had no sense of pride, did she? She just pushed around whoever she felt like... "If you don't mind, I would much rather be the favorite of somebody who actually mattered." He turned, ready to go...Somewhere, anywhere else than be in the same area as Fennelkit but before he could make a break for it, she was advantaging toward him again.

He came to a stop, hesitating for a heartbeat as he tried to make sense of why she was crouching until she was suddenly shoving him. "What are you doing?" he growled, pawing at her face as he was forced to back up to keep from being knocked over again. "Couldn't you be a little more creative then just trying to shove me aro-" he broke off as she suddenly whispered, blinking at the mention of the 'big river.' ...Oh. He couldn't be lost in his thoughts for long as Fennelkit kept pushing him along but he spared a glance in the direction she was forcing him, towards the edge of the camp. ...She wanted to sneak out. It was easy enough to realize that - she certainly meant the big river that they had heard stories about, the borders between the Clans. It was against the rules to sneak out but... He had been waiting ages to sneak out and if they - he could prove himself...Then maybe he would become an apprentice so much sooner and he would get the praise that he deserved!

"...Alright, to the big river," he murmured back, before grunting Fennelkit nosed him yet again. Seriously? Was she just planning to shove him the entire way? They didn't even know how far it was! "I'm going, I'm going! I can move on my own, you know! You don't need to shove me around like a rock!"

"What are those two up to?" mumbled a large apprentice to himself as he eyed the two kits in front of the nursery with moderate suspicion. Whitepaw had recently returned from a relatively quick hunting session and was now enjoying one of the carps he had caught. Out of the corner of his eye, a rush of motion alerted him of some activity stirring up near the nursery's entrance. He settled down a bit when it appeared to be just some kits play-fighting. He continued to watch the exchange, ready to step in if the two decided on wandering over to the river. Their safety was was his current number one priority.

After a small while, the little molly began whispering to the tom-kit then proceeded to lead him...somewhere. Her eyes harbored excitement but at the same time appeared a bit shifty. The whole ordeal was dubious and had the white-furred apprentice hurriedly gulp the last of his carp. He needed to find out what their intentions were but he wanted to do this "investigation" in a sneaky manner. He prayed to StarClan that they weren't pulling a Waterpaw and leaving the camp. He had a small feeling that he might have a teeny headache when this is all over.