[PATROL-FIN] Eyes to the Skies [ Troutleap x Dawnpaw x Songcall ]

[Blinded By Silence]

Troutleap and Songcall have been assigned to a patrol! The new mentor, Troutleap, decides that this is as good a time as any to see what her first apprentice can do!

Our prompt is:

MountainClan, Opponent: Eagle 1. Battle 2. Battle 3. Scent Identification (all apprentices roll 1d10, if they land on an even number, they're able to correctly identify the scent as (insert prey type here, ex: a mouse). If they roll an odd number, they cannot identify any specific prey nearby.) 4. Battle 5. Oops! Encounter (While scouring the not-so-dry woods, thanks to the recent rainfall of the warmer months, your patrol stumbles upon a large mud pit! Your cats struggle a while before they manage to escape the heavy murk, but their pelts are too clotted and heavy to do any productive patrolling. Time to find a stream to rinse off in and head back to camp for the day.) 6. Battle 7. Battle 8. Stealth Training (all apprentices roll 1d10, if they land on an odd number, they're able to sneak up on their mentors successfully. If they land on an even number, they make too much noise and alert anything nearby to the patrol's location. 9. Hunting Training (apprentices roll 1d20 to determine if they are able to catch the prey or not, any numbers 13+ indicate a successful catch!) 10. Loner

 

[Blinded By Silence]

Her tail flicked with annoyance as she plodded along the stony ridge leading up the mountainside. She swore, Tigersun knew how much it irked her to be interrupted while she was in the middle of something. But clan duties and all... She huffed, casting her golden eyes over her shoulder. Couldn't he have at least assigned one of her mates to come with her? Ah well, no use wasting energy being too mad about it. Songcall was fine. Annoying and spoiled, but fine. At least she could hunt, right? She made a mental note to make sure any prey they caught while out didn't magically find itself in the paws of Songcall's sibling.

The tawny she-cat sighed. Ah well. At least she could get some training in with Dawnpaw. That's what she was supposed to do, right? Being a mentor was odd. Why did these clan cats have to make things so ridged? Growing up, she learned bits and pieces from the cats she met, learning from her mistakes, not being guided through life at every pawstep.

"Alright, Dawnpaw. This isn't your first patrol, is it? What are we out here looking--?" She frowned, turning her head to the side as she walked on. Where'd the kit go?

@belloblossom

 

[belloblossom]

Dawnpaw was doing her best to avoid Troutleap's gaze. She enjoyed being able to spend time with her sisters and her parents were great - she could spend all day with her dad! But her happy, relaxed times as a kit came to an abrupt halt when she reached 6 moons of age. Her mother had talked about being an apprentice as this wonderful thing - how the ceremony was a big rite of passage of itself, and how the start of ones training would teach Dawnpaw the skills she'd use forever when she became a warrior herself.

She'd imagined that when she gained a mentor of her own, that it would be one of the original warriors of MountainClan. Maybe Tigersun himself would even decide to mentor her!

But then when it came to her apprentice ceremony, she'd been given to Troutleap - a loner who had joined the Clan for the love of her two mates - it wasn't any secret. Some cats thought it was romantic, her mother among them. After all, Dawnpaw's father, Canary, had joined the Clan to be with her mother. Of course, the difference was that Canary could be away from her mother for a day without turning into a grouch. In Dawnpaw's experience with her mentor, the only cats who saw Troutleap smile were her two mates.

Hence, why she went to such trouble to avoid cooperating with Troutleap in their training sessions. It seemed pretty obvious that her mentor considered her apprentice a burden, so why should Dawnpaw have to put up with a mentor that didn't want her?

Maybe if we ever find common ground, we can approach Tigersun and see if he's willing to give me a mentor who will actually like me. Dawnpaw thought and swiped her claws over some debris in the dry woods to better clear her frustration. What's the point in giving loners apprentices anyway? Even Canary wasn't given an apprentice - he's still learning the ropes too! She thought with a barely stifled growl. None of this felt fair to the small ginger apprentice. She wanted to be wanted!

(Dawnpaw has rolled an even number and made too much noise - she can be detected by Troutleap!)

 

[belloblossom]

Songcall had been hearing about her daughter's discontentment with her mentor for some time now and today she opted to invite herself along to one of the patrols that Dawnpaw and her mentor, Troutleap, had went upon together. She didn't know if the focus was hunting or battle-inclined, but between the rumors of the eagle flying around and terrorizing her other Clanmates, and Dawnpaw's displeasure with her mentor, Songcall's maternal instinct soared.

Silver eyes caught Troutleap narrowed eyes and Songcall forced her pelt to remain flat as she inclined her head to the she-cat.

"Everything alright, Troutleap?" She asked. "If you're inclined to admire my fur, I can walk ahead ofthe patrol, if you'd like." She offered with a coy smile. Despite her best efforts to mirror her mate's attitude when dealing with others, Songcall found it increasingly difficult to put on a smile that didn't have some sort of malice behind it. Every narrow-eyed stare was an insult, every tail twitch was a personal jab. Songcall managed to hide her insecurities, she hoped, from the general public, but when it was her own thoughts plaguing her mind, her anxiety pointed out every gesture or glance as some manner of judgement from others.

Stop thinking about yourself, Songcall. She thought. You came here for Dawnpaw's sake. She turned her head to the rear, where Dawnpaw had previously been, only to find her daughter gone. Soon after, Troutleap seemed to realize the same thing. Songcall paused, ears flicking and picked up on the sounds of her daughter's growling and the sound of claws on rocks. Songcall had the urge to demand her kit's obedience, but this was her evaluation of Troutleap - how would Dawnpaw's mentor handle this problem? @Blinded By Silence

 

[Blinded By Silence]

She offered Songcall an ironic smile. It was more of a sneer, really. "Just fine, Songcall," It took every ounce of effort not to roll her eyes at the conceited she-cat. "But I guess, if you're looking to be useful, you can keep your eyes up. There's an eagle about, after all." She flicked her tail dismissively.

Her ear twitched at the sound of moving scree. Her tail lashed once and she turned to find Dawnpaw huffing to herself a few tail lengths away. She sighed, trying to quelch her growing annoyance. She had agreed to this life, she reminded herself. The glowing look from her mates flickered into her mind, they'd been so proud that she'd been given an apprentice.

"Alright, Dawnpaw." She called, trying her best to sound like she knew what she was doing, "While your mother keeps watch, why don't you explain to me how a cat would take down a bird as big as an eagle?"

@belloblossom

 

[belloblossom]

Dawnpaw had evidently been discovered, though she was reluctant to come into sight of her mentor again. She didn't want to be on this patrol, she wanted to be chatting with Duskpaw and Evepaw - she wanted to be showing Tigersun that he had chosen wrong and that he should've been her mentor this whole time! When she heard paws padding away, she perked up her ears and stuck her head up within view, only to watch with dismay as Songcall was the one walking away from the patrol, not her mentor! Ugh!

Now catching the gaze of the older she-cat, Dawnpaw weighed her options. She could try running off, but she didn't want to get stuck cleaning out the Nursery for a moon as a punishment - granted, Troutleap hadn't ever punished her before... but Dawnpaw had also never acted out to this extent either. Opting for her usual levels of sass, she opened her mouth to answer Troutleap's question.

"Uh, you kill it?" She replied. That certainly seemed the most straightforward approach to defeating an eagle to her, anyway. It couldn't harm anything if it was dead - her logic was solid! Still, even Dawnpaw knew that was a mouse-brained answer, so she continued. "Maybe, um... Attack its soft points? Or go for its wings, so it can't fly?" She went on, albeit tentatively, glancing up nervously at her mentor. @Blinded By Silence

 

[belloblossom]

Songcall found herself purring in Troutleap's face, whiskers twitching in her forced amusement. She spent a moment watching Troutleap's attention turn to the real matter at paw, Dawnpaw. The brown she-cat opted to call for her apprentice, rather than go hunting for her and Songcall nodded her approval. Well, maybe for all Troutleap's evident unhappiness, this wasn't as bad as Dawnpaw had been making it out to be.

Despite her ruffled feathers, Songcall tilted her gaze towards the sky and then back to the path in front of her. It would make the most sense to keep watch while Troutleap was distracted - and Songcall certainly wasn't going to let anything happen to Dawnpaw on her watch. Padding away, she glanced every few cat lengths at the sky above, but she kept her ears perked, too, in hopes that she could remain within hearing distance of Dawnpaw and her mentor. @Blinded By Silence

 

[Blinded By Silence]

Troutleap looked over her shoulder as Songcall left, honestly a little surprised she left so easily. With a huff, she turned back to her apprentice, weighing her answer.

"I mean, yes, killing it would solve the problem. And how would you do that?" She waited, nodding, "Soft points, yep. Every enemy has them. And to be effective fighters and hunters, we need to know what those soft points are." She explained, "A bird's greatest strength are its wings, regardless of size. So yes, good answer." Troutleap even offered the paw a short purr.

She flicked her tail in the direction of Songcall, "Let's catch up to your mom. If she ends up saving us from this eagle, we will never hear the end of it."

@belloblossom

 

[belloblossom]

Dawnpaw was pleased when her mentor confirmed her guesses as correct answers. She felt pride surging up in her chest. She found it in herself to nod along to the extra commentary Troutleap was mewing about and taking it into consideration.

"The wings, got it." She mewed and then asked. "They're so, um, flappy, aren't they? And big. How do I attack an eagle's wings without getting smacked in the muzzle?" She asked her mentor, walking alongside the brown she-cat and glancing up at the sky every so often, as though a giant winged horror would descend upon them at any moment. She bumped into Troutleap's shoulder and looked up at her mentor with a look of surprised embarrassment. "Oops, sorry." She managed. Hopefully this wouldn't sour Troutleap all over again - they were just getting somewhere, if only barely. @Blinded By Silence

 

[belloblossom]

Songcall had been keeping careful watch on the skies above, but they seemed clear. For all the trouble that her Clanmates seemed to be having with threats from the sky, today, all feathered fiends seemed to be mercifully out of sight. Songcall's whiskers twitched in amusement. Maybe MountainClan had killed them all. Or maybe the other eagles had gotten the message and decided to migrate south for... well, forever.

Shifting her attention from the skies, she spotted Troutleap and Dawnpaw walking towards her. She blinked a greeting at the pair, noticing that Dawnpaw was lingering closer to her mentor. Had they somehow miraculously turned into an ideal mentor/apprentice pair in the time that Songcall had given them space? At this rate, maybe Songcall should start accompanying her daughter on all of her training lessons. Surely it was Songcall's presence that was doing all the improvement, absolutely.

"I don't think we need to worry about any sky threats this time, but let's keep a weary eye out all the same. Besides, not all threats come from the skies." She mewed as they got within hearing range. "That said, I think we're safe to do a sweep of the borders and head home, unless you two wanted to stay out longer?" She prompted the two cats. @Blinded By Silence

 

[Blinded By Silence]

"Well," She'd explain, "It's preferable that you don't fight an eagle alone. That's why we're out in groups. With a cat on each wing, that birdbrain isn't going anywhere." She frowns a little, "But honestly, going into a fight and not expecting to get hurt is dangerous. It's better to ask 'how do I fight despite getting smacked in the muzzle.'"

Her frown deepens as Songcall returns, but Troutleap is thankful her report seems positive and surprisingly not condescending. She'd nod, "Let's get this done then. I don't want to risk being out here longer than necessary."