pafp ACE ARCHER & AVIATOR | training

[SILVERSMOKE]

Few may have noticed Silversmoke avoiding the shelter cats like the plague, for he avoided almost everyone like the plague. Whilst the latter was often down to simple introversion, the former had a bit more meaning to it. Each cat that passed his eye that had not been born into SkyClan was a reminder of his own failure: when the mere thought of the Twolegplace was enough to send shivers down his spine, then it was clear he wasn't as strong as he thought he was. Aside from wearing a collar and having a coat like sparkling gemstones, there was nothing a Daylight Warrior should've been able to do that he couldn't, the fact he'd been proven wrong was corrosive. Though his freetime was limited, Silversmoke used what little he had of it that day to escape deep into the woods, past the sandy ravine where he thought few cats would be able to find him. It was there that he climbed tree after tree and leaped from rock after rock, where measly mounds of earth had become enemies for him to practice a killing bite upon.

Enough time had passed when the sun shifted in the sky, still, the Lead Warrior didn't feel himself to be done. He was panting, panting, a warrior of SkyClan and yet he couldn't stop himself from feeling exhaustion. He ran towards one final pine tree and leaped two feet in the air, his claws catching on loose bark that tore away from the slightest offense. Forelimbs extended and flailed for a grip that escaped him as the outer layer peeled away before he felt the ground suddenly collide with his spine. His paws slowly scrambled beneath him, straining against his weight as he tried to push them and breaths loud as he tried to catch what little air remained around him. Odd-coloured eyes squinted shut as he tried to remedy the burning in his lungs in any way he could, obscenities muttered under laboured exhales. It wasn't enough. He wasn't enough. No kittypet could be better than him, how could he prove that? A noise past the first layer of pines caused his head to turn sharply, a singular green eye bearing down on whatever threatened him in his moment of vulnerability. Limbs tensed as he spotted one of the shelter cats peering at him past the bushes. He'd avoided them for a reason, to have them be the ones to approach him when he wasn't ready to see them was... No, no he couldn't say that, he didn't have a choice.

"What.... do you think you're doing?" Silversmoke asked, finding the strength to get back to his feet with an audience. Some weaknesses were too dire to reveal, just as scarcely would he reveal the extent of his vision loss or how quickly his temper could flare would he show just how much Bunny's presence scorned him. It was unfair, he knew it was, but it didn't stop narrowed eyes from chastising the other when words did not. Silent as he caught the remainder of his breath, the Lead Warrior tilted his head to its full height. "Can't you see I'm training? Did something happen back at camp?"

[ @Bunny ]
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[Bunny]

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Bunny hadn't meant to sneak up on the blue tabby: he was just curious what the source of the noise was. With the ruckus he makes hopping through the unfamiliar undergrowth of the forest, it's kind of a miracle he managed the feat at all. But the guy seems pretty focused on his exercise so it's not really a surprise that it takes him a good while before he notices Bunny lurking nearby, observing with slack-jawed wonder. Is that what clan cats mean by 'training'? It looks intense. Bunny is exhausted just looking at it. The other looks a little younger than him, but there's such a gap between their skill levels that Bunny feels like an awkward adolescent looking at the warrior flying from a move to the next – maybe they should call him Bunnypaw then, huh?

He barely has time to close his gaping mouth before he's seen by the object of his attention. He ducks his head in embarrassment when Silversmoke snaps a question at him. Yeah, he's being rude, isn't he, intruding on someone's training like this. Wincing, Bunny offers the warrior a sheepish smile.

”No, everything is fine. Sorry,” he hums, shifting on his paws.

”I didn't mean to intrude. I was just passing by and got curious. I mean,” he continues, gesturing to their surroundings – the stripped bark and pawsteps dug into the ground by repeated exercises. ”There's no way I could do half of what you just did. It's really impressive stuff. That last fall looked really nasty, though, you doing okay?”

His concern is sincere: he doesn't know much about the clan way of life yet, but he knows a guy having a bad time when he sees one. He doesn't want to overstep, though, so the instinctive follow-up stays locked behind his teeth: he doesn't think asking do you want to talk about it would go over well with this cat.
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[✧ Sootspritespark.]

I KNOW EXACTLY WHAT I WANT AND WHO I WANNA BE
sootsprite | 35 months | demi-girl | she/they | physically medium | mentally hard | attack in bold #ffff99

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Throughout her time here, Sootsprite cannot help but to have noticed that some faces are friendlier than others - especially towards outsiders, or those of kittypet origin like herself. Though not a shelter rescue but a daylight warrior, she is likely not on silversmoke's list of friendly faces, but that doesn't stop her from wandering over when she ehars the sound of voices nearby as they scare away her prey. Sunshine yellow eyes glint as she dips her head, round body pushing past the undergrowth only to come to a halt. Well - isn't this cheerful. "Everyone falls outta' the trees at times here - sometimes on purpose," she says cheerily, a bright grin on her face - but there's a hidden tone of condescension that underlies her words. It's not like she's perfect of course, but she certainly likes to think she is.

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[BLAZESTAR]

Blazestar knows there are still those in his Clan -- even on his council -- that struggle to respect the daylight warriors' place in SkyClan. He cannot begrudge them their feelings, even if they sting when considered. Kittypet origins run through SkyClan from their leader and medicine cat, to the strongest warrior, to the smallest kits. He knows there is nothing to be ashamed from, as long as one serves their Clan with loyalty and courage -- but still, the doubt that some of his Clanmates spit serves as a painful reminder that the rest of the forest does not agree with him.

He's silent, padding alongside Sootsprite and watching Silversmoke's aggressive solo training session. He's a gray blur, claws flung into bark and teeth bared in exertion. Blazestar does not know what the lead warrior is thinking, but he can only guess -- especially when the innocent Bunny stumbles upon the training session.

Blazestar listens keenly to the shelter cat. "There's no way I could do half of what you just did. It's really impressive stuff." His mouth twitches. Did he want to? He imagines climbing, at least at Silversmoke's skill level, is out of the range of possibility for the brown tabby, but there were other valuable skills for warriors to have.

Sootsprite says, voice cheeky, "Everyone falls outta the trees at times here -- sometimes on purpose!" Blazestar nods slowly. "SkyClan's specialty is using the trees for hunting and combat," he says to Bunny. "But there are other ways to serve your Clan, if needed." He wrinkles his nose bridge, just a bit. "I'm certainly not the best climber in the forest." His kittypet genes -- Ragdoll genes, though unbeknownst to him -- weigh him down again.​

[ PENNED BY MARQUETTE ]​

 

[SILVERSMOKE]

The praise was... Silversmoke didn't know. He felt his chest puff up like a cocksure bird at the mention of it, but he didn't think his ego truly inflated along with it, not when he knew that Bunny had seen him make a blunder like any old cat. "It's... an off day," he mewed dismissively, loathing how true that was. It was no excuse for failing, only an explanation: his inability to help those that had needed it weighed on his mind too heavily for him to be in top form. 'We must be Gods to these creatures. We rescued them and have skills they could only imagine in their wildest dreams.' It was only a matter of time before they met the other groups and that perception of greatness came crashing down. SkyClan was the only Clan in the forest he'd ever love, but it'd never been their physical prowess that made him appreciate the clan. Tail coiling around the side of his body as Bunny continued to speak, Silversmoke eyed the tabby with careful scrutiny.

"I'm fine." He thought that much was true. Bruised pride and likely bruised body aside, nothing felt out of place. He took a step forward, the movement was stilted from fatigue but not much else. He exhaled in relief, he'd have never heard the end of it if his reckless training had resulted in a trip to Dawnglare. "I am just practicing my dexterity, is all. I'm a deft cat, but not the deftest, I want to change that." His size, double-edged sword that was it, prevented him from reaching the heights of speed he longed for. He'd say he appreciated the intimidation his ghostly silver fur and permanent scowl provided, but it made finding sparring opponents so much more difficult. Contemplating, he looked the tabby up and down, about to offer something when a second voice broke his focus. He glowered towards the earth at the realisation that more than one cat had witnessed his training session (or zoomies, to the untrained eye) and felt his lips twitch. Silversmoke closed his eyes and, with flattened ears, tilted his head to the side. "...It wasn't on purpose."

Blazestar's presence caused him to point his muzzle upwards once more, a stalwart nod offered to the Ragdoll. Thank the Stars he was taking the attention away from his fall. Offering a silent stare of appreciation, Silversmoke reclined on his haunches, ears twitching diligently at the Leader's explanation. Even as a long-term SkyClanner, he couldn't help but wander what had spurred the clan's reputation for climbing trees when their own leader struggled. It wasn't like they were the only forest-dwellers, yet it was SkyClan that were called squirrels (among various kittypet insults), not ThunderClan. "My own skills are far better suited for the ground. But being bad at something doesn't mean you stop doing it all together, even if you can't climb like a spider, you should try." He was referencing himself, but, as his attention shifted back to Bunny, he wondered if the newcomer would take it as a hint to practice before them all.
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