private clocked out like big ben | ricepaw

[Cherryblossom]

Her failures cling to calico shoulders like fog, but the afternoon remains resolutely bright and clear beyond her shameful gaze. A crystal sky soars overhead, throwing cheery dapples of light upon the forest floor she stalks through, her wavy-furred apprentice in reluctant tow.

Has a moon already passed? she thinks idly, casting a sour glance towards @ricepaw she hopes the young girl doesn't catch. Her apprentice might be too used to being left alone, sent away to the sidelines while Cherryblossom juggled patrols and Orangestar's absence and various other requests, or simply turned away in favor of blessed lone peace. But she hadn't been neglectful, really; at least, not any more than Slate had been. And look how she turned out: deputy, if only for a few moons.

In too many other ways, she finds herself peering into the puddle of her actions and looking at her old mentor staring back at her. She's not quite forthcoming with praise either—but has Ricepaw really done anything deserving of it yet? Well, she's trying to fix that now.

The sleek calico halts at the base of an old, gnarled pine, its knobs and scars perfect footholds for the inexperienced paws, and nods towards it. "We're going up today," she meows, the expectation plain in her voice that she expects Ricepaw to go first.​

 

[ricepaw]

Her right eye is somewhat squinted as Ricepaw makes her way behind her mentor. Sunlight filters through the leaves and if she had been in any better of a mood, perhaps she could have appreciated how pretty it was. Perhaps she could be taking notes for Hollypaw for their games, but no... She had woken up on the wrong side of the nest.

She certainly catches the look that Cherryblossom sends back and her spine-fur prickles in annoyance. Good riddance, just get rid of me already then! It's not like Ricepaw wasn't used to being by herself at this rate, the outings seemingly far and wide in between.

Cherryblossom draws to a stop at an old tree and her first action is to be insulted that her mentor thinks so little of her as to not bring her to a fresher pine, a taller pine. We're going up today, Cherryblossom looks at her expectantly. "Okay." her voice is clipped and simple. Of course you want me to go first, she seethes in her mind, keeping her face even as she tears her eyes away to look at the tree. Not much of a teacher, anyways. Orangestar demoted you for it anyways. it is an undoubtedly cruel thought and more than likely held none of the truth within it. She pretends she never thought about it at all.

She flexes her paws in the dirt, inwardly preparing herself. Climbing was easy. It was the first thing she had learned how to do (not literally, but still) and something she hopefully remained good at. She's determined to prove Cherryblossom wrong, and in what way she does not know, unsheathing her claws and walking to the trunk. Green eyes flick upwards and another surge of sheer annoyance propels her upwards, a good motivator at that, using the footholds to her advantage as she scales. Theres a certain point where she misses one with her back right foot, claws scrabbling at the bark and she huffs in frustration. She gets ahold of it nearly a split second later, taking her perch almost at the top. She settles on a branch, peering down at her mentor with an unreadable expression.

She opens her mouth and despite the words that come out, they're spoken lightly. "Well? Are you coming?" she does not care if it is taken the wrong way, a long exhale leaving her lips as she lets her tail drape below, flicking the tip of it back and forth. Triumph surges through her as she realizes just how high she had gotten. Good for me! is her pleased thought.

𝙸𝙳𝙴𝙰𝙻𝙸𝚂𝙼 𝚂𝙸𝚃𝚂 𝙸𝙽 𝙿𝚁𝙸𝚂𝙾𝙽 -♡₊˚ 🦢・₊✧ 𝙲𝙷𝙸𝚅𝙰𝚁𝙻𝚈 𝙵𝙴𝙻𝙻 𝙾𝙽 𝙸𝚃𝚂 𝚂𝚆𝙾𝚁𝙳

• 
  ❥ ricepaw ୨୧ ricekit
  ❥ cis female ୨୧ she/her ୨୧ 07 months
  ❥ apprentice of skyclan ୨୧ mentored by cherryblossom
  ❥ regal, curly-furred white she-cat with striking green eyes
  ❥ "speech, f0a78e" ୨୧ thoughts
  ❥ single ୨୧ not interested at all in love
  ❥ smells like hyacinths & lilies ୨୧ sweet & poisonous
  ❥ penned by chuff

​