camp Duty of care | Patrols

MAYBE I'D BE A SAINT IF I WEREN'T ————————————​

Dawn breaks to find Snakeblink pacing a tight circle in camp, muttering under his breath. He glances up, startled to find the sky already lightening; his voice sounds almost distracted as he turns around to call for his clanmates. ”Ah— Riverclan, gather around for patrol assignments!”

He doesn’t give himself time to stress about this, or to glance nervously at the willow tree den where their true deputy resides for now. If Smokethroat disapproves of his way of doing things… Well, he’s sure he’ll hear about it eventually anyway.

”I will make this quick,” says the notoriously-wordy lead with a straight face. ”I will take Skyclan’s border. Mudpelt, Aspenhaze, you’ll accompany me — take your apprentices.” It ought to be an uneventful patrol, despite the worry over sickness; he’s hoping to be able to observe how the two more experienced mentors operate.

”Cindershade, take Pikesplash and Willowroot to Thunderclan.” His friend’s apprentice has looked downcast since her mother’s disappearance: he hopes the two kind-hearted warriors and their apprentices will help lighten some of her grief for a time, however short.

”Lichentail, I am giving you the patrol to Windclan.” If any doubt remains after Cicadastar lifted her punishment, he hopes this alleviates it. ”Bring Petalnose, Salmonshade and Hazecloud with you.”

Whiskers twitching, he turns to their leader. He plans on sending as many as they can afford along with Ravenpaw to collect herbs, so the river phantom will have to peel away from the willow’s shadows for a time. ”Cicadastar, will you hunt with Iciclefang and Dovethroat? And Lakemoon, take Lilybloom and Cloudsplash on another hunting patrol; the fish will not know what hit them.”

”Finally: Ravensong, Saltsting and Fallinglight are at your service for the day.” That ought to be an interesting match-up. ”Feel free to ask for any additional help.”

”Take your apprentices with you, and remember to stay grouped. If anyone feels under the weather today, tell me now: I will reorganize these assignments as needed.” He clears his throat, looking one last time at his clanmates. ”That will be all.”

——————————————————————————————————— so god damn lonely
 

This might've been the worst patrol set she had ever heard of. Hopes for Snakeblink died away for the responsibility of sending clanmates. The woman was holding her urge not to drag her paw across her face in dread.

She saw Lichentail taking the responsibility to lead to Windclan was more of a reward. A reward after punishment. It didn't make sense to her. Sure, being part of it was what Petalnose would be fine with. What others may agree with as well. But leading it? Not her whom hadn't disrespected her leader? It dissapointed her. Not to mention the whispers she had heard of Haze and Lichen. Was this matchmaking? Or was this just a randomized panicked decision on the face of this temporary authority power?

Petalnose quietly groaned to herself, searching camp for Smokethroat or Cicadastar to see what their reaction would be. But she also searched to crowd to see her clanmate's reactions, hoping she wasn't crazy. The woman sat back and slowly blinked, trying her best to hide her annoyance to the situation. Hopefully Silverpaw could distract her enough to let her mind worry of other things.

//all ic opinions, I was laughing- I adore snakeblink omg

Tags
 

The sight of one of the lead warriors stepping up to distribute patrols is a familiar one to Lilybloom. With Smokethroat still recovering, it had fallen to the lead warriors to pick up some of the deputy's duties.

Lilybloom pads forward to listen to what Snakeblink has to say, curious where - if at all - she might be assigned to today. She was hoping for a border patrol but a hunting patrol would suffice, and luckily for her, she would get to spend it in the company of her divine mate and Cloudsplash. As Snakeblink said, with their skills combined the fish stood no chance. Lilybloom quickly sought out her mate, who would likely not have been far from her and kept an eye out for Cloudsplash. "I'll be ready to leave when you are."
 
Patrols are made for the day and to Salmonshades amusement, it looked like Snakeblink was doing them this time. She tilts her head upwards, listens to the patrols that he gives. Snake takes a patrol to their allies (she's not sure what they are, anymore) and Cindershade takes one to Thunderclan. Blue eyes dance tot the others, gauging the reactions the patrol members have.

Her name gets called, she adverts her gaze from the others to study Snakeblink. She gets put on Lichentails patrol, which she would not have complained about if it wasn't to Windclan. She has nothing against the molly, she just does not like the Clan.

Theres enough time for a long, drawn-out sigh to tumble from her lips as she turns, searching for her apprentice. Of course she had to bring a new apprentice to one of their biggest enemies borders. She feels a familiar prickle of irritation begin around her shoulder fur though it stops as she looks down to the little one. "You are to stick by me and not leave my side. Not this time." there will be a multitude of other opportunities to explore without the pressure of keeping Windclan in their sights at all time, but now is not one of them. Not to Salmonshade.


  • @Ratpaw
  • dg5qxk9-f1e272c6-c705-4449-95a5-6dfb1b0a3b3c-removebg-preview.png
    -> salmon ,, salmonshade
    -> cis female ,, she/her ,, 30 months
    -> warrior of riverclan ,, former marsh grouper
    -> fluffy & dainty chocolate tortie smoke with low white and blue eyes
    -> “speech, ff91a4” ,, thoughts
    -> lesbian ,, single
    -> smells like warm flowers & freshly cut grass
    -> image by @wrendoings [ disc ]
 
( ) one last patrol before she moves into the nursery. excitement sparks in willowroot's chest as she shifts from paw to paw, awaiting her assignment. thunderclan border, with pikesplash and cindershade, two excellent companions. sage hued eyes flick across the scattered gathering of warriors to find her patrol. passing petalnose, she overhears a quiet grumble and offers the molly a soothing smile. snakeblink has done his best with patrols, but lichentail to windclan is a choice. she herself was against the warrior's punishment from the start, however she sees the discomfort some of the more radicalized riverclanners have towards the supposed rule breaker. lichen had better shape up on her patrol.

// ic opinions obvi <33
 
Patrols, something Rat had seen been gathered together and leaving from camp many times, but this one would be her first. When Salmonshade found her and spoke letting the apprentice know that she was to be sticking by her side the whole time, all she could do was nod quietly as she thought. She was excited to go, yes, but she hadn't any plans to leave her mentor in the dust this time, whether it had been WindClan or ThunderClan, worried about getting lost somehow and not being able to get home. She didn't know these other cats, and for all she knew they'd drag her across the border the second they smelled her, and she wasn't about to have that.


  • [ooc]
  • ratpaw is a four moon old apprentice of RiverClan. Her mentor is Salmonshade. She is an all white cat with rounded ears and orange eyes. She is currently a weak swimmer, weak hunter, and a weak fighter. She is loyal to RiverClan, is bisexual and is currently NOT looking for a relationship. She is OPEN to plots and private threads, but CLOSED for injuries. PEACEFUL POWERPLAY IS ALLOWED.
  • a reference image should go here (I do not have one teehee)
 
In every situation you give me peace
Snakeblink takes his place within the tight circle of camp in order to fire off patrol assignments. Soft blue eyes trail over the lead warrior as he orders Cindershade, and by proxy herself, to scout alongside their shared border with thunderclan. The glassy eyed apprentice gives Snakeblink a small solemn nod of her head before seeking out her mentor as well as Willowrot and the others that were to accompany them. With her mind not entirely focused she nearly bumps into the pregnant queen before stopping herself. "Sorry Willowroot." Sablepaw voices quickly, gaze spacy as she takes a seat and looks off in another direction, simply waiting for Cincershade to announce their departure.
Don't gotta be afraid because you're in the lead
 

He is staring so hard at the back of Snakeblink's head it is a wonder it has not begun to melt under the fierce intensity of his gaze. For the most part the patrols were fine but there were a few where it felt as if the tabby was making an attempt to stir up friction between clanmates and he almost wants to snap at him immediately when he hears of the cats assigned to Ravensong's patrol in particular. Cats who Snakeblink himself had pit against one another in a childish little gossiping session he had only faintly heard about but knew it ended with quite a number of choice words for the tom that were more than deserved. 'He is not doing patrols again.' Smokethroat thinks, making a note to let Petalnose try her paw at sorting them out next time he needed a cat to cover them but for now he would pick back up next moon.
The kits would be apprenticed then, assigned mentors he intended to handpick specifically to avoid cats like Snakeblink teaching them anything. With a shake of his head he rose to stand and stalk back to the willow den to stay with his litter as they slept, having only stepped out to observe briefly.
 

To SkyClan. It'd been a while since he was on a border patrol there- he usually ended up ThunderClan's way, which dampened his usually-bright mood. The hurt had numbed over time, but it was still frustrating to have to met civil eyes with thieves, with evil. Lesser evil than WindClan, obviously... but SkyClan was by far their bordering Clan he could look upon with the least derision.

In the crowd, his bright eye searched for his mentor. As soon as he found Mudpelt, he took rank at his father's side, standing to attention with a small laps of excitement skittering across his pelt. He hoped he might see Sparrowpaw- who might have their warrior name by now- or perhaps Figfeather. Though he still harboured a bit of embarrassment still carrying his apprentice name, his want to catch up with them overrode that twinge.
penned by pin
 
Snakeblink already seemed so nervous just to be speaking to such a large group...

It is with flitting consideration that she ponders if she'd be any more comfortable in the same position. Talking to others is... taxing... and especially when it results in such fantastical misunderstanding. There were very few that she could think of that hadn't misinterpreted her in even the most harmless conversations. Even a gentle teasing about a spit-fire elder found her scolded by a child of all things... She sorely hoped the brown tabby would not be pairing her with Fallinglight for that reason alone.

But it appeared he sought to do one worse somehow! It was baffling, leaving Lichentail to struggle to keep her mouth from falling agape in abject horror of these proposed patrols. Not only was she being asked to go to WindClan (already the burning in her missing ear flared as a reminder of what had happened the last time she'd wandered that direction...) but that little... well, snake, had set her with Hazecloud. And Petalnose?

StarClan what have I done to deserve this?

The last time she'd talked to Petalnose it had been to tease her for her affections with Aspenhaze and since then... she'd only ever been on the receiving end of glares. Cicadastar's very public way of handling her over-confident mouth had all but ruined her reputation... Even with those she had assumed might yet be her friends.

Casting Smokethroat an uncomfortable glance, it was clear from his burning gaze that he was not impressed either...

"Brookpaw," they meow, struggling intensely to avoid the wayward glances of clan-mates that felt like claws in her pelt, "WindClan is our most relevant threat in recent moons. I need you to understand that this is not going to be a fun fieldtrip. Don't pick any fights... and stay well behind the border."

I will not give them the same opportunity that Smokethroat got with Cottonpaw...



@brookpaw
 
( tags ) It's rather strange for Snakeblink to give out patrols, but it seems like his friend feels very much the same given the fact how readily they wish for this to be over. The pairings his friend makes are... Questionable. He is sure that Snakeblink knows what he's doing. Snakeblink thinks in a different way than most of us. Maybe what we think is kinda bad has a reason for it. Personally I don't mind Cindershade or Willowroot, but I'm not sure why he wants to send me to Thunderclan? If we're talking showing strength to a clan we have bad relations with, then I'm not exactly fierce. He looks to his sister Petalnose and sees that she is not at all pleased with Snakeblink's assignments. Yikes. Yeah, she's pissed. If she was with Aspenhaze then this would be a different story. If she had looked over he would give her a sheepish grin and rub his paw against his face.

When it was announced that Windclan's patrol would be lead by Lichentail, he wasn't upset by it. He was actually quite fearful for Lichentail because she had recently had her punishment lifted, but the fact that she had Petalnose and Hazecloud. Didn't we say that Hazecloud and Lichentail have something weird between them? Snakeblink I hope the outcome you want is a good one.

Once Snakeblink sends everyone on their way he pads over to Petalnose and nudges her slightly. "Hey, I know you're mad, but once this is done a nice big carp will be waiting for you. Try not to kill Lichentail, okay? I'm not saying you can't feel upset or be a snarky towards her, but no killing. Be safe sis." Despite the fact that he shouldn't be telling Petalnose to be snarky and make comments towards Lichentail on patrol, he knows that it is wrong. It is wrong to force Petalnose to be kind. And he wouldn't want that. He loves Petalnose (not in the same way Aspenhaze does) and sees no point in changing who she is.

Then, he makes his way over to Lichentail who rightfully seems to be overwhelmed. He offers her a smile and glances at brookpaw, giving them a smile in greeting as well before he returns his attention to Lichentail. "Hey Lichen, be safe." It's a bit awkward and he's aware of it, but he doesn't know what to say to her considering he doesn't want to make her feel even more overwhelmed by things. "I... I don't think Snakeblink is doing this to punish you. He's a nice tom. I'm sure he paired you up with who he picked for a reason. Maybe after, uhm, talk to him to figure it out? I think he wants the best for you just like I do. I'll be going now, again, be safe!" Ever the strange one he is after all this time. Maybe Lichentail is relieved that some things are still the same despite everything.

Away he goes to join the Thunderclan patrol. Green eyes glace at Snakeblink's form. What are you hoping for?
 

⋆。˚ ☁︎ ˚。⋆。˚☽˚。⋆ The moment he hears Snakeblink's plan for him, he changes his mind about his earlier assessment: squirrels used to store acorns in his skull, but they moved out and all that's left are dusty cobwebs from spiders who gave up. His jaw muscles clench, and he watches other contentious groupings side-eye each other, but ultimately, they're leaving without a word said to Snakeblink. That's nice. He isn't going to roll over so easily, and he picks his way over to the skinny feline a lot more breezily than he actually feels.

"Got a moment? Thanks," he blazes forward before Snakeblink can attest otherwise, smiling charmingly. "So, here's the deal: Saltsting won't ever tell you this because he's Saltsting, but he's got some sort of allergic reaction to certain medicinal plants. Sneezing, eye-watering, snot-dripping, coughing— the whole nine fox-lengths." He glances around briefly, almost furtively. "You wouldn't do that to him, would you? Switch him with...I dunno, how about Willowroot?"

  • ooc:
  • FALLINGLIGHT / / 11 moons old / / amab and uses masculine pronouns; will be startled by the use of any others.
    — warrior of riverclan / / earned warrior name early at 10 moons / / skilled but not experienced / / mentoring [n / a].
    — npc parents / / father died in the great battle and mother left when he was apprenticed / / no contact w / siblings.
    — flirtatious & disastrous bisexual / / fairly indiscriminate (even when he should be) / / closed to long-term romance.

    a fairly trim, athletic cream tabby and black chimera with high white. fur is thick and a bit sharp, though tends to soften and curl primarily around his face and tail when wet. eyes are a bright, gleaming blue at home with the river on clear, sunny days. he is rarely without a devil-may-care grin, though despite his daring personality, has yet to accumulate noticeable scarring.
  • dear shell, can you believe snakeblink? AGAIN?? he wanted to send me with ravensong and saltsting, like he didn't listen to me at all. i can't wait to get stuck inside a hole and watch them keep going without me because saltsting's fascinated by the difference between a sharp leaf and a round leaf.

 
  • Haha
Reactions: iciclefang
MAYBE I'D BE A SAINT IF I WEREN'T ————————————​

Displeased murmurs rise following Snakeblink’s patrol assignments, and his spine curves under the weight of many glares. He swallows thickly; surely even he cannot be so displeased for no reason. It must be the way he did things, then, but what specifically? His eyes meet Pikesplash’s, finding only questions there. Oh dear. He will have to ask the tom about it, once they all return from their duties. Of his clanmates, Pikesplash might be the only one patient and understanding enough to walk Snakeblink through his misstep rather than go for the eyes immediately.

Fallinglight approaches him and Snakeblink finds himself dreading whatever the sharp-tongued warrior will have to say to him. But instead of the rude contestation he expected, the younger tom only shares his concerns over his friend’s condition. Despite everything, Snakeblink finds himself breathing a sigh of relief.

”I had no idea… What a shame — he seemed to have an interest.” And he had, admittedly, hoped for the two black cats to spend time together with Saltsting’s friend there to help draw the more stoic warrior out of his habitual silence. Oh well: clearly, his plans are ill-considered today. Looking around more obviously than Fallinglight did, he adds, ”Thank you for the information. Do you see him? I should tell him he is being sent elsewhere.”

——————————————————————————————————— so god damn lonely

  • Snakeblink • he / him. 43 ☾, riverclan warrior
    — a sleek, skinny tabby with long ears and a scar over his right eye.
    — gay, not actually evil, penned by @Kangoo


 
Like many of her Clanmates this morning, Iciclefang is partially appalled by her patrol assignment. She has no issue patrolling with her leader, of course—she relishes the opportunity to display some of her hunting skills to Cicadastar, in fact, and she stretches meaningfully under Snakeblink’s gaze. But Dovethroat? She resists the urge to roll her eyes. Was Snakeblink trying to embarrass him? They are the same age, but Iciclefang has been a warrior for several more moons. He’s a bit unfortunate in that regard… rather like Fernpaw, though clearly not as severe.

She shrugs. She can’t fault Snakeblink for the idea on second thought. Perhaps he’s hoping Iciclefang’s skills would rub off on him by proxy, somehow. “I’m ready when you are, Cicadastar,” she says coolly, inclining her head to the RiverClan leader.


  •  
  • iciclekit . iciclepaw . iciclefang
    — she/her ; warrior of riverclan
    — lesbian ; single
    — short-haired tortoiseshell with white markings and ice-blue eyes
    — “speech”, thoughts, attack
    — penned by Marquette
    — chibi by Pin
 
Velvet ears would move, turning to face the call of a man that she had come to know as a companion. It was quite humorous to see, a stoic and fearless woman friends with a sly fox with a bit of cowardice. But the world has such a way of intertwining destinies together in red thread, bounding of those together tightly. She moves with purpose, watching Snakeblink silently as he named off quick patrols, clearly hiding a certain stress of soaking into the sea of felines that now corral him. Cindershade understood the weight of it, so she would not hold it over his head. It was an ardous task, one that comes easier the more it is practiced.
At the sound of her name leaving his lips, followed by the latter, she nods in understanding. A patrol to ThunderClan—something she has done so often that has created tension and calamity between the two clans. Time has passed and tension has eased—but never truly gone. A competition over land still lingers, an uneasiness to steps that travels along the shoreline. There would never be true peace between the two, not with a prize like that on the line. The lead warrior gives Snakeblink a nod of acknowledgement, pivoting on her heel in order to search for her assigned patrol members. Immediately she spots Sablepaw and Willowroot, noting how unfocused her apprentice seemed to be as she collided with the newly pregnant queen. Her lips twitch, knowing just why it transpired. Boneripple had disappeared, leaving her kits behind—abandoned—with no good bye or even a dismissive flick of her tail. Pity drapes over her expression, virdian eyes softening at the edges as she peered over her before looking to Willowroot. "Let us get this done, shall we? Faster it is done—the faster we can return." Her rumbling voice was soft this time, the sharpened blades of her words dulled to a rounded tip.

[ SILENCE IS DEAFENING ]