- Jun 7, 2023
- 163
- 30
- 28
-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ- //cw for death / blood / minor gore!
he's so tired. his bones feel like they're aching from the training that he does, and leafhusk is so nice she does her best to be patient with him, and he knows that can't be easy. he's a lot. he knows. but he's doing his best and that seems to be good enough. he is so worried about his warrior assessment, after already failing, that he is glad to just go on a border patrol without having to worry so much about what is soon to come. he walks behind grassgrin, who has already passed his. orangepaw is very happy for him. jealousy has never been something that he ever has to deal with inside of him because more often than not, he just wants others to be happy. he knows grassgrin has been a good warrior so far.
his paws slow down as he looks around, almost nervously. he's not been on many patrols without leafhusk. but grassgrin insisted. something about it being a good learning opportunity, but orangepaw wouldn't have said no anyways. he has always done as he's told. his tail flicked to the quiet rhythm in his head and grassgrin stops, too, turning to look at orangepaw. for a moment, orangepaw isn't even paying enough attention to grassgrin to realize that the other tom has been looking at him. but the feeling of being watched creeps under his skin and he turns to look at him, brows furrowed and a nervous smile on his face.
"oh... hey. are you doing okay?"
he asked, and grassgrin only rolls his eyes.
"of course I'm okay, idiot. come on. keep up. the patrol is gonna leave you."
orangepaw can't help but notice the other warriors have left. his ears pin back in embarrassment, as he laughs uneasily. he's never liked being left behind. he doesn't like it now, even when he knows they're not far.
"uhm, s-sorry. we should catch up to them."
he moves to limp after the rest of the patrol but grassgrin stops him, pressing a paw to his chest. it makes orangepaw's ears perk right up, nervously looking at the warrior, who only huffs out a breath.
"wait. i think we should go the other way, actually. they won't miss us that much but… i want to hunt this way. come on."
he swears his stomach drops, as he pins his ears fully back. that doesn't sound like a good idea. at all. he opens his mouth to protest but grassgrin smacks his face with his tail as he turns away.
"i will leave you behind, you know."
"oh, stars! uhm, okay! coming, coming!
he picks up his pace and follows behind grassgrin, looking from side to side, nose and ears occasionally twitching to try and pick up the scent of literally anything. it's hard to smell when it's so cold out here. still, he is trying his hardest. he wants to impress the other warriors on the patrol, namely nightbird, and for them to be proud of him. he wants very few in his life other than making others happy, and making others proud.
as he sniffs around, his mind begins to wander elsewhere. he misses his mom so much… and it's hard for him to realize it but he knows that she's not coming back. she's really gone and he wishes that she wasn't but keeping up this charade that she was seemed to be doing more harm than good. he didn't like to think this way. it made his stomach hurt and it made his head ache– stars, his head really really did hurt– but he had to face the truth. some people seemed to think he was stupid and maybe he was… but naivety was a lot easier to deal with cynicism.
suddenly, a cold breeze sweeps through his fur, and suddenly, like a tiny rodent– a measly piece of prey– he perks right up. his eyes widen and he looks around, holding his breath so that he may pick up the sounds of anything nearby. for a moment, he hears nothing, but the snap of a frozen twig makes his entire body turn, crouched to the ground and on edge, as his fur instinctively fluffs up to make him seem bigger. his gaze darts from side to side as he tries to find the source, but he can't. not right then, but a sudden growl catches his attention fully.
"...st…stars above…"
famished. weak. crazed. desperate. the skin on the beast practically sticks to its bones, and the look in it's eyes are far from anything that he's ever seen before. its nothing more than a cub, at this height, and yet it does not make it any less dangerous. this cannot be happening. he tries to look around for grassgrin, but the slightest movement has the hungry thing creeping forward, making the little mouse step back. a fox. a fox would be the end of him. maybe i can lead it away so it at least can't hurt grassgrin. he can at least do that for the tom cat. one of his best friends– even if grassgrin wouldn't so easily agree with the sentiment.
"orangepaw, are you coming!? come on, mousebrain, we can't be out here forever!"
his head snaps in the direction of the warrior, just as the beast's does. he feels his breath quicken as his eyes widen, and grassgrin comes into view. no. no!
"grassgrin– y-you– run!"
grassgrin hardly has time to react before an angry hiss erupts from the fox, as it runs full force and locks its jaws around grassgrin's scruff. even with all its strength used, grassgrin is able to manage a kick to its face making it drop him as orangepaw gasps loudly, gritting his teeth as he moves as fast as his body will let him, shoving grassgrin up, as he desperately looked for somewhere– anywhere– to go. there had to be a way out of here!
"ugh, you… look out!"
before he can even fully react, grassgrin is between him and a drooling set of jaws, his blood curling scream loud and traumatizing. orangepaw doesn't even think anymore. he just moves– claws reaching out to dig against the fox, right in the eye. it's enough to do something, making it recoil back and leaving just enough time for orangepaw to force grassgrin on his back. he ignores the stings in his joints as he limps away, panting heavily as he swerves throughout the trees and dead bushes. he finds just enough of a space in a hollow log to shove his friend in, and get himself in as well.
he holds his breath, closing his eyes and huddling as close as he can to grassgrin, who is barely hanging in there. the low growling and sniffing comes from outside of the log, and orangepaw swears he very well might die out here. his fur is sticky, filled with the blood of his friend– is that all he is to orangepaw?– but he only stays quiet, as quiet as he could. a barely audible whisper leaves him as he hears the sniffing of the beast near the log before another stick snaps elsewhere. there is but a moment of quiet before paws thud against the cold earth, and away.
"...i…it's…"
he can barely think. he grabs grassgrin by his scruff, and pulls him out, grunting and panting as he tries to get him on his back, again. he can't. he simply does not have the strength for it.
"c-come on… g…grassgrin we have t…to… before it… come on, please… please"
"n…not this time… you… idiot… you n-need to leave… go…"
"i-i can't leave you! grassgrin– come on, you know I can't–y-you're my… my friend, and i- i love you! i can't leave you here, I won't–"
the piercing noise of something nearby makes him jolt, as grassgrin only coughs, pressing a bloody pawprint right to orangepaw's face, making him look right at the bloodied form of his friend.
"if you l…love me, then y-you'll leave me here… because i love you, i won't l…let you d…die here. so go, mousebrain. g-get out of here– because if you d-die after i w-went through all the t-trouble of saving y-you… i'll never forgive y-you."
he weakly stands up, unsteady and uncoordinated, but determined nonetheless.
"b-but i…"
"d-don't look so worried. i-ill be… s-sure t…to say h… hello to your mom for y…you. now… go."
the beast returns, blood staining its muzzle as it stands panting and the heat on its breath hangs in the cold air. orangepaw doesn't want to leave but he's left with little choice as he is slammed heavily into, so much so that the wind is knocked right out of his lungs. he swears he never felt so much pain but he doesn't have time to dwell. he gets up, pinning his ears back as he takes off running, his eyes squeezing shut as tears fall down his face, the sound of a snarl and a pain filled yowl echoing in his head.
he doesn't stop running until he runs into the patrol that he was with earlier, nearly running directly into nightbird before he just falls to the ground, panting and sobbing.
"f…fox… w…we… g-gotta go…"
"orangepaw?! where… where is grassgrin?!"
"th…the fox… he saved… me… why did he… why would he…"
again. how has this happened again? how many lives would be sacrfied for his own? when did he become so important? you're not. a voice seems to remind him. he has to agree. it's not that. he is not a cat to be sacrificed for. he simply… is lucky. or, perhaps, unlucky.
he's so tired. his bones feel like they're aching from the training that he does, and leafhusk is so nice she does her best to be patient with him, and he knows that can't be easy. he's a lot. he knows. but he's doing his best and that seems to be good enough. he is so worried about his warrior assessment, after already failing, that he is glad to just go on a border patrol without having to worry so much about what is soon to come. he walks behind grassgrin, who has already passed his. orangepaw is very happy for him. jealousy has never been something that he ever has to deal with inside of him because more often than not, he just wants others to be happy. he knows grassgrin has been a good warrior so far.
his paws slow down as he looks around, almost nervously. he's not been on many patrols without leafhusk. but grassgrin insisted. something about it being a good learning opportunity, but orangepaw wouldn't have said no anyways. he has always done as he's told. his tail flicked to the quiet rhythm in his head and grassgrin stops, too, turning to look at orangepaw. for a moment, orangepaw isn't even paying enough attention to grassgrin to realize that the other tom has been looking at him. but the feeling of being watched creeps under his skin and he turns to look at him, brows furrowed and a nervous smile on his face.
"oh... hey. are you doing okay?"
he asked, and grassgrin only rolls his eyes.
"of course I'm okay, idiot. come on. keep up. the patrol is gonna leave you."
orangepaw can't help but notice the other warriors have left. his ears pin back in embarrassment, as he laughs uneasily. he's never liked being left behind. he doesn't like it now, even when he knows they're not far.
"uhm, s-sorry. we should catch up to them."
he moves to limp after the rest of the patrol but grassgrin stops him, pressing a paw to his chest. it makes orangepaw's ears perk right up, nervously looking at the warrior, who only huffs out a breath.
"wait. i think we should go the other way, actually. they won't miss us that much but… i want to hunt this way. come on."
he swears his stomach drops, as he pins his ears fully back. that doesn't sound like a good idea. at all. he opens his mouth to protest but grassgrin smacks his face with his tail as he turns away.
"i will leave you behind, you know."
"oh, stars! uhm, okay! coming, coming!
he picks up his pace and follows behind grassgrin, looking from side to side, nose and ears occasionally twitching to try and pick up the scent of literally anything. it's hard to smell when it's so cold out here. still, he is trying his hardest. he wants to impress the other warriors on the patrol, namely nightbird, and for them to be proud of him. he wants very few in his life other than making others happy, and making others proud.
as he sniffs around, his mind begins to wander elsewhere. he misses his mom so much… and it's hard for him to realize it but he knows that she's not coming back. she's really gone and he wishes that she wasn't but keeping up this charade that she was seemed to be doing more harm than good. he didn't like to think this way. it made his stomach hurt and it made his head ache– stars, his head really really did hurt– but he had to face the truth. some people seemed to think he was stupid and maybe he was… but naivety was a lot easier to deal with cynicism.
suddenly, a cold breeze sweeps through his fur, and suddenly, like a tiny rodent– a measly piece of prey– he perks right up. his eyes widen and he looks around, holding his breath so that he may pick up the sounds of anything nearby. for a moment, he hears nothing, but the snap of a frozen twig makes his entire body turn, crouched to the ground and on edge, as his fur instinctively fluffs up to make him seem bigger. his gaze darts from side to side as he tries to find the source, but he can't. not right then, but a sudden growl catches his attention fully.
"...st…stars above…"
famished. weak. crazed. desperate. the skin on the beast practically sticks to its bones, and the look in it's eyes are far from anything that he's ever seen before. its nothing more than a cub, at this height, and yet it does not make it any less dangerous. this cannot be happening. he tries to look around for grassgrin, but the slightest movement has the hungry thing creeping forward, making the little mouse step back. a fox. a fox would be the end of him. maybe i can lead it away so it at least can't hurt grassgrin. he can at least do that for the tom cat. one of his best friends– even if grassgrin wouldn't so easily agree with the sentiment.
"orangepaw, are you coming!? come on, mousebrain, we can't be out here forever!"
his head snaps in the direction of the warrior, just as the beast's does. he feels his breath quicken as his eyes widen, and grassgrin comes into view. no. no!
"grassgrin– y-you– run!"
grassgrin hardly has time to react before an angry hiss erupts from the fox, as it runs full force and locks its jaws around grassgrin's scruff. even with all its strength used, grassgrin is able to manage a kick to its face making it drop him as orangepaw gasps loudly, gritting his teeth as he moves as fast as his body will let him, shoving grassgrin up, as he desperately looked for somewhere– anywhere– to go. there had to be a way out of here!
"ugh, you… look out!"
before he can even fully react, grassgrin is between him and a drooling set of jaws, his blood curling scream loud and traumatizing. orangepaw doesn't even think anymore. he just moves– claws reaching out to dig against the fox, right in the eye. it's enough to do something, making it recoil back and leaving just enough time for orangepaw to force grassgrin on his back. he ignores the stings in his joints as he limps away, panting heavily as he swerves throughout the trees and dead bushes. he finds just enough of a space in a hollow log to shove his friend in, and get himself in as well.
he holds his breath, closing his eyes and huddling as close as he can to grassgrin, who is barely hanging in there. the low growling and sniffing comes from outside of the log, and orangepaw swears he very well might die out here. his fur is sticky, filled with the blood of his friend– is that all he is to orangepaw?– but he only stays quiet, as quiet as he could. a barely audible whisper leaves him as he hears the sniffing of the beast near the log before another stick snaps elsewhere. there is but a moment of quiet before paws thud against the cold earth, and away.
"...i…it's…"
he can barely think. he grabs grassgrin by his scruff, and pulls him out, grunting and panting as he tries to get him on his back, again. he can't. he simply does not have the strength for it.
"c-come on… g…grassgrin we have t…to… before it… come on, please… please"
"n…not this time… you… idiot… you n-need to leave… go…"
"i-i can't leave you! grassgrin– come on, you know I can't–y-you're my… my friend, and i- i love you! i can't leave you here, I won't–"
the piercing noise of something nearby makes him jolt, as grassgrin only coughs, pressing a bloody pawprint right to orangepaw's face, making him look right at the bloodied form of his friend.
"if you l…love me, then y-you'll leave me here… because i love you, i won't l…let you d…die here. so go, mousebrain. g-get out of here– because if you d-die after i w-went through all the t-trouble of saving y-you… i'll never forgive y-you."
he weakly stands up, unsteady and uncoordinated, but determined nonetheless.
"b-but i…"
"d-don't look so worried. i-ill be… s-sure t…to say h… hello to your mom for y…you. now… go."
the beast returns, blood staining its muzzle as it stands panting and the heat on its breath hangs in the cold air. orangepaw doesn't want to leave but he's left with little choice as he is slammed heavily into, so much so that the wind is knocked right out of his lungs. he swears he never felt so much pain but he doesn't have time to dwell. he gets up, pinning his ears back as he takes off running, his eyes squeezing shut as tears fall down his face, the sound of a snarl and a pain filled yowl echoing in his head.
he doesn't stop running until he runs into the patrol that he was with earlier, nearly running directly into nightbird before he just falls to the ground, panting and sobbing.
"f…fox… w…we… g-gotta go…"
"orangepaw?! where… where is grassgrin?!"
"th…the fox… he saved… me… why did he… why would he…"
again. how has this happened again? how many lives would be sacrfied for his own? when did he become so important? you're not. a voice seems to remind him. he has to agree. it's not that. he is not a cat to be sacrificed for. he simply… is lucky. or, perhaps, unlucky.
┌── honestly, i thought that i would be dead by now
⋅❁⋅
calling security, keeping my head held down──┐
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ORANGEPAW ✩ he/they, apprentice of thunderclan, 13 moons.
⭃ rather large polydactyl orange tabby with white markings, green eyes, a broken left hind leg, who's also littered in scars
⭃ npc x npc // no known family. mother is deceased
⭃ peaceful and healing powerplay permitted / / underline and tag when attacking
↛ can hold his own in battle. semi easy to win against due to mostly using defensive moves. does not attack offensively.
⭃ penned by scar ↛ @salemdraws on discord, feel free to dm for plots.
