pafp SUGAR HONEY ICED TEA \ honey hunting

[BERRYHEART]

Berryheart had a craving. When he was struck with inspiration he had to seek it immediately; it was a dead giveaway to anyone who knew him well when he rose up and walked out of camp with purpose and not a second thought. In a flower dotted forest such as this, so scenic and sweet-smelling, there were bound to be some beehives. He had seen them before, here- long before ThunderClan's existence, when he wandered off on treks to find out more about the world- but whether or not they might have fled the forest due to the descent of so many cats in one place was still yet a mystery to him.

In undergrowth did he crouch, low and well-balanced despite his missing for with the low posture of his tail. Finally he had come across one, hanging from a lower branch... it was reachable- with a stick at least. Still, with no backup just whacking it would not work... and for all the things he could do well, climbing was not one of them. Brain whirring with tactical thoughts, the tortoiseshell tom was statuesque as he intensely studied his surroundings, wonky eyes narrowed slightly in a contemplative frown.

/ @Flycatcher !!​

[ PENNED BY PIN ]​

 

[Flycatcher]

Flycatcher hoped he would not have come across as rude following Berryheart out of camp. He wouldn't have called the two of them friends but they had a passing acquaintance at least, and he hoped that along would help him with not overstepping any perceived boundaries. Flycatcher did not think Berryheart was up to anything bad but he had never seen the tortoiseshell tom leave with such purpose before.

It doesn't take him long to find Berryheart standing in the undergrowth looking around intently at his surroundings. Flycatcher paused next to him, not sure if the other had seen him yet. "Uh, Berryheart?" He mewed, calling out the tom's name to catch his attention. When Berryheart would look his direction, Flycatcher took a moment to glance around the area himself, trying to discern just what he had been looking at. "Are you looking for something?"​

 

[sloestride]

THIS WEIGHT ON MY NECK MAKES IT HARD TO CONNECT​

Sloepaw was scoping the territory as he often did, skimming just ahead of his mentor. The boulders and trunks that layered to form the forest seemed to almost deliberately deceive him most days but slowly the tom was picking up landmarks. It was easy to find his way back to camp, the scent trails were reliable enough. When the weather intervened however, it threw his tactics to the wayside. There was no way to smell the hot earth of the sandy hollow if the water swept the floor with browned leaves and stagnant puddles.

The shattered bough of an oak aligned his compass, satisfaction smoothing his pelt. It was interrupted by murmurs just past the rise and soon enough curious steps led him forward. Met with the still shape of Berryheart and Flycatcher's pewter-flecked pelt the apprentice paused.

A hum, masked by the twist of wind pulled at his attention. Wordlessly the mink-furred tom slid between the pair, mirroring Berryheart's stance prior. "Are those- bees?" Sloepaw questioned, loam nose wrinkled. His twolegs often ate honey, scraped across their crunchy food. The sweet smell of the stuff still tugged the memory of one stood tall, hot of breath, twisting a container. It had sounded like two rocks grating against each other.

"Oh, sorry for interrupting. Just seems a bit of a weird choice, y'know. What are you gonna do with them?" He alternated his gaze between the pair, eyes slightly furrowed with confusion.

/ @HOWLING WIND (mentor)
​

 

[HOWLINGSTAR]

Howling Wind follows in the direction she last sees her apprentice's tail disappear. When she arrives, she is pleasantly surprised to see two welcomed faces. "Berryheart, Flycatcher, you two out hunting today?" She mews with a smile, approaching on soft-stepping paws. It is then she catches her apprentice's gaze, and she follows it to a buzzing beehive. At once, her tail flicks in realization. "Oh, Berry...you're not thinking..." Again? She knows she can't really stop him from doing something like this - he's done it plenty of times before! - but she still casts a worried glance towards him. Why couldn't he indulge in a snack that's much safer to retrieve, like a mouse?​

 

[BERRYHEART]

He had not expected even sole company, let alone a trio... though, it was not unwelcome. Blue's question was answered by another question, ask upon ask, Snoopy inquiring his intentions with the swarm that flitted fast around their sweetened home. A nod was offered to aid Blue's line of sight, a white toed paw moving to motion in the direction of his prize. It pulsed with the presence of its buzzing guardians, and in his study of nearby branches he surmised it was feasible to grab them without the insect's eyes or senses locating them. He hardly noticed Snoopy's apology, nor Big Mama's approach behind him- until she met his gaze with worry set verdant in her eyes, a look which he met with a shrug. "I want honey," the mottled tom spoke plainly, a yawn splitting his crooked jaw for a moment. That would give Snoopy his answer, too.

Noticeably, his attention cleaved from his prize and swept breezelike over those who had gathered. Speed had never been his specialty- though the tom had learned to manage well enough, when swiftness was direly required he was no cat to look toward. Baritone, he offered a query- a debate between them that would ultimately be in aid of his goal. And theirs, if they wanted honey too.

"Which one of you can run the fastest?" ​

[ PENNED BY PIN ]​

 

[Flycatcher]

He didn't have long to wait before he received his answer. Sloepaw was actually the one to point it out first, before Berryheart pointed a white paw up at the beehive. The tortoiseshell's simple answer had been to tell them he wanted honey. Based on Howling Wind's lack of surprise in her response, it was clearly something that Berryheart had done before too, which Flycatcher wasn't entirely sure how to feel about that. He'd never even tried honey before but he knew bees weren't exactly something you messed around with.

"It would depend on the situation, I suppose," Flycatcher answered honestly. He didn't think of himself as a particularly swift cat but he was smaller than most and had a certain fleetness to his step that stemmed from that. "Uh, why did you want to know which of us can run the fastest?"​

 

[sloestride]

THIS WEIGHT ON MY NECK MAKES IT HARD TO CONNECT​

"Fast enough- though for what I dunno." Response speculative, Sloepaw tried to piece the tom's unspoken plan together. Wanted honey, he said... From the bees? His own tail knocked against his flanks in a 'duh' moment. He had a feeling he knew what was required but he didn't want to speak it into being for fear of looking foolish. "Whatever you need, I'll do it."

The offer wasn't made lightly, running for a long period of time would push aches into his limbs and soak his senses with weariness. But Berryheart's vagueness had piqued his interest, and he wanted to see it through. Even if he didn't quite know what 'it' was yet. Sloepaw gave Howling Wind and Flycatcher a simple shrug.​