private WITH A GUNSLINGER'S DESIRE \ pinepaw

[iciclefang]

Pinepaw had been cleared, and though Iciclefang is under an apprentice ban until further notice, Lichenstar had followed the tortoiseshell's wishes to let her finish her daughter's training before it took effect. She drifts uncomfortably toward the apprentice's den, where Pinepaw had just recently returned. Into the gray dawn, she murmurs, "Pinepaw. It's time to go."

She waits for her apprentice to stir, waits for her to give herself a quick morning bath, and then the two head out of camp. It is frigid this morning; their breath smokes before their muzzles, and her fur, short and sleek even in leafbare, is fluffed up against the wind. She envies Pinepaw for her coarse-textured fur, until she remembers just where she'd gotten it. I remember reclining into that fur while the wind blew and the snow fell. I remember all too well.

Iciclefang shakes the thought away. It's a dangerous one, one Pinepaw is sure to sense if she lets it get away from her. "We'll go to the Beech Copse today." By the time they've arrived, the sun has lightened the wetlands considerably, though it's done little to warm the cats within it.

She stands before Pinepaw, her gaze on the girl's altered face. "When I was an apprentice, my mentor lost his eye." She remembers their first training session afterward, the way he'd told her that it would be beneficial for both of them. "He had to learn to fight without half his vision. You will be doing the same thing today."

Iciclefang speeds toward Pinepaw without warning, aiming for her blind side; she attempts to smack a sheathed paw against the girl's cheek. If successful, she will mew, "And that is what every cat you ever fight from now on will try to do."

『 out of character. 』 ✧･ﾟ:* 『 about. 』

• ooc: @Pinepaw ⭒
• 
• Iciclekit . Iciclepaw . Iciclefang, she/her w/ feminine terms.
  — "speech", thoughts, attack
  — 30 moons old, ages realistically on the 17th.
  — mentored by Smokestar ; mentoring Pinepaw ; previously mentored Cicadaflight
  — riverclan warrior. mudpelt x icesparkle, gen 2.
  — former mate to Stormywing ; current mate to no one.
  — penned by Marquette.
  
  
  sh tortoiseshell and white she-cat with ice-blue eyes. confident, capable, proud, dry, conceited, condescending, distrustful.

​

 

[Pinefrost]

-ˋˏ ༻ ❆༺ ˎˊ- Sleep has long left her by the time Iciclefang steps into the apprentices den. Her return to the apprentices den is still fresh, and sleep is a fickle thing to capture. Silently, the tortoiseshell rises. Iciclefang is not left waiting for long before Pinepaw emerges, hardly sparing her mentor a glance as the duo would venture out of camp.

Before her wound had finished bleeding, Iciclefang had tried to bring up the concern of Pinepaw falling behind in her training. While the scorned daughter had not addressed it then, it was hard to deny the validity of it now. Simply learning how to regain the hold of a steady gait had taken her longer than Pinepaw had thought; without the crutch of her other eye, her entire left side was vulnerable- invisible.

The apprentice's steeled composure betrays none of her uncertainties, only sparing Iciclefang an acknowledging flick of her dappled ear when the former Lead Warrior states their destination. Pinepaw had figured; hoped. She had been desperate to get back into the ring during her recovery. Without her ability to fight, she would have nothing- she would be nothing.

With Iciclefang standing directly in front of her, Pinepaw is no longer avoiding her mothers gaze, instead she regards the older calico head-on. When I was an apprentice, my mentor lost his eye. Iciclefang recalls, and Pinepaw recognizes that she means Smokestar, the half-blind leader who had met an untimely fate. The girls jaw clenches.

When Iciclefang darts for her, aiming to deliver a blow that the apprentice cannot see, Pinepaw is only able to narrowly avoid her mentor making contact by swiveling to the side on the backs of her heels, spraying cold sand in the wake of her avoidance. Pinepaw assumes a well rehearsed defensive stance, half-shielding her blind side from her mother to keep the other in full view.

It's a small win, and even Pinepaw is not haughty enough to believe it is earned by anything else than practiced instinct and familiarity alone. She knows Iciclefang's movements, and even then it was a narrow miss. Gritting her teeth, Pinepaw's tail lashes, "and that's predictable." The apprentice coldly counters, eye narrowing in determination. Keeping her stance firm, Pinepaw is ready for what needs to come next. "Show me what to do about it."

‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎┌── AND I BEG TO BE TESTED ⋅ ࿏ ⋅ BY GODDESSES RESTING ──┐‎

• 

• 
  PINEPAW ✩ she/her, apprentice of riverclan, 11 moons.
  ⭃ brawny coarse-furred tortoiseshell she-cat with large, white dipped forepaws, a white tail tip and muzzle. Her left eye is scarred over and blinded, while her right eye is honey-hued and almond-shaped.
  ⭃ apprenticed to Iciclefang.
  ⭃ daughter of Iciclefang && Stormywing ࿏ sister to Cragpaw && Crabpaw
  ⭃ peaceful and healing powerplay permitted / / underline and tag when attacking
  ⭃ penned by Noor ↛ @toyangel on discord, feel free to dm for plots.

​

 

[iciclefang]

Pinepaw, to her credit, is able to dodge the blow; Iciclefang feels her paw skim frigid morning air. She skids to a halt, sending sand spewing from her paws. "And that's predictable," Pinepaw intones, her remaining eye narrowing into an amber slit. "Show me what to do about it."

The tortoiseshell catches her breath. Her words smoke into the dawn as she murmurs, "It's predictable, yes, but that won't always be enough to save you in the heat of battle. And now you know what it's like." She slinks closer, her tail twisting behind her. "How dangerous it is. How swift those claws reach for your vulnerable parts." Her claws curve into the copse beneath them. And stars, never let me see a ThunderClan cat's teeth reaching for your throat again.

Iciclefang speeds toward Pinepaw again, this time facing her straight on. She aims a blow at Pinepaw's left shoulder, but without waiting to see if it lands, she aims a bite to the right side of her throat. "You're not as quick as me. You're not built for it. But you are built for defense and strength," she hisses, her ears flattening against her skull. "Use that to your advantage!"

… ❞​

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[Pinefrost]

-ˋˏ ༻ ❆༺ ˎˊ- Iciclefang continues to prowl towards her, offering a a harsh but honest reminder about the throes of battle. While the older calico slinks, Pinepaw falls into her own languid movement- though with less grace than that of her mother, the apprentice still mirrors every step Iciclefang takes forward with a shift backwards, keeping a distance between them. …How swift those claws reach your vulnerable parts. Iciclefang finishes, and Pinepaw can feel a the distant memory of claws scorching her back; of Flamestar's claws ripping themselves through her eye.

Iciclefang rushes for her once more, and Pinepaw steels herself against the weight of her mentors sudden jab. It is impossible to protect both of her sides at once now- to use her peripheral and stop an onslaught of attacks head-on, so instinctively Pinepaw opts to duck as jaws come snapping for her throat, her own sneering muzzle bared whisker lengths from Iciclefang's.
You are built for defense and strength. Use that to your advantage!

With the command ringing in her ear drums, Pinepaw's single-gaze locks onto a solid, tangible target. From her slight crouch, Pinepaw would aim to use the strength in her hind legs to propel herself forwards, and sink her teeth deep into her mothers left shoulder.

Instead of withdrawing like her instincts immediately told her, should Pinepaw's bite have landed, the apprentice would aim to use her grip to push them both further left, before finally letting go as Pinepaw simultaneously would aim to use one foreleg to swoop under her mentor's two. A risky move, but if her persistent force and strength could beat Iciclefang's swiftness, Pinepaw would be able to wrestle her mentor to the cold ground without compromising her own stability; if successful, Iciclefang would be facing sky-ward, forced to stare into a single fiery golden hue.

‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎┌── AND I BEG TO BE TESTED ⋅ ࿏ ⋅ BY GODDESSES RESTING ──┐‎

• 

• 
  PINEFROST ✩ she/her, warrior of riverclan, 11 moons.
  ⭃ brawny coarse-furred tortoiseshell she-cat with large, white dipped forepaws, a white tail tip and muzzle. Her left eye is scarred over and blinded, while her right eye is honey-hued and almond-shaped.
  ⭃ apprenticed to Iciclefang.
  ⭃ daughter of Iciclefang && Stormywing ࿏ sister to Cragpaw && Crabpaw
  ⭃ peaceful and healing powerplay permitted / / underline and tag when attacking
  ⭃ penned by Noor ↛ @toyangel on discord, feel free to dm for plots.

​