private WOLF PUP TEETHING \ tigerkit

[RACCOONSTRIPE]

Raccoonstripe likes to think he's picked a kit seemingly at random to accompany him to a shaded corner of camp, but that's not quite the truth. All five of his children are on the cusp of their sixth moon, and they will all be expected to learn to provide for their Clan — and also how to defend it with their lives. His methods are sound, he feels; Wildheart and, before her untimely death, Moonwhisper, were formidable fighters. But he does not know the intricacies of training a three-legged apprentice in the art of war; nor does he understand the challenges a blind warrior will face.

Therefore, he does not speak to Stormkit or Twilightkit.

Bayingkit is twice as fierce as her siblings — whatever else he thinks of the slavering little she-kit, he fears not for her warrior blood. And Lightningkit... something seems wrong about forcing her to bend her body into ungainly crouches before her time, though he cannot pinpoint why that is.

That leaves Tigerkit — eager-to-please and unquestioning Tigerkit. She accompanies Raccoonstripe to a space behind the nursery, where they are shaded from the leaf-fall sun and away from prying eyes. He watches her as she stumbles close to him — she is well-built, but average-sized, and her movements are not as graceful as Nightbird's. Still... she has his blood, the blood of two dedicated ThunderClan warriors, of Howlingstar herself.

Tigerkit has no reason to falter today.

"You'll be an apprentice soon." It's an observation; it's a penance. "I want to make sure you're ready. You want to be ahead of your littermates, don't you?" If nothing else works, that will.

Raccoonstripe lumbers around Tigerkit, creating a crescent moon with his body that arcs around hers. She has multiple avenues open for her first attack — his lowered face, his stalking paws, the sweep of his feathered tail. He blinks at her, his voice rumbling like a growl in his throat. "I'm a ShadowClan warrior in your camp. I'm going to steal your territory and keep it for myself." Real anger colors the flesh under his fur. If I were deputy, I'd put them into place —

"What are you going to do, Tigerkit?"

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

• ooc: @TIGERKIT
• 
• Raccoon . Raccoonstripe, he/him w/ masculine terms.
  — "speech”, thoughts, attack
  — 46 moons old, ages realistically on the 5th.
  — mentored by n/a ; mentoring Thistlepaw ; previously mentored Wildheart, Moonwhisper
  — thunderclan lead warrior. gray wolf x howlingstar, gen 2.
  — currently mated to Nightbird.
  — penned by Marquette.
  
  
  lh black tabby with white and dark brown eyes. charismatic, charming, calculating, ambitious, shallow, manipulative.
  
  

​

 

[TIGERKIT]

Tigerkit's happy. She's really happy, because Raccoonstripe's not mad at her and he wants to see her. She follows behind him eagerly, not really bothering to think about whatever it was... Cause whatever it was, she was picked for it, and that made it good, she's pretty sure. Unless Raccoonstripe said something like... I'm getting a surprise for Bayingkit and I need you to keep that a secret. That'd be the worst.

You'll be an apprentice soon, he tells her. Tigerkit blinks, her smile wiped to make room for mild-eyed surprise. Her disappointed oh is on the tip of her tongue, but she doesn't say it. Is it bad, that she's disappointed? She hasn't really been thinking about her apprenticeship. It was coming too fast. She didn't even know what she wanted to be yet... And now she's nervous. Ready. She's not sure that she is. Not unless she... she's got a secret talent. So secret not even she knows about it. Contemplation furrows her brows. You want to be ahead of your littermates, don't you? " Y-yeah, " she mews. She did wanna be ahead...

She cranes her neck as Raccoonstripe twists his way around her, following his gaze. She doesn't get it. Not yet. It scares her then, his voice, rumbling in a way that she hasn't heard from him before. Her ears flatten to her skull. What are you going to do, Tigerkit?

Tigerkit doesn't know what she's gonna do, but she knows what she's supposed to do. She tries to make herself look more like Bayingkit- low to the ground and rumbly. An arched spine— but is it arched enough? Her growl sounds unsure, kit-like. She unsheathes pinprick claws, knowing that... if it were a real ShadowClan warrior, that'd be what she's supposed to do... And Raccoonstripe wanted her to think this was real. And Tigerkit wanted to do what Raccoonstripe wanted.

She's nervous. She's really really nervous, but Raccoonstripe wouldn't like that. ShadowClan wouldn't like that. Wide eyes would instinctually flit to the movement of his tail, and with a small, unpracticed growl, she would lunge forward, attempting to latch teeth onto it.​

 

[RACCOONSTRIPE]

He's normally at least semi-charmed by the inquisitive thoughtfulness in Tigerkit's voice, but his daughter regards him almost nervously, and that causes something otherwise docile in Raccoonstripe to snap. What do his children have to fear from him? Has he ever been anything but kind to them — has he ever done anything but provide, but tear pieces of his flesh from his pelt and lay them as sacrifices at their paws?

The tabby's eyes narrow. Tigerkit lunges for his mindlessly-swishing tail. Her lips peel away from her teeth, and she successfully digs them into the meat of her father's appendage. He does not wince, though the damage is done; he can feel blood spotting where Tigerkit had just broken the skin.

Something like relief burns in his chest. "Good," he says, though he hardly looks at her. "You've made your enemy feel your teeth. How does that feel?"

He thinks of a sunlit silvered pelt, thinks of pairs of gleaming, laughing eyes, thinks of Flamestar passing over him in her presence. Raccoonstripe's eyebrow twitches, and without warning, a forepaw flashes toward Tigerkit, aiming to knock her clean off her paws and send her rolling. An untrained apprentice would have done very well to avoid such a blow — a kit, though, without even a day of mentoring? Well... perhaps he should have tempered the attack a little.

But this is how she learns.

He does not stop to think, What is she learning?

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

• ooc: —
• 
• Raccoon . Raccoonstripe, he/him w/ masculine terms.
  — "speech”, thoughts, attack
  — 46 moons old, ages realistically on the 5th.
  — mentored by n/a ; mentoring Thistlepaw ; previously mentored Wildheart, Moonwhisper
  — thunderclan lead warrior. gray wolf x howlingstar, gen 2.
  — currently mated to Nightbird.
  — penned by Marquette.
  
  
  lh black tabby with white and dark brown eyes. charismatic, charming, calculating, ambitious, shallow, manipulative.
  
  

​

 

[TIGERKIT]

She wanted to do what Raccoonstripe tells her to do, but she feels bad. Why did she feel bad if she was being a good kit? ...Cause he was bleeding, and that didn't have to happen. He was gonna have to see Gentlestorm, and it'd be her fault... Racoonstripe isn't happy. He isn't smiling. He won't look at her, and she wonders if she did something wrong- but he tells her good, and so she believes him. This is good. Tigerkit tries to needle kitten-teeth deeper. You've made your enemy feel your teeth. She doesn't think Raccoonstripe is her enemy... but if he wanted her to think that, she would. How does that feel? "...Good, " she mumbles, blinking wide. Was that the right answer?

Tigerkit isn't sure what to do next. She keeps holding on. She holds on like her life depends on it— or maybe not. Maybe she didn't try hard enough, cause Raccoonstripe knocks her off her feet, and she releases his tail with a mewl of surprise. She tumbles backward, kicking up dirt and skidding on her pale paws and belly. She sitll whines like a kit, not like an apprentice. She was gonna have to fix that.

" M' sorry, " she mews, dual-toned eyes squeezed shut. " I shoulda... Shoulda seen it coming. " She corrects herself so Raccoonstripe wouldn't have to. She's smart. She's self-aware. She's good, and she'd be good at this if Raccoonstripe wanted her to be. " M' sorry, I'll get it right next time, " she insists. Tigerkit scrabbles to her paws, blinking up at her father with an expectant look.​

 

[RACCOONSTRIPE]

Tigerkit, unconvincingly, tells her it feels good to sink her teeth into enemy flesh. Raccoonstripe has no problem knocking her aside, away from the meat of his tail, but it does not bring him any satisfaction. His daughter tumbles into the dust, dirties the white of her paws and belly, and the whimper that exudes from her pudgy little body is fragile and kittenish. Momentarily, he ceases his pacing, his eyes wide.

"M' sorry," she tries to say, tries to right herself, approaching him again, unafraid. But he can see her flanks heaving. Raccoonstripe feels something snake around his heart and squeeze. "Did I hurt you, just now?" He sounds breathless, as though the revelation might wound him.

But Tigerkit wants to keep going, and he isn't done, is he? Something sick and poisonous boils in his belly. He licks his lips; they're dry. "Attack me again. This time, try your best not to get thrown off." He'd be gentler, this time; he'd be careful. He swears it.

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

• ooc: —
• 
• Raccoon . Raccoonstripe, he/him w/ masculine terms.
  — "speech”, thoughts, attack
  — 46 moons old, ages realistically on the 5th.
  — mentored by n/a ; mentoring Thistlepaw ; previously mentored Wildheart, Moonwhisper
  — thunderclan lead warrior. gray wolf x howlingstar, gen 2.
  — currently mated to Nightbird.
  — penned by Marquette.
  
  
  lh black tabby with white and dark brown eyes. charismatic, charming, calculating, ambitious, shallow, manipulative.
  
  

​

 

[TIGERKIT]

Tigerkit shakes her head. Tigerkit shakes her head cause she's tough and good and ahead of her siblings... or she was gonna be if she could get this right... " N-no. M' okay, " she tells him. Something like determination is in her eyes, though it might be the wrong sort... She gets another try, and she's really glad. She has another chance. Attack me again, he tells her, and she's flattening herself down into a hopefully warrior-like crouch. This isn't Raccoonstripe right now, she reminds herself. This is... an evil ShadowClan warrior, and she can't go easy on evil ShadowClan warriors... And if she does good, then she'll see Raccoonstripe for real, and Raccoonstripe will be happy with her.

He'd see it coming if she went for his tail again, right? An owlish gaze flicks over him, searching for a target. If he was really, really a ShadowClan warrior, maybe she should scratch his nose, or try and make him blind like Stormkit... But he wasn't, she tells herself. He both was and wasn't. It was confusing, being tough, but not too tough...

She runs forward, having made up her mind... Well, not really, but he's bigger than her, and there were only so many places she could cling onto a cat that's bigger than her... teeth aim to clamp onto the meat of his leg. If she got there, she- she wouldn't let go this time. She'd dig her teeth in and... and feel good, she hopes. She thinks.​