Post by andromeda on Jul 8, 2020 12:10:08 GMT -8
LAKEPAW
clap your hands if you feel like a room without a roof
clap your hands if you feel like happiness is the truth
It would not be an exaggeration to say that all of Lakepaw’s life had been leading up to this moment, when he would go out on his first ever solo mission, even if that mission was simply getting feverfew for Cosmospaw near Fourtrees (it was a chore, not a mission). What did Jadestone call him this morning? Ah, yes, an “herb retrieval specialist.” It made Lakepaw happy to be given that title for today, so much so that he had immediately afterwards paraded around the camp, chest fur puffed, telling everyone that Jadestone had made him an “herb wee-tree-ball speckle-mist” for the day (he hadn’t listened very carefully). “It’s a very important and dangerous mission,” she had told him before instructing him to follow the trail that led over the bridge, easily the safest route there. “The trail is usually reserved for the best warriors; you will need to use your tracking skills I taught you to stay out-of-sight.” Cosmospaw had then shown him what feverfew looked and smelled like. “Okay, I'll find it for sure. In between the bushes beneath the leaders’ rock, I got it!” He would never find out that he was only tapped because Cosmospaw had run out of cats to ask——everyone more capable was somehow already otherwise occupied. Cosmospaw probably couldn’t bring himself to tell him anything different, since Lakepaw was already taking this “mission” more seriously than he had any of his training sessions.
The white-furred apprentice swam out of camp easily, having ridden the steep and painful learning curve of swimming during the first moon of his apprenticeship. Even before becoming an apprentice, he took every chance to splash around in the puddles that often accumulated around the reed island, their being the only thing in which he was allowed to play before Jadestone taught him how to swim. Ever since he had mastered the skill of swimming (read: was no longer at risk of drowning), his affinity for water only embiggened, and it became rarer and rarer to see him with his pelt dry. As soon as he had graduated to rivers, he had immediately forgotten all about his erstwhile obsession. Puddles, after all, were only fit for kits, and he was a kit no more.
No; in fact, he was also not simply an apprentice today—he was an herb retrieval specialist, an apothecary extraordinaire. He had an important job to do, and it was most possibly the most important job he had ever had to do. Fighting the urge to splash about and maybe dive for a fish or two, Lakepaw fixed his gaze on the opposite shore and trained his attention on finding the sandy trail that he was sure he had seen before on a couple of trips out with Jadestone. His brain buzzed from the exertion; this was maybe the hardest he had ever concentrated on something. Nose quivering, he stalked between the reeds, tail unknowingly held high. Eventually the slender grass parted in front of his eyes. Lakepaw poked his head out and took his sweet time looking around. It was only mid-morning, and the area was deserted. The only sound came from the family of deer that seemed to have moved into this neighborhood permanently, who grazed languidly on the opposite side. Lakepaw knew them to be gentle but large beasts, and he threw a couple wary glances their way before disappearing again into the reeds. He was completely hidden from view, but anyone with functional ears could tell that an animal stalked within them by the indiscretion of the rustling noises he made as his haunches swayed the grass.
The bridge soon loomed before him, the sound of the waterfall beneath it drowning out everything else. Its uproar energized him. He squeezed his eyes shut and sprinted across the bridge, his speed all but leaving jetstreams behind him. Shaking the waterfall’s spray from his pelt, Lakepaw trotted forwards, knowing by the stagnant scents of all four Clans that Fourtrees was just around the corner. He ducked through the trees and felt the temperature drop. The canopy was thick at this time of year, but there was an opening where the full moon shines through at Gathering nights. He is the holder of such knowledge now, having already been presented, along with his siblings, at the first Gathering after becoming an apprentice. All the leaders had stood up there, on the Great Rock. He glanced around slyly, then padded up to the rock and touched his nose to it. It chilled him to the bone, and he jumped back, as if he hadn’t expected the stone to be, well, cold. Hmm, he thought, maybe I can try to climb it. Cosmospaw isn't in such a rush to get the feverfew, anyways. He backed up and wriggled his haunches, preparing himself for a leap that turned out to be so pitiful he couldn’t even touch his forepaws to the edge of the rock. Scrambling back to all fours, Lakepaw encircled the rock and tried to find an easier way up. After doing three or four (or five) laps, he found some holes on the side of the Great Rock, which he used to pull himself up (he only succeeded on the third try). The ground is so far away! And I’m so close to the sun! Setting his butt down at the center of the rock, he meowed as loudly as he can, “I am Lakestar, leader of RiverClan! Our Clan is strong, and fish is many! If you, ThunderClan, has come to steal prey, we will rip you to shreds! His voice echoed around the clearing, and he giggled in delight. Never in a million moons would he actually ever say those words, that much he was certain, but it sure was fun to pretend.
The white-furred apprentice swam out of camp easily, having ridden the steep and painful learning curve of swimming during the first moon of his apprenticeship. Even before becoming an apprentice, he took every chance to splash around in the puddles that often accumulated around the reed island, their being the only thing in which he was allowed to play before Jadestone taught him how to swim. Ever since he had mastered the skill of swimming (read: was no longer at risk of drowning), his affinity for water only embiggened, and it became rarer and rarer to see him with his pelt dry. As soon as he had graduated to rivers, he had immediately forgotten all about his erstwhile obsession. Puddles, after all, were only fit for kits, and he was a kit no more.
No; in fact, he was also not simply an apprentice today—he was an herb retrieval specialist, an apothecary extraordinaire. He had an important job to do, and it was most possibly the most important job he had ever had to do. Fighting the urge to splash about and maybe dive for a fish or two, Lakepaw fixed his gaze on the opposite shore and trained his attention on finding the sandy trail that he was sure he had seen before on a couple of trips out with Jadestone. His brain buzzed from the exertion; this was maybe the hardest he had ever concentrated on something. Nose quivering, he stalked between the reeds, tail unknowingly held high. Eventually the slender grass parted in front of his eyes. Lakepaw poked his head out and took his sweet time looking around. It was only mid-morning, and the area was deserted. The only sound came from the family of deer that seemed to have moved into this neighborhood permanently, who grazed languidly on the opposite side. Lakepaw knew them to be gentle but large beasts, and he threw a couple wary glances their way before disappearing again into the reeds. He was completely hidden from view, but anyone with functional ears could tell that an animal stalked within them by the indiscretion of the rustling noises he made as his haunches swayed the grass.
The bridge soon loomed before him, the sound of the waterfall beneath it drowning out everything else. Its uproar energized him. He squeezed his eyes shut and sprinted across the bridge, his speed all but leaving jetstreams behind him. Shaking the waterfall’s spray from his pelt, Lakepaw trotted forwards, knowing by the stagnant scents of all four Clans that Fourtrees was just around the corner. He ducked through the trees and felt the temperature drop. The canopy was thick at this time of year, but there was an opening where the full moon shines through at Gathering nights. He is the holder of such knowledge now, having already been presented, along with his siblings, at the first Gathering after becoming an apprentice. All the leaders had stood up there, on the Great Rock. He glanced around slyly, then padded up to the rock and touched his nose to it. It chilled him to the bone, and he jumped back, as if he hadn’t expected the stone to be, well, cold. Hmm, he thought, maybe I can try to climb it. Cosmospaw isn't in such a rush to get the feverfew, anyways. He backed up and wriggled his haunches, preparing himself for a leap that turned out to be so pitiful he couldn’t even touch his forepaws to the edge of the rock. Scrambling back to all fours, Lakepaw encircled the rock and tried to find an easier way up. After doing three or four (or five) laps, he found some holes on the side of the Great Rock, which he used to pull himself up (he only succeeded on the third try). The ground is so far away! And I’m so close to the sun! Setting his butt down at the center of the rock, he meowed as loudly as he can, “I am Lakestar, leader of RiverClan! Our Clan is strong, and fish is many! If you, ThunderClan, has come to steal prey, we will rip you to shreds! His voice echoed around the clearing, and he giggled in delight. Never in a million moons would he actually ever say those words, that much he was certain, but it sure was fun to pretend.
| tagged Christalclear | ooc |
saved by [:ripples:] at request of Christalclear on march 30, 2021
