I Just Need Peace and Quiet [Slatecall x Gingerstep]

[Minteh Freshness]

Slatecall

Slatecall rolled his shoulders, trying to release the tension that had building there. There was a small pop and then he relaxed, feeling better and more free, not quite as stiff and cramped as before. The young warrior glanced around the camp, his light green eyes taking everything in. He'd given his apprentice the day off today as he needed to collect his thoughts and figure out the best way to continue training her. His ear flicked. He wouldn't exactly get that here in the bustling, noisy camp. With a quiet sigh, he smoothly got to his paws and ever silently made his way out of his clan's camp.

The farther away he got from camp, the more relaxed he became and the more his mind cleared. This is just what he needed. The natural sounds of Shadowclan's territory didn't bother him as much as the seemingly constant jabbering from within the camp. And he had given Spiderpaw the day off today. It wouldn't help either of them if they kept crossing paths in camp all day. In fact it would probably make them more tense and awkward around one another, if that was even possible. Though at least the young she-cat that had been appointed to him was actually starting the relax more around him. The spotted tabby tom was still surprised that he had an apprentice. He was only eighteen moons old and probably not quite as mature as others seemed to think came with his quiet and stoic nature. He was still a young tom. 

Slatecall blinked his eyes and stopped when something large and loud seemed to fly past him. It took a few moments more for his to realize that he was at the thunderpath that separated Shadowclan from Windclan. The grey tabby shook out his fur and turned around, heading to a pine tree that stood several tail lengths away from the black tar path. He sat down beneath it, but was still in a sunny spot. He needed the warmth rather than the shade because of how cold it was. At least the tree was a good ways away from the asphalt that the monsters roamed and even with the growling and roaring of the monsters that filled the atmosphere every once in a while, it still was quieter than in the camp.

His striped tail gently laid around his paws and Slatecall closed the light green orbs that served as eyes. He started to take in a deep breath but turned it into a drawn out shallow one because of the stench that always followed monsters and stuck to the air surrounding their roads. This helped him settle into an almost meditative state as the tabby tom flipped through thoughts and memories, going over a plan on how to finish training Spiderpaw. Her previous mentor had done a good job with the young she-cat before Spiderpaw got stuck with him, and now he had to figure out how best to fill in for the previous warrior. His style of teaching would be different than Nightfrost's since they had different mentors who acted and taught differently. Slatecall just wanted to teach his apprentice the best way he could and help her start to be the best warrior she could be. It felt like a lot of weight on his shoulders, which brought back the tension from before. 

His tail tip twitched at that thought before he pushed it away to focus. He needed to go back through what he had learned, how he had learned it, and how to help Spiderpaw shape his teachings to be better suited for her. In this sort of meditative state, Slatecall was almost completely dead to the world. Sure his ears heard noised, his nose caught scents, his fur ruffled in the breeze, and all that was cataloged in his brain, but it was in the back part of his brain and he wasn't paying much attention to the things surrounding him.

Words || 675
Ooc || Enter however you want with Gingerstep.
Tagged || Yuno

[Yuno]

Gingerstep 

The bush rustled, revealing pale green eyes. The moor was quiet today, with thinner and thinner rabbits running around. The familiar hunger was beginning to gnaw inside Gingerstep. She had traveled far and wide, searching, searching and searching for the moors for rabbits, but in most days, all she got were some scraps, barely enough to cause cats some contentment. She sighed, a sudden feeling of weariness falling upon her. She was starving. She knew that her Clan mates were starving too. And what would happen if they reach leaf-bare? All she had found today was just a tiny dead rabbit, already dead, its corpse ripped around in ribbons. It had been long dead, and was already decaying into crow-food. She caught the very faint whiff of fox-scent, but knew it was already long gone. She guessed that it had probably had crossed towards the Thunderclan territory. She had earlier decided to go towards the Shadowclan border, hoping to find at least a tiny little morsel of food to feed the clan, but the doubts had finally decided to wash over her. 

She sighed, trying her best to ignore her rumbling belly. The small sandy cat trudged on, trotting along across the moors, her ears pricked for any sign of rabbit footsteps, her jaws open to try and absorb as much scent as she can. There was nothing. Nada. She felt anger well up inside her, but she swallowed it, her pace breaking into a run. There has to be at least a few more rabbits before the season ended! She wanted to scream out loud at Starclan. It seems that there was nothing at all by the Shadowclan territory. All she could smell now was the acrid scent of the Thunderpath, and the scent of Shadowclan.

Suddenly, the most familiar whiff caught her nose. Rabbit! Gingerstep quickly reeled around, her mouth already watering, as she tried to figure out where the scent could come from. She saw the white bob, as the medium sized rabbit darted around the moors. She felt herself drop into a crouch, as she tried to get close, before breaking into a run. The rabbit started to sprint, hearing her footsteps. 

Fox dung! In a hungry state, Gingerstep knew that she had considerably weakened. She flexed her muscles, gaining the distance between her and the rabbit, when she realized she had to stop in a halt. She went skidding to a break at the Thunderpath, by the border, as the rabbit scrambled across. "Fox dung!" She growled, out loud as she watched the bob vanish, before sitting down on her haunches, letting the disappointment washed over her.

Tags; Minteh Freshness
Notes: I love this cat. 

[Minteh Freshness]

Slatecall

"Fox dung!" Light green eyes flashed open then narrowed. Was that a cat's voice he just heard? Slatecall lifted his head to look around. A small flash of white caught the edge of his vision and he whipped around to look at it, only to see a rabbit disappearing into the shadows of his clan's lands. There was no way he'd be able to catch it. He was no Windclan cat after all. Though hopefully it would stay over and some one would surprise it and be able to catch it. His clan would need it with the cold season coming. 

The smell of cat, Windclan cat to be more specific, wafted over to drift by his nose. Slatecall turned back towards the Thunderpath. There shouldn't be anything to worry about, the smell of Windclan sometimes drifted over onto Shadowclan territory because they shared a border. But the thing was, it smelled more fresh than how the border normally smelled. The grey tabby tom studied the Thunderpath. It was quiet, thankfully, which meant he would be able to hear any cats nearby and see them before they get scared off by a monster. There. A sandy colored shape of a ginger cat on Windclan's side. 

Slatecall's head turned slightly, almost comically looking like a dog, as he noticed the slight feline was sitting right next to the black tar path. He felt something turn in him as a vision passed in his mind of a monster leaving the path only a few tail-lengths and hitting the poor cat. He'd seen what had happened to Coalpaw's hind legs after a one sided fight with a monster, the incident still fresh in his mind as it hadn't happened too horribly long ago, and no matter which clan the cat was from, he never wanted to see it again. Before he knew it, Slatecall's brown-grey paws were moving cautiously towards the asphalt. The rough gravel dug into his paw pads as he got closer. He stopped before he got close enough to touch the rough texture of the road. 

"I wouldn't sit next to the Thunderpath if I were you. I've seen the monsters leave it before and pad on the rocks before. And if you are sitting, it's harder to escape, even if you are a fast cat from Windclan." He mrowed across the stretch of black, his green gaze on the sandy she-cat across from him. Slatecall's ears strained as they listened for any incoming metallic beasts. He waited for any of the telltale vibrations in the ground that would tell him one was approaching. The scar that ran along the right side of his face tensed as he focused most of his attention on noticing when a monster was approaching. Some of his clanmates had told him it made him seem threatening, and he mostly forgot about it until his naturally stoic face tightened with worry or focus, then the scar became taut. Slatecall pulled his thoughts away from those memories and focused on the sandy she-cat and the Thunderpath, waiting for her reply and for a monster to come racing past.


Words || 545
Ooc || -
Tagged || Yuno

[Yuno]

Gingerstep

"I wouldn't sit next to the Thunderpath if I were you. I've seen the monsters leave it before and pad on the rocks before. And if you are sitting, it's harder to escape, even if you are a fast cat from Windclan." Gingerstep's fur bristled on instinct at the sound of the other cat, as a familiar (but not really wanted) scent wafted on her nose.  She immediately fluffed out her tail, trying to appear larger than she was. Although she was already a warrior for quite a time, there are still a lot of cats from the other clans who would mistake her as a senior apprentice, much to her anger and distaste. Shadowclan? Definitely Shadowclan. Probably a snooping Shadowclan cat. What if he spotted me miss that rabbit? Was he watching me the entire time?  The small ginger she-cat decided to nod curtly, ignoring the thoughts and possibilities in her head, her grey colored eyes fixed onto the cat who had emerged to sit by the other edge of the Thunderpath. She had to play it polite. As an afterthought, she decided to stand up and pad a small distance away from the Thunderpath.

"Greetings." She said coolly, ducking her head curtly. She remembered seeing that tom before. With that scar, and that green eyes, she remembered seeing him somewhere at the gathering. His name was Slatefur? Slatepelt? Slateclaw? She narrowed her eyes, trying to remember. Slatecall. Yes, his name was Slatecall. "Well, it seems that you yourself is sitting by the edge of the Thunderpath. A passing monster might have a bigger chance of hitting you than hitting me." Her voice was light, slightly snarky. Well, she knew that Littleflame would be disappointed with her. When he was still alive, he was always reminding her to stay nice. She was sure she was nice, but right now, the frustration of missing the rabbit was creeping up her spine and she was more than ready to lash it out. On how there was less and less prey. On how she couldn't catch one measly little rabbit.  "Oh, and I might take the time right now to remind you of our territory borders. Have a nice wonderful day." She changed her tone a little, trying to make it sound like she was polite. After all, he could have a patrol coming after him for all she cared. She wasn't going to start a war between two clans so close to leaf-bare.

She was about to turn heel and leave, maybe try the Thunderclan border for prey on her way back, but she somehow, she didn't. She eyed him suspiciously, waiting for a reply. 

Tags: Minteh Freshness
Notes: --

[Minteh Freshness]

Slatecall

Slatecall sighed quietly when the she-cat, who when he saw her face, recognized her as Gingerstep of Windclan from a couple gatherings they had shared, stood up and moved away from the edge of the Thunderpath. He felt himself relax, though he was still alert for any monsters coming. "Greetings." She nodded curtly to him and he returned the favor before she started to speak again. "Well, it seems that you yourself is sitting by the edge of the Thunderpath. A passing monster might have a bigger chance of hitting you than hitting me." Actually, he was still standing, not sitting, though he figured it might look that way with how he stood and the slope of the rocky edge to the road. Slatecall decided against pointing that out. Instead he padded a tail-length away from the Thunderpath and then turned back around to face the she-cat. There was a vibration beneath him and then he heard the growling of a monster, moments before it passed between them. Slatecall tensed up, ready to get out of the way in case the monster veered towards him, but it didn't, so he relaxed a bit more. "Greetings. I am sorry to have spooked you. That was not my intentions. It's just that I have seen the aftermath of a cat being hit by a monster recently." He didn't say anything more about it, though his heart did ache for Coalpaw and for Iceclaw, as it was easy to see the old tom was degrading after the loss of the young tom. And besides, he was sure the other clans knew of Coalpaw's death by now. Secrets were hard to keep. It was like the trees themselves had ears.

The older warrior began speaking again, and Slatecall listened quietly. "Oh, and I might take the time right now to remind you of our territory borders. Have a nice wonderful day." Slatecall knew his face was a stoic as ever, it hardly ever changed, even if he wanted it to, but he could feel the curiosity and amazement at her statement. Gingerstep sounded polite as she spoke, but he had a feeling it wasn't the tone she really wanted to use, especially after the snarky one she had used before. Slatecall dipped his head as she looked like she was about to take off but didn't, so he replied, his deep voice the same, polite and cool tone he always used when talking with felines he wasn't close with. "I know of our borders. It's hard for anyone to forget when it happens to be a Thunderpath." He paused, his green eyes glancing into her grey ones. "My apologies if I have seemed abrasive. I did not mean for my words to be taken that way."


Words || 473
Ooc || He's so polite. It makes me think of the gentlemen I've read about from back in the old days. xD
Tagged || Yuno

[Yuno]

Gingerstep

Gingerstep stared at the cat on the opposing side blankly as his spoke, catching herself in time, to quickly break away from his leveled gaze. Her fur bristled as he spoke. Cat's don't go around telling other cats from neighboring Clans that they're sorry to have spooked them and apologizing for being abrasive. Who does this cat think he is? He is such a smooth talker! She thought, feeling slightly irritated, but not angry like what she'd usually feel. Gingerstep didn't talk with cats outside her clans, except during at gatherings. And they would always find her a grumpy moody cat to be around with.  Out of all the cats that she had just stumbled on from the neighboring Clans, she had bumped right into a smooth talker. And this cat was concerned about her sitting by the Thunderpath? She wasn't even sure any cat had said those really nice words to her before. Sure, not Smalltail. Their rivalry was going on strong. Not Starlingstar, obviously not Littleflame. Not Tigawpaw either.

She wasn't even sure in which direction this conversation was going to go towards. She was gong to be sent into Starclan if a Clanmate found her now. "... yes. I've heard about the apprentice who got hit on the Thunderpath." She continued, somehow speaking in the other direction from the cat. "Apprentices losing their lives are very horrible. Did he happen to be your apprentice?" That was the only reason why he could have been worried about her. This poor cat was traumatized with his dead apprentice. 

She heard the rumble of another monster as it passed between them. She knew that she needed to hurry up and go, and try to hunt some more, and that she was breaking the warrior code by even speaking to this cat! What was she supposed to do, sympathize with him and his dead apprentice? "Are you on a border patrol or something?" She didn't feel that flustered anymore. they were wearing off. The words she said were back at full force, and she could bring herself to look at him.

Tags: Minteh Freshness
Notes: Poor Gingerstep. She's just so shocked a cat from another clan has those gentlemanly traits. :'D 
She somehow reminds me of this gif

[Minteh Freshness]

Slatecall

Slatecall watched the she-cat opposite away from him. She seemed to have an array of emotions crossing her face. He felt curious about her but knew most cats didn't like talking to others outside of their clan, even though it really wasn't breaking the warrior code. After all the warrior code didn't say it cats couldn't speak to others. In fact it said Defend your Clan, even with your life. You may have friendships with cats from other Clans, but your loyalty must remain to your Clan, as one day you may meet them in battle. Now even that didn't mean the two of them had to be friends, but it was fine with them having a friendly conversation. "... yes. I've heard about the apprentice who got hit on the Thunderpath. Apprentices losing their lives are very horrible. Did he happen to be your apprentice?" 

The grey tabby tom sighed sadly and shook his head. "No, Coalpaw was not my apprentice. His mentor was one of our older warriors, Iceclaw." He shook out his spotted fur sadly. "I can't imagine what Iceclaw is going through and I hope I never do. Spiderpaw is such a lively young she-cat that it is hard to imagine life without her spark." He moved his gaze to her once more. "I warned you because I didn't want your loved ones to have to go through the same thing our clan did, if you received the same terrible fate." His pale green eyes were sad as that vision of her being hit by a monster flashed through his mind once more. Every cat should mourn when that fate befalls any cat, even a cat from another clan or a cat from outside of the clans. Slatecall didn't believe anyone deserved to die like that. Another monster flew past them and the young tom tensed up before relaxing when it was gone.

"Are you on a border patrol or something?" Gingerstep's next works surprised him and he raised a single brow before his face fell back into it's normal, stoic expression. "Border patrol? No, not at the moment. I just needed some quiet time to myself. Away from camp. I just happened to end up at the border." Another monster growled loudly as it raced past. In the quiet after it disappeared, he stretched some to loosen the muscles that were still tense. It both made him feel better and it would help him get out of the way of one of those metallic beasts quicker.


Words || 433
Ooc || Gosh, It's been a while since I posted with him. I hope I played him correctly lol. x3
Tagged || Yuno

[Yuno]

Gingerstep

"I warned you because I didn't want your loved ones to have to go through the same thing our clan did, if you received the same terrible fate." Loved ones? Gingerstep has met a lot of cats in her lifetime, but she hasn't met any cat like this one before. And now he was talking about 'loved ones?' What loved ones? Gingerstep had attempted to keep a professional distance between every cat in the clan and herself.  Loved ones was probably something she had with her family? Or does that not count cause it had been a while since she had spoken with her brother and sister? "What..." She managed weakly, tailing off. This was no good Gingerstep! Her brained warned her. It had already switched on the warning signal, beeping like crazy. You're going to sound weak in front of someone in an enemy clan. Better just hurry off and break the meeting Gingerstep, you've got a lot of work to do for your clan. 

Gingerstep eyed the cat wearily, barely listening to the words he trailed next, about apprentices and mentors from his clan. Seems like the type of cat who would reveal his clan secrets easily, but then again, she was sure already most of her own clan, including the kits in the nursery knew about the fate that has befallen Coalpaw. "My condolences about Coalpaw." Gingerstep nodded, towards Slatecall. She had no idea who this apprentice was, but it was best to continue sounding polite. "He sounded like he is the type of cat who would be a great warrior." What am I even saying!

Her ears pricked when he mentioned that he was not on a border patrol. "Well, I'm on a hunting patrol myself." Gingerstep echoed. "But then I'm alone. I should really be going back to hunting. The rabbit that I missed was bad luck." Gingerstep stood up, looking back into the direction of the moor while trying to flatten the fur on her shoulders. "Well, I suppose I would see you around Slatecall." She stated. "Unless you got anything else to say before I continue hunting? But I'm sure you don't. So I'll be on my way here." She stopped, before turning around to look at the Shadowclan cat, before immediately dropping her line of vision into the Thunderpath separating the two territories. "I hope you do get your quiet time." She mumbled, sounding slightly uncomfortable. 

Tags: Minteh Freshness
Notes: I think we should just keep this thread short and end it here. Because usually first time meetings between two cats in different clans don't last very long. But if you like, we could make another Slate and Ginger thread, after maybe Ginger could walk after that shoulder injury. 

[Minteh Freshness]

Slatecall

Slatecall noticed the she-cat across from him seemed flustered. Or something. He really wasn't good with identifying emotions. But he cursed himself anyway. There he went, making someone embarrassed or uncomfortable again. Slatecall sighed on the inside. He wasn't making a good impression, was he? The whole talking with others thing was definitely not his strong suit. At all. Which was why he normally spoke only when he needed to.

"My condolences about Coalpaw. He sounded like he is the type of cat who would be a great warrior." Slatecall wrangled himself away from his thoughts in time to hear her words. He dipped his head in a showing of his gratitude for her words and decided it would probably be safer to remain quiet on this one. No need to embarrass himself further or make her even more uncomfortable than she probably already was. And besides, it didn't look like he needed to say anything since she continued on herself, stating she was in a hunting patrol. And she had missed a rabbit. Which could have been his fault. He wasn't really sure. Maybe she had caught his scent and it had distracted her from the rabbit since it might have seemed like he was crossing the border? He certainly hoped not. Every clan would need all the prey they could get in the upcoming moons.

Gingerstep stood up and he mirrored her actions. "Well, I suppose I would see you around Slatecall. Unless you got anything else to say before I continue hunting? But I'm sure you don't. So I'll be on my way here." The spotted grey tom shook his head. "No. No, just... I am sorry for distracting you from your hunting. May Starclan guide your paws to a bountiful hunt." He said while dipping his head once more to her and turned away from the Thunderpath just as she had, intending to keep himself from distracting her any longer. He had only taken a few steps when is ears caught the sound of her voice once more. Her words were quiet but the wind had drifted some of them to his ears. "...hope you...get your quiet...." The words were soft but he pieced them together and understood the meaning of what she had said. He continued to pause before speaking, still turned away from the Thunderpath and her. "Thank you." He rumbled out quietly, though he felt sure his voice had carried back to her.


Words || 409
Ooc || Yeah, I'm good with it ending here. I think we ended on a good note. I feel Slate will be concerned about Ginger after he hears about her run in with a monster, especially after he tried to warn her. lol But yeah, another thread after she's up and about again would be great. (If you want, I can lock this thread and put it in the finished threads area in the archives. Though I wouldn't be against you adding one more post if you felt like it. ^-^ )
Tagged || Yuno

[Minteh Freshness]

Update:
This thread is officially done. Locking and moving to archives.