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Looking this good is a full-time job
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Smokekit squirmed out of the nursery. The sun was out, camp busy. He was tired of being told to stay put and stay close. He flicked his tail irritably as he walked into the space of camp head held just a little higher than necessary.

"I'm not a baby." He muttered to himself.

Most of the warriors were leaving or already gone, which was rude, honestly, especially at this very moment. He watched them disappear with a faint scowl then huffed and changed targets. If no one was going to teach him how to be a warrior, he'd start by doing what warriors did.

The fresh kill pile!

Smokekit padded over with purpose, sniffed once, then seized a mouse that was absolutely big enough to make his point. He dragged it a short distance away then flopped down and began to eat. He did a decent job of it too, all things considered. When he was finished, he licked his paws, inspected the remaining scraps with a critical eye. No one would notice he simply nudged it back into the pile.

With his hunger dealt with and boredom creeping back in, Smokekit scanned the camp again. His gaze snagged on the Elder's Den, a place were there would most certainly be someone there for him. He poked his head inside first before stepping fully in, eyes landing on Boldclaw as he fully took in the den.

Smokekit tilted his head, studying the cream pelted tom with open interest. He saw someone who was young enough to be a warrior, and if it was the young Elder that he had heard about...this was gunna be good.

"Hi." He sat down carefully, so as not to look clumsy and wrapped his tail around his paws like he'd seen older cats do.

I’m still a Warrior no matter what you say!
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Boldclaw lay his head on his paws and stared at a pebble that was barely beyond arm’s reach. He had no answers for how to get out of his predicament. The only thought that came to mind was to continue requesting his return to his duties as a warrior. Even if they didn’t trust him to not fall asleep, surely they could give him the chance to prove himself. Maybe once the leaves began to turn and the cooler weather alleviated some of his exhaustion.

The cream coloured tom only vaguely noticed the arrival of a kit into the Elder’s Den but paid no heed. Kits never wanted his attention, Sunbear had far more interesting stories and was less grumpy. Yet, when the pawsteps seemed to come directly his way, Boldclaw lifted his head and watched as a young kit approached him and sat down with care. At first, the typically grumpy tom could only blink in surprise. ”Uh… hi?” he meowed uncertainly and sat more upright, trying to look less bewildered. Boldclaw glanced beyond the young tom, expecting to see others, his confusion only deepening as he realised only one kit was here. Were there any litters of just one kit? Or had this one been sent to the Elder’s Den as some sort of punishment?

”Did you, uh, need something?” the chocolate pointed tom finally meowed, head tilting as he stared at the kit. ”I could try telling you a story but one of the elders probably has a better story than I could tell…” he offered almost helplessly and shrugged. The uncertainty that Boldclaw felt was extremely apparent. The confident facade the tom once carried constantly had been crippled and broken by moons without escape from the mental cage that doubt had become.

Looking this good is a full-time job
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Smokekit blinked slowly at the uncertainty in Boldclaw’s voice. "I didn't get sent by anyone." He corrected, lifted his chin a fraction higher.

"And I don't want a baby story." He glanced over the broad tom's shoulder, peering over past him before briefly squaring up haunches to haunches. "I want a warrior to talk to."

His green eyes sharpened with interest as they traced the lines of Boldclaw’s frame. He didn't see an elder. He saw someone who had been out there. "What’s it really like? I wanna hear about patrols and scenting prey and...stuff."

He shifted forward slightly, leaning in without realizing it. "I'm not gonna be stuck in the nursery forever...I'll be an apprentice soon!" No more being forced to be stuck in camp, no more baby stories...he wanted to stretch his legs out on the moors.

I’m still a Warrior no matter what you say!
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Boldclaw shifted uneasily at the kit’s words. It was almost as though his thoughts had been read and the tom suddenly began to wonder if his hallucinations were back and making him think he’d been thinking when he had actually been speaking. The creamy pointed tom shivered and focused back on the young tom as he continued to speak. Confusion glittered in the young elder’s eyes as he listened. Then realisation dawned and Boldclaw sat up in a proud posture. This kitten had more sense than the rest of the clan combined if he still viewed the older tom as a warrior despite it being common knowledge that he lived in the elder den and was kept from doing duties.

”Well!” Boldclaw began in what he thought to be an impressive and influential tone, ”It’s certainly refreshing to meet a kit who’s eager to learn even before they must. Reminds me of when I was a kit! And I will gladly tell you what you want to know.” The thickset tom paused and flicked his tail slowly as he gathered his thoughts. The day was pleasant, warm but not hot, and this allowed Boldclaw a reprieve from his regular exhaustion for the time being. ”Let’s see,” he meowed thoughtfully. ”Well you want to know what it’s really like so I shan’t be honeying it up for you. Warriorhood is at times really exhausting, stressful and frustrating, but it is extremely rewarding too. You can take pride in knowing that you are helping to keep your clan alive.”

Boldclaw blinked at his words and smiled at the young tom. ”There is so much that goes into being a warrior, as you mentioned, patrols, hunting and much more! We may be here a while and you will be none the wiser, though, if we don’t start with one topic and then let things flow like the wind on the moor. So what would you like to hear about the most?” Boldclaw’s heart warmed as he recognised his words to be similar to those his mentor had said to him on their first day. He, too, had been eager to learn everything and his mentor had had to gently nudge him to focus on one thing at a time so that he could soak the information in. Oh what the pointed tom wouldn’t give to have the chance to be a mentor!

Looking this good is a full-time job
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Smokekit's ears perked higher the straighter Boldclaw sat. What came out of his mouth seemed a voice belonging to a warrior, a cat who wouldn't let what a medicine cat or a leader say bring him down. A brow arched, then furrowed in concentration.

His eyes were bright as they fixed on the pointed tom's face. What did he mean that being a warriow was stressful and frustrating..? That didn't sound very fun at all. It wasn't the answer he fully expected, but he didn't interupt the older tom as he spoke either.

"That sounds...hard." Smokekit said slowly once he finished, wondering if he could perhaps be a cat, a singular cat, that could make a difference in his Clan. He wondered what exactly the rewards could be, other than what Boldclaw mentioned keeping the Clan alive.

He blinked over towards the camp entrance. "There's not exactly lots of room to stretch your legs in Camp. I wanna know what it feels like when you're faster than everything. When the wind's pushing you and you don't have to stop." His gaze snapped back to Boldclaw's face a bit unguarded.

"Aspenberry's my dam and Deputy too, so I'm off to a good start." Smokekit declared, chin lifting again.

I’m still a Warrior no matter what you say!
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Boldclaw’s gaze softened at Smokekit’s reply. ”Being a warrior is hard,” he meowed gently. ”But it isn’t unpleasant. Some days you struggle and hate having to do the tasks required of you. Other days it’s a breeze and everything feels light and carefree. My best advice to you is to make the most of each and every day that comes your way. Your future is never guaranteed after all.” A sad smile lit the cream tom’s face as he thought of his own present in comparison to his dreams as a kit and apprentice. Never could he have imagined on those days when he had wished for nothing more than to laze in the sun and let others do the hunting and patrolling for once, that it would become his future well before his age would have declared it.

The tom was pulled out of his sad reverie when Smokekit snapped at him, stating his desires. ”You certainly shall get to experience that,” he purred. Normally such attitude would inflame Boldclaw’s own self-righteous attitude, but so refreshing was it to have a cat talk to him without obvious pity or disappointment, that he simply felt amused. He, himself, had had that strong desire to run free. ”When you’re apprenticed, you shall get to run from one end of the territory to the other, just like I did! You’ll get to hunt and learn to fight. You’ll have a taste of the freedom to come as a warrior.”

The Windclan elder’s gaze darkened at the mention of the clan’s Deputy. Rather than looking impressed, anger seemed to fill Boldclaw’s gaze. ”Ah,” he meowed in a suddenly annoyed tone. He had half a mind to snarl at this kit now. There was no love lost between Boldclaw and Aspenberry. To him, she was one of the reasons why he was stuck acting as an elder when he still had more to give to his clan. As such, the desire to entertain her offspring was distinctly lacking. Boldclaw’s blue gaze sharpened as he summed the kit up. He had felt he was a kindred spirit only moments before and his own mood change left the older tom confused and unsure of how to react. ”I wouldn’t be so proud of that fact. Your dam is part of the reason why I have to sit on my tail instead of enjoy those glorious Windclan winds that you apparently dream of.” It wasn’t an outright attack on the kit’s mother, but it was still a pointed remark that would leave little doubt about Boldclaw’s dislike of the she-cat.

Looking this good is a full-time job
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Smokekit's ears flattened and for a heart beat he just stared at Boldclaw like he hadn't heard right. The warmth that had filled his chest snapped away like a twig."What?"

The kit's small body bristled as he squared himself up in front of the older tom. He might have been tiny compared to Boldclaw but he planted his paws stubbornly. "My dam keeps the Clan running." Smokekit fired back. "She leads patrols, makes decisions and protects everyone."

His whiskers flared forward. "You said being a warrior is hard. Sounds like maybe you just couldn't handle it." It seemed like a cruel jab, especially from such a small mouth, but Smokekit didn’t stop there. Young pride and anger tangled together in his chest and once the words started they came like claws.

"I came here because I thought maybe you still acted like a warrior...So maybe the elders' den is exactly where you belong."

I’m still a Warrior no matter what you say!
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At first Boldclaw didn’t notice the kitten’s reaction to his words until the question and he noticed him bristling. At first all Boldclaw could do was blink in confusion but his gaze soon darkened. The little tom’s words fuelled the rage that sat in the retired warrior’s heart. ”And I thought a kit who wished to learn might actually be ready to be apprentice but you’re still just a baby,” he snarled back and fluffed his fur out, trying to intimidate. ”If your mother was so fantastic we wouldn’t be being killed off by some no good rogue! If she were so fantastic she wouldn’t force me to sit on my tail and do nothing when I’m more than ready, willing and able to help my clan!”

Boldclaw glared furiously at the little kit and stood up to further tower over him. ”If you were so smart and brave, you would see that your clan needs every paw they have and instead your dam forces us to hide like prey! You are nothing but a weak, stupid, mewling kit trying to be more than he is. If your great and fantastic dam truly loved you, she wouldn’t keep you blind to the world. She would be teaching you the very things you desire! Instead you have to come crawling to a… a.. Decrepit, withering elder who was deemed useless to his clan before he actually was!”

The Windclan elder stood, breathing heavily and quivering after his tirade. Guilt pricked his heart as he realised that he had just yelled at a kit unfairly, but his anger was too fired up to allow regret. ”So why don’t you just run along and play like the others kits you snivelling worm,” he snapped once more and then turned to dismiss the kit. Forcefully, Boldclaw tried to stifle the yawn rising in his throat. The last thing he needed was to fall asleep in front of this kitten after everything, and yet he could feel exhaustion building like a stifling storm.