too early for this; ravenheart & dapplecreek

Half asleep in the den, Dapplecreek had felt some sort of excitement thrumming through the camp, underneath the tired lull that usually accompanied the dawn.

Part of this buzz was caused by the first hints of sunlight peeking through the sky, bringing with it a warmth that had evaded the territory for the past few days. For some reason, some silly reason, he hadn’t guessed that the greater portion of this excitement had come from the dark warrior a fair fox-lengths ahead of him.

Getting out of the camp had helped Dapplecreek to wake himself up, and the tom was looking forward to his time spent hunting with Ravenheart, once he had dispelled his initial annoyance, of course. Still, he wondered how anyone could be so excitable in the morning, and found himself thinking that energy may be better spent on the dawn patrol, to liven up the other cats tasked with checking the borders.

But being able to haul in some fresh kill would be useful to the clan as well… Even if it wasn’t as official as a larger party.

He realized with a start that Ravenheart had gotten farther ahead of him than he usually did. Too distracted his thoughts, he guessed.

The tom bounded forward, putting his long legs to use, managing for once to not stumble over himself in the process.

“Ravenheart!” Dapplecreek slowed his steps, standing below his clanmate, “How is it you always get ahead of me?”

Dapplecreek flicked his tail, snorting, “I wouldn’t scare off the prey. You might though, moving around so much!”

Still, the silver tom launched himself at the side of the nest, digging his claws into the rotting wood, and shimmying up to the scaffolding. It was still damp from the previous days’ rain, and the stench of wetness combined with mold wrinkled his nose. He flinched at the creak of the wood, but didn’t comment on it, instead turning to face Ravenheart. He hoped that his friend wouldn’t notice his unease.

“An elder wouldn’t be able to get up here, now would they?” He sat down, chest puffed out. He didn’t dwell on the fact nagging in the back of his mind that any able ThunderClan cat could climb; most just had more sense than to tread over unstable twoleg constructions.

“But I don’t know how we’re supposed to find any prey with this smell clogging up the place,” he jerked his head at the wooden planks, splintered and soft in various spots, indicating the scent of rot. “It stinks.”

Ravenheart’s sudden movement startled the spotted warrior, and he stood up without remembering where he was, barely managing to keep his footing on the dampened beam. Dapplecreek let out a huff, resettling himself onto the platform and scowled at the tom on the ground. The glare was mostly a cover for the embarrassment pricking at his pelt for being shaken by something he should have expected on a hunting trip. Especially a hunting trip with Ravenheart.

“Guess you were right,” he conceded, dipping his head and opting not to mention how easily he had broken a part of the building that they were meant to be relying on. He definitely wouldn’t miss the chance to point out his decoration, and his eyes glinted as he hummed, “And are those flowers just a way to camouflage yourself while you’re down there?”

Dapplecreak leapt down from the scaffolding, much more elegantly than his almost-fall, but still clumsy with his gangly legs. He landed close to Ravenheart, and lightly tapped his clanmate’s kill with a paw. All that trouble over something so small.

“I could catch something better, though.”

“Hmm,” Dapplecreek considered, looking at the not-quite-disappointment that was definitely disappointment on a cat like Ravenheart. He ignored the pinpricks of warmth running through his pelt, pleased with the nickname the other warrior had given him. After taking a few moments to respond, his whiskers twitched with a smirk, “Well, do you really think I want to get shown up? Of course I’m going to catch something.”

With that, he bounded back toward the nest, making his way back to their spot. He didn’t realize managing to catch something up their would likely on prove Ravenheart’s point further; he wasn’t very good at thinking things through.

“Don’t touch that mouse, though!” He called down from the rafters, icy eyes focused directly on Ravenheart. “We need to be able to fairly compare them.”

Satisfied with that explanation, Dapplecreek crouched and listened, hoping his previous outbursts hadn’t frightened off much of the prey.

Up on the nest again, Dapplecreek paused to look down at Ravenheart nestled under the bush. He flicked his tail, hoping the other warrior was paying attention. Dapplecreek crouched with his muscles taut, listening for any sign of prey. He glanced back down to Ravenheart after a few moments of not hearing anything, paws itching out of nervousness - but the moment passed, and his anxiety was cut short by the scratching of some sort of rodent. He spotted it - a squirrel - scurrying along the nest.

He leapt across one of the beams, scrabbling to dig his claws into the rafter and drag himself back up, the squirrel having just gotten out of reach. It was scrambling toward the trees and definitely bigger than Ravenheart’s catch. Dapplecreek wasn’t about to let it escape. He launched himself at it again, this time managing to get his paws around it, though he crashed against one of the beams in the process.

The tom slipped from the top of the nest, claws still locked into the squirrel, and twisted to awkwardly land on the ground, his catch and front paws tucked under his torso. Dapplecreek lay there for a short time; the squirrel was still weakly writhing underneath him. He shook his head, hefted himself back to his paws, and killed the squirrel with a quick bite.

He padded over to the bush where Ravenheart was settled, walking slowly due to the discomfort from his fall. He dropped his kill in front of the younger tom, “This is for you.” He sat down, fur brushing against Ravenheart’s. “I think I won.”