Post by Captain on Dec 14, 2018 2:28:15 GMT
Keeping her head high, Froststar led Stripedpaw out of camp. Distannt stares still followed the pair. Froststar's fur felt warm with all of the attention. Cats almost chased after their leader. Eyes filled with questions and confusion, Froststar ignored them all. For once, she had (kinda) appeased the majority of the clan. While some would be confused with her choice, she still knew they'd prefer a strong apprentice over another weak one. Glancing to her side to make sure Stripedpaw was still following, she twitched her ear and then ducked through the camp entrance and away from the dazed cats. How did he feel about the stares? Froststar continued to look at him and she tried to find a hint of happiness or glee in his eyes. He ought to feel immense pleasure from being the center of attention. If she could find that in him, then she would be able to do her work.
“Stripedpaw…” She traced the line from his paws to his shoulders. Imperfect. Narrowing her eyes, she noticed where he placed his paws; too far apart. She shook her head, feeling as if she had just picked a losing battle. “You have a lot to learn sweetie.” Rolling her shoulders and releasing the tension in her muscles, Froststar shrugged off her doubts. There was no way she’d let a cute angry apprentice best her. He just needed to be broken first.
“Now, you’re probably wondering why I choose you.” To spite Patchstar. “We all know what happened with Breezepaw, the poor kit couldn’t handle it. Sooo,” I’m going to try again. “I hope you’re up to the task. You have a great deal of courage from what I’ve seen so far…”
Froststar had chosen a fine route for this walk. Although it was just fields and fields of underdeveloped grass, the emotional leader knew where she was going. Stepping past puddles of freshly melted snow and rivers of mud, Froststar kept her paws as clean as possible. If she let herself, she could slip into a mindless speech about the key values of being a leader and still avoid all the mud spots. She still knew the words Patchstar repeated time and time again to her. While Froststar never listened to them, they were still engraved in her mind like a disgusting scar.
“Be kind. Put others above yourself. You’re going to be a leader Frostpaw, so you better be there for your clanmates. You see those kits who are weak and picked on in the nursery like you were? You have to be the one to stand up for them.”
What an idiotic speech. Froststar ground her teeth together as she imagined Patchstar staring down at her with that confident, arrogant face. The former leader always thought she was in the right. Stubborn, stubborn, stubborn. Sighing, Froststar looked back at Stripedpaw. His bright red fur stood out against the dirty newleaf ground. What was she going to start with? What needed to be fixed first? Not his walk, nor his posture: Froststar needed to fix his stubbornness. It reminded her too much of cats who were better off dead.
“I can tell you don’t like me. That’s fine by me darling, but you’ll be stuck with me from now on so hopefully we can change that.”
Art Credit: Demonic
Tags: @gammaneise
Notes: So here's the walk Froststar asked for, just so the two can get a feel for each other
By Tomoe 
