kits are so gullible, they're cute [OPEN]

[thistle.]

ooc: Open to any and all in MeadowClan. C=

bic:
The cold water of the river lapped at Flamepaw's fore feet, tickling his pads. It felt good compared to the humid air around his dark ginger pelt, but he didn't dare go any further. He was absulotely sure that once he took another step into the stream, he would be pulled down into it's depths and drown. It didn't help that the section of river in MeadowClan's territory was rather deep.

The tabby half-heartedly stamped his paw to create a splash. It was a bit entertaining to see the droplets of water twirl upward, and even more to see the fish scatter when his paw broke the surface. He did it again.

After a few repeatitions, he grew bored and his mind wandered. Hopefully, Icetail wouldn't be looking for him, or he'd be in mega-trouble. That wasn't good, because it'd give him a bad reputation for being a trouble-maker. And that wasn't good either, because then he wouldn't get any of the respect that he deserved as a medicine cat apprentice. At least kits understood. All he needed to do to earn back their respect was pull out a thorn from someone's paw, and they would just flock to him, demanding to know how he did it.
"Isn't it all gory and disgusting?" one would ask, and Flamepaw would just flick his tail and say loftily, "Oh, you get used to it. I once had to heal this huge gash on a warrior's shoulder!" And then the whole litter would gasp and pester him some more.

He was so busy daydreaming that he had forgotten why he was thinking about kits at all.

[hayy]

ooc: I have, admittedly, stolen some of this from another intro of mine, as Prowlz left before we got a chance to start the roleplay and I'm feeling lazy today.

ic:
Lynxstorm moved stealthily through the forest, headed towards the river for a drink. He was not currently engaged in any activities, he wasn't even engaged in a particularly interesting train of thought, and so he had decided to experience for a while-Lynxstorm's shorthand for wandering about, seeking more knowledge and thought for him to analyze later.
As his unusually large, furry paws brought him to the river, he noticed the Medicine Cat Apprentice sitting by the edge. Immediately, his brain realized the potential the young cat held. He had, in some ways, more knowledge then Lynxstorm, was following an intense path that Lynxstorm believed did give him insight greater than that of most cats-but yet had deluded himself into the idea that there were benevolent spirits floating around, and that he would continue to live after death. A good subject for conversation, without a doubt.

The painfully young warrior warrior hoped that the apprentice wouldn't recognize his age-he avoided mentioning his age at nearly all costs. Though all the cats that had made the journey from ForestClan doubtless remembered the outgoing, loud, and yet still inexplicably contemplative, bright, and withdrawn kit who walked amongst them, still only a few weeks old at the beginning of the journey. These cats would also remember his eventual informal, but complete, education in the later months, and know his recent entrance into warrior-dom. However, many cats either forgot or never knew of his youth. Lynxstorm was rarely dismissed for his age any longer, as not only was there a massive influx of cats far more naive to clan ways than the street-wise, brilliant tom, but, even without speaking to the warrior, there was something about his eyes and his face, in all their glowering, intense splendor, that made him seem like a cat who had been everywhere and seen most things, and his long, well-groomed, but disobedient, coat added to the stormy dignity that was Lynxstorm. He exuded precociousness, and was happy to live up to the expectation this gave.
Anyways, the fact that he was probably not very much older than the apprentice was irrelevant, Lynxstorm assured himself. He knew that there was a large chance even an innocent conversation would end in an argument, as although Lynxstorm respected the Medicine Cats far more than he did the warriors of the clan, he had still met his share of idiots in this trade, so gave them a fairly low respect level until they earned more. And few did. This, combined with his naturally irritating and irreverent nature, led most of his discourses with Medicine Cats down the road to debate.

Having made his decision after only a few split seconds of thought, the brown-grey warrior stepped out into the vision of the apprentice. His tail wavered in an arc over his back as he turned his powerful eyes upon the cat, making sign or sound of greeting, simply standing and staring.

[thistle.]

"Where'd you come from?" Flamepaw meowed, startled by the large warrior's sudden appearance. Honestly, didn't that tom ever think of knocking on the door calling out to him first? Sheesh. Then Flamepaw remembered what exactly Lynxstorm was; a warrior. Of his Clan. Someone who was capable of telling Icetail that he was shirking from his endless duties.

"I-I-I m-mean..." The tabby cleared his throat nervously and said, "I beg your parden, sir, but I just didn't expect to see you there." The arrogance returned to his eyes and he stared definantly at the grey-brown tom, as if daring him to do... something.
However, the medicine cat to-be couldn't help but be curious. What was Lynxstorm doing here? He doubted that, with his long, thick pelt, that he wanted to have a swim in the river. Or was Flamepaw's name so highly spoken of that the warriors themselves wanted to speak to him? "May I ask why are you here, sir? Unless you'd prefer to keep it to yourself..." He trailed off, flashing the older feline his 'wide-eyed' look that worked wonders on some of his fellow apprentices and all of the young kittens.

And sometimes on his mentor, too.

[hayy]

Lynxstorm turned the full force of his powerful features upon the pathetic, wide-eyed look the apprentice was giving him. They didn't gleam with malice, or hatred, or anything scary or bad--but his eyes swirled with such passion, such unbridled intensity-the sharp angles of his face only drawing you in further-that there was something awing, or humbling about that look. He was not a cat to be fooled around with, argued with, disagreed with-sure. But fooled around with? Played? No. That was not something that one could due to this warrior, Lynxstorm was not to be trifled with.
"I did not intend to come directly to my current location, however I was walking in the forest with the intention of looking about and thinking, when I found myself thirsty. As discipline in the face of a natural, and in no way harmful, wish-such as that for water-is pointless and imposes a strange tyranny of self-denying logic that has no place in a life so short and so clearly defined by emotions as ours, I decided to act upon my wish for water and get a drink. This being the first suitable source of water I came to, and since I had no wish to go elsewhere, whether it be for aesthetic or other reasons, I deigned it fit for me to enter here." Lynxstorm mewed, his voice clear, punctuated, and deeply oratorical. He was one of the gifted few who are able to challenge all of their bountiful passion through their voice, but this is not to say his voice was deep, thundering, or threatening-it was loud, yes, unhesitating, yes-but not evil. Merely oratorical, like that of a particularly skilled public speaker giving a speech.

[thistle.]

The young tabby almost seemed to wilf under Lynxstorm's powerful stare, like a pathetic, wounded mouse trapped underneath a colossal feline's claws. It was as if his own arrogant self was, for once, in awe at the presence of the gray-brown tom. The warrior possesed power, and this time Flamepaw used his brain enough to know that he shouldn't provoke it.

The apprentice paused before he replied, hesitation clearly written on his face. He hadn't understood much of the warrior's rather long and impressive speech, so what could he say that made him seem dignified, knowledgable, and someone that knew how to continue on an awkward conversation? "Oh, yes, yes of course," he meowed, dipping his head. "And it is quite hot today, I've noticed." He let his forepaw trail in the cool water once more before stepping out, giving a vigorous shake to dry his ginger fur. "I almost wish that I was a StreamClan cat and be able to swim like a trout." Flamepaw cast a longing look at the large fish darting through the river, slippery bodies gleaming as they broke the peace of the river.

[hayy]

Lynxstorm did not feel particularly abashed for scaring, or at the least subordinating, the apprentice-but it had certainly not been his aim to do so. He was incredibly self-aware, and knew that he could often seem very dogmatic, but he found that he was usually percieved as irritating enough to not be a threatening, overlord sort of power. Such power was not something he wanted or was even particularly indifferent about-he found such powers to be exceedingly threatening to the individual, and for him they often posed the problem of creating a problem like that of this particular apprentice: Flamepaw was now bumbling about in formalities, and, although he had begun a sort of conversation, would perhaps be more inclined to avoid being offended by or trying to offend Lynxstorm-a sentiment that the warrior always wished not to inspire in others. Lynxstorm, therefore, opened his mouth and mewed in his typically loud voice
"Do not muddle about in formalities, you have a mind of your own, do you not? Use it and act as you wish, do not adhere to the silly, superimposed customs dictated and degenerated by cats so long dead the very marrow of their bones lies hundreds of yards beneath the earth! If you wish to learn to swim, why do you not learn? The StreamClan physiology is not drastically different than that of a MeadowClan cat, particularly with all the new rogue blood, and the skill is unlikely to be out of your reach. Learn it, if you would like to swim. Nothing but a herd phenomenon of classing by skills dictated by incorrect genetics is stopping you." The intent behind this statement was to scold, yes, but Lynxstorm, with all his poor social skills and general disaffection towards others probably overdid it. He liked to inspire strong, angry reactions in others, to get them to act out against him so that he might learn something new or maybe cause them to reconsider their actions...but he never wanted to scare them. Typically, he wouldn't speak to anyone underneath him, so perhaps his lack of understanding that he was perceived as more than just a psychological, belief-challenging threat to the apprentice stemmed from that.

ooc:
Bit of a time crunch and lack of muse, sorry for the lame response, but I figured you'd rather at least have /something/ to reply to.

[thistle.]

The ginger tabby shot a glare at the other feline. He was not being formal! He was being polite, for StarClan's sake. For all Flamepaw knew, it was Lynxstorm that was acting extremely 'formal'. But it tickled the tom to think that the warrior had actually taken his yearning to learn how to swim seriously. Who would teach him, anyway? Who could teach him?

Oh, well. He could at least play along.

Flamepaw meowed, "But who'd help me learn? If I didn't have an experienced mentor, someone who knew all about swimming, then I'd surely drown." He paused for effect, sneaking a sly glance at his Clan mate. "Would you teach me, Lynxstorm? Of course, with your strength and size, I think you would make a wonderful teacher. My family despised the water, so I don't know a thing about moving around in the river... but perhaps, you do?"

ooc: Sorry about the late reply; I have no muse these days. -.-;;

[hayy]

Lynxstorm gave Flamepaw a long-suffering look of resignation. Although he had no wish to teach the cat, he figured that, in the case of the puffed up apprentice, a sharing of information was most likely to occur with equal participation.

"I do posses knowledge in the arts of the water, as whilst making the journey from ForestClan, many cats and I were able to learn from others we met along the way. I could attempt to impart some of this ability to you, however, note that I have no obligation to you beyond this session. Your edification and education are the responsibility of your mentor, the Medicine Cat.... though I dare say that any edification received from one such as him will be severely lacking at best, and most probably utterly useless." the last comment was pure Lynxstorm. He hadn't planned it or figured its affects, but he believed it, and he said it. The fact that it could very easily have a very negative affect on his future relations with the Medicine Cat Apprentice and the Medicine Cat didn't really matter to Lynxstorm, especially because he was completely right (in his opinion) in saying what he had. No matter the relative intelligence of most Medicine Cats or their high level of introspection, the StarClan nonsense removed their ability to follow some of the most important parts of life.

As he spoke, Lynxstorm stepped forwards into the water slightly, to indicate his intent, all the while looking less-than-pleased about teaching Flamepaw. He wished to get the lesson over with, a standing obligation to a Medicine Cat Apprentice was not something the warrior wanted, especially if the cat proved to be utterly useless. So far he had no information for or against that conclusion, but given the average usefulness of a Clan cat....

[thistle.]

Flamepaw raised an eyebrow at Lynxstorm's last remark but didn't comment. He was already stepping into the stream anyway, and the tabby didn't want to interrupt. The apprentice purred so quietly that the only way to notice was to feel the vibration on his throat. The older tom's expression was clearly resentful, as if he were regretting having agreed to teach him. He waded in after his Clan mate, tail waving in the air, barely caring whether he slipped or not. There was a big, heavyset cat beside him, and if Flamepaw stumbled, he would be dragged back up to the surface.

"Now what?" he inquired, lazily flicking his ears at the curious dragonflies above. "Just paddle around like this?" He splashed through the water, instinctively raising his paws only a few inches above the sand before letting it drop down again. The water teased his ginger fur away from his body, forming a soft halo around his legs.

"Hey, this is fun!" Flamepaw meowed loudly. Then he jumped up and landed with an enormous splash.

[hayy]

Well, at least the apprentice doesn't need to be babied around like a kit Lynxstorm thought, grudgingly grateful to Flamepaw for allowing Lynxstorm to escape the tedious explanation of something he understood and didn't have much interest in. As callous and uncaring as he could be, Lynxstorm hardly wished death or injury upon anyone, and so paddled out to join the apprentice, staying far enough downstream to be able to act as a barrier in case of a misstep on Famepaw's part.
As the large warrior paddled easily out his light grey-brown, lynx-y pelt turned a dark wolf-coat grey with the introduction of water to its makeup, and more than a few old, dead hairs floated out from under the obnoxiously furry covering.
"Yes, you seem to have grasped the concept quite well. As you can see by your evident enjoyment, individuality and authenticity, while strange and often scary at first, are some of the most rewarding aspects of life. I hope you will choose to make your own decisions and perhaps go against the crowd for your own sake in the future."
ooc: ugh. suckish, sorry D: