"I don't know how I managed not to claw his ears off today," Mistygaze snorted as she approached her closest companion, Foreststrider. The peaceful feline's bright emerald orbs clouded with worry as she mewled,"Who, Kisu? Why? What happened?"
Mistygaze swiftly explained the day's events, her tail drooping in exasperation,"Oh StarClan, I'm going to be a terrible mentor at this rate. That mousebrained cat won't listen to a word I say!"
Foreststrider smiled softly, purring as she warmly rasped her tongue over her friend's foreleg,"I'm sure he has a lot on his mind. After all, he only joined the Clan recently, hasn't he? Kisu must be stressed out, is all. Just be nice to him, and maybe he'll open up."
She released a deep sigh, her blue orbs wandering as she glanced worriedly over her shoulder. Her apprentice had padded into the dark edges of the clearing, watching the cats with a troubled expression.
"I know you're worried about making an impression on Wolfstar and Sharptalon, so you can feel more like you're a part of the Clan, but you should be worrying about him. He's like you; He used to be an outsider, too." Foreststrider added, flattening her ears and drawing back her thick whiskers nervously. Speaking to Mistygaze about that subject was quite touchy, and, with the she-cat's bad temper, it was very difficult for even her closest friend to bring it up. But, Foreststrider had hoped that tugging back the memories would soften Mistygaze towards the young cat.
"I may have been born an outsider,"She murmured in a quiet tone,"But I knew I had to prove myself. I knew I had to be better than everyone else, even for just a little while, to fit in."
"Then tell him that!" Foreststrider meowed, her thick-furred tail lifting and waving in the air,"What have you got to loose?" With yet another sigh, Mistygaze lie down beside her, using her pink nose to nuzzle the marbled she-cat's large ear.
"How's Illusionpaw?"
"Obediant, quiet, but very stubborn. It can be hard to set him straight sometimes, but he always gets it right in the air. He's a good fighter, too, though his hunting needs improvement."
Mistygaze only half-listened as her friend chattered, for she was staring directly at Kisu, who gazed absently at his paws. The only sign of movement from him would be the occasional flick of an ear, his unfocused, dark amber eyes remaining on his paws. Frustration coursed through her. The first day, just the tour of the territory, and already she had a bad feeling about this apprentice.
