The air clouds with each of Ashfur's breaths. The grey warrior sits atop the frozen clay at the river's edge, lifting his front paws periodically to prevent the grounds intense chill from creeping too much into his pads, causing them the hurt. His success is minimal. No further snow has fallen, but the nights have gotten a good bit colder still. Slowly he raises his eyes towards the sky. Silverpelt barely shines today, clouds blocking most star and moonlight from shining down. Perhaps better this way. His ancestors would likely prefer not to see him meeting up with a Bloodclan cat. Not that they have shown in any way that they cared thus far… He shakes his head after a few heartbeats. They are still his ancestors, he shouldn't think too poorly of them. Even if Starclan cares not for him and his plight, they remain Starclan, looking over and out for the clans. That's what they do, right?
A deep breath escapes the blue eyed cat, creating a brief wall of fog before him. Talon said he would be late tonight most likely… so it seems indeed. Ashfur's hind quarters have gone nigh numb from the cold ground he's been sitting on, waiting. Getting up would likely be pain. A mild wind rustles the reeds, his ears perking up. It'd be difficult to detect a cat's approach among the reeds while wind blows, at least till they're almost in pouncing range. But even as the gust ceases, nothing. Eery silence, broken only by the hooting of an owl or the distant wail of a fox from time to time, aside from the constant calm noise of the flowing currents. His eyes descend to the dark water of the river, the few stars the sky permits to peek through reflected in it's surface. How much longer until the Bloodclan warrior shows up? His tail winds closely around his paws, his eyes soon finding their wayback skyward. As time keeps creeping by, so very slowly at the seams, he focuses in on one single star, that seems to shine just a bit brighter than the rest. He couldn't tell if he still hopes for an answer, habit kicks in or if he just wants time to pass a little faster, probably a bit of each, but Ashfur catches himself muttering his usual prayer to Starclan. Words so silent, he barely hears them himself as they pass from his muzzle. A plea for a sign, an indication of wether or not his ancestors approve of the path he chose. Or if not, a request for anything at all that might show him a better way. Words begging for any recognition from his ancestors, his kin or friends past.
The star glimmers on unchanged, majestic, yet distant. Observant, yet silent.
Slowly, the moment like all others dragging on, his ears fold against his skull. His hope for a reply, whatever it may be, crumbles, almost into nothing, until something catches his eye. Ashfur's head turns towards the reeds to his right, where he'd expect Talon to emerge from. His blue orbs widen in disbelief as a seemingly familiar sight greets him, a shape he believes to recognise among the gently swaying stalks. A white pelt, even with the little light available decently visible. Long fur, lean legs walking with certainty. Very few are the details he can make out, but the face clearly shows some age. Ashfur's breath gets stuck in his throat as he rises to his paws, the cramping pain in his hind legs going largely unnoticed. Did… it pay of? At last? After all this time? Ashfur's maw opens to ask, to call the cat to him, but he halts. Awe-filled amazement makes way to sudden confusion as the figure draws closer and Ashfur catches the flash of the other cat's eyes. Green? No, that's not right, not right at all, he had…
Ashfur's hackles and neckfur raise, disappointment quickly fading to anger. This is not whom he hoped. This must be an intruder.
„No need for alarm. You expected Talon, I presume"
The voice speaking out, clearly to Ashfur, sounds aged. Calm but strong in a confident, experienced way. Even the intruder's speech reminds the grey warrior of his earlier presumption. At the mention of Talon's name, Ashfur's ears slightly raise in intrigue, but neither his battle ready stance, not expression change. Only as the stranger brushes past the last row of reeds and steps into plain view, or as plain as the sparse light permits, Ashfur heartbeats from leaping forth to fight the intruder off, do his claws slowly sheath again. Yellowing dogteeth glisten faintly from the collar around this cat's neck as his green eyes calmly observe the Thunderclan warrior.
„A solid stance for a pounce. Though, perhaps I am a bit close for that now."
The white cat, on whom Ashfur now recognises grey spots along his back and tail, raises a paw, studded with reinforced claws, up to his own chest.
„I am Silver. And you must be Ashfur. I was told you'd be waiting here."
Ashfur's eyes remain narrowed as he studies the obvious Bloodclan cat. This one seems not to be looking for a fight… or doesn't think Ashfur enough of a challenge to bother lowering into a stance.
„What are you doing here? Where is Talon?"
„Talon was wounded. Rogues crossed the border, he fought them off. He will need a bit of time to recuperate. I am to train you tonight in his stead. I was among the cats Talon entrusted with knowledge of you"
Very slowly Ashfur's stance eases up. Silver's voice remains calm, earnest sounding. As the pressure leaves, so does some of the immediate anger that rose up in the blue eyed warrior. To his own surprise one of the things taking it's place is a twinge of worry. A Thunderclan warrior should not be worried for the wellbeing of Bloodclan cats, but sure enough a question quickly burns on Ashfur's tongue.
„How is he? Was he badly wounded?"
Some relief arises as Silver slowly shakes his head, a faint smile on the Bloodclan cat.
„Some gashes. Enough to be a hindrance in a fight or training, but nothing severe. Especially with the herbs we have now, Talon will be fine again very soon. Expect him to be there to train you again next time. I'll just take over when something else prevents him from coming in the future."
Ashfur slowly nods his head, his tail flicking behind him. Though the anger and wariness are slowly departing, the grey tom can't help but feel a certain nervousness. The situation, which already would not have been normal by a long shot, now got stranger still. Unease gnaws at him, blatantly displayed in his body language. Silver sits down, taking a look around, taking in the surroundings before focusing back on Ashfur again
„I think we ought to start with a fight. Unlike Talon, I don't yet know where you stand, skill-wise. Claws sheathed for now."
The green eyed tom raises one of his paws and, much like Talon had already demonstrated, begins removing the reinforcing claws arming it, one by one, neatly putting them down in a little pile. Ashfur observes the process for a little while before looking into the waters of the river
„That would make sense. How do you compare to Talon, as a warrior? He said he was above average for a Bloodclan cat."
Silver briefly pauses after letting the last dogtooth of his first paw fall down, giving a thoughtful hum as he considers his answer.
„I believe he is being modest. Talon is an able fighter. Sure, some are better, but he could fare well against most. By now… I do believe I am no longer quite a match for him, not if it were a serious fight. But I have instructed a fair share of younger warriors, Talon being among them in the very beginning. I believe I am one of, if not the oldest still living cats from Bloodclan's earliest days. Back when Scourge, plenty young himself, still walked the streets alone and the first followers were forming around him."
Ashfur's ears perk up. Talon had spoken several times with reverence of Scourge as founder of Bloodclan, but so far the blue eyed Thunderclan warrior had not given much thought to how that would have even happened, the forming of a clan in twoleg-place, it's very beginnings. Curiosity enters his eyes, not going unnoticed by the elder Bloodclan cat. Silver lets a soft chuckle escape.
„If you have questions, we will surely still have time for them afterwards. Save them for now, if you don't mind"
As the white and grey flecked warrior rises back to his paws, Ashfur scoffs lightly
„If I don't mind… you are even less like what we think of as a Bloodclan cat than Talon."
Ashfur swishes his tail before letting it hang perfectly straightly, lowering back into his battle stance. As Silver sinks into a stance as well, the elder warrior shakes his head, the moment he stances up, an expression of absolute seriousness plastering over his visage
„Bloodclan is home to all kinds, Ashfur. But we all understand the importance of being able to defend ourselves, the clan, our kin… Show me if you understand as well."
Ashfur is briefly taken aback by the abrupt change in the Bloodclan warrior, sinking back into a proper fighting stance in nigh instinctive reaction to finding a battle ready foe before him. The jovial elder is gone. Now stands before Ashfur a Bloodclan warrior ready to fight, much as it was on that fateful day many moons ago in the old territories. A snarl forming on the blue eyed warrior, all feelings of surprise are pushed aside. He can't let both Talon and Thistleclaw down by letting himself be beaten too easily. Can't let himself down like that. He has to be strong to reach his goals, to keep the flame of his last hope from suffocating.
The two cats roughly two taillengths apart, Ashfur takes the initiative, a straight charge at his opponent. Silver readies himself, bracing for impact with the Thunderclan warrior and no doubt already figuring out how to make hm pay for such a bold first move. Ashfur however, within a whisker's breadth of Silver's reach uses his momentum and leaps, straight over the white and grey tom. As soon as his paws hit the ground, he finishes his badger defence, spinning around and lashing out for a strike at Silver's rear. The Bloodclan cat turns just in time to barely avoid the strike, leaving him in a less than stable position for a brief moment. Ashfur wastes no time, sending a forceful swipe directly for Silver's face. Silver lowers himself, Ashfur's paw missing the elder warrior's face, but still striking against his left ear. A fine bleeding tear, if claws had been unsheathed.
Ashfur is given no time to gloat however, Silver moving in right away and bringing up his paw. Pulling his head out of the way from the ascending paw just in the nick of time, Ashfur figures next it will descend back down again. Darting over to the opposite side from Silver, the grey warrior unleashes a flurry of strikes at Silver's side, pleased as his opponent does not manage to move away quick enough to avoid them all. Silver does not rest however, whirling around and snapping his jaws to catch one of Ashfur's paws. The Thunderclan warrior pulls his paw away with no time to spare, feeling as several hairs from it's back are pulled off, trapped between Silver's jaws. Too late does he notice that in the same motion, Silver's paw had been raised and now swings towards him, smacking Ashfur broad across the muzzle. His eyes blinking, ears slightly ringing, the blue eyed warrior recognises his disadvantage. His first instinct is to pull back, gain distance to fully regain his senses before attempting anything else. But in the very heartbeat his muscles buckle to propel him backwards, Thistleclaw's lesson comes to mind. He is close. Too close to miss with a broad attack. What if instead of moving back himself… Ashfur launches himself forward, shoulder first, with all the force he can muster. He feels the impact, the resistance of another warm pelt against him, hears the air being knocked out of Silver, before the Bloodclan warrior is thrown back a good taillength, giving Ashfur the time and space he needs.
Ashfur's sight stabilises gain, the ringing lessens to a manageable amount. Huffing out the discomfort, Silver is still quick to recover, this time being to one to initiate a pounce. Ashfur sidesteps, letting the elder Bloodclan cat land with a thump on his paws. Seeing the opening, the Thunderclan tom strikes out at Silver's shoulder, hitting it, but finding his paw slightly pulled along as the Bloodclan cat doesn't stop after his landing, but instead uses what's left of his forward momentum to keep dash onwards, brushing past and along Ashfur's side. The blue eyed warrior attempts to turn to face his opponent again and prevent an attack from behind, but right as he does he grits his teeth in pain. The elder Bloodclan cat's jaws have closed on his tail and right as Ashfur tries to turn, Silver pulls fiercely, pulling Ashfur completely out of balance, his hind paws collapsing under him. Only his front paws keep Ashfur's upper body up that too does not last, as Silver with relative ease manages to push the Thunderclan cat down from that unstable position. The green eyed elder tries to descend his paw down to Ashfur's exposed neck, only to be patted away. A brief moment of hope that he avoided the unfavourable end to this fight finds itself dashed however, a stinging sensation causing Ashfur to look down his body. Silver's finishing to his neck may have been deflected, but now Asfur beholds the white and grey spotted cat's other paw pushing against his vulnerable belly, claws unsheathed and slightly pushing against the soft flesh, not enough to pierce, but easily enough getting the point across. Even with the cold of this leafbare night forgotten in the heat of battle, the blue eyed warrior feels a chill down his spine, a brief flash of his own memories passing before his eyes. Tigerstar's terrifying and spectacular injury at the paws of Scourge… He remembers all too well what the reinforced claws of a Bloodclan cat can do to another cat's belly.
Slowly, breathing hard to catch his breath, Ashfur works himself back onto his own paws, cursing quietly under his laboured breath. Silver takes a step back to give the Thunderclan due space to get back up, not much less out of breath, but his former, kinder expression returning.
„No need for curses, you did well. You'd have certainly given me a few souvenirs to remember this fight by, had we used claws."
Ashfur shakes out his pelt before looking over to the once again kindly Bloodclan elder.
„Still, I would have died. I lost, again. I still have a way to go…"
Silver looks out at the river. A few clouds have parted in the meantime, more starlight descending, rendering the flowing water a quite beautiful view, the sparkling of Silverpelt reflected in the currents.
„Yes, but you should not discourage yourself by drawing the wrong comparisons. Talon is a very able cat and I have a filled lifetime of experience. I can think of a decent number of Bloodclan cats you could very much hold your own against with your skill level. And once we get a few of your… reluctances fixed, you'll be reasonably formidable, I think."
The Thunderclan warrior sits down on his haunches, slowly managing to regain his breath. The disappointment of losing mellowed by Silver's praise. His nicked ear flicks before following the Bloodclan cat's gaze to the river.
„My reluctances?"
„You seem reluctant to use your teeth. I noticed that, which is why the tail yank even worked. Otherwise I'd not have attempted that move otherwise. Against a strong opponent, and you are certainly not physically weak, it can backfire badly. Knowing that, tell me, what do you think you should have done instead?"
Ashfur lets a small hum escape, looking down, thinking. Why was knowing he'd not use his teeth relevant for that? Or his strength for that matter? Silver was extremely close, brushing past him like that, had to be to be sure to get to bite his opponent's tail.
„I may have been able to get you from getting far enough to get to my tail, if I'd just bitten your side and held on. Is that it?"
Returning his gaze to the Bloodclan elder, he finds Silver nodding with a pleased smile
„Quite right. More even, once you'd have me, you have an opportunity to end the fight altogether. You're strong, with your teeth in my side, you could have dragged me back in front of you and kept me there. Maybe I could have shredded your shoulder from there, but you could have reduced my entire side to bloody pieces, not much I could do to defend at that point. Not a pretty way to kill your enemy, but without a healer immediately at my side, an almost assured one."
Ashfur slightly grimaces at that, looking back out towards the river
„Fights really do always end in death with you Bloodclan cats, don't they?"
„Not always. But usually, yes. We do not have the luxury not to. There are always more rogues. Let too many escape, amass too many with grudges against Bloodclan, things can get very dangerous. We do what we must to protect kin and clan, nothing more, but nothing less either. Hungry and vindictive rogues are no the type to show mercy. Many of us having lived as and among rogues before joining Bloodclan, we know that all too well"
Ashfur gives no response, simply pondering the given reply. A bit of resentment had bubbled up, memories of Whitestorm's death, Bone killing his father during the battle for the forest. But he too had killed, Bone died at his claws, aided by several other apprentices. Talon had mentioned a few times that Bone had been a friend to him. Was it really that different? When facing Bloodclan, the four clans fought no less like rogues than them, aiming to kill. Perhaps Thunderclan would not be that much different if they lived in a twoleg-place. Ashfur can't help but wonder.
He is pulled from his thoughts as Silver taps his shoulder with his sleek white tail.
„I now know roughly what I'm working with. Shall we begin the actual training? The nights might be long in leafbare, but even they don't last forever."
Ashfur blinks, hesitating for a few heartbeats before nodding
„Yes, we should. Tell me what I should do, Whi… Silver, was it?"
The white tom nods in confirmation and takes a few steps back
„Then let us begin"