Ashfur pads off into the forrest as he emerges from the reeds. The first rays of the sun warm his grey pelt for a short, pleasant moment, before it is interrupted by the shade of the surrounding trees as he crosses the treeline. His mind is cluttered and his heart is heavy, but he still has duties to his clan. Growling to himself and shaking his head, he tries to focus and get his mind on his task. He'll have to catch some prey before returning to camp, the clan needs to be fed. Not that he minds the task much, it tends to get his mind off things, be it only for a moment. He raises his head and trying to detect scents in the wind. The scent markers of the border cloud much of the area behind him, but in front he notices a possible lead. It seems a rabbit may have wandered from it's burrow. He licks his lips as he lowers himself into a hunter's crouch, advancing soundlessly through the woodland. Rabbits got a lot of meat on them, they make for excellent freshkill compared to other prey, this'd be a nice catch if he gets it. His advance stops behind a tree, an ear and eye peaking past it just barely. Sure enough, there it is, a rabbit gnawing on some herbs beneath a nearby bush. It must have somehow crossed the Windclan border. The grey warrior seems to have gone unnoticed for now, but he'll need to get closer, over open ground. Waiting patiently behind his cover, Ashfur remains still until his chosen prey hops on a few pawprints further to feast on another patch of grass. Slowly, his belly just barely above the ground, he moves forward, now that the rabbit has a fresh distraction. His deep blue eyes focus in on it's small neck as he gets closer and closer, finally within pouncing range…
As Ashfur enters the camp, the clan is currently rising from their dens, crowding around the clearing, grooming themselves or sharing tongues.
„Nice catch, Ashfur. Early as always"
He looks to the side to see Cloudtail, last night's nightguard, greeting him with a cheerful, yet somewhat tired smile. He sets down the plump rabbit for a moment to reply
„And you're awfully dutiful today, Cloudtail. The clan's waking up now, I think you can cease your guard and get some rest"
„As if. I think Brambleclaw will send me on the morning for teaching Hollypaw where to find thorns to put into cats nests"
The young warrior snickers in unrepentant mischief, not in the least sorry as he flicks his ear and turns his head towards the highrock. Ashfur chuckles and shakes his head, playing off the sting the mentioned name gives him. The mate of Squirrelflight. Memories return of the deep hopelessness that has been haunting him ever since Firestar's daughters returned with his kits. Up to that point, there had at least still been a fair hope that maybe Squirrelflight and Brambleclaw would break apart again at some point as they had before, but now… he sees no way how she would ever just walk away from the father of her kits.
„Hey! You're sitting around like a moonstruck rabbit again. You carry on like this, someone might toss you onto the freshkill pile too."
Ashfur shakes his head, clearing away the thoughts, to see an amused, but also slightly worried Cloudtail still sitting next to him.
„You know Ashfur, you've been spacing out a lot these last few moons. Is everything alright? You should go see Leafpool if not"
The grey warrior shakes his head as he gets back on his paws. Leafpool had always been kind to him, yet he can't look at her without seeing her sister, which causes Ashfur only further discomfort. Leafpool does not deserve to be compared to her hotheaded sibling, but there is little he can do to avoid his own thoughts.
„I'll be alright, Cloudtail. But I should put the rabbit down. See you later"
He nods his head to the white furred cat and picks the rabbit back up, bringing it over to the freshkill pile. As he puts it down, he notices Brambleclaw approaching, the large frame with the tabby fur impossible to miss. He always thought it was impressive how alike Brambleclaw looks to his father, a slightly smaller, less scarred Tigerstar… not that that is a comment that is safe to make aloud about the deputy of Thunderclan nowadays, nor would it be a fair one.
„Great catch, Ashfur. You seem to do your best hunting early, didn't you bring that blackbird to camp just a few days ago?"
The tabby nods his head in greeting. Ashfur nods back. It's strange, this cat's words were once a great comfort to him, the words of a friend since they were kits. Now they ring distant, almost mocking, even though the grey warrior knows the tabby well enough to know that he'd never mean them in that way.
„I think I did, I'm not keeping track. But hunting early usually gets me off the hook for patrols till the dusk patrol"
Brambleclaw nods, his whiskers twitching with slight amusement
„So that's the plan then? Well, if you rather want the dusk patrol, that's fine. I'll just send a few apprentices more on the sunhigh patrol then."
Ashfur nods at this, before turning his attention towards the freshkill pile. Brambleclaw remains there a moment longer, but soon abandons his attempt at making conversation, his ears dropping a little with disappointment. Ashfur has never been the most talkative warrior. He became much more quiet after the death of his mother, but ever since the clans had arrived in the new territories he's become quieter yet. If he speaks to Brambleclaw, it is usually brief and strictly about whatever patrol they're on or the training of their apprentices. Not wishing to impose on his old friend, Brambleclaw begins to pad away.
„I'll come find you for the dusk patrol then. See you later Ashfur"
Ashfur nods his head at the passing deputy, letting out a breath he didn't know he was holding once the tabby warrior was at a bit of distance. The blue eyed tom knows that Brambleclaw never intentionally hurt him, but it is difficult to keep reminding himself of that, knowing he possesses the one thing Ashfur would have given anything for.
Looking through the pile, he detects a small mouse among a few squirrels. A decent pick, he isn't particularly hungry yet. He nudges the squirrels away to get to a field mouse under it, carrying it off to eat in the shade near the warrior den. He can't stand squirrel, never liked it much but now it almost revolts him. His tail lashes against the ground as he lays there, reflecting on his own thoughts. How pathetic that even freshkill can remind him of what he's lost, and if that wasn't enough he still has to mentor one of Squirrleflight's kits on top of that. He sighs before digging into his mouse. If it had to be one of her kits, he would have much preferred Lionpaw's sister. Brackenfur may sometimes think her efforts underwhelming, but she seems much less frustrating than her overly proud, battle eager brother. Not that she's proven to be any less adventurous than him, but still. He'll seek Ashfur out for today's training before too long now that the clan's waking up.
Finishing his food just in time before his bright pelted apprentice arrives, he gets back up and pads over to meet him, touching noses as greeting. He's had many days like this, what's one more, right?
„I'm guessing you're hoping for more combat training again, Lionpaw?"
The younger tom beams up at his mentor with eager eyes
„Of course! Warriors must be strong to defend the clan, and I want to be the strongest of Thunderclan!"
Ashfur lets out a small chuckle and leads the way out of the camp
„That's the plan, to make you the strongest apprentice in your den. It's time I showed you how to get rid of a cat pinning you down with both front paws anyway. Like during our training some time ago. That happens more often than you'd think, so try to pay attention today"
The evening air fills Ashfur's lungs as he pads along the border, ears perked up attentively as his clanmates refresh a few scent markers the earlier patrols missed. All is quiet on the border it seems. Some scents near the outer border of the clans, but beyond it is frequently travelled by kitty-pets and loners, so nothing out of the ordinary, none had crossed the border it seems. As the patrol makes it's way up along the river, Ashfur walks a bit closer to the river than the others dare to, not very scared of the river with as much time as he spends near it.
„You sure you're not about to jump in and swim the rest of the way, Ashfur? You're cosier around the water than any Riverclan warrior"
Dustpelt jokes as he pads beside him, earning a snicker from the remaining patrol. Ashfur rolls his eyes
„Well, some cat has to get close enough to scent if Windclan actually crossed or not. Are you volunteering, Dustpelt?"
Ashfur shoots him a grin, the brown warrior laughing and backing away a bit
„No thanks, I'd rather not. Better you than me."
Ashfur joins into the laughter of the patrol with a chuckle of his own, before it slowly fades again, their path continuing along the lines of reeds. They are nearing his spot, a soothing familiarity washing over the grey furred warrior as he recognises the terrain.
„Take the lead for a moment, Dustpelt. I'll be right back"
The brown tom nods his head and flicks his tail for the rest of the patrol to follow him for the moment, as Ashfur falls behind in speed, letting the other cats pass him by. Once they are at some distance, he pushes through the reeds. He knows he can't stay long, but as he sits down on his haunches all the same. It is majestic to him that such a peaceful little spot exists. He takes a deep breath of the cool evening air, but finds it does not bring him his usual solace. Is that… a scent? He raises his head to taste the air. It's faint, whoever was here must have been many hours ago, but there is a clear scent in the air. He tries to focus and guess whom it might belong to, but to his deepening confusion, he can't place it. This scent does not seem like it would be from any Thunderclan cat, not even from any Windclan cat he'd know, besides the fact that there is no crossing around here. But that makes no sense… how would some loner or rogue manage to leave a scent here specifically? Or would some Riverclancat possibly swim so far as to end up here? He shakes his head. No, he must be wrong, maybe some Riverclan warrior rested here after a long swim in the lake. As he looks out over the river, his heart skips a beat as he catches a pair of light blue eyes watching him from the shadow of the reeds, inquisitively observing him, sizing him up. A few heartbeats after spotting the observer, the cat slinks away, the eyes disappearing. Ashfur remains for a moment longer, unsure what to make of this other than feeling uneasy. He finally snaps back to reality, he has a patrol to lead! Shaking his head, he hurries out from among the reeds and catches up with the others. As he skips back into the lead of the patrol, he tries to clear himself of his mild shock. That's Windclan territory across the river, there's gonna be Windclan warriors over there, nothing unusual about that. No matter now, he'll lead this patrol till it's tour is done and he gets some much needed rest. He clearly needs it, needlessly jumpy as he seems to be. Surely a good night's rest would help.