Cacti Hunting (Oakheart & Open~)

[Twitchy]

A dark red rump could be seen slinking through a large patch of prickly cacti. The cat stopped, then slowly stuck his head up above some of the plants, eyes narrowed and staring fixedly onto a single spot ahead of him. It seemed Oakheart had found some prey amongst the needles. Just a few more steps forward and he could pounce.. He slithered closer, oblivious to the world around him. Closer... closer... Pounce~!
He sailed through the air with outstretched paws, eager to meet the end of a small bird that stood on a single cactus. It saw him a tad too late. It tried sailing away, but two large paws came crashing down on top of it. Oakheart brought the critter to his mouth and bit down just as he fell among the cacti. A loud screech went out, and both bird and cat disappeared among the needley patch.

[Wargrace]

Weaving along, the apprentice moved through the Cacti, taking careful pawsteps to avoid any fallen needles. They were painful. So, no need to go getting any stuck in her paw! Head held high, the slim apprentice took a sniff, trying to pick up any prey scents. There was something nearby. Some sort of rodent, maybe? Yes, seemed it. She was a fairly new apprentice, really -- not an expert at identifying things just yet. But she would learn, soon, hopefully! Fluffy tail swishing, Spiderpaw was off again, bouncing quietly along with quick, airy steps. Hmm.. where, oh where was the little rodent at? She'd find it, catch it, and bring it back for whoever was in need of a meal! Oh, she was near it, wasn't she?

Slowing a bit, the multi-color she-cat dropped into a crouch, sliding forward with care.. oh, there it was! A scrawny little mouse. Not one of the nice plump ones from the territories.. but one that seem.. really deprieved. Well, it was a wasteland, wasn't it? Forward, forward -- Screeching! The petite she-cat froze, bright blue eyes widened at the sound, ears flickering back. Off went the mouse, gone in a heartbeat. "Hmph.. well, there goes that.." Picking herself up, Spiderpaw was on the move again within a moment, trotting off for the sound. "..Hello~?" Had that been another cat? She thought so! Time to investigate, then -- quite boldly, too. Ears perked forward, eyes focused and watchful.. moving off swiftly towards the sound.

[Iva]

Camopaw

Spiderpaw wasn’t the only apprentice about, hunting for the combined clans. The large apprentice, Camopaw, was also lurking around; travelling the wasteland, looking for something. He had seen a bird, earlier, perched upon a depressed looking tree. Mocking him, no doubt. Pointing out the fact that it could fly away to a better place, but would rather stay here and pic fun at the land-bound cats, who had to battle through the ruin and nothingness. Not that they were battling yet.. They hadn’t set out quite yet. Survivors to find.

That was another cat’s job, though. For Camo, he was to find food for the cats who actually where found to eat. Sucessful? Nope. He was halfway tempted to try and climb the tree, and snatch the bird.. But that wasn’t exactly likely. The tree was small and pathetic. He..Not so much. It was barely as thick as his tail. Evil, evil little bird, plotting against him! “Twee, tweee” Grr! Letting out a hiss, he kicked the tree with his back paw, and kept walking. Ignore it, ignore it. Oh, look, it was working! It was..But, mostly because..He heard a terrible loud noise. Instantly, his fur bristled; was that a cat, or another critter? Sounded like a bit of both.With a lick of his side, to smooth down the poof, he went to investigate. Maybe something was going on? Maybe not..But, best to check.

[Twitchy]

The silence in Oakheart's area was broken as wild thrashing began. The arrogant tom hoped no one would see him as he was, tangled up in three grown cacti with a needle covered bird in his jaws. Actually, some of the needles stuck in the bird were stuck to his upper lips and hung painfully when he didn't have it grasped tightly in his mouth. He paused his desperate attempt to escape to listen for any approaching cats. In the distance he could hear something... Pawsteps? Oh no. Please don't be a clan cat. Please, oh please don't let it be a clan cat..

He shut his eyes tightly, unable to bare the laughter his predicament would bring. What if its Finchstar? Or any leader or deputy for that matter? What if it's a she-cat?! Oh this can't be happening! He grew quiet, hoping whoever approached would not see him and continue on their merry way. As the sounds neared, the tom realized it was actually too creatures approaching. What if there's coyotes out there? Out to get me? Oh Starclan help me for I'm about to get my prickly furry rump eaten for a 'yote's breakfast.
His fur fluffed up, making him wince as the needles shifted. The closer his 'attackers' got, the closer he'd get to screaming, which would probably be terrifying since he was already an odd sight, strung upside down in the patch of death.

(Something weird happened when I tried posting thins O.o Sorries)

[Wargrace]

Focused on moving, she took in the scents. A tinge of cat-scent in the air. Fresh. That had been the noise than, hadn't it..? She continued towards it, sniffing steadily for the trail. Quietly, she slid between a couple close Cacti, ears pricking forward. Into her sight range came another cat -- she knew him. Not well; just from seeing him. A Marshclan warrior. Name? She wasn't sure. But he was definitely a clanmate. The warrior had a bird in his jaws -- and some.. nice prickly Cacti spikes in his muzzle. Ouch. Blinking bright blue eyes, she moved forward, out from between the Cacti, careful not to snag her fur on either. "..Are you alright?" Approaching a bit, she paused a tail length or so away, head tilting. ..How would he get the spikes out of his muzzle? They looked.. very painful. But.. atleast he had caught the bird? Was it worth it, though? Spiderpaw wouldn't question that.

Other pawsteps, too. She noted them now. More cat pawsteps..? These were familiar, though.. who's..? Camopaw? She thought so, and perked for a moment, head turning a bit to peer in that direction, then back to Oakheart. A harmlessly-teasing purr. "Couldn't let that bird get away, could you? Takes a true warrior to face off against a Cactus just for a bird~" It wasn't.. funny.. of course that he happened to have needles poking out of his muzzle. She wasn't making jokes or anything; but part of her nature was to tease a bit -- no harm meant. Another glance towards the pawsteps, listenings. Were they still approaching? Yes, sounded like it. She tilted her head a bit, watching that spot now, for the moment. They seemed pretty close, now -- just to wait and see if she was right. Camopaw? Or maybe another fairly large cat? Hmmm.

[Iva]

Onward, travelling through the wastes, spotting a few cactus. He gazed at the prickly plants with a look of utmost avoidance.. But, then the noise. Not much..Screeching chaotic hell, now, but of life. And mewing. Spiderpaw..? Carefully, the white and grey apprentice made his way through the plants, keeping himself and his medium length fur as compact and down as possible. Less he get one of the pins in him..They really didn’t look terribly pleasant. Ah, look, life! It was Spiderpaw, after all..He sort of flicked his tail in greeting, but it was more side-to-side tip than up in the air and more visible than usual. Thanks to the spines, once again. His tail..It was unusually thick and a bit furry.. Really, really not something you wanted pins in. “Hey Spiderpaw..”

There was..Another cat here, too. He almost recognized him, but not quite. Well, until he squinted, and blinked in wonder. “Oakheart?” His father’s apprentice, he had heard..Well, Oakpaw. He had most likely been a warrior before Camopaw was even born. “Are you..stuck?” Obvious question. He was indeed stuck, with a bird, too.. Which was filled with needles, along with his face. “Oh..Ow.. Looks like you need some help.” How had he managed such a thing? Camo wouldn’t question; just stood there, watching. Painful looking..

[Twitchy]

"YEEEEeee... Huh?" His wild scream in fear of coyotes died down as he noticed it was only a couple of apprentices. The bird fell from his maw, painfully jerking his mouth slightly farther open. So much for appearing macho. He felt his face turn red hot and his ears flattened. He jerked around a moment, trying to get upright again. His front half broke free and slammed into the ground making him grunt with the stinging pain. He felt bitter at the first one's teasing comment, but after meeting the 'paw's gaze, his bitterness melted away and he managed a soft chuckle despite his predicament.

"Um.. Hey." Gazing at the two, he tried to remember who they were. He'd seen the first one around before. He wasn't too familiar with her. Now Camopaw he recognized. Son of Mistwing and Leafstorm. What a great warrior he'd make for sure. His face felt fire hot again, suddenly aware that his old mentor's son could see his failure. Mistwing would be ashamed. "I-I'm perfectly fine. I know what I'm doing." The big clumsy tom jerked around a little more, unable to break fully free.

[Wargrace]

"Camopaw~" A quick, purred greeting to the other apprentice, before looking back to the warrior. Oakheart, she heard Camopaw call him. He looked to be in a.. troublesome position, to say the least. He had caught the bird -- but was it worth that much damage? He wasn't torn apart, bleeding all over.. but he was covered in needles and.. stuck? Seemed it. Probably should've used more caution when hunting.. but she wouldn't judge too much. Prey was much-needed. The fact he had caught some.. was helpful to the clans in this time of need. But.. still.. that didn't remove the 'ouch!' factor any. Quiet a moment, the apprentice debated his situation carefully.. all caught up on the cacti. A reassuring purr came -- incase he mistook her light teasing for mockery or cruelty. Really, Spiderpaw wasn't a mean cat. A bit hot-tempered sometimes, but overall a good cat. If a bit too playful at times.

"Oh, puh-lease-- Oakheart, is it?-- I think you could use a paw or two. A couple of yours seem to be stuck." Forward she'd go, making a careful circle around the warrior and imprisoning Cacti, head tilted. "I don't think there's any chance of you getting un-stuck without.. a lot of pain.. the faster you yank free, the less it's gonna hurt, though.." But all the needles stick in him.. owwie. They were gonna have to be pulled individually, weren't they? Probably. "Here, get the bird off first.." That looked.. really painful too; hanging from his muzzle like that. Forward the apprentice would head, nearing and trying to get ahold of a needle holding the bird to his muzzle with her teeth and pull it out as quickly as possible. No need to make the pain go any longer than needed, right? Then however many others were keeping it attached, so that, hopefully, unless he stopped her, the bird could fall away entirely. He really had a lot of needles to be removed.. not to mention.. the rest of his body, which.. being still-stuck had.. Starclan-knew-how-many more.

What was Camopaw doing? The apprentice shifted a glance towards the grayscale one. Maybe he'd make some suggestion on getting Oakheart off the Cacti?

[Iva]

“That doesn’t look as if you know what you’re doing..” There was no malice in his tone; just a truthful statement, in which he bend his head slightly to observe the needles. Everywhere. Nasty looking. Yes, he would avoid going near cacti.. More important than that, though, was getting Oakheart out. Spiderpaw seemed to be thinking the same thing. She even looked toward him- hn..Was she wanting advice? Silent, the ice-eyed apprentice looked the situation over. Any ideas? None..Terrible helpful. It wasn’t going to be a pleasant experience, that was for sure..Then again, becing stuck on the cacti probably wasn’t, either..

“I guess we’ll just have to haul him down..But we should remove any needles he may fall on, though.. Don’t want them to go any deeper.” Oakheart..Consulted? Not..Really. Camo.. He had a habit of doing things on his own, or leading without instruction to do so..Possibly a flaw, but a harmless one. He wasn’t the type to go getting upset when told he should act differently, or the type to challenge if someone else would rather do so instead. He was opinion neutral. Right now, though.. It seemed pretty clear that they couldn’t just leave the warrior to attempt getting out himself. Whatever he said.The apprentice took few pawsteps near, and looked over the redish warrior. Where..Would he fall? Probably..On his face or frunt. A strange position, he was in..How on earth had he even managed it? Didn’t matter..Now he had to start the task of getting some of the needles out.

[Twitchy]

Oakheart fixed Camopaw with an icy emerald glare. "Haul me down? Oh I don't think so." He shifted a bit more, a needle or two falling from were they loosely clung to his prickly pelt. After a few heartbeats, he hung still and sighed. "Okay, fine. Haul me down. Careful with the needles in the face, though. Wouldn't wanna ruin all this beauty. Why, all the ladies would be so upset with you two if that happened." A playful grin returned to him again. As the two apprentices grew nearer, the red tom stiffened and felt himself trying to pull away from their grasp, as if they'd cause him more pain than he'd already caused himself. First he turned himself into a living cactus ((Or should I say cat-ctus? xD)), and then later he'd have to face all four clans with both of them. He'd be the laughing stock of the season. Wonderful.

[Wargrace]

A nod to Camopaw -- and not much else. The she-cat was already on her way forward, moving to try to as quickly and painlessly as possible pluck the needles holding the bird to his muzzle free so it could fall away. Really couldn't have felt too nice, dangling there. "Oh, sit still Oakheart. If you squirm about you'll push them in deeper and probably get a few more stuck in there, too. We'll make sure it hurts as little as possible." Pause. Debate. The apprentice gave a sort-of grin, attempting to poke his nose with her own. "Big, strong warriors such as yourself don't go wailing like kits over a couple'a needles, do they? I bet your so tough you can sit still, let us help you, and keep your pride, 'cause you know even the strongest warrior would need a bit of help, right?" A glance to Camopaw. "C'mon.. let's try to get as many needles out as possible, then.." Off needle-plucking she'd go, if no arguements came, trying to pinch them between her teeth and pull them out nice and straight.

Spiderpaw would stop for a moment, following Oakheart's comment, gasping dramaticly, a look of horror spreading over her face. "Oh, Starclan forbid! I would be upset with myself, even, if I damaged your beauty! In fact, I may not be able to survive it!" Horror gone, she gave a purred laugh, perking. Back to trying to remove the needles. "I bet they'd all maul us for it. Wouldn't be able to outrun them, eh? Well, maybe I could, but I think you'd be in a bit of trouble, Camopaw." A teasing glance was given. Seriousness? Pfft. That was for cats who.. were always serious, or for when she was performing some sort of duty, like training -- best to keep light-hearted and try to ensure Oakheart was destracted from the less-than-pleasant task on paw.

(( Poor Mr.Cat-ctus... Oakheart... full of needles D: ))

[Iva]

Near Oakheart, Camopaw came to a stop..Once examining for the best place to start picking, but now staring at Oakheart oddly. There was a blankness of his face, and a lack of amusement in his icy eyes- the comment, the way it was said, about the beauty. He almost eyerolled. Instead, he just continued on with ‘that look’. For once, he probably did resemble his mother, Leafstorm. Then it broke off with an actual eyeroll, and the likeness was lost. Comment from Camo? Nupe, he just took a foot pawstep forward, grasp a needle near Oakheart’s shoulder, and yanked it out with so much as a pause or a warning. Then another, and another..He only paused to peer at Spiderpaw, looking up and over.

Even with his mouth filled with spines, he grinned a bit at the dramatic act..Then shook his head, as she commented on his slowness. He wasn’t slow, exactly. He just wasn’t fast. Not something he could do much about, really- he was built for strength and durability, not for zippiness. Muscle and large paws took time to operate. “Peh” Out went the needles, in a direction and placement far away from the three cats. Then, it was back to de-quil-ing Oakheart. “I bet Dad would be laughing at you right now.” Needed comment? Probably not; but he made it anyway, bending down and quickly plucking another few needles out. “I’ll just laugh on the inside.” Grin. He was teasing, of course- Camo really didn’t find it hilarious, as his father would’ve. Pluck!

[Twitchy]

Oakheart frowned playfully at Spiderpaw's joking reply. "Right, so I'd be very careful if I were you too. I don't know how many ladies I could hold off while you two ran for the hills." An amused purr rang out from his throat, but was cut short by the sudden stinging pain. "Ouch! Easy there, tiger. No need to tear me apart in the process." He had felt some of his own precious red fur pop out with the needles, which made the pain a bit sharper in intensity. It wasn't that bad, but he would be sore for a long while. He grinned again though, understanding it was all just in fun and games. "I wonder what your father would say if he say you as a little cat-ctus, eh Camopaw?" A devious smirk crossed the red tom's lips at the idea.

((Sorry I've been gone for so long D: Life kinda got in the way :c ))