The start of a great friendship

Curlpaw - PenguinEatsCarrots
Lotuspaw - Tree-branch

The start of a great friendship

Curlpaw walked into camp, the sun rose high in the middle of the sky. The camp was bustling with afternoon noise, every cat wide awake and active. Curlpaw slunk over to the freshkill pile dropping his mouse on the top. He looked around and saw everyone talking with each other. He sighed as he watched them and gabbed a small finch from the pile and looked for a place to sit.

Bright blue eyes watched the group of apprentices talk on and on about their mentors and what all cool things they have learned for the day. Lotuspaw sat from the sidelines and watched them all, she smiled brightly a part of her yearning to be with them and tell all the things she had learn as well, yet she held her ground. Didn't move. For she knew what would happen as soon as she did. Rejection. A painful reminder to Lotuspaw that she was still amongst strangers in her own clan. Yet she would prevail, that she knew, all it took was time. Lotuspaw would become a mighty warrior a cat like no other, she'd show them that she was okay too. Not some clumsy mouse brain full they believed her to be. A content sigh escaped her lip as she sat there, she was indeed a wallflower always on the outside looking in.

He then spotted a large brown apprentice siting by her lonesome on the outskirts of the camp. He looked at her with sympathy, he knew what it was like to be alone, distanced from others. Though in Curlpaw's case, he actually liked to be alone, it made it easier for him to keep his anxiety under control. He turned around to the fresh kill pile and picked up a bigger bird and brought it over to where Lotuspaw was siting. He blinked his multi colored eyes and set down the bird. "U-um.. Hi," He smiled sheepishly. "Would you like to share this with me?" He asked her.

Lotuspaw flickered her ears a bit as someone was venturing closer to her, eyes turned to the side and spotted Curlpaw. She merely offered a sweet smile, assuming he would venture off elsewhere. Yet has he spoke it nearly to her by surprise. Ears flickered back a bit as her nervousness set in. Didn't he know the others may call him out on such a thing or make fun of him for being seen with her? He must know, she thought to herself. "Are y-you sure?' she mewed out softly to him, as she placed her front paws on top of each other in a nervous way. She just had to make sure he wanted to do this, as the last thing she wanted was for him to regret such an offer to herself.

He laughed in a sheepish manor at Lotuspaw's comment. "Well now.. I-I wouldn't have come over here if I wasn't sure now would I?" He told her. He smiled sweetly and settled down next to her. He noticed the air of surprise and nervousness that surrounded her. "Are you ok?" He asked her worried that he had scared her. usually they're the ones to scare me.. He thought to himself alarmingly.

A bashful look seemed to grow on her face as she looked shyly down at her paws smiling faintly. "Well I am not used..." she paused for a moment, would he possibly understand? "To having others wanting anything to do with me." she remarked her blue eyes looking to him as she knew quite a bit of him, merely whispering and talks of others, but could one fully rely on such things? Probably not. Lotuspaw lifted her head a bit and looked to him. "Yet I think you for this kind offer... Not something I am used to, to say the least." she chuckled lightly as her mood seemed to brighten up all the more. It was true what they said, one small act of kindness could change someones whole day.

Curlpaw cocked his head to the side at her response. No cat ever offered to eat with her? Or sit with her? "Why does no one offer that?" He asked her clearly clueless. "You seem like a nice cat" He added. He just noticed that this was probably his first time ever talking to Lotuspaw since they became apprentices. He felt a twinge of guilt. Why have I never spoken to her till now?

Lotuspaw flickered her ears back gently, a faint sigh escaping those dark lips of her. "Well as kits I remembered playing with everyone, but yet I grew bigger then others, my paws are big for my legs. I am a bit more.... bulky?" she remarked chuckling faintly, as if trying to portray any feeling except sadness. "So you can imagine how others get, sometimes being a little odd and different from others makes you a prime subject for being picked on. So.. It's just easier for me to sit alone and watch. It has its good factors and bad ones too." she purred out gently as her bright blue eyes like gems looked to Curlpaw once more. "Thank you though Curlpaw." she remarked she hoped thank you was enough for such a kind offer, she knew she'd try to make it up to him in some sort of way, that she vowed. "How about you? I see yourself a lot by yourself..." she remarked hoping to get to know him just a bit better, if possible.

Curlpaw stared at her in a sort of disbelief. "Just because you're bigger than the others?" He asked. "w-well that's just awful," He added glumly. He didn't see what was so wrong about someone if they were larger than others. He was smaller than everyone else but no one really made fun of him for that. If anything they made fun of them for his stupid stutter. "Well.. I'm always alone because no one wants to be near the stuttering freak.." He sighed. He never meant to stutter.. cats just like to come up to him and scare him, which brings it out. He smiled at her.

Lotuspaw smiled to him sweetly all the more. "Sometimes the others don't understand about being different and standing out. But I like the difference, it shows we are all special in our own ways." She mewed out gently to him, yet she looked sadly at him as he spoke of his stutter. "I don't think its freaky. Sometimes I like to think cats stutter because they really want to make sure they say the right words. Cause once a word is said, they can never take it back. Stuttering makes you focus on what you are trying to say." Bright eyes looked to jim cheerfully offering him a reassuring smile. "I never thought you were a freak, just another unique cat, being a bit misunderstood." Lotuspaw nodded to him all the more. Sure she was bigger then most, and clumsy with her large paws, yet she liked to think she made up with it, with her caring heart and open mind.

Curlpaw was taken aback by her answer. He never really thought about it that way, but he could definitely see the logic in her words. He smiled brightly. "I guess your right, it does make us special in our own way," He then remembered the bird he brought for them to eat. He bent down and took a bite. he looked up mid chew and said, "I brought this for the both of us so you can take a bite too!"

Lotuspaw offered him a smile sweet as one could be. Eyes flickered down to the bird and smiled happily as she never shared a meal before with anyone besides her mother. Lowering her head she quickly took a bite and smiled all the more, savoring the sweet taste of the food as well as enjoying the company. Eyes flickered back to Curlpaw.
"So how do you like being an apprentice?" she remarked to him gently. "Have you been training a lot? Mine is going a bit.... slow." she remarked lifting a paw up a bit, showing her large paws and how she was still quite a bit clumsy working with them. Still a bit awkward. Lotuspaw flickered her ears back a bit as a soft wind passed by rippling her dark pelt, she let out a content sigh. Maybe things were finally looking up for Lotuspaw. One could only hope so, and little Lotuspaw was hoping with all her heart.

"It's ok.." He replied slowly, taking another bite of the bird. "It's not going terrible... but it's not going fantastic," He laughed sheepishly. It would have been better for both him and his mentor if he wasn't so anxious all the time or afraid of trees. He looked up and smiled, "Hey at least with bigger paws it should make fighting and hunting easier for you!"
He looked at her and noticed how happy she was that he had sat with her.. He smiled at that, happy that he was able to make someone's day at least a little brighter. "hey.. you being so big isn't that weird!" He told her, "I mean I have two different colored eyes!" He laughed sheepishly blinking his yellow and blue eyes.

Lotuspaw glanced at her own paws and smiled all the more. "I sure hope you are right. Once I get better with walking on them, maybe I'll have a chance at being a good hunter or something." she remarked a bit bashfully, flicking her ears back a bit as she spoke. Eyes looked to him as he spoke of your eyes. "Oh, but they are so pretty! Not any cat gets blessed with two colored eyes! I say it's pretty nifty!" she remarked smiling as she lowered her head taking another bite of the bird and smiled happily as she chewed. A quick swallow of the food, she let out a happy, content sigh. "Have you thought about your warrior name? Anything you are hoping to get?" she asked curiously.

"I was actually thinking something along the lines of Curlcall or Curlflight.." Curlpaw said. "Even though I'm kind of afraid of heights... and trees.." He sighed. Thinking that if he was named Curlflight would be a little ironic. "What do you think your warrior name could be?" He turned to Lotuspaw and asked. "You know I think Lotusflower would be a very fitting name for you," He smiled sheepishly. She was a very sweet cat and also very pretty so he thought maybe a name like that would fit her.


Lotuspaw couldn't help, but chuckle just a bit. "Well maybe when you get your warrior name you won’t be so afraid of those things, so you could be Curlflight, for soaring over your fears and becoming a warrior!' she mewed cheerfully to him, as always she was indeed quite the positive felines when it came to others. Ears flickered back a bit as he spoke of her being Lotusflower. A pretty name, yet a part of her feared what others may say. call her a beauty as a joke. Lotuspaw smiled shyly as she looked to her paws. "A very pretty name, I was kinda hoping for something like Lotusheart. I think I am caring and such... But as long as its a name fitting to me, I will be okay with what a get." she remarked gently. Her bright blue eyes look to Curlpaw smiling all the more. She enjoyed his company for greater then he probably assumed. It was nice to speak with someone.... other then yourself.


"That would be a very lovely name too," Curlpaw replied. He thought a moment about what she said about him 'soaring' over his fears and smiled a bit. "I hope i won't be so afraid then.." He chuckled, hoping to believe the she-cat in her ideas of him getting over his silly fear. He took another bite of the bird and saw that it was almost gone. That meant their conversation would dwindle. Curlpaw felt a little sad, both knowing that Lotuspaw would just be left alone again and also he was enjoying her company and wanted to talk more. She was one of the first cats he's met that hadn't made fun of him or scolded him for his stutter or fear of trees. He liked that.

Eyes flickered to the dwindling bird and a faint sigh seemed to escape her lips, knowing fully well, that the time they shared together had to end. Yet it made her appreciate the rare moments she had with other felines. "Thank you for sitting with me today, Curlpaw." she remarked sweetly. Ears flicked back a bit as she nervously looked to her paws once more, as habit of hers when she felt a bit uncomfortable or nervous. "M-maybe...." she paused, giving a small hopeful glance "We c-could do this again.... i-if you like that is." speaking softly, she closed her eyes faintly a bit afraid he would blow her off or say, we'll see. Those clever words of giving false hope only to break one down later on.

Curlpaw was taken aback by her question. He smiled, "I would love too," he saw that he had made a big impact on Lotuspaw with that one little motion of just sharing a piece of prey and a small conversation, and that made him smile.