Thistleburr

Warriors within RidgeClan, Featherprance and Gorsescar, two warriors who suited themselves as mates to give RidgeClan litters of strong kits for the clan, were finally able to give their clan a litter of kits admist the 2 year war between RidgeClan and MoorClan. After many failed attempts, the two were starting to give up on the idealisation of giving RidgeClan a litter from the two, but through the darkness came light, and that light happened to be the kits, Thistlekit and his sister Thornkit. Named for the thistles and thorns that the two parents had seen scattered around the territory. Strong names for Strong kits, they believed.

Throughout growing up within the nursery and within the camp, Thistle and Thorn didn't see much of their father, their mother often expressing how busy he was on patrols and keeping the clan well fed and safe. Although despite their mother's words, the two kits weren't happy with the exclusion of their father, especially when they saw other fathers within the clan coming to see their kits. It wasn't especially uncommon for a father of their kits within RidgeClan to not see their kits, but Thorn and Thistle seemed to always seek him out. Even the times they did see him, his time he spent with them would always be short and brief, causing the two to start to worry that he didn't like them. Maybe he wanted to have kits like the other queens did, but once again their mother was always there to try and reassure them.

By the time the kits were able to start making their way to the elder's den, they started to be told stories of past ventures that they elders had had. Legendary warriors of the past and more so, about the great dieties that RidgeClan owed their lives to. The two kits were enraptured by these stories that the elders told them. Stories that had them believe that they too could become one of the heroes of these tales. Although one specific day and elder let it slip about the current situation that the clan was under, the war with MoorClan. Thistlekit wanted to know more about this war, why was it happening? What was being done about it? And who was fighting it?

Mere days later, Thistlekit would have an answer to one of his questions after a patrol of cats came back to camp, carrying their wounded and their deceased. They had been ambushed on a hunting patrol. One of the deceased cat being his father Gorsescar. That evening Featherprance and her kits would be up preparing his body for his spirit to ascend. The cats grieved for their kin. Continued to grieve as his body was burried. For this time the kits were given a mere few days to continue to grieve, before their 6th moon was coming up and it would be time for them to earn their apprentice rank.

The day had arrived for both Thistlekit and Thornkit to be made apprentices, still grieving for the loss of a father they only really knew from the stories their mother and the elders would tell them. But here they were granted their new names till they became warriors, Thistlepaw and Thornpaw. Thistlepaw's mentor was a molly by the name of Briarbird, a tortoiseshell with deep reds within her fur. The metor for Thistlepaw had been chosen quite carefully, choosing to have someone to train him using his intellect and his agility rather than to try and train him in strength techniques that may never grow on him. The two apprentices were quickly warned about the current war that was still going at full force. And thus were told that especially at this time were they not allowed to leave camp without clear instruction to do so, nor without a warrior with them. Thornpaw seemed less enthralled by the idea of having to have warriors with her everywhere, she whispered to Thistlepaw "I thought now we'd be given more independance" with a roll of her eye. Thistlepaw merely mocked her eye roll with one of his own in retaliation of her mousebrained thoughts. Had she so quickly forgotten the sevarity of the situation they were in, even a fully trained warrior such as their father and many more before him had fallen to the claws of MoorClanners. Thistlepaw, while he didn't seem it, was thankful that their mentors were looking out for them.

Needless to say, early days of training were tough on young Thistlepaw. All those moons in the nursery and elder's den made him realise how much harder life was going to be now. How much harder he needed to work. And Briarbird certainly wasn't going to make it any easier for him. During the early days of training it seemed like Thistlepaw wasn't making any progress what so ever, at times it he felt like his progress was going backwards. Which only made him more frustrated and irritable. Especially when he could see his sister Thornpaw making more progress than he was, only made worse when she would inevitably rub her progress in his face. "My mentor, thinks I could be getting to early warriorship at the rate I'm going" she'd often mock. He often wondered how she'd become so arrogant, as kits they seemed pretty close, but ever since they were made apprentices she distanced herself, almost like she saw Thistlepaw's inneptitude as something she could catch. Nonetheless Briarbird worked tirelessly to help Thistlepaw to make progress, even teaching him to take pride and celebrate small victories, such as getting his hunting stance right. Although progress was slow, and made ever more slower with the war constantly looming over them and at times cutting their training sessions short.

Over time Thistlepaw's progress began to speed up, soon enough levelling out with his sister and his peers, Briarbird began starting to mention how he was almost ready to take his assessment. He didn't let his apprehention show through, he played it cool and calm. But everytime it was mentioned he couldn't help but feel the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. His mother was enthralled that her kits were going to earn their full names soon, all they needed was to pass their assessments, Thornpaw on the other hand, acted like she was pleased her brother caught up, but deep down couldn't stand the fact that she had slowed down enough for him to catch up. Other's would say she peaked early on. The relationship between Thornpaw and Thistlepaw never rekindled, it only seemed to sour the more time the two spent together. Between Thornpaw's Backhanded compliments and snide comments and Thistlepaw's sharp tongue and apathy. Even when training together with their mentors, the only comments that would come out of the siblings mouths would be snide comments and insults.

The day finally arrived where the two sibling apprentices would be stood at the maw of the exit tunnel. The two almost glaring at each other from the corners of their vision. As they set off, the first couple of hours were grueling for the two apprentices, once again as they always did, they bickered and insulted eachother. Thornpaw was frustrated that she was doing this assessment with her brother, who only moons prior was far behind her progress, why couldn't she be with another apprentice...maybe one of her friends. While Thistlepaw merely didn't want to be around his arrogant sister. As time went on and they continued to bicker, the two slowly came to a stop until they realised...they were lost. At first the two began to blame one another, unable to accept their own faults for the situation they found themselves within. Until Thistlepaw cut Thornpaw off from what she was saying, only to say that he recognised where they were, he thought he could work to complete this task. They didn't want to, but they knew to pass they'd have to work together on this. For the sake of their warriorhood the two made a temperary truce to work through the assessment, Thistlepaw would get them both on the right track, once they were there, the two would work together using their memory and enviromental clues to get them to the shrine. Once there they were in awe with the beauty of the shrine, this time it was Thornpaw who spoke up, exclaiming they didn't have much time, as she picked up a crystal and the two began to make their journey to the other entrance. The two would exit and complete their assessment with not much time to spare. As the other clanmates congratulated them it wasn't long for the two siblings to begin insulting the other, saying the other got them lost and if it wasn't for that they'd have made it out so much quicker. For the truce was over.

With the completion of their warrior assessment it was time for their warrior ceremony. The two apprentices stood as their leader called out their new names, Thistleburr and Thorntongue. The clan called out the names of their newest warriors. And to Thistleburr it seemed like life was only just starting to begin. He'd made it to the place his father once stood, and while his father was aloof and hardly in his life, he wanted to make his father look down at his son proud of his accomplishments. He wanted to take pride in using his whits and perception as a warrior, skills he believed could be overlooked and underappreciated, as many cats in the past did for him.

RP BEGINS