Probably Still a Newbie [ p ]

[Robinstar]

( this shows you how bad i am at naming things. Oakpaw )

Robinfrost stretched and padded out into the early morning. Mentors and their apprentices were beginning to leave camp - reminding him, once again, that he was due for a training session with Oakpaw. After grabbing something to eat, he headed to the apprentice's den. "Oakpaw!" He called, flicking his tail back and forth as he waited for the tabby to emerge. He quite liked her personality and determination - something that would serve her well. 

"I'll wait by the exit - you can grab something to eat if you'd like," he added before trotting towards the camp exit. The training session would be more exhausting than the last - he'd found that hunting was harder on young apprentices than exploring the territory. And he wasn't one to go easy.

[Oakpaw]

(most of my thread titles consist of variations of 'be my friend,' typically with one letter stretched out into many of the same. letter is chosen at random. so creative, i know. also oakpaw is insulted)

Oakpaw had been up for some time--during the warm season the sky got lighter earlier, and she could never quite sleep once it was light out. She seemed to be the only one, and she'd been sitting in her nest, staring absent-mindedly at the wall and moving her paws to make shadow puppets. At Robinfrost's call, she jumped, happy for an excuse to leave, and picked her way around her peers as quickly as she could, jumping to attention outside of the den.

"Hello," she mewed, dipping her head in greeting. She nodded, hurrying to grab a small vole and then rushing over to him beside the camp entrance/exit.

"Are we hunting today?" she murmured past the vole's fur, her words muffled.

[Robinstar]

( oh, very creative xD and i'msorrybutyouare haha little apprentices are newbies )

Robinfrost watched, showing some amusement as she rushed to grab her breakfast. "Yes," he responded, glancing gown at the vole. "Though I would suggest finishing your breakfast before you leave," he told her, sitting down to wait. When she finished, he stood and gestured for her to follow him out of camp.

The deputy made his way down the well-worn mountain path, turning to look over his shoulder. "What would you like to learn to hunt first?" He inquired with a twitch of whiskers. 

[Oakpaw]

(true true so weird being apprentice again like
you can have 700+ posts on one account but haha nope this kid doesn't know how to hunt and it is so agh)

Oakpaw grinned through her meal, quickly gulping down the last of it and swiping her tongue around her jaw. "Okay," she mewed brightly. "Ready!"

She followed him through the territory, down a mountain path, and thought hard about his question. "Birds," she decided eventually. "Birds--and fish--seem like they require the most skill, or practice, I suppose." Was that wrong? That was probably wrong. You need to relax, she thought angrily to herself. It wasn't like she was expected to know everything, to be able to do everything she was supposed to do and learn.

[Robinstar]

( I have so many accounts, half of them are probably either apprentices or kits. and I make new ones way too much, so I'm used to training xD )

Robinfrost hid the small smile that he gave at her enthusiasm, turning away so she wouldn't see. He'd ingrained it in his brain to not become close to any other cat, but it pained him to be so cold. He pricked his ears as he spoke. From the moment he met her, he had known that he'd hit the jackpot of apprentices. No extra time had to be wasted for explaining things, and her personality was great. Her explanation only further demonstrated this.

"Exactly. Correct," he praised. "It's a good thing your going for the hard stuff first - it'll help you with the rest of the day and get it ingrained in your head," he told her with an approving nod. "Since we're at the river, we can fish first... if that's alright with you." He wanted to get her used to making her own decisions, as she'd have to be independent as a warrior. The deputy leapt up onto one of the Fishing Rocks, making room for her, as he awaited her response.

[Oakpaw]

(i had like eight at some point all of who's contacts had gone inactive and it was just no. so now i'm down to four but it's still exhausting i've disappointed so many people via late reply)

Oakpaw let a whoosh of air out with a breath at his affirmation. "Good," she added, all puffed up with pride. "And yes, of course--let's do it." Ugh. Was that too enthusiastic? She needed to quit thinking so hard, and she hurried over by her mentor, awkwardly jumping onto the large rocks and peering into the river.

The rushing waters looked back at her. She tried to think if she'd ever seen another cat fish, how it would be done, what made sense.

(saw your 'leaving' thread all  is well see you soon)

[Robinstar]

( Oakpaw, training can continue!! xD )

Robinfrost nodded, turning to face the occasional spray - it felt good on his warm pelt. "Do you have any ideas of how one fishes?" He inquired, tilting his head in a questioning way. After a few moments the deputy decided to demonstrate for his apprentice. He stilled, making sure to keep his shadow off the water. It didn't take too long for a silver flash to catch his eye - and, fast as lightning, he struck the water with a single paw and hooked the wriggling creature on his claws.

The tabby tom slapped it down onto the rock, the impact instantly killing it. He gave a small grunt of satisfaction, the kind that came after killing your prey. "You have to be fast and still, and don't let your shadow touch the water."

[Oakpaw]

(heyyyyy again)

Oakpaw thought for a moment. "I assume you'd have to be very still--and you couldn't really keep your paw in the water, could you? You'd have to be really, really fast." She frowned a little--she couldn't imagine being as fast as the fish that flitted about below her. She watched Robinfrost as he moved just that fast, pulling out a silvery fish and slapping it against the rock. She stared at it for a second.

"Woah. Okay." She frowned in concentration at the water, checking her shadow's placement--the ground behind her. She flicked her paw out of the water, trying to mimic the movement, then waiting for a fish to cross her line of sight. When at last one did, she waited too long, and the fish was past her paw by the time she'd managed to even get her paw in the water. She growled a little as she shook the water off of her paw, waiting for another occasion.

What exactly had Robinfrost done? He'd looked at where the fish was going to be. Cats couldn't be that fast. The next try, she plunged her paw in a bit in front of where the fish was heading, thrilled as she felt her paw touch the slimy thing, flicking her claws out as quickly as she could, she'd forgotten--which resulted in rather a messy catch that was nearly not a catch at all. Desperately she pulled her paw up with the fish speared awkwardly on her claws.

She pushed it onto the rock with a little squeal, stabbing it repeatedly until it stopped moving, then froze, staring up at Robinfrost as the mildly mangled fish bled beneath her.

[Robinstar]

Robinfrost sat back to watch with blue-green eyes. His apprentice figured out how to get the fish, and he was proud of that. However, by the time she had killed it, the creature was bloody and mangled - nothing a clan cat would eat. He gave an encouraging nod towards Oakpaw.

"You figured out how to catch the fish, which is good," the deputy praised, blinking down at the mangled animal. "Though, try not to… kill it in such a way. Instead, try to not use your claws to drag it out of the water," he instructed. He'd bring the fish back to camp anyways.

"And it's easier to kill it by hitting it over the head, either using a rock or your paw," he told her. "Try again."

[Oakpaw]

She nodded awkwardly, her pelt flushing with heat. She knew that fish wasn't worth eating, but it was good to know she could at least catch it. She tried the motion, hitting the fish with her paw--claws sheathed so it was just blunt force. She tried a couple times, trying to think of how it would work--fish skeletons and structure were of course nothing like cats.

After a moment she abandoned trying to think her way around it and turned back to the river, checking her shadow, squatting at the edge and watching the water. A fish darted into view, but she waited a little too long, realising that just as she flicked her paw back, and drew it back before she could disrupt the water with a little irked hiss.

She watched another one as it approached, gauging the distance and this time flicking her claws out before she plunged her paw into the water, snagging, drawing it out, and slamming her catch down on the rock.

The throw stunned the fish for a moment, but it started to squirm again, and she lifted her other paw to hit it as hard as she could on the head, whereupon it went still. She felt a squeal rising in her throat and suppressed it, though she couldn't help turning to her mentor with shiny eyes and meweing like a kit, "I did it!"

[Robinstar]

Robinfrost watched, his face showing no signs as she failed to catch the next few fish. It was expected from an apprentice, and the fact that she had managed to get one on her first try surprised him in a pleasant way. He moved backwards as she brought the fish onto the rock and bashed its head with her paw. He dipped his head, studying the fish, and stood up with the smallest of smiles. "Very good. You're doing well."

He hadn't expected an apprentice so new to hunting to be able to catch a fish that quickly - then again, she was Hermione smart and good at problem solving, as he had found out during the territory tour. "You can continue to practice this. If you need any help, feel free to come and fine me," he told her. "What would you like to hunt next? Birds, was it?"

[Oakpaw]

Oakpaw watched hesitantly as his face betrayed no emotion, and felt herself quite-nearly-literally deflate with relief as he offered a tiny smile and praise.

"Okay," she mewed, nodding as she frowned a little at the first fish. She looked up at his question--"Birds, yes--my hind legs aren't very strong and a lot of that has to involve jumping." She shuffled her paws. "So I need to work on that."

[Robinstar]

( i love how much oak wants to please robin xD )

"Bury your fish so we can take it back to camp, and we'll continue," he instructed with a nod, waiting until Oakpaw was done. "That's alright. They'll build up over time from climbing mountains and hunting hawks and songbirds." He flicked his tail for her to follow, plunging into the pine trees that bordered the river. 

"Tell me if you smell any birds," he said, glancing over his shoulder at the smaller tabby. He needed to exercise Oakpaw's sense of smell for her to be able to hunt on her own. He continued to walk among the well worn paths through the trees, though slowing down in order to give his apprentice time to pick out the scents.

[Oakpaw]

(she's like PLEASE LOVE ME OHMYGOD TELL ME I'VE DONE GOOOD)

She cocked her head, squinting at the fish--it was still so weird--then set about digging a hole, scooping dirt back over the fish as she listened.

Hawks. That seemed like awfully big prey--she had of course never seen one, not even in the fresh-kill pile so far, but she'd heard plenty of chat about them from the elders and older apprentices. She followed him excitedly as they wound their way through the pines.

She opened her mouth to taste the air as they walked. She could catch a few indistinguishable scents, nothing she felt confident to follow, but after a few minutes she felt confident about one, and stopped, pointing with her tail to the left of them. "There," she mewed hesitantly, sniffing deeply. It didn't smell like a specific type of bird she knew, but she could scent that sort of type--perhaps it was the feathers.

[Robinstar]

( oH GOD I THOUGHT I REPLIED IMSOSORRY Oakpaw )

Robinfrost paused when she told him she'd scented a bird. He parted his jaws, then nodded. "Good," he responded with an approving nod, padding slowly and quietly back towards her. "Birds have excellent hearing, so you ned to be quiet and stealthy," he said. "This is where the crouch will come in handy.

"However, birds can fly, so you need to be wary of their wings." He took a step back. "Go ahead and try it," he said.