[Justice]

She'd awoken at the brink of dawn, preferring to rise early in order to not waste time in the day dealing with socialization of the clan. She could do it, but it grated her nerves depending on how many cats and who they were. If she could get away with leaving early she would, and with an apprentice to train she needed to get going before someone else wanted her attention. Her family was fine to call for her attention, as was her young apprentice and his entire family. Anyone else, so far, was worthless to her and a waste of her time. At least she hadn't been 'gifted' one of Lionstar's kits. She might have outed herself with her opinion on the tom and his flighty mate.

So she went to the apprentices den, delicately stepping over the snoozing young apprentices until she reached hers and pressed her nose against his ear. "Wake up Hemlockpaw, its time to start your training." She spoke softly so as not to wake the others, but also to begin the lesson before they ever left camp. Though they were making a tour of the territory, she wanted to start him learning how to walk quietly as early as possible. "Be quiet as you make your way out. I'll meet you at the edge of camp. Eat and come along."

There, no fluff or pomp. Straight to the point, and she picked her way back through the snoozing bodies until she could exit. She also grabbed a small bite to eat from the fresh-kill pile then headed to wait at the edge of camp. Time to see how much raw potential her new apprentice had. She had high hopes, as he came from superior stock, but only time would tell for certain.

@zen

[Deleted]

If I told you what I was, would you turn your back on me?

---

Hemlockpaw was so glad to finally be an apprentice. There was so much to learn! And Magpiewing told him that Amberwing had been his mother's apprentice. His mother seemed pleased she was mentoring him. His mother rarely seemed pleased with any of their Clanmates, though she was good at pretending she was. He'd never seen her openly question or disagree about anything in front of the Clan, before his ceremony and the naming of Adderpaw's mentor.

He'd made his nest in the apprentices' den, close to Adderpaw, and hadn't had much luck getting to sleep thanks to his excitement for all the opportunities he'd be waking up to come morning. Exhaustion won out in the end, though, and he got a bit of uninterrupted sleep. He was still deep asleep when a nose pressed to his ear, and barely stirred until his mentor's voice reached him. His ears twitched and he raised his head a bit, blinking blearily at the older she-cat as he tried to push away the sleepy fuzziness in his mind and comprehend just what she was saying to him.

Training? Oh. Oh! Training! He was about to jump to his paws, his jaw dropping open to say something, when Amberwing spoke again, telling him to be quiet and meet her at the edge of camp after he'd gotten something to eat. His jaws clicked shut and he glanced around at his fellow apprentices, still asleep, as Amberwing turned and exited the den on silent paws. Right. He'd better be quiet so he didn't wake every cat up. They likely wouldn't be very happy with him. His gaze settled on Adderpaw and then Yewpaw briefly, somewhat disappointed he wouldn't be training with them today, but he supposed there was plenty of time for that. They'd be apprentices for many moons, after all.

Rising to his paws, he surveyed the dim den, picking his way through sleeping bodies, watching the rise and fall of each calm breath as he passed his denmates, stepping carefully. Slipping out into camp, his paws free of bodies to step on, he darted over to the freshkill pile and picked out a scrawny mouse and gulp down, barely tasting it as he hurried through the meal. He'd need the energy, he was sure, or he would have forgone it altogether. He didn't want to be distracted by hunger later on, when Amberwing was trying to teach him something. He then bounded over to his mentor, tail waving behind him excitedly, though he managed to catch himself before he called out in the quiet, ducking his head a bit sheepishly and waiting until he reached her to speak, keeping his voice quiet, “I ate like you said. What are we doing today, Amberwing?” There were so many possibilities!

---

And if I seem dangerous, would you be scared?

Justice

[Justice]

"We are going to make a patrol of the territory." She spoke in level tones, voice soft even as they made their way further from the camp. "My first lesson for you is this; a quiet cat gets more done than one that drags their paws and stomps around. Move like you don't want to be heard, take your time and be patient. We'll focus more on that when we start hunting practice, for now I just want you to think about what it means."

Amberwing kept a watch over her apprentice, but at the same time she was testing him. Was he worth the time and effort she'd have to put into him? Was he like her, like Mockingbird? Did he see past the lies and facade of TreeClan's heirarchy to the truth of the world around him? Most importatly, could he keep a secret? She didn't know yet, but she would watch and learn and give him the benefit of the doubt. Without reavealing anything. She could be mild, she could pretend, play the part. Time would show her the truth.

She led them further from camp, keeping an even pace as Hemlockpaw's legs weren't near as long as hers and she didn't want him tiring out on his first trip out of camp. No, that kind of training came later. "This is the Sparkling Brook. If you ever find yourself lost, find the river and follow it back to the brook and the brook is close to camp. When you are a little bigger I'll teach you to swim. We may not be RainClan cats, but the ability to swim may someday save your life. You don't have to fish to have a useful skill."

And a break, a chance for her apprentice to take a drink if he needed and to ask any questions. They would move on shortly, and she took a moment to get a drink herself.

@zen

[Deleted]

Hemlockpaw's ears pricked, his attention entirely on his mentor as she spoke, so much so that as she gave him his first 'lesson' he realized he wasn't at all paying attention to the noise he was making. Oops. He stopped briefly to glance at their surroundings, particularly the ground, noting anything he might step on and make noise, and when he continued after her a heartbeat later he paid more attention to the placement of his paws.

While he hadn't been terribly loud previously, there was definitely a noticeable difference as he kept his steps lighter. He certainly knew how, when he wanted to. Like when he was stalking after one of his sisters when they played and he didn't want them to know he was there. Mockingbird and Magpiewing had both given them tips about stalking when they played. He wasn't as good at it as Adderpaw, but he was sure with Amberwing's training he'd get better in no time.

His mentor spoke up as they reached the water's edge and he was simultaneously repulsed and curious at the idea of learning to swim, his nose wrinkling slightly. He did not enjoy being wet. Playing in puddles was fun for a few moments, until the cold water had seeped through his fur and he was a sodden, miserable mess. He shook out his fur as though he was wet right then and there and leaned down to the water to get a quick drink for himself, “Is swimming very hard?” he looked over at Amberwing, water dripping from his whiskers, his curiosity about it growing.

Justice

[Justice]

Amberwing internally laughed at the look on Hemlockpaw's face when she told him he'd have to learn how to swim. Now she knew many cats outside of RainClan didn't like the water, but as her mother had pointed out to her many times in the past being able to swim could easily save your life should you fall into the river. Her mother remained the strongest swimmer in TreeClan, and would likely remain so as she actively liked to swim and fish like a RainClan cat. But the basics were something any apprentice she had would be receiving rather they liked it or not.

She did note with some pleasure that he took to heart what she'd said about stepping lightly. Perhaps there was hope for this one yet. But he'd asked a question and she had to answer him.

"In gentle waters no, which is where you'll be learning to swim initially. Once you get the basics we'll start crossing the river where the current is stronger. Its a good way to build up your stamina." She leaned over and got herself a drink as well, just to give her apprentice the slightest bit more time.

"Now then lets go, we have allot of territory to cover and we're burning light."

@zen