[Ginger]

And even though it's hard, and I may struggle through it all
you may see me stumble, but you will never see me fall.

The sun had just begun to set, turning the sky to a rich assortment of colors: orange, yellow, pink, and red. The tall grasses were shrouded in darkness, rustling as if by wind. However, there was no wind. Instead, a small tabby was silently moving through the grasses, causing them to stir as she prowled through them. Thistlepaw had left the camp with a dusk patrol, but she had heard something tumbling around in the grasses, causing her to get distracted and accidentally split from the other cats.

Thistlepaw had never hunted anything before, but she couldn't resist whatever prey it was that was making such a loud sound. She kept moving silently, placing one paw in front of the other, her long claws leaving marks in the ground, until she finally found what she had been stalking.

A little over twelve hare-lengths in front of her, Thistlepaw saw a massive rabbit digging into the earth doing who-knows-what. Her eyes narrowed. What a legend Thistlepaw would be if she could bring in a kill like that on her first hunt. Focus, Thistlepaw. The petite tabby pressed her ears to her head and her body to the ground, slowly edging closer and closer to the busy rabbit.

The rabbit paused for a moment, raising its head and looking towards her. Thistlepaw froze for what felt like eons. It wasn't until after the rabbit put its head back down that the young apprentice realized she had been holding her breath. Thistlepaw focused in once more, inching towards the rabbit until she was almost upon it.

Not knowing what to do except pounce, Thistlepaw clumsily leaped out of her cover towards the rabbit. It saw her coming immediately and ran. Thistlepaw, never knowing when to give up, attempted to chase the rabbit down. It was too fast, and her claws were getting too much earth stuck in them, making it incredibly uncomfortable to run. Before long, the rabbit was out of sight, and Thistlepaw had to give up. She plopped down on the ground, frustrated with herself.

It was only as she was sitting alone that Thistlepaw realized the patrol of cats she had been with was nowhere to be found. Concern ran through the tabby's eyes as she stood up and stretched her head upwards, barely tall enough to see over the grasses. Remember your training. Thistlepaw opened her mouth to taste the air, but all she could smell was freshly dug earth. This was bad.

Thistlepaw

6 Moons || LightningClan || She-Cat

414 Words || Made By Fawn || BlooRey DVD

[BlooRey DVD]

A rustle was the only warning he received before a rabbit exploded from the undegrowth nearby. Apparently, the creature responsible had been startled enough it forgot basic instinct and charged blindly away from whatever had caused the initial scare. Without a thought, a black paw snapped out, slamming upon the head of a rabbit as it nearly collided with him. Jaws soon followed, sinking into the creature's throat before it could utter a squeal of protest. Pupils contracted as the sweet tang of blood touched his tongue, the senior warrior inhaling and stifling a shiver that threatened to prick his shoulders. Releasing the corpse, jaws parted to trace the fear scent, a dark intrigue settling into his chest. Abandoning the rabbit with a kick of some brushes to haphazardly cover the prey for later, the tuxedo tom stalked off in the direction the rabbit had come. Alternating white and black paws covered ground with ease and a silent expertise born only of moons of practice, he tracked the source of this scare. Admittedly, a piece of him hoped it was a stranger on LightningClan land. Oh how he could do with some entertainment today. A kill that was a little more... Exciting. Somewhat unfortunately, the scent that greeted him from within a brushy covering was distinctly LightningClan. He stilled his movements and observed for a moment, watching the semi-hidden tabby shape poke about in what he could only describe as confusion. Lost. He thought, dangerous yellow eyes narrowing. Typical apprentice. Someone will be looking for her. And now that he'd gotten this close, he would be regarded with suspicious disdain if he left her here alone. Gritting his teeth in a silent snort of mild irritation, the LightningClan warrior steadied himself and reached within. An observant mind flickered through the names of the various apprentices currently under tutelage in LightingClan, landing upon one that seemed to fit. May appear cold, aloof. Truthfully simply passionate about loyalty above all. Strong sense of morality. He thought to himself, collecting the bits and pieces he'd gleaned from seeing her interact with others. With a final narrowing of his eyes, he let fall into place a perfectly practiced mask of a father, a mentor, and respected senior warrior of LightningClan. Yellow eyes relaxed from their calculating and narrowed pose, ears pricking forward into something more inquisitive and alarmed than attentive and calculating. It was only when he felt certain he had successfully slipped into this persona that he straightened, glancing around as though he didn't know exactly where she was hiding. "Thistlepaw? Is that you?" Inquisitive to begin. "What in StarClan's name are you doing out here alone? Where is Batear?" Leaning more into the scolding but worried senior warrior. "Is everything alright?" Definitely concerned, as any tom who'd sired kits should be. And now, we wait. He thought to himself.

Ginger

[Ginger]

And even though it's hard, and I may struggle through it all
you may see me stumble, but you will never see me fall.

Thistlepaw jumped at the sound of a tom's voice. Before she could place what warrior it came from, he had already reached her. The young tabby turned around, embarrassed once she realized that Nightstep was the one to find her. Of all the cats who could find me. A senior warrior!

She closed her eyes for a moment, trying to think of a way to word "I got lost doing something I don't know how to do" in the best way possible. There was no way.

Sighing, Thistlepaw opened her eyes and stared straight into Nightstep's. The least she could have was some confidence. "I was with Batear and a patrol. I heard a rabbit and meant to catch it, but--" she hung her head in disappointment, unable to feign confidence in her failure "--I don't actually know how to hunt." By Starclan, saying it out loud made Thistlepaw realize just how dumb her idea had been. A rabbit could be a tough catch, even for a warrior! She remembered, looking fondly back on her first night in the apprentice den, how Windpaw had carried in a rabbit similar in size with such pride since they were hard to get. How could I have been so stupid?

Thistlepaw continued to look at her paws, hoping the senior warrior would not judge her impotency too harshly. However, her ears pricked as an idea popped into her head. Nightstep was well-known for bringing in decently-sized prey. It couldn't hurt to get a little advice from a professional. Shuffling her paws and slowly bringing her head back up, Thistlepaw quietly asked, "Would you teach me a few of your tricks for hunting?"

Thistlepaw

6 Moons || LightningClan || She-Cat

279 Words || Made By Fawn || BlooRey DVD

[BlooRey DVD]

Thistlepaw's confession caused his ears to prick forward. In part, her dedication to do what she could for LightningClan was commendable. But mostly, the idea that she could hunt without any prior knowledge of hunting at all was absolutely ludicrous. Of course, such thoughts never made it to the surface. Instead, his features softened as though she were his own kit admitting something like that. "Well now, that certainly would prove problematic in the art of hunting, hm?" He teased, shifting to gently nudge her shoulder with his. A rumbling purr left his throat as he stepped around her, beckoning her out of the thick brush with his tail. While turned away from her, his bright yellow eyes darkened with something akin to irritation. Why did he always manage to attract the blissfully ignorant and blindly hopeful ones? They flocked to his persona like bees to bright flowers. He supposed he shouldn't complain too much. They were often the easiest to manipulate. And every soul that believed him to be nothing more than a proud warrior of LightningClan added to the validity of his cover. Let them believe. It will warrant me nothing but more freedom in the long run. Her next question was very much expected. As he slid the charming mask back into place, the tuxedo tom turned to face her once more. Another cheerful rumble cut through the air as he lowered himself into a sit. "Why, Thistlepaw, it would be my absolute pleasure. Perhaps we can get you something to bring back to the Clan before the day is done, hm?" Truthfully, he hoped Batear would realize that an apprentice was missing and come searching for her before he was forced to spend an entire afternoon with an apprentice that was not even his own. "First lesson to remember. If your first indication that there is prey nearby comes from your eyes-" He began, tail wrapping around to tap her lightly on the bridge of her muzzle between her eyes. "You have already lost." He finished with a cheeky smile. "Your nose and your ears are your two most powerful tools while hunting. For if you can see the prey, the prey can likely see you. And it probably heard you trouncing through the undergrowth too. Hunting is all about the element of surprise. Locate your prey. Approach your prey. Neutralize your prey. All before it figures out you were there to begin." His tail settled back over his paws easily, the tuxedo tom's head tilting slightly to one side as he observed her. "We'll discuss tracking again in more detail later. I'd like to see your hunter's crouch as a start point. That will be your best tool during the approach phase of your hunt. If you have yet to be taught a proper hunter's crouch, show me what feels comfortable to you. If you had to stalk this leaf-" He rasped, one paw lifting to indicate a yellow-green leaf lying just out of his reach. "How would your body want to sit?"

Ginger

[Ginger]

And even though it's hard, and I may struggle through it all
you may see me stumble, but you will never see me fall.

At Nightstep's bright response, Thistlepaw got excited. He wanted to teach her, and he was being so positive about it! 

That's not how others have described him. Oh well. He must just be good at catering to the cats around him; a good skill for an excellent warrior. Thistlepaw envied it, she would love to be so easily adaptable. Instead, she was rough around the edges and struggled to keep her words from rolling off of her tongue. She was often described as too blunt, although it had made her some friends.

Thistlepaw sat eagerly, drinking in every word of advice that the older warrior had to give her. Use every sense except sight. Odd, but understandable the more she thought about it. There was so much information she could get from her other senses. Information that came to her much before her eyes could perceive it. 

Next, it was time to drop into a crouch and "hunt" a leaf. It seemed childish, but Thistlepaw decided to play along with it. She quickly dropped down, completely still except for her tail, which, unbeknownst to the tabby she-cat, flicked excitedly. She wanted to be good enough. No. She would to be the best she could be, strong for both herself and her clan. 

And who else to help but one of the most reputable members of the clan?

 

Thistlepaw

9 Moons || LightningClan || She-Cat

227 words || Made By Fawn || BlooRey DVD