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Post by Deleted on Dec 9, 2012 23:17:53 GMT -5
Thunderclaw was in a foul mood. He'd hardly slept last night, after returning from an evening border patrol, and had awoken to an almost nonexistent fresh-kill pile. A quick survey of the camp had revealed Swallowpaw emerging from the apprentice's den, and he'd instantly recruited the poor young tom. "Come with me, we're going hunting," he'd grunted, and then marched out of camp, expecting his clanmate to follow.
Distantstar is dead. The thought unsettled Thunderclaw, and he increased his pace, as if he might be able to leave it behind him. Lionstep – no, Lionstar – was so young, comparatively, and thus inexperienced. But he now headed the clan, and Thunderclaw had to believe that he would have the wisdom to lead them through this harsh leafbare. Clans were always vulnerable and a bit bruised after loosing a leader.
He glanced back to make sure that Swallowpaw was following him. He reflected now that Stormchaser might have had some sort of training planned for the young black tom. Eh, the clan needs prey. He dismissed the thought, deciding that he could teach Swallowpaw a bit about hunting himself, should the need arise. It was good to learn from many different cats.
The wind buffeted at his fur and he was, for once, grateful for his long, thick fur. The skies were the same color today, he noted, the cloud's shadows resembling the tabby striping that lined his silver coat. He let out a deep breath, trying to relax a bit. He glanced back once more, slowing now. "Are you doing okay?" he asked, the end of his tail twitching. His regular friendly disposition trickled back now, and he felt a pang of guilt at the curtness with which he'd addressed the apprentice. Character; Thunderclaw Word count; 279 Notes; Boink.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 11, 2012 1:11:51 GMT -5
The morning rain clouds up my window And I can't see at all SWALLOWPAW
Glimmering rays of sun reflected off of the ice littering the floor of the TreeClan camp as the young apprentice, Swallowpaw, padded out of the apprentice den. His luminous yellow eyes portrayed only nonchalance as he gazed over the TreeClan camp. Few were out and about on this barely light, sleepy morning. The young tom could care less who was awake, however. The black apprentice did not pity nor did he seek to help others. The only thoughts on the TreeClanner's mind were of his daily routine. The young apprentice planned to sit by the prey pile, get something to eat, and clean his pelt until it was glossy. I need to always look my best, Swallowpaw thought to himself.
However, before Swallowpaw could even move a few tail-lengths from the threshold of his den, the apprentice was accosted by an older tom, Thunderclaw. Swallowpaw had not even noticed that the warrior had approached him, and the apprentice flicked his ears back in surprise. 'Come with me, we're going hunting,' the tomcat meowed. Swallowpaw did not have time to complain or protest -- the warrior already was padding out of camp. "O-okay," Swallowpaw meowed, his voice shaky with shock. His squat legs darted up and down to catch up to the older cat.
The fluffy apprentice had no idea where he was being led, but the tom did not like it. He did not like his routine being messed up, nor did he like his fur getting mussed up. The dirt from the TreeClan domain would, unfortunately, dirty his glossy coat.
Swallowpaw remained a tail-length behind Thunderclaw, his head for the most part turned down. However, when the warrior looked back at the apprentice, the black tom instantly looked up at the warrior and narrowed his yellow eyes in irritation. 'Are you doing okay' Thunderclaw asked, slowing down so that the shorter-legged apprentice could catch up. Though Swallowpaw had slightly sensed that Thunderclaw was in a worse mood, he did not particularly care. Thunderclaw was really at fault in this situation -- he had been the one who had chosen to take Swallowpaw out this morning and had been the one to chose to even leave the camp at all. The black tom was less than sympathetic. "I'd be doing better if I was back at camp," Swallowpaw replied bluntly, his lips curling back so that his little yellow teeth poked out of his muzzle.
It wasn't merely his dislike of anything related to effort that made Swallowpaw more than irritated -- it was also how fed up he was over the leafbare situation. Swallowpaw had only experienced one other leafbare in his short lifetime, but it had been significantly warmer than this one. Now, the world seemed to be perpetually covered in bleak white, frozen water. The snow piled up and made the black tom wet, cold, and miserable. The wet world had pent up so many cats inside of the medicine cat den with ailments of the lungs. It is their own fault for going outside so often and getting all wet, Swallowpaw reminded himself. The worst part about the weather was what affected him -- there was a significant prey shortage. For this, Swallowpaw was more irate than usual.
And even if I could it'd all be grey [/b][/size]
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Post by Deleted on Dec 11, 2012 23:02:17 GMT -5
Thunderclaw rolled his eyes at the smaller black cat. "Luckily for you," he mewed, "you get to go hunting with me! And who would turn down an offer like that?" His amusement at the young tom's petty complaining evident in his voice, and he didn't give Swallowpaw the chance to reply to his sarcastic question with a sardonic answer, instead adding playfully, "It's good for you to get out of camp and do something for your clan, for once."
The long-furred tabby tasted rain on the wind, but it was mild enough that the prey wouldn't be alarmed. The weather had been working against them, lately, and Thunderclaw wished for newleaf to come swiftly and deliver the clan cats from this frigid leafbare.
In addition to the recent loss of Distantstar, there had been many low hisses around camp about NightClan stealing prey. Thunderclaw hadn't been to the border, or seen anything himself, but he had it in good confidence that patrols had found pieces of prey strewn about. He felt his fur bristle at this. The nerve! Stealing prey was distinctly against the warrior code, and a truly sordid and dishonorable act. But, then NightClan were never really the most honest cats around, were they?
As they neared the clearing where Thunderclaw planned to hunt, he turned to Swallowpaw, and asked, "How much hunting have you done?" For the first time, it crossed his mind that this lazy lump of a cat might actually be a bit inexperienced in this regard. Character; Thunderclaw Word count; 261 Notes; :)
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Post by Hellion on Dec 14, 2012 3:30:21 GMT -5
[atrb=width,350][atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellspacing,0,true][atrb=style,background-color: #464646; border-bottom: 40px #191126 solid; border-left: 8px #191126 solid; border-right: 8px #191126 solid; border-top: 70px #191126 solid; border-radius: 20px; moz-border-radius: 20px;][STYLE=float: left; width: 350px; padding: 10px; font-family: arial narrow; font-size: 19px; font-weight: bold; color: #B6B6B6; margin-top: -68px; text-transform: uppercase; text-align: center; margin-left: 4px;] Stormchaser TreeClan Warrior[/style] [STYLE=padding: 10px; width: 380px; text-transform: lowercase; font-size: 10px; text-align: center; color: #B6D6D6; margin-top: -66px; margin-left: -8px;]shake it off, and you stand [/style]
[STYLE=float: left; width: 90px; height: 90; margin: 10px; font-family: times new roman; font-size: 10px; text-align: center; border: 5px #191126 solid; padding: 5px; color: #442A37; opacity: 0.9; background: url('http://i48.tinypic.com/2nbhfkm.jpg'); border-radius: 10px; moz-border-radius: 10px;] [/classy][/style][STYLE=font-size: 10px; text-align: justify; padding: 10px; color: #B6B6B6; border-radius: 20px; moz-border-radius: 20px;]The past couple of days Stormchaser had felt ill and remained near Spottedfeather in hopes she'd be able to treat his sickness, a few nasty herbs and fresh water later the blue warrior was back on his feet and heading out to train Swallowpaw. However, just as he left the medicine cat's den he saw Thunderclaw whisk away his apprentice. Stormchaser had no hard feeling for the cat and felt it would do Swallowpaw some good to learn from another teacher, still Stormchaser ventured against Spottedfeather's wishes out of the camp at a slower and more reserved pace, his sickness still hanging on his pelt.
The air however felt damp and every time Stormchaser took a breath his sickness threatened to flare up again, however, the warrior wasn't going to give up. Pushing past his cough that rattled his body he saw Thunderclaw and Swallowpaw not to far ahead and quickened his pace to catch up with him, his nose flaring at the lack of prey scents.
"Hello Thunderclaw, Swallowpaw" Stormchaser said, nodded to each of them and moving to stand closer to his apprentice. "Spottedfeather said I was free to leave her den, Thank you Thunderclaw for taking Swallowpaw out to hunt, I gues more paws the better right? We can all hunt together." Stormchaser said evenly spreading his attention to each cat respectfully.
[STYLE=padding: 10px; width: 250px; text-transform: lowercase; font-size: 12px; text-align: center; color: #B6D6D6; margin-left: -40px; margin-bottom: -72px;]WORDS: ### // TAGS: Names[/style]
[STYLE=padding: 10px; text-transform: lowercase; font-size: 10px; text-align: center; color: #B6D6D6; margin-bottom: -68px; margin-left: 230px; width: 70px;]Table by Yori of BTN[/style]
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Post by Deleted on Dec 16, 2012 0:54:45 GMT -5
The morning rain clouds up my window And I can't see at all SWALLOWPAW
The dazzling coat of the black apprentice glistened and reflected in the Leafbare snow. The apprentice, was not, however, "glistening". He was peeved off. He did not want to go hunting with this oaf of a warrior -- not like he had gotten any say in the matter. 'Luckily for you, you get to go hunting with me! And who would turn down an offer like that?' Thunderclaw asked the jet black apprentice and he rolled his eyes. "I can think of someone," [/b] Swallowpaw murmured bitterly and kicked up come loose snow with his paw. How completely mousebrained of this cat, he thought to himself, his bright yellow eyes displaying all of his feelings without speaking a single word. 'It's good for you to get out of camp and do something for your clan, for once,' Thunderclaw advised the apprentice jokingly. This only riled up the tom more. I certainly don't remember signing up for this, he thought to himself. "You know who'd really get along with you? My sister, Sparrowpaw. She's totally be all for this sort of thing. A real ..." Swallowpaw began in attempt to be as pleasant as possible. "Go-getter,"[/color] Swallowpaw finished, a shiver flicking its way up his pelt. He loved his sister, but they certainly did not mesh well. Swallowpaw sighed as the tom appeared to push onwards. There is nothing I can do or say to make him turn back, is there? Swallowpaw asked himself, searching his mind and finding nothing more unpleasant that he could possibly throw at the driven warrior. He said nothing more, until they approached their destination - a pretty and for the most part, a starkly empty clearing. 'How much hunting have you done?' Thunderclaw asked and the young apprentice gave a small shrug. "Not much," Swallowpaw responded, his yellow eyes focusing on his paws and away from the truth. The apprentice felt, for a brief moment, weak. In truth, Swallowpaw had done no hunting training with Stormchaser. But it would be pathetic for him to say so, wouldn't it? And, how hard can it be to learn how to hunt on the fly? Swallowpaw asked himself, glancing up at the angry gray sky. Swallowpaw was more happy than usual when he spotted his blue mentor padding towards them through the thick layer of snow. Though the tom usually lamented any interaction with his mentor who made him do things, he actually preferred Stormchaser to Thunderclaw. 'Hello Thunderclaw, Swallowpaw, Stormchaser meowed, and the apprentice tipped his head in happy reply. His mentor had been in the medicine cat den for the past few days for a cough and the apprentice worried, briefly, that he could get Swallowpaw sick. The fluffy apprentice took a calculated step back. 'Spottedfeather said I was free to leave her den, Thank you Thunderclaw for taking Swallowpaw out to hunt, I gues more paws the better right? We can all hunt together.' Stormchaser told them and Swallowpaw grinned contentedly. "I am glad you're here and are feeling better" Swallowpaw meowed, his fluffy tail twitching back and forth. He was almost serious about this. Almost.[/blockquote] [/color] And even if I could it'd all be grey [/b][/size]
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Post by Deleted on Dec 23, 2012 23:17:38 GMT -5
The silver tabby chuckled a bit at Swallowpaw's grumbling. "Perhaps I'll one day take her hunting, but for today, I have the pleasure of working with you." He emphasized the word, filling it with such conviction and enthusiasm that it was only slightly sarcastic. He didn't dislike the long-furred tom, though he found his sloth to be undesirable at best. He nodded a greeting to Stormchaser, but the tom appeared exhausted, and his ragged cough did little to convince Thunderclaw that he was doing much better. Still, he held enough respect for the tom to ignore this. It was not his place to worry over his clanmate, or tell him what he should do. "Great!" he mewed, genuinely pleased that his little patrol had grown. They had a better chance of netting more prey this way. That is, he mused, if Swallowpaw can hunt well, and Stormchaser isn't too ill to focus. Regardless, he found the situation a bit funny, and his eyes shone pleasantly against his storm-cloud-colored fur.
Thunderclaw nodded at the apprentice. He detected some measure of dishonesty in Swallowpaw's reply. "Let's see your hunter's crouch," said the gray tom, flicking his ears. He felt a pang of sympathy for the younger tom, who, despite his flaws, was just a young cat who was learning to stand on his own four paws. His mind thought back to his first day as an apprentice, in which he realized how much really didn't know; he'd been so embarrassed to be inexperienced, though it was completely okay. He dropped into his own hunter's crouch, to help Swallowpaw. Some cats learned better by visual example. His body elongated, his tail held just above the ground, but not enough to ruffle the earth beneath it, he looked encouragingly at the young cat.
Teaching an apprentice was something that he'd wished to do for quite some time. There was something lovely about the opportunity to pass one's own knowledge to a younger age, and he loved the conventions on which one could do so. Cats learned in so many different ways. Their senses powered these comprehensions: through sight, through sound. Exploring the awareness of oneself was absolutely enthralling to Thunderclaw, and the notion of helping another along the way... He glowed inside, at the thought. But for now, he focused at the task at hand, trying to mold young Swallowpaw into less of an idle growth on TreeClan's side and into more of a functioning member of the clan. Character; Thunderclaw Word count; 434 Notes; Holiday popcorn selections are yummy.
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Post by Hellion on Dec 24, 2012 1:11:31 GMT -5
[atrb=width,350][atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellspacing,0,true][atrb=style,background-color: #464646; border-bottom: 40px #191126 solid; border-left: 8px #191126 solid; border-right: 8px #191126 solid; border-top: 70px #191126 solid; border-radius: 20px; moz-border-radius: 20px;][STYLE=float: left; width: 350px; padding: 10px; font-family: arial narrow; font-size: 19px; font-weight: bold; color: #B6B6B6; margin-top: -68px; text-transform: uppercase; text-align: center; margin-left: 4px;] Stormchaser TreeClan Warrior[/style] [STYLE=padding: 10px; width: 380px; text-transform: lowercase; font-size: 10px; text-align: center; color: #B6D6D6; margin-top: -66px; margin-left: -8px;]shake it off, and you stand [/style]
[STYLE=float: left; width: 90px; height: 90; margin: 10px; font-family: times new roman; font-size: 10px; text-align: center; border: 5px #191126 solid; padding: 5px; color: #442A37; opacity: 0.9; background: url('http://i48.tinypic.com/2nbhfkm.jpg'); border-radius: 10px; moz-border-radius: 10px;] [/classy][/style][STYLE=font-size: 10px; text-align: justify; padding: 10px; color: #B6B6B6; border-radius: 20px; moz-border-radius: 20px;]Stormchaser felt vaguely welcomed on the little training experience for his apprentice. It wasn't that he felt hostility from any of the two cats already present, it was that he felt a little out of sync with his apprentice but he wanted to change that. However, with his recent illness he wasn't able to train Swallowpaw in what he felt was the crucial time in early training, forming a small bond before testing the limits of that bond.
While it wasn't much he could do about getting sick he was confident about his own self to know that he would allow Thuderclaw step in front of him and teach the young tom a hunting crouch. Stormchaser moved slightly so he was able to see the two at an easier angle and relaxed flicked his tail.
Watching the other warrior melt into a hunting crouch Stormchaser waited for his apprentice to do the same, but he felt he had something to hunt. With a quick dismissal of himself, Stormchaser bolted into the undergrowth to pull out a twig and place it forward. "Elmleaf taught me how to hunt twigs before I worked on mice. The more silent the kill the drier he got the twigs to the point I was able to 'kill' a twig without a sound." He explained with a faint smile before stepping back his twig about two tail lengths in front of the apprentice.
[STYLE=padding: 10px; width: 250px; text-transform: lowercase; font-size: 12px; text-align: center; color: #B6D6D6; margin-left: -40px; margin-bottom: -72px;]WORDS: ### // TAGS: Names[/style]
[STYLE=padding: 10px; text-transform: lowercase; font-size: 10px; text-align: center; color: #B6D6D6; margin-bottom: -68px; margin-left: 230px; width: 70px;]Table by Yori of BTN[/style]
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Post by Deleted on Dec 24, 2012 1:30:55 GMT -5
The morning rain clouds up my window And I can't see at all SWALLOWPAW
The pure black apprentice peered at Thunderclaw with sharp green eyes that basically screamed the apprentice's frustrations with the warrior before him. Great? What's so great about it? I'm out here with you and you seem completely unresponsive to me. Yes, I am being somewhat disrespectful. And maybe -- just maybe if you gave up with this mousebrained hunting concept, it'll be better for the both of us, Swallowpaw thought and rolled his eyes. The black tom was frustrated by the fact that no matter how many times Swallowpaw tried to kick Thunderclaw back down, the warrior seemed to ignore it. It wasn't that Swallowpaw thought Thunderclaw was dense or didn't understand his request -- its that he refused to react to Swallowpaw at all. While the warrior may have thought that he was being the mature one by not responding to Swallowpaw's attitude, it really made him as low as Swallowpaw. Or, the young apprentice thought so.
When Thunderclaw told Swallowpaw to perform a hunter's crouch, the jet black tom rolled his eyes and sank down into a very sloppy looking hunter's crouch. Glancing at Thunderclaw, the jet black tom realized his flaws and tried his best to correct them. Tuck my tail in, sink closer to the ground ... Swallowpaw instructed himself and felt a little less animosity towards Thunderclaw. Instead, he focused on the body of the other warrior.
Stormchaser cut in, just as Swallowpaw thought that he was getting the hang of things and the young apprentice lost his delicate balance, falling on his rump in the snow and mussing his fur up. Not only did I fail, but now Thunderclaw gets his chase to laugh at me, Swallowpaw thought and held back a shriek of frustration. Instead, he focused his energy on his mentor, and held his voice back as he spoke from a shout. "Twigs ... you interrupted my focus for twigs?" Swallowpaw cried out loud and kicked up powdery snow in front of his face. The young apprentice was practically having a fit. The tom didn't care if twigs were the most vital thing in the world -- he was not ready yet for pouncing.
Couldn't his mentor see that?
And even if I could it'd all be grey [/b][/size]
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Post by Deleted on Dec 24, 2012 3:07:11 GMT -5
Thunderclaw stared at Swallowpaw, feeling... well, disappointed. The black apprentice had been doing so well, before losing his focus, and Thunderclaw had been ready to praise the young tom, and help him improve on it again before he'd gone into this tantrum. He felt an initial bit of indignant anger at the cat's disrespectful, kittish behavior, but stopped himself before he snapped at him.
Swallowpaw didn't need a lecture. He didn't need to be told that being rude was wrong, or that he was behaving stupidly. How many times had he heard that? Doubtlessly, the young tom was constantly being reprimanded for his behavior, his laziness, his attitude... He was always doing things wrong, wasn't he? Instead, the silver tabby rose from his crouch and cocked his head sideways at him. He glanced at Stormchaser, wondering if he should let the mentor handle this, but decided against it; the other tom had been feeling ill, after all.
His light brown eyes studying the young cat, he stood silently for a moment before lowering his head a bit, so that he wouldn't tower above the cat, and said gently, "Swallowpaw, you are doing wonderfully." He paused, his feathery tail lowering a bit as he inhaled. Chastising the tom would do nothing but make him more resentful and frustrated. Thunderclaw believed that you had to give cats room to be great, to raise your expectations a bit, and help the other cat get there. Given a fair amount of trust, cats would rise to the occasion, more often than not. But you had to give them a chance. Treat them with mistrust, and they will behave dishonestly, he affirmed, before opening his maw to continue.
"Stormchaser has a great idea," he nodded at the tom, carefully making sure not to make him feel put out. "And I need you to remember that that's what we're working towards. I understand that it can be frustrating when you're first starting out, Swallowpaw, but we don't expect you to be perfect straight away." He paused again, seeking eye contact with the apprentice, before continuing in the same soft tone, "We've all messed up more times than we can count, and you're going to have trouble, too." He gestured with his tail to include the black tom's mentor. "But, even though it's frustrating, we need you keep at it." He paused again, flicking his ears. "Sometimes, you're going to lose your balance and fall over." Now, he wasn't only referring to training, but to life. "And sometimes, you'll jump at something and miss. But all you can do is get back up and try again."
Thunderclaw was not angry. "Do you understand?" he asked, his voice still gentle. Without waiting for a response, he dropped back into his crouch.
Humiliating cats when they made mistakes wasn't worth a thing. And rarely did berating them resonate at all in any sense besides creating misgivings. He didn't want Swallowpaw to feel guilty, or to feel stupid. Instead, he wanted the apprentice to understand, and to grow from each blunder. Character; Thunderclaw Word count; 547 Notes; Cheese. Just cheese.
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Post by Hellion on Dec 26, 2012 23:20:36 GMT -5
Stormchaser was surprised by the reaction of Swallowpaw no doubt and while he stepped back in surprise his eyes narrowed slightly and he stood up taller, pushing the annoyance of sickness away.
He picked up the twig with his jaw and tossed it aside, allowing it to fall into the snow covered brush with a heavy thud. The blue tom was prepared to have a talk with his apprentice but Thunderclaw beat him too it, while he was okay with the other warrior to try and soothe the sore apprentice he wasn't at all pleased with how Swallowpaw reacted, he was just teaching him a few things and the young cat didn't need to get his tail in a twist.
Allowing Thunderclaw to finish what he was saying he stepped forward a little. Moving to where he was eye level with Swallowpaw. "Thunderclaw is right, we all have failed at least half a dozen times before getting it right, but if you stop acting like your entire life is one large sore paw you will learn faster and hopefully outpace me. That is your goal Swallowpaw become a better and stronger warrior than your mentor. Now get back up shake your fur off and try again." Stormchaser meowed evenly trying to sound pleasant before he stepped back and flicked his tail for his apprentice to at least give it another shot. "Give it one more try and if you don't want to keep hunting training we can work on something else. I'll take you on a trip to see the borders." Stormchaser gave the option to him with a kind look in his eyes.
[/blockquote]
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Post by Deleted on Dec 28, 2012 1:55:22 GMT -5
The morning rain clouds up my window And I can't see at all SWALLOWPAW
The brilliant yellow eyes of the black tom, which usually were filled with either negativity or pride, were briefly warmed over as he listened to Thunderclaw's words. The tom felt a little less anger towards the young warrior as he listened to what the tom said. Though Thunderclaw was of a young age, Swallowpaw recognized that he spoke with wisdom and honesty and how it might be wise to take heed to his words.
All the black tom's frustrations seemed to seep out of him from his paws as Thunderclaw encouraged him to continue his efforts and assist him in being less irritated with his failures in his first training session. 'Do you understand?' Thunderclaw asked him at the end of his speech and Swallowpaw peered at him with, for a moment, content eyes. The moment did not last particularly last long between them. When Stormchaser added his voice in agreement with Thunderclaw's, Swallowpaw's black ears suddenly pinned back.
The tom stood on all fours, his hackles raising and his teeth poking out. Although he was young and had often been shallow in his ways, for the moment the obsidian tom seemed quite formidable in his presence. "No. I never do anything right. I don't want to continue training with you two. I want to be left alone. Say what you will, do what you will to me. I will always fail," Swallowpaw meowed to them, his voice hot and burning with anger. The tom felt very coddled by the pair of warriors and had already messed up in front of the pair and dashed the respect they might have had for him.
A cat who put on a façade of being extremely self-centered and lazy was actually a tom who feared failure like the plague. Simply because he feared he would end up like his sister had become -- ridiculed and cast off because of her oddities and shortcomings. Swallowpaw had fought so hard to not fall into her ways.
And even if I could it'd all be grey [/b][/size]
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Post by Deleted on Dec 29, 2012 23:13:03 GMT -5
A deep, heavy sigh escaped Thunderclaw, and he rose once more from his hunting crouch. This time, he sat, his light brown eyes watching the young black apprentice. He was so bloody insecure. It was something that had crossed his mind before, but not something that he'd lingered on. He hadn't assumed ill of Swallowpaw, but the sheer volume of the younger cat's self-doubt was almost remarkable. He'd been vaguely aware of whispers from the nursery, blames and accusations... but he'd never thought anything of it. It had been a shame when Lightwind had passed, but he'd never known her very well. It crossed his mind now that it might have something to do with Swallowpaw's behavior.
'I never do anything right!' Of course he felt that way. He was a "problem" cat, or so spoke the gossip of the clan. He was constantly reprimanded, constantly told that he was doing things wrong. As Thunderclaw had previously noted, Swallowpaw did not respond well to being snapped at.
Oh, he'd felt that brief moment of connection between himself and the black apprentice. It had been a moment of small triumph, but, alas, it would not last. Nonetheless, it left him with a bit of insight into how it was best to help him. He didn't like feeling patronized, but needed gentle prodding. Encouraged, Thunderclaw lifted his feathery gray tail and opened his maw to speak.
"Swallowpaw, we're not going to do anything to you," he lifted his eyes skyward and back. "And yes, you do do things very well." The young warrior motioned to himself as he said, "I couldn't do a hunting crouch even half as well as you just did for at least several weeks of training, and that was your first try!" He nodded towards Stormchaser amusement creeping into his voice, "I'm sure you remember how much I baffled my mentor; he simply could not understand why I was so, profoundly bad at it!"
His whiskers twitching, he tried to lighten the mood, careful to keep desperation out of his voice, "You are more than capable of success, Swallowpaw. If you work hard, you'll easily be one of TreeClan's greatest warriors!" Sobering a bit, he affirmed, "There's a load of failing to be done between then and now, but no one expects you not to fail."
Thunderclaw prayed to StarClan that his word's would not fall on deaf ears, and that he could communicate what he was attempting to to this poor, diffident cat. Character; Thunderclaw Word count; 450 Notes; xD
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Post by Hellion on Jan 1, 2013 4:36:49 GMT -5
It was admirable what Thunderclaw was attempting to do for Swallowpaw, show that everyone made mistakes, but in truth Stormchaser wanted to express to the apprentice that everyone failed, but he somehow felt there was something else hidden in his apprentice behavior.
Flicking his blue-gray tail he stepped back a little and nodded for Thunderclaw to do the same. "Swallowpaw, if you are afraid to fail that's okay. Everyone is afraid of something, believe it or not I'm afraid of foxes, but that might seem to be a rational fear right? Well you Swallowpaw, I'm more terrified of young foxes, I was attacked by one when I was a little older than you and because of my foolishness my mentor died. Being afraid isn't something to be ashamed off it's what makes you normal."
Stormchaser paused for a moment, wishing he had his first mentor's guidance but with sorrow filled eyes he kept going. "We can call this training session finished, you did fairly well for your first try, why don't we head home?" Stormchaser felt the coldness of the air and the tension of feelings coming from his apprentice that there wasn't any real reason to stay out any longer. Giving a nod of his head he took a few leading steps back toward camp, but waited for the others.
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