|
Post by Deleted on Sept 14, 2012 22:51:49 GMT -5
[atrb=width,430,true][atrb=border,0,true][bg=332233]
| [bg=667744] "That was great," the tom meowed, purring. "You'll be a regular warrior in no time!" Littlepaw was a naturally quick learner, Leafscar observed. Even though it was clear that there would be many moons ahead of them to train, Leafscar was looking forward to them.
"And since you've mastered the hunting crouch, why don't we work a little more on hunting?" the tom suggested. "I want you to check the scents again and try to stalk something. If you can, catch it." Although it was a bit challenging since the she-cat was just beginning, the warrior thought it would be a good experience for her to try out. One could only learn by doing, in his opinion, and the best way for Littlepaw to find her mistakes would be through repetition.
He stood by quietly, wanting the apprentice to do her best on her own. He would insert any comments if he thought she needed help, but for the most part Leafscar wanted to test how far she could go on her own. It truly would be a feat, or a stroke of luck, if the apprentice made a good catch on her first try.
|
|
|
We are born with a DNA blueprint into a world of scenario and circumstance we don't control |
| |
|
Co-Captain
INVENTORY
|
Post by Phoenix on Sept 14, 2012 23:11:38 GMT -5
Littlepaw couldn't help but beam at Leafscar's praise, offering a quiet, "Thanks in response. She was happy with herself, even if her muscles were not. Excitement at learning the hunting crouch drove her now, replacing the eagerness with which she had originally been infected. If she could do this, then surely she could tackle anything that training threw at her. Well, Littlepaw corrected herself, Almost anything. Fighting has never been enjoyable for me. But she wasn't working on fighting now; she was working on hunting now, and she did not want to become too distracted by her thoughts to miss Leafscar's words.
She almost missed the next part, and Littlepaw would have been sorely disappointed if she had. "That sounds good," The apprentice agreed, voice light as always. Leafscar was her mentor; she wasn't about to disagree with him. Taking a deep breath, Littlepaw drew in the scents around her. The forest smelled like... a forest, she realized, for lack of a better description. Scents were blended together, but it smelled like life. It was full of life, yet at the same time, Littlepaw figured out how to distinguish one scent from another, even if she couldn't identify them yet. Now recognizing its smell almost instantly, she picked out another mouse. It was fairly close.
Casting a glance at Leafscar, she mewed softly, "Mouse", before refocussing her attention on her target. She crouched down, noting with amusement the familiarity of the position she had gained after a only a few tries. Mentally, she made sure that it was as correct as she could get it, before moving forward toward the mouse. Avoiding the leaves, Littlepaw stalked as quietly as she could, proud that she had remembered to avoid stepping on the leaves. She could see it now, sniffing around, oblivious. Excitement raced through her blood and she leapt forward, paws crinkling leaves and her steps heavy.
The mouse glanced up at her and was gone in an instant, disapearing beyond view around a tree. Thundering to a halt, Littlepaw lashed her tail in frustration. She had been so close! So close to catching that mouse! And then she had to mess everything up. It was understandable, she reasoned with herself, soothing her annoyance. She'd been excited; no doubt it happened to everyone. With a sheepish smile on her face, Littlepaw bounded back to Leafscar.
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Sept 15, 2012 23:54:12 GMT -5
[atrb=width,430,true][atrb=border,0,true][bg=332233]
| [bg=667744] The tom watched as Littlepaw went after her target. She moved well, keeping true to the crouch he had showed her, and he was beginning to be confident enough to think she might succeed. Leafscar's eyes fixed on his apprentice, and it looked as if she were going to to catch the mouse.
But she moved too soon.
The apprentice landed short, a whisker-length away from the creature, and it quickly darted out of sight. Leafscar wasn't too worried about it though, and commented, "You did quite well for your first try." His voice was warm, and he gave her a reassuring lick on the shoulder. "I'm sure you'll get it next time. Just remember to step lightly."
The warrior paused for a moment, looking thoughtful. "Why don't we try another kind of prey? Do you know the differences between squirrels and shrews?" Leafscar questioned. The two were similar-looking, though their traits were completely different. It seemed like a good exercise to expose Littlepaw to as many of the options for hunting as she could.
|
|
|
We are born with a DNA blueprint into a world of scenario and circumstance we don't control |
| |
|
Co-Captain
INVENTORY
|
Post by Phoenix on Sept 18, 2012 5:39:08 GMT -5
Upon reaching his side, Littlepaw was given a lick on the shoulder, and a burst of fondness for her mentor spread through her. Her tail flicked and the small, sheepish smile on her face turned warmer. The she-cat nodded slightly to Leafscar in response to his words, both the reminder and the compliment on her first hunt. "Thanks," She meowed quietlly, "I'll keep that in mind for next time." In her opinion, Littlepaw had stepped lightly quite nicely, and that had not been her problem. She thought that she had gotten overexcited, so her pounce was early and rushed. But who was she to argue with Leafscar? He had more experientce than her in everything.
However, when her mentor suggested moving on to a different kind of prey, she was more than willing, agreeing with a small, "Ok, that sounds good!" Littlepaw's ear flicked as Leafscar continued, providing the names with two different kinds of prey. Her mind started racing. Squirrels were more familiar to her than shrews; she had a sense of what a squirrel was like, since there had always been a few in the prey pile. Shrews on the other hand, had been less common, though perhaps she had seen one but did not realize that it was a shrew? It was a possibility, but it did not help the fact that she just did not know. She could not recall anything she had been told on shrews.
Deciding to start with what she had so far, Littlepaw offered, "Well, a squirrel has a bushy tail. And I think Spottedheart mentioned that they climb trees sometimes too, right? Um.. They taste pretty good too." Her tail flicked as she paused, leaving a distinct silence. A moment later, she broke it, continuing, "And shrews... I don't remember anything about shrews."
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Sept 25, 2012 20:36:27 GMT -5
[atrb=width,430,true][atrb=border,0,true][bg=332233]
| [bg=667744]Leafscar nodded, and began his explanation, "Shrews are smaller and have a less bushy tail, like mice they usually live on the ground." The creatures did not have a lot of meat to offer, since they were usually rather meager pickings, but they were the prey TreeClan was given by StarClan and the warrior wouldn't argue.
They were a Clan with so much variety; shrews, squirrels, mice, and other rodents and birds. The warrior had much to teach Littlepaw, but he didn't want to overwhelm her all at once. "You should hunt a shrew much like a mouse; carefully, with light steps," he meowed. "Of course, you've already mastered that art." Littlepaw would learn that Leafscar had a lot of praise to share, even over the littlest of things.
"Any other prey you have knowledge about besides squirrels?"
|
|
|
We are born with a DNA blueprint into a world of scenario and circumstance we don't control |
| |
|
Co-Captain
INVENTORY
|
Post by Phoenix on Sept 27, 2012 5:48:12 GMT -5
Nodding slowly, Littlepaw digested this new information, storing it in the back of her head. Shrews were like mice, only smaller. They were small mice which required stepping lightly. She had probably seen them before on the prey pile, only she had thought they were little mice. Shrews..
At his compliment, a warm feeling spread through the small apprentice, and she smiled. He thought that she had mastered the art of moving lightly! Littlepaw's eyes flicked away from his and she told her quiet "Thanks" to her paws, which kicked at a rock. Her tail flicked and part of her mind wished that all of these compliments would stop. Littlepaw's mother had doted on her enough during her time in the nursery; she had received enough praise to last her a life-time. The other part felt guilty for wanting to ask that of Leafscar, when he obviously loved to compliment others.
His next question took her mind off of such, troubles, however. Looking back up in order to stare off into space, Littlepaw hesitantly answered, "Well, there are birds. They fly, so they must be trickier to catch; you'd probably have to jump since they're so high up in the trees." Her eyes flicked toward the leaves. However, she had limited knowledge of birds and could not name any specific species. To her, they were just birds. Just prey with wings. "And I've seen those fat ones, too. Sort of like mice, but with more meat. Are they... voles? They look like mice, so do you walk lightly for them, too?" Honestly, Littlepaw was not quite sure where that name had come from, but it sounded right. Perhaps she'd overheard some warriors discussing the prey? "There's also..." A long pause followed as her voice trailed off and she searched her memory for any more details. "Well, I don't know actually. Rabbits, maybe?"
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Sept 29, 2012 21:32:08 GMT -5
[atrb=width,430,true][atrb=border,0,true][bg=332233]
| [bg=667744]The warrior nodded as Littlepaw listed the prey. "Voles are a bit different than mice. Besides being bigger, they also have a good sense of smell, so you'll want to stay downwind," Leafscar meowed. "Also, a very forgiving catch. They're slower than mice, so if you mess up you could still probably get it."
The tom purred, remembering his own hunting experiences with his siblings. The trio had always been close, and shared so many experiences with one another, and now he was passing it all along to this young cat. "Birds you'll have to catch off guard when they go to the ground for food. Rabbits are fast, and usually the prey of LightningClan," he explained, "they're rarely caught in the woods, but some of the best hunters have no problem with them."
Leafscar purred in amusement. "Perhaps one day you'll be one of those hunters?"
|
|
|
We are born with a DNA blueprint into a world of scenario and circumstance we don't control |
| |
|
Co-Captain
INVENTORY
|
Post by Phoenix on Sept 29, 2012 22:24:48 GMT -5
Littlepaw flicked an ear at his comment about voles. Staying downwind made sense, but wouldn't a hunter want to do that anyway? While Leafscar continued, she debated asking him. What if he did not like her questioning him? She could think of some cats who would not appreciate it, viewing it as an offense and a personal attack on their intelligence. Of course, the apprentice would not mean it in that way, but those cats did not seem to care. In the short time she had known him, Littlepaw had gotten a feeling for her mentor's character. She liked him, for sure, and had no doubt that he would be a good mentor. She did not think he was one of those cats who discouraged questions, but she had not known him long enough to really know. Cats could be strange, sometimes, and she had no desire to ruin this tentative friendship that had started. Littlepaw decided to stay on the safe side. No, she would not ask.
Leafscar purred now, as he elaborated on the different kinds of prey. She had completely forgotten about rabbits, as they were not so common, though of course, neither were birds. It probably took a skilled warrior to catch both. The tom in front of her could probably do it. A small smile touched the corners of Littlepaw's lips. Leafscar definitely had a lot to teach her.
And he thinks that I might be able to as well? Her tail flicked anxiously. On the contrary, Littlepaw did not believe that she would be an amazing hunter or an amazing fighter. She did not have a thirst for competition, and she felt bad at the thought of killing, even prey. But at the same time, the she-cat did not want to let Leafscar down and disappoint him. Looking up at her mentor, she gave him a small smile and a non-commital, "Maybe." Her tail flicked. "What else can you show me?"
OOC: LightningClan, you mean?
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Oct 4, 2012 17:44:26 GMT -5
[atrb=width,430,true][atrb=border,0,true][bg=332233]
| [bg=667744] (ooc: fixed it! ah, sometimes the Clan-name-changes are too much! I'll get back into gear eventually)
Leafscar paused for a moment, trying to think what else would be good to show Littlepaw. He would have liked for her to practice what he had demonstrated some more, but since she was asking he would move on. "You know that in order to be good at any skill, you have to adapt to the situation." The tom gestured to the surrounding area with his tail.
"What do you see around us? What do you smell?" The tom questioned. Once Littlepaw had replied, he would add on another question, "And how do you use this to your advantage?" It required a little bit more thought and reasoning to figure out, but Leafscar hoped Littlepaw, who seemed both eager and bright, was ready to keep learning.
|
|
|