[Taxx]

Shadepaw

Apprentice of LightningClan

I don't Really care if nobody else believes

Shadepaw stepped from the tunnel leading out into the territory and suppressed a shiver at the cold that greeted her- she didn't want Mudpelt to think she was that easily chilled, it was just the difference in temperature from the den-tunnels to the open flatland of the territory. Pausing, she turned her head back, her ears swiveling to the last steps Mudpelt was taking, his paws crunching the frost-covered grass telling her where the tom was.

Flicking her tail, the apprentice moved closer to her mentor, pausing as her whiskers brushed his shoulder fur. "What are we doing first, Mudpelt?" she asked, making no attempt to look at him- it wasn't like she could see him, so why bother? This was her first time out and she was looking forward to it- no longer was she confined to the camp. She was going to make the most of this trip, this very first excursion into the territory beyond the camp. Her tail increased the tempo of its movement, and her front paws began to paw at the ground, waiting, even if impatiently, for the older tom to decide their course.

'Cause I've still got a lot of fight left in me

Fawn ## Notes

[Fawn]

43 Moons. Tom.

Shadepaw's blindness presented an interesting, if not unique set of challenges for both the mentor and the student. Mudpelt privately rued Firestar's decision not to let inform him beforehand that he would be in charge of Shadepaw's tutelage; to leave it to the last possible second (as in, during the apprentice ceremony) felt irresponsible. However, that was all water under the grass now.

"First, we are going to make sure you have a solid grasp of the territory. I aim to be forthright with you at all times, Shadepaw, so I will tell you honestly that your blindness is going to make navigating difficult, especially as the weather changes. But," the somber brown warrior fixed deep yellow eyes onto the kitten. "You don't give me the impression of being a cat who gives up easily."

Feeling her whiskers brush against his shoulder, Mudpelt touched the end of his tail to her flank, serving as a lifeline should she need it. Mudpelt was mindful of his pace, and of any upsets she might encounter from this new and strange terrain. The fire had ravaged plenty of LightningClan's territory, but it was starting to grow back. And that meant skirting gorse bushes, with their prickly branches, and taking care not to step into any rabbit holes.

"We are going to the trampled clearing. It is where many apprentices have battle training - though today we are just taking stock of our surroundings." Mudpelt's words were dry and studious. He'd been accused of being boring by both of his brothers on many occasions, but that did not alter Mudpelt's teaching methods in the slightest. He may have been boring, but he was very thorough. He would do or say whatever he felt was necessary to a full, well-rounded warrior's education.

He and Shadepaw would be paired together for many seasons. As they got used to one another, he may learn to relax his professional demeanor, but for now - Mudpelt was an unending well of knowledge and proper structure.

Taxx

[Taxx]

Shadepaw

Apprentice of LightningClan

I don't Really care if nobody else believes

That made sense, sure. Knowing the territory was generally the first thing every apprentice needed to know, and it pleased her that Mudpelt was teaching her the same thing. “Sounds great!” she purred, and the movement of his fur across her whiskers told her he was moving. Shadepaw followed, keeping close to the older tom, ears pricked for the sound of his paws on the crisp grass.

“What do you mean by ‘taking stock of our surroundings?’” she piped up a moment later, her steps faltering just a bit as she breathed in and the smell of rabbit flooded her nose. Her mouth watered, ears swiveling to see if she could hear the creature or if they were just in the vicinity of rabbit burrows. “I am going to learn how to hunt and fight, right? I promise I can learn, I’ll be the best apprentice LightningClan’s ever had!”

'Cause I've still got a lot of fight left in me

Fawn ## Notes

[Fawn]

43 Moons. Tom.

Mudpelt held up his tail to signal for silence - then readjusted this tactic so as to lay his tail over her muzzle instead - but the hare had already been spooked. He heard the drum-beats of its frantic getaway, and let any thoughts of catching it blow away with the wind. The stocky tom lowered his tail, and there was no trace of anger or disappointment in his voice. It was true, LightningClan needed every piece of freshkill they could find. This was not a hunting excursion, however.

It wouldn't be wise to split his focus between training and tracking, especially not on their first day into the territory. "What I mean by that, is familiarizing you with our territory. It doesn't matter if you're blind, you should one day be able to enter an area and know where you are, based on the sounds, scents and sensations around you." He acknowledged her enthusiasm with a steady gaze. "Yes, you will learn how to hunt and fight. Battle training will be towards the end of your apprenticeship. For now, let's focus on taking stock."

Mudpelt would have a few words with his brothers, and the more senior warriors in the den. Surely they would know of a solid method for teaching battle moves to an apprentice who could not see his demonstrations. She would never be a fully-fledged fighter like the average apprentice, even if she had her father's skill, but Mudpelt wanted to ensure she could defend herself.

"This way," said Mudpelt, directing her with his voice into a place where the tall grasses had been flattened by many many moons of tussling. It was cooler here, as well. The surrounding grasses blocked some of the light from touching the trampled stalks. "This is the trampled clearing. Tell me everything you can about it. What you feel. What you smell. What you hear."

Taxx

[Taxx]

Shadepaw

Apprentice of LightningClan

I don't Really care if nobody else believes

The brush of fur against her muzzle startled Shadepaw and she blinked, pulling back a bit; at the same time, she heard the more rapid thump of the rabbit’s feet against the ground, growing dimmer as it darted away. Her tail drooped, realizing that she must had startled it. Not the best way to begin her tour, by scaring away much needed prey, and she vowed to be quieter.

Mudpelt said nothing in regards to her alerting the rabbit and allowing it to get away, for which she was grateful, and she swiveled her ears toward him as he spoke, listening as he explained. It made sense, and Shadepaw did heavily rely on her other senses to guide her, and she understood that he meant for her to use those instinctively, to be more attuned to the territory around her. Pleased by his intent to teach her how to fight- no matter the wait she faced- Shadepaw continued to follow along in Mudpelt’s pawsteps.

His footfalls paused, and Shadepaw’s did also, her ears up and nose working to detect scents. She nodded as he asked her to tell him what she sensed, and the young apprentice stepped forward, her paws brushing over the ground to get an idea of what lay beneath her. “It’s grassy here,” she began, feeling the stalks under her paws, slightly springy to offer a layer of cushion. “But it’s all been squashed flat. And it’s cooler, in some places, like the sun is blocked so it can’t warm the ground. I still smell rabbit.”

Her ears twisted, trying to pick up sounds other than the wind through grass, and they twitched at the call of a bird. “Bird! But I don’t know which one. What is it, Mudpelt?”

'Cause I've still got a lot of fight left in me

Fawn ## Notes

[Fawn]

43 Moons. Tom.

"It's a grackle," he replied after a moment of listening. Mudpelt frowned. Giving her a description was not the answer. How was she going to distinguish the different birds? As if in reply to this question, the grackle he spoke of let out another one of it's distinctive cries.
"Birds make different noises depending on the situation. But I suppose every bird has a signature call. Listen carefully. The grackle sounds like..."

The stocky tom shifted his weight from one paw to the other, feeling incredibly absurd mimicking bird calls. It was a relief Gustclaw or Blazefang were not here to hear it - though he would have gladly squawked and quacked like a duck if it would give Blazefang his mobility back. Mustering the strength to focus on his task and not how silly he was going to sound, Mudpelt mimicked the grackle to the best of his abilities.

"Readle-eak, with a few high-pitched whistles after. I can't replicate them, I'm sorry." He hadn't the faintest idea how to whistle; most (if not all) cats likely couldn't. They did not have beaks. "There are many different bird calls to memorize. I'll do my best to help you identify each one. When we get closer to the open woods, expect to hear a plethora."

Mudpelt took stock of the trampled clearing, remembering the feeling of familiar spongy grass under paw as he squared off against Redstar - later, Redwind, after she stepped down from leadership to raise a family of her own.
"I want us to stay here for a little bit. It's easy to forget where one's been if we're always moving around. Feel free to investigate this part of our territory." He would watch from afar and make sure no harm would come to her.

Taxx , 294 Words

[Taxx]

Shadepaw

Apprentice of LightningClan

I don't Really care if nobody else believes

Grackle. Shadepaw stored that information away for whatever use she might have for it later, her attention still fixed on Mudpelt as he proceeded to mimic the bird’s call. She couldn’t help an amused ruffle of her whiskers, but she held her tongue, refraining from either asking him to repeat it or mentioning his skill in bird chirps.

“I’ll remember that that’s what they sound like,” she replied, giving a nod as he told her to expect more calls from other birds. "Will you be attempting to mimic more calls for me?" she asked, with just a hint of cheek as she swished her tail.

Freed to explore now, Shadepaw lifted her nose to sniff, seeking any sort of interesting scent and assailed again by rabbit. That one seemed to be everywhere. Could she get lucky and find a burrow? It would be dark, but that was no problem for her. "I'll stay in hearing distance," she told the tom, and then slipped off into the grass, tail up and flicking as she used her ears and nose to tell her all she needed to know about what was around her.

'Cause I've still got a lot of fight left in me

Fawn ## Notes