[Fawn]

The days following Goldenpaw's first trip into StoneClan territory involved more sightseeing, and Honeynose brought Goldenpaw on hunting patrol as often as she could, wanting him to watch the experts in action before he gave it a try. I needed the refresher too, she admitted, grateful for having witnessed firsthand how skillful Herondive was at catching birds - practically out of the sky, even - or how dilligent Waspwing was when it came to zeroing in on prey.

It was one thing to tell stories back at camp; it was another thing entirely to actually see a warrior being a warrior.

But the day had come where Goldenpaw needed to do more than just observe or practice his hunting crouch.

"Everyone tells me they've had the best luck in the Little Woods," Honeynose was saying as she walked, fur fluffing against winter's bite. "Not all the birds leave when leafbare strikes. Can you think of any birds you've seen lately?" Honeynose's tail weaved patient half-circles behind her, more than content to let him think on his answer.

The Little Woods looked even littler than normal, with their dim gray bark and their naked boughs. But that made it easier to catch a few flitting shadows near their snow-dusted roots; a gray cloud of dark-eyed juncos were pecking at the bark, nearly invisible against the matching gray tree trunks. Honeynose's eyes lit up, sensing an opportunity. If they could be quiet, if they could be sneaky, Goldenpaw may get his chance to catch something.

Leafbare was a hard season to learn how to hunt. He might mess up a lot, conceded the tabby and white she-cat, hopefully this won't discourage him. She had to keep her expectations realistic - and hopefully Goldenpaw could do the same. As much as she wanted him to go back to camp, his mouth full of prey, Honeynose trailing behind him beaming with pride... It was pretty unlikely.

Even the most experienced warriors struggled in a season like this.

The snow had broken the day before, though, and if they were ever going to get something done, now was the time.

Warrior || 39 Moons || StoneClan

Honeynose

Aqua || Made by Fawn || 352 Words

Leafbare 25 Mostly sunny but still hard to traverse without getting your breath taken away by the wind.

[Aqua]

An orange and white tabby tom trekked across the snow covered terrain of Stoneclan, the cool breeze whipping his fur about. One thing was for sure, leafbare sucked. While the young tom was equipped with longer fur for weather like this, he still couldn't cope with the cold. Especially when the wind would pick up and nip at his skin, chilling him to the bone. Brr. He couldn't wait for this season to move on and greenleaf to return to the land.

Reluctantly the tom moved on, quite sure that his mentor wouldn't appreciate it if he turned back and returned to the warmth of the apprentice's den. He still had plenty of training to get finished up so he understood why she was dragging him out into this weather. But at the same time he still dreaded the fact they had to train out here. The only thing truly motivating him on this particular day was the temptation of food. If he managed to catch something, it would mean he'd have food to fill his belly later. That alone was enough to keep going.

The sudden question posed by his mentor made his ears perk. Birds? Birds.....he was still learning the names of the various birds they could catch so it took a moment for him to think. "O-oh. Those real bright, red colored ones.....um. Cardinals? Right? I think there's some finches and sparrows that stick around too....right?" He mumbled out loud, doubting that he was correct.

The tom noticed a change of scenery as they approached the Little Woods. It was about time to quiet down in the hopes that something was here foraging for food. There had to at least be a bird or two trying to get a meal, even in this cold weather. Sure enough, he spotted movement out of the corner of his eye. A small group of birds were huddled near the base of one of the trees, pecking around in the snow for food. Perfect. This would give him the opportunity to try and show off to Honeynose....unless she chose to try to take them first.

Not seeing movement from the older cat, Goldenpaw immediately crouched down. He kept low enough to not be seen right away but kept his belly from dragging in the ice cold snow under paw. Slowly and carefully the tom inched forward, trying to stay out of the line of sight the best he could. This wasn't the best place to attempt to hide, however, so he would had to manage his movements to the best of his ability. Slinking closer and closer, Goldenpaw remained undetected for the moment. The birds still going about their foraging, unaware of the approaching danger.

Once he was a bound away from the group, Goldenpaw froze and leaned back on his haunches. If he was lucky he would be able to take down a bird without it taking flight. If not, however, he would have to attempt to lunge at them while in mid-air. And while that would be impressive to pull off, he wasn't sure his extra belly would cooperate much. Putting that thought aside, the tom sprung forward, aiming for the bird closest to him. The birds all chirped in alarmed as they all took flight. The bird he was aiming for clearly panicked as the large tom hovered towards it. Goldenpaw extended his claws and took a swipe. The bird managed to avoid the attack, flying upwards. Goldenpaw made an attempt to leap up and strike at it again but failed miserably. His belly proving an issue with trying to go airborne. The tom grumbled under his breath. Great. Just great.

Made by Aqua || Tagged: Fawn || Words: #613

[Fawn]

Honeynose winced, both at Goldenpaw's uncouth language and the heavy landing the kitten made after his first failed attempt. "It's alright! You'll get better, I promise. You were right about cardinals earlier," Honeynose purred, trying to mitigate some of the disappointment with praise, her tail tapping his flank reassuringly. "You were very good sneaking up on these juncos, I think your distance was a little off. You're also very bright on a day like today."

With Goldenpaw's rich ginger coat, the birds were bound to notice him even faster from the stark contrast with the snow. "Maybe use the shadows of the trees to help conceal you? And try to aim for birds that are on the very edges of the flocks." Honeynose wasn't sure how helpful her advice actually was. Her forte was tracking, and she was positive she could identify and follow a scent trail anywhere in StoneClan territory - even in harsh weather such as this.

The tabby and white warrior cocked her head to the side, trying to puzzle out their next step. They'd get cold trying to lie low, waiting for a new flock to land close by. That was just another unpleasant part of hunting in leafbare, though. So many cats came home empty-pawed from the cold more than the scarceness of prey. Honeynose cast a wary eye into the naked trees, half expecting to see a hawk or eagle trying to roost in the bare branches.

The raptors would get hungry too.

"Let's try to find a cache of nuts and seeds," Honeynose eagerly padded closer to one of the thicker trees, scanning the trunk for any notches or holes that might suggest a food cache - or a burrow. "Squirrels sometimes leave their nests for food, and if we catch it at just the right time, we can have something to bring back to the Clan."

What did he think of that plan? Honeynose's smile grew thoughtful. "I know it doesn't sound very exciting. If you spot any more birds though, let me know. We'll try to catch one together." Maybe Goldenpaw would enjoy the tag-team tactics?

Warrior || 39 Moons || StoneClan

Honeynose

Aqua || Made by Fawn || 353 Words

[Aqua]

"I sure hope so..." The young tom meowed, holding his head low for a moment. If he didn't have the extra pounds, he might have caught that bird. But at the same time, the tom sure did love to eat. So it was a lose-lose situation in this case. What could a cat do though? He wasn't giving up eating as much as he already does so that's not an option. Maybe he should be out moving more or something. He didn't know. But despite his obvious disadvantage, he planned to keep trying and trying until he caught something. Anything.

"Yeeeeah. I don't exactly blend in with anything." He agreed, glancing back at his white and orange coat. Heck, he wouldn't even fully blend in with the snow let alone anything else. The fiery orange on his pelt made extra sure of that. Which only meant that the tom would have to find clever ways of approaching his prey so that he wouldn't be spotted. Simple enough....or so he hoped anyway. Since this would be among the many duties he'd have to carry out to contribute to the clan.

Goldenpaw's ears perked as he listened to Honeynose's advice. He had stayed mostly to the shadows in this attempt but he knew he hadn't made it a priority so he likely stepped out into the light. That could have caught the attention of any one of those little birds. So he understood why she suggested it. Then she also suggested going for the birds on the edges of the flock, which he actually had done in this case. He knew that going for the bird closest to his reach was the best course of action against a large group. Because that meant the bird would just be easier to swipe at without others all around it blocking the way.

"Let's try to find a cache of nuts and seeds"

At first Goldenpaw was confused by his mentor's suggestion, until she brought up squirrels. He had never considered trying to find their food in order to catch them. It was actually quite a smart idea on her part. "How exactly do we find any nuts or food they'll come for though? Does it smell a particular way or something?" He asked wondering how they would remotely find anything. Or maybe he was choosing the wrong approach here? Maybe following footprints or the scent of the squirrel itself would lead them there. That made more sense....

Made by Aqua || Tagged: Fawn || Words: #413
Sorry for the delayed response.

[Fawn]

"Have you ever seen squirrel tracks before?" Honeynose waved over the ginnger and white apprentice with her tail, stepping softly through the snow. "Nobody likes wandering around for food, especially when there are hawks'n'stuff also looking for food. See if you can find any squirrel tracks, they might lead us to a cache!"

In case Goldenpaw paid little attention to the tracks animals left behind, Honeynose gently explained the different kinds. "Birds have pretty simple tracks, they look like three sticks. Two short ones that stick out like a cat's whiskers, and one stick in the middle. Rabbit tracks look kinda like a kit's or an apprentice's paw tracks - just imagine a cat with really big, long back feet."

Her confidence grew as she talked, digging deep into her own knowledge banks to share information she was actually well-versed in. Battle training would never be her forte, but tracking and scentwork were things that filled her with a sense of accomplishment. That sensation of I can do this! was hard to find elsewhere.

"Squirrel prints," Honeynose continued, her pace slowing as they neared a skinny tree - and then she froze, the object of their quarry two foxlengths away. Honeynose crouched down, gesturing frantically with the tip of her tail (carried low so as not to alert the squirrel) for Goldenpaw to do the same. She felt breathless and a little startled. I hadn't expected it to be right there, I wasn't done explaining!

But nature wasn't going to wait for her to finish her lessons. Goldenpaw was going to have to learn from observation.

The squirrel went still.

Honeynose held her breath, hoping the shadow of the tree they were standing under would provide adequate cover. "Do you want to take it down together?" Honeynose whispered, not tearing her eyes away from the squirrel lingering near the thick roots of another birch.

Warrior || 39 Moons || StoneClan

Honeynose

Aqua || Made by Fawn || 312 Words

[Aqua]

The tom padded up to his mentor's side, the snow softly crunching under his paws. "I'm sure that I have but I don't pay close enough attention to distinguish what's a squirrel versus other tracks." He admitted, listening to her comment about hawks and other predatory critters that would be on the hunt as well. He nods understandably, knowing he wasn't the only one who liked to eat out in these woods. He would have to consider this when out on hunts in the future since there was always the potential of running into another creature at any time.

Honeynose pulls the toms attention back to her as she describes the different kind of tracks he might come across. He looks around on the ground, his ears swiveled to still listen intently to his mentor as he looks around. He quickly comes across the prints of the birds he had just attempted to go for. Each foot strangely shaped into a whisker like look. He then steps forward towards a different sent of prints. He tilts his head trying to compare it to Honeynose's "notes." These prints were seemingly different from any of her descriptions. So his best guess was that these were from a squirrel. He slowly begins weaving and following them before Honeynose suddenly crouches. The tom stops dead in his tracks, seeing his mentor's sudden change in demeanor. Had she spotted something?

He quickly crouches down under the shadows of the trees. It only takes a couple seconds for him to catch sight of the squirrel Honeynose had discovered. That was quick. It hadn't even let them continue with the lesson before it showed up. So now he would have to figure out how to take on the little critter on his own. Because any talking would likely alert it.

"Do you want to take it down together?"

Goldenpaw didn't take his gaze away from the squirrel as his mentor whispered low to him about taking it together. He merely nods, trying to keep close to the tree to avoid the squirrel seeing his fiery coat. This would be interesting since the squirrel did not have wings to just fly away from them. A chase would likely ensue....so Goldenpaw could only hope he'd be able to keep up.

Made by Aqua || Tagged: # || Words: #381