Flamepaw's Assessment

"Flamepaw, time to get up. Let's... get moving before it gets too late." Thrushstar's harsh whisper managed only to reach the ears of the apprentice he was talking to as he tucked his head into the apprentice's den. It was time for his assessment, and the leader was rather excited to see how Flamepaw would do.

Flamepaw's stomach knotted with a nervous anticipation. He was lass than thrilled to learn that the leader would be the one giving his assessment. Not only was that a lot of pressure on him skill wise, but he was still a little uneasy around the Shadowclan leader. Every time Thrushstar was around, it reminded him of their confrontation before. While he had always felt the judgement of the clan, never before had it been so direct and never had Flamepaw lost it. He hauled himself up on his feet and headed hesitantly out of the den.
"Yes, Thrushstar," He meowed quietly.

As the apprentice walked out, Thrushstar watched him casually, waiting for him to get close so that they could go. As he approached, the leader got up and moved toward the entrance of the camp until they were out in the territory. "Are you ready?" he asked, trying to make some kind of conversation. Flamepaw hadn't been his apprentice so this was going to be a little strange trying to give an assessment to someone he didn't know too much about skills wise.

"I believe so," He nodded simply. Then to himself, I've certainly been training long enough... For moons he had watch cats younger than him become warriors. Flamepaw was excited that he'd finally be getting the opportunity to be assessed. Hazeflight had trained him up pretty well, starting from when she had shown him some moves as a kit. If nothing else, his goal today was to make his mentor proud, regardless of what Thrushstar thought.

"Good." Standing up straight, the leader glanced around in the cold, crisp leaf-bare air. As he looked, the sun sat just above the horizon, its rays gleaming across the sky in an array of colors creating almost a rainbow as it drifted into the darkness of the night. "Here are the rules of this assessment," he said calmly. "You... have until the sun rises to catch as much prey as possible. You will do... this alone, but I will be watching from a distance in case something goes... wrong. When the sun rises, I will inspect... your performance and determine whether you pass or fail. You may begin when you are ready." Sitting down, the cold tingled up his spine but he chose to ignore it as he waited for Flamepaw to rush in one direction or another. This was the apprentice's chance to shine, and Thrushstar expected everything out of him, if not more.

"Yes, Thrushstar," He said, determination beginning to shine in his eyes. Flamepaw would do his best to show the leader he was worth something. Within moments, he had slipped off into the undergrowth. Testing the air, the scent of a toad hit him. Personally toad wasn't his favorite, but it would do and anything counted. Out of the corner of his eye he saw movement. Immediately, the flame orange tom was in a hunting crouch. Pawstep by pawstep on the frozen ground he inched towards the toad. Once he was close enough, he leapt, claws extended.

The member 'rippedsky' has done the following action : Dices roll

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'Hunting Dice' : 6

He landed almost silently and dispatched the toad quickly. My first catch! Flamepaw picked it up proudly, happy that his assessment was off to a good start. The tom padded over to patch of marsh grasses and buried in the snow to come back for later. This was far from over. As he continued to stalk through the territory, he made sure to keep his claws in so they wouldn't scrape against the hardened earth. Usually, it wasn't much of a problem in the marshlands, but during leaf bare, he knew to make sure to be extra careful. As he set out, he raised his nose back up in the air, trying to catch another scent. The toad had been a decent catch, but he wanted to get something more for clan. And something bigger to impress the leader.

The member 'rippedsky' has done the following action : Dices roll

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'Hunting Dice' : 1

As Flamepaw got started, Thrushstar waited patiently for the apprentice to get far enough away before he began to follow. He seemed excited enough, and that put a bit of happiness into the old leader's heart. When Flamepaw got started, he watched carefully from a distance, making sure that he was downwind and unseen. He was very interested to see the apprentice's skills and as he watched, a toad popped into view. Within seconds, Flamepaw was on top of it and carrying it off to bury it out of sight until later. With a nod of approval, Thrushstar was happy to see that the young tom's luck was starting out good. Hopefully it stayed that way for the rest of the night.

His flame orange pelt typically stood out among the dark mud of the marshes, but under a darkening sky, Flamepaw was able to stalk the marshes barely visible. At least his pelt would not be a disadvantage tonight. After a few moments without scenting anything, a slight noise caused his ears to twitch. He turned his head in the direction of the sound and lifted his nose into the air. Frog! Taking advantage of a practiced night sight, he used his keen eyes to detect the movement between the grasses. Like before, he took his time creeping up on the creature. Carefully, his paws carried him a close enough distance to the frog. Then, he leapt. His long powerful legs propelled him forward as he unsheathed his claws mid-air. In seconds, his sharpened claws ripped through the soft flesh of the frog and it too was down.
Two down, He sighed happily, satisfied with his luck so far. Again, he hid his catch to be picked up later on.

The member 'rippedsky' has done the following action : Dices roll

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#1 'Hunting Dice' : 4

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#2 'Hunting Dice' : 3

As the apprentice continued, Thrushstar was rather impressed. Already, Flamepaw had caught two pieces of prey after only finding the both of them. However, Thrushstar couldn't tell if it was because he had a great teacher or if it was pure natural talent... not that it mattered. The leader was glad to see him doing so well despite all that seemed to hold him back in the clan.

Occ: how many should I have him go to?

Flamepaw continued on, consistantly checking for more prey scents. Things had gone well so far, but he didn't want to have too much confidence and slack off. He wasn't done yet. Finally, he stumbled upon another toad. Like last time, he leapt, ready to take it out. But while he was in the air, his paw brushed up against some leaves which alerted the toad. Before he hit the ground. Mousedung, He swore internally. His claws kneaded the ground in frustration, but he continued on.

The member 'rippedsky' has done the following action : Dices roll

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#1 'Hunting Dice' : 8

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#2 'Hunting Dice' : 4