|:| Set it All Free |:| [closed for Rainyheart]

Finchpaw was startled into consciousness by an abrupt nudge, her bright yellow eyes flashing open to look around the den. Catching sight of Squirreltuft's tail disappearing through the entrance, the she-cat's words rung in her mind for a moment before she remembered. Oh yea, I'm an apprentice now! Her ceremony had commenced the day before, changing her name from Finchkit to Finchpaw. Her new name echoed in her mind as she bounced to her paws and followed her mentor out of the den.

Looking at eagerly at the pale brown she-cat, Finchpaw purred a friendly greeting. Taking a moment to lick a few clumps of displaced fur flat, the silver and white tabby asked excitedly "What are we going to do today Squirreltuft?"

"Right," the tabby began when Finchpaw bounded out, remembering herself as an apprenice despite herself. "Eat first. We're gonna, um…explore the forest. You probably know where most things are though—so we'll fish. The river is the most important part. I want you to get a head start from the other apprentices—you'll catch up to the older ones in no time."

By the time I'm done with her, she'll be the best warrior in the forest, Squirreltuft vowed, shoulders back. "And hurry with the eating," she added after a thought. "I'll be bored standing here. Got you up early for a reason."

Finchpaw nodded obediently, and padded over to the fresh-kill pile. The hunting patrols hadn't brought new prey in yet, so she chose a slightly stale water vole. Settling down to eat, she examined her new mentor carefully. She had never spoken with Squirreltuft before this, so this was the first impression in the making. So far, the she-cat seemed quite energetic and wild, but also strict and determined as well. She would be a good, but tough, mentor.

Finishing off her vole quickly, she jumped back to her paws and purred. "Okay, I'm ready when you are!" Yellow eyes shining with excitement, the small she-cat was almost bouncing on her white paws.

As her apprentice ate, the tabby warrior bounced on her paws, one then the other, one then the other, ears pricked as the sun slowly began to rise in the pink-streaked sky. Let's go!

She nodded easily when Finchpaw finished her vole, tossing her head toward the forest and taking off, her long fur seeming to rill out behind her, paws thrumming on familiar soft grounds. When Squirreltuft reached the river, the she-cat paused, glancing back to make sure her apprentice was close behind as she settled on the bank, shaking the wind off her shoulders from the run and crouching to lap some water.

Finchpaw took off after her mentor, her short legs pumping to try and keep up with the faster she-cat. With her petite stature and slightly poofy fur getting in the way, running was not Finchpaw's strong suit. Still she managed to keep up fairly well with Squirreltuft, skidding to a halt at the edge on the river next to her. Panting slightly, the silver tabby she-cat gazed down at the rushing waterway. Her reflection looked back at her from the clear shallows, and the young she-cat smiled. She had always loved water. Breaking her gaze away, she turned to her pale brown mentor and purred. "So, how do you start?"

"Right," she began, shaking out her pelt. Her voice lowered, her pose became tenser as she lowered her forearms, forest eyes narrowing into slits. "Watch," she murmured. Her paw slowly dipped into the flowing stream, tiny ripples forming around it.

Long heartbeats passed, and then some more. Birds began calling in the trees once more, believing the danger below had vanished. Squirreltuft made no move. She hardly blinked.

And then, all at once, a snap echoed through the still air and her head and other paw crashed underwater, her bottom and tail barely keeping her on land. But when the struggle was over, she turned toward Finchpaw with a gleaming silver carp hanging from her jaws. Two streams of striking red ran from its head. Though it was not exactly fat—Leafbare was difficult on all animals—it was prey, and pretty large at that.

Flicking her ear, the warrior set the fish down behind them, its eyes wide and staring into nothing. She swiped her tongue over her maw, glancing toward the smaller she-cat. As far as she knew, Finchpaw had never witnessed fishing before.

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

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'Hunting Dice' : 3

Finchpaw crouched down on the bank of the river alongside her mentor, carefully watching every little movement. Yellow eyes wide and inquisitive, the silver and white tabby studied her position, and how she lowered her paws into the stream. Taking in all this new information, she watched excitedly for a fish to appear.

It surprised the young she-cat how quickly Squirreltuft snatched the carp, and she almost jumped back. Jaws gaping, her gaze shone with admiration as she jumped up to sniff the newly caught fish. "Wow! That was so cool!" Her voice was tinged with curiosity, and Finchpaw didn't hesitate to dash back over to the stream. "Can I try?" Looking up at her mentor with excited eyes, she waited for further instruction.

"Yep," the tabby warrior purred, pleased that her apprentice was so impressed. "I was lucky this time—it actually didn't take as long as I thought it would—remember, even though it's warming, we're still in Leaf-bare. If you can't catch anything for a while, don't be put down.

"Finchpaw, dip your paw into the water, claws unsheathed." She instructed, sitting back to watch. "Stay still. Try not to make any ripples. Don't forget to breathe, but don't do it too loudly, either. Once you've caught it…" she paused, a mischievous grin covering her face. "Don't let go for your life. Any cat born Riverclan can swim."

Finchpaw nodded, and turned her attention to the river.  Her jaw tense, she slowly tipped her unsheathed paw into the stream, causing only a couple small ripples.  Pride flooded over her, but she remained still.  As she waited, she noticed that she was holding her breath; quickly correcting her mistake, she took shallow, calm breaths.

Suddenly, a fish began to swim towards her paw. With bated breath, she waited until it was right next to her claws before she swept her paw upward, successfully hooking the fish. She reached out her muzzle to grab the slippery creature by the neck, but was slapped in the face by it's tail. Dropping the fish with a gasp, she managed to react quickly and grab it in her jaws just before it hit the water.

Heart racing, she bit it sharply on the neck, killing it, before she set it on the ground to examine it. It was a fairly small bass, but not bad for a first catch. Purring with pride, she looked up to see Squirreltuft's reaction; she hoped her little mistake was forgivable.

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

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'Hunting Dice' : 6