Self-Appointed Warrior [Closed]

Eaglekit stalked boldly towards the entrance of camp with his head and tail high. The young tom knew he was almost ready to be apprenticed. Waiting for so long had been painful and had left him both aggravated and board. After all this time, he decided he was ready. All his life thus far, the young tom had been told to stay in camp. But, that was when he was kit and not nearly the size of one of the younger warriors. He waited until it seemed everyone was busy with their tasks and headed for the entrance. Even if they caught him, some cat would have to be pleased with his work. He planned on being one of the best hunters and fighters the forest had ever seen! Besides, he already knew the code by heart and everything about being a good warrior, so it only made sense he act like it.

"They will see and then Blizzardstar will have to make me an apprentice early!" There was only a pawful of days before he would be out training in the forest. Eaglekit was sure he would be able to pick up several things on his own though. Nothing would stop him from reaching this goal. The kit was less than a taillength from the entrance when a voice stopped him. If it were another cat, he would have told them to mind their own business, but he knew this one. It was a voice that had been ringing in his ears practically since birth. He flattened them to drown it out but because of his better judgment pricked them back up once more. Turning around he stood face to face with Marshpaw.

"Eaglekit, where do you think you're going?" Marshpaw meowed from where he had been eating a small mouse. The meal was hardly more than a mouthful, but the tom refused to take more than he absolutely needed out of respect for his clanmates. He padded over to where Eaglekit was standing with a curious look in his amber eyes. "Not out of camp I hope." He added, as he moved over to block the entrance from Eaglekit's gaze. A sad frown on the tom's face as he lowered himself to Eaglekit's level.

"It's too dangerous out there for a kit on their own. Especially during leaf-bare." He meowed gently, though a small smile broke through his gaze. He knew what it was like to be an adventurous young kit trapped in what felt like a small camp.

"I'm off to hunt." He stated matter-of-factly, barely glancing over his shoulder at the tom. Marshpaw may have practically helped to raise him alongside Sharptooth, but that did not make him the kit's father. Coyotefang was dead, and thankfully so. At the thought of his rogue-blooded father, Eaglekit scoffed lightly. They'd made that cat a warrior, so he more than earned it by sharing in his mother's pure blood. Marshpaw's bloodline was just as dirtied, he was just like Coyotefang. Although he just wanted to ignore the older tom's words, his better judgment won out this time. He growled at his own inherited nature to listen to some authority.

"In only a sunrise or two, I'll be an apprentice. I'm certainly big enough to go out on my own, I'll be fine." Eaglekit shot back, fixing Marshpaw with an even stare. He wasn't going to let some cat, who wasn't even officially part of the clan, tell him what to do. If Blizzardstar or Leopardclaw came to stop him, that would be a different story. Any respectable clan cat listened to their leadership, but neither had stopped him. And he was intent on going out to hunt.

"Even apprentices need to stay with a mentor when they leave camp." Marshpaw meowed firmly. He wasn't certain what to do about Eaglekit... already such a pawful. He stepped forward, at first to block the path, then he yielded to a different thought and paused. "Do you know how to hunt?" He asked as he wrapped his tail around the kit and proceeded to pull him away from the entrance. "I can't let you go outside, but, I will help you sharpen your hunting skills."

It seemed like a good solution to Marshpaw. Eaglekit wouldn't leave, and he'd even get to practice his skills in advance before he even left the camp. Still, he couldn't help but think of Coyotefang. What would he have done? Was Marshpaw even close to being the type of father the other tom might have been, might have become if he'd had the chance?

"I know what I'm doing!" He protested quickly with ears heating up a bit. Eaglekit did not have the first clue of how to properly hunt, but he supposed it couldn't be all that hard. The other cat wasn't even Thunderclan, so what did he know about hunting here. His eyes narrowed as the thought ran through his head, although he did not dare to say anything to his great-uncle. Before he could move, Marshpaw had swept him away from his place just near the entrance. A low and displeased growl rumbled in his throat for a moment before it died out.

The older tabby continued talking, and while Eaglekit was tempted to ignore him, he mulled over the words. His tail twitched with irritation. Although, the kit-like side of him won out. Learning something new did seem interesting... even if it meant staying in camp. Finally, he relented, "Fine. If you have to."

Admittedly, Marshpaw did not know much about the Thunderclan hunting style. Though he did know some tricks he had picked up during his journey. It wasn't much, but it was a start as Marshpaw lead Eaglekit to one of the least snowy patches of camp. Where the kit could stalk without being smothered by snow.

"Alright, let's start with crouching and stalking." He offered, then crouched down carefully. His tail lifted just above the traces of snow behind him as he shifted the weight in his paws to distribute it more evenly to where he'd need it in the moment. "Making sure your prey doesn't hear you isn't the only thing to worry about. If you brush a branch, or step on a twig the wrong way, it will run scared and make noise." He mewed seriously. Even though he wasn't letting Eaglekit out of camp, he still wanted him to thrive in his apprenticeship.

He inched softly across the ground to where a stray piece of moss was sitting. Every movement nearly soundless, the soft sound of snow unavoidable, but soft enough that if it had been real prey, he might very well have gotten it as he made a massive leap over the snow and onto the scrap of moss, which he set down a tail length away.
"Your turn."

It was hard for him to drop the thought that Marshpaw had no idea how to properly hunt here. His tail twitched in aggravation, but he shut out the thought and forced himself to focus on his great-uncle. With narrowed, yellow-eyes he took it in. After staring and taking it all in, Eaglekit crouched down to attempt to copy the motion. Every motion and movement was surprisingly spot on. Despite his stubborn personality and head-strong nature, the young tom had an affinity for the skills needed to be a warrior. However, the first time was never perfect. As he stalked forwards, one of his paws crunched a bit of frozen snow.

Immediately, he jumped back and cursed, "Mousebrain! So much for being quiet!" Eaglekit stared angrily at the ground, disappointed in his own failure. His little claws dug into the ground with frustration. Admitting the mistake or paying attention to it would only make it more real and his hurt pride just couldn't deal with it. I should have just gone out on my own! Then no one would have seen this and I could have learned on my own! Not wanting to take the blame for himself, the kit directed his disdain at Marshpaw and hissed lowly, "You should have just let me go out."

Marshpaw watched Eaglekit attempt to copy his movements. He smiled encouragingly as the kit stalked forward, then chuckled when he proceeded to lose his temper over that little mistake.
"Your technique was very good for a first try." He commended as he tilted his head at the hiss. His eyes narrowed, but he didn't make any move to back away or concede.

"If you hadn't spoken, you still could have made the catch." He explained slowly, his amber eyes stared at Eaglekit's pointedly. "Shifts in snow happen, it's important to not let it throw you off. Stay focused and calm. Sometimes the prey will ignore it once they are sure nothing is coming."

"Hmph." He grumbled indignantly. Eaglekit wanted to say more, but instead, he glared angrily at the ground. If the snow were a cat, it likely would have run in the opposite direction at his kit-like temper. There was a moment before he finally sighed. A good warrior wouldn't just give up. His eyes fixed on a patch of dirt amid the snowy patched. With a renewed sense of energy, he grinned. The kit stalked forwards, practicing the crouch he had just learned and leaping to slam both of his front paws down on top of it.

"I told you I could do it, Marshpaw." Eaglekit grinned with a smug look over at the much older cat. All of his frustration from before melted into what was more than likely an undue pride. There was a tiny twig on the ground and he picked it up gingerly between his teeth and held it high. This was his catch today. The kit looked rather ridiculous boasting a stick, but he did not seem to know or care about that. With the smirk still on his face, he placed his catch at the old tabby's paws.

The dark tabby watched as Eaglekit glared at the snow. His pelt pricked uneasily at the thought of that gaze landing on him. Though far smaller, Eaglekit reminded him strongly of his father. He sighed, remembering Coyotefang's reaction to that as he watched him stalk something else. His mind wandering as he contemplated what could have been for a moment. Would Eaglekit have thrived under his father? He glanced towards the nursery. Would Hawk and Owl both have faired as well?

He felt guilt as he realised his neglect over the other two siblings, but he couldn't help it. Not now. He refocused on Eaglekit just intime to see him catch the twig and smiled. His emotions shoved aside for another time as he praised the kit with the praise he had definitely earned.
"Well done, Eaglekit! The forest will fear you as an apprentice!" He shoved a paw into the snow under the stick and playfully flicked it, causing a small spray of snow towards the kit.