darkest before dawn {training}

As the sky began almost imperceptibly to lighten, Sagepaw was waiting for Dawnbright. The sun was far was peeking over the horizon yet but the day was on its way.

Sagepaw was on-time and well-groomed for her first day of training. She had not been idle tonight. But she had been sure to eat and rest for when her mentor told her to be ready.

She sat unobtrusively in the clearing, only her watchful bright yellow eyes standing out in the darkness. When Dawnbright arrived, the young black she-cat rose to her paws to greet her older sister politely, "Good morning."

At a deceptively languid trot, the apprentice gracefully kept pace behind Dawnbright as the pair entered out into the marshes. Although her eyes were narrowed passively, Sagepaw's nose and ears twitched as she took in the new environment.

She did not bother her mentor by commenting or asking questions, but calmly followed her.