Training the Nut and the Finch (Open for RainyHeart)

"Hey Finchpaw, wanna do some training together?" Nutpaw nudged her friend softly and padded to the edge of the apprentice den. Ever since she had become an apprentice, she had been waiting for what seemed like forever to train with Finchpaw. Now that she had the chance, she was not going to let it fall. She excitedly paced outside of the apprentice den, wondering what kind of training they would do. Probably a little battle training, maybe some hunting, but mostly she just wanted to have a chance to talk with her friend.

Finchpaw, who had been lightly dozing in her nest, jumped a bit when Nutpaw nudged her shoulder. Lifting her head, the silver and white tabby nodded and purred "Y..yea sure!" Standing up, the short molly closed her eyes and stretched, extending out her back legs one at a time. Smiling drowsily, Finchpaw exited the den and emerged into the sunlight, following her friend. A loud yawn escaped her jaws, and she secretly wished that her nap could've lasted longer; but the thought of spending time with her best friend easily pushed that away. Gazing around, she began to pad toward the camp entrance and meowed "Where do you want to go first?"

"I was thinking maybe a little near the WindClan border, but still pretty close to river," Nutpaw answered, "Is that okay?" Nutpaw padded towards the camp exit, internally pondering what training with her friend would be like. Maybe Finchpaw could even give her a few pieces of advice, because she had been an apprentice longer. Nutpaw turned her head to face her friend looking for confirmation to what she had said.

For a moment Finchpaw didn't answer, she had zoned out, but after a second snapped back to reality. "Oh! Yea, that sounds good!" Her eyes brightening a bit, she fell into step beside the chestnut brown she-cat, and began walking with her toward the WindClan border. "Sorry for my.....tiredness today. I....I couldn't sleep last night." Though her tone was casual, her mind raced with memories of the nightmares that had plagued her since the Gathering, of cats bleeding out around her like Spottedpaw of ThunderClan had. Blood had covered the ground in her dream world, and swept over her like a wave. She almost shuddered at the memory, but didn't say anything to Nutpaw. She didn't like to burden others with her problems. Smiling, she turned away and continued walking alongside her to the river.

"It's okay. Everyone gets tired sometime," Nutpaw responded cheerfully and kept walking along the river. Once they reached what seemed like a good place, Nutpaw stopped walking and turned to her friend once again.
"So, hunting or battle training first? To tell you the truth, I haven't actually caught a fish yet. Only rodents. But I definitely need work on fighting. You've been an apprentice longer, which one is better to do first?" Nutpaw asked her friend. She didn't really care which one they did first, but maybe her friend did.

Finchpaw stiffened a bit when her friend mentioned battle training, her yellow eyes widening a bit. The thought of battle training right now made her sick to her stomach, after what she had seen claws do to cats, both in her dreams and in waking hours. "Uh, lets hunt first!" The tabby's voice was just a little bit suspiciously high-pitched, but she hoped that Nutpaw wouldn't notice. Clearing her throat, Finchpaw turned and began to walk alongside her friend towards the river. "Squirreltuft told me that fishing helps you develop...better strength in your paws, and more flexibility for...fighting. So we should start there!"

"Good idea. Thanks, Finchpaw." Nutpaw noticed the strange tone of voice that her friend was using at first, but decided to ignore it. She looked at the river and wondered how she was supposed to catch a fish from it. Padding a few steps closer, Nutpaw looked at her paws, then back  to Finchpaw.
"Is catching fish a little like catching rodents? I mean, in terms of waiting silently than striking quickly when it is the right time?"

Smiling, Finchpaw nodded in agreement, and sat down at the edge of the river. "Yea, it's the same basic concept. You have to wait, and be super still and quiet. Then, when the fish comes near you have to be really quick, and scoop it up onto shore before it can escape." Turning, she crouched down on the bank, and watched in silence, the tip of her tail flicking slightly. Finally, after a short minute she spotted a small trout swim into her range. A determined smirk on her maw, the small she-cat's paw flashed into the water and flung the fish into the air, waiting until it landed on shore before biting down on it's spine. Picking up the fish in her jaws, she smiled proudly at her friend, before setting it down next to her. "You try now! Don't worry, you'll be a natural."

"Nutpaw watched her friend in awe. How is she able to do that so easily? Nutpaw took note of everything Finchpaw had done to catch it, hoping to catch her own as well.
"Okay, thanks. I'll try then." Nutpaw crouched down on the riverbank, trying to copy the position that Finchpaw had been in. She waited a little while until she spotted a carp the right amount of distance away from her. Focused and determined, Nutpaw struck her paw into the river. She felt her claws catch on flesh and scales, and tried to fling it out of the water. She didn't quite succeed in this, and had to dive forward to catch the fish in her jaws. This action caused her to fall into the water, but she was able to clamp her jaws tightly around the carp.
"I caughth ith!" Nutpaw exclaimed, her jaws clamped tightly around her prey.

Finchpaw couldn't help but laugh at Nutpaw's mistake, watching as her friend fell into the water with a splash. In the end though, she came up with the fish in her jaws, and her proud, muffled meow sent a wave of pride through the silver and white tabby. Jumping up, she purred with shining eyes; "Great catch!" Waiting for her friend to climb back up on shore, Finchpaw smirked, shooting a teasing glare Nutpaw's way before purring sarcastically; "Even if you ended up just as wet as the fish."

Finchpaw giggled, amused by her friend's efforts to dry her thick chestnut brown pelt. She understood the struggle; her own poofy, long fur took forever to dry as well. Sitting down on the bank, she purred; "Try running around a bit....or...we could both get wet!" A mischievous smile on her face, Finchpaw suddenly dashed over and tackled Nutpaw, pushing her into the river before Finchpaw jumped in herself. With a loud splash, the pale gray tabby dove under the waves before popping back up, paddling through the shallow water. Enjoying the feeling of cool water next to her skin, she watched to make sure Nutpaw was okay, and to gauge her reaction.

"What the-" Nutpaw realized her friend had pushed a mere moment before plunging into the river. A few seconds later, her head popped out of the water. Gasping breaths of air, Nutpaw looked at Finchpaw with a mixture of amusement and confusion, then smiled excitedly.
"Hey! Aren't some RiverClan battle techniques include using the river to your advantage?" Nutpaw recalled, then leaped back at Finchpaw.

Finchpaw's eyes widened when Nutpaw mentioned river battle tactics, but didn't have a chance to respond before the light brown she-cat leaped at her through the water. Screaming playfully, the long-furred tabby dashed back, but tripped over a stone that was sticking up from the bottom of the shallows. Falling backwards, she lay half submerged in the water looking up at Nutpaw, feigning a shocked, terrified look. "Oh no no no, please don't hurt me! I'm no match for you, fierce RiverClan warrior!" Her voice bled with sarcasm, and a slight smirk snuck onto her face. She waited to see if her friend would attack or not.

"A noble warrior does not need to maim to show their strength. I already have, but if you want more proof..." Nutpaw ended her sentence playfully. She ducked down into the water, and paddled slightly closer to her friend. She leaped out quickly and landed next to Finchpaw, an expression of mock anger plastered on her face. Wanting to see if she had surprised her friend or not,  Nutpaw sat upright in the shallows, and threw an amused look at the other apprentice.