Training for Lionpaw (closed)

Prodding Lionpaw's side with his small paw, Tinylegs let out a soft mew. "Lionpaw, wake up," he whispered. With that, the little white tom made his way out of the warm den and into the somewhat musty Greenleaf morning air. Today, he'd take his new apprentice to explore the territory and hopefully he would be able to bond with the tribe cat a little, seeing that they were given the task to train with each other.

Lionpaw's eyes cracked open a little bit. With his old kit-rank, he could have slept as long as he desired. But he also wasn't permitted to leave camp, and just the prospect of finally exploring the new surroundings was enough to make him sit up in his nest and shake the sleep from his eyes. The new apprentice, though older than several of those of his fellow rank, padded from the den with his thick tail swishing behind him and sought out the strange cat that was his mentor. "Greetings." The tribe cat meowed cordially, worried he had already made an enemy of his clan teacher by his rude and embarrassing behavior during their first meeting.

Turning to see his apprentice, Tinylegs gave a nod of greeting and a soft smile rested on his muzzle. "Good morning," the tom mewed, ready to start the day and hoping that his apprentice was as well. "Today I'll show you around the territory. Are you ready to go or would you like to grab something to eat first?" he asked, tilting his nose in the direction of the fresh kill pile. The two of them had a fairly long morning ahead of him and seeing that he didn't know how Tribe conducted patrols, he assumed that Lionpaw might not be used to their way of things and might need a bit of energy for their little adventure.

Lionpaw internally sighed in relief, seeing that this... Tiny Legs cat was not upset with him. His ears perked, giving away his enthusiasm to go explore the territory. "Oh, I don't need anything." He meowed, certain he could make it for a while. His stomach was rolling around. Admittedly, the tribe cat was a little bit nervous. He was supposed to exemplify the tribe and the clan coming together, but he didn't know how to do that other than to learn, so he did his best to watch the Tiny Legs' movement carefully and see if he was supposed to copy his general body language, which was more expressive than that of the tribe cats.

Giving a nod when the apprentice said he didn't need anything, Tinylegs turned toward the camp entrance and started towards it, his small legs trotting at the fastest pace they could go. "So I thought we could do a border patrol today, seeing that you probably haven't been out of the camp much and next time, we can work on hunting," the little tom mewed happily once they exited the camp. Turning to Lionpaw, he hoped that he wasn't dissapointing the younger cat, but there was only so much one could take in in a day, and he didn't want to put too much information on the apprentice's shoulders. Well, not yet anyway.

"Hunting? You are a prey-hunter, then?" Lionpaw asked, padding somewhat slowly next to the smaller tom and forgetting the clan customs. "My mother, Swoop of Fierce Doves, was a prey-hunter before she became a kit-mother. She says I will be one like her, too, because I am built like her. She told me I have the pelt of my father, but her long frame." He meowed, staring up at the great trees as the walked. It felt rather closed-in, and he wished he could see the sky beyond the great branches, but he shoved his discomfort away. He suppressed the urge to roll in the nearest mud pile, as was normal for hunters of his tribe to blend in with their surroundings. "Your... our clan seems so big, I forget there are other clans in the forest. I don't understand why we don't all live together, as one." He said, somewhat hesitant.

Listening to Lionpaw speak about his family and past life, Tinylegs couldn't help but admire the younger tom. It must have been hard for him to get used to a new lifestyle, especially since he was so far away from home.

Continuing to make their way towards their first destination, the small tom looked up to his apprentice when he asked about the different clans. It was definitly food for thought, but there was a good explination to why things where the way they were. "The clans... there's something different about each of us that apparently makes us different enough to separate. WindClan is known for their lean bodies and fast hunting, RiverClan is known for being able to swim. I know it's a bit confusing as to why we don't all take our talents and work together, but if you ever go to a gathering, you'll see that each clan is prideful of their ways, so combining us all would esentially take our way of life away," he mewed, hoping that made enough sense for the apprentice.

After a few moments more of walking, the pair reached the ThunderClan border. "For example, if you sniff the air, you'll be able to tell that ThunderClan has a different scent than us," he added with a smile, looking to Lionpaw.

Lionpaw listened intently, interested in learning about the other groups of cats. He only saw them the first night they arrived, and he remembered seeing what seemed like hundreds of strangers in that one clearing. Our way of life... I understand what it means to want to keep your identity. The apprentice mused over what his mentor had said in silence, looking straight ahead but without really seeing where he was going. He paused next to Tiny Legs and looked around the border, seeing the subtle changes between the two forests; one was bare on the ground and filled with tall trees while the other had short trees with bushes and plants springing up through the earth.

Lionpaw opened his mouth to drink in the earthy scent of ThunderClan, surprised that it really was different from SkyClan's. He had seen many different types of land and water in his travels as a kit, but just the knowledge that there was another group of cats beyond his grasp made him want to explore. "I smell them. ThunderClan... a mighty name. You have told me a little of WindClan and RiverClan, but what of these cats? What do they do that is so special?" The cream tom asked, glancing back at Tiny Legs with interest.

While he seemed to be adjusting to clan life pretty well, Lionpaw sure did have a lot of good questions. Were all mountain cats this quick to think?

"Well, ThunderClan is known for their gift of tracking. While all clan cats can track prey, they're able to scent out a mouse through the thick undergrowth that makes up their territory," he mewed with a smile. Speaking of which, Tinylegs wondered how cats like Lionpaw hunted, and decided it wouldn't hurt to ask the younger tom. "How did the Tribe cats hunt, if you don't mind me asking? I've only heard stories of your life, but I've never bothered to ask for more detail," he asked, tilting his head to the side in a curious sort of way. 'I hope I'm not intruding on his past...' he questioned, knowing that it may be a difficult subject to talk about, seeing that the apprentice had probably been going through a lot this past moon or so.

Lionpaw considered his mentor's words for a few moments before responding to his question. It was like an interesting learning game; they would each exchange information and learn something new in return. Pleased with his observation, Lionpaw mused over what stories he had heard as a young kit and what he had observed the prey-hunters doing as they traveled to the forest from the mountain. "I was too young to leave the cave when we lived in the mountains. I'm not sure what exactly they did when they left the cave, but they often came back covered completely in mud so that big birds like hawks and eagles wouldn't see them." Lionpaw meowed with a slight shrug, admitting his relatively lacking knowledge on the subject. "But the cave-guards who went to protect them would come back with eagles and hawks for the older cats to eat. I think the trick was letting a bird attack a rabbit and catching both of them at the same time. It would probably work on a bird here if the sky was open." He said, glancing up at the leaves and branches that blocked his view of the sky.

OOC: aaah, sorry for the wait ;;

IC: Listening intently to the apprentice, Tinylegs was somewhat intrigued by their way of life, yet he decided that clan life suited him just fine. "Tribe life sure sounds... interesting. It seems that you guys have some similar qualities to us, which I guess is a good thing," he mewed cheerfully as he looked up to Lionpaw. "Let's head to the ShadowClan border now, shall we?" the little tom added and turned around to the direction of the other border that they needed to make their way to.

The young tom nodded in agreement. He thought Tribe life was very interesting, although he was probably biased. "I suppose if we truly are descendants of your clan, we ought to have something in common." He meowed as an afterthought, still glancing up at the branches of the tall trees. Hadn't the SkyClan cats specialized in climbing? Lionpaw looked back down at Tiny Legs as he spoke of a Shadow Clan and eagerly followed after the white cat, ears flicking with interest. "Will we see any cats at this border?" He asked hopefully.

Looking over to Lionpaw as he caught up, Tinyleg's shook his head. "Probably not, but that's a good thing. While we are able to put up with each other, all five clans have their differences and that makes border confrontations a bit..." he spoke and paused for a moment, trying to find the right word. "Undesirable," the small tom finished with a firm shake of his head.

After a few more moments of walking, the pair reached the ShadowClan border. "Able to smell the difference between them and us?" Tinylegs chuckled, his white and faded grey tail flicking back and forth.