I Won't Let You Down (Closed)

Now that he was on his fourth apprentice, Nectarleap was sure he had gotten the whole mentoring thing down. Of course, none of them had actually become warriors, so there was no proof that he was succeeding, but their training was going along very well. Besides, now the first day of training routine had become something he knew he could trust. Every apprentice was different, but a training exercise that used their differences as an advantage worked for everyone. Well, at least the three apprentices he had already used it on, and himself when Silentstrike had mentored him. So Rosepaw couldn't be different enough to be a hassle. Confidently, he strode out of the warrior's den, wincing slightly as the cold air penetrated his thin fur. He had gotten used to it after these long few moons of suffering through the cold, but every morning it still bothered him for a little while. Looking at the nearly empty prey pile, he decided that it wouldn't hurt to skip a meal, instead picking out a small rabbit for his apprentice to eat. After doing so, he continued on his way to his former den, poking his head inside.
"Rosepaw, wake up. I have a rabbit for you, than we'll start training," the warrior whispered loudly, hoping to wake her up. He pulled his head back out, pushing the rabbit slightly closer to the den with his paw. The sleeping bodies of Silverpaw and Stormpaw were still there, but he had told them to join whatever patrol Brindlewhisker signed them to. It occurred to him that this was his first female apprentice since Sootpaw, causing a pang of grief. He missed the bright young apprentice, and wished she had lived to warrior hood. Oh well. For now he just waited for his fourth apprentice to arrive.

Rosepaw's sides lifted and fell in a synchronization with her quiet breathes, which soon turned into a long yawn. Her yellow-amber eyes fluttered open to view the entrance of the den, a familiar voice echoed through the nearly desolate den. She was used to sleeping in, it would be difficult to get used to getting up. She drowsily thought as she lifted herself from her cozy nest, stretching out each of her limbs and yawning once more before finally exiting the nest. Her paws padded against the damp ground, still covered in a small layer of ice and snow, but not nearly as dense or existent as it was mere moons ago. The warm rays of sun she felt cascading on her pelt were pleasant, a preferred feeling from the crisp yet numb frost of the blankets of snow present at leaf-bare.
Her head peaked out from the apprentice den, a rush of cold wind tinged with warmth from the sun blew past her with such force that messed up her fur and made her feel unsteady on her paws. She glanced over to the larger warrior who was assigned to be her mentor, the confident look in his eye sent a ripple of nervousness through her body, how could he be so.. so.. unafraid? She stared at the tom with a blank face, her eyes however seemed large in their maple-esque orbs. "Morning," she began remembering that it really was morning, not sun-high as it usually was when she awoke. Her gaze travelled from her mentor to the rabbit; she hadn't realized how hungry she was until she saw it. But something inside her disliked the idea of eating this rabbit, this one, that someone else spent time hunting. Surely someone else deserved it more than her? What about those other kits who were yet to be apprenticed? The ones like her... Rosepaw halted her thoughts abruptly as she didn't want to go on a tangent to herself. She looked back up at the tom as if to urge him to say something else or to take her to where they would train, something to break this anxious silence that sat between them, the only communication being their blank stares to each other. "A-ah.. thanks for the rabbit." her aloof tone seemed even more quiet than it was usually, this training thing was difficult. Surely just talking wasn't difficult? Maybe she was just nervous... maybe.

Nectarleap didn't know what to say when Rosepaw looked at him with a face did of expression except for those sacred maple colored eyes. The experienced warrior had never been good in awkward situations, in fact he still caused many, and had no idea how to get out of one. This apprentice wasn't like the other three he had trained, who had been all to eager to find out what they would be learning every day. At first he was pretty sure that the one word greeting was that she was going to say, and looked down at the rabbit he had given her. Why wasn't she eating it? A cat her age had never bothered him this much before. Of course, there were other ones who had made him more scared, but she downright creeped him out. No, that didn't matter. She would become a great warrior and he would train her to be one. Just if he could ever get out of this situation. Relief was evident on his face when she spoke, though he noticed that she still didn't eat the rabbit. Well, it was time to take matters into his own paws, or so it seemed.
"You're welcome. You can eat it, you know," the tricolored tom replied, the amusement he had tried to force into his tone not showing. Well, there went the idea of trying to be funny and warm up to her. Maybe it was time to try out the tactic that had succeeded on four other apprentices on her. Hopefully she wouldn't be somehow different in this way as well. He couldn't even see how that would be possible. Mentally, he prepared himself to sound warm and caring, though also a bit mentor-like. Why did it take so much effort to do that now when it had came naturally with his other apprentices? Maybe he didn't have this down as much as he had though. Taking a deep breath, he made up his mind to speak, and mostly succeeded. "Well, after you finish eating, we are going to do some training. Would you like to learn how to hunt, learn how to fight, or patrol the territory first?"

Her eyes darted up from the rabbit she had already begun to scarf down. The intense urge to quench the endless pit that was her stomach's hunger was all she had been worried about as she took the large bites out of the rabbit's side. It seemed odd for her to take big bites, as her maw was on the smaller side. It looked as if a dog or something had taken a bite out of it, Rosepaw thought as she ate. The rabbit's small body was nearly depleted entirely in the span of a few moments. And in the next few moments, Rosepaw's stomach churned and tossed sending pain through-out her body. Getting up from her crouch, she sat in an uncomfortable position as to not give away the effects of her eating the entirety of the rabbit that fast; That would be extremely embarrassing.
She felt the need to puke something up but she retained the urge as she stared at Nectarleap, she was testing her own limits. "I-umm, maybe fighting? I have always been weak, and I want to stand up to my bullies not let them run over me like a monster." Rosepaw shook her head vigorously after she said what she said, ugh that was such a bad thing to say! How inconsiderate! 'Not let them run over me like a monster' who says that? Rosepaw sighed as she awaited the older Tom's reply, hoping her stomach would decide to not give in.

OOC: I'm assuming you already know both systems, correct me if I'm wrong. Would you rather use the battle system or not?

IC:"Fighting it is then. Follow me," Nectarleap instructed, this time making his voice warm. The question had worked, and he had something to work off of. He had frowned slightly at the comment about bullies, not sure if he should respond to that. He decided against saying anything, hoping it would come out naturally later on. After that both got a little more comfortable around each other. The rate at which Rosepaw had eaten the rabbit was strange, quicker than any other cat he had seen. Hopefully she wouldn't get a stomach ache from that. The warrior began to pad towards the exit, flicking his tail for her to follow. When she got a bit more experienced leaving camp might be a but more fast paced, but this was her first time out. It should be special, and have enough time to admire the paradise that was WindClan territory.

(Yea I know how the systems work ;0 and I'm fine with whatever you want to do)

Her amber-yellow eyes lit up in orbs at the kind voice of her mentor. Suddenly, she felt a weight that had been put on her shoulders lift and she untensed, it now felt easy to speak to them and to be able to be around them in general. Rosepaw sat up straight and smiled slightly, She didn't understand this feeling-what was it called? It was unknown to her, but she loved it. And all she had to do to achieve it was to not worry and to be happier, it seemed so simple. How had she not seen it before?
Rosepaw didn't notice the shift in her mentor's expression from happy, too worried, back to happy. Maybe that was for the better. His voice was kind and honest and it resonated well with her; She managed to find new respect for Nectarleap. Her expression got even brighter when she was told to follow him, and for a moment, she looked back at the camp as her paws carried her forward. "k," Rosepaw responded cooly to him, following closely. As she looked back at the camp, she had another realization. She was no longer confined by it, she saw a brighter sun lay against everything now, it all seemed more peaceful and happy. But there would always be demons and cats who wanted her dead, briskly her eyes landed on a group of apprentices who snickered at her name and never had anything good to say. So she smiled, this was hope.
She turned back to face the territory she was heading out to, her pelt brushed up against the clan's entrance/exit as they left. Her eyes became like full moons as she stared out into the gorgeous territory, greens and yellows mingled and splashed against each other, while the soft blue of the morning sky contrasted well with them. "Woah" her jaw was agape, the beauty of her home was astounding.

Nectarleap smiled at the look of awe of Rosepaw's face as they walked into the vast and beautiful moors that made up WindClan territory. Her expression much echoed his reaction to seeing all of this for the first time. And it wasn't even Newleaf yet, when the heather and gorse bloomed and added to the awe of the whole fields of untamed tall grass. And once the snow was out of the picture, the greenery would be a delicious feast to the eyes. But her being amazed by their territory even during its ugliest time really said how true of a WindClanner she was. Just like that, all of his doubts about the young she-cat disappeared. The warrior continued to lead her through the land, stopping at the base of a small hill. There the snow had already been cleared away by both him and a few other mentors, so the bramble and gorse bushes were more frequent there. There was also an area clear of vegetation and open to the fertile soil that was always somewhere beneath their paws, which was perfect for learning how to do different types of claw strikes. For a mentor that didn't believe in practicing fighting on clanmates, this was the perfect place to introduce some battle techniques.
"So Rosepaw, we are going to begin by learning how to strike with your claws. Don't ever use these on clanmates, okay?" The tricolor tom chuckled slightly, but hoped that the apprentice took this words to heart. After Wolfpaw's actions, one could never be too careful training the younger generation to not attack their clanmates. He padded over to the patch of bare ground, his amber eyes meeting the younger cat's gaze. "Ready to learn?"