So, It Goes On [c]

Yarrowpaw (paw!) sat just inside the apprentice den, trying to calm his racing heart. He couldn’t believe it, almost; he was an apprentice! After moons of thinking he wasn’t good enough and that he’d never make it, he finally crawled his way to apprenticeship! Sure, he fell at his ceremony, which had been mortifying, but all of that was in the past now! An apprentice! An apprentice with a mentor who stood right outside of the apprentice den, waiting for him-

Owlshriek was waiting for him!

Yarrowpaw had decided the night before to avoid immediately running out of the apprentice den at dawn, as he didn’t want to look too eager. He was suave. Completely neutral. But Yarrowpaw just couldn’t wait anymore. The lanky tom quickly padded out of the apprentice den and towards Owlshriek’s side, trying his hardest not to look like an over-excited fool. ”Good morning, Owlshriek! What are we going to do today?”

Yarrowpaw jogged after Owlshriek at an uneven pace, wobbly legs dancing as he attempted to keep up. Owlshriek was so fast, the way he simply moved a level of grace and power that Yarrowpaw couldn’t even fathom himself ever having. His legs, while fawn-like, were almost longer than Owlshriek’s, which helped him immensely in keeping up with the warrior; the apprentice adjusted his stride from short, staccato steps to long strides. The whole walking issue was finally resolving itself, little by little— Woolypaw’s training really paid off.

Stopping to stand by his mentor, Yarrowpaw looked into the water of The River, the current warping his reflection. His reflection stared back at him with large, odd-colored eyes, looking just as nervous as Yarrowpaw felt— was he really that bad at hiding his emotions? The apprentice attempted to steady his face, watching his rippling, unsteady twin’s expressions change and morph until it settled on a face Yarrowpaw felt looked a lot less like fearfulness. Satisfied, the white tom turned to watch Owlshriek just as he skillfully scooped a fish out of the banks, almost effortless in the way he quickly killed it. Amazement was an understatement for how Yarrowpaw felt- his mentor was amazing!

The awe was quickly replaced with distress yet again, when Owlshriek instructed him to copy. Yarrowpaw was going to make a fool out of himself in front of his cool mentor, now, wasn’t he? Though worried, the apprentice couldn’t help but appreciate Owlshriek’s nonchalance and trust in Yarrowpaw’s abilities. He was used to being treated with extra care, doted on and given extra instruction, but Owlshriek treated him like any other apprentice. Because Yarrowpaw really was just like any other apprentice, wasn’t he?’

In careful consideration of his mentor's instruction, Yarrowpaw kept his form low on the banks in order to keep his shadow away from the water. He waited with baited breath for the arrival of any more fish, and sure enough, a small trout swam its way in Yarrowpaw’s direction, blissfully unaware of the cat’s presence. This was it, time to prove himself— arm outstretched, paw angled, claws unsheathed…

Success!

Yarrowpaw quickly grabbed the fish by it's slippery side, pulling it unceremoniously onto the rocky shore. It's tail flapped, its body squirmed-- the thing was so slimy and slippery-- and Yarrowpaw quickly bit into it's spine. It's movement ceased.

The apprentice nearly squealed with delight, dropping the trout onto the bank with a thud. Forgetting the fish entirely, Yarrrowpaw raised his head to report to Owlshriek. "I did it! I did it! Did you see that-- I mean, did you really see it?! I'm the best! I'm the best fisher in the whole forest!"