Through The Trees [Thornstalker]

The recent rains had finally ceased, and the warm air was filled with birdsong as Graywind leaped through the branches after Thornstalker, sharp golden eyes taking in their surroundings. They were supposed to be checking for rotted and broken branches, and Graywind took how little they had found so far as a good sign. Hopefully, the rest of their winding path through the trees would be just as clear.

Thornstalker lead the way through the trees, paws placed carefully with practiced ease. The trees were like a second home to the small warrior. She spent so much time up in them that she practically knew the branches just as well as the territory below. The pale warrior halted on a branch turning to face her former apprentice. There was a branch that was graying slightly below the pair. "Can you grab that one?"

Of course, just because they hadn't found anything yet didn't mean they wouldn't, and Thornstalker called her over just as Graywind's eyes found the hanging limb. The silver warrior made her way toward it, carefully stepping onto an adjacent branch on the same tree. Close enough she could bat at it with a paw without losing her balance, as the break point for this one was fairly close to the tree trunk. It definitely wasn't safe, and with their patrolling nobody would ever have trouble with this branch. Nobody was below, so she reached out, smacking her paw where the branch was already hanging. This one truly wasn't in good shape.

"Got it." Graywind mewed triumphantly, watching as the branch landed on the forest floor below with an audible thud.

Blue eyes remained on the dead branch until she was satisfied that it landed. She didn't need it getting caught on any of the lower branches, that would spell disaster for anyone coming through afterwards. Thornstalker nodded to her former apprentice, a simple thanks. Her nod was reinforced with her next word. "Thanks." The small warrior turned, eyes scanning the nearby trees. "If there was one there is bound to be more around here, keep an eye out."

"I suppose you're right." Graywind frowned, golden eyes continuing to search their surroundings as they moved, "I know this is just as important as defending the borders and hunting are, the clan can't be safe if our own territory works against us. I hope the rains will let up for a while now." To give the trees a chance to recover from the relentless downpours as of late, and also because the rain simply made her miserable.

Thornstalker nodded. "I'm sure the rain will let up soon. It always does at some point." She just hoped it didn't dry up a ton to where there would be more dry branches.. or worse a fire chance. As blue eyes scanned the area she quickly found a small dead branch that quickly fell with a swift kick from her hind leg. "How are things going for you now that you are a warrior?" Thornstalker asked, making idle chat since they would be in the area for a little bit longer.

Thornstalker's question was one Graywind had thought about, while also not being quite sure of the answer herself. "The voice in the back of my head insisting I haven't learned enough is quieter. I think I'm more confident in what I can do, too." She smiled up at her former mentor, "Proud to have earned the name, finally." She added. Spotting another rotted branch - no doubt from all the recent rain - Graywind kicked at it with a paw, sending it to the earth below. "Must be a weight off your shoulders to not have two apprentices at the same time, right?" Foxtrot had become a warrior shortly before Graywind's own ceremony. She knew that Wolfblossom seemed to trust Thornstalker a lot, and deservedly so. Still, two apprentices had seemed like a lot for any cat to handle.

Thornstalker shook her head. "I didn't mind it much. My style of teaching might be a little less.. conventional, but I just mostly do what I do normally anyway. It's just a little extra sprinkled on top." While she was stressed about her apprentices learning enough, she just didn't really know any other way to go about it. Maybe it just seemed to work out that her apprentices learned this way.

"I'm glad that you are proud of your name. You deserved it." The small she-cat added, taking the attention off of her for the moment, breaking off some lose twigs to clear the path a little bit more.

Graywind nodded at Thornstalker's words. "Unconventional maybe... It does work, though." And that was the important thing, wasn't it? That her apprentices learned. Graywind carefully kicked a paw at another branch. This one was too small for most cats to think of using, but it was still a safety issue if it did come down. Thornstalker's next words made her smile a bit. "Thank you." She replied, her training had gotten off to a rocky start, but Thornstalker's help had been what set her on the right path.

Thornstalker nodded in response, glad that Graywind was appreciative of the small warrior's efforts in training her as an apprentice. The pale warrior looked around at the area, noticing that there wasn't much in the way of dead branches left. "I think we are good here, we should head back to camp."