let us begin [closed]

Egretswoop's mind had been a rolling thunder of persistent confliction. What would be best to start her apprentice with? How could she best explain the concepts, when she herself didn't truly know how to explain then, but simply... knew? What had Rowansong started her out with? Would sparring be best, or would fishing, where they could both hone their ability to dart a paw into the water to provide for the clan? Did Mothpaw even want to train with Egretswoop? Had Poppyshine made a mistake in picking her as a mentor? All of those thoughts seemed to continue, only to abruptly turn towards the next, and sometimes circle back towards a previous one that had floated by in her mind what felt like ages ago. On top of all of this, the pale molly hardly had the ability to keep her mind clear of all the addled distractions of the world around her. Riverclan's rushing streams seemed even louder than usual, with the fauna particularly chittering loudly on the otherwise beautiful day. The vibrant flora's scent felt particularly strong that no matter whether Egretswoop held her jaw closed or open, it seemed keen on prodding at her senses with a distracting paw. Pay attention to me! Look at me! I am beautiful! Each distraction pulled at her pelt, at her ears, her eyes, her nose. She just had to go through them, one by one.

Pressing her nose into part of the fox fur that had clung to her frame, Egretswoop neatly placed it atop her nest in the warrior's den before going to search for her apprentice. The feathery molly had done her best to memorize the young she-cat's appearance, etching all of it into memory that she could. "Mothpaw, are you ready to train?" Her voice would ask softly once she had found the particular clanmate in question. "Is there any particular skill you look forward to learning?" Perhaps that would be her help - see where Mothpaw wanted to go. If there was a vague answer about 'everything' or 'nothing,' then the mentor would do her best to take the lead.

It was almost... heartwarming to see her apprentice be so excited. The pale molly couldn't help but remember her own first day, where fear had seemed to win out over the excitement that still had rippled even beneath her own pelt. In no way would the new mentor attempt to ever squash that excitement. It was a precious little thing, and to even so much as scratch it would easily leave Egretswoop devastated. As she was about to reply, the sound of a bird flittered past, ultimately drawing away the warrior's attention for just a moment to track the new sound that had suddenly stolen all of her focus. When she was nervous, she was more easily distracted. Licking her chest in a twinge of embarrassment, Mothpaw continued on with her answer. It gave Egretswoop an idea now, too.

With a nod, she adjusted their course just slightly. They'd go towards the river, but particularly towards one of the bends that was safer. It still certainly had fish that swam through, but should her apprentice fall in, it had just enough depth that Mothpaw would easily be able to push off of its base to bring herself back to the surface. Safety was something that she also had to worry about, too. As an apprentice, there was something about being used to others taking care of her that made her almost a bit prone towards recklessness. Towards giving in to all of the sounds and smells that seemed to distract her. But she was a warrior now, and she had to watch for Mothpaw. In case anything happened... she wanted the damage to be minimal. "We shall go towards part of the river then, and we can learn to catch fish." She nodded.

Her light-yellow eyes seemed to always be scanning as they walked, snagging on whatever vibrant fleck of life made itself known. "Did you know that we are the only Clan that fishes?" She prompted, the fact rolling off of her tongue much like the ripple of a wave. "We do not only get our name from the fact that we live near the rivers, or that we swim. In fact, the river is in almost all parts of our life." She further elaborated. If she spoke, it meant that she couldn't hear anything else to steal her attention. To make her look like a bad mentor.

Quickly enough, the river came into view. Egretswoop took her spot on the edge, her tail curling to make a place for Mothpaw to join beside her. "The first thing you will need to learn about fishing is where to sit, though. Instinct will guide a lot for you. But you must learn how to control your shadow. Fish will be afraid of it, so if you can sit how we are now - looking in, but we cannot see the shadow of ourselves - you will have an easier time catching prey." Even as the anxiety of whether or not she gave instructions properly seemed to come and go, Egretswoop had to trust her apprentice would ask if any of it was unclear. "Wait to see if a fish comes close by, then..." As she waited for scales, her ears and whiskers twitched. It was as if all of her senses had gone to focusing on the water, to penetrating its surface to find her prey.

As soon as scales came by, her paw darted in. This was where instinct took hold for her, and she scooped it up with her claws. Keeping them dug into its gill, she followed it through with her movement, ultimately ending its life on the shoreline with the way her claw swiped away. "Follow your instincts. If you can, aim for the gill. It is where the fish breathes, and is the side that sits a half-paw away from every fish's eye. You can grab it easiest there, and end its life there too. Would you like to try?"

Egretswoop attempts to catch a fish. Success! -3 SP

Egretswoop gave a purring nod towards the comment of her apprentice. Quiet enough affirmation to not hurt her own ears. They seemed to remain on a near-constant swivel towards the river, acting to follow the movement of fish that followed the current just a bit too far away to be worthy to attempt to catch. Her gaze would snap between the pool of water and the apprentice beside her, whose breathing she'd also found to be a sort of melody that fell in-time with the movement of the stream in front of the two of them.

Trickle, breath... trickle, breath...

It was a game of patience. One that she herself had to play, her own paws seemingly ready to twitch whenever Mothpaw's did. One had skimmered by that could have been an easy catch for the more experienced molly, but it was a wise choice on Mothpaw's end not to attempt to go after it. Until...

The moment she saw that little shadow approaching, she knew. Silently, the mentor side-stepped away to give her apprentice as much room as possible to be successful. Those instincts came out just as Egretswoop knew they would, pulling the fish onto land. Her maw parted to give instructions, but closed in a personal reminder to herself. Mothpaw had to do this on her own. She had to use her own body's abilities. Once the fish was ended, the smile that had already started to form now curled Egretswoop's maw to a wide smile.

"Congratulations, Mothpaw! You did very well." In praise, the pale molly approached, placing her nose atop the apprentice's forehead. "We will certainly sharpen those skills, and you already are on your way to being a fantastic warrior. Take a moment to catch your breath, you did it." It was a moment to also allow the apprentice to catch her breath. Understandably, it took some effort.

"Would you like me to show you the beginnings of a spar, or shall we return to camp~? I believe it would be more than fitting to show off your catch."

The molly contemplated what course of action would be best for her apprentice, for the both of them. On one paw, they easily could keep going. On the other... there was the scent of a storm now on the wind, tickling the very edges of the warrior's senses. Her head seemed to snap in the direction it was coming from, ears and body fully alert for the invisible threat. It wasn't even that much of a threat, it was simply a new set of stimuli among the other sea of sensations that perpetually bombarded Egretswoop on the daily. Her ears and whiskers twitched with every new thing as her focus seemed to entirely zap away from Mothpaw for just a moment, the warrior now fully assessing the area. Taking quite literally everything in.

After a few heartbeats, Egretswoop shook her head, physically using the act to ground herself out of the all-too-distracting forest. Her own heart was racing, thundering for some Stars-known reason. "Let us go show off your catch, and take a small break. We can go out later today--I can smell rain on its way." With the decision made, her tail motioned for Mothpaw to pick up her catch so they could head back to camp. No doubt did the apprentice still have the energy to go right into a spar, but truth be told, the mentor needed a moment or two to clear her own mind. Not by any of her apprentice's doing, but by the flicker of anxieties that had seemed to sink their talons directly into the back of her mind. No doubt would the molly be just fine... she just hoped Mothpaw wouldn't take it as an offense.