Master and apprentice [c]

Even if hunting was most important, Silverdusk had been looking forward to teaching Lionpaw to battle, probably more than he had been looking forward to learning it. The two stood opposite one another, the tall molly at their full height and an excited glint to their eyes. "Today," she mewed, tattered ear twitching "I will teach you the basics of fighting." Silverdusk dropped into their perfected crouch, they couldn't deny that part of them was excited for him to see their proficiency and what a true warrior looked like. Stars knew ThunderClan needed more warriors, capable warriors especially, and they would mould him into the warrior he was destined to be.

"Copy my crouch." they instructed "You want to stay low to the ground. Your belly is soft and where an enemy can do the most damage. Do not expose it. Keep your ears flat and your tail guarded, they stick out and are easy to grab. A hard yank to the tail will unbalance you and... as you can see from my own battle scars, claws to the ear are not pretty. Being low to the ground keeps your power centred, your attacks will be more powerful." she paused, watching him. Perhaps they were dropping too much on him too suddenly. Quailprowler had allowed them room to figure it out, she had hinted at what to do and they pieced it together. "Does that make sense? I want you to go first. Show me what you've got Lionpaw!" mewed Silverdusk. She loosened up, this wasn't an opportunity to show off, this was a chance to teach the tom. There would be other chances to prove themself as the best mentor, but not now.

Lionpaw felt that today would be an important lesson in his training. He just had a good feeling.

It was all such a headrush of information. He followed along as best as he could, his eyes never leaving Silverdusk's. Belly down. Ears back. Tail low. Balance. Power. "Power. Yeah. Okay." he confirmed. He remembered Auburnflare's first lesson, only a moon or so ago. He dropped down easily, tucking his paws in just enough to set them square at each corner of his body. His dusty tail feathered out on the ground behind him, and he lowered his ears to match his hunched shoulders. He remarked to himself that it simply felt "right." A surge in his heartrate threatened to waver him when Silverdusk encouraged his attack. He struggled to contain the twitching in his legs: a combination of nerves and adrenaline.

He saw his mentor for the first time through an opponent's eyes. They were unfathomably steady, bigger than he was, with his lanky adolescent trunk and lack of muscle. There was a moment of hesitation... but it occurred to him, in a flash of resolve, that a real threat would not wait for his command to attack. Lionpaw had something to prove.

He charged forward and ducked into Silverdusk, taking advantage of his shorter stature to get under their chin and strike close at their collarbone.

Lionpaw uses Front Paw Strike!

Lionpaw
20/20 HP
55/60 SP [-5]

Silverdusk
44/50 HP [-6]
120/120 SP

There was a brief moment of hesitation from the apprentice, before he charged at her. He used his small size to his advantage, dipping low before surging upwards. A well placed blow that would have been deadly if it weren't a spar. The blow caused Silverdusk's head to snap to the side, but they were grinning. Before he could get out the way, she swatted him lightly, gaining the upper hand back. "Good!" she praised "But do not hesitate, your enemies won't, and they don't show mercy either. Your hesitation allowed me to retaliate straight away." There was a hint of a growl behind her words, they mirrored what they had said to Quailprowler, but there was truth now to them from their own personal experience. There were plenty of cats she had fought that did not have it within them to be merciful, not even to ones as young as Lionpaw. Softpaw's murderer still stalked amongst SkyClan's ranks, and he certainly would not hesitate to sink his fangs into Lionpaw's throat too. "Come at me again! this time try and stop me from lashing out straight away." instructed Silverdusk, resuming their crouched position.

Silverdusk used Front Paw Blow on Lionplaw. Dealing -7 HP and costing -5 SP

Silverdusk

44/50 HP
115/120 SP (-5 SP)

Lionpaw

13/20 HP (-7 HP)
53/60 SP