Time to Train [Wasppaw]

True to her word, the sun had not yet risen above the trees when Wolfstar roused Wasppaw from the apprentice den. The morning air was humid, and she was determined to get their tails out into the forest before the sun fully rose to burn the forest to a crisp. Wolfstar led the new apprentice toward the moonlit creek, knowing that the one source of water in the territory would draw all manner of prey in this stars-forsaken heat.

"We're heading toward the creek. It's the best place to find prey in the territory, particularly in the early mornings. We'll start with ground prey first, once you have mastered the basics, we move into the trees." Wolfstar began. Best to take training one step at a time. "Now-" The leader dropped into a crouch with her paws evenly spread, shoulders and hips aligned, head and tail lowered but not touching the ground. "Try to emulate this. It won't be comfortable, but your body will get used to it with practice. You need to learn to stalk prey before you can catch it, and be aware of how your body is positioned. A tail brushing against foliage, treading over a rock can throw you off balance, the way your shadow falls across the land... All ways your prey will be able to spot you before you can pounce. Staying downwind so that your scent isn't being blown right into someone's face is also important." She held the crouch as she spoke, head turning to watch Wasppaw.

Wasppaw attempted to not let the wonder of the forest around her show on her face of determination. Her legs worked overtime to keep up with the leader. Wolfstar. Her mentor. The biggest compliment to her promise she could ever recieve. At the mention of trees, the she-cat glanced up with yearning in her chest. She'd be the best climber in the clan if she had anything to do with it. But first, the basics. She could manage that.

Studying her mentor carefully, Wasppaw dropped into a crouch to mimic her. Her body stretched in an odd way and her paws shifted before after a few moments of lifting her paws, replacing them, wiggling her shoulders, and repositioning her tail she stilled. Heart thudding, Wasppaw quieted her breath. Mismatched eyes found her practice target- a thickly round stick on the ground ten tail lengths away. Hardly breathing, Wasppaw stalked forward being mindful of every step. Once she got closer, Wasppaw leaped in a blur of orange fur and pounced on the stick. Proudly, the apprentice turned.

"Like this?" She asked, a hint of smugness ever so faintly on her voice.

She could tell that Wasppaw was excited, and the apprentice's enthusiasm - though she was trying to stay calm - lifted Wolfstar's spirits. The apprentice gazed up at the trees in much the same way Wolfstar had when she first became an apprentice. "Soon," She promised, "I'll teach you everything my mentor taught me. She was one of the best climbers in the clan." Though Wolfstar lacked Ravenclaw's grace when moving through the trees, she almost preferred being in the trees to staying on the ground and the trees were where she spent most of her time.

Wolfstar watched as Wasppaw went through the hunter's crouch and stalked. Targeting a stick that was on the ground wasn't a bad strategy. A test run before the real test run on live prey. "Like that." Wolfstar confirmed, a hint of a smile forming. "Now, let's see you test it on live prey. Take a look around, use your senses. There should be more than a few options to choose from." Birds were the favored prey of most of the clan, and squirrels were just as common.

Wasppaw opened her maw, immediately heading Wolfstar's suggestion. Hunching into the crouch, Wasppaw slivered away into the foilage always alert. Chirping met her ears as a little sparrow landed in front of her in a small clearing. Holding her breath and stalking slowly, Wasppaw stalked forward until she was leaping distance and then... like a flash she pounced, pinning the bird down between her paws and finishing it off. Raising her head, she looked for her mentor triumphantly. Her very first try!

The member 'Stags' has done the following action : Dice roll

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'Hunting Dice' : 4

Wolfstar stepped back and stayed silent as her apprentice sought out her first prey, nodding to herself in approval at the choice of a sparrow. Wasppaw's form was good, and a purr escaped the leader as she caught the bird. Her first try, not something many apprentices managed. "Well done, Wasppaw!" Wolfstar mewed, "Here, we'll stash it in the roots of a tree so that it will attract less attention, and retrieve it on the way back to camp."