Touring the Border (Shadeh, get over here!)

[Maplepaw]

((Oooh! You guys are doing really good on the RP! ))

[Shadepelt]

[[Thanks. Bwehehehe, it's my minipulative clumbsy Blackpaw! -twitches-]]

Haunches tense with excitment underneath herself, the young she-cat tried to contain mews of amusement as her mentor sighed and heaved himself to his paws.
"Yup, looks like you're going to have to actually move today." She mewed cheekily. Thade was very active, this she knew, but she hadn't teased anycat in awhile, and he had given her a perfect opportunity.

As the tom began to run, she stuck her observant eyes to his every movement, her gaze following him as he leapt into the air. Taking in everything he was doing, waved her tail in silent admiration as he landed silently on the ground.
This time, her reply to his question came forth more quickly, Blackpaw was getting the hang of things.
"Well, you used your tail as a rudder, I think that helped your steering. Your muscles wern't tensed like mine were, but your paws were firm and strong. That way, you didn't crash into the ground, and it wasn't painfull either."

Inquisitive emerald orbs sparkling, she waved her tail to show she was finished, and waited for Thade's next reply.

[[Score! 200th post! xD]]

[Fernpaw]

((Awesomeness!))

Thade grinned, mewing, "Watch it, you cheeky beast. I might move so fast that you won't know what hit you!" Excitement seemed to evaporate from the muscular tom as he slowly lowered muscular hindquarters to the rocky ground. Amber orbs gleamed in approval as Thade nodded his head once, slowly.

"Good job," he mewed, "Excellent." The mottled tom retreated---if you could call it that. Thade sort of oozed to his paws, sliding silently over the grass and becoming almost invisible to Blackpaw, even with her alert orbs. He stood a few feet away, shadows casting a cloak of invisibleness ((Aargh! Stupid non-word!)) around the tom.

"Try it again."

[Shadepelt]

Smiling wolfishly at her mentor, she bowed her head in thanks for his approval, after all, it wasn't everyday you got two words of approval out of Thade! As he slunk into the shadows, Blackpaw almost felt more admiration toward him; having liquid stealth and water-like movement.

Try it again.
Blackpaw hesitated, was she supposed to attack him again, when he was practically invisible? Her rushed decision was 'yes', so she pricked her small ears forward, and opened her mouth slightly to pin-point his location.
Once the apprentice had his location pictured in her mind's eye, she backed up a few strides, giving herself room to take a running start, as the tom had shown her. Once positioned about five tail-lengths from her mentor's position in the swaying grasses, she burst into a run. Long legs moving fluidly in a pounding rhythm, she counted the strides as she got closer to her take-off point. Emerald oculars gleaming, she watched the spot where she had estimated her mentor sat.
5...4...3...2...1!
After her last loping stride, she lifted her front legs into the air, and propelled up with a heave from her haunches. Springing higher and higher into the air, she prepared herself for when she reached her peak of hight. Once there, she went through the mental check-list Thade had done. Bracing her lower leg bones, she then relaxed her muscles so they moved with her in unison.

As she fell down, down toward the swiftly up-coming ground, she felt giddy. The young she-cat's mind was swirling with the wind, her eyes wide and wild from the free-fall effect. It might have not seemed like a huge fall for a full grown warrior, but Blackpaw wasn't that big. She was the runt out of her brothers and sisters; the apprentice was a spindly scrap, all leg and no body.
As she hit the ground smoothly, without a crash, her mind spun in circles; she wasn't even sure if she had landed on the tom or not.

[Fernpaw]

((Aaw, how cute!))

Thade watched calmly as his apprentice prepared with overzealous enthusiasm to leap at him once again. The tom, however, did not shift from his spot. He knew just by looking at the apprentice that her leap would be too far off to the site to come close to him. The mottled tom was correct. He watched, unconcerned, as Blackpaw flew threw the air.

Thade watched as her green eyes widened in something approaching fear and happiness. He hid a smile to hismelf, this apprentice had just learned how to fly. Thade watched critically as she landed.

All right, the tom thought, But we've got a lot of work to do!

High above, suspended halfway between StarClan and Earth, a auburn tom sat, ears pricked to hear the words of the criticizing tom below him. Dragonfang sighed in annoyance, that wouldn't do at all! He could see that Blackpaw and Thade would grow to be very close friends in life, and he didn't want it to start off on the wrong paw.

Dragonfang leaped gracefully down, bounding off of clouds and landing next to the two. His presence was unnoticed, for he was invisible to their eyes. The jovial tom watched the proceedings before stepping up, murmuring to Thade's heart, Show her again.

Thade flicked an ear, dismissing the notion. If she's too stupid to get it, that's not my fault, the tom thought, denying the ever-growing affection he felt for Blackpaw.

Dragonfang prodded at the warrior's heart, C'mon, it wouldn't hurt to try!

Thade reasoned that one more go wouldn't do too much harm. After all, Blackpaw was only a kit, really. The mentor realized that he had been sitting thinking about this suggestion for a while, and realized that he still hadn't said a word to Blackpaw.

"Better," he mewed gruffly, "Not good, but better." He stalked a few feet away, tensing his hindquarters like springs. "Watch me again!" he commanded, going through the movements with exaggerated slowness.

Dragonfang watched the warrior approvingly. He'll be a find deputy, he thought to himself. Without another word, the mystical tom turned and leaped back up into the realms of StarClan.

((Sorry, I finally got my muse back!))

[Shadepelt]

((Ooh, great post!))

After the sensation of falling had left the small apprentice, she looked up into Thade's amber orbs for guidance; to see how well she had done. She was confused, by the way her mentor seemed to be talking with something, mentally that is. A sudden chill ran through her wiry body, there was another presence there besides the two cats.
Thinking back to what Thade had taught her, she circled several times; trying to scent or hear the unknown watcher. Ears pricked, and nostrils wide, she didn't catch a scent, and the only thing she heard was a slight breeze, whispering among the trees.
Know beginning to feel slightly uncomfortable, Blackpaw lifted her emerald gaze to the heavens above, not exactly sure what had drawn her eyes to the sky to begin with.

The clouds moved forward in the sky with a sluggish pace, drifting among the azure blue sky. The crystal clear air wafted into the black she-cat's jaw; that was slightly open still from scenting. Faraway, a lone lark began to twitter his beautiful song, and the notes ran through the apprentice, smoothing out her mind, focusing her senses.
Too late she realized that the mottled tom was talking, and she quickly blinked twice to clear her thoughts, then turned all her mind on watching Thade. She felt slightly annoyed at the way he did the movements so slowly,
had she really done that bad?
After she had fully taken in the ways the warrior had leaped, she shot back a sarcastic meow to his praise, if you could call it that.
"I'm so glad the grumpy badger thinks I'm improving!"
Without a second look back, Blackpaw sprang into the air, once again going through the mental checklist.

Once she had reached the full height she was going to get, she fixed her eyes on Thade, then adjusted her tail, so she was falling in the right direction. When the ground was almost five tail-lengths away, she stiffened her lower legs, and relaxed the rest of her body muscle.
Smoothly she fell to the ground, this time right beside the tom. The shock of the landing had been absorbed by her muscle, and she felt no rattle at all.

Shaking the heat from her pelt, she irritatedly shot out her question before she let him have time to 'praise her success' again.
"Better?"

((Someone's miffed today! -cough-Blackpaw-cough- xD))

[Fernpaw]

((Heh, heh. Well, Thade wasn't really talking to Dragon. It was kinda like Dragon was just stirring up some thoughts in his heart, but Thade wasn't really speaking to him. Ya know?))

Thade narrowed his eyes at his black apprentice, annoyed that she would snap back at him so. "Well, the grumpy badger can get grumpier, and he only does things in your best interest," he mewed haughtily. As Blackpaw went through the moves again, he nodded in approval. "Good, good," he murmured, half to himself, half to the feline beside him.

He stood up abruptly---well, maybe abruptly isn't the best choice of word. We all know Thade well by now, so we know he couldn't really jerk or do anything abruptly if he tried. The mottled tom rose smoothly to his paws, mewing, "All right, you've mastered that. But don't get cocky," he warned, afraid the ego-stroking of his apprentice would have a negative effect. "It's better to be nervous with an opponent and overestimate them, then to be cocky and make a vital mistake."

Thade headed a little ways back into the bushes, they were getting a little to close to the Thunderpath for his comfort. "Now," he meowed, "Where were we? Oh yes, fighting." Immediately, the tom crouched into a defensive stance, hindquarters slightly raised but coiled tight, ready to spring. "Attack me!" he ordered.

[Shadepelt]

[[Yea, I know. I wish I had had more cats on WCV2, instead of just one kit! It's hard to RP in the StarClan boards now, with only a kit xP]]

A satisfied grin slipped onto the young cat's face, as the tom irritatedly replied to her remark; the apprentice had sucseeded in annoying him, and that was only a minority of what her mentor was in for. She was going to make him work to get her to be a great warrior; sometimes the black she-cat thought that was the only reason warriors would take on an apprentice, was to brag about them when they became a top warrior. Blackpaw doubted most of the mentors actually cared about the apprentices.

Green oculars watched Thade smoothly rise to his feet, and the leggy she-cat scowled inwardly; she was as clumbsy as a badger!
As her mentor talked on about battle tactics, she simply tilted her head, and met his gaze with a vacant expression, masking the fact that she was actually taking it all in. Taking it all in very well, in fact.

After the WindClan apprentice had followed her mentor slightly more toward the bushes, she turned to face him, barely blinking. Nodding once at his command, she took in several breaths; the heat was beginning to get to her black pelt. Shaking her head, she backed up several paces until the young feline had sidled up right beside the thunderpath. Then, she began a slow, easy lope; long legs padding softly against the ground. Smoothly and slowly, Blackpaw gained in speed, until she was whipping toward her mentor. In and out she weaved, making wide banks in her path. Finally, she took off into the air, several tail lengths from the mottled tom. Relaxing her muscles in the air, she flew swiftly through the air. Eyes blurred from the wind whipping at her face, it was hard to see where she was going to land. She was hoping, if she was quick enough, that she would be able to land on his tail, and show him that she could end up becoming a great warrior.

[[Gah, was that powerplaying? I get confuzzled in fights, I hope I didn't.]]

[Fernpaw]

((Weeelll, kinda. See, you don't know if he didn't move while she was running towards him. You can say something like, "If she was quick enough, she would land on his tail." or something like that. Because you just assumed that he'd be standing there. Can you modify it a little, please?))

[Shadepelt]

[[Okes, sorreh about that! I suck at that kinda stuff >_<]]

[Fernpaw]

((Did you fix it?))

[Shadepelt]

[[Yups. Gah, I seem like such a newbie sometimes D:]]

[Fernpaw]

((Lol. It's okay, I PP too sometimes.))

Thade watched in amusement as his apprentice launched herself at his tail. She seemed to have forgotten that Thade was an animated, living object, and therefore able to move. As Blackpaw was taking a giant leap into the air, Thade quickly whirled and brought his front paw flying towards the apprentice with the intention to knock her out of the air. Whether he hit her or now he did not know, nor did he really care.

Blackpaw was smart, but she rushed into things. She needed to learn to take things at a slower pace, think things through rationally, and not underestimate her opponent.

[Shadepelt]

[[OMIGOSH! Sorreh I havn't posted on here, in like, forever!]]

As the blinking wind whipped into the young feline's face, a dark flash passed her head, and the force batted her out of the air. She found herself now flying away from her mentor, and sighed as she turned in the air, and landed smoothly on the cracked ground.
Luminous green eyes narrowed in dissapointment, as Blackpaw shook the dust from her fur, which now felt as if it was on fire. The hot sun was getting to her, and her head was becomming dizzy. Not wanting to seem weak, she shook her head once, and padded back to the mottled tom.
"Okay, so you got me that time." She mewed grudgingly.
And the time before that... Her mind reminded her, before she irritatedly ignored that remark.
"I'll try harder this time, let's go again!"

[Fernpaw]

((Aha! Pray for mercy from . . . Thade!! I have finally found my way back here.))

Thade smiled inwardly, his admiration for the apprentice hidden by a mask of indifference. He shook his head in mock resignation as Blackpaw brushed the encounter away. "No, you can't do that." He mewed, "Before we go again, tell me what I did. What did you feel? What did you see? How could you avoid being hit again?"

The mottled tom sat back on his haunches, amber eyes scrutinizing his charge in silent laughter. Thade wondered if he'd ever been so carefree---he must have been. All kits were, so he had to have been . . . right? The tom shook his thoughts away, too confusing.

He turned his attention back to his silent apprentice.