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Post by Snowstar on Jul 29, 2006 13:53:54 GMT -5
A lean, silvery form padded out of the trees and into the open, glancing around, though what he was looking for even he didn't know. The river had been one of his favorite places to hunt and play as an appretnice, and nothing had changed since he was a warrior. He loved the feeling of being near the water and the sound of the ripples of water as the waves washed over his paws. Somehow, he hoped that his own apprentice would enjoy the training session as much as he knew he would.
The tom-cat permitted himself a small sigh of happiness before turning his thoughts back to the present. Hunting today, he decided. It made sense — the River was certainly good for fishing, and the only places to learn how to swim. But Twilightpaw should learn how to hunt land prey as well; if she were ever to be an asset to her Clan, she had to know how to hunt many animals. He had already taught her how to catch land prey- or atleast the basics- and now was a time for her to learn the basics of Fishing.
With some hesitation, Moonepelt eventually decided that they should do mice, voles, and rabbits first, to see what she had remembered and see if she could catch some prey yet. Then, they would move onto swimming and soon enough they would learn how to fish.
Now all he had to do was wait for the apprentice to get here.
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Post by Shadepelt on Jul 29, 2006 14:07:00 GMT -5
The sun shone across the vast land that held the Clan's territories, warming up the ground and shining on the river. The water sparkled like Silverpelt in the day-time, reflections of the ball of fire in the sky dancing to and fro, seeming to rejoice for the beautiful green-leaf day. A very quite rustle could be heard, and a slight movement in the grasses showed that something was coming. Long, river reeds parted to reveal a small she-cat, bearing a black and white pelt, with paws as golden as leaves in leaf-fall. A small head crowned with black ears poked out of the reeds, icy blue orbs gleaming with excitment. Her pretty face perked up in a grin, the RiverClan apprentice emerged fully from the plants, and shook off the dew that clung to her smooth pelt.
Trotting cheerfully over toward her mentor, Moonpelt, the young cat sat down and gazed up at the tom beside her.
"Hello Moonpelt! What are we going to do today?" The lively, friendly meow was fast paced, Twilightpaw was excited!
As she stared hopefully at her mentor, tail waving idly, her mind was hoping for a certain kind of training today-
Please be swimming, please be swimming!
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Post by Snowstar on Jul 30, 2006 21:56:11 GMT -5
Moonpelt smiled at his apprentice eagerness, before saying, " Well, I was thinking of teaching you how to swim, but first I want to see if you can catch some land prey." He grinned wickedly at the white apprentice, before continuing, "Come on, then. It could turn out to be helpul someday, even though we arn't known for hunting, mostly."
He paused, settling herself into a more comfortable position. A calm expression swept across his face, as he eyed his apprentice with a warm gaze, his ears pricked at the sound of upcoming prey. Today, he hoped they would get what he wanted done quickly and then, perhaps, they would move onto the next thing, Fishing.
The tom waited patiently for his apprentice to start, his coat blazing in the sun and he gently curled his tail around his paws, moving his gaze away. Glancing around, his eyes fell on the river, and he grinned. It was fast with snowmelt, yet a path of stones had been formed across the river. It would be perfect for teaching an apprentice the lessons Twilightpaw needed to learn as a Riverclanner. He tore his eyes away from the rushing water and looked back at his apprentice thoughtfully.
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Post by Shadepelt on Aug 6, 2006 21:26:38 GMT -5
So eager was Twilightpaw's spirit, she was just a tiny bit crestfallen when Moonpelt told her they wern't doing swimming, at the moment at least.
Well, her thoughts spoke to her clearly, and cheerfully, let's get this done so we can swim! Sweeping her intense gaze over to her mentor, she nodded, and pricked her black ears, listening for sounds of prey. For moments everything was still, as if Father Time himself had stopped his great, ticking clock of the passing seconds, minutes, hours, days, months, and years. Finally the cease of noice was broken, by a faint, but visible rustling in the grass.
Sinking down slowly into a hunter's crouch, the young she-cat focused entirerly onto the prey infront of her, by scent it was a vole. After a split second of thinking her attack over, she leapt into the air, high into the sky with the energy and strength of a young cat as she. When the apprentice had reached her limit in height, she began to hurtle down silently toward the ground, which seemed to be coming in fast. Shifting her body's weight into her paws, she landed ontop of the small creature with a soft 'whump'. A swift bite to the vole's neck later, she had killed some awaiting cat's food.
Picking it up in her slender maw, she trotted happily back to the tom, and set it down betwixt her paws.
"Well? How was that?"
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Post by Snowstar on Aug 14, 2006 16:45:20 GMT -5
With a quick nod, he shifted his eyes a bit as he focosed on the young feline before him and his ears pricked once more at the sound of nearby prey. A smile was slipped on his face, with a amused, yet slightly confused expression at Twilightpaw as she seemed a bit crestfallen at his decision.
Wow...She must really want to learn how to swim then.
With a dip of his head, acknowleging her to start, he looked down sternly at his apprentice and looked intently at each of her movements, as if trying to memorize each one sepreatly. Amazed at her progress, he grinned the slightest bit as she continued and whiskers twitching with amusent, he soon relized that she had changed, a lot since he had first tested her.
She must have trained, because she's obviously gotten better and fixed her position. Now she is perfectly balanced.
Trotting over to the young she-cat, he smiled happily and nodded quickly, as he too was eager to go on to the next lesson. A mew of happiness escaped him, his eyes glinting with pride for his first apprentice and he flicked his tail over to the river, with a swift, yet smooth, movement. He began to speak, obiously pleased by the sound of his voice.
" Good job, Twilightpaw. Now we can move on, Drop that Vole over there - he meowed with a flick of his tail toward a nearby bush, his gaze still resting on the water - " and then we can start. When you're done, I'd like to see how well you can swim. Don't worry, you won't drown. Every Riverclan cat should have that natural ability, no matter how young they are. Plus, I'll be here to help you. I'll be waiting in there."
He finished, his voice now in a soft, yet comforting town - like a mother tending to her kits - and he nodded quickly, trotting over to the river that lay before him. Paws quickly bouncing of the soft dirt, he finally reached the water and skidded to a stop, finding comfort as the ripples of water reached his paws. Slowly he continued foward, dipping each paw in one by one and he adjusted to the tempreture rather quickly and with a bound, splashed in. He stood there, feeling the rocks beneath him and he stood there as he waited for his apprentice to join him.
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Post by Shadepelt on Aug 14, 2006 17:43:15 GMT -5
The young she-cat grinned cheerfully as her eyes showed her Moonpelt trotting happily over toward her. Heart leaping as her mentor's tail flicked towards the river, and she had to focus herself to hear his instructions.
"Alright Moonpelt!" The meow came out full of energy and joy, and swiftly she bounded to the bush, then dropped the dead vole beside it's leafy branches.
Rushing back to the river and her mentor, the tom's soft mew still fresh in her mind. Stopping with a lurch by the water's bank, she let her mind wander as she gazed at the swirling world of wet below her.
Remembering her training, she quickly glanced at her mentor, who was already standing in the shallow part of the river. With one final exhale before the jump, she pricked her ears, and nodded at the tom. With that, she leaped gracefully in.
An electric shock of cold was the first thing the apprentice felt, as she dived into the frigid water. After several moments, she had a level head, and Twilightpaw returned to above the water. With a gasp and a shake, she sent a scattered shower of droplets into the air around her.
Still shivering slightly, black and white fur slick, she braced her golden paws as to keep her balance on the slick rocks below her.
Turning her icy blue orbs to stare at her mentor's, she grinned widely, and waited for her next instructions.
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Post by Snowstar on Aug 17, 2006 12:52:28 GMT -5
Feeling the waves of water wash over him, he spotted Twilightpaw beginning to pad toward him and he moved slightly, making room for her as he went farther into the water. For a moment he stopped, finding comfort as the wind brushed against his fur and as he felt his paws rock beneath him, he shook his head to clear his thoughts before giving his apprentice a breif nod to begin the lesson.
His ears flicked silently, just to make sure that nothing was going to dislodge him from the position that he stood and his whiskers twitched in amusement as he remembered what it was like when he had first begun to swim. Known as Moonpaw, back then he hadn't known a thing and nearly drowed from fright when his mentor tried to teach him. Of course his parents had given an attempt to teach him before, but it was in vain for he had slipped off the side when going in, diving head first. From then on he had been utterly terrified until his mentor had tried a different approuch which was to just wad in the water, just until he had felt comfortable and that worked, for he was rather a decent swimmer now.
Looking down at his apprentice he gave her a comforting smile before she dipped in with a splash and he was about to rush foward in case she were to slip, but that wasn't the case so he just stood there. After watching her catch her breath, he began speaking with a smooth tone.
" Good job, Twilightpaw. If you're used to the water, then we can see how far you can swim or how deep. "
With his silver paws guiding him, he gave his apprentices a comforting smile and began to wade backwords until he was unable to feel the rocks under his paws. With a swift movement, he was in the middle of the water and he swam silently, his paws carrying him above the water. His head stayed just above the water, so that he wouldn't take a huge amount of water, but however he began to swim closer as he waited for his apprentice.
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Post by Shadepelt on Aug 17, 2006 16:11:23 GMT -5
Ebony and ivory pelt prickling as the cold water flowed toward her, she nodded respectfully as her mentor spoke words of praise on her entry to the water. For several moments she stood still and waited, letting her paws and lower legs numb, so she could no longer feel the icy prick of the river.
Soon she could no longer feel her legs, and she slowly walked forward with a confident aire in her stride. A small grin uplifted the tips of her mouth as she padded, proud head high, through the water, but disappeared suddenly as the young apprentice realized all quite suddenly that she could no longer feel the rocks beneath her paws.
Swiftly her breathing quickened, and her blue eyes grew wide with fear. As the current picked up, she flailed her four legs and tried despretly to swim back to the tom. Finding herself getting carried farther and farther away, she mewed out in terror,
"Moonpelt! Help! The water---it's moving too fast!"
As her head went under the surface of the water, she was suddenly ashamed.
I'm a RiverClan cat, I can't even swim.
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Post by Snowstar on Aug 18, 2006 19:11:48 GMT -5
Eyes widening in surprise, the tom gathered his strength and plunged foward, his eyes searching frantically for the splattered coat of his apprentice. For a moment, it seemed that his efforts were in vain, but soon enough he spotted the black and white coat, as he swam foward, paws pushing against the current.
A silver head dunked swiftly into the water as he grabbed hold of the apprentices scruff. Luckily, the water sent Twilightpaw down to a much safer, shallower part of the river - and here the current became slow enough for Moonpelt to keep up. He had soon taken another long gasp of breath and as he felt the hold loosen, he grasped it again tightly. Slowly, but surely he gave an effortful attempt to pull her back on shore and he quietly prayed to starclan that she would alright. However, much to his dismay he could feel the current push against him and pulling further away from the shallow water.
If he had been alone, and not holding the extra weight, then he most likely would have been already been on shore without a problem. Though it was a struggle, he still managed to push foward with his paws leading him and he took another gasp of breath as he swam back to shore. Gathering his strength, he pushed foward again and in a last attempt, dropped her gently on the shore, feeling the current soften as he felt the rocks under his paws once more.
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Post by Shadepelt on Aug 20, 2006 16:27:58 GMT -5
[]
The silvery underwater world below the surface of the river, was oddly calming, even for a drowning apprentice. Silence filled her ears, and even though the water made her vision blurred, the dancing shapes in the water filled her with some kind of inner peace.
Suddenly, a silver-coloured head plunged under the water and grabbed the scruff of her neck, and pulled her swiftly above surface. As soon as Moonpelt had gently brought her to a shallower spot of river, she coughed and spluttered until her lungs were clear once more.
Raising to her golden paws slowly, she shook the clinging water from her water-drenched pelt, flinging droplets every which-way.
"Moonpelt, I'm so sorry!" The apprentice mewed wearily. "I just lost my footing---thank you for saving me."
Icy blue eyes shone as she gazed admirably at her mentor, then quickly lowered them in embarrassment.
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Post by Snowstar on Aug 21, 2006 9:52:20 GMT -5
[[ Thanks!]]
A look of confusion crossed his face for a split-second, as his apprentice apoligized and it quickly dissapeared, placed with a comforting look with a smile.
For a mere moment, his eyes blinked closed and he took a deep breath, still taking in what had just happened. In the water, he had been terrified that his apprentice was drowning just as he had done all those moons ago and it was like his past was reliving itself as a nightmare, so he had everyright to be scared. Still, he knew that he had to be there for his apprentice and he eyed her carefully, making sure nothing was wrong before speaking to her, his voice soft and comforting.
" Don't worry, every cat - even me - has probably had that expeirence. I nearly drowned, as a kit and there's nothing wrong with that, as long as you get back up and try again. - he gave her a warm smile, before asking sternly - Are you ok, though? "
If she was, he would try once more and move onto fishing. She had done a great job, much better then he had done as an apprentice : Spluttering and shaking with fear at the sight of the sea. As he thought about it, he smiled at the thought of seeing any cat, even himself, scared at the water he now had grown to love.
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Post by Shadepelt on Aug 22, 2006 20:38:17 GMT -5
A small, but hear-felt grin replaced the frown of emberassment after hearing Moonpelt's words that made her feel much better.
"I'm fine, don't worry!" Her reply was fast and true, the apprentice just wanted to try it again.
Now that her body was used to the water's temperature, the young she-cat had no problem wading farther away from her mentor, before slowly padding toward the middle of the river. Keeping most of her weight on her paws, as so not lose her footing again, the black and white pelted cat stopped once her paws were off the ground. Immediatly Twilightpaw started to make running movements with her legs, and she felt herself starting to move forward. Blue eyes bright with excitement, yet stern with confidence, she lifted her face toward the sky, to keep from swallowing water.
A frown came upon her jaw as she found herself being pushed toward the shore by the current, instead of toward her mentor.
Paws touching the riverbed once more, the young apprentice padded along the water's shallow edge toward the tom.
"Why can't I swim the way I want to?" The mew was questioning, with a slight bit of demand; the cat wanted to find out why things wern't going her way.
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Post by Snowstar on Aug 25, 2006 18:35:06 GMT -5
Moonpelt let out a simple smile, happy that Twilightpaw had gained her spirit once more and with a quick nod, he made his way into the river once more. Waves washing gently over his coat, he continued to go deeper into the river until the water just reached his shoulders. For a moment, his eyes flickered about, as if he was unsure if he should go any deeper, but then he spotted his apprentice wading even further and he gave her a warm smile. She was doing great, much better then he expected because moments ago she looked as if she would quit trying. Soon, though he was reminded that Twilightpaw would do anything but that, that was just how she was.
For a moment, he seemed surprised that she hadn't asked him any questions in a while - that is, as he soon realized, he was wrong.
Whiskers twitching in amusement at her inability to be quiet for at least a few moments - while she was happy that is, - he began wading further on until answering her with a cool, smooth tone.
"That is because, I suppose, the current is probably pushing you back and it's stronger then you too. But, I'm sure, once you get the hang of it, it shouldn't be problem as long as you keep going forward and not let it get the best of you."
He paused for a moment, a serious look crossing his face and he looked intently at each of her movement. She actually, had already - as he saw it - was getting the hang of it. Unlike him long ago, she had already begun to swim rather well. Perhaps it was time to teach her fishing....
Maybe, but he'd just have to test that, now wouldn't he.
"Hey, Twilightpaw. Would you like to try to fish. Their are two ways, one is easier though, but we'll have to go back to shore for that."
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