Trainin' time {Dewpaw}

[Head{admin}]

Grass rustled as a lean, muscular body slipped over the rolling hills, amber eyes searching the land for any sign of danger. Living in ValeClan was not as easy as the other Clans seemed to think--as the Clan with the most abundant prey, ValeClan had to deal with the most predators. No cat could go anywhere in Newleaf without being careful. Reasonably convinced that they were safe for the moment, the dark gray tabby planted her butt on the ground and curled her tail around her forepaws, ears flickering this way and that as she took in the rustling of field mice and the munching of rabbits. "What do you smell, Dewpaw?" she asked, trusting that her apprentice had followed her all this way--Hiddenstorm hadn't looked back once.

[mystik]

Alert and excited, Dewpaw had followed closely behind Hiddenstorm. Although she wanted nothing more than to go explore, she knew that training was important, so she forced herself to listen closely. Quietly, after hearing her mentors question, Dewpaw padded over next to Hiddenstorm and sat down. Her blue eye's bright, Dewpaw nodded at her mentor, and raised her muzzle to drink in the scents around her.

Her ears twitched, and a grin grew across her muzzle. She could smell many things, but she was proud of herself when she was able to pick out the scents of prey so easily. Turning her gaze back to Hiddenstorm, she answered the question. "I smell rabbits,mice, and...and just a whiff of vole! The scents are pretty fresh, so they must be close by." Her whiskers twitching, Dewpaw waited for a response from Hiddenstorm.

[Head{admin}]

"Very good," Hiddenstorm mewed, touching the tip of her tail to the eager apprentice's shoulder. "Yes, they are close. Let's try not to scare them away just yet. Tell me...how far away is the rabbit? In which direction is the mouse? And the vole? It is very important to know exactly where the prey is, so you know what kind of crouch you need to stalk it with."

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[mystik]

Dewpaw grinned, she had gotten it right! Still she needed to answer the other questions however, so she raised her muzzle and drank in the scents once again to detect the exact direction in which the prey were in. After a moment, she had determined the location. "The rabbit is a good two fox-lengths away, in this direction." Dewpaw pointed west, with the tip of her tail to show where the rabbit was. "The vole and the mouse are in the opposite direction, over here.

" Dewpaw gingerly pointed east, with her tail tip, and she couldn't help but glance at Hiddenstorm. Was she doing this correctly, or was it all wrong. Hiddenstorm's expression didn't reveal anything, so it was difficult to tell. I just hope that I don't disappoint her. Dewpaw thought to herself, as she drew her attention up into the sky. There was no telling what Hiddenstorm was going to say.

[Head{admin}]

"Good," Hiddenstorm mewed again, realizing the apprentice had the scenting down pretty darn well. "But you must always be alert for moving. They do move a lot, even if they're just scavenging for food. See, the rabbit is moving to the right." Both the rustling of grass, the sound of soft hopping, and the moving scent alerted the warrior to this, and she set her eyes in the direction of the rabbit. "The vole and the mouse are the kind of prey that will feel the vibrations of your pawsteps before they hear the pawsteps or your breath. Rabbits will hear you before anything else. So, young Dewpaw...which prey would you like to learn how to hunt? Choose quickly, before they scamper away." Not that it'd be a problem if the three prey left. It wasn't like ValeClan was ever short on prey. But Dewpaw needed to learn to think on her feet.

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[mystik]

Dewpaw's spirits lifted when she was correct once again. Listening quietly to the rustling of the grass, she quickly made her decision on which prey she wanted to hunt. Turning back to Hiddenstorm, she meowed confidently, "I want to learn how to hunt rabbits." She wanted to learn how to hunt both, but rabbits sem't more challenging, and she was up for a challenge. Besides, rabbits were more filling, and Dewpaw wanted to hunt her best. Hopefully she would be able to get this hunting lesson down. The clan always semt to always have plenty of prey, but it couldn't hurt to catch more.

[Head{admin}]

"Okay then," Hiddenstorm mewed, glad with how quickly Dewpaw replied. Stepping forward, Hiddenstorm dropped into her best rabbit-hunting crouch. She bent her legs and stood lightly on her toes, tail raised so that it would not brush the ground, and belly not quite touching the grass beneath her paws. "You must be very quiet," she mewed gently, creeping forward paw-by-paw. "Take your time. Make every effort to keep the rabbit from hearing you, and stay light on your feet. Don't get rushed. That will lose you your prey. Pick your paws up very carefully, and put them down carefully. Understand?" She sat up, nodding for Dewpaw to try the crouch.

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[mystik]

Quietly Dewpaw nodded, crouching to the ground, her tail slightly raised, just as her mentor had done. Her paws steady, and her senses sharp, she slowly edged further, quiet as a mouse. Maybe even quieter. "Is this right?" Dewpaw whispered to Hiddenstorm, still in her crouching position. Her whiskers twitched in amusement, and a sudden rush of adrenaline coursed through her veins. Dewpaw was excited, she was going to catch a rabbit! Or she was at least going to try. She wanted nothing more than to catch a rabbit on her first lesson. Still, things don't work out the way you want them to sometimes, and Dewpaw was going to accept that. Even if she didn't catch a rabbit, she was still proud of how well she was doing on this hunting trip.

[Head{admin}]

((Don't forget to roll the die to see if you can catch it or not))

"Almost," Hiddenstorm mewed, padding over and placing her paw under the apprentice's stomach. "Raise up just a little more. You don't want your belly brushing the ground. Other than that, your tail is good and you're quiet. Now, you need to creep as close to the rabbit as you can, but be careful not to go too far. When you think you are close enough, wait until the rabbit is distracted by eating before you spring out. It will most likely run, and you'll have to chase it, so keep your claws unsheathed and be ready to leap forward at any moment. Now, off you go. Try it."

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[mystik]

(Okay)

Dewpaw quietly crept forward, making sure her belly was not brushing the ground, just as Hiddenstorm had instructed. Glancing down at her paws for just a moment, she made sure her claws where unsheathed as well. She didn't want any foolish mistakes to cause her to miss her mark. Quietly she continued, until the rabbit came into view.

The rabbit was busy munching on some grass in a patch nearby. Dewpaw watched as all of a sudden, the rabbit's turned and it's ears stood straight up. Oh no! Dewpaw thought. Did it hear me? A sigh of relief came over Dewpaw after the rabbit turned back around and resumed eating. This could be her only chance at catching the rabbit, snd she was going to take it.

[dice=6]

Using everything Hiddenstorm had taught her, she crept ever closer, her heart racing. She had gotten this far, but would she be able to catchthe rabbit? She sure hoped so. When the rabbit was a mear rabbits length away, Dewpaw crouched, readying the attack. Quickly she lept torwards the rabbit, claws unsheathed. Dewpaw's eyes grew wide, as the rabbit turned just as Dewpaw was coming down.

The frightened rabbit tried to run, but Dewpaws teeth had already met the back of it's neck, and she was unprepared to give up now. Her claws dug into the rabbits flesh, and after the rabbit gave a few stubborn kicks, it became completely still. Dewpaw released the dead rabbit, and stared at it breathlessly. She had actually captured her prey, and she felt ecstatic. She turned to where Hiddenstorm had been, and wondered what she thought about the catch. One thing was sure, Dewpaw was truly proud of herself.

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[Head{admin}]

Hiddenstorm's eyes followed her apprentice as Dewpaw stalked after the rabbit. When she was out of sight, the warrior's ears listened to the soft padding of paws, and then the slight squeal as the rabbit was caught. Padding forward with tail high, the gray tabby she-cat found Dewpaw and smiled. "That was wonderful. You may be a wonderful rabbit-catcher one day," she purred, giving her apprentice a quick lick on the forehead. It was a rather large rabbit, too.

"Now, Dewpaw," she mewed, sitting back down and curling her tail around her forepaws. "Bury that rabbit so we can come back and get it later. Do you want to keep hunting rabbits, or would you like to learn how to hunt another type of prey? We can always head into the forests for squirrels or birds." Now that Dewpaw had done so well in her first attempt, Hiddenstorm wanted to reward her by letting her decide what to do next.

[mystik]

Dewpaw smiled and she felt good all over. She was thoroughly enjoying this hunting trip, and she wanted to hunt more. "Can we hunt...birds now?" Dewpaw asked, her eyes shining brightly. Dewpaw was overjoyed that Hiddenstorm had been so happy with her, and she wanted to impress her mentor even more. Her tail twitched just slightly, as she peered torwards the direction of the woods. Her eyes directed themselves back torward her mentor, and something hit her. She hadn't burried the rabbit yet! "Oh, I almost forgot!" Dewpaw exclaimed. Quickly she burried the rabbit, wanting to get a move on with the hunting.

[Head{admin}]

In the act of reminding the apprentice to bury the rabbit, Hiddenstorm had to bite her words back--Dewpaw had remembered. Purring slightly with pleasure--it was nice to have such a quick-learning apprentice--Hiddenstorm flicked her tail for Dewpaw to follow, before racing towards the nearest woodlands. "Try to keep up!" she called back, stretching her legs out in a run. She would try Dewpaw's endurance as well today.

Hiddenstorm slowed to a trot as they moved into the shade provided by a stand of oak trees. The sound of birdsong filled the air, and the warrior smiled; this was a good time to be hunting birds. "Now, Dewpaw, can you tell me why hunting birds is so much different than hunting rabbits or mice?" she mewed, coming to a halt in a small glade and lying down in the sunlight. The light warmed her back and she released a purr of contentment. Sunny days did not last long during Newleaf.

[mystik]

Her legs extended, Dewpaw ran after her mentor, doing her best to keep up. Her paws pounded on the ground, and she was surprised that she was able to keep up. Seeing Hiddenstorm slow down, Dewpaw slowed down as well, preparing to answer Hiddenstorm's question. She tilted her head to one side as she thought about it. "Well hunting birds is different from hunting mice and rabbits because, birds can fly and they react quicker. It's harder to sneak up on them." Dewpaw stared up into the trees, and watched birds fly by over head. She wondered if she would be able to catch one of these birds, the way she had caught the rabbit. For some reason Dewpaw had a feeling that it would be more difficult.

[Head{admin}]

"Precisely," Hiddenstorm mewed, nodding her head slightly. "One major thing to keep in mind is that it is likely the bird will hear you right before you pounce, and therefore fly up into the air. You need to have strong back legs to leap after the bird and catch it between your paws. So, with that being said..." she padded over to a rock that was about as tall as her shoulder. "We need to get those back muscles built up. I want you to leap up onto this rock and then back down ten times. Every day, you will have to do this ten times, and at some point we will find a bigger rock. So have at it," she mewed, padding back a few steps and settling onto the ground, forepaws tucked beneath her chest. She would wait here and watch Dewpaw. "Make each jump careful and as high as you can go. Crouch, tense, and spring upwards, with claws outstretched as if you were going after a bird."