Heroneye stood just outside the apprentice's den, getting ready to summon the two who'd asked for training that last meeting. It was early in the morning; she could just make out the rising sun climbing over the horizon, and there was a faint chill in the air despite the quickly approaching greenleaf--though as training went, this was a fairly standard time to start.

"Spiderpaw? Sprucepaw?" she called in a low voice, loud enough to be heard but hopefully not waking any other apprentices who were sleeping in. She stepped back, giving the pair some time to get their bearings and meet Heroneye outside.

It wasn't every day that the Lionheart got to train two apprentices at once, much less ones who seemed to have the same enthusiasm for learning as they did. Heroneye couldn't help but look forward to their training session as well, she realized. Funny, isn't it? A few seasons ago, she never would have expected that she'd enjoy or look forward to teaching young cats, and yet here she was. She supposed she was grateful; as a Lionheart, it was her duty to help with training at least one subject, whether she particularly wanted to or not. Wanting to simply made it easier--though she supposed that was a fairly reductive way of looking at it.

In any case, Heroneye stayed in place, breathing in the crisp air as she awaited the arrival of the apprentices.

(i took the liberty of posting a starter, hopefully that's okay! also, for the sake of clarity, i'm having this take place before the otter fight, since she'd probably be resting otherwise)

( @namen_roodles - Spiderpaw ; @Nahbois - Sprucepaw )

https://warriorcatsonline.com/forums...ictureid=67838
SPIDERPAW
Riverclan Apprentice | 8 moons | Lanky, amber eyed, blue-grey tabby she-cat with white paws, chin, and tail tip.
Heightened perception: Smell
~~~

More dreams. Nightmares? This time Spiderpaw remembered a little more. Starry eyes as the current pulled her away, tasting and smelling only the saltiness of the sea...

With a slight jolt, Spiderpaw woke to the Lionheart's call. She blinked and sneezed as though clearing water from her nose. She didn't feel it anymore, but that sensation was hard to chase away. The young tabby looked over and would nudge Sprucepaw if she wasn't awake already from the call before stepping out of the den and into the chilled clearing. It was so early! Practically no one seemed to really be awake yet as the sky was just beginning to illuminate.

"Good morning, Heroneye," Spiderpaw mewed with a dip of her head. She felt the dream slipping away as excitement began to seep into her sleepy mind. A wide yawn parted her maw as she sat. She started grooming her pelt, trying to quickly remove any leftover bedding and smooth out her fur. She had been a bit fluffy from her bristle-worthy dreams, but the feeling was quickly fading. It was just a dream, and she needed to focus on training.

Which was awesome! She was gonna get to not only train more advanced stuff, but do it with someone else! Spiderpaw looked back at the apprentice den, waiting patiently for Sprucepaw to follow her out.

Heroneye acknowledged the apprentices' thanks with a dip of her head and began to lead them out of camp. She almost thought that they ought to wait until after the training session for them to thank her. She had to imagine that Spiderpaw genuinely enjoyed her lesson, based both on how she'd acted before and the fact that she'd come back for another in the first place. As for Sprucepaw, she couldn't yet be sure that he'd be satisfied. Teaching multiple apprentices at once opened up new opportunities for lessons, and while Heroneye was quite interested to see how it would go, she also carried a bit of apprehension with her. Old habits died hard, and suddenly she could feel that old insecurity of hers creeping back.

No matter. She'd vanquish this nervousness just like she did before; exposure. She knew enough to say that teaching two apprentices at once couldn't be all that different from teaching only one, at least on a fundemental level. Besides, she could also tell that Spiderpaw and Sprucepaw wouldn't go out of their ways to berrate Heroneye if she made a mistake--though she also hoped to earn and retain their respect, if she could help it.

Before long, Heroneye found that they'd arrived in her usual clearing. She turned around to face the pair of younger cats and begin the lesson. "To begin, I would like to watch the two of you spar against each other." She turned to each cat in turn. She wanted to get a baseline for their abilities before anything else--particularly Sprucepaw's. The young cat had insisted against allowing her relatively basic battle knowledge from holding her back, but Heroneye still wanted to know where she stood, exactly. The best way to form a lesson, from the Lionheart's experience, was to work off of the apprentice's strengths and weaknesses--and that would go for Spiderpaw too, of course.

"One of you may begin by attempting to 'attack' the other, and then continue from there as though in a real battle. Claws sheathed, as always." She paused for a moment before adding, "Begin whenever you're ready."

( @namen_roodles - Spiderpaw ; @Nahbois - Sprucepaw )

https://warriorcatsonline.com/forums...ictureid=67838
SPIDERPAW
Riverclan Apprentice | 9 moons | Lanky, amber eyed, blue-grey tabby she-cat with white paws, chin, and tail tip.
Heightened perception: Smell
~~~

Spiderpaw padded along as Heroneye led the way out of camp. Her tail lolled behind her as her mind spun with thoughts about what they would be doing for training today. The smell of the forest grounded her as they walked. Sprucepaw seemed really nice, and she liked Heroneye. The quieter group helped her relax a bit, even with the light coil of excitement mixed with anxiety about how well she might do in this lesson.

The clearing they stepped into was familiar. Spiderpaw remembered it from their last training session before they had moved on to the second part of their lesson. She looked around, feeling a bit more appreciation for the practically perfect space for sparring. No wonder this was Heroneye's preferred spot to train apprentices. Maybe when she was a warrior she would ask the lionheart if she could use it for training apprentices, too, someday.

Spiderpaw's ears perked up when she heard the assignment. Fight Sprucepaw? It would be the first time she got to spar with anyone else. She'd get to put her skills to use... but, she also didn't want Sprucepaw to feel discouraged because she hadn't been trained yet. So, she took a few steps to make some space between her and the other apprentice, ears perked and eyes keen. "Whenever you're ready." She said.

She had several ideas in her head, but settled on one she could use fairly quickly and easily. When Sprucepaw came closer, she would try to leap over the other apprentice, banking on her hopefully not rearing up to stop her, before she would kick out with both hind legs to keep whatever forward momentum Sprucepaw might have going, or at least off balance her. After that... well, she didn't have much of a plan, yet.