[occultation]

Once he arrived at the Training Cliffs, Shadowfur decided to begin Larkpaw’s assessment. He felt a pang as it occurred to him that the last time he had been here was with Hailpaw. The young apprentice had been undisciplined and frustrating, but he had an apparent desire to learn. It was a shame that he had to go and get himself killed.

Turning to Larkpaw, he focused on keeping his face emotionless and his tone neutral. “First, you’ll be hunting. I want you to go and catch a rabbit, and then bring it back to these cliffs.” By giving her something specific, he would be able to test both her tracking and hunting ability. He didn’t bother to mention that he would be observing her from upwind, hidden. She probably knew that already, and if she didn’t, telling her would only hurt her. Shadowfur wanted a glimpse of her actual hunting ability, not how she hunted when someone was actually watching.

He nodded toward the woods, silently signaling for her to start.

( @Kat )