ShadowClan Territory

[Shade.]

Sharppaw parted her jaws quietly, trying not to make a smacking sound as she did, lest it alert the prey. She needed to be light on her feet and so the took a comfortable position, slightly less crouched so she could move more freely. She carefully looked around and sniffed quietly, zeroing in on her prey. With quiet steps, she moved closer to the rock in question and then, after having placed her front paws carefully upon it, hoisted herself over it in one swift motion, bending down to bite the lizard relaxing. Unfortuantely, she moved a little to suddenly and, as she grabbed the creature in her maw, her face smooshed against the rock and she felt her nose burn. Oh well, she caught the prey at least. Sharppaw turned around, a thin streak of blood dripping from her nostril, and presented the dead lizard to Elmshadow.

@Ravensong

[Pitou]

**Elmshadow**

@Shade.

As Sharppaw leapt over the rock, Elmshadow straightened from his crouch to better watch the apprentice's attempt. Her stalk was well executed and the catch was successful, everything in between was questionable but he could hardly argue with results. He noted dully the small trickle of blood blazing on the young she-cat's nose. "Get eyes on your prey whenever you can. Youll better be able to judge exactly where to pounce and you'll increase your catch ratio. Your stalking is good enough that taking the extra time to move yourself around the rock would be beneficial. Just watch your own shadow so it doesnt fall over the prey." He nodded at the dead lizard. "Bury it and clean yourself up, then we'll move on."

Elmshadow looked around the forest as he waited briefly for Sharppaw to do as he directed before he stood and padded off. Tracking down prey while training was often a higher degree of difficulty. If you were skilled enough you could hunt and kill without making a sound, but when you were training, words needed to be shared so it was a safer bet to put some distance between one training area to the next to save wasting time searching for prey that had already been alerted to cats' presence. He slowed to a stop as the scent of blackbird caught his attention. He decided to say nothing and look back to Sharppaw to see if, first, she'd find the prey herself and, second, make her attempt.

[Shade.]

@Ravensong

Sharppaw licked the blood off her face and brushed over her nose with one paw, ignoring the pain. Strong cats weren't meant to give into a bleeding nose. She buried the lizard as instructed. She took Elmshadow's instruction into account, feeling a smidge of pride about her good stalking skills.

Elmshadow suddenly came to a halt and silently looked at her which she took as a sign that there was prey they needed to catch. She sniffed the air and located a blackbird. Her walk smoothly transitioned into a stalk and she snuck around as her eyes landed on the bird that was pecking the dirt. She realized it was out in the open quite a bit, which was going to be difficult. She snuck her way around to face it's back. Her shadow was out but the bird had it's back turned anyway and it was better than having to pounce at it from the from or side. She managed to sneak out the underbrush without rustled and, after a few tiny steps, launched herself at the Blackbird, catching it in her jaws.

[Pitou]

**Elmshadow**

@Shade. [If you'd like to end it here we can or you can RP finding more prey as they head back towards camp and we can keep it going, up to you.]

Elmshadow watched his apprentice closely as she smoothly transitioned from a walk to a stalk after hed stopped. He still couldn't tell yet if she was doing that because he stopped or if she'd actually scented the bird nearby until she looped around to adjust for her sight and the shadows. Sharppaw made quick work of her silent stalk, successfully not alerting the happily pecking bird. When she made her move it was quick and decisive and she made the killing bite cleanly. Elmshadow padded over to his apprentice and gave a short nod of approval. "Well caught. Your movements were minimal and smooth, your positioning was smart, and your pounce was decisive." He turned his back ti move off in the direction of camp. "Bring your catch along. We'll check for more prey as we head back in this direction."

[Shade.]

Originally Posted by Ravensong

**Elmshadow**

@Shade. [If you'd like to end it here we can or you can RP finding more prey as they head back towards camp and we can keep it going, up to you.]

Elmshadow watched his apprentice closely as she smoothly transitioned from a walk to a stalk after hed stopped. He still couldn't tell yet if she was doing that because he stopped or if she'd actually scented the bird nearby until she looped around to adjust for her sight and the shadows. Sharppaw made quick work of her silent stalk, successfully not alerting the happily pecking bird. When she made her move it was quick and decisive and she made the killing bite cleanly. Elmshadow padded over to his apprentice and gave a short nod of approval. "Well caught. Your movements were minimal and smooth, your positioning was smart, and your pounce was decisive." He turned his back ti move off in the direction of camp. "Bring your catch along. We'll check for more prey as we head back in this direction."

[We can finish now. Whoot! Time for Sharpie's ceremony!]

Sharppaw was definitely satisfied with her work and the praise she'd received. Ever since she lost her father, she felt insecure in her worth. He may have disappeared, but she'd never forget what he had said. Weak cats polluted the forest and deserved to die. And she didn't want to die. It was funny though. People used to judge her because of the dislike they had for Frogfang and her resemblance to him. She would also never forget what her mother said. How she didn't want her anymore. But it didn't matter now, they were all gone.
She nodded at her mentor an began to head back. Feeling a little twinge of excitement knowing her ceremony was coming up.

[Pancake]

Originally Posted by Aqua Catrina

Goldpaw nodded, "ok"

After skirting the borders a bit, Softpelt headed back deeper into the territory, planning to show Goldpaw the best hunting spots and recognizable places. She glanced up at the sky, watching clouds pass through the trees. "After this, we should practice some hunting techniques." She smiled. This was fun, just taking a walk. The warrior hadn't been out on much other than border patrols recently, so it was nice to go on different routes than usual.

[Toya Todoroki]

Originally Posted by Pancake

After skirting the borders a bit, Softpelt headed back deeper into the territory, planning to show Goldpaw the best hunting spots and recognizable places. She glanced up at the sky, watching clouds pass through the trees. "After this, we should practice some hunting techniques." She smiled. This was fun, just taking a walk. The warrior hadn't been out on much other than border patrols recently, so it was nice to go on different routes than usual.

Goldpaw nodded "ok!"

[flopsy]

- foxwhisper

she let the wind whistle in her ears as she lay on the cooling grass.

[Pancake]

~ @Polaris ~

Softpelt skulked through the undergrowth, looking for something small to munch on- I mean, bring back to camp..
She had to admit it. She was getting kind of hangry. It wasn't affecting her mood yet, but she was close to being very grumpy. She lifted up her head, opening her mouth to taste the air. Mouse.

Suddenly spotting the small creature, she lowered herself and started to creep forward. Her unblinking eyes focused on the mouse as she pulled herself along, taking care not to make any--
C r u n c h
--noise...
Pine needles. Thought those were evergreen; but the ones that had crackled were brown and old... Lovely. She let out a snarl as the mouse darted to its hidey-hole. There goes lunch. For someone at least. Huffing, she whipped away and started trotting in the other direction. Soon she spotted a cat up ahead. Slowing to a walk, she drew closer, trying to see if they were from another clan. The wind was blowing their scent to the left of her, and she didn't recognize them. It had better not be a nosy ThunderClan cat.

[Polaris]

@Pancake

It was a beautiful day, and Willowbriar was sure that there was no way it could be wasted sitting inside of the camp all day. At least, that's what her brother Light would have said. So, she had trotted out of the camp out into the territory, hoping that she'd think of something to do in the nice weather. She loved to be out by herself in the forest. The pines comforted her and helped her forget about the relentless voice that sometimes plagued her mind. Out here, when she was by herself, there was nothing but sky, wind, pines, and the faint heartbeats of prey just out of sight. Here, she could relax and not worry about how others saw her. She could be at peace.

The gray-blue warrior wandered around the territory at a quick trot, eventually deciding on practicing some tree climbing. Willowbriar was a lean, tall cat, and she didn't have much physical strength compared to some of the other cats in her clan. So, she just had to work harder and make sure her other skills were in tip-top shape. She could almost imagine her brother next to her, talking needlessly as he always did. This thought brought a faint smile to her face. How she missed her brother. If only she'd...shaking her head, the young warrior stopped her train of thought. She didn't want to go that direction today. Needing a distraction, she stopped, turning to the closest pine tree to her. It was true that Shadowclan cats didn't normally climb trees, seeing as that was something Thunderclan was known for, but Willowbriar thought it was a useful skill to have, not to mention it was the perfect activity to get her blood pumping.

As Willowbriar was about to make the first leap into the tree, a scent blew towards her. She looked to the side of her, wondering who the cat was. She could tell it was one of her clanmates from the smell, but it wasn't one she could identify with a name. That meant she had never really talked to this cat before. What would Light do? She knew the answer right away, and before she let her brain overthink it, she mewed brightly, "Hello!" The green eyed she-cat trotted over to the other molly, her tail held high in a friendly greeting. "What are you doing out here?"