[p] we'll drive it up and down the road without a plan

**seeingstars** · #1 November 9th, 2024, 11:27 PM

Raccoonkit • He / Him • Riverclan kit • 6+ moons

It'd been a little bit since Beachheart had offered to teach him how to swim, but he finally felt ready and confident enough to go through with it. He hoped that the Riverclan warrior would still be willing to teach him despite his hesitation.

Raccoonkit yawned and stretched, despite being small for a tom, he was still outgrowing his nest at an alarming rate. He couldn't wait to finally be in the apprentices' den with his older littermates so he wouldn't always feel so lonely.

He quickly leaped to his paws, today was the day. He had to ask Beachheart to teach him how to swim.

The silver-pointed tom shuffled his way out of the nursery, still blinking sleep from his eyes as his green gaze scanned the camp clearing. He squinted against the sun, trying to pick the warrior's pelt out among the warriors lounging around camp.

He saw a pelt he thought resembled Beachheart. Raccoonkit took a deep breath before approaching "Hey Beachheart!" He said, hoping more than anything that this was the tom who'd offered to teach him to swim.

{ @sylvia26 }

**sylvia26** · #2 November 13th, 2024, 08:21 AM

▁▂▃▅▆▇ his head turned, a smile growing up on his face, he stood up "hello raccoonkit" he purred, going over to lick the top of the small toms head, "you ready for today?" he asked softly, he remembered how he was taught how to swim and it wasn't right so he made sure to watch his siblings when he was little. nearly drowning was n o t a way to learn. ▇▆▅▃▂▁

@seeingstars (sorry for the late reply-)

**seeingstars** · #3 November 13th, 2024, 11:44 AM

Raccoonkit • He / Him • Riverclan kit • 6+ moons

Raccoonkit bounced from side to side as he nodded enthusiastically, tail waving behind him excitedly as a purr escaped his maw.

"Yeah! I can't wait! I bet my siblings will be so jealous" He said, puffing his chest out as he looked at Beachheart. His older siblings probably knew how to swim, or they should at least, but his littermates probably didn't, if they even cared to learn. They spent most of their time being pawfuls to their parents, whereas Racc tended to generally stick to himself and behave- mostly.

{ @sylvia26 }

**sylvia26** · #4 November 13th, 2024, 12:24 PM

▁▂▃▅▆▇ the Tom purred "good to know your eager" he then walked towards the shallow end of the river, checking just to make sure. "okay, when it comes to swimming you have to know what to do, but, firstly you have to get a feel for the water, se get into this and see how it feels to you" he meowed softly, padded into the water and letting his paws sink into the mud a bit. ▇▆▅▃▂▁

@seeingstars

**seeingstars** · #5 November 13th, 2024, 12:42 PM

Raccoonkit • He / Him • Riverclan kit • 6+ moons

The small tom nodded, hesitating momentarily as he looked at the water. He tilted his head, looking from Beachheart, back to the water. He took a few steps back before darting forward and crashing into the water with a large splash.

Raccoonkit never actually considered the distance he'd given himself, the depth of the water, or anything related to this jump. He very clearly also did not know what he was doing. Instead of landing in the chest-high water, as he planned, he ended up face first in the riverbank, mouth full of sand. How many times had he accidentally eaten sand in front of this tom?

He groaned, then spat the sand out before grimacing and slinking into the water in embarrassment. He flashed Beachheart a sheepish smile.

{ @sylvia26 }

**sylvia26** · #6 November 13th, 2024, 03:23 PM

▁▂▃▅▆▇ he gently chuckled "you alright?" he meowed with a merrow of laughter and a smile. "come on, stand." he meowed gently "you'll noticed as you go deeper, it gets harder to keep your head over, so that's where paddling goes and if you do go under, don't panic, we're riverclan cats, we own the water" he meowed as he went on the deeper side, diving under and then resurfacing. "try it, if something goes wrong, i'll pull you up."▇▆▅▃▂▁

@seeingstars

**seeingstars** · #7 November 14th, 2024, 12:40 AM

Raccoonkit • He / Him • Riverclan kit • 6+ moons

Racoonkit nodded "Y-yeah I'm fine" An embarrassed laugh escaped his maw, his tail tip twitching behind him as he listened to the rest of his mentor's words. He nodded, thinking he understood at least.

He swallowed as he took a few more cautious steps forward, the water rising up his chest the deeper he went. He wasn't necessarily afraid of the water or even drowning. He trusted Beachheart, he just didn't like how the water made his fur feel, it was heavy and felt too close to his body somehow.

The silver point kit grimaced as he felt the ground below him beginning to grow out of reach. He began kicking his back legs, his front paws flailing. He did somehow manage to stay afloat, it just wasn't very graceful.

"Look! Beachheart! I'm doing it!" he called out over the loud splashing caused by his flailing.

{ @sylvia26 }

**sylvia26** · #8 November 14th, 2024, 10:09 AM

▁▂▃▅▆▇ Beachheart smiled "your doing so well. he went deeper in the water, "now I want you to know not to be scared about sinking, just relax be one with the water" as the Tom went deeper, he relaxed pretty well and floating a bit instead of sinking. "trashing is what other clans do, that's why they sink" he purred with laughter "that's why this river belongs to us" ▇▆▅▃▂▁

@seeingstars

**seeingstars** · #9 November 14th, 2024, 12:14 PM

Raccoonkit • He / Him • Riverclan kit • 6+ moons

He nodded, trying to add some grace to the flailing but it didn't do much but lessen the splashing. Raccoonkit carefully watched Beachheart and followed his example. Finally he was actually swimming instead of just thrashing.

Occasionally his head would dip under the water unintention, but he'd quickly return to the surface to snort out any water that'd gotten up his nose. He then tried to actually move forward, realizing he'd been aggressively treading water at that point.

He attempted to push himself forward, which sort of worked. He was moving! Not very fast... but was moving nonetheless! The silver pointed tom kicked his way over to Beachheart at a snail's pace, but eventually was withing paws reach of the warrior.

"I'm-" his head dipped under the water, but resurfaced fast "doing it!" he exclaimed, quickly finishing his sentence before dipping under again. Raccoonkit was never under the water for a worrying amount of time, but it definitely showed that he'd need practice, but had the basics down for sure.

{ @sylvia26 }

**sylvia26** · #10 November 15th, 2024, 08:23 AM

▁▂▃▅▆▇ the Tom smiled. "you did well" he purred, honestly feeling proud that the kit could swim now. "now, while you practice staying afloat, let me tell you something that you do need to know." he then pushed his paw under the water and sent a little wave towards raccoonkit "current" he meowed simply "before getting in the water, you gotta know how fast the current is, just like hunting, downwind, upwind you get it?" he then went under the water for a bit before resurfacing quietly. "this is what other clans don't get" he huffed "the water isn't always helpful, you get in the wrong water and you'll be swept away before you know it" he then lifted his paw "water is our friend and enemy young raccoonkit, it cant be trusted all the time." he meowed as he looked up at the sky "you cant fight a current so swim with it, you cant stop the speed so go along with it, its easy as that" he purred. "now, keep kicking those legs, the stronger they are the fast and easier it gets, you can learn everything in one day" he meowed, he went deeper in the water and felt the ground under give up, he started to let his body float gently as he slowly kicked his leg "when your alone, hold your breath and train your lungs to stay without air for a bit, when it burns that's when you stop, and you'll see what its worth later on" he meowed. smiling at the small kit.▇▆▅▃▂▁

@seeingstars (I'ma go make a training tracker for raccoonkit)