Softpaw's Training [P]

[Fits]

Heroneye
| she/her | RiverClan | Warrior |

The Clan meeting was finally drawing to a close. It was time for Heroneye to actually act like a mentor. As the meeting had gone on, she had been scouring her mind, searching for memories of her own training. She had a hard time remembering the finer details of that period, but she at least had a somewhat decent idea of how it was expected to go, at least. It was just enough to help her feel a bit more confident about the whole situation.

Softpaw had mentioned wanting to learn the hunter’s crouch in particular, so she decided it would be best to start with land hunting. Heroneye had gone hunting in this territory before and knew that it was considerably harder to hunt there than back at the forest due to the lack of cover, but not impossible. Heroneye was somewhat intimidated by the prospect of teaching in such conditions, but she at least knew that hunting here would make hunting back home seem just that much easier. Once the apprentice seemed confident in her abilities and had managed to catch at least one piece of prey, she could then move on to hunting in the river. Water hunting was more or less the same here, so that shouldn’t be too much of an issue, she figured. Though she may want to explain some swimming fundamentals for the sake of keeping the younger cat out of danger.

Heroneye stood, facing her apprentice. “Looks like it’s time to get going.” Shooting a glance at the camp exit, she added, “Are you ready?”

(let the training begin!!)

( @SeonghwaBerry )

[Strawberry_SnowBear]

Originally Posted by Fits

Heroneye
| she/her | RiverClan | Warrior |

The Clan meeting was finally drawing to a close. It was time for Heroneye to actually act like a mentor. As the meeting had gone on, she had been scouring her mind, searching for memories of her own training. She had a hard time remembering the finer details of that period, but she at least had a somewhat decent idea of how it was expected to go, at least. It was just enough to help her feel a bit more confident about the whole situation.

Softpaw had mentioned wanting to learn the hunter’s crouch in particular, so she decided it would be best to start with land hunting. Heroneye had gone hunting in this territory before and knew that it was considerably harder to hunt there than back at the forest due to the lack of cover, but not impossible. Heroneye was somewhat intimidated by the prospect of teaching in such conditions, but she at least knew that hunting here would make hunting back home seem just that much easier. Once the apprentice seemed confident in her abilities and had managed to catch at least one piece of prey, she could then move on to hunting in the river. Water hunting was more or less the same here, so that shouldn’t be too much of an issue, she figured. Though she may want to explain some swimming fundamentals for the sake of keeping the younger cat out of danger.

Heroneye stood, facing her apprentice. “Looks like it’s time to get going.” Shooting a glance at the camp exit, she added, “Are you ready?”

(let the training begin!!)

( @SeonghwaBerry )

Softpaw watched the meeting come to a close. Running to Sweetsap the moment she could and curling up in her mothers praises and good wishes. Softpaw then purred goodbye and went back to her mentor. After a moment of sitting she was asked if she was ready to go. "To train? Of course!" The apprentice purred

[Fits]

Heroneye
| she/her | RiverClan | Warrior |

Heroneye gave a firm nod and started towards the camp exit, glancing over her shoulder to ensure that Softpaw was following. She would bring the apprentice near the river, she decided, to make it easier to incorporate both aspects of the hunting lesson. Additionally, Heroneye had spent the most time there out of any place in the territory thus far (as was to be expected of most RiverClan cats, after all), so she knew that area best. She did want to dedicate some time to exploring the mountains more, but it simply made more sense to stick to a more familiar place where she knew there were few treacherous crags and cliffs, at least for that lesson.

“It will be more difficult hunting here than back home,” Heroneye warned as she walked, kicking up small puffs of gravel and dust as she went. “At home, there’s much more cover. Bushes and the like. There’s nothing wrong with a little challenge, though, right?” she added, not wanting to discourage the apprentice. Most young cats liked competition, Heroneye was fairly certain, and would respond well to such pressure when it could be turned into a sort of game. In any case, she hadn’t any reason to believe that Softpaw would have too much trouble.

“Alright,” Heroneye spoke again, coming to a stop in a small area of flat land. “I believe that this is a good spot to get started.” She turned, head raised towards the sun. The sound of rushing water was close, but the river wasn’t visible from that area.

( @SeonghwaBerry )

[Strawberry_SnowBear]

Originally Posted by Fits

Heroneye
| she/her | RiverClan | Warrior |

Heroneye gave a firm nod and started towards the camp exit, glancing over her shoulder to ensure that Softpaw was following. She would bring the apprentice near the river, she decided, to make it easier to incorporate both aspects of the hunting lesson. Additionally, Heroneye had spent the most time there out of any place in the territory thus far (as was to be expected of most RiverClan cats, after all), so she knew that area best. She did want to dedicate some time to exploring the mountains more, but it simply made more sense to stick to a more familiar place where she knew there were few treacherous crags and cliffs, at least for that lesson.

“It will be more difficult hunting here than back home,” Heroneye warned as she walked, kicking up small puffs of gravel and dust as she went. “At home, there’s much more cover. Bushes and the like. There’s nothing wrong with a little challenge, though, right?” she added, not wanting to discourage the apprentice. Most young cats liked competition, Heroneye was fairly certain, and would respond well to such pressure when it could be turned into a sort of game. In any case, she hadn’t any reason to believe that Softpaw would have too much trouble.

“Alright,” Heroneye spoke again, coming to a stop in a small area of flat land. “I believe that this is a good spot to get started.” She turned, head raised towards the sun. The sound of rushing water was close, but the river wasn’t visible from that area.

( @SeonghwaBerry )

Nodding gently, Softpaw followed. Her eyes bright and wondering and she exited camp for the first time. "That means when we get home it'll be easy for me to hunt." Softpaw purred gently, "And it'll be harder for you..... i'm just now learning so it'll be normal for me..... which will make me a more advanced hunter..... not than you of course! But uh..... yes..." Softpaw stuttered in her excitement. Stopping and staring around, the small apprentice watched her mentor.

[Fits]

Heroneye
| she/her | RiverClan | Warrior |

A half smile crossed Heroneye’s face. “Maybe you will be. More advanced than me, that is. Never say never and all that.” Truth be told, Heroneye doubted that surpassing her own hunting abilities would be much of a feat. But humoring the apprentice was the right thing to do, right? Maybe it would be good motivation.

“When it comes to hunting prey, one couldn’t possibly expect prey to come to one, but it is equally unwise to expect to catch anything by walking up to it normally. That’s the purpose of the hunter’s crouch; to allow mobility while also making oneself as small as possible.” Heroneye slipped into a hunter’s crouch herself. It was a bit awkward, using it without actually hunting, but it was all for the sake of demonstration. “You should be about low enough to feel your underfur brush against the ground, but not so much that you feel as though you’re dragging yourself along. Make sure your head and tail are low to the ground as well.”

Heroneye stood back up, turning back to Softpaw. “Alright. Can you try it?” Heroneye hoped that she had explained it properly. Once the apprentice got the form down, Heroneye would have her try to walk around a bit in that position.

( @SeonghwaBerry )

[Strawberry_SnowBear]

Originally Posted by Fits

Heroneye
| she/her | RiverClan | Warrior |

A half smile crossed Heroneye’s face. “Maybe you will be. More advanced than me, that is. Never say never and all that.” Truth be told, Heroneye doubted that surpassing her own hunting abilities would be much of a feat. But humoring the apprentice was the right thing to do, right? Maybe it would be good motivation.

“When it comes to hunting prey, one couldn’t possibly expect prey to come to one, but it is equally unwise to expect to catch anything by walking up to it normally. That’s the purpose of the hunter’s crouch; to allow mobility while also making oneself as small as possible.” Heroneye slipped into a hunter’s crouch herself. It was a bit awkward, using it without actually hunting, but it was all for the sake of demonstration. “You should be about low enough to feel your underfur brush against the ground, but not so much that you feel as though you’re dragging yourself along. Make sure your head and tail are low to the ground as well.”

Heroneye stood back up, turning back to Softpaw. “Alright. Can you try it?” Heroneye hoped that she had explained it properly. Once the apprentice got the form down, Heroneye would have her try to walk around a bit in that position.

( @SeonghwaBerry )

Softpaw's fluffy tail went up in amusment. Watching her mentor carefully she gave a small attentive nod. "Important....." Softpaw copied her mentor, her tail sticking out a bit lower than it should, her fur was brushing the ground a lot as she had longer fur than her clanmates. Besides that Softpaw's crouch was decent.

[Fits]

Heroneye
| she/her | RiverClan | Warrior |

Heroneye nodded thoughtfully at Softpaw. She had mimicked the crouch well, but that was just the first part of hunting, of course.

“That’s good. Now try walking around a bit like that. The important thing is to avoid moving and making noise as much as possible,” Heroneye explained, her tail sweeping over the rocky mountain floor. “The crouch is meant to be used around prey, and prey are built for noticing even the slightest sensory input. The smallest mistake could send them scurrying away from your grasp, especially here. So you’ll need to be as cautious as possible, right? Pay attention to everything you're doing; even the sound of your tail dragging on the ground could do it.”

( @SeonghwaBerry )

[Strawberry_SnowBear]

Originally Posted by Fits

Heroneye
| she/her | RiverClan | Warrior |

Heroneye nodded thoughtfully at Softpaw. She had mimicked the crouch well, but that was just the first part of hunting, of course.

“That’s good. Now try walking around a bit like that. The important thing is to avoid moving and making noise as much as possible,” Heroneye explained, her tail sweeping over the rocky mountain floor. “The crouch is meant to be used around prey, and prey are built for noticing even the slightest sensory input. The smallest mistake could send them scurrying away from your grasp, especially here. So you’ll need to be as cautious as possible, right? Pay attention to everything you're doing; even the sound of your tail dragging on the ground could do it.”

( @SeonghwaBerry )

Softpaw listened carefully, nodding and lifting her tail the tiniest bit. Stalking forward she was a bit wonky at first, giving a tiny hiss of frustration Softpaw practiced. Soon gettingg it

[Fits]

Heroneye
| she/her | RiverClan | Warrior |

Heroneye watched as Softpaw gradually learned to stalk. She hadn’t gotten it first try, of course, but she was willing to try as many times as it took to get a hang of the skill. That was a vital trait in apprentices and warriors alike.

“The next part of hunting is, of course, actually catching it. Once you spot something, you stalk towards it until you’re just close enough to reach it in about a single bound.” Heroneye tilted her head. Softpaw was quite a quick learner, so Heroneye wondered if it would be best to practice hunting in the real world then, instead of possibly delaying it unnecessarily. After all, form was rather insignificant compared to real-world experience, if the apprentice was ready for it. “Would you like to try hunting real prey now? Or would you rather practice pouncing first?”

( @SeonghwaBerry )

[Strawberry_SnowBear]

Originally Posted by Fits

Heroneye
| she/her | RiverClan | Warrior |

Heroneye watched as Softpaw gradually learned to stalk. She hadn’t gotten it first try, of course, but she was willing to try as many times as it took to get a hang of the skill. That was a vital trait in apprentices and warriors alike.

“The next part of hunting is, of course, actually catching it. Once you spot something, you stalk towards it until you’re just close enough to reach it in about a single bound.” Heroneye tilted her head. Softpaw was quite a quick learner, so Heroneye wondered if it would be best to practice hunting in the real world then, instead of possibly delaying it unnecessarily. After all, form was rather insignificant compared to real-world experience, if the apprentice was ready for it. “Would you like to try hunting real prey now? Or would you rather practice pouncing first?”

( @SeonghwaBerry )

Softpaw looked up to her mentor, sitting up from her crouching and stalking position. Softpaw's pretty white ears flicked forward in interest. "Perhaps..... I could try it once or twice and then try it for sure? I feel like if I don't try it first, trying it on prey would be more pressure. And with me pressure leads to failure." Softpaw meowed, her green eyes thoughtful and glowing as she flicked her white paws to get the dust and debree off and away from them. "And.... one question. With my paws being small will that effect my ability to hunt? Fish specifically." Softpaw meowed in question, pointing out the fish as she hated all this dry land food. She wanted fish back...... fish was good.......