There were some familiar faces in this lesson. Magpiepaw, Rookfire - Springburst was amongst the newer faces, joining for her first ShadowClan lesson, and subtly Sleepysunrise wondered how Springburst and Rookfire would be getting along, hailing from the same clan. If they began arguing she would have to put them in timeout… If they began talking about their fishy heritage, she could only lend an ear for information of good use. She wondered, Was Springburst a better swimmer than Rookfire? Could she bribe Rookfire, and possible Springburst, into further teaching her how to navigate the waters? She ought to better trust Rookfire wouldn’t drown her, but she wondered in RiverClan’s teachings had been so sporadic that every apprentice was taught differently. Speaking of, the enforcer was left surprised that Rookfire wished to attend a lesson on hunting within the darkness of all things; she couldn’t imagine mama not teaching him that.
familiar faces once more, sleepysunrise of course, but also magpiepaw and (though less so) springburst who he had spoken to once and then kind of lost track of. he was curious about how they were doing in shadowclan, wondering if she had proven her worth yet. she should, since its been what? three moons? whatever, its been a while, she shouldve done something spectacular by now.
rookfire didnt think about it because he doesnt really spend his time rethinking his skills in comparison to other cats that werent enforcers or trying to impress him, but id like to let you know that rook mostly just pretends to be a good swimmer so its probably fact that spring is the better swimmer. even though rook had lost left his apprenticeship behind (would be a bit weird to train two apprentices and not be a warrior or more yet but alas) but his desire to learn more skills, get better at everything he could manage and leave no weaknesses as a opening for others to use against him, so it wasnt really odd for him to follow along sleepysunrise for a lesson on night hunting. whilst he expected lostspark to know very well about anything night related with how freakishly she seemed to entirely be swallowed by the shadows, his own training had been short lived and a bit rushed, so the former medic turned enforcer had only taken care of the minimum; battle, hunting et cetera. roachflare had proven a good trainer anyway, so even with the very basic knowledge he had, he couldnt complain about being promoted before reaching a more satisfying end to his training. tail uncurling from around his seated form, the enforcer lazily stretched his frontal limbs out, claws briefly digging into soft soil and his remaining ear twitching before repositioning himself into the same position as before to continue waiting.
Wide caramel eyes adjusted to the darkness that engulfed her pelt. She could make out a line of trees and was aided by a few points of starlight. Dearest mammy and baba, tell me why all of my official mentors have failed me? And for WHAT!? I'm pretty sure I did quite literally EVERYTHING RIGHT!!! And yet they still got lazy. Magpiepaw sent a little prayer to the stars, but mostly to her family. She was positive they were listening, they always listened to her. It was kinda nice, how they were dead but she could still lean on them as if they were living. They had yet to visit her down here, but Magpiepaw didn't mind. Starclan was supposed to be paradise, right? Then they deserved to stay and she'd save the reunion for when she got there herself.
She narrowed her gaze as she trailed her focus on each of the cats with her. Rookie and two cats she knew but didn't care a rats butt about. Since Sleepysunrise was leading this lesson, she was hoping this cat had some actual experience in her paws or else Magpiepaw would march right back to sleep. Magpiepaw did what she wanted, she was far too hurt to really care.
With a slow turn of her head she let out a sigh. Where the heck was Springburst? "Stars, does nocat want to actually do anything these days?" Magpiepaw commented at full volume, not worried if anycat heard her or not. She didn't care, why would she care? She just needed the training, something she severely lacked.
Springburst Nobody got you the way I do + she/her + Beefed up T2-Lyrebirds-Shadow fiend
Oops, she might of been running late with meeting up with Sleepsunrise and who ever else was going to be joining. She couldn't really help it when she was still trying to soak in the idea that she was in a clan camp again. Especially one set up like Shadowclans, it seemed to be drastically different from Riverclans in her opinion. Thankfully when she remembered about a little meet up she was quick to gather her wits and come prancing over. The large fluffy feline came to a halt when she had seen that herself was the last to arrive, what a pity for her. "Sorry for the tardiness, got caught up sight seeing!" she let off a grin as she set her one green eye on the other two gathered. One of which she was familiar with on the bases of talking to them for a bit, the other not so much. Springburst had only heard the tail end of whatever it was that Magpiepaw was saying and refrained herself from snapping at the other. Yelling at a kid was not the way to go in what would hopefully be her new clan. The tortie was anything but what the paw was trying to imply, lazy, she wasn't like that back in Riverclan so why would she be like that now? Well hopefully she could prove that she wasn't a slacker and would pull her own weight plus some just to show she wasn't a waste.
Marigoldpaw had a big mouth, Sleepysunrise concluded, and her eyes landed on the apprentice. She tilted her head, clearly pondering her comment before she uttered a few pensive words; "You are still an apprentice..."
And that at her age. Sleepysunrise was barely twelve moons herself, and had already been an enforcer for better part of three... Four? months. The youngest of the enforcers figured the apprentice must simply be embarrassed to still be an apprentice. Well, she was on a better path if she had finally started to seek out training elsewhere than waiting on others to train her. Anyway.
She blinked, watching her apprentice whom she dragged along. Her first experiences in the dark, she wanted to see how Springburst would handle herself. And... Rookfire. For an enforcer it would forever puzzle her how this tom had become a warrior without getting a night hunting lesson, she couldn't imagine mama skipping over such an important lesson. But here they were. "This is a lot like hunting."
She began, head tilted as she sat. "But you have got to mind your step. And prioritize your other senses. Prey is harder to see in the dark. As are debris. Your steps have to be light. Calculated. You have to be alert. Pick up on your prey's movement, with sound and smell. And catch them, without alerting the rest."
She decided to give brief demonstration, crouching low as she slunk over the ground in silence, before finally pouncing upon a stray skittering lizard who'd failed to remain as quiet as it should. Lifting it between her paws she presented her catch, looking between her apprentices (yes, even Rookfire). "Now you. Remember. Be quiet. Rely on senses other than sight."
Marigoldpaw had a big mouth, Sleepysunrise concluded, and her eyes landed on the apprentice. She tilted her head, clearly pondering her comment before she uttered a few pensive words; "You are still an apprentice..."
And that at her age. Sleepysunrise was barely twelve moons herself, and had already been an enforcer for better part of three... Four? months. The youngest of the enforcers figured the apprentice must simply be embarrassed to still be an apprentice. Well, she was on a better path if she had finally started to seek out training elsewhere than waiting on others to train her. Anyway.
She blinked, watching her apprentice whom she dragged along. Her first experiences in the dark, she wanted to see how Springburst would handle herself. And... Rookfire. For an enforcer it would forever puzzle her how this tom had become a warrior without getting a night hunting lesson, she couldn't imagine mama skipping over such an important lesson. But here they were. "This is a lot like hunting."
She began, head tilted as she sat. "But you have got to mind your step. And prioritize your other senses. Prey is harder to see in the dark. As are debris. Your steps have to be light. Calculated. You have to be alert. Pick up on your prey's movement, with sound and smell. And catch them, without alerting the rest."
She decided to give brief demonstration, crouching low as she slunk over the ground in silence, before finally pouncing upon a stray skittering lizard who'd failed to remain as quiet as it should. Lifting it between her paws she presented her catch, looking between her apprentices (yes, even Rookfire). "Now you. Remember. Be quiet. Rely on senses other than sight."
Hunting, blah blah blah, more talking, less doing, BLAH. Once Sleepysunrise had finally finished her yapping, Magpiepaw was quick to get to work. She slunk her already small frame into the low ground, inching away from moonlight whenever she could. She wasn't worried about the darker side of her face, even if it had paler spots in some places, but her other side she was worried about, and she tried extra hard to keep it entirely in shadow. She was sure she could spare some rays of moonlight on her fur before she actually spotted anything, but until then, it was fair game.
Rounded ears perked as her claws unsheathed. Magpiepaw had yet to learn stealth (what a greaaaaaatttt mentor Foggymask was, how amaazzzzinggggg, taught her sooooo mucchhhhh), but she was pretty light on her paws, and her large ears certainly helped with hearing. In other words, this was easy.
[Kitty Softpaws] Her paws were as light as a feather as she weaved through the forest. She then perked her ears, hoping to hear or smell something unfortunate scurrying away. Soon enough, she caught a whiff. A squirrel. Small, sure, but it'll do.
The older apprentice squared her shoulders and wriggled her haunches as she dilated her pupils and focused on her soon to be fresh kill.
[magpiepaw rolled a 20 for catching! successful!]
Within seconds she had the creature in her jaws and killed it with a bite to its neck before it could squeal in protest. She cherished the coppery scent of blood wafting from her kill, but she was quick to bury it. She knew that other prey might be scared off by the smell of a fresh meal and retreat, which was something Magpiepaw definitely didn't want. She wasn't evil!
__________________
❝And the cats kill one by one!❞
- Hartebeest by Yalokre
rookfire rolled his eyes at magpiepaw not bothering to speak up against her yapping this time, instead, he kept his steps light, following the group as the very last, silver eyes weakly reflecting the moonlight as they hovered on the apprentices in front of him. whilst the urge to keep his head low to get a closer look at the ground by his paws was rather strong, he settled for a more neutral medium, keeping his head at a reasonable height that allowed him to see the ground better without looking like a fool or like he was trying hard.
sleepysunrise began explaining once they arrived at what the youngest enforcer appeared to deem a good point in the territory and honestly, it didnt sound that hard. he had a bit of trouble getting used to stealth as a concept and this sounded mostly like a more exciting version of his beloathed hunting so this should be fun.
rookfire watched sleepysunrise move almost soundlessly over pine needles and sturdy grass before leaping at a lizard he had to admit he hadnt seen or heard over her talking before. even though he had rarely seen lostspark use this ability, it appeared her daughter had inherited the eery gift of blending into their surroundings with ease and striking soundlessly. impressive, honestly and genuinely impressive, especially for such a young cat. rookfire would have to try his best to come out of this with his dignity still in tact.
a quiet humm of agreement was the only thing rookfire gave sleepysunrise before sneaking off to search for prey of his own. whilst he was used to communicating heavily through sight and even the humm had been unual (nodding being his favourite) keeping quiet whilst hunting wasnt that much of an issue. instead of a more active approach, the warrior made his way away from the group first, almost stepping on visibly crunchy leaves more than once but ultimately able to avoid any up until the spot he had selected he would pause to observe. the forest was a lot more quiet at night, this wasnt news, rookfire had spent sleepless nights in the outskirts during his time between riverclan and shadowclan and taken to hunting during dusk and dawn primarily in fear of seeing any riverclan cats during the day so this was more familiar than one may think. hovering close to the ground, rookfire had stilled, singular white tipped ear flicking from side to side to chase sounds, maw agape and eyes scanning the undergrowth closest to him.
the flap of a birds wings, the chirping of insects, tiny paws moving through grass with a slow shuffle- rookfires muscles tensed, hind lifting off the ground slowly, ear now pointing straight ahead ... ... silver eyes finally fell on the vague outline of the rabbit, hind legs pushing him off the ground almost instantaneously and with little noise besides the quiet shifting of grass before a more considerable sequence of sounds made the forest fall quiet. the screech of a animal fighting for its life, paws on soil, the faint thump of a body falling limp.
[ @Estelle || not proof read, lets hope for the best ]
Springburst Nobody got you the way I do + she/her + Beefed up T2-Lyrebirds-Shadow fiend
She gave a single nod before slinking away into the dark night, in the other direction compared to the other two. This shouldn't be too bad, she had hunted at night before but as an outsider. Her reason was anything but hiding from the clans, it was more so to avoid other outsiders roaming. Especially after the exile, since she had been freshly healed and wasn't up to a fight just yet. Springburst could care less at both times if she had been spotted by any past riverclan cat. Her brashness had been the main point of her, she said and did what she wanted and felt was right. With an inhale and an exhale a few moments later. she slowly trekked through the dark forest, trying to avoid any dead leaves or sticks beneath her, it took her a few moments to hear a faint scuttling. The torbie had almost missed it but she had stopped in her movement, low to the ground, and caught the sound coming from a few paw steps from her.
Using the surroundings, she blended into the nearest shadow and trailed after the sounds of life. She could hear other signs of life from other prey running about a few times here and there, but the scuttling caught her attention the most. It had sounded closer to her than the others around, so it must be digging around in the dead plants looking for food itself. Springburst avoided a twig she almost stepped on, her one eye just barely catching sight of it in time. That would have had her cursing herself to starclan and back, continuing on she could faintly see a tiny body amongst the grass. If she had to guess it was either a mouse or a vole, either way, it was something for her to take down. Prepping herself in the usual hunter's crouch, she inched closer one eye staying on her victim. Springburst had then sprung forward, the sound of dirt being upturned and a stray leaf being kicked was the only sound from her as she leaped. With the prey now trapped in between her paws, she could now see it was a mouse that had a small nut in his grasp as its food source. Oh well, now it was their food source as she bit its head effectively killing it. With her dead mouse in her jaw she chose a spot to bury it for later since she wasn't sure if they would call it quits after this or continue.
Sleepysunrise
[ 14 moons | She / Her | Shc Enforcer | Shadow Fiend ]
Rather than join the other three’s hunting, Sleepysunrise had opted to blending into the shadows and watching from afar as she judge their every move. Her eyes fell first on Magpiepaw, whom she noted had a gait as quiet as that of the forever queen, not making a sound. For all her boisterous talking, the apprentice was doing decent so far. Her stalk was silent, and her catch was quick and clean enough, with the decision to quickly be buried. Though she would expect as much from an older apprentice, and could expect Rookfire and Springburst do the same.
Her eyes fell on Rookfire’s performance, his tactic swift but not swift but could use more care of where he walked. Crunching leaves was a dead give away, as was the squeal of a dying animal, especially when there is little ruckus to drown it out. She tipped her head trying to decide if this satisfactory or if he should go back into training. Springburst had much the same issue, lacking proper attentiveness to her surroundings but ultimately succeeding. Sleepysunrise blinked for a brief moment, then emerged from the darkness.
“You did well.”
She told Magpiepaw with a distant look, eyes turning to the two fully-named cats in their company. “Watch your surroundings better. The slightest sound will scare off your prey. ...Aim to avoid it squealing… A bite directly to the throat should do.”
She paused. “Again.”
rookfire rolled his eyes at magpiepaw not bothering to speak up against her yapping this time, instead, he kept his steps light, following the group as the very last, silver eyes weakly reflecting the moonlight as they hovered on the apprentices in front of him. whilst the urge to keep his head low to get a closer look at the ground by his paws was rather strong, he settled for a more neutral medium, keeping his head at a reasonable height that allowed him to see the ground better without looking like a fool or like he was trying hard.
sleepysunrise began explaining once they arrived at what the youngest enforcer appeared to deem a good point in the territory and honestly, it didnt sound that hard. he had a bit of trouble getting used to stealth as a concept and this sounded mostly like a more exciting version of his beloathed hunting so this should be fun.
rookfire watched sleepysunrise move almost soundlessly over pine needles and sturdy grass before leaping at a lizard he had to admit he hadnt seen or heard over her talking before. even though he had rarely seen lostspark use this ability, it appeared her daughter had inherited the eery gift of blending into their surroundings with ease and striking soundlessly. impressive, honestly and genuinely impressive, especially for such a young cat. rookfire would have to try his best to come out of this with his dignity still in tact.
a quiet humm of agreement was the only thing rookfire gave sleepysunrise before sneaking off to search for prey of his own. whilst he was used to communicating heavily through sight and even the humm had been unual (nodding being his favourite) keeping quiet whilst hunting wasnt that much of an issue. instead of a more active approach, the warrior made his way away from the group first, almost stepping on visibly crunchy leaves more than once but ultimately able to avoid any up until the spot he had selected he would pause to observe. the forest was a lot more quiet at night, this wasnt news, rookfire had spent sleepless nights in the outskirts during his time between riverclan and shadowclan and taken to hunting during dusk and dawn primarily in fear of seeing any riverclan cats during the day so this was more familiar than one may think. hovering close to the ground, rookfire had stilled, singular white tipped ear flicking from side to side to chase sounds, maw agape and eyes scanning the undergrowth closest to him.
the flap of a birds wings, the chirping of insects, tiny paws moving through grass with a slow shuffle- rookfires muscles tensed, hind lifting off the ground slowly, ear now pointing straight ahead ... ... silver eyes finally fell on the vague outline of the rabbit, hind legs pushing him off the ground almost instantaneously and with little noise besides the quiet shifting of grass before a more considerable sequence of sounds made the forest fall quiet. the screech of a animal fighting for its life, paws on soil, the faint thump of a body falling limp.
[ @Estelle || not proof read, lets hope for the best ]
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kix
Springburst Nobody got you the way I do + she/her + Beefed up T2-Lyrebirds-Shadow fiend
She gave a single nod before slinking away into the dark night, in the other direction compared to the other two. This shouldn't be too bad, she had hunted at night before but as an outsider. Her reason was anything but hiding from the clans, it was more so to avoid other outsiders roaming. Especially after the exile, since she had been freshly healed and wasn't up to a fight just yet. Springburst could care less at both times if she had been spotted by any past riverclan cat. Her brashness had been the main point of her, she said and did what she wanted and felt was right. With an inhale and an exhale a few moments later. she slowly trekked through the dark forest, trying to avoid any dead leaves or sticks beneath her, it took her a few moments to hear a faint scuttling. The torbie had almost missed it but she had stopped in her movement, low to the ground, and caught the sound coming from a few paw steps from her.
Using the surroundings, she blended into the nearest shadow and trailed after the sounds of life. She could hear other signs of life from other prey running about a few times here and there, but the scuttling caught her attention the most. It had sounded closer to her than the others around, so it must be digging around in the dead plants looking for food itself. Springburst avoided a twig she almost stepped on, her one eye just barely catching sight of it in time. That would have had her cursing herself to starclan and back, continuing on she could faintly see a tiny body amongst the grass. If she had to guess it was either a mouse or a vole, either way, it was something for her to take down. Prepping herself in the usual hunter's crouch, she inched closer one eye staying on her victim. Springburst had then sprung forward, the sound of dirt being upturned and a stray leaf being kicked was the only sound from her as she leaped. With the prey now trapped in between her paws, she could now see it was a mouse that had a small nut in his grasp as its food source. Oh well, now it was their food source as she bit its head effectively killing it. With her dead mouse in her jaw she chose a spot to bury it for later since she wasn't sure if they would call it quits after this or continue.
Sleepysunrise
[ 14 moons | She / Her | Shc Enforcer | Shadow Fiend ]
Rather than join the other three’s hunting, Sleepysunrise had opted to blending into the shadows and watching from afar as she judge their every move. Her eyes fell first on Magpiepaw, whom she noted had a gait as quiet as that of the forever queen, not making a sound. For all her boisterous talking, the apprentice was doing decent so far. Her stalk was silent, and her catch was quick and clean enough, with the decision to quickly be buried. Though she would expect as much from an older apprentice, and could expect Rookfire and Springburst do the same.
Her eyes fell on Rookfire’s performance, his tactic swift but not swift but could use more care of where he walked. Crunching leaves was a dead give away, as was the squeal of a dying animal, especially when there is little ruckus to drown it out. She tipped her head trying to decide if this satisfactory or if he should go back into training. Springburst had much the same issue, lacking proper attentiveness to her surroundings but ultimately succeeding. Sleepysunrise blinked for a brief moment, then emerged from the darkness.
“You did well.”
She told Magpiepaw with a distant look, eyes turning to the two fully-named cats in their company. “Watch your surroundings better. The slightest sound will scare off your prey. ...Aim to avoid it squealing… A bite directly to the throat should do.”
She paused. “Again.”
Licking the crimson from her maw, the apprentice peaked out from the darkness. So, Sleepysunrise's dry words actually meant that she was AMAZING and did better than absolutely everyone? Dare she say, perfectly? Magpiepaw wracked her brain as she looked to the enforcer, still somewhat surprised that she was about the same height as her. Perhaps the older cat was a bit taller, but Magpiepaw didn't have to look up to make eye contact.
Score!
She looked over to the two warriors, giving them both a smug smile. What? She had every right, she won! Bragging rights were automatically given! "Thanks." She half whispered as she turned back to Sleepysunrise, finding herself looking up to the softer spoken cat (metaphorically. No way was this very cool idiot about to gain a few inches on her in the span of two frickin' seconds). Maybe she could impress her somehow... It didn't seem like that could be too hard.
As one last word was said, it was like an alarm went off in her head. On the hunt once more, the small cat slunk back down into shadow, weaving through grass like a deadly caterpillar [Kitty Softpaws], her steps light and calculated. She listened with perked ears, and it took her a bit longer this time. She sat as still as a bump on a log as she listened, even closing her eyes to focus better on what she could hear or smell.
Ughhhh, this was boring! Not enough kill kill, too much wait wait. She was practically ITCHING to use her unsheathed claws, muscles twitching. When the earthy scent of a vole came to her, she nearly cursed. Stars above... She HATED voles. Oh, the sacrifices she made to be the best. A catch was a catch, and she was going to get one.
[magpiepaw rolled a 20 for catching! successful!]
One quick leap guided her two toned paws, icy talons clinging onto the rough fur of the animal, taking a level of satisfaction slitting it's throat and nearly tearing off it's head. Butttt.... Nocat had to know the last part. As she'd done before, she buried the kill as soon as she had caught it. Magpiepaw: two. Literally everycat else: zeroooooo.
__________________
❝And the cats kill one by one!❞
- Hartebeest by Yalokre
Predator and prey
