Fast Track to Warriorhood [T]

[starry]

~ | APPLEFROST | ~
He/him | WindClan | 45 moons
Purrks: None

Okay, so Applefrost finally had another apprentice! He'd waited quite a while and he was glad the day had finally come. The large maine coon blinked sleep from his piercing yellow eyes as he got up from his nest. His gaze swept around the den and he tilted his head upwards. There were a few rays of sun, a nice sight that was a signal leafbare was drawing to an end. On slow paws he made his way towards the apprentice's den. He would make sure to be patient with Winterpaw today, they still had lots of time and he wasn't particularly eager on rushing anyone. He would of course push his apprentice and make sure he'd be one of WindClan's strongest, but not in a way that would make Winterpaw hate him. There were these warriors that tended to be stubborn as boulders and didn't care about young cats opinions - he was not one of them. Whilst he did enjoy chit-chat he hoped he did not have one of those apprentices who never stopped talking. They annoyed him a lot. He headed over to the fluffy white tom's nest, attempting to prod him with a paw.

"Winterpaw! Let's do some training today."

The words were accompanied with a small smile; he wanted to make his apprentice feel comfortable around him. Trust was one of the best ways to get things done.

[ @zozelen ]

[zozelen]

Feeling something poke him awake through his haze of sleepiness, Winterpaw's ear twitched and he opened one of his eyes, looking up at a large, gray furred warrior who was... looming over his nest? Oh, yes. This was Applefrost, his new mentor. Winterpaw was an apprentice now.

The warrior had said something about training, though Winterpaw hadn't quite been listening yet. "Good morning, Applefrost," Winterpaw mewed in a surprisingly clear tone for a cat who had just been sleeping. "I hope I haven't slept in long? I'm ready to leave camp, if you'd like to teach me anything." Breakfast could wait. Winterpaw would have to get used to waking up early from now on- gone were the days of leisurely napping. Not like he was the type of kit to do so, anyways.

[@starry]

[starry]

Applefrost chuckled a little when Winterpaw mentioned having slept for too long. No, actually, the maine coon was just a bit of an early bird. When things were started in the early morning there was more time to complete them, so it was perfect for stuff such as training which often needed patience and took a while. He was eager to start teaching his apprentice. He would make a strong warrior out of Winterpaw, he promised that to himself! His piercing orbs were fixed on his apprentice as he debated what they would do today. A tour of the borders should be done for sure, that was a useful skill to have in the future. They had plenty of time so they could most likely go over hunting basics after the territory tour was completed, or they could do a little race back to camp. Actually, he might leave that up to Winterpaw when they reached that point.

"First, we shall tour the borders. You need to know where they are for future reference, and maybe I'll teach you some extras about the other clans. Also, we can do some physical training when we're done with the tour. Follow me," the large warrior mewed. He began padding out of camp, careful to avoid any muddy parts of the moorland. Though sun was starting to show and the weather conditions were certainly improving, the rain had not completely dried yet and the usually bone dry moorlands were way too wet for Applefrost's liking. He decided they would head to ShadowClan's border first. It was the safest option; while he did have a hate against Dawnstar and all her mongrels they didn't have much disagreement with the clan as of late.

As they headed towards Whispering Wetlands the ground became more swampy. Many gnarled willow trees appeared and provided an eery feeling. Applefrost did not mind it too much, but he knew some young cats could be creeped out by it. He turned to Winterpaw to see his reaction before he would begin explaining.

[ @zozelen ]

[zozelen]

Winterpaw dutifully followed Applefrost out of camp, his pelt being warmed by the sun's fleeting rays as they walked. It'd been moons since he had been outside of Windclan camp. Winterpaw focused on the grass swaying in the breeze and the little sprouts under his paws, wondering what everything would look like once it was warm.

As the two of them kept traveling in silence, the ground underneath Winterpaw became soft and damp. Trees with low, hanging tendrils cast shadows over his surroundings, and he lifted his now stained paw to observe the mud dripping off. Hm. Just where had Applefrost taken him...? He looked over to his mentor for explanation, catching his gaze.

[@starry]

[starry]

Applefrost
WindClan
he/him, warrior, 45 moons
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Luckily, Winterpaw did not appear too scared or shocked of the gnarly trees that towered over them. The maine coon meet his apprentice’s yellow eyes and tipped his head carefully before beginning to explain. He would take careful notes of Winterpaw’s behaviour so that he could ensure to train the young tom to the best of his ability. It was important to care about each apprentice’s individual personalities and quirks in Applefrost’s opinion.

“The border we’re currently at is called Whispering Wetlands. It is the ShadowClan border and as you can see more of a swampy region. Not the best place to hunt or anythin’.”

He took a moment to walk along the border and mark it, making sure to show the technique to Winterpaw. With a flick of his tail, Applefrost signaled for his apprentice to join him in marking the border. Once he marked his half he stepped back and waited until they were ready to continue. His ears were slightly pricked and his stance alert in case one of the ShadowClan mongrels did decide to pick a fight with them.

[ @zozelen ]

[zozelen]

If this part of the territory wasn't good for hunting, Winterpaw wondered what else the swamp might be used for. Maybe some herbs grew here? Winterpaw hadn't yet learned what any herbs were used or how to identify them, so he wouldn't have much of an eye for that... perhaps further into his apprenticeship he could take a lesson or two on them.

Winterpaw silently joined Applefrost in marking the border, noticing this his mentor almost seemed to be looking for something, though he wasn't sure what. After he finished Winterpaw walked over to the warrior again, glancing up at him for any other words before they presumably moved along. This was just one of Windclan's many borders, and Applefrost said they'd be doing some physical training as well after the walk. This might take all day, though if it did Winterpaw wouldn't mind. The thought of seeing the night stars outside of camp was a little exciting...

[@starry]