Flaying Class [2.0]

[Undertaker]

@Bean - Cloverpaw | @isla - Pondpaw.
Dawnstar had a new set of paws interested in flaying. Having grown accustomed to waking rather early now, the leader left her den on silent paws. The leader stepped out of her den and breathed in the cold air, gold eyes locked on the apprentices' den. Training the bigmouth and the form fish should be an interesting if not aggravating, experience.

Yawning, Dawnstar cut across the clearing and over to the apprentice's den. "Cloverpaw, Pondpaw, get up we're training." She called, uncaring about who she might wake in the process.

As soon as she had the apprentices gathered, she ordered them wordlessly to follow her out of camp and into the territory. The she-cat set her paws down lightly as she treaded through the dark forest, ears at attention as she listened for any pesky threats. Dawnstar parted her maw letting the smells of the forest reach the scent glands on the roof of her mouth. When nothing out of the ordinary was scented, she had her little apprentice patrol stopped in a small clearing.

"Cloverpaw, you interrogate me, and I'm sending you back to camp. Lostspark knows how to flay and she can teach you just as well as I can."Dawnstar was doing a kindness right now. She didn't need to teach Cloverpaw anything and she was in no mood for the apprentice's constant chatter. If she was going to make it in this clan, just like everyone else, she'd have to learn to read the leader's moods. Her patience for Cloverpaw wasn't as strong as it had been when they were a kit.

"You two know how to hunt?" Dawnstar had learned her lesson after last time to make sure to check before sending these furballs off on their own.

[Beaan]

CLOVERPAW
She/Him/They - 6 Moons - ShadowClan Apprentice
Purrks: Shadow Fiend [INACTIVE]
A small dark brown tabby with
green eyes and a long tail

---

Awwww man!! She was enjoying sleep when someone woke her up!!! "Dont wanna," she mumbled, adjusting her sleeping position. The nest was just so com- WAIT WAS THAT MISS DAWNSTAR?? Cloverpaw perked up, green eyes wide and alert when she was faced with her leader. TRAINING?? FROM THE LEADER??? Now the apprentice didn't even feel tired anymore!! Bouncing up, the apprentice turned to see the former RiverClan cat, who was going to accompany them. Alright, this should be fun! Cloverpaw followed Miss Dawnstar out into the territory, a spring in her step. The molly parted her jaws, letting the scent of the forest fill it. It was so much different from camp!! Once her leader came to a halt, Cloverpaw continued to bounce in place as Miss Dawnstar spoke, green hues fixated on the scarred she. "Awww man!!" she complained once the leader said she couldn't ask questions or she'd get sent back to camp. This was gonna be hard!! Cloverpaw sucked in a breath of air, her cheerful expression morphing into a frown. Still, she kept bouncing in place. She would not give up a chance to learn training from Miss Dawnstar!! "Gotcha!! Won't ask any questions, nope, nada, negative!!" she purred. While training with her mentor was equally as cool, who knows when she'll train with the leader again?? Hunting?? Well that was something the apprentice was yet to learn. "Nope!! I don't know how to hunt yet!! H- Nevermind!! I still don't know how to hunt!" she mewed, quickly cutting off her question. She was not going to ruin her chance to train with the leader of all cats.

[ @Undertaker @isla ]

[paedyn]

PONDPAW
SILVER TONGUE
MIND READER
KITTY SOFTPAWS

Pondpaw lifted her head at Dawnstar's call. The apprentice shared a glance with Cloverpaw and followed the older she-cats outside.

The blue-gray mackerel tabby trotted beside Dawnstar as she followed her. ''Sort of,'' Pondpaw responded softly with a flick of her tail tip. ''Tuftedtusk taught me a little bit, though I haven't caught anything yet.''

{ @Undertaker // @Bean }

[Undertaker]

@Bean - Cloverpaw | @isla - Pondpaw
Dawnstar bit back the urge to huff as soon as she got the expected nos from both apprentices. She was going to add the requirement of hunting apart of the lesson. She didn't think cats who couldn't hunt should be learning how to flay. Skinning wasn't a necessary requirement for the clan, it was just something extra apprentices could be taught. Dawnstar reminded herself to add that to the training requirements for flaying after this lesson.

"Pondpaw, you said Tuftedtusk taught you a thing or two. Show me and explain to Cloverpaw well you're at it." Dawnstar ordered. The Shadow Queen would add to the lesson as she saw fit. She wanted to see how well Cloverpaw absorbed from example and how well Pondpaw taught.

[paedyn]

PONDPAW
SILVER TONGUE TIER 2
KITTY SOFTPAWS TIER 2
MIND READER

Pondpaw dipped her head respectfully to Dawnstar and then turned to Cloverpaw, giving a wave of her tail as she began to explain the first steps of hunting.

“You need to open your jaws slightly and let the scents of the forest flow over your tongue,” The mottled blue-gray mackerel tabby began, blue eyes narrowing slightly. “When stalking prey, you need to depend on wind. You have to be downwind, which means you need to make sure that your quarry’s scent is flowing towards you and not the other way around.”

Pondpaw tipped her head thoughtfully. “Keep your paw steps light. A mouse, for example, may not be able to see, hear, or scent you, but they can feel your paw steps through the vibrations of the earth, is how Tuftedtusk explained it to me. Anyway, watch how I do it.”

[ Kitty Softpaws Tier 2 has been activated. ]

Opening her jaws slightly, the former RiverClanner tasted the air. The scent of a blackbird rolled over her tongue. Pinpointing it - by hearing rather than sight - the apprentice crouched, paw steps as light as clouds as she stalked forward.

Pondpaw waited a moment before leaping, clearing the undergrowth easily. She hooked the blackbird by a wing, threw it in the air, and let it drop to the ground in order to stun it. Taking advantage of her quarry’s confusion, the ShadowClanner lunged and delivered a swift, clean killing bite to the blackbird’s throat.

Getting a better grip on her catch, Pondpaw leaped the brush once more, landing beside Dawnstar with the blackbird between her jaws. She set it down and looked pointedly at Cloverpaw, whiskers twitching. “I pinpointed it by hearing rather than sight,” Pondpaw explained with a twitch of her tail tip. “Sometimes you can tell where your quarry is without having to see it. Now, Tuftedtusk says birds are harder to catch due to their wings. They’re able to fly away. Mice are fast, is what I was told, so you gotta be careful with them, too. Oh, and make sure that when you crouch down, your tail doesn’t brush any undergrowth, and don’t let it touch the ground. Keep your hind paws tucked as close to your belly as possible. It’ll add more power to your spring when the time comes.”

Pondpaw looked at Dawnstar, hoping that was a good enough demonstration and explanation for the ShadowClan Leader.

{ @Undertaker // @Bean }