Post by just atlanta. on Jul 27, 2016 1:08:14 GMT
Whitewater stood rather dejectedly at the edge of the gathered crowd; he should have been happy, for he was the lucky tom who would be gaining a new apprentice, but his most recent failure with Martenpaw cut deep, taking him back to the days of Applepaw. When Duckstar called him forward to meet Lightningpaw in the center of the crowd, the young apprentice looked up to him with eyes aglow with excitement and imagination, and regret fluttered in his belly. He wished he could have mustered up a bit more excitement. But even so, he managed a smile as he bent to touch noses with the white tom, the Clan chanting his apprentice name to the twilit sky. At the ceremony's end, Palefeather drew him aside seriously. Lightningpaw was a special cat, she said fondly, special with a lot of imagination. Be patient with him.
The pale warrior stalked briskly along the ridge, making virtually no noise as he parted the grass in his wake. Somewhere behind him, he knew Lightningpaw would be coming along, and he slowed his pace slightly to allow the smaller tom to keep up. This wasn't their first training session together, but they were still fresh enough to each other to make things a little...awkward. Lightningpaw was certainly likable enough; he was a cheerful little thing, filled with boundless energy, and desperate to prove himself. They had only worked on a few basic battle moves and stalking techniques, but when he spoke, the apprentice listened, and gave it his all. But even so, sometimes Whitewater could swear that there were times when his protege was speaking to someone, but when he turned to look, there was no one else there. The kid was also a little too outgoing - Whitewater never liked it when young cats were nervous around him, but Lightningpaw sometimes didn't act like he cared about who his mentor was at all.
Coming to the edge of the riverbank, Whitewater stopped to lean against one of the many thick posts that supported the bridge spanning the water. It was midday, and while the mornings were still cool, afternoons heated up fairly quickly, and the RiverClan deputy appreciated the shade the bridge provided, even if it was a cumbersome twoleg invention. Turning back in the direction from where he had initially come, the warrior waited patiently for his apprentice to come along. "Pop quiz," he called out good-naturedly, squinting under the glare of the sun. "Take a walk along the bridge and tell me what you can scent. What's here that's similar to the rest of our territory, and what's different?"
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