-- supermassive . black . hole [frost]

[mintcat]

the morning dawned foggy, which was unusual for leaf-bare. mintfur shook her pelt dry and stepped out of the warrior's den. she was thankful that she didn't have to attend the dawn patrol, but tenfold that she had an apprentice. an apprentice! the calico still didn't believe it. she blinked drowsily against the glare of the sun and padded to the fresh-kill pile.

after a quick breakfast, chatting small talk with a clanmate to along the way, she was feeling more awake. where was her sister? or an actual friend, at least? there's nothing against goose, she figured, thinking of the fellow warrior, but he never stops talking! It was true. By now the dawn patrol had already returned, and she was late. A day and a half after her apprentice's ceremony, she had a tour of the territory planned -- but it was a warm greenleaf, and she wanted to get going now. trekking in the hot sun in the middle of the day wasn't the ideal situation.

avoiding the hustle and bustle the patrol was creating in the midst of camp, she turned again to the apprentice den. "frostpaw?" mintfur mewed, ducking her head in. "you ready for your first lesson?" despite her excitement, the shy cat was a bit anxious. she barely knew this frostpaw -- who had, of course, been a kitten this whole time. yes, she'd been to the nursery, but hadn't mixed with the kits much. what was she like? and anyway, it would be good for her to take on this role. not only was it one of the things every warrior dreamed of, it would also get her interacting with cats she didn't know very well. and besides, everyone knew she was just a few steps away from recluse. okay, maybe not quite, but i'm certainly not the most outgoing cat in the world.

there was unrest with talk of riverclan today, but what were the chances that a fight would break out? a full-blown battle? it wasn't that mintfur was naive, but she highly doubted that stribebir--i mean stripestar -- would let that happen; let alone the riverclan leader. waiting at the entrance to camp, mintfur asked frostpaw, "have you ever been out of camp? i was thinking we could cover the territory, and maybe do some hunting."

[silvestern7]

{OOC Would you have to trin me to hunt first before we went out hunting? Also, I hope you don't mind the color that I used for Mintfur's speach...}

Frostpaw awoke to the wonderful smells of greenleaf. She could hear some birds chirping, smell the fresh prey in the freshkill pile, but what really made her wake up, was the fact that she was an apprentice! She still couln't believe it, even though she had been an apprentice for more than a day. Still laying on her side, Frostpaw stretched out her legs, gave a wide yawn, then sat up. She gave herself a quick, but thourough grooming before getting up and walking over to the freshkill pile. She brought back a plum bird, and ate it bit by bit. She wasn't sure if she would be able to finish it, but she hated wasting food. It was also too good not to finish. She ate every last bite, and licked the bones until they were spotless. It probably looked like she was starving, but this was simply the best bird she had ever tasted.

Frostpaw took the bones and burried them just a smidge outside of the camp. She never had to dispose of her own prey's bones before, so she wasn't quite too sure what to do with them. Then she trotted back to the apprentices den, where she laid back down. All that food made her tired, but she didn't want to sleep. She wanted to get out and do something. The Frostpaw reminded herself that she was an apprentice, and because she was so unused to the fact that she was an apprentice, she forgot that she would eventually start training. She sat up, and peeked her head out of the den. She looked for Mintfur, and was disapointed when there was no sign of her. Frostpaw still didn't have any friends, so it was boring sitting in the small den. She perked her ears and tried to listen on other cats conversations, just incase she was missing out on anything. Although, she was unable to hear anones conversation with all of the cats talking. It just sounded like a whole bunch of mumbling.

Oh, what to do, what to do. Frostpaw thought. She jumped when another head pupped in, but she quickly filled up with joy when she realized it was Mintfur. "Frostpaw?" The white and calico she-cat called. "You ready for your first lesson?" Frostpaw jumped with joy! "Oh boy, oh boy! Yes, yes, yes, yes, YES! So what do we do? Do we get to fight? Battle other clan cats? Hunt mice, and birds and voles, and, and..." Frostpaw couldn't think of any other prey. "And... Anyways, what are we doing?"

Frostpaw looked at Mintpaw, studing her coat very carefully. She wanted to remember her mentor for forever and ever! Then Mintpaw asked, "Have you ever been out of camp? I was thinking we could cover the territory, and maybe do some hunting." Frostpaw was a bit disapointed about this, but the disapointement left her quickly. She hadn't ever been out of the camp, and just exploring all of WindClan territory made her heart race with excitement. "No, I'v never been out of the camp... So, where are we going to start?" There was no doubt that Frostpaw wasn't excited. She just hoped that her adventurous side didn't get the best of her. If it did, that would probably be bad, and would lead to trouble.

[mintcat]

mintfur gave a small smile at frostpaw's enthusiasm. it's contagious, she thought delightedly. "I was thinking we could go and start by covering from here over past the badger set to the lookout, the one that lets you see everything." mintfur mewed. "if we get the opportunity -- i mean, if one comes by -- then you could start learning how to hunt. not a total lesson, but an intro. at least to rabbits, 'cos it's our primary food source next to water." she wondered if this cat would mind. would he? she knew some apprentices could be ..well, touchy. even she had trouble with the whole taking-orders-from-the-mentor thing, at first.

she slipped away and motioned for frostpaw to follow her through the brush that covered the entrance. you'd thinking the windclan camp was exposed, she mused, but it was actually pretty protected. the hills around it made something of a small valley, and coupled with brush it was barely noticeable from above.

she stepped out from the tunnel and breathed in the fresh moor air. morning damp still clung to it, along with the fresh breeze and a trace of hare. at this time of the morning (eight by our standards) the light was sunny but welcoming, not extremely harsh as it was midday. mintfur felt a tingling down in her paws, itching to go for a run. it was something that just came natural to her. this is my world. the optimism was so refreshing after the cynicism and pessimism of the day before.

"do you like to run?" mintfur mewed suddenly, glancing over at frost once they were out. it was still difficult to believe that they weren't allowed out of camp until six moons. well, not that, but just the fact that frost had never been out of camp. it made sense, but was somehow kind of surreal at the same time. she remembered back to when she herself was a kitten. there was this whole world they hadn't known about.

[silvestern7]

Frostpaw stared with wide eyes at her mentor. She wanted to learn every last thing she could, and she wanted to know it perfectly! If she were to become a good warrior, Frostpaw knew she would need to listen, only talk when it was her turn, and not let anything distract her. Ooh... That would be tough... Frostpaw not getting distracted... O well, Frostpaw listened to what her mentor had to say. Yes! Frostpaw thought. It's my first day of training and I'm already learning stuff! I didn't know rabbits were our primary food source! Whatever that it... Probably our top prey... Frostpaw wasn't sure what a primary food source was... Those were all big words. Most she had never heard, but by the way Mintfur had said it, Frostpaw guess it meant that it was they're biggest food source, or top prey, or something along those lines. She knew she'd understand more when she was older.

"Do you like to run?" The question came from Mintfur.
"I sure do!" Frostpaw said. She hadn't been able to run her fastest in her life, because she never had enough room. Now she had all of WindClan territory, and she would run at her full potential. Without waiting for Mintfur to do or say anything, Frostpaw sprang off, running as fast as she could. She had never actually seen a warrior run before, so she didn't know how fast they ran. Although, Frostpaw thought she was running faster than any apprentice would, but in all honesty, it wouldn't take very long to catch up to her. She would get better, though, as this was Frostpaw's first real run.

She raced under a couple of trees where she found some deathberries. "Mintfur, what are these?" She asked, but before Mintfur could say anything, Frostpaw was about to put one in her little mouth. Just as it came in teach to bite, she stopped herself. "Eww... These berries might look good, but they smell terrible! What are they Mintfur?" She asked. Frostpaw's curious side was starting to get the better of her. Frostpaw wanted to eat some of these strange berries, but she wasn't a kit anymore, she was an apprentice, and she was smart enough to wait to find out what they were before eating them.

[mintcat]

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mintfur was taking a deep breath, enjoying the wide open space and the air. then frostpaw's curiosity brought her plummeting back to earth.

"these berries look good, but they smell terrrible! what are they, mintfur?"

mintfur gasped, and her eyes widened. flashback: a calico kitten eats deathberries. said kitten starts foaming at the mouth and the like, passes out, near death. said kitten wavers in and out of consciousness for the next week or two, in agonizing pain. mintkit's apprenticeship is delayed by at least a month.

"FROSTPAW ! GET AWAY FROM THOSE !" mintfur's caterwaul was probably way over the top, but she couldn't help but remember her own experience with deathberries. racing over to the bush, she explained, "those are deathberries. you eat them, you die, basically. when i was a kit, about to become an apprentice, i ate some on accident and nearly died. it--it was agonizing. like having your fur set on fire ten times over." she paused, reliving the experience, then shook herself. "then being eaten by a dog. anyway .. please, please don't eat them." the pale she-cat stopped again. "ergh, sorry i overreacted. i'm just saying, i only survived because a warrior found me quickly."

wow. mintfur's green eyes widened. that was another thing that hadn't really occured to her -- the fact that, she was responsible for frostpaw, and if anything happened to her .. well, she would never forgive herself, nor would anyone else for that matter. this run-on sentence ran through her head for a moment, and then the she-cat stretched. her lean haunches rippled in the movement, gladly.

the willowy cat glanced back at frostpaw. "so, you want to learn how to hunt .. ?" no duh, she chided herself. "well, you know how to smell, but it's different from scenting." she sat up and opened her mouth slightly, taking in the different odors. "here, try to open your maw a little bit like this. do you smell anything .. interesting?" grateful for the drastic change in topic, mintfur sat back on her hindquarters.

[silvestern7]

Frostpaw stared back and forth from the berries to Mintfur. She kept her focus directly on Mintfur when she explained what there were. Frostwas jumped back when she heard the word deathberries. She was even more terrified when Mintfur told her her story. After that, Frostpaw promised herself that she would never go near deathberries EVER again. Unless it was an emergency, or if it was her only way to get somewhere. Then she got even more worried. "Mintfur, am I going to get sick from smelling the deathberries?" She asked. Frostpaw hated being sick. That yucky feeling, her tummy always aching... She prayed to StarClan that she would never get sick again. Not even if it was a simple belly ache.

Frostpaw was glad when Mintfur changed the subject. "So, you want to learn how to hunt .. ? Well, you know how to smell, but it's different from scenting. Here, try to open your maw a little bit like this. Do you smell anything... interesting?" Of course Frostpaw wanted to learn how to hunt! She opened her maw, trying her best to do just as Mintfur was, and she tried really hard to concentrate on smelling something. "I think all I can smell are those disgusting deathberries." She reported. Frostpaw got up and walked away from the deathberries to somewhere else where she tried to scent again. She didn't want the deathberries to block out everything. At least she knew what the smelt like now. She she sniffed the air, she didn't smell anything at first. Then something of a wonderful smell whisked past her nose. "Is that a rabbit I'm smelling?" She asked. She hoped it was, because she wanted Mintfur to show her how to hunt.

Frostpaw looked around after she smelt the new scent. She wanted to see whatever it was that she scented. It bothered her that she couldn't see it. I guess this is why cats need such good smelling abilities. She thought to herself. As a kit, she was so used to seeing everything. Her friends, all of the other cats, her leader... EVERYTHING! Especially her food. And now, she couldn't see it. She just wanted to run towards it, just to see it, but she wouldn't let herself. One thing she did know about hunting, is prey gets scared easily. If she wanted Mintfur to catch it to show her how, then Frostpaw wouldn't want to scare it away.

[mintcat]

Mintfur took a deep breath and tried to rein in her spazzy flashback episode. Change gears. Breathe in, breathe out. In, out. Okay, good. The calico warrior glanced back at Frostpaw, both erect. "Yes." Okay, so that was lame, but no need to waste words, right? Especially when she was feeling more than a little awkward at the moment. Mintfur stopped and crouched in the brush, closing her eyes for a second. A slight breeze was making the green stems sway. "See how the smell is coming from that area over there?" she mewed, keeping her voice low. mintfur flicked her tail towards the northeast. "We're upwind right now -- the wind is blowing towards us, which means the rabbit can probably smell us and make a run for it." Her haunches were wound up, dying to unfurl and sprint across the earth. Instead, for this moment, the warrior dug her claws into the turf.

"So what do we do?" She quizzed. After crouching hidden with Frostpaw for who knows how long, she stood up. Ahh.

Mintfur racked her brain for a second. How had her mentor taught her these things? The midmorning air, now unseasonably chilly, was teasing her. Exhilirating her, almost -- not quite. She would have loved to take off like a bullet, gulping in lungfuls of cool air into her lungs. She would be a fish in water, streamlined and at home. Do your part. Teach. Her original plan was to take it slow, show her the scent then the approach, but there wasn't enough time for this. Dang! Stupid wind was blowing away from them, and the opportunity was too good to pass up.

"We .. run!"

The calico grinned at Frostpaw and loped forward, then faster, flicking with her tail in gesture to come along. Where is it now? It seemed to be moving, too. What was that--? A brief flash of brown fur caught her eye, and later, a small white tail. Seeing the flag caused her to do a hairpin turn. "Come!" She called over to Frostpaw, letting the wind carry her voice.

[silvestern7]

[OOC If we're upwind, and the wind is blowing towards us, then the rabbit shouldn't be able to smell us... If we're downwind, and the wind is blowing away from us, to the rabbit, then it's blowing our scent away from us to the rabbit so it would smell us I thought...]

"Yes" Frostpaw's mentor had said. She was right! It was rabbit! "See how the smell is coming from that area over there?" keeping silent, Frostpaw simply nodded her head. "We're upwind right now -- the wind is blowing towards us, which means the rabbit can probably smell us and make a run for it." Aww. Frostpaw wanted to see Mintfur pounce on it and kill it. She wanted to see how you catch it, but now they'd probably have to chase it. "So what do we do?" Mintfur asked. How was Frostpaw supposed to know? She had no idea! And besides, if she said anything, she was sure to scare off the rabbit!

Staring at the rabbit, almost drooling, Frostpaw waited for her mentors next move, She observed very closely. "We .. run!" Mintfur dashed off, then singled with her tail for Frostpaw to follow, but she ended up shouting "Come!" anyways. On the chase, Frostpaw had never felt so alive before. Then she realized how fast WindClan cats really were. She was having a hard time keeping up with Mintfur, but she pushed herself on.

Still running, Frostpaw shouted, "Where is it?" taking breathes in between each word. She couldn't see it nor smell it anymore. Had they lost it? She knew that you didn't always catch every single piece of prey you stalk, but she really wanted to see Mintfur catch the first one. Then Frostpaw noticed her legs began to feel numb, and she was slowing down, Mintfur getting further and further away from her. She was already out of breath. Frostpaw tried giving herself another hard push, but ended up stopping. She hoped Mintfur wouldn't turn around. For the sake of her Clan, Frostpaw hoped that Mintfur would catch the rabbit just to bring back food for her clan, even if Frostpaw didn't get to see her catch. She would get to see another one. Then she sat down on the open moorland, waiting for Mintfur. Meanwhile, she thought about battle training. She wanted Mintfur to tech her how to hunt, then she wanted to get straight to battle training! It sounded like so much fun! All of the other apprentices were so good at battling, and she didn't know one little thing about it.

[mintcat]

Caught up in the run, Mintfur nearly forgot herself. The pale she-cat slowed a bit and flicked her tail. "Scent .. it helps if you kind of open your mouth a bit, like this." She gestured again with her tail. "See how it's coming over there? The rabbit's in that area, which means we come around this way."

She hoped that it would be Frostpaw who caught the rabbit, but this whole mentoring thing was really new to her. Not to mention the size of a rabbit -- it was a lot more of a gamble, in her opinion, than catching, say, a mouse. Mice were small. Rabbits were a lot bigger. You catch a rabbit, it can feed two cats. Lose it, you just starved two mouths. Which made it more difficult to teach.

"Watch me." she mewed, then made a run for it, narrating as she went. "Sometimes it just comes down to speed. If you can sneak up on it, great, but sometimes you just have to run as fast as you can." She pushed herself to go faster, stretching her legs further, following the flash of brown fur through the moor.

That was the way running was. It was in their blood. And it both challenged you and freed you, she thought. It felt great afterwards, but during the chase it was a love/hate relationship.

Mintfur took a deep breath and pushed herself one more bound. The wind ruffled her fur, unkempt, as she lept.

The cat landed and held the rabbit down until she could administer a killing blow. "Did you see?" she asked Frostpaw. "Now you try." Her green eyes glanced around the brush, trying to catch a glimpse of another potential prey.

[silvestern7]

Frostpaw began to open her mouth, just as bit, as Mintfur had shown her. Now she could scent the rabbit! She closed her mouth, and tried to smell it again, but she couldn't. Opening her mouth once again, she sniffed, and caught the scent of the rabbit. Weird... She thought. "See how it's coming over there? The rabbit's in that area, which means we come around this way." Frostpaw awkwardly nodded, then followed Mintfur, keeping quite, so she would not scare off the rabbit.

"Watch me." Then Mintfur was off. Frostpaw stood still and watched her, not moving unless she needed to to see Mintfur. Mintfur shouted out things to Frostpaw, and she had to strain her ears to hear, the wind making it all the harder. Then, Frostpaw saw her take a huge leap into the air, and CRASH! She landed on the rabbit, and killed it. Frostpaw saw it go limp.

"Did you see?" Mintfur asked. "Of course I did! That was awesome! You're such a good hunter!" Frostpaw comented. "Now you try." Mintfur finished. Frostpaw was nervous, and she heard that not many apprentices caught their first prey, so she hoped Mintfur wasn't expecting her too.

Opening her mouth just a tiny bit, as Mintfur had shown her, Frostpaw tasted the air, and caught the scent of a mouse. She knew it's scent because other warriors and apprentices had brough mice back, and they had been on the fresh kill pile. She pin-pointed the location of the mouse, then went around so the wind would not blow her scent down to the little animal. She slowly, and quietly, crept towards it, then about a fox length away, the mouse froze, just as Mintfur's rabbit had done. She forze too, unsure of what to do now. She raced through her mind to remember what Mintfur had done. Run! She thought, and at that very second, she ran. The moush shot up in alarm, and just as Frostpaw pounced, it scurried into it's tiny little hole. Her paws landed directly on top of it. "Mouse Dung!" She spat.

Then, looking up at Mintfur with her big blue eyes, she asked, "What did I do wrong? Why didn't I catch it?" In all honesty, Frostpaw thought it had somehow magically disapeared, because she didn't realize it's hole was right where her paws landed. She didn't know af any magical mice, but she was determined to catch something. Without waiting for a responce, she opened her mouth, one last time, and tasted a vole.

Creeping over to it, she saw it nibbling on something. It didn't even notice her. She was tired of running, and it didn't seem like she would need to, so she just decided to skip on over to the part where you pounce. She quickly, but quietly crept over to it. She tail began to swish, and the vole imidiatly stopped, and looked around. Not again! Frostpaw pleaded. Then she realized it was her tail, and she stopped it imidiatly. She didn't want to have to chase another animal.

Luckly the vole took no notice of her, and went back to eating. She crept up until she was about a tail length away, then leaped. Misjudging the distance, Frostpaw's belly almost landed on the vole instead of her paws, but she somehow managed, to her her paws under her and on the vole, then puch herself back before her back legs hit the ground. Yes! The vole was hers. Then she realized that it was still squealing and moving. She had forgoten to kill it! Luckly it was stuck under the weight of her paws, she she quickly bit into it's neck.

Frostpaw trotted happily over to Mintfur, the vole dangling in her mouth. She was tired already, and almost wanted to head back to camp, but she also wanted to do some battle training. Then she realized how late it was getting, and thought that Mintfur would probably say it was time to head back anyways. Then Frostpaw noticed how tired her legs were, and how sore her pads were. Hunting seemed like a lot of work, and she didn't know how she'd be able to keep it up to keep her clan well fed.