[ti]Private[/ti]Rough Around the Edges

[pants]

The race was on.

Creekpaw dashed through the meadow, dodging large bushels of grass as he was in pursuit of a rabbit. The hare bounded ahead, always managing to stay ahead of the apprentice, almost as if it were teasing him. This pushed Creekpaw to try and run harder. The tom tried his best to keep up, nearing on the rabbit's heels, the brown and white, shorthaired animal just barely managing to keep itself out of the blue apprentice's grasp. The tom knew he had to catch the prey before crossing clan lines. He didn't want to tussle with MothClan warriors, especially since they had been pushing the borders as of late. If he ended up crossing the border and getting caught, then StarClan have mercy on him. Perhaps Sablestar and Cloverwing would go easy on him, but he had heard vicious rumors of MothClan cats being merciless and frightening. He believed it, too, since seeing their leader, Eveningstar, at the Gathering. He didn't seem like the type to be so forgiving... 

The tom continued the chase, not letting up. But he could feel his paws getting sore as he began to pant and the sun beating down on his blue ticked coat, each pace tempting him to give up. No! I mustn't let up! Just one more final push, and I can make it! He urged himself, finding the strength to carry on as hard as he could, nearly reaching the rabbit. He was about to leap when his face suddenly hit the ground and the air was knocked out of him.

His front paws had slipped through a hidden rabbit hole.

He got up from the tumble, shaking out his pelt and watching the rabbit hop away, diving into a hole a few foxlengths ahead. "Foxdung...." He muttered, his body aching and beaten - especially his chin and jaw. He sat where he was in the meadow, giving himself a moment to recompose his energy. His tail flicked with annoyance. He wanted so badly to catch that rabbit. He could imagine the pride Cloverwing would have shown if he had brought back such a large piece of prey! But today was not his day, it seemed.

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[bits]

Rookshade's hunting skills were ... fine. They weren't spectacular - Jaybright had always been the more focused of the siblings, and she'd flourished as a hunter. It was, perhaps, one of the few reasons that Rook could half-believe she was still alive, wherever she was. But Rook's skills had more or less been devoted to battle, not out of bias from his mentor but out of the influence of his now-gone father. Either way, the warrior was rarely seen doing anything helpful for the clan. His reputation as a layabout was fairly well known throughout Mistclan, and he did little to assuage the beliefs of those who thought him lazy. Why would he apply himself to convince them otherwise? It was easier to give into his need to nap during the day, training in private at odd hours.

Though he tried not to rub his perceived inactivity in the faces of his clanmates. Goading others was only fun when he was a little more in control of the situation, so the black tom slipped through the territory, taking a leisurely walk to ease the tension in his muscles. He was rewarded for his efforts with a front-row set to Creekpaw hitting the dirt, and it took every ounce of restraint within him not to howl immediately with laughter. Instead, he let the sharp grin widen on his maw, whiskers twitching in sadistic amusement.

"Practicing your dirt-eating skills, dear apprentice?"

He was far too entertained by this whole thing.

[pants]

At first, Creekpaw paid no mind to the older tom. He was still looking to where the rabbit had ran, grieving his loss of prey and pride. He flicked an ear at Rookshade. "I tried my best. I really did...." He murmured before releasing a huge exhale, obviously disappointed, but not hurt by the warrior's initial remark. What could he do? The rabbit was gone and any others that were nearby might also have fled after the commotion. The only thing the young blue tom could do was move on and find something else to hunt. He still had a lot to learn. Maybe going after a rabbit wasn't such a good idea after all...

The apprentice took a look at Rookshade. "You think there's a way to get 'em out of their holes? If so, I bet you could catch one, huh? It'd be easy prey." He didn't mean it as an insult, but who knows how the older cat would react. He wasn't exactly the most well known hunter in the clan. But he was bigger and more experienced, and that means, in Creekpaw's eyes, that he might have a better chance at catching the darned things. And the apprentice, being naive and not thinking his words through, continued. "Perhaps you could teach me, yah?"

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[bits]

I tried my best, I really did...

There was something about that sentiment that made Rookshade's smirk turn a little crueler, as if he could push back the unwelcome callback to his younger days. Trying your best didn't mean jack if you didn't produce results - though replying with that might be going overboard. He was sarcastic, caustic maybe, but sniping at an apprentice for little to no reason seemed a little too much, even for Rookshade. Instead, he looked meaningfully from the apprentice to the scene of the wipeout, as if to say are you sure about that?. He had to refrain from speaking right away so he didn't fling barbs at the unwitting Creekpaw.

When the poor kid started to go on about finding their holes and rooting them out, Rookshade gave his most exasperated sigh, rolling his eyes in the most dramatic fashion his little melodramtic heart could summon.

"There's usually a couple holes. I'm pretty sure if you jumped in after one, they'd kick you so hard you'd break your nose. Though, maybe a bit of head trauma would - wait, what?"

His nose crinkled as, in the midst of his teasing, the apprentice asked him to help him. Help? He had just gotten rid of his own apprentice, what was the point of helping another one? With a put-upon expression twisting his face, he traipsed closer to Creekpaw. A sniff later, and he looked lazily in the direction of the escaped rabbit.

"Look kid, you can't outrun a rabbit for long. You wouldn't try to outswim a fish or outclimb a squirrel. So you gotta make sure you do something better. Stay hidden longer, be more patient. You spook the thing too early and it'll leave you in the dust."

That was ... dangerously close to good advice, and a brief pause later, Rookshade seemed to realize that. Just for appearance's sake, he kept up the disaffected persona he held onto.

"Or you could keep throwing yourself at the ground. That might work eventually."

[pants]

"There's usually a couple holes. I'm pretty sure if you jumped in after one, they'd kick you so hard you'd break your nose.

Creekpaw turned his head and gave the warrior a glare that was filled with confusion, some anger, and even a bit of concern? He twitched his nose and rolled his eyes, looking back to his previous target. He flicked his tail in slight annoyance. Everyone knew Rookshade was a bit of a downer and a major pain in the tail, and that he shouldn't let him get to his feelings. But he couldn't really shake off the warrior's snide remarks. It's almost as if Rookshade enjoyed being mean. But why would he? Creekpaw wasn't aware of the older tom's history, but in the apprentice's eyes, the warrior had no reason to be mean. Maybe he was born like that. Or maybe he was raised by foxes. Can cats be raised by foxes...? the tom quickly thought, labeling the thought as strange. The young tom began to drift into his own little world again.

That was until the tom spoke again.

This time, Creekpaw looked to the warrior with a sense of awe, followed by a smile and twinkling in his eyes. So there was good in him! And wisdom to go with it! He gave a mrrow of laughter. Rookshade then followed up with another mocking comment but Creekpaw just rolled his eyes again, but this time with a smile, "Or maybe you can show me how to hunt rabbits so I will leave you alone." The tom threw back, standing and chipperly approaching the warrior, "How fun would that be?! C'mon, Cloverwing hasn't shown me how to go after rabbits yet!" Creekpaw's blue eyes showing his excitement for a new experience. Surely he hadn't scared off all the rabbits, right?

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[bits]

I really am too nice for my own good, thought the older warrior, though he didn't for a second believe it. He was very purposeful in his cruelty, and the results were usually what he was looking for - namely, isolation. It was more difficult with apprentices and children, but he was doing his very best to encapsulate the kind of being that no one wanted to spend too much time around.

Unfortunately, that wasn't working out for him. He had crossed the line into 'helpful' territory. With another put-upon sigh, the warrior considered his options. He could certainly just walk away, but...

"If anyone asks, you learned this all on your own. I won't have my reputation threatened by some apprentice who thinks I'm helpful."

With that out of the way, he shook his head at the notion of this being 'fun' and instead eyed the apprentice appraisingly. There was a moment of quiet where Rookshade's usually flinty gaze turned sharp in a far different sense. Instead of seeking weaknesses to exploit or tease, he looked at Creekpaw as though the apprentice were a puzzle he could figure out just by considering him.

"Go into your hunter's crouch - but don't go too low. You want your steps to be quiet, so distribute your weight evenly. You don't have to worry as much about the rabbit spotting you as you do it hearing or smelling you."

This was a much more productive side to Rookshade, though his cutting yellow gaze still suggested his readiness to pick apart any mistakes.

[pants]

Creekpaw gave a little hop out of excitement, bouncing like a kit, blue-gray eyes gleaming. "Oh, thank you, thank you, Rookshade!" The young tom chirped. He then instantly dropped to his hunter's crouch in front of the older tom, mindful of keeping his body balanced and eyes forward, focusing his gaze on a small rock in front of him. He furrowed his brow, going through a mental checklist in his head while trying to focus on the task at hand. He pushed himself slightly upwards to rise his body higher than he would his normal hunter's crouch. Here, he could feel his muscles working a bit harder and he felt a bit stiff, but could also sense how much easier it was to be nimble on his toes. Creekpaw made a note of this for future hunts and adventures. He was gonna be the best warrior in MistClan, for sure! Because being able to hunt rabbits definitely constitutes for that since most of what the clan caught was fish and birds.... Right?

Regardless, the young tom continued to maintain his pose, his tail barely above the ground as to not brush up against any foliage. "Like this?" The young tom asked, looking at the warrior from the corner of his eye, not wanting to jeopardize his position. He felt that if he made any new major movement might set him off balance or have the older tom snap at him for not staying in perfect form. Creekpaw thought he was doing pretty well, but he knew there was always room for improvement. Plus, Rookshade had mentored a few other young cats. Surely he knew exactly how to get this young tom into shape. He'd be hunting rabbits in no time!


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[bits]

Despite the appearance of distaste on the warrior's expression, Rookshade was giving Creekpaw his sole focus. The tom wasn't one to half-do something when he agreed to it (not counting his ill-fated mentorship, but he hadn't exactly volunteered for that). The black warrior let his sharp gaze pick apart all the aspects of the apprentice before him, seeming to seek out weaknesses in the apprentice's form. He could tell that the form was unfamiliar to the apprentice, but that wasn't really unexpected. Nothing was ever perfect, but life was a constant attempt to better one's self - though he hadn't quite accepted that himself. Still, his inability to settle seemed a boon when it came to improvement, so the warrior twitched his nose in his silence as he considered the apprentice.

"Mm. Not bad for the first try. You're terribly stiff and if the wind blew wrong, I'm certain you'd fall over. Try to widen your stance a little until you get stronger - and keep doing it over and over again."

He hummed for a moment and raised a paw to adjust the apprentice's tail, hoping to move the appendage to make balancing a little easier.

[pants]

Creekpaw twitched his whiskers in amusement, not replying to the tom. The warrior adjusted the apprentice's tail, and Creekpaw shifted his stance a bit, widening his posture and trying to relax a bit and follow instructions. He could feel the more well balanced position he was in, and how this would be better for stalking rabbits than his original stance. He took a moment to try and memorize where exactly his muscles were before he decided to go any further.

"How's this?" he asked, hopping back up in a normal stance before crouching down again, trying to recreate the stance he was in. He was mostly on point, only a little shaky, which he instantly corrected by shifting his paws. His tail remained a little higher than his spine and his center of balance settling into the correct position. Creekpaw looked to the warrior, eyes shining as he awaited for his approval or criticism. He enjoyed training, even with this grumpy tom. He loved to learn new things and polish his skills.

The tom, too excited to wait, hopped back up and dropped down in his new and improved hunting crouch, giving a puffy exhale each time, as he repeated the sequence until he finally managed to get into what he thought was the perfect stance without any shifting or corrections. Creekpaw smiled, proud of himself.

[bits]

If Rookshade's whiskers twitched in amusement, he'd deny it until his lungs grew still. He had his reputation, after all, and "assisting apprentices out of the kindness of one's heart" didn't quite mesh with the rest of his carefully sculpted aesthetic. He couldn't help but find himself enjoying the receptiveness of the apprentice though - it was ... a little nice to be able to assist someone who was willing to listen to instructions. He kept quiet as Creekpaw made adjustments, nodding slowly once the apprentice popped out and back into the stance. It was much better than it had been, and the black warrior sat back on his haunches, keeping on his air of indifference.

"Better than before. Keep practicing it - you want to feel stable and natural. Eventually you don't even have to think about it, you'll drop into it as easy as walking."

He scrunched his nose at the way he spoke, drawing a few too many parallels between this moment and past ones. Luckily, he had been practicing denial long enough that it was just like a crouch - without any effort, he dropped back into his usual persona.

"Now scram kid, best way to learn is by doing. If you figure out how to correct yourself before anyone else does, you'll save yourself some time and effort."

His paws ached, and the tom shoved that right down too.