[Captain]

Originally Posted by RosePelt145

Sparrowpaw nodded at her mentor's words, gazing down at her paws. "That is true, Flintheart. It is a tough time for the Clans right now." She then gazed up at him, her hazel eyes wide. "But, now that New Leaf is here, I am hoping that the nice weather and plentiful prey will ease some of the tension..." She let out a sigh. "But, then again, it's not as simple as that." She glanced back at the grey tom as he spoke his next words. She was silent, knowing she couldn't say anything. His mentor and father treated him that badly...? She shook her head. It wasn't something she could find an answer for, so she rested her tail on his a moment before withdrawing it. "I'm sorry about that..." She mewed. She then glanced up at him in surprise as he spoke again. "No, no... I do eat how I should, I just don't like to eat more than I should. I don't get hungry, but I do know I need to eat to stay strong and survive." She then smiled. "I understand. I have known that part of the warrior code for a while. Both, I mean." She then brightened at his question. "Oh, yes! It's called a 'silent vigil', when the newly made warrior has to guard the camp until sunrise, keeping silent the full time until then." She beamed proudly, happy she had known this. Her tail tip flicked as she gazed up at the sky above the two cats, admiring the white, wispy clouds slowly maneuvering across the blue sky. Her hazel gaze was particularly interested in an eagle gracefully swooping through the clouds, it's wings flapping every now and then to keep it afloat. She felt a smile pull at her maw. She wanted to one day catch an eagle, proudly bringing it to camp. She shook her head to chase away the daydreaming from her mind before she gazed back at her mentor expectantly, waiting for the next part of the warrior code to be taught to her.

The taller male simply nodded to his student’s words, blinking down at her for a second or two. “We can only hope this peaceful weather and excess of prey will make everyone feel more at ease,” He agreed with Sparrowpaw, silently hoping things could go back to a similar, less stressful time for the clans, “However, it should not let us ease our guard down in the process.” Flintheart had never been one that could relax easily and was almost always on alert or uneasy - so this was not a problem. His student, young Sparrowpaw, was a different situation though. He hoped that in the future, he would learn her personality more and learn both her weaknesses and her strengths so that she could overcome both and become better in their training. The mentor wondered if it was a mistake on his part to bring up the apprentice moons he had endured with his mentor and father - both abusive and left him the coldhearted cat that he was to this day. Flintheart felt the younger shecat rest her tail on his for only a moment, which surprised him, not used to being shown any comfort - not since his mother in the nursery long ago. A small smile came to his expression. “It is alright, Sparrowpaw, you have a warm heart and a strong soul - you will be a fine warrior someday.” He remarked as they moved on with their lesson. The dark tomcat was relieved when she explained her situation about eating more clearly, knowing that it most likely had just been a misunderstanding on his part in the first place. “I am happy to hear that, everyone should be able to have a good hearty meal now and then to motivate themselves.” Flintheart said with a gentle nod, listening to her now speak about the codes that he had told her. The warrior wasn’t surprised that she knew them already, but it was still nice to refresh the memory now and then. He smiled proudly though, impressed that she knew exactly of the tradition that he was hinting at. “Exactly correct,” The male purred, “Wonderful job, but yes, that is the sixth code of warriors. Newly appointed warriors will keep a silent vigil for one night after receiving their warrior name, to be specific.” This was going well so far, which was rather nice considering the stress that he had been enduring earlier that exact day. He joined her as she turned her gaze to the sky, probably lost in thought as many youthful cats were, especially as apprentices. He was always so serious and tense, so he never really had daydreams often. Well, maybe he did and Flintheart just did not wish to admit such things. “The seventh code is: A cat cannot be made deputy without having mentored at least one apprentice, which is understandable when you think about it - a future leader must have experience with ordering around and guiding someone.” The warrior softly murmured, giving a light yawn before continuing on with these many codes, “The eighth code is another common sense one. The deputy will become Clan leader when the leader dies, retires or is exiled. I do hope I am not going to fast with these for you.” He added that last part with casting a gentle glance at the female, his ears twitching silently to the sounds around.