[MaskedBandits]

Originally Posted by Nighty

Flamingarrow watched. He had a feeling that Burstpaw wasn't letting on fully how he felt. He couldn't blame him though, he knew how it was to be an apprentice, he had always wanted to train too, never really wanting to stop. Mainly because training gave him something to be dooing and after six moons of nothing in the campp as a kit, he was all tooeager to get out and start practicing to be the best there was. He watched though as Burstpaw pushed on, confident in himself. He trusted him, but if he thought Burstpaw was going through too much, he would stop him and take him home. Burstpaw looked good going into the spin, starting at a good time with a decent about of force for his spin. Everything was looking good and then the landing. He held his breath, watching in hopeful anticipation. When he landed successfully, he released his breath with a happy sigh. He approached the young cat with a broad smile. "Kinda did it? It was nearly perfect Burstpaw!" he said, pride filling him with excitement for his apprentice. "Now, do you want a break? Want to keep practicing here? Or go hunt?" He asked. "If you want to go home that's fine, we can start again tomorrow. If you want to stay here we can work on the vertical flips if you're up for it. Or if you want to go hunting, maybe I can teach you some stuff about hunting in a tree and not just under them." He asked.

Still wrapped up in his moment of glory, it took Burstpaw a minute to reply. I did it! "Oh - could we maybe work on my vertical flip just a bit longer? I know I can handle it!" That much was true; the previous pain he'd felt after his numerous fails was slowly fading away, and he felt more confident with his new success. Of course, it was also the thought of being in a tree that made him nervous. I'd prefer to stay on the ground like normal cats, thank you very much! The apprentice was afraid of a lot of things, and height was high up on that list. He had no interest in becoming a squirrel!

The thought of going back to camp wasn't appealing either, as he'd learned a lot so far in just the small time frame they'd been in the cave. He didn't want to go back home, not just yet. I want to master this flip first. Wait until I tell Lightpaw and Cherrypaw that I can flip in midair! Burstpaw had always been the more cautious one, the kit who'd rather stay in the nursery, and now, as an apprentice, he felt the need to make up for it. Flipping and turning - and fighting in general - wasn't really in his comfort zone, so something like that would sure make them proud! "Let's do it." The confidence of his own voice surprised him, but he lifted his chin at Flamingarrow, almost daring him to argue.