[Dolomedes]

 

Originally Posted by namen_roodles

Flintclaw

Thunderclan warrior - 22 moons - Massive dark tabby tom with pale blue eyes and a thick scar across his chest.
(Purrks: Killer Aptitude)
~~~

"Yes, fur from other predators makes good bedding, as long as it is not covered in too much blood. Some collect the bones, either for personal collections or to trade with others. There are many uses for different parts of these predators, just not always for food." Truth be told, he never really kept many trophies or used much of the predators remains, himself, but knew others that did. Perhaps he should start. He wouldn't mind keeping a fox tooth or a badger claw.

Flintclaw opened his mouth to answer the next question, but Rosekit was already moving on to showing him her hunting crouch. Her form looked fairly good to him, but she was slow as soon as she started moving. It seemed to him that her center of balance was off, which might effect her ability to not only move, but pounce. She might have made the pounce this time, but she was focusing so much on just getting the form right that she would probably never actually land on even the laziest mouse.

Oh, starclan, does she always talk this fast? Was that just a kit thing or was it specific to this one? How, exactly, did Flintclaw manage to be held hostage by this tiny, russet kit?

"Practice, get comfortable in your crouch and movements so you're not off balance. Some of that will come with just building the muscle when you become an apprentice. And," He paused, debating on how to continue. "No matter how perfect your form is, if that is all you focus on then you won't be catching anything." It was a bit blunt and harsh, but at least it was honest. He could've told her, and it was a bit tempting for a moment, that her form was perfect and she should strive to keep it that way... but, well, that wouldn't feed the clan. The least he could do was make sure the traitor's daughter wasn't completely useless to the clan that so graciously took her in.

"As for hunting patrols," He said with a sniff, moving on to her other questions. "You are assigned to a group and a location. Usually the locations rotate throughout different parts of the territory to keep prey from being over-hunted in any one area. Most patrols reach their location and split apart to hunt separately before meeting back together to return to camp."

"Yes, most of thunderclan's territory is forest and woodlands. There's a lot of trees that are home to squirrels and birds, which is why you'll see them most frequently in the fresh-kill pile." He explained. "There are many parts of our territory that are hard to describe with words, but you will get to see them, eventually. Pay attention to Firefly cove, especially since it will be in the beginnings of blooming by the time your mentor gives you a tour of the territory." WHY OH WHY did he just say that? Sure, Flintclaw could appreciate the beauty of thunderclan's territory, but was he really going to give recommendations of good spots to this child?

Finally, the last question, and a fairly simple one to answer. "Anywhere from two to four catches is average. I, personally, tend to make two or three catches when I go on a hunting patrol." Time for the next wave of questions...

Rosekit

"Okay, thank you for the feedback! That last warrior I practiced with didn't really give me much to work with." Or what they said wasn't as important to actually hunting as the words that Flintclaw shared, she stood up and settled back down in front of him as he took to explaining things again. As he explained, the premise of a hunting patrol was one that Rosekit already had a general understanding of because of its simplicity but the additional details were helpful, especially the tips about over hunting which was sure to be a concern especially in Leafbare.. Though Rosekit was born at the start of Leafbare so she didn't have the other seasons in comparison yet.

"Firefly Cove? You'll have to take me once I get my 'paw name at the next meeting. Then you could give me proper lessons, especially for taking down predators as you seem to have that expertise!" The kitten nodded her head, as though she was asking rather than telling the warrior... while she spoke with others often her social skills were still lined with that kitten-entitlement that came with wanting something. Though in her defense, warriors should be more than happy to help train the youth of the clan. It was the highest honor of a warrior to train apprentices and grow the strength of a clan.

That left only two more patrol types to have a proper explanation of! She prompted the warrior, "I don't have many questions, hunting seems straight forward enough. Though I suppose I was wondering if you use that same hunting crouch for all prey? Anyways, we can move onto herb patrols now."