ThunderClan Clearing

[gs29513]

Tansyjaw wasn't sure how she felt about these kit classes. On the one paw, it wasn't a bad idea to have their children learning early, at least how to defend themselves in case those Shadowclan foxhearts came back. On the other, it was a bit too close to early apprenticeship for her liking. The warrior code was very clear on that score, it wasn't to be done until six moons of age, and this seemed a bit like a way of skirting that rule. The leaders word was law was also a part of said warrior code though, so kit classes it would be. And if they had to occur, they might as well be taught by someone who would do it properly. i.e. her.

Thus, she found herself in the small area set aside for such education, calling out Deerkit, Fawnkit, Sparkkit and Shockkit! You're going to learn hunting with me, alright sweeties? Even if she didn't wholly approve of why she would be with them for a bit, she couldn't deny a little excitement to see the small cats. Kits were so pure, so trusting. They might become warped by circumstances as they grew older, sometimes through improper parenting, or some other event, but if they were raised right they generally remained loyal to their clan.

Sometimes it was none of the above, sometimes the cause of their problematic behavior was unknown, passed down in some way by their parents. That could be the only explanation, sometimes. She certainly hadn't raised her kits wrong, and there had been problems regardless. Now wasn't the time for such rambling thoughts though, and she redirected her attention to where the children that ought to be gathering soon, wrapping her fluffy tail regally around her paws as she sat, back ramrod straight. NOTHING could excuse poor posture. @Sleek @Barnaby

[Sleek]

Originally Posted by gs29513

Tansyjaw wasn't sure how she felt about these kit classes. On the one paw, it wasn't a bad idea to have their children learning early, at least how to defend themselves in case those Shadowclan foxhearts came back. On the other, it was a bit too close to early apprenticeship for her liking. The warrior code was very clear on that score, it wasn't to be done until six moons of age, and this seemed a bit like a way of skirting that rule. The leaders word was law was also a part of said warrior code though, so kit classes it would be. And if they had to occur, they might as well be taught by someone who would do it properly. i.e. her.

Thus, she found herself in the small area set aside for such education, calling out Deerkit, Fawnkit, Sparkkit and Shockkit! You're going to learn hunting with me, alright sweeties? Even if she didn't wholly approve of why she would be with them for a bit, she couldn't deny a little excitement to see the small cats. Kits were so pure, so trusting. They might become warped by circumstances as they grew older, sometimes through improper parenting, or some other event, but if they were raised right they generally remained loyal to their clan.

Sometimes it was none of the above, sometimes the cause of their problematic behavior was unknown, passed down in some way by their parents. That could be the only explanation, sometimes. She certainly hadn't raised her kits wrong, and there had been problems regardless. Now wasn't the time for such rambling thoughts though, and she redirected her attention to where the children that ought to be gathering soon, wrapping her fluffy tail regally around her paws as she sat, back ramrod straight. NOTHING could excuse poor posture. @Sleek @Barnaby

Shockkit looked up from where she was laying outside the nursery by Sparkkit, whose mind was off somewhere far, far away. She had pestered him and continuously asked him what he was thinking about, or who he was thinking about, but he hadn't told her anything. Whatever. She now heard her name being called out, and 2 seconds later she heard the word "sweeties." How dare this cat call her a "sweetie?!" She would show this feline what "sweetie" she was. She sprang up and marched over to the cat who had called her. "How dare you call me a 'sweetie?' I'll rip your throat out!" she demanded, snarling.

Sparkkit snapped back to the present when he heard his name. "Hmmm?" he mumbled. He had been thinking of Lilackit for the past couple of sunrises, how good of a friend she was and how nice she was. He wished they could be best friends. Hopefully Lilackit thought the same. He held in a chuckle when he saw Shockkit's look of exasperation at being called a "sweetie." He then watched her stride up to the cat and threaten the feline. Oh well, guess I gotta go too, he sighed. He heaved himself up to his paws and slowly made his way to the fuming Shockkit. "Why'd you call us over?" he asked nonchalantly.

@Barnaby

[Beetle_Fettle]

Deerkit

Perking up his ear the sound of his name echoed through the air catching his attention. A confused expression clouded his face wondering why he was being called until he heard 'hunting'. Rushing over he slid against the ground to stop himself almost running into Tansyjaw.

Fawnkit

Fawn leaped in the air in excitement of learning how to hunt. Oh how bad she wanted to hunt until her heart exploded woth joy. Running up to Tansyjaw she circled around the tall she cat, swerving between her legs.
"YAY!!! YAY!! What will we learn? Could I catch a bird? What about a fish? Can I catch that? Can I?"

@gs29513
@Sleek

[gs29513]

She had not expected hostility to be the first reaction to her summons. She had expected excitement, gratitude perhaps. No, instead Tansyjaw received a snarling little fluffball who had taken umbrage at her use of sweetie. She sucked a quick breath in through her nose, composing herself. Her voice, previously warm, took on a harder tone. No, you won’t. You will listen to my instructions, do your best to learn the basics of hunting, and hope Bumblestar allows you to become an apprentice. If it were up to her there’d be a class on etiquette before anything else. Perhaps she’d speak to the leadership about that.

Turning to Shockkit, also a bit irritating if in a different way, she mewed We’ll be learning the basics of hunting. Crouching, stalking and pouncing and such. Just in case the seemingly incredibly excited Fawnkit hadn’t internalized that they wouldn’t actually be hunting live prey, she added We’re not going to try on anything more exciting than mossballs for now, but you’ll have a head start when your mentors take you hunting for real.

Rolling a quintuplet of said mossballs into the center of their little kit corner, Tansyjaw made to start the actual instruction, regardless of any arguments they might raise. Before you can even begin hunting, you need to get a good crouch. I want you all to try and copy me. Hopefully that wouldn’t be too complicated for their little brains. Tansyjaw dropped into her own crouch, keeping her front paws suitably far apart and her hind end appropriately situated above her front but not exceedingly high. Her tail was loose, not stiff, and hung down, although not far enough to touch the floor. Once they’d approximated it she’d offer some individual suggestions, and hopefully get them stalking around. That is, if the histrionic didn’t start again. @Sleek @Barnaby

[Sleek]

Shockkit was about to respond to Tansyjaw's commanding tone and give her a piece of mind, when Sparkkit stepped in front of her to block her way. "Wha-What-What are you doing?" she sputtered, flustered.

Sparkkit could tell things wouldn't end well if he didn't step in. So when he saw Shockkit, furious, ready to try and pummel Tansyjaw, he stepped in front of her, blocking her way. "Hey. You want to learn how to hunt, don't you?" he ferociously whispered to her. Seeing her reluctant nod, he continued. "If you attack Tansyjaw right now, you can say goodbye to that. So how about you shut your mouth and listen up," he snapped, tired of playing peacemaker in every single one of Shockkit's interactions. She really needed to learn to speak properly to her elders, otherwise she'd never become a warrior. He turned back to face Tansyjaw, flicking his bushy tail crossly across Shockkit's face.

Shockkit dug her claws into the ground when Sparkkit slapped her with his tail. She unsheathed her claws and pressed them even harder. She gritted her teeth, trying to resist the urge to leap at him and pummel him. As much as she hated to admit it, he was right. She really liked hunting, and she didn't want a small slip up to ruin her chance at getting an early advantage, let alone stop her from being an apprentice. She exhaled deeply and slowly to calm herself. She looked at Tansyjaw, crouching low to the ground, and she copied her, pressing her chest down, lifting her haunches just a bit higher than her head, with perfect form.

Sparkkit, on the other hand, was struggling. He shoved himself down and his haunches flew up. When he noticed that everyone was staring at him, he shoved his rump down, embarrassed. After some attempts he got it close enough (what he thinks) to Tansyjaw's exemplar. The only problem was his tail was sticking straight up, alerting any animal within a 100 foot radius. Sparkkit, however, thought it was perfect.

Shockkit laughed at Sparkkit's horrible form, falling on the ground, tears in her eyes. Snorting and squealing like a pig, she finally calmed down and said, "You tryna catch the prey or scare it off?" which just sent her rolling again. Finally she sat up, holding in her giggles.


@Barnaby @gs29513

[Beetle_Fettle]

Deerkit

Deerkit watched as Tansyjaw crouched on all fours into a hunters crouch, as he has seen many time before with other warriors. Getting into a hunters crouch as well he got down and stared at the moss balls.

Fawnkit

Fawn was disappointed that she wasn't able to hunt actual animals, but she instead huffed in irration and followed suit of Tansyjaws postion.
@gs29513

[gs29513]

Hmm, this Sparkkit was growing on her somewhat. He seemed to be capable of keeping his unruly sister in check, and Tansyjaw was grateful that she avoided whatever disruption Shockkit had been planning to cause. She didn't think the kit would actually create a significant problem, but it was easier to let her brother pull her back into line. Once back in line, she seemed quite focused and managed to get her crouch as good as the elder had seen from a kit, or a new apprentice for that matter, in quite a while. Decent. she mewed, unwilling to give more praise than that to most cats, and certainly not one so lacking in proper etiquette.

Unfortunately, the sibling with manners wasn't faring quite so well. He managed to get his head and hind positioning to an acceptable level, but had completely neglected his tail. Shockkit seemed in hysterics, but Tansyjaw decided it was best to ignore the degenerate and focus on correcting the offending appendage. Focusing on Sparkkit, she mewed Your general body positioning is decent her favorite word sometimes but your tail won't do. You need to allow it to flow behind you, not on the ground, but not up in the air either. Too high and everything sees you, too low and it creates unnecessary noise.

Leaving him to correct the error, and pleasantly surprised to see that Shockkit had stopped behaving like a complete buffoon, Tansyjaw turned her attention to Deerkit and Fawnkit. They too seemed decent in their attempts, although there were a few minor flaws which it was best to iron out now than leave to deal with later. Deerkit, open your front paws a bit wider, you'll trip all over yourself once you start stalking if you don't. Otherwise alright. she mewed, once again omitting anything resembling praise. Fawnkit seemed a bit more able to focus than Shockkit, despite her earlier energy, and a quick Hind end down a little more Fawnkit. was sufficient to put all four of them into a decent crouch.

There would almost certainly be more work for their mentors to do, for a bird hunting crouch or for hunting in more open places, but this would be serviceable for the basic rodents. That was really all she needed to teach them, Thunderclan didn't have to wade in ponds or swamps or chase scrawny rabbits like the other clans. They had the best territory, and hunted like it. Now it was time for stalking. Shockkit, back in your crouch. Tansyjaw huffed, hoping to get the little fool focused again. I want all of you to practice moving around, as quietly as you can. It'll be easier in here than it would be in the forest, so I shouldn't be hearing much. Hopefully they could do that at least without trying to maul each other. It should get a smidgen of their excessive energy out at least. @Sleek @Barnaby

[Tecumori]

Plumkit - The Troublemaker
TC | Kit | He/Him | 2 moons
Agatha Kitty | Silver Tongue | ---

"Nuh-uh! No sirwee!" he mewed, though he had a tough time stifling his giggles. He looked up at the fuming warrior, pulling his best innocent face as he lied through his teeth. However, he wasn't sure if Rainfall would actually believe them; especially with Shockkit making it so dang obvious.

So, Plumkit felt the need to add "An' it wasn't our idea Anyway. It was..." He thought for a moment, nibbling his claw as he pondered who to blame. He didn't want to get anyone he liked in trouble; especially not one of his littermates. Rainfall might believe an apprentice convinced them to do this though.

Hrrmmm.... Plumkit drew blank after blank in his mind, before finally coming across the perfect scapegoat; Asterpaw! Plumkit didn't care at all about that strange new apprentice. Plus, he was an outsider, so it'd be much easier to blame this all on him. Who would Rainfall believe more? A clan-born kit or some outsider?

"It was Asterpaw!" he mewed confidently. "Yeah! Asterpaw said it was a fun kitty-pet game and that we should twy it out!" he insisted, batting his eyes and smiling innocently-- well, as innocently as he could in this situation.

(I know Plumkit has Silver Tongue but you have my permission to ignore it if you want~)

@Sleek | @Caspian | @FrostyGalaxy

[Beetle_Fettle]

Fawnkit

Fawn chuckled a little bit as Sparkits legs flew up. Holding her composure she did what Tansyjaw told her to do and she lowered her back end just enough and started to somewhat walk around,"Be as quiet as a mouse," she whispered a bit to loud.

Deerkit

Deer was a bit nervous on trying to be quiet and stealthy as he could. But his focus was troubling for he couldn't quite postion his feet right so he somewhat stumbled a few times before finally catching himself and trying his best to walk.
His main focus was to somewhat mimic what he has seen warriors do.
@gs29513
@Sleek

[ChaosBringer.]

Mushroomkit

(open)

Mushroomkit sat alone. He had tried speaking all day, but nothing came out of his little mouth.