A New Perspective

[Leopardfang]

Leopardfang walked out into the sun-speckled forest and sniffed the air, expecting Amberpaw to follow her. Her black nose twitched at the smell of mouse, her brain telling her to pounce two tail-lengths into a small pile of leaves, were new born mice were squealing for their absent mother. Why not have a snack? She thought. Leopardfang went into her skilled hunters crouch and leaped on the pile, paws extended, and felt the crush of tiny bones. Once they were mostly dead, she dug through the pile to find twenty or such little field mice. She scooped many into a pile, out of the leaves and swept them gently in a neater pile.

[Amberpaw]

"Is that how you hunt?" the apprentice seemed to squeak behind her as she parted through the shadows, her light blue eyes blinking in confusion. She'd never seen a cat crush her prey. She tilts her head, watching the small mice being pushed into another pile. She was a little horrified. Was she supposed to kill baby mice too? If she did, would there be a generation to support her clan during leaf-bare? She shook her head a little to end the confusing questions, her ears flopping a bit.

[Leopardfang]

Leopardfang smiled and shock her head. "No, that was a very bad example. But, I could not waste a good opportunity for food. After all, they were there and practically in the open. Within hours they will be eaten up by something else." She loaded a paw-full of mice under her chin and the rest in her carried the large bundle through the camp entrance and set them down on the fresh-kill pile.

She faced back towards the entrance, the sun glaring in her eyes, almost giving her a headache. Calmly, she padded through the dark tunnel were the thorns clawed at her pelt. "Shall we get going now?"

[Amberpaw]

"..Oh," she blinked, watching her mentor as she disappeared with her cat and reappeared with nothing, all ready to go.

"Shall we get going now?"

"Mhmm," she said with a nod and a grin, her tail flicking in the air with pure excitement. She couldn't wait to get her paws sore from training, to learn how to hunt and defend her clan! This was finally her time.

[Leopardfang]

"Ok, good. First I will show you the Sandy Hollow. It is a smallish clearing just between those two trees. It won't take long to get there." She lept onto a rock and pointed to the two trees she referred to, so Amberpaw could catch a glimpse of the hollow were she would train.

[Amberpaw]

In the distance she could pick out the sandy hollow. They soon reached it, and the apprentice wasn't in awe. She'd been here before with helping the other apprentices with their training, and getting just a little herself. But no one was there to tell her what she was doing right or wrong. She lifted her chin, smelling a small mouse just east of her, hiding in the bushes.

Eager to try and show off, the she-cat dropped into an awkward hunter's crouch, her tail curving upward and moving every so often. She slowly moved toward the mouse, but without watching her paws, she hit a rock with her claws, scaring it off. "Drat," she murmured, narrowing her eyes in disappointment. "Have fun living another day, mouse, but I'll get you!" she added.

[Leopardfang]

Leopardfang purred in amusement as her apprentice attemted to catch a mouse. She remembered her own beginning hunter's crouch. What a horrid time that was... "Another day we will correct that crouch of yours, but we don't have time to do that." She smiled and flicked her tail playfuly across Amberpaw's flank.

Looking up at the sky through the canopy of trees, she could tell it was a little after sun-high. Her claws slid out and she kneeded the ground in anticipation. A sudden though came to mind. Have you seen the Thunderpath that is used as the ThunderClan and ShadowClan border yet?" Her brain was working on fast routes around the territory to show Amberpaw.

[Amberpaw]

The apprentice quickly shook her head. "I've never been anywhere but this hollow, the dirtplace, and the small river right outside camp," she huffed, her ear flicking in anticipation. "Aren't there..monsters there?" she seemed to shrink in fear for a moment. She had heard many stories about those things that clung to thunderpaths.

[Leopardfang]

A smirk spread across Leopardfang's muzzle. She listened to Amberpaw, and shock her head. "Yes, there are monsters there. That is where they run. We would not be affraid of it if there weren't." Leopardfang started to pad in that dirrection. "As long as you knw how to cross it, which I will teach you someday, you shouldn't worry about it too much."

[Amberpaw]

"Have you seen one? What do they look like?" she asked, padding beside her mentor. The small apprentice had heard tons of stories and descriptions--smooth pelted, ferocious, huge monsters with shining eyes and roars that could make a kit deaf. It really frightened her.

[Leopardfang]

Leopardfang looked down at Amberpaw as they walked. "I have seen them many times patrolling the ShadowClan border. They are all different colors from sky blue, to blood red, or black as night. They have anywhere from four to sixteen circular paws with silver centers. Their eyes glow during the night so they can see, but during the day they are not. Personally, I don't find them scary, because the rarely ever come off their path, unless they crash. Stupid creatures." The last part she mumbled half to herself. She thought, I wonder what nursery stories this one heard. Each one seems to have listened to different ones. The leopard-like she-cat sighed, but couldn't help turning it into a purr because of her apprentice's cureosity.

[Amberpaw]

"Oh, alright," she blinked, turning her head. They'd finally reached it. Her ears shot up, listening intently for monsters. Only silence replied. She looked both ways, but nothing. Maybe they don't like the sun to much, she guessed. Putting a paw slowly on the Thunderpath, she was surprised at the smooth aligned pebbles. It felt strange on her paws, nothing like the grass and soft earth in ThunderClan.
She had a million questions buzzing in her mind, but she didn't want to annoy her mentor already. How could they enjoy running on this hard ground? It must really hurt their paws. What do they eat? Do they ever stop? Or do they have a camp?

Suddenly, she saw something distract her. It was a glossy object in the middle of the Thunderpath, shining a glossy green color. She could see through it, and the small pieces around the object looked like colored snowflakes. "What's that?" she murmurs, her head leaning in for a curious close inspection.

{ ooc : she's looking at the shattered peices of a bottle. ADD. xD }
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[Leopardfang]

Leopardfang sat down a little ways from where Amberpaw was exploring. She could still see the thunderpath at the angle she was sitting at. If monsters came, she would know from both directions.

Only seconds after Amberpaw asked about something near the side of the path, a rubbling clogged her ears. Monster! The bright yellow beast was speeding towards her apprentice, who was still inspecting an object. There was no time to alarm her, or she would probably get hit.

She sprang up and grabbed the small apprentice my her neck scruff and threw her many tail-lengths away from the thunderpath, where she landed in a pile of leaves. She was inches from the monster, as it barreled past, making her fur blow in the direction it was moving. Her face was expressionless as she gazed at Amberpaw.

[Amberpaw]

Yes, the new apprentice had let her guard down, even though she was the one who was obsessing over cautiousness just a moment before. She felt herself being tossed, and she landed with a thud in the leaves. Even though they had broken her fall, it still hurt her legs a bit. She jumped up from the leaves and spun around, flinching at the sound the monster made.

"LEOPARDFANG!" she screeched, frozen to the spot as she watched it pass by. I'm...a murderer! she instantly thought as it passed over where Leopardfang had been rescuing her. Pieces of the object she investigated were crushed by the monster's paws, scattering around and slicing small cuts at her legs. She couldn't feel the pain, she was lost in her numb mind, even though her eyes were looking right back at her mentor.

"I'm so sorry," she broke down, her ears pressing against her head. "A-are you alright?!" she stammered, the monster fading away.

[Leopardfang]

Leopardfang nodded calmly. "It was not your fault. That was one of the faster monsters, and you didn't know what to expect. But now you do." She walked over with long strides to Amberpaw and licked her head to calm her ruffled emotions.

"It's alright. I'm fine." She kept rasping her tongue over her apprentice's pelt. Pausing briefly, she said, "You aren't hurt, are you?" Thoughts flared through her mind like a burning fire. Where do I begin teaching a cat about the Thunderpath? As far as she knew, no feline had ever taught one another about Thunderpath precautions and such. She would though, maybe even teach others her findings.