sparrowclaw (he/him) | galeclan

Sparrowclaw sat back, watching the apprentice fumble around in the air. While he was sure the apprentice was watching him with a judging eye, the reality was that he was trying his best to watch with a more purposeful gaze. He was watching the way that Batpaw's heterochromatic eyes watched the flying little creature, he watched the way his ears were trained towards the sky. Most importantly, he watched the way he used his paws and legs, the direction in which he jumped and how he landed.

It was a strange arrangement. Batpaw had once been assigned to Rowanclaw, who had fallen quite ill. Typically, an apprentice would likely work with another mentor and apprentice combo, but a couple of cats had been rather loud in the deputy's ear that taking out a young cat to train might be just what he needed. He had been overly stressed about everything going on with Wapatostar and everything going on in OrchidClan, that he really hadn't had much opportunity to check in on some of the apprentices or do something that wasn't just stressing about everything going on around him.

So, perhaps, as deputy, this was something he could step up and do. Help out the apprentice while they figured out whether or not Rowanclaw would be able to continue training him. Sparrowclaw had meant to ask what he had learned so far, but there was a bigger joy in wanting to try and catch bats. Something about catching his namesake, the apprentice had claimed. It wasn't something that Sparrowclaw had ever thought of the first time he caught a sparrow - it was just another bird that he would take back to feed his Clanmates. That being said, that sparrow had been the first bird he'd ever caught, so it wasn't as though there wasn't a certain amount of pride.

Suddenly, as Batpaw landed and gave a groan, one thing hit Sparrowclaw in how he was going about it.

"Bats are blind," the deputy instructed.

He looked up at the squeaking creatures as they continued to fly every which direction. On another normal night, he might wonder what had them so active, but he was simultaneously grateful that they seemed ripe for wanting to be plucked from the sky. "You're making too much sound when you jump for them - and even more when you curse after you land," Sparrowclaw added, as though some sort of friendly stab. Of course, those things rarely actually sounded friendly by any means and usually just came off a little unnecessarily rude.

He watched Batpaw, starting to get the idea that the apprentice seemed to learn best simply by action rather than demonstration. Though he had some other notes on what might make things easier for the black and white tom, he would rather see how much more progress he might get just from the first tip alone. The two of them shared blood, both being descendants of Galestar, and Sparrowclaw knew there was likely more than enough intelligence in Batpaw to simply need a few nudges before he was able to piece together the rest of what he needed.

Sparrowclaw settled into the grass, tucking his paws underneath his chest in order to keep quiet and still, allowing Batpaw to have some better focus.

Kauria ● 550 words

sparrowclaw (he/him) | galeclan

The deputy's ears twitched as he watched Batpaw with a careful eye. He could feel himself getting irritated watching as the apprentice seemed distracted by a moth. Was he not the one who wanted to go out and catch bats, and now he was chasing some bug like a kit? Sparrowclaw did his best to keep silent, trying to extend some grace out to the apprentice. After all, if he was going to take him on for some training, it would be worth getting to see how his brain worked before he scolded him.

When their eyes met, Sparrowclaw did what he could to silently give a gaze that might come off as a warning and reminder to get back on track. He let the apprentice sulk, hoping that it was clear. Though, the deputy had to admit to himself that it was entirely possible that every look that he could give would come off as some sort of disappointed warning. As he watched Batpaw move further away, he gave himself a small reprieve to tuck his paws in a little further and make himself a tiny bit more comfortable.

He watched as Batpaw seemed to focus in on another moth. It took a fair amount of patience on Sparrowclaw's end not to chastise the young tom. All he could do was tell himself that he wouldn't let Batpaw go back to camp until he finally caught a bat. After all, he had been the one intent on such an abnormal activity. The deputy would not let him just give up in frustration, even if it took all night.

But after a short moment, Sparrowclaw started to catch what Batpaw was doing. He was not hunting the moth, he was hunting the moth's hunter. Perhaps not the intended outcome, but not a terrible solution by any means. It certainly took a lot of faith and trust to hope that the creature would fall for the trap, or that the prey wouldn't do its own work to outsmart its predator. Sparrowclaw turned his head upward, looking at the small black creature beginning to fly down towards the moth itself before Batpaw leapt forward.

BAP!

Sparrowclaw heard the impact, but watched as the bat began to fly away. He gave a small huff as Batpaw fell to the ground once again, paws empty. The tom was torn between giving the apprentice more criticism and ways to improve or simply allowing him to figure it out himself. Neither response was really incorrect. But he supposed if he was meant to step in as a temporary mentor, it would be in better form to actually train him. On top of that, Sparrowclaw was almost eager to get back to camp and try and get some sleep.

With a long yawn subsiding, the deputy called out. "You've made contact, now swipe down instead of out," he instructed. "Once they hit the ground, it'll daze them long enough for you to finish it off."

Kauria ● 500 words