Chapter 34 Training 2
A few days have passed and there was little to no progress with Blossompaw's training. She barely learned a few fighting moves and a little bit of hunting moves, but these were just basics. As for the relationship between Lightclaw and Blossompaw, they still don't get along. Whenever they would train, Blossompaw would either mess up and blame Lightclaw, or Lightclaw would scold Blossompaw and they would argue. Lightclaw was having little to no patience at all with her and he wondered how long he could take this. Lightclaw and Blossompaw were outside of camp and were traveling through the territory. Lightclaw decided it was time to see how much progress was made, despite the fact that there was little progress. Both cats were a few feet away from camp and stopped near the unlucky tree.
"Alright, today, we're going to see what you've learned. Now, I want you to scent nearby prey and catch some, got it?" Lightclaw instructed.
"Got it." Blossompaw nodded.
She sniffed the air and got into a hunting crouch. Blossompaw crept through the undergrowth, a sparrow was a few feet ahead and she had to catch it quickly. Lightclaw observed Blossompaw's movements, she was doing fine, but she needed to be careful with her balance. Blossompaw leaped onto the sparrow, but missed and landed poorly, she was barely close to the sparrow. She quickly scrambled to catch the bird, but the sparrow quickly flew away.
"Foxdung!" Blossompaw spat.
"You were nearly close." Lightclaw meowed.
He approached Blossompaw and was helping her up.
"No thanks to you." Blossompaw murmured.
"How is that my fault?" Lightclaw growled.
"I don't know…maybe it's you being too hard on me or something." Blossompaw weakly mewed.
"No, it's your poor balance and your lack of learning that caused you to miss your catch, not me!" Lightclaw hissed.
"Maybe it would be possible to learn anything if you would teach me!" Blossompaw yowled.
"I have been teaching you, you just won't listen!" Lightclaw argued.
"Well maybe if you tried harder, than I wouldn't be so sloppy!" Blossompaw yelled.
"That's it, one more word from you and we're going back to camp!" Lightclaw yowled.
"Why do you hate me so much? Is it because of what my dad did to you all those moons ago?" Blossompaw asked.
Lightclaw was appalled by such a dumb question and was enraged. He got closer to Blossompaw, barely touching her nose.
"Listen here, Blossompaw and listen good. The reason I have a problem with you is you're inability to follow or learn a basic hunting or fighting skill, you're inability to think before you act, and how you've treated other cats. Don't think I didn't know that you and your parents have been giving Blightpaw a hard time now." Lightclaw growled.
Blightpaw looked around, embarrassed. She clearly didn't expect Lightclaw to know that and was trying to hide it, but it was clearly obvious.
"So what, it's clear to me and my parents that Blightpaw's an anti-slave cat. Dad says that anti-slave cats needed to be reminded of things." Blossompaw argued.
"You're father's wrong, you're wrong, slavery is all wrong, it shouldn't have existed in the first place!" Lightclaw yowled.
"Why not? What's wrong with having cats doing some of our work for us?" Blossompaw asked.
"Blossompaw, let me tell you something, how would it feel for one day a group of cats invade your camp, kill your leader and deputy, and enslave you. You would be forced to do bad things, be forced to do things you would never do, but you don't have no choice. You're beaten, you're raped, and cats are forcing you to do all their work. Not just some of it, but all of it." Lightclaw meowed.
"So what, if any cat did that to me, I'd fight them." Blossompaw smirked.
"Oh really, you'd fight them?" Lightclaw questioned.
He saw a stack of tiny pebbles on a log, behind Blossompaw, and walked past her.
"What is it your dad says, "If slaves started to revolt or rebel, you put them in line!" Lightclaw growled.
He hit the pebbles hard, causing them to fall off the log and scatter on the ground. Blossompaw jumped with shock.
"Blossompaw, if you were a slave and you fight back, they'll either beat you or kill you." Lightclaw meowed.
Blossompaw's stomach dropped, she hadn't realized that slavery was that bad, especially if she was in their shoes.
"Blossompaw, slavery isn't something you would wish on any cat. I don't want you to go through what Darkpaw and so many others have gone through. That's why I'm against slavery, every cat has the right to live their own lives, they shouldn't have to be bound by someone else's will, it should be their own will." Lightclaw explained.
"I…I never thought of it that way." Blossompaw meowed solemnly.
"Exactly. It's important to know compassion, empathy, and how to think before you act. These qualities will help you become a better warrior and a better cat. Now, do you want to try again?" Lightclaw meowed.
Blossompaw looked up and saw Lightclaw smiling at her, kindly. It was honestly a side Blossompaw never thought she would see. Than again, she finally understood why Lightclaw hates her father and slavery. Blossompaw smiled and nodded.
"Good." Lightclaw smiled.
He and Blossompaw walked deeper in the forest, looking for a place to practice. When they found it, Lightclaw helped Blossompaw with some hunting techniques, including pouncing, tracking, and balancing while sneaking. After a long day, Lightclaw and Blossompaw returned to camp. The evening patrol had already returned and the clan was eating their dinner. Blossompaw and Lightclaw had managed to catch some prey and Blossompaw approached her mom and dad, with a sparrow in her mouth. Feathershine and Snaketooth saw her and were so proud.
"Oh honey, is that your first catch?" Feathershine asked.
"Yep." Blossompaw purred.
"That's wonderful. Is Lightclaw making you give it to the elders?" Snaketooth asked.
Blossompaw put the sparrow down, looked at her dad, and shook her head.
"No, Lightclaw caught some prey, so he's going to give it to them." she meowed.
"Alright good, an apprentice should always eat their first kill. I'm glad Lightclaw knows that." Snaketooth meowed.
Blossompaw laid down and so did her parents, and they all started eating. Blossompaw talked about her training and how Lightclaw was treating her. She told her parents about how she got her first catch and what she's been learning. However, Blossompaw didn't dare tell them about the arguments or the conversation she had with Lightclaw about slavery. Blossompaw and Snaketooth continued eating their prey, while Feathershine was eyeing at Blightpaw. Blossompaw was confused, until she looked and saw her sister eating with Deerpaw and Mudpaw.
"I'll never understand why she's like this." Feathershine meowed, disapproving.
"Relax, Icetuft is like that and so was my mother." Snaketooth meowed.
"And if she ends up like Ivypool and Hawkfrost?!" Feathershine argued.
"Well, we'll deal with it. At least we still have one good kit, right Blossompaw?" Snaketooth meowed.
"Yeah…right." She meowed.
Lightclaw watched as the family was eating dinner. He couldn't hear them, but he did notice Feathershine looking at Blightpaw in a bad way. Lightclaw glared at the family.
"One day, I will kill him." He thought.
Lightclaw hadn't forgotten what Snaketooth did, sooner or later, he would kill that cat, but he had to admit, he did enjoy the training session with Blossompaw. Maybe he could teach her more about the horrors of slavery and why it was wrong. After 30 minutes, Lightclaw was eating his prey when Feathershine approached him.
"Lightclaw, how has my daughter's training been?" she asked.
"Well, your daughter is improving on her hunting techniques. You clearly saw that she caught her first prey, so tomorrow, I'll review her fighting moves." He meowed.
"Is there anything else?" Feathershine asked.
"No…besides the fact that your daughter is still young, she'll master her hunting and fighting techniques sooner or later." Lightclaw meowed.
"Good, good. Thank you, Lightclaw." Feathershine nodded.
She walked away, not giving him a second glance. Lightclaw could see Blossompaw finishing her meal and decided it was time to test her on something.
"BLOSSOMPAW!" Lightclaw called out.
Blossompaw had just finished eating, she got up and ran over. Feathershine and Snaketooth watched on.
"Yeah?" Blossompaw meowed.
"Listen, I need you to eat with Mudpaw." Lightclaw meowed.
"What?" Blossompaw meowed, surprised.
"I want you two to find a place to lay down and eat some prey. Talk to each other, get to know one another." Lightclaw instructed.
"Oh, uh, I don't know. In front of my parents?" Blossompaw questioned.
"Don't worry, you two can eat behind the elders den. It's hidden from plain sight, so you shouldn't have a problem." Lightclaw meowed.
"Oh, well I'm not really hungry anymore." Blossompaw meowed.
"Get two scrawny mice, that should be enough for your stomach." Lightclaw meowed.
Blossompaw nodded and walked over to the fresh-kill pile. She looked over and saw two scrawny mice, and picked them up. Blossompaw ran to the elders den, Feathershine and Snaketooth calmed down, as they realized that maybe Lightclaw just gave her an apprentice task. Blossompaw called out for Mudpaw to help her and she came. After a few minutes, Lightclaw peaked behind the elder's den and saw Blossompaw and Mudpaw eating their prey and laughing at each others stories. Lightclaw smiled, perhaps, this would help straighten out Blossompaw and maybe form a friendship.