Build You Up | Training

[Auburnflame]

"Alright, Sparrowpaw, what can you smell?" He looks to them with a quizzical expression placed on his features, brows arched as he waits for them to answer. It was a nice day out today, the sun shining through the boughs of the towering pines and dappled sunlight danced along the barren forest floor. Clouds dotted the sky and a brisk wind whipped through his tousled calico fur as he walked through the forest with Sparrowpaw in tow, pausing only when he spoke to them. With the wind like this, scenting for prey could come as an advantage or a disadvantage depending on which direction it did blow.
Right now, in this moment, Auburnflame couldn't scent much other than the sharp smell of pine and elderberry. But, he wanted to see what his protégé could find first. "Take a deep breath and close your eyes. I want you to rely on your other senses here. Your ears to hear the pitter patter of paws or the flutter of wings, your nose to seek them out, and to go with it—your taste of the smell in your mouth. If you find something, I want you to track it. Being in wind like this can make it more challenging, but that just means that it'll sharpen your senses more and make hunting easier for you in the future." He flashes a gentle smile in their direction and a sway of his tail. "New-Leaf and Green-Leaf won't be here forever though, and soon it'll grow cold once again. By then—I want you to be able to find the smallest of sounds." He finally goes silent, paws kneading the forest floor under him as he waited for them to perform.

// @sparrowpaw!

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[ SETTING FIRE TO THE SKY ]​

 

[sparrowsong!]

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Sparrowpaw's eyes were narrowed against the wind that pulled at them from seemingly all sides no matter where they turned to face into it, a displeasure evident in the way their ears were tilted back. Regardless they said nothing, not a single complaint uttered as they trailed behind the larger tom while they trekked deeper into the pine forest.

The swaying trees above them were home now. It brought them a peace they hadn't felt in quite a while, since they were safe at home in Twolegplace snuggled into the pelts of their family. While their worries over the Twolegs coming to take them all a second time still held fast, they found it easier to have faith that their Clanmates would keep them safe. Maybe, just maybe, they would be able to keep them safe too.

Words from Auburnflame reached their ears, the small tabby stopping just as he did in order to not bump into him. Smell? What could they smell? They raised their head to peer at their surroundings as he continued, taking only a brief whiff. Wind. It smelled like wind. Sparrowpaw frowned, but closed their eyes entirely as instructed and perked their ears when a gust of wind that threatened to tug them off their paws subsided.

"Okay," they said quietly, their voice perhaps lost to the intense breeze. It would be difficult, he warned, but they had to focus.
Only after he fell silent did they do their best to take in their surroundings.

Focus. Focus on what? The air that hit their nose was uncomfortable, shredding any scents that may have otherwise reached them. Wind buffeted their ears in bursts, gusts that couldn't decide their intensity or speed. For a moment their ears pinned again, face crinkling and head turning away, but they forced them to righten again.

"I don't..." they began helplessly, but trailed off. They couldn't smell any prey. They couldn't hear the patter of paws or the flutter of wings. Were they doing it wrong? Surely there must be something nearby, if they had stopped here?

Sparrowpaw peeked over in their mentor's direction, noting the way his paws plucked at the ground in anticipation. They could... they could hear that, now that they thought about it. Could they tune out the swaying branches? Did anything sound out of place?

For a second time they closed their eyes, dark nose crinkled in concentration. "I don't... smell any prey," they admitted at last. Yet rather than look up at him in defeat, they continued. "I can hear you, and... I can hear the wind in the branches. I can't hear any birds singing right now, I think they're all hiding." Part of them wished they were too.

Scents. What could they smell? "All the smells feel really washed out. It's kind of like rain but... different? Like it's all just mostly not there. I can smell, um..." The wind direction changed again. "...You," they began. "I can still smell the pine trees. I think..." Trailing off once again, they lowered their head to the earth. "I think someone or a patrol passed through here earlier, but I don't think I can tell who. SkyClan."

Their own paws were beginning to work at the earth now, waiting for a lapse in the wind to take another deep breath. "Most of the scents I can pick up are old, I think. Are we tracking them?" Finally Sparrowpaw looked up at the tom, eyes full of uncertainty.​

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