"Let's go, Owlbark growled into the quiet of the apprentice den. Apprentice's stirred at his voice, but he pulled his head from the dark, warm interior before anyother than Rufouspaw acknowledged him. He sat primly with his back to the den's entrance, observing his warriors move in the pre-dawn light. The sandy orange walls of their home were bathed in sleepy purple light and the sun seemed exhausted as well as it slowly climbed into its throne. The air was getting cooler. It was worrying, but he had hope for a good leafbare.
When his apprentice exited the den, the deputy gave her no time to shake sleep from her pelt. "We'll go to the Sandy Hollow. Follow me." Owlbark exited camp, and did not look behind him to see if Rufouspaw was following at a decent pace. It would have to learn eventually how to move through this world, and following Owlbark move without hesitation was already a good lesson.
He walked with little words to the young cat, answering any conversation starters with grunts or short answers. Despite his early rising tendencies, he was not fond of the morning. In his time before the clan, he would rise this early on his own and revel in the quiet of the world and the silence he could keep. Now, his mornings were filled with pleasantries and check-ins with clanmates. He longed for the solidarity of his life pre-clan sometimes. Again, Rufouspaw would learn that he was not the early morning conversationalist.
The Sandy Hollow came into view, and Owlbark stepped into the softness of it. He finally turned to his apprentice and nodded his head. "Show me your battle skills. We'll work from there." He crouched low and swept his tail across the sand in preparation.
