Ask to Join You can't see how deep it is [12FF’21]

What are you afraid of losing if nothing in the world actually belongs to you.

~･ﾟ: *~･ﾟ:* 🫧 *:･ﾟ~*:･ﾟ~

Goosesong had already sat himself by the riverside opposite sunningrocks, he thought that this would be a nice easy place to practice swimming and fishing with his apprentice. He had practiced the basics with her over the past few days and the fish seemed active today from his regular stroll at dawn, so he had high hopes that he and Stormpaw would come back with something by the end of the day, at least something worth telling others about.

His ears flicked as he heard her pawsteps from behind him, she was slightly earlier than he expected her, good, she was diligent he guessed. He didn't bother to turn his head, just a brief signal of tapping his tail on the ground beside him before he stood tall on his sturdy paws.

"You're early, that's good" he finally spoke, glancing down at the water as it rippled when fish teased the surface, breaking the brittle tension atop of the water's surface. "I would assume you could guess what we're covering today. Tell me." he stated, finally turning his aqua gaze towards her.

There is peace even in the storm...

‹‹‹‹ ››››

”Swimming, again.” Stormpaw forced her tail to still behind her, and tried to keep the worries out of her voice. No way was she going to try and seem less than put togther in front of Goosesong.

She worried much less aboutt the fishing part of her training. Fishing was just another type of hunting. Only pure practice took you out of the basics. Sure, mastering it before becoming a warrior was needed, but Stormpaw would manage it no mater how hard she had to work.

”What’s the first part of the lesson?” Now impatience crept into her voice and poise. The sooner started the sooner she didn’t have to think about starting anymore!

What are you afraid of losing if nothing in the world actually belongs to you.

~･ﾟ: *~･ﾟ:* 🫧 *:･ﾟ~*:･ﾟ~

Goosesong's whiskers twitched, though his expression remained level as he studies Stormpaw. Her voice carried that thread of impatience, but he didn't bite at it, discipline was as much about steadying one's own thoughts as it was about keeping one's paws in order.

"The first part," he began, ton even and unhurried, "is the same as it always is, breathing and balance. You can't swim if you panic, and you can't fish if you splash like a startled frog." His tail flicked once toward the riverbank, where the water lapped in slow, steady rhythms. "You'll enter the water at the shallows, find your rhythm and keep your strokes even. Today isn't about speed, it's about control." after all he couldn't bare another Reedpaw situation...

He padded a few steps closer to the river, glancing back at her with that piercing, appraising look that seemed to weigh more than it judged. "After that, we travel upstream and move on to fishing. Not just catching anything that moves, but picking your moment. Knowing when to wait, and when to strike." A faint glimmer of softness flickered in his eyes, just enough to hint he took no joy in seeing her tense. "You've worked too hard to trip on the basics now. We're polishing, not patching holes."

With a low hum, he stepped to the edge of the shallows and motioned her forward with a flick of his paw. "Come on. Show me the kind of swimming a RiverClan warrior should have."