Coldeyes and Poppyclaw had taken time to teach a few moves to their apprentices. As the white tom predicted, Dapplepaw and Southpaw bounced off of each other in training. They later had gone hunting. Coldeyes had been on edge under his white coat.
He feared his slower approach to teaching his apprentice to hunt would cause him to embarrass himself. He was grateful though that Dapplepaw had been able to keep up with his brother.
After their activities in the forest were over they returned to camp with a bountiful load of fresh-kill. The warriors allowed their apprentices to go off and do their own thing. Poppyclaw and Coldeyes watched them bound off and begin to tussle outside the apprentice den.
Poppyclaw turned to Coldeyes. He seemed to hesitate before he talked.
"I thought I would never see the day you became a mentor.. but I'm glad it happened." The black tom said. Coldeyes didn't look at him but steered an ear in his direction.
"I hope you can continue to open up." Poppyclaw said, his voice a little smaller then before but Coldeyes still heard him. They stood in silence a moment before Poppyclaw left.
Coldeyes watched Southpaw and Dapplepaw wrestle, but he wasn't really using his eyes at the moment. His mind was churning around his thoughts from what Poppyclaw said.
Coldeyes had to agree with him. He also didn't expect to see the day he would become a mentor after he fell into his despair, but it happened.
He had been left behind by his mother, he managed to get pulled out of his mourning with the help of Ambercloud, Sandstar had put the obstacle of an apprentice with the same name as his dead love, and now he was learning to open up to the world again. So much had been done within such a short chapter of his life, and he had so much more to carry, so much more to stand for, and so much more to conquer in his lifetime.
And Coldeyes was starting to appreciate it, to appreciate those opportunities that would challenge him and threaten to break his spirit or his pride. He would carry all he could until his legs shook, he would stand for everything until he was exhausted, and he would conquer anything that dared to step in his life and try to dismantle him. As he thought of this.. it started to make his gaze grow a little warmer.