Heathersong watched her apprentice as he shambled out of his nest, wincing at the patchwork of bark and leaves he had to sleep on. Perhaps she would find steal some apprentices from their lessons today and assign them to finding more suitable bedding for their den. She was pulled out of her thoughts when Luckypaw approached her with a jaw-shattering yawn, and offered him an exasperated smile. "You didn't stay up too late last night, did you?" she asked, though it was clear she didn't honestly mind. "No matter, just grab a piece of prey. While you eat we can hash out how we want this training to go."

Heathersong's gaze followed Luckypaw, a small smile curling up as she realized what was the matter. He seemed nervous, though she couldn't help but wonder why. She wasn't known to be especially difficult or harsh as a mentor, and had known the tom as a kit when her own kittens were in the nursery. She was completely unaware that Luckypaw remembered her spat with Jayjack or their game of chase in camp so unkindly. Instead, she simply sat and slowly chewed on her robin, allowing Luckypaw to grow more comfortable in her presence.

Finally, she finished her breakfast, piled the feathers up for the kits to play with, and turned to Luckypaw. "I like to talk to my apprentices before we get started to make sure we're on the same page. The way I train you will be different from how I was trained in FallClan, so I like to make sure we both understand that ours is a judgement-free relationship. Unless you're doing something that puts yourself or others in danger, I won't raise my voice to you. So, now that that's out of the way, let's talk about today's training."

"We are a nomadic clan, so it's incredibly important that we are able to track, forage, and hunt well. We aren't immune to attacks and predators, though, so you'll need some basic combat training too. Why don't you tell me what sounds most interesting to you, and we'll start there?"

"Then tracking it is!" purred Heathersong, vaguely aware that he was uncomfortable but not understanding the depth of his anxiety. "You ready to head out, then? I figure I can show you some of the ways we communicate with each other while out scouting and on patrol too!" Her attitude was bright as she stood up and carried the feathers to the nursery area, then turned to Luckypaw with an encouraging smile. "So you know that we don't really have a territory, per se," she began, leading camp behind as she picked a random direction and started walking. "Since our territory changes so much and is so vast, it's important to have a way to communicate with each other even if we don't see one another. That's where the stones come in. In different parts of the territory, we have small stacks of stones that indicate different things. One formation might tell warriors that there is prey nearby, or another might warn of predators in the area. So it's important that you memorize these formations for later. Got that so far?"

Heathersong couldn't hide a small smile when she turned around to find her apprentice leg-deep in mud, but managed to contain her laughter. "I think some warriors found traces of a fox's scent to the east and built a cairn there to warm about it. I can show you that one, if you want." She considered the potential dangers of taking him into an area of known predators, but decided that making him more comfortable by letting him guide their progress would ultimately make training him easier.

"Why don't you lead us east?" she asked, making the trip count as double training. "You know how to determine which way east is?"