She is not being clingy; she is being taught
A kitten who trails your older cat from room to room and imitates everything she does is showing you the feline education system working exactly as designed. Kittens learn the practical business of being a house cat largely by observation: where the litter box is and how to use it, which post is for scratching, how hard a play bite can be before it ends the game, when the household is active and when it sleeps. Your older cat, simply by living her normal life in front of an impressionable youngster, is delivering all of those lessons continuously, and the kitten follows because missing a lesson is not in her programming.
Why the copying is so exact
Young kittens are in a developmental window where social learning is at its strongest, and imitation is the fastest route through it. If the older cat drinks from a particular bowl, scratches a particular post, greets you at a particular door or claims a particular sunny ledge, the kitten files each behaviour as the correct local custom. This is also why habits you would rather not spread can travel the same route: a resident cat who scratches the sofa, begs at the table or bolts through open doors is teaching those lessons too. The kitten is not choosing the good over the bad; she is copying the cat she trusts, which makes the older cat's routine worth tidying up while the apprenticeship runs.
Making sure the teacher gets a break
The arrangement works only if the older cat can opt out. A kitten's persistence is tireless, and an adult who cannot escape will eventually correct the youngster with a hiss or a swat, which is normal communication, but constant pestering can sour the relationship you are hoping will form. Provide high perches, baby-gated rooms or closed-door rest periods where only the older cat can go, feed the cats separately so the kitten's enthusiasm never becomes competition at the bowl, and give each cat her own litter access and resting spots. Short, separate play sessions with the kitten also drain the energy she would otherwise spend ambushing her teacher's tail.
When following is not just learning
Most shadowing fades gradually as the kitten matures, explores independently and builds her own map of the house. Pay closer attention if the pattern looks different from relaxed learning: a kitten who cries when separated from the older cat but hides from everything else, an older cat who has stopped eating, grooming or using her usual spots, or play that repeatedly ends with one cat cornered, vocalising or trying to flee. Those signs suggest stress rather than tuition, and a slow re-introduction with more separate resources, plus a conversation with your veterinarian if either cat's appetite or litter habits change, is the sensible next step.
What grows out of it
Handled well, this copying phase is often the foundation of a genuinely bonded pair. The kitten graduates from shadow to companion, the older cat gains a playmate whose manners she personally installed, and the household gets two cats who share routines instead of competing over them. Keep supervising shared time while the kitten is small, keep the escape routes open, and let the older cat set the pace of closeness.
KinsLe Care Teams helps everyone at home share the small daily jobs behind a good apprenticeship, from separate mealtimes to kitten play sessions and older-cat quiet time, with each duty marked done so both cats get what they need.