(Cat above is Tawnypaw)

A couple of days had passed. "Petalpaw! Wake up!" The sharp mew shook the calico she cat immediately from her slumber.

"Huh? What?" She mewed, blinking her eyes. She gave herself a stretch and wuick shake then padded our of the den, where Ravenfeather sat waiting.

"What are we doing today?" She asked.

Ravenfeather laughed. "Come on." He gestured for Petalpaw to follow him, and then got to his paws, heading towards the camp enterance. "We're going hunting."

Petalpaw nodded and glanced behind her just in time to see Tawnypaw and Yarrowpaw approaching, followed by their mentors.

"Alright, let's go." Ravenfeather meowed.

He lead the group out of the gorse tunnel. The slipped theough the undergrowth, making their way to the training hollow. The sun's light filtered through the tops of the trees.

"Toady, we're going to teach you how to hunt." Ashwhisper announced.

"You'll practice first in the traing hollow," Lionscar, Yarrowpaw's mentor, murmured, "then we'll hunt in the open."

"First," Ravenfeather began, "We'll evaluate your hunter's crouch."

"And since Yarrowpaw is older, he'll demonstrate." Ashwhisper added, nodding to Yarrowpaw.

The white tom flattened himself with his back legs hunched under him and his tail down and ears drawn back.

"Good." Lionscar meowed. "Tawnypaw and Petalpaw, you two do the same."

Petalpaw lowered herself next to Tawnypaw and shuffled her paws a little in the soft dirt. "Like this?"

"Tuck your tail in a little more" Ravenfeather commented.

Petalpaw nodded and tucked her tail in underwear herself a little more.

"Good." Ravenfeather praised.

"You too, Tawnypaw." Ashwhisper meowed.

"Now try stalking and pouncing on a leaf or twig in front of you." Ravenfeather instructed.

"Show them, Yarrowpaw." Lionscar turned to his apprentice.

"Yes, Lionscar." Yarrowpaw mewed. He got back into his crouch and gave his shoulders a small shake. Then he slowly began to creep along the forest floor.

Wow! He's so quiet. I don't hear paws touching the ground.

Yarrowpaw stepped for a moment then reared up and leapt, landing with a twig between his snow-white paws.

"Wow. Yarrowpaw's good at this." Petalpaw heard Tawnypaw whisper.

"I know. We'll never be as good as him." She whispered back.

"With practice you will be." Yarrowpaw mewed.

Petalpaw and Tawnypaw both shuffled nervously on their paws. They hadn't intend for Yarrowpaw to hear them. They followed the apprentice's demonstration and tried, both landing successfully.

"Excellent." Ashwhisper meowed. "Now, We'll try with real prey. Tawnypaw, you first."

Tawnypaw nodded and got into a crouch. A small mouse scurried out of the bushes, a seed cradled in its small paws. Tawnypaw quietly began to creep forward and at the right moment he leapt and landed on the mouse, killing it with a swift bite to the neck.

"Nice catch!" Petalpaw told him.

"Thanks." He replied.

"Now you, Petalpaw." Ravenfeather mewed.

Petalpaw felt her heart race. My first hunt!

She dropped into a crouch, staring wide-eyed at a wood pigeon that was resting nearby. She was so focused on it that she did not realize that Lionscar and Yarrowpaw had disappeared.

She crept forward, her paws light as feathers. While the bird was distracted by a few scattered seeds, Petalpaw reared up and leapt. She landed hard on the bird and killed it quickly.

I did it!

"Excellent work, both of you." Ashwhisper congratulated them.

"Let's hunt a little more then we'll head back." Ravenfeather mewed.

Tawnypaw and Petalpaw nodded then proceeded to follow their mentors through the forest.

*

*

*

"I can't believe you caught a squirrel."

While continuing with their hunt, Tawnypaw had managed to catch a squirrel. The biggest prey Petalpaw caught was a vole. They dropped their prey off at the freah kill pile.

"I'll be back." Tawnypaw meowed, picking up his squirrel. "I'm going to give my squirrel to Willowtail. She'll be so proud."

Without waiting for Petalpaw to respond, he bounded off to find his mother. Petalpaw looked at the vole between her paws. Would Meadowlight be proud if she brought her the vole? Would she care? Of course she wouldn't...but Leafshade will!

She picked up the vole and raced to where Leafshade was sitting near the warriors' den.

"Leafshade!" She called. When she reached him, she dropped the vole at his paws. "I caught it myself. It's my biggest catch yet."

"Is it for me?" Leafshade asked.

Petalpaw nodded. "I caught it just for you."

Leafshade accepted the vole and bent down to lick her between the ears. "I'm proud of you."

"It wasn't as impressive as Tawnypaw's catch. He caught a squirrel." Petalpaw meowed.

"Well, That doesn't surprise me." Leafshade remarked. "Larkeye is one of the best hunters in the clan."

"And soon Tawnypaw will be too." Petalpaw added.

Leafshade nodded in agreement. Petalpaw said goodbye to her father then bounded across the clearing to the apprentices' den.

Marshpaw was back from his hunting training, and as Petalpaw got closer she could hear him boasting.

"My first hunt and I caught a blackbird, a squirrle, and a wood pigeon." She heard him meow. "Coalfoot said he had never trained a cat who had a first hunt that impressive."

Petalpaw rolled her eyes. "You're not the only one who caught a squirrel. Tawnypaw did too."

Marshpaw glared at her. "And what did you catch?"

"I caught a vole, a shrew, and a mouse." Petalpaw answered.

"Not as good as mine." Marshpaw meowed as he slipped into the den.

Mintpaw let out an annoyed grunt. "I caught a blackbird and a squirrel and a wood pigeon." He meowed, mimicking Marshpaw.

Petalpaw and Blossompaw let out little huffs of laughter. Suddenly, Tawnypaw came racing up to them.

"Petalpaw! I found out where Yarrowpaw and Lionscar went during training!" He cried.

"Where?" Petalpaw asked.

"They went to talk to Gorsestar about Yarrowpaw doing his warrior assessment!"

Petalpaw felt her heart leap for her den mate. But at the same time she her ears drooped. All the other apprentices were becoming warriors and she just started training.

"Good for Yarrowpaw." Blossompaw mewed. She turned to her sister Owlpaw and Sprucepaw who were sitting beside her. "We'll be next."

Sprucepaw nodded and quickly broke away from the group, beckoning the two sisters to follow him. The three made their way across  the clearing to meet their mentors at the warriors' den.

"I guess their asking about their own assessments." Tawnypaw meowed.

"Probably." Petalpaw agreed. "They can't wait to get to their warrior duties."

Tawnypaw didn't respond. Petalpaw looked over at. The tortoiseshell tom looked liked he wanted to say something to her but instead he changed the subject.

"The gathering's tomorrow." He mewed. "Do you think we'll go?"

"I hope so." Petalpaw meowed, hopefully. "Tabbystripe told me all about them."

Tawnypaw smiled but didn't say anymore. Petalpaw turned her ears as the gorse tunnel rustled. A hunting patrol lead by Dustripe slipped through, their mouths full with freshly killed prey.

Ashwhisper met them by the freah kill pile and Petalpaw assumed he was getting a report on their hunt. The sun was beginning to set and a few warriors of Silverpelt were beginning to show.

Cats were filing into their dens and Petalpaw followed Tawnypaw into the apprentices' den. She curled up in her nest and wrapped her tail tightly around herself.

"Good job today, Petalpaw." Tawnypaw whisper so he didn't disturb the the other apprentices.

"Thanks, Tawnypaw. You did good too." Petalpaw replied.

Tawnypaw didn't answer and Petalpaw looked over to find him already fast asleep. She let out a little purr of amusement.

"Good night, Tawnypaw."