It's been 2 weeks since Quakepaw became an apprentice. He had been training hard trying to perfect his stalking and making quick, silent movements that won't alarm prey.
He leaped silently between grass stalks. CougarPelt was just behind him, watching Quakepaw's every move, "Today's slow,"
Quakepaw looked up from his stance, "But it's green leaf. Shouldn't prey be plentiful?"
"Sometimes,"
Quakepaw shivered from the windy, overcast day. But kept going through the thick forest. He glanced at the ruffling undergrowth, but it was only from the gust. The two continued to stealthily, tread through the forest, nothing. Where is all the prey?

Quakepaw turned around to see CougarPelt had vanished, "CougarPelt?"

"Shhhh! Over here," CougarPelt whispered. Quakepaw saw his tan pelt in a bush. He padded next to him. CougarPelt put his tail tip over Quakepaw's muzzle signaling to stay silent the directed it towards a vole. It was nestled underneath a tree root and would be easy to catch, if quick.

Quakepaw waited to watch CougarPelt spring out the bush and catch it. CougarPelt looked at him and nodded. I get to catch it! This will be my first prey, it's going to be the best! Then Quakepaw felt a boulder of pressure fall on his shoulders. What if Stone wants to eat it? What if it isn't as good as Storm's first prey and he disowns me? What if CougarPelt doesn't want to be my mentor anymore and I'm stuck as an Incompetent! He thought back to some of the incompetent cats back at camp. He remembered pitying them for never passing their Warriors Test, a test you must pass to be a senior warrior. Quakepaw imagined himself doing an incompetents duties for the rest of his life. Then drew away from his thoughts realizing he was being ridiculous.

CouagrPelt signaled him to go. Quakepaw walked carefully out the bush then crouched in a pouncing position. He recoiled slightly, bunching up his muscles for a jump, then leaped at the vole. His claws unsheathed while flying through the air. His shadow loomed over the vole and it scurried away. Quakepaw landed clumsily on his outstretched forepaws and crashed on his side.

"WHAT WAS THAT?" CougarPelt yelled. Quakepaw quickly got to his paws to his mentor holding the vole in his jaws. His usual laidback expression was now stern and angry. CougarPelt dropped the vole at Quakepaw's paws, "YOU'VE DONE NOTHING I'VE TAUGHT YOU!"

Quakepaw looked down in shame, "I..I was quiet.."

"I DON'T CARE! A KIT CAN BE QUIET!" CougarPelt screamed at Quakepaw who sat both afraid and in shame, "YOU WERENT DOWNWIND, YOU DIDN'T EVEN BOTHER STALKING, YOU WERENT CLOSE ENOUGH TO CATCH IT IF YOU JUMPED OR NOT, AND YOUR SHADOW SCARED IT AWAY!"

"It..it was my first time," Quakepaw's voice was shaky.

"I SAID I DONT CARE! I could drop you. I don't need a trainee, you could go back to being a fuzz brained kit and LEARN TO LISTEN! I'd be fine knowing I'M NOT WASTING MY TIME ON YOU! AM I WASTING MY TIME? LOOK AT ME!" CougarPelt screamed so loud the cats back at camp could probably hear him. Quakepaw looked up at him, too terrified to speak.

"SO AM I WASTING MY TIME?" Quakepaw vigorously shook his head no. CougarPelt responded sighed and said a lot more calmly, "Good."

The afternoon patrol burst through the bush the two had once been in. MossRidge, Stormpaw, Molewhisker, Chervilpaw, and Sleet halted from their run.

"We heard screaming and came to see if anyone was in danger," MossRidge told them.

Quakepaw starred at his paws ready for him to tell MossRidge what happened and for them both to be chastised. Him for not following instructions and CougarPelt for not teaching me to be a better warrior.

CougarPelt didn't sound embarrassed at all. He sat with his head held high, "I apologize for alarming you. It seems my trainee doesn't know how to follow instructions," he shot Quakepaw a hard glance. Great! Stone will never love me now. How can he when I can't even catch a vole? Why couldn't I have just remembered my training? Quakepaw wanted to curl up and hide from the judgment he knew they were going to get, but he had to face it. Warriors face harder things than words, right?

"Stormpaw," CougarPelt addressed Quakepaw's sister, "Don't make as much of a fool of yourself as you brother here and listen to your mentor,"
Of course Stormpaw had to be here to witness my humiliation! But why is CougarPelt telling anyone this? That's when it dawned upon Quakepaw, the only cat to be punished for me making a mistake, is me.

MossRidge nodded to his patrol, "Proceed on our path I shall catch up with you in a moment," MossRidge waited until the others had gone out of earshot. MossRidge studied Quakepaw carefully, "This was his first hunt was it not?"

Quakepaw looked up at the large, brown tabby. He looked like the bigger, stronger version of my Stormpaw. He thought, thinking back to the ceremony when Stormpaw became MossRidges trainee.
"Yes it was his first hunt," CougarPet responded.
"Why were you yelling?"
"He disobeyed everything I have been teaching him since his warrior ceremony," CougarPelt's voice didn't waver and his gaze didn't move from in front of him. MossRidge slowly circled the cats as he questioned them.
"Even so, he made a mistake. Isn't get so worked up about it a little harsh?"
Quakepaw didn't expect MossRidge to question them, he didn't even get criticized. Besides, MossRidge didn't sound like he was making sure everything was okay. He seemed genuinely interested in CougarPelt's responses. Is there something here I'm missing?CougarPelt looked as if he were being quizzed and Quakepaw couldn't read MossRidge's expression.
"You know very well that I can mentor my trainee the way I see fitting. The way I could only wish to be trained myself," CougarPelt countered, still monotoned and stone-faced.
"Have you chosen a punishment?" MossRidge asked.
"I've chosen a few,"
"A few?"
"If we do not learn from our mistakes then we will never learn. I learn from mine and I'm sure you've learned from yours. Quakepaw is no exception," CougarPelt turned back to the way he had came, "Is that all?"
"Yes that is all," MossRidge walked away and called back as he left, "This is your first apprentice CougarPelt. You don't want him to be as much of a failure as Cougarpaw!"