Edited ✔️ by JackMccannon

The next morning, Icepaw's eyes slowly opened. He could see that all of his denmates weren't there. He was alone. Slowly getting up, the warm dawn air hit Icepaw's gray fur. He could tell it was ruffled and little moss pieces clung to it. Then, he remembered that he'd be doing apprentice duties today. He heaved a deep sigh, picking out the pieces of moss that clung on to him.

As he licked his ruffled fur, he thought that all he wanted to do today was rest. Yesterday's training really pushed past his own limits, and all of his muscles were sore. He wondered if Dewpaw felt the same way.

The moment his head lifted, he noticed that a cat was approaching the apprentice den. Icepaw made out that the scent was his mentor. Ashtail stopped at the entrance of the den and peered inside, to see his apprentice grooming his fur on his nest. For a moment, Icepaw pretended not to notice his mentor and continued to lick his fur, until Ashtail cleared his throat.

"Time to start your apprentice duties," he finally said. The young apprentice gave out a sad sigh. "Don't worry, it won't be too bad."

Icepaw nodded, walking out of his den followed by a long stretch. "So," he began with a yawn. "What are we going to start on? Cleaning the elder's den? Getting water?" I can't believe I have to do any of these things, he angrily thought. Hunting and fighting should be more important!

"No, we're moss collecting with Volepaw," he meowed. Icepaw nodded, and then he could see the larger apprentice talking to his sister, Sweetpaw, in the medicine den.

"Let's go, then," Icepaw murmured, slowly walking out of the medicine den. "Where did Mousetail and Dewpaw go, anyway?"

Ashtail shrugged. "I think they went on a border patrol to DarkClan. Those nasty furballs are always getting their scents over the border on purpose." He began padding forward, and Icepaw's tail drooped. Dewpaw is going on a border patrol, while I'm stuck here to collect moss? he thought with utter disbelief. I wanted to see the territory more!

Icepaw's tail flicked angrily as he followed Ashtail to the medicine den. He didn't want to do such apprentice duties when his talents could be trained and sharpened and put to use elsewhere. He wanted to learn how to hunt and do border patrols and learn the territory. He felt that it was unfair, and he envied Dewpaw.

As they reached the medicine den, Icepaw could see Sweetpaw's beautiful pelt as she rushed around the den. She appeared to be sorting herbs, mosses and leaves of all kinds as she talked with Volepaw. Icepaw was impressed at her multitasking skills. He realized it must be a hard job to be a medicine cat, with all that remembering and additional set of rules she was required to follow.

Finally, Sweetpaw stopped and noticed Ashtail and Icepaw standing and waiting. "Volepaw," she mumbled through a mouth of herbs. "Look, your patrol is here. Go on, I have to get this organized before Vinetail returns . . ."

Volepaw whirled around. "Oh, good morning," he meowed, his eyes glinting from the light of the rising sun. Turning back to his sister he added, "Alright then, Sweetpaw. I'll be going now."

Sweetpaw nodded, and Volepaw's attention turned towards Icepaw and Ashtail. Icepaw's mentor said, "Good. Now let's go and collect our moss, shall we?"

"Yes!" Volepaw beamed.

Icepaw didn't understand why Volepaw seemed so happy. What is so good about collecting moss? He walked a little slower with his tail a claw-length away from the ground, dropping behind the two other cats gloomily.

Ashtail turned behind him. "Come on!" he called from up ahead. "The moss isn't going to wait forever!" Groaning, Icepaw pushed himself forward and began walking next to his mentor. Volepaw was right on the other side of him, excitingly bounding forward. "Now that's better."

Icepaw didn't reply, but couldn't help but give a flick of annoyance from his ears. He probably thinks I'm a terrible apprentice for feeling so foul, Icepaw thought. It's because all he wanted to do was explore!

They were now out of the camp entrance. Icepaw froze, the fur on his pelt rippling like it did the day before when he first left the camp as an apprentice. He remembered his excitement, his happiness and his eagerness. Even though all those feelings didn't return, he still felt a prick of satisfaction to see the forest from the outside. 

"What are you so suddenly happy about?" Volepaw asked, noticing his denmate's hesitation. "I mean, they are just the same old trees and plants. Nothing exciting."

Icepaw looked at Volepaw with disbelief. "But . . ." He looked around. "The forest isn't the same. It feels different than yesterday! The leaves are all in different places and look—the plants—they moved, too!" Icepaw's heart raced faster. "And the colors seem richer. The scents shifted!"

It's like stepping in a completely different forest from yesterday! he thought.

Ashtail purred. "You seem to appreciate the forest like a warrior would," he said, looking at Volepaw and Icepaw. "Both of you. After all, Volepaw, you really seem to know this forest like the back of your paw."

"I suppose," Volepaw mewed, giving his chest a lick of embarrassment.

The moss-gathering patrol began to move again. This time, Icepaw snapped out of his daze. He knew how mad he was just moments ago, and suddenly recalled the reason for his feelings. Yes, that's right. I'm going to collect moss. He suppressed a sigh.

They began walking away from the direction of the Training Hollow and the camp. He looked around. Maybe he'd get to see the MoonClan territory like Dewpaw was? He padded beside Ashtail.

"Where are we going?" Icepaw asked, curious. He suddenly knew that he'd get to see a lot of territory, for they were going to a part of the forest that he hasn't been to before.

Ashtail didn't speak. It was Volepaw who did. "We're going near the StreamClan borders where the biggest lake in our own territory is found," he informed. "That's where most of the moss grows and where we sometimes do swimming lessons and fishing lessons."

Icepaw froze. "Don't only StreamClan cats swim and fish?" he asked again. Then he remembered once or twice he'd taken and eaten fish from the fresh kill pile when he was still a kit.

"Yeah," Ashtail said, dropping into the conversation. "But MoonClan always know the best way to survive. We just learn things for ourselves. No one told us we can't. But only two of us got the hang of swimming. Brightstar thought it was necessary for some cats to know."

"Though sometimes StreamClan cats get angry about it," Volepaw put in. Ashtail gave a small mrrow of laughter. It seemed like they didn't care what the other Clans thought of them.

As the patrol walked through the forest, the trees became less dense, followed by less bushes and plants. A fishy scent was caught into Icepaw's nose, and he looked around. In the close distance, a large lake rippled and shimmered under the sunlight. A willow tree stood right at the edge of the water, its leaves dangling low enough to touch the surface. He looked at it with amazement.

He'd never seen a willow tree before! Icepaw suddenly remembered that there were different types of trees. All he ever saw was oak, but he knew there were pine and willow, he just never really thought about it.

"Are we here?" he asked, remembering what Volepaw said about the lake.

"Almost," Ashtail meowed. "Just a bit closer to the border, and there should be the cave of mosses. It's amazing." His eyes shone, and Icepaw assumed that he was only getting a memory of the area.

Volepaw bounced excitedly. "If you don't count the Cave of Stars, this is the most amazing place to be. And, out of all the other Clans, it's in MoonClan!"

Ashtail nodded. "That's right," he purred. Icepaw began to realize why Volepaw was so excited now. All the warriors in the Clan must love to come here. Yes! Icepaw eagerly thought. Now I can tell Dewpaw something exciting!

Volepaw began to run up ahead. "It's just about here!" he meowed out loud, and stopped at a patch of grass. "It's hidden so no one else can find it."

Icepaw nodded, trotting up. When he was close enough to see the entrance, his eyes widened with disbelief. "This is as narrow as a rabbit hole!" he said, afraid that he might not get through. He looked through it. "And it's dark."

Ashtail sighed. "Wait until you get to the other side," he said. Looking down to Icepaw, he added, "Hold your breath, flatten your fur and squeeze through. If you get stuck, call for help and we'll pull you out. I'll go first." Icepaw nervously nodded.

And then, Ashtail's ears flattened on his head. He crouched down so low that his belly fur swept on the ground, and he began to crawl forward until he was not seen. A few moments later, a small and a faint voice called, "I made it! Icepaw, now it's your turn!"

Icepaw's heart stopped. "Wait, what?" He said, his pelt pricking with anxiety. "W-what if I get stuck?" He looked at Volepaw, who seemed calm and eager.

"Don't worry," Volepaw soothed. "Go through. If Ashtail can make it, so can you. It's what warriors do, you know?"

When Volepaw said warrior, it made Icepaw realize he was right. "Okay, I'll go," he said in a shaky voice. He copied Ashtail by sinking low to the ground, flattening his ears. "I'll see you on the other side." He sucked in his breath and held it.

Then, he began to go forward. When Icepaw reached the middle, sudden darkness hit his eyes, and he suddenly remembered his dream where he was engulfed by darkness. He gasped, but not much air reached his mouth. He coughed, trying to back up. He now knew why Ashtail said to hold his breath.

Icepaw realized he was stuck. "Help!" he called, trembling. Icepaw knew he was panicking, but he couldn't help it. The most scariest moment of Icepaw's life was that very dream he had of the Twilight Warrior cat, and it all happened in the darkness.

"Don't worry!" Ashtail's voice sounded from up ahead. "Come forward. It's good here, trust me!"

Icepaw tried to reassure himself and fierce fully pushed forward. When he felt that he needed to take a big gulp of breath, he leaped out of the other side and gasped, taking in as much air as he possibly could.

"Thank StarClan," he breathed, looking at his paws. At that same moment, Volepaw's head popped out of the small entrance as he climbed inside the cave. That's when Icepaw realized: it wasn't dark in here at all! He looked up, and his eyes widened. The mosses were glowing.

"Wow! This is amazing!" he exclaimed.

Ashtail chuckled. "That was my first reaction too," he said. "But now let's get to the moss gathering. The quicker we get this back to camp, the more time we have for training."

Icepaw nodded.

"So, what you need to do is claw at the top like this—"Ashtail curled his paw and swiped off the pieces of dirt that held the moss to the ceiling, causing a clean piece to fall to the ground "—to make sure that no dirt or rocks cling to it. The moss needs to be clean for the nursery and the elder's den. If not, you'll have to clean it later."

"Okay," Icepaw said. "How often to warriors come to gather here?" He began to copy Ashtail's movements to separate the moss from dirt and rocks.

"Every quarter moon, since it takes time for the moss to regrow," Ashtail replied. Volepaw also worked on some pieces, and it seemed as if the older apprentice has gotten the most of it already. "And we don't collect all of it. There needs to be some left so we can see."

Icepaw nodded and cut off his second piece. He growled when he realized he was bringing the dirt and rocks along with it.

Volepaw looked over and realized what Icepaw was doing. He walked up. "You don't need to cut the whole moss, just enough so that a cat can sleep on it," he informed. He cut off a piece of moss as an example, but then Icepaw realized he didn't cut the top part. "See?"

"I see," Icepaw said, trying it for himself. He saw that the moss was perfectly clean like Volepaw's. The older apprentice nodded and got back to work. Icepaw began to cut moss again, and this time it was easier.

When there were only three pieces of moss left, Ashtail nodded of satisfaction. "We can go back to camp and hunt now," he said.

"We're going to hunt?" Icepaw asked with sudden excitement.

"Why not?" Ashtail meowed. "It's right before sunhigh, so we have plenty of time." Icepaw was now very satisfied. They all picked up their bundles into their jaws and crawled out. It wasn't as bad climbing out as it was climbing in. Volepaw came out last and spat his big bundle to the ground, taking in a deep breath of fresh air. 

Soon, the moss gathering patrol got back to camp with Icepaw happily in the lead. The scent of the home he was raised in came into his jaws, and he bounded to camp with his portion. Volepaw was right at his heels. When he entered the camp, Dewpaw was already there.

Icepaw went to the medicine den and dropped his moss off to Sweetpaw and Vinetail before catching up to Dewpaw.

"You will not believe what happened today!" Dewpaw meowed first, his eyes shining bright. "We almost got into a fight with DarkClan!" Icepaw's heart dropped. This wasn't as exciting as what he did today. "It all started off with a small quarrel, and one of the warriors leapt at us, but then his own Clan member pinned him down!"

Icepaw nodded. "Oh," he said. "That's . . . cool." He sighed, now feeling too jealous to share what he's done today.

"So I heard you went moss collecting," Dewpaw went on, feeling pride that he has done more than Icepaw.

"Th-that's not true!" He spat. "I mean, it is, but I almost died!"

Dewpaw snorted. "You almost died collecting moss?" he asked, and his whiskers began to twitch. Icepaw growled, anger and embarrassment replacing his jealousy.

Don't he dare twitch his whiskers at me!

"No!" Icepaw defender. "I couldn't breathe—I almost lost air! And you know, I saw territory up to StreamClan, I saw the biggest lake in the territory, I saw a willow tree and I even saw the moss caves! It was amazing!" Dewpaw shrugged, and Icepaw went on, trying to get his brother jealous, "you know . . . it's an honor going to a cave like that."

Mousetail walked up behind Dewpaw and said, "Icepaw's right. The Moss Cave is very beautiful."

"That's okay," Dewpaw said. "I'd rather see a fight than see a cave."

Mousetail sighed, and then Ashtail padded up, stopping beside Icepaw. Now he didn't feel in a too good mood to be hunting.

Icepaw's mentor touched his head with his nose. "Let's leave," he meowed. "Dewpaw and Mousetail agreed to come with me." He looked up at them, and they nodded.

What? Icepaw growled in his head. I wanted the forest all to myself! I don't need Dewpaw to brag to me about how big his first catch was!

Angrily, Icepaw stormed to the entrance of the camp with Dewpaw and their mentors following. He stopped when he left for the third time, looking around. Nothing changed except some leaves and plants and branches.

"Wait, Icepaw!" Ashtail called. "You don't know where we're going. You have to follow me!"

Ashtail walked ahead with Mousetail following, and then Dewpaw dropped in right beside his brother. The white tom gave a friendly smile, but Icepaw angrily avoided his brother's gaze. Dewpaw sighed, and Icepaw began to speed up.

Dewpaw caught up once more. "Look," he meowed. "Sorry for bragging. I was just excited."

Oh, were you? Icepaw thought. Instead of spouting back a smart remark, he just sighed.

"Just try not to get me jealous back next time," Dewpaw continued, still trying to catch his brother's gaze. But Icepaw didn't look up once. "I don't like fighting with you."

Shut up!

"So let's work together in hunting, okay?" Dewpaw hopefully looked at his brother, and Icepaw sighed and nodded, although he didn't really mean it. They padded up side by side to their mentors.

After a few moments of walking, they finally stopped. "We're here," Mousetail informed, looking around. "This isn't the best place to catch prey, but all the hunting patrols are searching in the best areas. So, this will have to do."

"Yup," Ashtail agreed. "Now, let's get started with the basic hunting crouch." Mousetail sat down and nodded for Ashtail to continue. He watched the younger warrior carefully. "You need to go very low to the ground. Kind of like what we needed to do to get through the tunnel into the cave of misses, Icepaw."

Icepaw nodded, and crouched so he was in the position he was in earlier. Dewpaw did the same, and both of their white bellies touched the ground.

Ashtail purred of approval. "You need to make sure you're downwind of the prey so that they won't catch your scent," Icepaw's mentor went on. He began to slither forward. ''You creep up on the prey . . ." He leaped and shredded a leaf. "And then pounce!"

"Excellent!" Mousetail said.

Ashtail nodded, and Dewpaw said, "So, it's like this?" He began to creep forward, slowly in the dense undergrowth, and then as a leaf twirled in the sky as it fell, he leaped up and clawed it. It shredded like Ashtail's leaf.

Mousetail gave an approving nod. "That was a perfect leap, Dewpaw," his mentor complimented. "Now Icepaw, you try."

"Okay," Icepaw said, determined to do better than his brother. He didn't know why he felt so bitter. Icepaw crouched down, and spotted a loose twig of a tree. Icepaw's tail lashed, and he began to pace forward. Hiding in a patch of grass and aware that he was being watched, Icepaw leaped up and snatched the twig of the tree. "I did it!"

Mousetail purred. "Very well, Icepaw. But you cant lash your tail. That only makes it easier for the prey to see or hear you."

Icepaw's ears flattened. "But I still did good, right?"

"Of course!"

Icepaw nodded, now wanting to catch prey. He opened his jaws and breathed in the air, trying to find a scent. As he searched the air, a sudden yowl of triumph sounded in his ears. It was Dewpaw.

His brother ran up, and a small limp body hung from his jaws. "I caught a vole!" he said with excitement. Icepaw's eyes widened as he realized it was a big and plump one, too.

"I'll catch a squirrel!" declared Icepaw. Dewpaw smiled and nodded with none of the jealousy that Icepaw had. He felt intimidated. "I'll be right back."

Nervously, Icepaw crept away, still tasting the air. He stopped as he scented what he needed. In the distance, he spotted the gray fur of a squirrel gnawing on a nut. Icepaw's eyes narrowed, and he began to creep closer to it, trying not to jump of excitement or let his tail lash. I'll show you, Dewpaw, that not only you can overcome the forest.

He smiled slightly, and the squirrel froze. Icepaw suddenly realized that he had forgotten to go downwind. The squirrel knew that Icepaw was there! It stood upright on its hindlegs, looking around with caution as it tasted the air. At any moment, it will run. It's now or never, Icepaw thought over and over. Sucking in a deep breath, he leaped from the undergrowth and gave chase.

The squirrel squealed at the sight of the cat and sprinted in the opposite direction. Icepaw pounded hard on the ground, suddenly remembering being chased in his dream. He almost tripped over a tree root, but realized it was in his way before leaping over it. He shook his head from the memory of the dream and concentrated on the squirrel's body. He tried to make himself focused on his prey only.

I have to catch it before it climbs a tree!

With his muscles stretching farther than they ever had before, Icepaw leaped, almost missing his prey. But his paw landed onto it's back, crushing its delicate bones. His heart was beating with relief, but the poor thing still struggled underneath him despite its injuries. Moved with pity, he bent down and quickly sunk his teeth into its neck, deep enough to kill and end its misery.

The bloody taste of his first fresh-kill made him beam with pride.

"I did it!" he exclaimed. 

The exhilaration of his first hunt left him breathing hard and satisfied. A few paces away, Dewpaw watched him keenly but silently as their mentors rushed in to congratulate him.

Later, Icepaw and the rest of the patrol came back to camp. Icepaw didn't manage to catch more prey, but he still felt proud of himself since Dewpaw did not catch a squirrel like he did. Dewpaw, however, ended up catching a mouse upon their return by accidentally stepping on it.

Icepaw didn't know why, but he felt like he needed to compete with his brother to see who will one day be the better warrior, or possibly even someday leader. He knew he would never mean to hurt anyone, or accuse anyone of hurting him, but he still felt like he needed to be the best. 

And for some reason, Dewpaw's drive and aspirations seemed to match his own.