"Brightpaw! Wake up, training starts soon!" The sound of her littermate Runningpaw's voice woke the young cream colored she-cat, Brightpaw. She looked up at her brother and growled.
"Why do we have to wake up so early for training?" She hissed, shaking strands of moss and ferns from her coat as she got up.
"Why don't you ask Snowstorm?" He replied, flicking his tail towards her mentor. The lean white she-cat made her way over to they're den.
"I see your both awake, Runningpaw, Ravenstar will be here to collect you shortly." She meowed softly to them, her pale blue eyes glinting in the pale sunlight. The to younger cats nodded and made they're way to the clearing, followed by Snowstorm. As Snowstorm had said, Ravenstar was already making her way across the clearing to the young apprentices. She nodded at Snowstorm and Brightpaw, and flicked her tail to Runningpaw.
"Come on, its time for training." She meowed to him. Brightpaw's brother nodded in farewell to her, and bounded off after the clan leader, and his mentor, towards the forest.
"Its about time we started teaching you how to hunt." Brightpaw heard her snowy white mentor say. She looked up to meet her piercing blue gaze, with her own, excited and nervous sky blue ones.
"Really? I'm going to learn how to hunt today?" She asked, her paws itching to start.
"Yes. Now, lets go, before you blow up." Her mentor meowed, he voice lined with amusement. It was then that Brightpaw realized how excited she must look, and forced herself to calm down. She followed Snowstorm out of the camp, and into the forest beyond. Pine and oak trees surrounded the young apprentice and her mentor.
"Ok, when hunting, you want your prey to think there isn't any danger around. They can hear even the ruffle of your fur, so try and make sure they think its just the leaves moving in the wind." Snowstorm instructed. Brightpaw nodded.
"Now, do what I do." She meowed. She opened her mouth to drink in the prey scent. At once, she dropped into a hunters crouch, and crept forward so silently, Brightpaw wondered if she was even there. Her paws barely touched the ground, as she crept up to an unexpecting mouse, nibbling on a seed. It looked up a second to late, and was dispatched with a swift blow to the head.
"Wow…" Brightpaw whispered.
"You try." Her mentor mumbled through her mouth full of mouse. The young apprentice nodded, and opened her mouth to see if any prey was nearby. She picked up the scent of a vole, and quickly dropped into a crouch. She followed the scent trail, until the furry creature came into sight. She wiggled her haunches, just as her mentor had done, and jumped, claws unsheathed, and sank them into her preys neck.
"Well done." Snowstorm praised, as Brightpaw padded back, the prey dangling from her jaws.
"You're a fast learner, that's good." She purred, making her apprentices eyes glow with happiness.
"Now, lets continue hunting."
The rest of the afternoon was spent with Snowstorm teaching Brightpaw the best hunting techniques, and how to tell different prey scents from another.
By the end of the day, they're jaws were packed with enough prey to keep the clan going for a moon. (not really, just an example).
Brightpaw dropped her catch at the fresh-kill pile, and padded over to the medicine cat den, to see her sister, Rosepaw. As soon as she entered the den, the strong smell of herbs, Lunarpelt, and Rosepaw hit her like a waterfall. Her sister poked her head out of her den, and purred in greeting. She crawled out of the crack in the rock where she slept, fully revealing her cream pelt, with brown and black stripes and rings. She had to be one of the prettiest cats in the clan. Her and Dawnflower of course.
"Are you injured?" Her sister asked, her voice soft and her eyes worried.
"No, no. I just wanted to how you're doing." Brightpaw meowed.
"Oh, well in that case, fine. Lunarpelt has been keeping me well focused on our herb supply. Tomorrow we'll be going to collect more." Her sister purred.
"Sounds fun. Its almost half-moon soon, are you excited about traveling to the moonstone?" She asked, not knowing what else to say.
"Hm? Oh yeah…" Rosepaw whispered, looking away with a troubled look in her eyes that confused Brightpaw. Whatever it was, she wasn't going to bring it up.
"Ok…well, I'll leave you alone now." Brightpaw meowed. Her sister blinked at her, and then turned back to sort her herbs. Brightpaw padded out of the den, and into the apprentices den. She curled up in her nest of moss, and closed her eyes.
Whatever Rosepaw is worried about, how serious can it actually be?