The morning sunlight came through a hole in the Apprentice's den, directly hitting Duskpaw's face, waking her slowly. Sleepily, she rubbed one paw across her face. Her ears pricked, listening to the sounds of the camp in the early morning. Some cats, like her, were just beginning to stir. Others, she could hear, were arriving back from the dawn patrol. She stretched, listening to the growling of her hungry stomach. She had skipped eating the night before, to exhausted from training. She wanted to be the best warrior she could, and she put alot of effort into practice.

She shook her head, clearing it, before stepping out of the den into the morning light. The sun lit her brown and orange pelt up, making it glow, though she couldn't see it. Snakepaw, the only tom apprentice currently, however, noticed. He smiled at her, though she walked by as though she didn't see him. She didn't like him much; he was the loudest, most boastful tom she knew. He never took anything seriously, and was always wanting to play fight or joke around. He was such a... kit!

She walked up to the fresh-kill pile, noting that it looked low. I should hunt some more, after I eat. She decided, grabbing a plump mouse in her jaws. She looked around, and saw that her best friend, Fernpaw, was also awake. She bounded over to the blue tabby she-cat, laying down next to her. Her friend was laying in a patch of sun, rolling a twig between her paws. She set the mouse between them, and mewed,

"Good morning! Want to share this with me?"

Fernpaw returned her smile, but shook her head slowly. "No, thanks. I already ate."

"Suit yourself, then." Duskpaw said, her tone light as she settled down to eat her mouse. She finished it in a couple of gulps, then took to grooming her fur. After she decided she looked nice enough, she stood up. "I was planning on going hunting now. Come with me?"

Fernpaw blinked, thinking about it. She stood up, stretching out her muscles. "Sure, why not." She shrugged, leading the way out of the tunnel. On their way out, they passed Duskpaw's mentor, Stonefur. He was a large tom, well muscled, with solid grey fur and kind amber eyes. "Where are you two going?" He asked, stopping to stand next to them.

"Hunting, we noticed the fresh-kill pile was running low." Duskpaw answered, stifling a yawn. It was still early, and there was a chill in the air that warned the cats of the upcoming Leaf-bare.

Stonefur nodded. "Good idea." He said, before heading into the camp. As soon as he was gone, the apprentices set off again, heading deep into the forest. It wasn't long before Duskpaw heard the scratching sound of a voles claws on a leaf. She pricked her ears, pinpointing the creature. A flash of grey gave it away, and she pounced. Its neck was broken before it could make a sound. Feeling triumphant at having made such a clean kill, she quickly buried her prey, and began looking for more. It wasn't long before a mouse, and a blackbird joined the vole. Just after the sun reached its highest point, Fernpaw caught up with her, a mouse and a thrush dangling from her jaws.

"I think we can head back now." She said, around her freshly caught prey. The orange and brown she-cat waved her tail at her fellow apprentice. "You go ahead." She mewed. "I'm not ready to go back yet." She prefered being out in the forest than it camp, though she never understood why.

She watched Fernpaw's retreating figure untill she was out of sight and earshot, before going back to hunting. This was what she liked doing best; hunting, not fighting. There was just something she didn't like about hurting a fellow cat, even if they weren't a clanmate. But even so, she wouldn't hesitate to defend her clan if it were absolutley neccesary.

She headed toward the two-leg path that represented the border between ThunderClan and ShadowClan. She knew that several different types of prey could be found here, and so it was her favorite place to hunt... despite the sickening stench coming from ShadowClan. She sent grew stronger and stronger as she neared the border, and she began to hear the sounds of a cat walking through leaves. Duskpaws fur bristled, as she pictured a ShadowClan cat on her territory. She spotted the other cat almost as soon as she heard him; his fur made him truly stand out in the forest. It was a bright orangey red, with a bright white underbelly. The ShadowClanner had to be an apprentice; he was about her own size, if not a little smaller. The second thing that she noticed was that he hadn't really crossed the border. He was a foxlength into his own territory.

She also noticed that his gaze was fixed upon something; she followed it, and noticed that it was a mouse, directly on the border. Practically no-mans land; she couldn't tell if the prey was on her side or his, and apparently neither could he. His claws were unsheathed, and if he noticed that she was standing there, he gave no sign.

The mouse had to have known what it was doing. It was going along the forest floor, directly on the border. She followed it, as did he, practically mimicking her movements. They did that, almost side by side, for several fox-lengths. She was grinning; this was almost like a game. Finally, the mouse veered off, directly into the tom. He pounced, and with a tiny squeek the mouse was dead. He looked at her, a faint smile on his face as well.

"Good catch." She commented, sitting down to wash her paw.

"Thanks?" He replied, making it sound like a question. He obviously couldn't tell why she was being nice to him.

"My names Duskpaw. Whats yours?" She asked, trying to be friendly. It wasn't everyday that she got to talk to a cat that she didn't know, and Gatherings didn't count. Then, you were forced to be nice to eachother, or risk the rath of StarClan.

"I'm Flamepaw." He said, still smiling though there was a question in your eyes.

She chuckled. "I should have known. Your pelt is a bright orange." She added, when he tilted his head.

"Oh." He mewed, with a laugh of his own. "Yeah, I stick out like a sore thumb, don't I?" He made a face at himself.

Duskpaw let out a full laugh; she liked his sense of humor better than Snakepaws. His sense of humor was dirty, and mean. This Flamepaws was actually funny.

She heard a patrol coming their way, and knew instantly that it was some of her clanmates. What would they think when they saw her with Flamepaw? Her eyes widened.

"I've got to go... bye!" She whispered loud enough for him to hear, before darting away. Somehow, she knew that that wouldn't be the last time that they spoke outside of a Gathering. As quietly as she could, she made her way back to her buried prey. She gathered as much as she could in her mouth, and headed back to camp. What would her Clan say if they knew she had just been talking to a ShadowClanner, like a friend? She decided that she wouldn't tell anyone. Sighing, she made her way into camp. Another day of training.