Foxpaw was woken by a heavy shove in her flank. Grumbling, she turned to see Juniperpaw curled up beside her. His hind leg kicked again, and Foxpaw had to pull back to avoid it. She jabbed a paw in his side.

"Juniperpaw!" she hissed. "You're dreaming. Quit it."

Juniperpaw lifted his head, blinking sleepily. "Can't a cat get some rest around here? I was only up patrolling all night."

"You can if you quit kicking me in your sleep," Foxpaw growled, turning over. "And you can't have been out that long. It's still dark out."

"What? No it isn't. Our patrol came back at dawn."

Foxpaw glanced at the entrance of the den, and saw that a sliver of light was visible among a mass of darkness. She stared at it, confused, until the black shifted and revealed a pair of massive yellow eyes. She let out an involuntary squeak of surprise.

The yellow eyes blinked. "What are you squealing about, you furball?" Nightwhisker mewed.

"Sorry, I didn't know you were there." Foxpaw meowed. Beside her, Juniperpaw let out a snort of laughter.

"Well, it's about time you two got up. We're on hunting patrol this morning. And Leopardclaw wants you to come, Juniperpaw," Nightwhisker added to the silver tom. "You haven't been on a hunting patrol for a while."

"Is Fallspirit coming too?" Juniperpaw asked, rising and shaking moss from his pelt.

"No, he's on another hunting patrol."

Juniperpaw breathed a sigh of relief. "Good. I can never hunt properly with that cat breathing down my neck."

Nightwhisker's whiskers twitched. "Don't talk about your mentor like that. He trains you well," she mewed, though she sounded amused - everyone knew how stern the brown warrior was. She lifted her tail. "Come on, then, you two. I'll meet you at the gorse tunnel when you're ready. "

As Nightwhisker bounded away, Juniperpaw turned to Foxpaw, looking excited. "This is your first hunting patrol, right?"

Foxpaw nodded eagerly, stepping through the ferns that surrounded the apprentice's den. "Nightwhisker has shown me how to hunt before, but I've never actually been on a hunting patrol. The only thing I've ever caught was a mouse outside the nursery."

Juniperpaw gave her a friendly nudge. "Well, it's only my third time on patrol. We can both fail together. "
Foxpaw swiped at his head playfully, and he ducked and tackled her. Foxpaw kicked him away and nipped his forepaw while he grabbed her hindpaw in his teeth. They wrestled there for a moment longer before an annoyed yowl sounded across the camp.

"Anytime you two are ready to stop acting like kits!" Leopardclaw called. The golden warrior was standing beside Nightwhisker at the gorse tunnel, tail twitching. Several cats around camp turned their heads in their direction. Foxpaw got up and shook her fur briskly, giving her chest an embarrassed lick.

As they wound their way across camp, Petalpelt, who was crouched beside the fresh-kill pile eating a thrush, stopped them. "That was a nice fight," she purred, eyes glittering with amusement. Juniperpaw shrugged and looked away. "Come on, Petalpelt, I'm sure you did that as an apprentice, too. Every cat does."

"Perhaps," Petalpelt admitted. She glanced at Foxpaw. "Anyway, would one of you bring back some feverfew while you're out? Shimmerpelt needs some for Yarrowtail. He has a little fever. She said there was some by the Great Sycamore."

Foxpaw dipped her head. "I'll ask Leopardclaw if we can go that way."

"Thank you," Petalpelt mewed, returning to her thrush. Foxpaw noticed that the small tortoiseshell's stomach was starting to bulge out slightly, and her whiskers twitched with surprise. Petalpelt was never one to take more fresh-kill than she needed.

Foxpaw and Juniperpaw nodded a good-bye, and then padded towards Leopardclaw and Nightwhisker. Leopardclaw looked quite annoyed.

"Petalpelt says we need to go by the Great Sycamore to get some feverfew while we're out," Juniperpaw mewed importantly.

Nightwhisker's ears twitched. "For Yarrowtail? He kept me up half the night with his coughing. I had to go sit outside your den to get any sleep."

Leopardclaw nodded briskly. "We'll try to go by there. Come on," he mewed, beckoning with his tail. "No more delays. We've wasted enough time already."

They pushed their way out of the gorse tunnel and into the forest. The glowing morning light touched the treetops, painting them golden, and even though it was leaf-bare, Foxpaw felt warmed by it. Her paws tingled with excitement. Her first hunting patrol!

Up ahead, Leopardclaw swung his head to the right, motioning that they should follow him. The patrol wound their way towards him. Suddenly Nightwhisker's ears pricked up, and she turned to the side, ever muscle tensed. Foxpaw strained her ears and heard a low scraping sound a couple of fox-lengths away. Nightwhisker smoothly dropped into a low crouch and disappeared into a patch of ferns. Leopardclaw stopped, watching her with interest.

After a few moments of silence, there was a sharp squeal, abruptly cut off, and Nightwhisker walked through the ferns, a rabbit dangling from her jaws. She opened her mouth and it dropped at her paws.

"Good work," Leopardclaw murmured. "That was quick. We've barely left camp."

Nightwhisker purred. "It was a slow one. It didn't even see me coming." She dug a shallow hole in the ground and dragged the rabbit in it, covering it with dirt.

Leopardclaw looked around at them, then meowed, "Alright, I think we should split up here. Foxpaw, you can go into those brambles there. There might be some prey hiding in them. Nightwhisker, I think you and I can go towards Tallpines. We haven't sent a patrol in that direction for a while. Juniperpaw, you can go north, but stay away from the Thunderpath." He glanced around at them. "Since we're nearly at the Great Sycamore, we'll meet back there. Bring any prey you catch with you."

"Don't feel too discouraged if you don't find anything," Nightwhisker added. "It is leaf-bare, after all."

Juniperpaw and Foxpaw nodded in assent, and Nightwhisker and Leopardclaw bounded off. Juniperpaw started to pad into the ferns, then turned back. "Good luck, Foxpaw! And try not to get any brambles stuck in your fur. I don't want to wake up with those in my nest."

Foxpaw started into the clump of brambles, barely squeezing through. A couple of them snagged her pelt, but they barely touched the surface of her fur. As Foxpaw climbed into the hollow inside of the bramble patch, her paws scraped against dead leaves, which crackled loudly.

I don't know why that mouse-brain thought this would be a good place to hunt, she thought irritably, licking her fur flat.

Suddenly, she started. A crunching sound much like the one she had just made, but softer, was coming towards her left. The warm scent of a mouse reached her, and she dropped into a crouch, trying to imitate Nightwhisker. She watched as a flicker of brown passed along the inside of the brambles, and her tail lashed excitedly. Unfortunately, though, her tail brushed against a bramble, and the mouse froze, then bolted. Heart pounding, she pounced at it desperately, but its small body darted easily though the brambles and it vanished. She spat with frustration.

I'm never going to be able to hunt in here, she thought, and pulled her way back out of the brambles. Remembering that they were supposed to meet up at the Great Sycamore, she decided to head that way, hoping she would catch something before she got there.

As she padded off, trying to remain quiet, she glanced up at the sky, visible only in patches through the treetops. Though it was well into the morning, she could see the faint, barely visible outline of the moon. It was nearly completely round, missing only a tiny sliver. The Gathering, she knew, was tonight at Moonhigh. Foxpaw desperately wanted to go. Though she was a new apprentice, she hoped she would be chosen, since there was only Juniperpaw and her. Frondstar wouldn't want to appear weak and only bring one apprentice, she reasoned. Just then, a faint tapping noise reached her ears.

She stopped dead in her path. A red bird with a small crest on its head was plucking at the frozen ground up ahead, searching for food. She stared at, fascinated – it was unlike any bird she had ever seen in the fresh-kill pile before.

Foxpaw stalked towards it, weaving around ferns and other plants to get behind it. As she bunched up her muscles to pounce, it cocked its head in her direction, apparently disturbed. I won't let another one get away, she thought, gritting her teeth, and jumped. With a flutter of crimson wings, it took flight towards the fading outline of the moon, but she leaped and caught its back with both paws, slamming it to the ground, where it flapped its wings helplessly. She gave it a sharp nip to the spine, and it stiffened, then fell limp.

She took it in her jaws, bursting with pride. The bird was plump, though it was leaf-bare, and could probably feed two cats back at camp. As Foxpaw padded towards the Great Sycamore, she kept her head high to avoid dragging the red bird along the ground, as hungry foxes might be alerted by the noise.

Foxpaw knew instantly when she arrived there that she had found the right place. She couldn't help but open her mouth slightly in awe. The Great Sycamore was far larger than any other tree in the forest. It towered proudly over all the trees, the top of it so high up it was barely visible. Foxpaw noticed a clump of yellow and white flowers at the base of the tree, and sniffed them. It must be the feverfew Petalpelt asked us to get. She dropped the bird next to it, then sat and waited for the rest of the patrol to come back.

Before long, Foxpaw saw Nightwhisker and Leopardclaw step through the bracken towards her. Leopardclaw had a thrush in his jaws, and Nightwhisker was carrying a starling and the rabbit she had caught earlier. The dropped their prey next to Foxpaw's.

Nightwhisker prodded the red bird curiously. "What is it?" she mewed, turning the bird over. "A starling of some kind?"

Leopardclaw sniffed it. "I don't think so. I've never seen a starling that looked like that."

"Well, it's fresh-kill. Well done, Foxpaw," Nightwhisker mewed approvingly. Foxpaw's eyes glowed.

There was a rustling sound, and Juniperpaw came padding over, two mice dangling from his mouth. He dropped them in surprise when he saw the fresh-kill. "We sure caught a lot! Wow, Foxpaw, you caught something weird!" he added, nudging the bird.

Leopardclaw nodded and meowed gruffly, "I think we've done well today. Let's take this back to camp. And Juniperpaw, try to keep your mice from falling out of your mouth this time."

They picked up their prey and started back towards camp, Foxpaw making sure to take a clump of the feverfew with her. Juniperpaw nudged Foxpaw with his shoulder and mumbled, his mew muffled by the mice, "Congratulations on your first official catch!"

"Thanks. You did well to find two mice. I found one, but I missed it." Foxpaw admitted, readjusting her grip on the bird to speak through its silky feathers.

"We all miss prey sometimes," Juniperpaw mewed. "If I caught everything I saw today I'd be bringing back half the forest in fresh-kill!"

Nightwhisker turned back towards them, her eyes lit up with laughter. "I can hardly understand a word of what you two are saying. Didn't your mothers ever tell you not to speak with fresh-kill in your mouths?" she meowed, barely audible around her rabbit and starling. Foxpaw noticed that even Leopardclaw's eyes were glimmering with amusement.

When they reached camp, Petalpelt spotted them and padded towards the gorse tunnel. "Well done!" she mewed, her eyes widening in surprise. "I didn't expect you all to find so much prey in leaf-bare. And Foxpaw, thank you for getting the feverfew. By the way," she added, looking at Juniperpaw and Foxpaw, "I've spoken to Frondstar, and she says both of you may come to the Gathering tonight." Foxpaw and Juniperpaw exchanged a thrilled glance. "You may all go leave your fresh-kill in the fresh-kill pile. Foxpaw, if you could take the feverfew and your catch to Shimmerpelt, I think she would appreciate it."

Foxpaw nodded eagerly and sprinted towards the fern tunnel. She nearly collided with a mass of gray fur.

"Foxpaw! You're back. And already trying to knock over your medicine cat," Shimmerpelt mewed, her whiskers twitching. "Thank you for the feverfew," she added. "Petalpelt told me she sent you to get it. And congratulations of going to the Gathering tonight." Her eyes narrowed as she saw the crimson bird in Foxpaw's jaws.

Foxpaw dipped her head. "Would you like me to take the feverfew to Yarrowtail?" she mewed.

"Yes, thank you," Shimmerpelt meowed. "But leave me the bird. I haven't had a chance to eat since sunrise. I think the Clan is trying to starve this old cat." Foxpaw noticed that while her mew remained light, her eyes were fixed on the bird, still narrowed. Foxpaw dropped the bird and hurried into the medicine cat's den with the feverfew, where Yarrowtail lay curled, his body shaking with suppressed coughs.

"Here. Shimmerpelt wants you to eat this. It's feverfew," Foxpaw meowed respectfully, dropping the tiny flowers next to the white warrior.

Yarrowtail lifted his head. "Thank you," he rasped, picking the flowers up in his mouth and chewing them slowly. "I heard you and Juniperpaw are going to the Gathering tonight," he mewed. "I wanted to go, too, but with this cold Shimmerpelt thinks I should stay in camp."

"Sorry," Foxpaw mewed, staring at her paws.

Yarrowtail's amber eyes widened. "Sorry? For what? You would have gone to the Gathering anyway. Don't worry, you aren't taking my place. It's because I went out on patrol to RiverClan when it was the water was so cold." He glanced her over and coughed, "You and Juniperpaw better go get some rest. You'll both be up all night. Oh, but when you come back, do you think one of you could come and tell me what happened?"

Foxpaw nodded, eyes shining. "I will," she promised.

Yarrowtail settled in his nest. "Thank you," he mewed. "Have fun."

Foxpaw padded out of the den, her fur bristling with excitement, and started towards the fresh-kill pile, eager to get some food in her belly.

"Don't let Juniperpaw start any fights at the Gathering!" Yarrowtail called after her.