Chapter 6: A Taste of Triumph

Springpaw stretched out his long limbs in the morning light, enjoying the lingering drowsiness from his dreams. He yawned widely, his jaws strong and his teeth white and sharp. Quickly scrambling to his feet, Springpaw remembered that Cherrytail would be assessing his hunting skills that morning. His mentor had informed him yesterday that she would be giving him a short test on the hunting expertise he'd already learned thus-far. Springpaw was excited. He was ready to prove himself to Cherrytail and his father once and for all.

His fight with Goldenpaw was still fresh in his mind. In afterthought, Springpaw greatly wished he hadn't screeched quite so loudly at his sister. His ears flicked back in embarrassment. Had the whole Clan heard their fierce fight?

Putting his shame to the side, Springpaw leapt to the entrance of the apprentice's den, his paws making slapping noises on the stone floor. He blinked as he stepped out into the warm sunlight, temporarily blinded by the sudden excess of brightness.

"Springpaw?"

Goldenpaw was standing in front of him, her white pelt gleaming in the daylight, her fur fluffed up against the brisk breeze that was blowing through the camp. Her eyes were wide as she stared up at her brother.

"What? Do you want to boast a little bit more?" Springpaw spat, not looking at his sister's face.

Goldenpaw's expression darkened, but then she seemed to shake herself. She glanced at Springpaw and mewed, "No, I wanted to apologize for last night."

Springpaw was surprised. Out of the many fights the two siblings had been in, this was the only one Goldenpaw had asked forgiveness for. Usually the two would sulk and not talk to one another for a few days and then they'd forget all about it. But this time was different. Goldenpaw was saying sorry.

"What? Why?" stumbled Springpaw, climbing down from the den's entrance so he could face his sister on the rock shelf below.

"I was wrong to say those things to you," Goldenpaw said, her voice low, "I didn't know that my victory would upset you so much."

Springpaw narrowed his eyes at Goldenpaw. Although she was apologizing, he didn't miss the subtle jibe at his failure to beat her in the mock battle. He sighed. At least she was trying to be contrite.

"I'm sorry too," Springpaw replied, "sometimes I think our competition gets in the way of our relationship."

"I agree," Goldenpaw said hastily, looking relieved, "and we're apprentices now. We can't go around fighting like kits anymore."

Springpaw caught the desperate and worried tone in his sister's voice. He guessed that she too, was embarrassed by their raucous argument, and was afraid the Clan would be less than impressed with their immature actions.

"You're right," Springpaw said solemnly, "truce?"

"Truce," Goldenpaw said promptly, nodding her head.

The two stood their awkwardly for a moment. Then Springpaw gently licked his sister's delicate ears and purred, "I have to go. Cherrytail is giving me an assessment today."

"Oh, well, good luck," meowed Goldenpaw.

Springpaw, happy to be on good terms with his sister, continued down the path, mewing a goodbye to her as he went.

xxx

Springpaw crept through the tall stalks of grass, keeping his head low and his ears pricked. He listened to the sounds of the forest surrounding him. A sparrow chirped, but it was too far off to bother looking for. Springpaw was hunting by the western borders of SkyClan's territory, near the area where many rogue cats used to live. The trees were tall and thick there but Springpaw had still managed a graceful leap into a low-hanging branch where he'd caught and killed a squirrel. He hoped Cherrytail had seen his first catch of the day; he was very proud of his jump.

A scuffling up ahead made Springpaw press himself lower into the ground. He peered through the waving grass, smelling the warm scent of a mouse. Frost glittered on the ferns; leaf-bare was upon them. Springpaw knew prey would be getting harder to find. Already, most of the birds had left the gorge and the woods surrounding it, leaving only a tiny number of sparrows behind. Squirrels too, were becoming rarer, stocking up on their own food, readying themselves for the cold moons ahead.

A twig snapped off to the side, making Springpaw twist around violently, his claws unsheathed. He squinted, trying to glimpse the creature who'd made the sound. Then he sighed. Stupid furball, he thought, it was probably Cherrytail. She's assessing you, remember? Springpaw turned his attention away from the thick bramble and relaxed, taking a deep breath of the crisp air.

Without warning, a heavy weight crashed into his side. Springpaw was thrown to the ground, his body stinging with the impact from the hard cold soil. As he tried to flip himself over, a strong paw was placed on to his back, forcing him back down into the dirt. Springpaw weakly struggled but it was no use; his attacker was much more powerful than he. A sharp scent hit his noise. Springpaw realized he was being pinned by a cat, a tom at that, and the other male was hungry. Springpaw thrashed underneath the tom's body, knowing that this cat must be a rogue; SkyClan cats didn't smell like swamp water and kittypets couldn't fight this well.

Springpaw gasped in pain as the tom bit down on to his neck, piercing the skin, mercilessly shaking the apprentice with his teeth.

As Springpaw meowed in pain, he wondered where Cherrytail was. Had this violent rogue attacked her too? Was his mentor okay? Springpaw felt himself begin to panic. Suddenly he remembered his battle with Goldenpaw. She had tricked him, pretending to give up and then quickly surprising him by jumping upwards. Hoping his plan worked, Springpaw let his tense body relax, sinking on to the earth. The tom growled in victory but it was short-lived.

Springpaw felt his attacker's grip slacken and without hesitating, he launched to his feet, catching the tom unawares. Swiftly, Springpaw darted to the side and turned around, ready to fight for real, getting a good look at his assailant for the first time.

A large black tom stood before him, panting, his hazel eyes flashing in surprise and anger. His bushy tail was flicking back and forth as he crouched into a fighter's stance.

Springpaw stared at the tom in terror. He'd never seen such a frightening-looking cat before. A broad scar ran down the tom's face and Springpaw was horrified to see that one of his ears was almost split in two. The SkyClan apprentice shivered in fear. He was all alone and trapped. As a chilly numbness spread through Springpaw's body, the black tom snarled and jumped at him, a mass of dark fierce fur, blotting out the sun and turning his world upside down.