The blizzards had stopped, but the river that marked the boundary between MistClan and FireClan territory had been frozen into solid ice. The trees were bare, and they were all covered with the crisp, white snow.
Some of the prey was out of their burrows again, searching for food. But none of the prey knew that another powerful storm – just like the one before – would leave them starving and fighting for food.
Eaglepaw sighed. He knew that it would be a long time before he could go hunting again. He longed to go hunting, but only warriors were allowed out of camp until thaw. He heaved another long sigh. It was going to be another long, boring day.
"Eaglepaw," whispered a familiar voice. "Are you bored?"
Eaglepaw know at once that the voice belonged to Dapplepaw, because she was the only other apprentice besides him.
"Yes. I want to go hunting," he replied.
"Me too, Dapplepaw said softly. "Go deliver a message to Whitefrost, you know, my mentor."
Eaglepaw looked at her confused. What was Dapplepaw talking about?
When she saw the puzzled look on Eaglepaw's face, Dapplepaw explained, "If you're that desperate to go out and hunt, you can go tell Whitefrost that I want to go hunting with her. And if you see Kinktail there, ask him if you can go hunting. If he says no, go help Flashpelt. She's expecting kits, and since she can't move around easily, you'll be a great help to her. Ask her if she needs any help. At least you don't have to stay here all day."
"What about you?" Eaglepaw asked the pale, dappled she-cat.
"Oh, I'm fine," she replied. "I prefer being by myself anyways. I like having private time, so I can just think about stuff."
"Okay," Eaglepaw sighed. Did Dapplepaw not want to be his friend anymore? Since she just wanted to have some time with herself, he just left her alone and started toward the warrior's den.