Chapter 3:

Fawnpaw was taken out for her first hunting session early the next day. Just as Goldenflower had predicted, Tigerclaw had entered the den before dawn and woke her up by jabbing his paw into her side. His voice was quiet but gruff, his comments kept short. He told her that they'd be training for the majority of the day together, so it's best to get started as early as possible.

Fawnpaw felt asleep on her paws, but she mumbled her agreement and tried to shake herself awake. She passed Cloudkit off to Brindleface, who was still asleep, and followed the deputy out into the clearing.

She blinked at the still-dark camp. No birds were awake yet and fresh snow covered the grass. There were only a couple other cats awake at this time, and she saw that Fireheart was standing near the camp entrance. He met her gaze from across the camp and she waved her tail in greeting.

"Hurry up, Fawnpaw." Tigerclaw growled and stalked toward the entrance. She trotted behind him and paused only to touch noses with her brother eagerly.

Fireheart didn't say anything as she passed by. He just watched after her worriedly. She ignored the look however, and bounded up the ravine and after the tabby warrior. Tigerclaw started down a trail that they had not taken the previous day, and she was soon introduced to what was known as the Sandy Hollow.

It looked just as the name might suggest. It was a small dip in the forest where a dried river must have run through in the past. The entire space was made of dirt and sand, providing soft ground for if cats were practicing their sparing. All around the edges of the hollow were protecting trees and undergrowth.

They padded towards the center, and Tigerclaw faced her. "One of the first things we teach our apprentices is how to hunt. A duty as an apprentice and as a warrior is to provide food for your Clan. Queens, kits, and elders always eat first in the Clans. This ensures that no one goes hungry. Let us begin by you showing me your hunting crouch."

Fawnpaw blinked at his words. Her hunting crouch? Had she even seen another cat hunt before? She has, she realized. She had once seen a stray cat hunting birds in her Housefolk's yard. She crouched down low, trying to remember the stance that the cat had taken, but it was clear by Tigerclaw's expression that she had done something wrong.

He strode forward and forced her paws into the correct position. He made her crouch more balanced on all four legs and used a paw to force her tail lower to the ground. As he corrected her stance, she found that it immediately felt more natural.

They spent much of the morning in the Sandy Hollow. The sun rose slowly as Tigerclaw educated her on the warrior code, adding in snide comments whenever he had the chance and explaining how there are different crouches for different kinds of prey. By the time he was leading her out of the hollow for some real paws-on experience, her brain was overwhelmed by all of the knowledge he had thrown at her.

He led her swiftly along a path and towards the center of the forest. "We will hunt here," he told her, "We are in the middle of the territory here, far from any borders. Taste the air and tell me what you smell."

Fawnpaw stopped beside him and looked around at the snow-covered undergrowth and tall trees. She may have only been in ThunderClan territory for three days now, but she had never seen any sign of prey other than birds or squirrels high in the trees, far out of reach. She wondered how the patrols were keeping up with the hunting needs, but she guessed that there must be prey somewhere on the ground if the Clan was still being fed.

She opened her jaws like Tigerclaw instructed and took a deep breath of the chilly air. She narrowed her eyes in focus. The thin layer of snow covered everything in the forest, dampening any smells that would have normally reached her. But as she tried again, she found that she could decipher something in the air.

"I smell…" she hesitated, turned her head in the direction the scent had come from, "Mouse?" She had discovered what mouse tasted like the day before when she shared one with Cinderpaw before dark, so she had become familiar with the smell. It didn't seem quite the same though, and she knew from Tigerclaw's expression that she had gotten it wrong.

"That's a vole." He told her with an impatient flick of his tail. "Can you smell anything else?"

Fawnpaw tried again, and she did catch another scent in the air. It was extremely faint, but it was still there. "Yes," she told him, "But I don't know what it is."

"That's a fox," he said, "But it is faint, likely having passed by several days ago. Now, see if you can hunt that vole."

Fawnpaw nodded though a worm of unease began in her belly. She could feel Tigerclaw's eyes hot on her pelt as she dropped into her imperfect crouch and followed the vole off of the trail and into the undergrowth. Snow crunched with every paw step, and she held back a hiss as she reminded herself to step lightly.

The scent grew stronger and she soon realized that she could see a tiny trail in the snow where the creature must have walked. She tried to fix her stance now, though she wasn't even sure that she was using the correct one for this kind of hunting, and rounded a bush ahead of her.

There! Just a few tail-lengths away was the tiny creature. Its back was to her and it was nibbling on a seed between its tiny paws. A flare of hope burst through her and she began to lash her tail. Her tail smacked the bush beside her and its leafless stems clanged loudly. The vole looked up in terror, dropped the seed, and fled into the undergrowth.

Fawnpaw stared at where it had disappeared with disappointment.

Tigerclaw came out of hiding and stood beside her with a harsh glare, "I've seen kits hunt better than you." he told her bluntly, "What was the first thing I had taught you about forest hunting?"

"Not to make noise," her ears flattened to her head as she recalled what he had told her time and time again back in the Sandy Hollow. He informed her of several ways to stay quiet in the forest. He mentioned that there were some advanced techniques that she'll later learn, but the basics include stepping lightly and keeping your tail still.

He gave her a curt nod. "Now, taste the air and see if you can find something new to stalk. We are not returning to camp until you catch something to provide for your Clan with."

Tigerclaw had said that morning that they'd be training for the majority of the day. But she hadn't realized that she'd be hunting all day. Try after try, Fawnpaw attempted and failed to catch prey. Frustration and disappointment cycled through her, not helped one bit by Tigerclaw's scathing insults and growing impatience.

It was growing dark by the time that they returned to the camp. Her paws were frozen and her pelt was soaked through, but at last she had clumsily landed with a mouse between her paws. She was so surprised that she had almost let the small creature wriggle from her grasp.

"Wait- no!" She gasped and clasped a paw over the tiny creature. It squeaked in terror and she bent down to deliver a messy killing bite. As the mouse fell still in her paws, she looked back to Tigerclaw with surprise. "Look! I caught one!" she exclaimed.

Her spirits were quickly squashed though, as the deputy padded forward and sniffed the prey. His eyes were unimpressed and he scoffed at the creature. He told her, "It's old and scrawny. That thing could hardly feed a kit."

She looked back down at it and knew what he said was the truth. The mouse at her paws was clearly old and had begun to starve in the harsh cold. If she hadn't killed it then, it likely wouldn't have survived the rest of leaf-bare.

"But it's still prey," she tried to convince both him and herself of her achievement. She had spent all day trying to catch prey! He gave her an annoyed look and began to lead the way back to camp. She picked up the mouse in her jaws and scampered after him, paws slipping on the slush as he found a more well-used trail.

By the time they slipped into the camp clearing, the sky had become dotted with the first stars of the night. The last hint of the sunset was still shining through the trees and most of the cats had already retired to their dens.

"The elders would have already eaten by now," Tigerclaw told her as they approached the center of the camp. "They will not want that pitiful prey. Eat it yourself, then sleep. Tomorrow you will busy yourself with cleaning their den and getting rid of their ticks to make up for your lack of contribution today."

Fawnypaw felt his comment sting on her fur, but she held her tongue from any retort that came to mind. She simply nodded and watched as the tabby stalked away and disappeared into the dark warrior's den.

Briefly, she was left alone in the camp's clearing. But it was only for a couple of heartbeats, as very quickly Fireheart ducked out of the warriors' den and bounded over to her. He brushed his muzzle against hers and then pulled back sharply, his eyes searching his pelt as if he expected to find something unusual there.

"Fireheart?" She set down her mouse and ducked away from his searching. "What are you doing?"

"Nothing," he lied as he pulled back and looked away uncomfortably. "How was your training? Why don't we sit and eat while we talk?"

"Okay," she allowed him to lead her to a more distant corner of the camp. They settled down on a patch of earth that was not covered by snow, having been protected from the thick branches of the tree above.

As she began to eat her small mouse, her starved stomach making her eat in rapid bites, she recalled what had happened throughout the day. She told him about all of the things that Tigerclaw had taught her and how she had attempted to catch prey for the entirety of the day and had only failed until just moments ago.

He listened quietly until he was sure she was finished with both her story and her prey. Finally, he asked, "Did Tigerclaw treat you alright?" Again, his green eyes ventured down her pelt and she felt as though he was searching for some sort of mark.

A jolt of alarm shot through her. Did her brother think that Tigerclaw would hurt her? He's the deputy! She fluffed up her fur at these thoughts and gave him a disapproving look, "I can't say his comments were all that friendly, but he didn't hurt me if that is what you are asking."

He nodded at her words, though his gaze seemed uncertain. She wondered what was going through his head. "I heard that he set you on elder duty tomorrow. Would you like me to help you with that?"

"That would be nice," She blinked at the offer. Had Tigerclaw just expected her to know what to do? He had said clean the den and get rid of their ticks, but there was nothing in Clan life that she was familiar with.

Fireheart stood now and smoothed the fur along her spine with his tail, "You should get some rest then. You had a long day today, and there will be even more work to do tomorrow."

She nodded as he left her side and padded back to his den. She buried the leftover scraps of her prey then made her way across the camp and into the nursery. The second that the milky scent reached her nose, she was flooded with exhaustion.

She climbed into her nest and took her beautiful son from Brindleface. Her heart hurt as she reflected that she hadn't seen him all day and had hardly even thought of his during her training. She groomed his already clean pelt as she imagined him playing and growing and exploring without her. Her heart grew heavy as she realized that tomorrow would be very similar to today.