"Craaak! Come join me!" The raven cawed, swooping around Wingpaw. Wingpaw shook his head. "I don't know how…" He muttered, his eyes filled with regret. The raven chuckled again, and then landed on a stump, twitching his tail feathers. He looked Wingpaw straight in the eyes, and his own berry black eyes suddenly flashed with anger. "You're giving u-uppp!" He crowed, hissing and striking out with a wing. Wingpaw was hit in the face, and he stood up, growling. He prowled toward the raven. The raven, not noticing, ranted on. Wingpaw's black neck fur bristled with anger, and he leapt for the black bird. His razor sharp teeth met in the raven's throat, and the fresh tangy taste of blood and death hit him. The bird gave an irritated squawk of horror, and then fell dead to the ground.
Wingpaw growled, his red eyes now flashing with the feeling of success. "You're not just a stupid raven. You're my food." He picked up the dead bird and carried it off. Power surged through his body as he walked, and he seemed to swell slightly with pride. He had caught and killed the trouble. It would never bother him again. What if he could stop all of his problems like that? They would never come back to haunt him again! He stopped thinking as he entered the camp, and then padded over to the fresh-kill pile, placing the raven onto it. Black feathers littered the ground around it as he spat them out.
"Good catch." Thymepaw padded up behind him, purring with pride. She pressed her neck to his shoulder, and blinked. Wingpaw growled a word of thanks, and she took a step back, looking hurt. "You don't have to bite my head off." She mewed, clearly offended.
"You make me so mad I want to." Wingpaw shot back, his eyes suddenly blazing with anger. He snarled once at her and stalked off towards the apprentice den. He needed to clear his head.
Thymepaw's eyes filled with tears as she watched Wingpaw stalk off, her heart suddenly aching with hurt. How could he just push her aside like that? She sighed and wiped a tear away with her tail, and then stood up to look for her mentor. Maybe Poppyleaf would take her hunting, and she could get away from this place for a while.
Abruptly, Oakpaw padded over to Thymepaw. "Has he been hurting you?" He asked quietly, touching his tail tip to her shoulder in a comforting manner. She shook her head. "Not physically, but emotionally. I don't know what's wrong with him." She whined, a hint of defense flashing in her solemn eyes. Oakpaw nodded. "Just forget about him. Here, why don't you come hunt with me and Furypaw? We'd both enjoy some company." He offered, his own eyes shining warmly at her. She nodded and sniffed once. "Sure." She meowed, and they both turned to join Furypaw at the camp entrance. After a few seconds discussion, the three apprentices disappeared out into the forest.
Wingpaw stormed into the apprentices den, his black fur bristling with anger. "She has no right to try and think that she knows how I feel. Nobody knows what I feel. Nobody wants to help me, or even tries to!" He hissed wildly at himself, hating himself. Hating Thymepaw, and hating his life. He threw himself down into his nest, ignoring the pain that sprung into his left wing, and curled up into a ball. He pulled his tail around him, and closed his eyes, willing sleep to take over. His dreams were unsettled, and cries of pain and terror filled his mind. He cried out as pain circled his wings, and he tried to wake himself up. Nothing happened. He was stuck in the world of nightmares and terror…
The next morning, he awoke to find himself lying beside Spotpaw. The dappled brown apprentice was sleeping easily, his flank rising easily up and down. The warmth of his friend calmed Wingpaw slightly, and he sighed, resting his head on his paws. Suddenly, a voice hailed him from outside the den. It was Silversun, and she apparently wasn't very happy.
"Wingpaw! Get out here!" She meowed crossly, stamping a paw hard on the tough ground. Wingpaw slowly rose to his paws and slipped out of the den. "Yes?" He yawned and stretched, careful not to stretch his wings, even though they were aching from the way he had slept on them. Silversun's golden eyes blazed with anger. "I heard that you didn't bring anything back for the fresh-kill pile other than a dead raven. You should be doing better than that!" She growled, cuffing his cheek lightly. "I'm going to have to teach you more about hunting techniques, as it appears that yours aren't going very well." She sighed.
Wingpaw growled quietly and nodded. "As you wish…" He hissed.
Thymepaw padded out of the apprentices den, and walked right past the two cats. Wingpaw tried to meet her eyes as she padded past, but her eyes were focused right ahead, and she frostily ignored him. Silversun noticed this, and her whiskers twitched with amusement, but she went on. "Let's go."
"Already?" Wingpaw was hungry, and wanted to get something from the fresh-kill pile.
"Well, you didn't bring anything of use yesterday, so you won't eat until you do." Silversun meowed, already turning to head to the camp entrance. "So if you're hungry, we might as well get started." She mewed over her shoulder. She padded away, and the sunlight shone on her glossy silver coat. Wingpaw sighed and followed. This day was not going to get better.