Three days had passed since Foxpaw's death. Silverfur had been teaching Hawkeye battle moves.
And Hawkeye hated it. It was all jumping and dodging and pretending to claw other cats. Silverfur was a huge and intimidating warrior and Hawkeye usually ended up pinned to the sandy ground in the training hollow. On top of that, Hawkeye hated fighting. The idea of attacking Silverfur just didn't sit right with him.
Today was even worse. Rabbitpaw and Graystar came along with Silverfur and Hawkeye. Right now, Hawkeye was expected to attack his friend. Pretend or not, it didn't seem right in Hawkeye's mind. The apprentice was still subdued after his brother's bloody death, which made fighting him even harder.
Hawkeye leapt halfheartedly at the skinny apprentice. Rabbitpaw dodged to one side and hooked his paw around on of Hawkeye's front legs as he landed. He pulled the leg out from under him, toppling the black cat over. Then he quickly sprang on top of him, effectively winning. Hawkeye went limp and waited for Rabbitpaw to get off.
A few moments passed. "Uh, Hawkeye?" Rabbitpaw murmured. "You still have a chance."
"What are you talking about? You won."
Silverfur padded into the hollow from where he had been sitting near at the edge next to Graystar. "Hawkeye, remember what we learned yesterday? You can push your hind legs into Rabbitpaw's belly and push him off. Then you can try to pin him. Or in real battle, you could try to land a bite or scratch that will chase your foe away."
Hawkeye sighed and tapped Rabbitpaw's stomach with his back feet.
"Hawkeye!" Silverfur reprimanded. "That wouldn't even through a kit off. I can tell you're not trying."
Graystar stepped up next to Silverfur. "Yes, and with RiverClan showing such hostility, a battle may not be far away. So we all must be prepared. Including you."
Dread welled up inside Hawkeye. Battle…Be prepared…
Suddenly Shadowleaf burst into the hollow. "Graystar! It's RiverClan! They're trying to take Sunningrocks!"
Graystar flicked his tail at Silverfur and the two apprentices. He bounded into the forest, back toward camp. Shadowleaf, Silverfur, and Rabbitpaw charged after him. Hawkeye followed a bit more slowly, considering the possibility of flopping down on the ground and claiming that he twisted his foot. Then they'll have to just leave me to catch up while they rush off into an urgent battle. But what if they see through the ruse?
When they reached the camp, Graystar leapt to the Highrock. "ThunderClan, we are under attack! RiverClan is trying to steal Sunningrocks!"
Hawkeye listened while he listed a patrol of fighting cats to battle with RiverClan. His heart sank as he heard his name among them.