When they arrived at the stream that ran along the border, Willowtwig halted. "I'm going to show you how to catch a fish." Willowtwig crouched down by the water, waiting for a fish to swim close enough to grab.
"What if we miss a patrol?" Bearpaw fretted.
"Don't worry- we won't. ShadowClan scent is very strong, so we'll smell them before we see them." As he finished speaking, a large, black shape swam close to where Willowtwig was crouching. Willowtwig quickly shot his paw into the water, and hooked in his claws was a large fish, glistening in the strained sunlight.
"Wow! That was amazing! You're really going to show me how to do that?" Bearpaw meowed in awe.
"Yep. You'll also learn other stuff from Rainheart. For example, hunting frogs, birds, learning fighting skills, defensive skills, how to scent, sight, and hear things from long distances, that sort of thing. Hey, did you hear that Amberdawn went missing yesterday? I can't imagine where he has gotten off to."
"I didn't know, Willowtwig. I hope he comes back, though." Bearpaw stopped to think for a minute. "Didn't Honeyripple go missing too? Maybe Amberdawn wanted to join her."
"Maybe. Or maybe some big animal got them."
The rest of the day was spent in silence, and Bearpaw learned quickly on how to make sure his shadow did not cover the water, and that he must stay very still while waiting for a fish to come. Sunhigh came with no sign of ShadowClan patrols, so they left the border carrying at least three fish.
"This is enough to feed all of the elders, and some warriors!" Bearpaw mumbled through a mouthful of trout.
"Then let's get back to camp. It's after sunhigh, already. We can catch more fish tomorrow at the border."
When they arrived at camp, Silverleaf was waiting next to the freshkill pile, eagerly.
"About time! I'm starving!" She groaned.
"I have to give some of this to the elder's, first." Bearpaw trotted past Silverleaf and into the elder's den. There, he saw Cherryfang and Cloudstone sleeping side by side.
"Cherryfang, Cloudstone, I brought some fish." Bearpaw nudged Cloudstone in the ribs, harder than he intended to. Cloudstone leaped upwards, yowling "Attack! Attack!"
This woke Cherryfang up, and her skinny back arched. When she noticed Bearpaw, she relaxed and told Cloudstone, "Stop yowling like a newborn kit! It's only Bearpaw."
"Who's Bearpaw, again?" Cloudstone squinted his eyes at the apprentice.
"Bearpaw is Rainheart's new apprentice. Rainheart is the deputy, remember?" Cherryfang told him quietly.
"Ah, yes. The naming ceremony was yesterday, correct?" Cloudstone asked. Bearpaw nodded.
Cloudstone was the oldest elder in the camp, and by far, the most skittish one. He had retired after becoming deputy, and is now living the rest of his days with Cherryfang and Pikefoot in the elder's den.
Bearpaw dropped the fish he was carrying. "Well, I brought fish."
"No birds?" Cherryfang inquired.
"No birds. Sorry. And I'm sorry for scaring you like that, Cloudstone." Cloudstone grunted. "I'm sorry for jumping up and yowling like that. Next time, though, just leave the fish next to my nose."
"Got it. Goodbye." Bearpaw backed out of the stuffy den, and into fresh air.
"Try again. This time, strike out your paws while you jump." Rainheart was coaching Bearpaw in a sand filled hollow. Bearpaw did as he was instructed, jumping up and lashing out his paws. Rainheart studied the move. "Better. Now try again, but tuck in your tail- It was sticking out like a tree branch!"
"Perfect! Let's move on to some harder things." Rockwhisker was telling Plumepaw, while he panted.
"Hey, Plumepaw! How'd you get that move?" Bearpaw called to his littermate. "Oh, while you lash out your paws, spin a little bit to get more air!" Plumepaw yowled back.
"Thanks!" Bearpaw tried spinning, and it worked. How come Plumepaw is teaching me how to do these moves, instead of Rainheart? He never told me to spin. "Hey, Rainheart? How come you never told me to spin in mid air?" He asked the deputy.
"I wanted to see if you could figure it out for yourself." Rainheart mewed back. "Although it's good that you're asking your fellow apprentices for help. A good warrior always learns from others." Bearpaw puffed out his chest, proud of himself for acting like a warrior.
"Let's try some hunting practice, now. Today will be a bit harder, though. Instead of hunting fish, we will be hunting sparrows."
Bearpaw groaned. "Sparrows? What about frogs, instead?"
"You know that Cherryfang's favorite meal is sparrow. We have to respect our Clanmates' tastes." Rainheart trotted towards the narrow strip of trees in RiverClan territory. He looked up, and pricked his ears. "I can see a nest up in that tree, over there." Rainheart whispered into Bearpaw's ear. "Go." Rainheat gently nudged him, and Bearpaw reluctantly stepped forward.
He reached the trunk of the tree, and crouched down. He sprang upwards, scrabbling with his front paws on the lowest branch. He outstretched his claws to get a firmer hold on the slippery bark. Bearpaw heard the chirping of hatchlings in the nest above. He scrambled up to the next higher branch, and used his tail for better balance.
Bearpaw reached the nest, and poked his head inside. He saw three small sparrows begging for food. They're too young to realize that I'm going to harm them. Bearpaw thought, as he scooped them out of their nest. The small birds did nothing but chirp when he took them gently down the tree. "What do I do with them?" He asked Rainheart, who was waiting at the base of the trunk. "Put them down, and wait." He gestured for Bearpaw to set the baby sparrows on the ground, and he did.
"Where did you learn the technique? I thought RiverClan cats didn't climb trees." Bearpaw asked, trying to make small-talk.
"My mentor taught me this. And her mentor taught her the hunting strategy. This way of hunting birds has been passed down from apprentice to mentor for many moons."
"Wow." Is all that Bearpaw could say in reply.
They waited for a long time, and it was almost dusk when Rainheat whispered, "The parents are back." The sparrows they captured had almost all died from the cold, and were still except for the occasional twitch of a scrawny leg or thinly feathered wing. Bearpaw could hear angry chirping coming from above him, and he guessed it was the mother and father of the tiny chicks.
"The parents are going to attack us, so get ready to kill them." Rainheart warned as he crouched down, ready to spring. Just as he mewed, one of the birds circling overhead spotted the freezing babies next to the cats, and dived down. Rainheart leaped up to meet it in the air, and he quickly dispatched it with a bite to the throat. "You get the next one!" He called to Bearpaw, as he landed a few tail-lengths away. Bearpaw braced himself as he saw the other bird diving in their direction. Bearpaw tried to copy what Rainheart had done, but he missed the jump by half a tail-length. The angry bird swooped at him, and pecked him on the top of his head. "Ow! Get off me!" Bearpaw swiped at the bird, sending it careening into a tree trunk. Bearpaw hurried over to the dazed bird and quickly killed it.
"That's one way to do it…" Sparrowflight's voice came from behind Bearpaw.
"Uh, hi, Sparrowflight!" He mewed, a bit embarrassed. "Don't look at me like that! It's only my second day of training! I'm surprised that I caught anything at all!" Bearpaw gushed.
"I know, I know. You did a great job." For the first time, Bearpaw saw that Sparrowflight's eyes were dull. "Do you feel alright?" Bearpaw asked, concern in his voice. "Me? I'm fine. Just a bit tired." Sparrowflight's voice sounded less tired, and more exhausted.
"Are you sure? You seem a bit sick. You should see Maplefern." Bearpaw sniffed at his father's flank and head, trying to detect any signs of sickness.
"You do seem a bit sick, Sparrowflight." Rainheart stopped in front of them, carrying the dead sparrow in his jaws. "I'm fine. Really." Sparrowflight insisted. Then, his knees started to buckle, and he fell to the ground. "Sparrowflight!" Bearpaw called his name. Rainheart rushed to help Sparrowflight back to camp. Bearpaw took half of the large cat's weight, while the deputy took the other.
When they arrived in camp, Maplefern was already at the entrance.
"I saw you coming. Is Sparrowflight alright?" Maplefern padded up to the group, and sniffed at Sparrowflight. "Take him to my den." She commanded. A few other cats from around the camp came to help; each helping the stumbling Sparrowflight to the medicine den. When they entered the den, Sparrowflight flopped down onto a nest.
"I'll have to ask you to leave." She told the RiverClan cats. "You too, for now." She looked at Darkpaw and Beetlepaw, who were recovering fast.
"We'll sit outside the den." Darkpaw vowed.
"So will we." Bearpaw meowed. "I'm not moving until I know what's wrong with Sparrowflight."
"Very well." Maplefern dipped her head, and ushered all the cats out with her tail.
While Bearpaw waited for Sparrowflight's diagnosis, he spoke to Darkpaw and Beetlepaw.
"How's the prey running in ShadowClan?" He asked politely.
"As a matter of fact," Beetlepaw began. He coughed a little bit, then continued. "As a matter of fact, the prey isn't running at all. It's all lying dead from blackcough." Darkpaw and Beetlepaw looked at their paws.
"That's part of the reason we left." Darkpaw admitted.
"Oh." Bearpaw was desperate to change the subject to happier matters. "I can tell you're getting stronger every minute! Do you think you want to join RiverClan?" Bearpaw looked at the apprentices. Darkpaw shook his head. "Our hearts still lie in ShadowClan. We could never abandon them for the rest of our lives. Also," Darkpaw wrinkled his nose. "Who would want to eat fish all day, when you could have a nice, fat lizard?"
What seemed like moons later, Maplefern came out of the medicine den. She looked solemn.
"Is he going to be ok?" Bearpaw pleaded.
"I don't know. He has blackcough."