Sparks of a Fire

Chapter 4

Ferns crackled underneath the soft and silent pawsteps of a young StormClan apprentice. Her sleek fur glistened in the warm glow of the afternoon sun that was blazing down on her, but the heat didn't seem to phase the young she-cat as she continued to stalk her prey. She narrowed her eyes in concentration and waited for the right moment to pounce and bite into the shrew's neck. Starlingpaw let herself become lost in the sights and smells of the hunt. While she waited for her chance to spring, she made sure to stay low to the ground, the fresh green grass hid her scent very nicely, which was just perfect for a surprise attack.

All right, she thought. This will be easy. I just have to pounce and swipe. It's not hard. Starlingpaw hesitated only a moment before making the jump.

The sable-furred apprentice leapt forward, sailing through the thick Greenleaf air for mere moments before reaching the shrew. She lashed out with unsheathed claws, causing the animal to let out a cry of alarm. With the the animal too stuned with fear the move, Starlingpaw leapt forward and gave it a swift bite on its neck. The shrew fell limp, its pained cries silenced as the life was taken away from the poor creature.

Deciding that there was no time to waste, she shook the leaves from her fur and stood up, turning around to find a new scent. She caught a glimpse of a slender black tail flashing out of sight between two dense ferns and felt herself flush with embarrassment beneath her fur. Her mentor, Darkfeather, had been watching at exactly the right moment! Starlingpaw was sure then that the rest of the assessment would go well. 

Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, she continued to search for more prey. The woods were overflowing with mice and rabbits during the warm months, but Starlingpaw wasn't focused on hunting rabbits right now.

Starlingpaw was never one who liked being put on the spot or being the center of attention. She wasn't sure why she got so nervous around other cats - but it was something she didn't let her mind dwell on for very long, especially when she had a hunting assessment to complete.

When she finished mulling over her strategy, Starlingpaw managed to catch a mouse before sunhigh. Meowing in triumph and delight, she returned to the spot her mentor told her to with her meager catch. She carried the fresh-kill happily to the sunny grove, dropping the shrew and mouse at her mentor's dark-colored paws and raised her head in glee.

Darkfeather, who had waited patiently for her apprentice to return, purred encouragingly, "I saw the whole thing. Great job, Starlingpaw," Darkfeather told her apprentice. Starlingpaw blushed and lowered her head, not knowing what to say. The dark-furred apprentice could feel her ears start to grow hot at the attention that she was receiving from her mentor.

Starlingpaw blushed and ducked her head, then meowed softly, "Thanks, Darkfeather." She quietly mewed in response to the praise. After a few more seconds of awkward silence, Starlingpaw finally raised her head and looked up at her mentor.

"I'm getting a lot better at hunting, and my head wasn't trembling as badly as it usually does when I'm trying to focus." She purred happily, her puffing out her chest and flicking her tail from side-to-side in excitement.

Her mentor's amber eyes swam with emotion, but she said nothing, instead motioning for Starlingpaw to pick up the prey and return to camp.

The pair of she-cats padded their way through the brightly lit woods and pushed through the thicket tunnel into StormClan camp, which was sheltered from the rain by the towering trees that built a canopy over the dusty clearing. Starlingpaw's cheeks burned with embarrassment as she placed her shrew and mouse on the bountiful fresh-kill pile, and she padded silently to the apprentice's den. Her sister, Shadepaw, waited expectantly in the mossy patch of ground that the apprentices shared as sleeping quarters. Her fur was a deep navy blue color, and her eyes a shimmering jade green.