Warrior Eevees #1: The Storm of Fire

3- Stalking

Emmy's belly fur brushed the forest floor and she tried to force herself even lower. Swift, Tough's sister, had already reached the fern they were supposed to be stalking and was shredding the leaves. Tough had been asked to restart several times, as he quickly grew overeager. Brave, his other sister, simply sat watching. Strong and Loud huddled behind their mother as Hyacinth helped instruct the training session.

"Emmy, keep your forepaws tucked in," advised Tough's father, Walnut, helplessly. "Arceus, who taught you how to stalk?"

"I don't remember," she hissed through gritted teeth, as frustrated as the rest of the Forest Tribe with the only honest answer she was capable of giving.

She attempted to comply with Walnut's instructions, arranging herself on the forest floor. The dirt was cool and soft beneath her pads, and the forest was alive with the sounds of prey.

"Remember," Walnut announced to all those listening. "A Buneary will hear you before it sees you, and a Rattata will feel the vibrations of your paws before it even hears you."

"We know," Swift complained, and Walnut's head snapped around to look at her.

"Then you wouldn't mind showing everyone how it's done!" he growled.

"It's not like anyone else is going to," Swift shot back instantly.

But at Walnut's snarl, Swift slunk back across the clearing to begin stalking the fern again with silence and speed Emmy was confident she would never be able to match.

"Are you planning to practice, Brave?" Walnut asked.

Brave stretched out her forepaws from where she sat at the edge of the clearing. "I think I'd rather go hunt for real," she said. "Please? I'll take Tough and Swift and we'll stick together."

"Go find one of the adults, then, and I suppose extra prey never hurts," Walnut relented. "You're all getting awfully close to your adult names."

Brave's fluffy tail shot into the air. "Thank you!" she said, and without another word, she and her two littermates vanished into the woods.

Emmy was far from a stalking expert, but suspected the clatter of their paws on the ground would be heard by even the deafest of Pidgey as they rushed recklessly into the woods.

Walnut sighed and sank to his hindquarters.

"Well?" he asked Emmy. "I hope you learned something from those three."

"Oh, I'm sure I did," Emmy said with a smile, trying to think of an example of what that something might be and coming up blank.

"I'll ask Hollyhock to spare another adult to help you out," Walnut shook his ears. "I mean no offense, but it's obvious to me that you have no experience hunting whatsoever, or at least none that you remember."

"Thank you," Emmy said graciously, dipping her head in his direction. "I do want to learn."

"Yes, well... You'll get there," Walnut replied doubtfully. "Why don't we head back to the village, then, if you're ready, Hyacinth?"

Hyacinth had firmly planted herself between Loud and Strong, who had been boxing each other and getting a bit too rowdy, and nudged them to their paws when Walnut addressed her.

"I think so," she agreed. "Willow said she's spotted that Braviary again, I guess he wasn't frightened off yesterday. It makes me nervous to keep the kittens out without a few adults."

Emmy flattened her ears to her head as she pictured the enormous bird, a flash of ripping black talons and snapping yellow beak that could carry even an adult Leafeon away without any trouble. Walnut's tail switched anxiously from side to side.