Melody of the Rain

Chapter 13

"Rainsong!"

The tortoiseshell raised her head, coming nose to nose with Amberblaze. "AAAAHHH!" She scrambled to her paws, shooting a sharp green glare at her now-laughing brother. "You mouse-brain!" She swiped a paw at his head, but he ducked before she could hit him.

The russet tom grinned. "You should've seen your face. Priceless!"  Rainsong rolled her eyes. "Shut up furball," she grumbled, nudging him away as she sat up. Amberblaze flicked his tail over her ears. "Smokepelt asked for us, so I guess it's important."

As she followed him out of the den, she saw Smokepelt standing near the SnowRock with Sharkpaw, Batpaw, and Creekpaw, along with their mentors. The deputy looked up as they appeared. "Great, everyone's here!" he exclaimed with a grin.

The gray tom gestured to the three apprentices with his tail. "You two are going to help me with their assessments today," he mewed. Rainsong curled her tail in excitement. This sounds fun! 

"Amberblaze, you'll be paired with Sharkpaw, and Rainsong, you're with Creekpaw." The two toms padded over and sat next to their respective partners. Smokepelt glanced over at Batpaw, who was staring at her paws next to Swiftclaw. "Batpaw will be with me, as specifically requested by Swiftclaw." He gave the black and white tom a nod.

Rainsong wondered why Swiftclaw would ask the SnowClan deputy, of all cats, to be his apprentice's partner for her warrior assessment, but didn't say anything. It probably wasn't her business anyway. Batpaw had been having a rough time, so it was probably good for her to have Smokepelt with her. The gray tom was kind, responsible, and understanding. If any cat could build Batpaw's confidence back up, it was him.

"Alright, here's what I want you to do. Each team must catch five pieces of prey. Two birds, two pieces of land prey, and one piece of your choice. Your mentors will be watching you closely as you and your teammates work together to hunt." He gave the apprentices a nod. "You'll be in charge," he instructed them, "so I expect to see cooperation and patience. Everyone ready? Great, let's go!"

Everyone raced out of camp. Rainsong stuck close to Creekpaw's side, ready to do whatever he asked of her. They were headed towards the OakClan border. A stream trickled nearby. Creekpaw slowed, pricking his ears as the call of a blackbird rang through the forest. "Over there," he whispered, pointing at a nearby pine with his tail. The bird was pulling at a worm underneath the tree. Creekpaw curved his tail. Go around to the other side.

She gave the bird a wide berth as she padded around to the other side. Her gaze met Creekpaw's and he gave her a nod. With a growl, she ran forward. The bird gave an alarm call and raised its wings to fly away, but the brown tabby tom leapt at that moment, pinning it to the ground and dispatching it with a quick nip to the neck.

"Nice!" she purred. Creekpaw smiled. "Thanks," he purred. They stowed the bird under a nearby bramble bush and continued their search for prey closer to the stream. Rainsong paused when movement caught her eye. Along the stream, a water vole was snuffling through the leaves. She gave Creekpaw a quick glance and he nodded back at her. Rainsong crept forward and, with a massive leap, she launched herself at the vole. She felt its warm body beneath her paws as she landed and killed it with swift blow.

"Wow, that leap was awesome!" mewed Creekpaw, running over to her. Rainsong shrugged. "Eh, it was nothing special. I've seen better." He shook his head. "You know, you should be proud of yourself, Rainsong. You're way more talented than you give yourself credit for. And I'm not just talking about the vole."

As the tortoiseshell she-cat opened her mouth to argue, he covered her mouth with his tail. "You're supposed to say, 'thank you', furball." Rainsong shook her head with a grin. "Thank you, furball," she teased. Creekpaw batted at her whiskers with a paw. "Come on," he purred, "We've still got four more pieces of prey to find!"