Rainpaw charged off into the forest, taking the direction opposite of camp. She wasn't familiar with the forest outside of camp yet, so she decided it would be best to survey her surroundings as she hunted. Slowing her pace, she narrowed her pupils into fine slits, trying to spot any small movements through the grass.
After looking around for a bit, she decided to see if there was a creek nearby. If there was water, there was the possibility of water voles. She strained her ears, listening for a faint trickle of a stream or the splashing of a river. Nothing, not the slightest sound. She padded around aimlessly for a bit before spotting a tall tree with low, sturdy looking branches. The most brilliant idea popped into her head and she stopped in her tracks. If she could make it a decent way up the tree, she would be able to spot a good place for prey. Although she never climbed a tree before, she didn't figure it couldn't be that difficult. She turned towards the tree and sized it up. The lowest branch was on her right side, with several branches above it. Moving to the right side of the tree, she backed up a few rabbit lengths and put herself into position.
Reaching the tree in a few quick bounds, she unsheathed her claws and leaped for the first branch. It was still pretty high up, although it was the lowest on the tree, but she was able to latch her claws into it. She heaved her body the rest the way up and stuck her tail out for balance. The next jump wouldn't be as difficult, considering that it was much closer to her current platform, but she could also climb. She made her way to the inner edge of the branch and stuck her front claws into the dense bark. Pulling herself up a little farther up, she kicked with her back legs to propel herself upwards while digging in with her claws.
After repeating the process four or five times, she eventually got a grip on the second branch. She didn't particularly want to jump this high up, just in case she missed. If plummeting to the ground was her death, she didn't want it to be now. She climbed up two more branches and then started for the third. It was farther away than the others, but she could make it. She started climbing up the side and then angled herself to climb to the side. Digging her claws into the tree, she pushed up with her legs and then grabbed for the branch. She hooked her claws into it just enough to dangle there. As she hoisted herself up, the bark peeled away from the flesh of the tree, taking her with it.
She removed her claws from the bark as she slipped, pawing the air for something to grab hold of. Scrabbling frantically, she managed to grasp to the side of the tree and avoid a painful demise. Quickly leaping from the tree, she went back to the lower branches and made her way back to the ground. When she touched the soft grass, now feeling extremely grateful of the solid ground, she dropped to her side in an attempt to catch her breath. After lying there for a bit, she pushed herself to her paws and stared at the sky. It was much darker than before, meaning she had spent most of the time climbing that tree.
Deciding it was time to head back, she tracked her scent back the way she came. If she saw anything along the way, she would catch it without fail. She had to if she did, after all she came back with nothing except messy fur and a slight limp.
Eventually, she smelt the three cats she'd come here with and she picked up the pace a bit, but a small snap stopped her. She nimbly whirled around, facing the maker of the noise. A small squirrel sat next to a tree, staring her in the eyes as it used its small paws to hold a nut. She dropped into a crouch, ready to spring on the small fluffy creature. It dropped the nut to the ground and turned to make a mad dash to the tree. It was quick, but she was quicker. In one great leap, she unsheathed her claws and dug them into the back of her prey, pulling it away from its only escape. She finished it off in one quick bite and proudly picked up her kill.
At Least I have one thing to bring back to the camp She thought bitterly at herself. She turned back around and darted off to meet the others.
Word count:796
A/N: a sooner update than normal, but still a day late. Sorry about that! I hope to have the next one done soon as well! Thanks so much for reading!
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A Warrior Cats Tail
FanfictionA young kit named Rain Cloud with a rainbow pelt, thinks she's the cause of her parent's deaths. She then meets the young leader of Shadow Clan, a black cat named Stormstar. She is determined to prove herself to her new clan and become the best warr...
