The Poison Mice

Chapter 1

 Poppyfrost crept slowly after the mouse. It was nibbling on a seed a tail length away. It was scrawny and smelled funny, but it was the middle of leafbare, and ThunderClan needed all the prey it could get.

 The rest of the hunting patrol, Rosepetal, Cherryfall, and Sparkpaw, was behind her. So far only Cherryfall had caught something- a tiny shrew.

I just have to leap- now! She leaped and landed squarely on the mouses back. She gave it a quick nip to the neck, and it was dead.

It was well after sunhigh when the hunting patrol returned. Rosepetal had caught a wood pigeon, and Sparkpaw had a starling.

"Let's go back to camp," Poppyfrost meowed. "The snow is starting to fall thicker."

The fresh-kill pile was very small- only enough for each cat to have a few small bites. Poppyfrost grabbed her tiny mouse, and padded over to Berrynose, Molewhisker, and Cherryfall, her mate, son, and daughter.

"Do you want to share this mouse I caught today?" Poppyfrost dropped the mouse at their paws.

"Okay, thanks," Berrynose purred.

Poppyfrost bit into the mouse first, then her mate and offspring took a bite. 

"Is it just me, or does this mouse taste weird?" Poppyfrost asked. 

"You're right," Berrynose agreed. "This tastes funny. Where did you catch it?" Worry traced his mew. 

It was in a hollow near the top of our territory," Poppyfrost meowed. "It smelled a little bit funny, but it was prey,so.." 

She was interrupted by Graystripes loud yowl. The elder was staring at a hunting patrol lead by Dovewing holding lots of mice. "That looks great!" 

"I don't know," Purdy meowed. "They smell funny." 

"But they're plump and juicy," Graystripe purred. "You know what I say-if it looks good, eat it" 

The cats who had not yet eaten grabbed the mice and started to eat. 

"Where did you find the mice?" Poppyfrost asked Dovewing. 

"In a hollow near the top of our territory," she replied happily. 

Suddenly Poppyfrost heard a shocked yowl from Molewhisker. "Cherryfall fainted!"