A New Horizon: Book 1: Sun Awakening {COMPLETE}

Chapter 19

Falconpaw prowled through the forest, stepping incredibly lightly as to not crunch any leaves beneath his paws. With his feint steps, he moved forward, the morning dew drops brushing off of leaves onto his pelt. His amber eyes focused intently on the brown mouse that was getting ready to scurry away from his claws. Taking a deep, yet silent breath; Falconpaw pounced. His paws landed on point, killing the mouse quickly. He held his head high and looked around for Cherryleaf, she wasn't anywhere in sight. Rolling his eyes slightly, he buried his kill and continued the hunt. This wasn't an assessment so why wasn't she around? Must have been checking on Earthpaw or Mudpaw. For the first time, they were training all three apprentices together. Falconpaw enjoyed it, he could show just how much he had learned from Falconclaw.

It had been several days since the battle with AshClan and Bramblepelt's death and SunClan was slowly falling back into a sense of normalcy. Falconpaw's training continued, both with Cherryleaf and Falconclaw. Cherryleaf had gone easy on him for the first few days, but Falconclaw had gone right back into the heart of his training. Falconpaw woke up tired and sore, but better in every way. He had surprised Cherryleaf with his battling skills and now it was time to show off his hunting skills.

Hunting is just like fighting, only your opponent is much weaker and doesn't usually fight back, but your claws and stance mean everything If you give everything that you would give on the battlefield with hunting then you'll never lose your prey. Falconclaw's words stuck in his mind, and he followed Falconclaw's advice as closely as he could. That mouse was his second piece of prey today and it was still early. He was determined to catch more than both Earthpaw and Mudpaw.

Not wanting to waste any time, Falconpaw sniffed the air looking for his next piece of prey. He moved quietly through the forest, keeping his senses sharp. Falconpaw stopped when he heard the quiet flapping of wings, he turned and saw a small robin perched on the ground, pecking at the ground for it's own food. Little did this bird know, it was going to become SunClan's food. Falconpaw dropped into his crouch, focusing intently on the bird. When Falconpaw was hunting it felt as if the world slowed down around him. His breathing was quiet, and the rest of the forest blurred except for his prey and the ground in front of him. Taking small, quiet steps, he braced himself to jump.

When he made his pounce he crashed into something much larger than a bird, with a lot more fur. Falconpaw and the stranger tumbled together into a tree. All Falconpaw could see was a mass of dark brown fur. Hissing with annoyance Falconpaw shoved away from the cat. He stood up, shaking leaves and twigs from his pelt he looked down at what he had crashed into. Mudpaw was sitting up, shaking his pelt as well.

"You mouse brain!" Falconpaw hissed. "You got in my way! You scared off my prey!" He looked around for the robin, which had vanished from sight.

"Mouse-brain?" Mudpaw's green eyes flashed with annoyance. "That was my prey, Falconpaw."

"I was just getting ready to catch it!" Falconpaw spat, kicking away a stick. He lashed his tail as he faced his fellow apprentice.

"Hold your claws, toms!" Earthpaw pushed her way through the undergrowth with Cherryleaf, Heatherflight and Redclaw at their sides. Redclaw wasn't ready for hunting or border patrolling yet, but he could still watch over Mudpaw's training.

"What happened to you two? Why so angry?" Heatherflight questioned with a hint of amusement in her purr."

"I was stalking a bird and Mudpaw got in my way!" Falconpaw hissed. "I would've caught it if it wasn't for him!"

Mudpaw scoffed. "You were downwind of the bird, you should've scented that I was there."

"You're supposed to be downwind of prey so it doesn't scent you!" Falconpaw argued. "I was doing the right thing, it would've been a perfect catch!"