The Trial - Ch12

Instructions

CHAPTER 12: "Come on, you lazy mouse! Wake up!" The voice filled my ears as I raised my head. "Wha-" I meowed groggily. A silver paw landed in my view. "Wake up, Wheatpaw!" It was Highpaw; the tom was sitting near my nest, an amused look on his face. "Oh. Sorry." Blinking the sleep from my eyed, I clambered out of the nest. "Took you long enough!" Highpaw purred with laughter. "It's almost sunhigh!" "Sunhigh?!" I exclaimed. "Why didn't you wake me?" "I couldn't bear to. You looked so tired." He blinked at me warmly. /Those eyes of his.../ I shook my head, snapping out of my unhelpful thoughts. "So, what should we do now?" "Hunt, I guess," my friend replied. "Do you know how to catch land prey, or just fish and stuff? That's what WillowClan cats eat, right?" I did in fact know how to catch mice, but I wasn't exactly what you could call skilled. I relayed this information to Highpaw. "Okay! I'll go and see what I can catch, and maybe you can find a source of water? You might be able to catch fish there, and plus we need something to drink." I nodded eagerly. "Sure! That sounds good to me." *** The forested part of the Dangerlands was really small - I had barely walked at all before I came to the edge. Beyond was a huge, empty moor, stretching into the distant horizon. However, between the moor and the forest was a river. I almost wept with relief to see it. It had been so long since I'd swum in water. I dipped my paw in it, letting it trickle over my paws. Then I bent my head to take a sip. It wasn't exactly sparkling clean, but it was drinkable. In any case, water was water. I curled my tail around my paws and waited for a fish to pass by. By the time the sun had begun to descend, I had caught three fish and a water vole. Pleased with myself, I picked up the prey in my jaws and trotted towards mine and Highpaw's den. The silver tom was already there, arranging a mini freshkill pile in the corner. He had caught a mouse and a squirrel. As I entered, he looked up. "Wow, great job hunting!" he meowed admiringly. I felt my fur go hot. "You... you too," I stammered. Unable to meet his eyes, I dropped my prey on the pile. "Looks like we won't need to go hunting for a couple of days," Highpaw commented appreciatively. "We probably won't be able to stay here very long, in case a predator discovers us, but we can - " "Shhh!" I hissed suddenly, tensing. A faint scent was drifting towards me - watery and unpleasant. I recognised it immediately. Highpaw noticed it too. "Wheatpaw…" he said slowly. "What is that?" I didn't reply, creeping slowly out of the den. My heart was pounding so hard I was certain the creature would hear it. It was crouched opposite the den, watching with small, greedy eyes. A mink. - END