The next morning, Nightpaw slept in, tired from the past day's walk. It was about Sunhigh, and the yellow light filtered in through the cave entrance. Nightpaw curled tighter into his nest, unwilling to wake up. Robinpaw had left the earliest --- at dawn --- and had gone to the Sunlit Hollow. Rubblepaw, also, had gone just a few moments ago to join his sister.

Nightpaw lay alone in the den, but found it harder to sleep as the light grew brighter. Finally, he stood up and stretched his front paws forward luxuriously. He began to groom his ruffled black and gray pelt when he heard the soft patter of paws.

Graytalon entered the den, his amber gaze blank and showing no emotion, as usual. Nightpaw silently wondered why Graytalon refused to show emotion. Perhaps he believed it was weakness? Nightpaw gave his chest a few more quick licks and then bounded to his mentor. "What are we doing today?" He asked.

"Hunting," Graytalon swept his tail softly over Nightpaw's large ears. "Basically, we're joining your siblings."

Nightpaw brightened and followed his mentor down to the clearing, where a hunting patrol was bringing back fresh-kill to the prey pile. One day, I'll be one of those warriors.. Nightpaw relished the thought.

Once out of camp, Nightpaw looked up into the treetops, still marvelling at their height. He continued to sniff through the bushes, some scents smelling familiar. He assumed he had smelled them before in Palespots' den. Instead of going in the direction they had gone yesterday, the two toms took a left and headed around the camp, towards the mountains.

Nightpaw looked around, observing how the trees thinned out, and the terrain became more rocky. There were more boulders and pebbles, and the black tom was careful not to step on any sharp stones. As the two cats neared the sunlit hollow, meows of encouragement and support grew louder.

Once the two reached the hollow, Nightpaw and Graytalon were greeted with happy meows of hellos. But, Graytalon didn't give Nightpaw any time to console his littermates about the training so far. The gray tabby guided Nightpaw away from his siblings, and fixed a burning amber stare on Nightpaw, who began to shrink underneath it.

"The hunting crouch is the most basic, most simple move to learn," Graytalon crouched down, his belly fur brushing the grass underneath him. His front paws were tucked underneath his chest, and his haunches were gathered. The muscles underneath his mentor's coat were tense, and his tail hovered just above the terrain. "Copy me."

Nervously, Nightpaw crouched, suddenly aware of Robinpaw's gaze on him. He looked at his mentor, and tucked his paws closer together, though not too close.

"Lower," his mentor meowed, examining his position. "And keep your tail still."

Nightpaw lowered himself, and looked back to make sure his tail hovered at the right height. Satisfied with himself, he gave a quiet purr of delight. Even Graytalon seemed impressed. However, the emotion quickly vanished from the gray tabby's amber eyes. "Good enough. Now I want you to try pouncing."

His mentor grabbed a nearby leaf that had fallen off one of the towering oaks. He placed it a few tail lengths away, then stepped back. Graytalon got into an almost perfect hunting crouch, and Nightpaw marvelled at how quickly Graytalon had found his footing. Before you could say "mouse," Graytalon had leapt and landed squarely on the leaf.

Nightpaw eyed the leaf as his mentor stepped back. He wiggled his haunches and prepared himself for the leap. Nightpaw leaped, his forepaws outstretching, but Nightpaw soon realized he had judged the distance incorrectly, and he landed two mouse lengths from the red leaf.

"Too slow," his mentor commented. "By the time you'd have leaped, the mouse would've already been back in it's burrow. And, you misjudged the distance. However, your hunting crouch is brilliant." Graytalon nodded to Nightpaw, and Nightpaw glowed with pride. "Keep going. We will keep training until it is perfect."

***

By the time the three apprentices had finished training, it was sundown. Nightpaw's stomach grumbled, and he realized he hadn't eaten since last night. His throat burned, but pride glowed in his golden orbs. He had caught his first catch, an old scrawny mouse. But, the size or age didn't matter to the black and gray tom.

Nor did it to Graytalon. His mentor held his head proud, glad that he had earned bragging rights. The gray tabby had vowed that he would tell every cat in camp how well Nightpaw had done, and that he had caught his first mouse. Robinpaw and Rubblepaw on the other hand, glared at Nightpaw crossly.

On the way back to camp, Graytalon and Nightpaw had split off from the rest of the group. His mentor wanted to show him another great place to hunt. Squirrels, in specific. The Sacred Oak had towered above all the trees in the forest, and it had a few hollows in the trunk. Graytalon had said that sometimes owls and other birds made the hollows their homes.

Once the two cats were back in camp, Nightpaw caught Finchkit's and Wrenkit's admiring gazes. The peculiar marked tom parted from his mentor, the mouse clenched in his jaws. He dropped the scrawny mouse at the kits' paws. "Want some?" Nightpaw gave a tilt of his head.

"Sure!" Finchkit gobbled into the scrawny mouse, followed quickly by Wrenkit.

"Thanks!" The she-kit mewed happily between mouthfuls. "You must be a really great hunter!"

Nightpaw shrugged and licked his chest humbly. He didn't want to brag, and he thought with a small laugh at how Robinpaw would have told all the Clans if she had caught the mouse. Leaving to let the kits eat, he padded over to the medicine den. He bunched up hind legs and bounded up on to the large, fallen oak. He sat quietly, ears pricked as usual. His scanning golden orbs watched the camp warily.

He spotted Rubblepaw and Robinpaw sharing tongues quietly. He assumed they were talking about him, and not in a good way. Pushing his siblings to the back of his mind, he caught sight of Maplewish and Shadowflurry padding side by side, a squirrel dangling from Maplewish's jaws. Nightpaw was happy to see his mother returning back to her warrior duties. The tom knew that the young calico had not appreciated being cooped up in the nursery.

At the opposite end of the camp were Darklily and Sparrowsight, who were now playing with their two kits. Briarsnout and was eating a thrush by herself quietly, and Nightpaw noticed how gray her face was beginning to get. Nightpaw suspected she would joining Halfear in the elders den in a few moons. However, the brown she-cat was tough, and he also knew she wouldn't give up her position as a warrior so easily.

Hailpuddle, Lightfoot, Wavemist and Cinderwing were now coming back from checking the CreekClan border. Nightpaw had silently wondered if they had seen Beaverleap or Beetlepaw. Nightpaw also realized that the LagoonClan border patrol had not yet returned.

Curious, Nightpaw jumped down from the tree, nearly on top of Applepaw, who was just emerging from the den. "Hey!" Applepaw arched her back and glared at Nightpaw, who stepped back.

"Sorry.." he mumbled. He cursed himself inwardly. What warrior --- or apprentice --- would jump onto the medicine cat? He watched the orange tabby par away with a hiss of annoyance, and Nightpaw felt slightly frustrated. However it vanished quickly, as Nightpaw wasn't one to fight. He was more of a peace keeper, and had always been one.

Nightpaw looked up, fixing his golden eyes on the moon above. Only half of it was showing tonight, and that meant that Applepaw and Palespots would be going to Silver Falls with the other medicine cats. He assumed they had not gone because they were so close to the sacred place.

Nightpaw looked around, remembering the missing patrol. The black tom moved quietly around the edges of camp, until he reached the ravine entrance. From there, he scrambled quickly out, tripping on a few loose stones as he went. He hoped no one would hear.

The thought of going alone in the forest scared him, and he started to move back towards camp. But the patrol might be in trouble! He urged himself onward, the thought of the thunderpath more daunting than ever now that Graytalon wasn't here. He pricked his ears, now aware of the eerie hoots of owls, and the sudden scuttle of creatures through the undergrowth as he passed.

His surroundings grew darker, and the trees began to thin into pines and evergreens. Vines and moss grew thickly on the trees, and the ground was marshy underpaw. Luckily, Nightpaw's long legs helped him trudge through the muck. He had seen nothing, and he started to wonder if the patrol had returned.

And, his thoughts were confirmed when he reached the thunderpath. The patrol was nowhere to be found. He sniffed, catching the not too strong not faint scents of Sageheart, Ebonyskip, Smallriver and Dawnblossom, who must've joined the patrol after Rubblepaw's training lesson.

Nightpaw felt a rumble underneath his paws. Bright yellow lights shone to his right, and Nightpaw immediately dashed away into the forest. He didn't stop running until he bumped into a furry body. Nightpaw stepped back, slightly dazed. His golden orbs fixed on a russet furred creature with a long pointed snout. It's ear tips and legs were jet black, and it could only be one thing. "Fox!"

Nightpaw's frightened screech made the fox grin slyly and it chased after it's newfound prey. Nightpaw panted, hurrying back to the thunderpath. Perhaps the fox would be too scared to cross, and maybe a LagoonClan patrol would find him and take him in for the night.

The fox's long legs outstretched and he gained quickly on Nightpaw. The young tom began to panic when he felt hot breath on his tail, and snapping, drooling jaws snap a whiskers length from his tail. Suddenly, Nightpaw tripped on a root, and tumbled onto his back in a pile of mud.

The fox was on him in an instant, drooling. Nightpaw pulled back and pinned his ears to his head, wretching at the russet creatures rank breath. Nightpaw unsheathed his claws and scraped helplessly at the fox's underbelly. Then, the fox clamped his jaws tightly around black tom's neck, and a black haze began to cloud his vision.

And the world went black.

A/N:
Sorry to leave y'all on a cliffhanger. But hopefully the early chapter will make up for it. You might expect another chapter soon, as I am in a writing mood!