So they hunt -open to all-

[Willow]

A light ginger tabby she-cat trotted through the forest full of tall trees. She loved her clan that she was born and raised in. She could not see anything wrong with enjoying her time out and about by herself every now and then either. She soon came to a river and took a couple of laps at it so that she would sate her thirst. Willowbreeze peered up at the tall, almost endless trees that covered Birdclan's territory. She smiled as she heard the liveliness of the birds and squirrels that were the main source of food for her clan.

Her main reason for leaving camp was to hunt, to bring back at least a bird or two back to camp so that at least a few of her clan-mates would have something to eat. She was still strong and able-bodied and made sure to drink plenty of water to keep her sated for at least a while. If there was enough food to go around then she would take something for herself, but not before the queens, kits, and elders had had their fill.

Willowbreeze sighed as she thought about the loss of prey in the forest around her. She knew that he clan was struggling slightly and knew also that leaf-bare was coming upon them. She growled softly as she shook her head to clear her mind of all thoughts but hunting. She peered into the tall trees around her and swiftly spotted a small, but plump, finch. She grinned happily as she raced softly and surely up the long tree trunk. A few moments later she hauled herself onto the branch that the bird sat on. She crawled slowly across the branch towards the bird as she didn't want to scare it. When she was a fox-length away she pounced on top of it and then swiftly clung onto the branch with her strong back paws and killed the bird with a swift blow to the back of the neck.

Not for the first time did she thank Starclan that she had been born tall with strong legs. She used her back legs to keep her connected to a branch and her tail as a balance to ensure that she remained on it. Her back legs normally remained semi-stationary after she pounced and as soon as she hit the branch again she was normally able to focus only on her prey. She was a hunter, not a fighter, but a hunter. She could fight if she was needed to do so, but she disliked fighting and would rather spend her days in peace beside her clan-mates. She slowly turned around on the branch and climbed back down to the ground with the finch hanging limply in her jaws. The finch would feed at least two of her clan-mates she was sure and so some of her tension dissipated away. She set the finch down on the ground and simply relaxed. Her clan would get by as it always had, and Starclan would guide them along the right path, she just knew that they would.

Willowbreeze's ears flicked towards the skimp amounts of brush near her left and heard a soft skittering. She fixed her ears on that point and dropped into a crouch thinking that she might have come across a mouse or a vole beside the river. She waited as first a nose and then a body appeared from the brush. It was a plump vole and her mouth watered as she caught its scent. She stalked forward silently and then swiftly darted forward to sweep the vole into the air and swiftly dispatch it with a well-placed bite at the back of the throat as it landed to the ground stunned. She smiled as she thought of how her clanmates would enjoy a plump vole. It was normally a treat to eat anything other than a bird or a squirrel and she was happy to have found a nice vole.

Word Count: 663 words

[Prowler]

HAZELPAW

The young apprentice had only been a part of BirdClan for a few moons, but she already felt at home. She was especially fond of her new mentor, and how well she was able to hunt. She couldn't wait to be that good! She watched from a nearby bush as her mentor killed not one, but two things in a matter of minutes. Her maw hung slightly open, and her tongue pulsated from her mouth.

As she crouched in the protection of the bush, she slowly crept forward. Her tail tip twitched back and forth as the excitement was building. She could almost hear her heart pounding. Her eyes were concentrated on Willowbreeze; it was like nothing else in the world existed.

"Rah!," she yowled playfully with a slight growl as she ran from the bush and towards her mentor. She was planning to ambush Willowbreeze with a playful tackle, but she decided against it at the last moment. She slid to a stop in front of her, and looked up to her with a smile. Hazelpaw had always been the adventurous type, even if it meant getting in trouble once in a while. "Hello, Willowbreeze!," she exclaimed with excitement.

I'll prove myself some day.

[Willow]

Willowbreeze jumped slightly and whirled around laughing as she faced her young apprentice, Hazelpaw. "Good job, Hazelpaw! You shall be a wonderful hunter!" She purred happily. Her apprentice's playful personality filled her with joy and she couldn't help but thank Starclan that she had been blessed with such a apprentice. "Would you like to join me in hunting? I could teach you how to catch a bird from a tree if you would like." Willowbreeze knew that most clans started off by teaching their apprentices how to catch mice and voles, but Birdclan wasn't like most clans as their main source of prey were birds and squirrels, and the occasional rabbit or vole. And most of their prey was caught up in the many trees that lined Birdclan's territory.

"So how about it, Hazelpaw?" Willowbreeze pricked her ears forward as she sat down with her eyes glittering joyously. It was days like this that she truly enjoyed. Days where she could hunt and provide for her clan, days that she could spend happily beside a friend, a friend who she cared about greatly. Hazelpaw had only been with Birdclan for a short while, but Willowbreeze adored the young she-cat, for she was close to a sister that Willowbreeze had never had.

[Prowler]

HAZELPAW

She sat with her tail wrapped around her paws. She propped herself up with her two front paws pawing at the air in front of her. "Would I ever!," she purred at her mentor's proposition. She had watched Willowbreeze catch the bird earlier, and thought it was so amazing. The young she-cat couldn't wait to be able to do that flawlessly.

Hopefully there would be a bird to be found. She realized that the prey source was low, but she really wanted to have this lesson, so she silently prayed to StarClan for help finding a bird. She would need Willowbreeze's instructions first, however.

I'll prove myself some day.

[Willow]

"Would I ever!,"

Willowbreeze purred at her apprentices enthusiasm. "Alright, we will start on the ground, but I will show you first how to catch a bird, without the bird so that when you try it out you know exactly what to do." She instructed just as her own mentor had instructed her. "First you begin to climb swiftly and smoothly up the tree" Willowbreeze paused in her teaching and seemed to drift up the tree like a spider. "Next you climb onto the branch with the bird," Willowbreeze hauled herself smoothly up onto the branch beside her and crouched low to the branch with her claws still extended. "Be sure to keep your claws unsheathed at all times when you are in a tree, it helps keep you from falling!" She called down to her apprentice.

"Once you are on the branch you stalk up to the bird," Willowbreeze spotted a large leaf and kept it as a point of reference. "And when you pounce be sure to land on your back legs, firmly secure your claws into the tree, and catch the bird with your mouth and front claws." Willowbreeze proceeded to catch the leaf and then leapt to the ground as she had practiced on a very low branch instead of the higher ones that normally held the actual birds. "You can also use that to catch anything up in the trees, or help someone falling off a branch that you are firmly secured onto." She finished her lesson. "Now I want you to try it out on the same branch that I practiced on." She purred.

[Prowler]

HAZELPAW

The young apprentice purred out of excitement when watching her mentor demonstrate. This is going to be so fun!, she thought, paying close attention to the older she-cat. The fact that they were going to start on a low branch did dampen her spirits a little, however. She wanted adventure; she wanted to test the possible dangers! This time, though, Hazelpaw was wise with her decisions. She didn't want to ruin the current trust she has with her mentor. She admired the ginger she-cat like she'd never admired anyone before.

"Now I want you to try it out on the same branch that I practiced on."

She purred with confidence. She was certain she'd be able to pull it off, and if not now, then she'd be sure to master the skill. She padded closer and closer to the tree, before finally leaping onto the bark, her claws fully extended and digging deep into the wood. Slowly, but surely, she made her way up the tree towards the branch. It seemed like a really long way up, but perhaps that was just because she's smaller than her mentor.

"Are you watching?," she scrambled to ask. Then she targeted a leaf on the branch. She leaped onto the branch, digging her back claws into it while extending her front ones towards the leaf. She was almost there, just a little bit farther. She grabbed the leaf with both paws and bit into it with her fangs, as if she were killing her prey. She hesitated, but then released herself from the branch, landing swiftly onto the ground.

With a slight purr, she dropped the leaf and gave a tiny mew. "Well? How was I?," she asked proudly.

I'll prove myself some day.

[Willow]

Willowbreeze sat and watched as her apprentice inched towards the tree. She smiled as the young she-cat launched herself upwards to gain momentum and scrambled slowly and surely up the tree.

"Are you watching?,"

"I'm watching, Hazelpaw!" She called up joyously with happiness flowing through her voice. Her apprentice was like most Birdclan cats, she had a grateful ease of climbing a tree, and that ease is exactly what a cat needed to catch a bird in a tree without startling it. She purred as Hazelpaw pounced on a leaf, bit it, and then leapt back down to the ground smoothly.

"Well? How was I?,"

"You did wonderfully!" Willowbreeze purred as she padded over to Hazelpaw. "You are graceful at climbing trees, although a bit slower at it. Speed improves with practice, so you are doing wonderful considering this is your first time that you will be catching a bird!" Willowbreeze pointed her tail at a tree not too far away, one that had a nice plump swift sitting in its branches. "Why don't you actually try to catch a bird now?" She asked Hazelpaw, her eyes gleaming with praise and happiness. She was glad that Hazelpaw was a fast learner, in a time like this Birdclan needed all the warriors they could get.