Spottedfern's tortoiseshell pelt flashed through the bushes as she wove her way through the bushes. Tasting the air, her heart pulsed with excitement as the fresh taste of vole hit the top of her mouth. /Prey/, her mind murmured excitedly. She dropped into a hunter's crouch soundlessly, pinpointing the prey's location. Now she could hear the tiny crackling of leaves under the vole's paws and its fast heartbeat. Her tail twitched with excitement, but she immediately froze as the vole stopped moving too. /Don't hear me don't smell me don't see me/, she thought frantically. The vole sniffed the air suspiciously, then turned back to whatever it was doing. Spottedfern wanted to gasp with relief. She didn't want to miss this prey. Instead, she silently stalked up behind the vole, eyes fixated on its wriggling brown fur, her paws gliding over the leaves without moving them. When she was two tail-lengths away, she ducked down further behind some ferns, balanced her haunches, and leaped. She could have been in the air for half a moment, or for many thousands of seasons. The exhilarating rush that shot through her veins as the wind pushed back her fur and her eyes were forced into the wind was something that never got old. She landed squarely on top of the vole, and it didn't even get time to squeak as she neatly sliced its neck with her teeth. Spottedfern raised her head, satisfied as the warm taste of blood filled her mouth. She picked the vole up by the tail, the plump flesh clinging to it making it heavier. "Great catch!" To Spottedfern's left, a cream-and-brown she-cat was brushing through a clump of bracken. A bundle of herbs hung from her jaws and more were tucked between her chin and neck, making Spottedfern's scent glands tingle with the sharp smells of marigold, nettle, comfrey, and feverfew. Spottedfern set down her vole to talk. "Thanks, Daisyberry." Spottedfern said shyly. She shifted her paws, embarassed. "Anyways, I was just collecting herbs. Leaf-fall comes soon, and the next two seasons are a time of festering sickness!" Daisyberry smiled and flicked her tail. "Bye! Have good hunting!" Spottedfern waved her tail at the medicine cat as she turned to leave. The sweet scent of flowery herbs faded as she left. Spottedfern delicately picked up her vole and padded off the way she came from. After weaving between the trunks of trees and shrubs for a little bit, she found her cache of prey and dug it out. Two mice and a squirrel. Her burden was increased now, slowing her pace, but she pressed her paws down hard to speed her way back to camp. As she stumbled through the camp entrance, she heard an excited mewl and saw a gray-orange apprentice bounding towards her. "Hi Spottedfern! Do you need help with your prey?" The younger cat asked. Spottedfern purred, though muffled, and nodded. She dropped the two mice for the cat. The two cats deposited Spottedfern's catch on the fresh-kill pile, which was piled high in the golden days of green-leaf. "Thanks, Duskpaw." Spottedfern nuzzled the apprentice affectionately. "How's training going?" "Great!" Duskpaw mewed brightly. "Today Daisyberry was teaching me about how to cure sicknesses such as whitecough, greencough, fevers, and colds. She says I have a great memory for herbs!" Duskpaw puffed out her chest proudly. Spottedfern purred again. "You'll make a great medicine cat, Duskpaw. It won't take long for you to get your full name." She smiled at the apprentice. "I need to go talk to Darkfeather now. Have fun!" Duskpaw nodded and bounded away. Spottedfern watched the energetic medicine cat apprentice leave with a melancholy feeling in her chest, accompanied by a wave of grief. Duskpaw was the single kit of Spottedfern's sister, Dapplesun, who had died of greencough when Duskpaw was hardly a moon old. Her father had died before she was even born, swept away in a flood to never be seen again. Sympathy pulsed in her chest. She sighed. There was nothing she could do about it except help Duskpaw live up to her best potential. /I wonder if Dapplesun is watching us right now./ She thought, gazing up at the bruised purple sky where the first stars were appearing. Spottedfern shook her head clear of these thoughts and walked up to Darkfeather, the dark-gray Clan deputy. "Has Wavestar decided who will be going to the gathering tonight?" She asked. A silver she-cat appeared at the top of the Highledge and bounded down the rock slope. "Yes." She said to Spottedleaf. "Darkfeather, Daisyberry, Duskpaw, Pineleaf, Larktuft, Splashfeather, Moonsplash, Willowpaw, Petalpaw, Ashwood, Spottedfern!" She called out. The named cats emerged from the dens and congregated in front of her. Wavestar beckoned Shimmerlake with her tail. "You're in charge of camp while we are gone." Shimmerlake nodded and Wavestar led her cats out of camp.
