The Apprentice's Quest Read Online Free PDF

a hollow, but a thin shriek, abruptly cut off, told the ThunderClan cats that the tabby had caught her prey.
    â€œThey’re pretty fast,” Molewhisker commented.
    â€œI could just eat a rabbit,” Sparkpaw sighed, licking her lips as if a piece of succulent prey were lying in front of her.
    â€œThen we’ll get back to camp,” Cherryfall meowed. “It’s not far from here.”
    â€œBut I thought we were going to practice hunting!” Sparkpaw protested.
    Alderpaw twitched his tail, hoping the mentors would say no. He felt nervous enough about remembering all the new things they’d learned without adding a hunting lesson to the mix. But Cherryfall and Molewhisker glanced at each other. “Okay,” Molewhisker agreed after a moment. “But even if you catch something, you can’t eat it. Everything goes back to the fresh-kill pile. The Clan must be fed first.”
    Alderpaw’s heart sank. His belly was already rumbling.But he tried to hide his disappointment.
    Sparkpaw shrugged. “Fine. But we can still try, right?”
    Heading away from the stream, the cats reached the edge of a clearing where a huge oak tree stood, its roots writhing up above the surface of the ground. Thick clumps of fern grew around it.
    â€œThis is a good place for prey,” Molewhisker mewed, halting. “See what you can pick up.”
    Alderpaw closed his eyes, feeling a little overwhelmed by all the different scents flooding over him, and the different sounds he could hear in the undergrowth and the branches above his head. This is a lot harder than picking out the WindClan scent. That was so strong it was hard to miss.
    Finally Alderpaw managed to home in on a scent he recognized: a shrew. He could hear a tiny scratching noise in the undergrowth, coming from the right direction. Opening his eyes, he spotted movement in the grass stems.
    But am I sure . . . ? he asked himself, hesitating to point it out.
    Before he decided whether to speak, Sparkpaw pointed with her tail. “There’s a shrew over there.”
    â€œI can scent it too,” Alderpaw agreed, hoping his mentor would believe he had spotted it for himself.
    â€œOkay, you can try catching it,” Cherryfall meowed, her gaze flicking from Alderpaw to Sparkpaw. “You’ve seen the hunter’s crouch, haven’t you—like this?” She demonstrated, pressing herself close to the ground with her muscles bunched, ready to move forward.
    Alderpaw and Sparkpaw did their best to copy her.
    â€œGood,” Cherryfall went on. “Now, remember to keep low, and set your paws down really lightly. Careful you don’t tread on a twig.”
    â€œAnd watch your tail,” Molewhisker added. “If you let it wave around, your prey will know where you are.”
    â€œSparkpaw, you try first,” Cherryfall mewed.
    Barely hesitating, Sparkpaw began to creep forward, her eyes gleaming with excitement. She kept her paws tucked in close to her body and her tail wrapped along her side. Suddenly she leaped forward, disappearing into the thickest part of the undergrowth.
    A heartbeat later Sparkpaw reappeared, the limp body of a shrew dangling from her jaws. She paced back toward the others, her head raised proudly and her tail straight up in the air.
    â€œWow!” Cherryfall exclaimed as Sparkpaw dropped the shrew at her paws. “I’ve never heard of an apprentice catching something on her very first try.”
    â€œNeither have I,” Molewhisker agreed. “Good job, Sparkpaw.”
    â€œGreat catch,” Alderpaw meowed.
    â€œOh, it was easy,” Sparkpaw boasted. “I just did what you told me.”
    Molewhisker turned to his apprentice. “Let’s see if Alderpaw can do as well.”
    Alderpaw felt himself stiffen with anxiety. I sort of wish she’d missed that catch. Then I wouldn’t have to worry about missing mine. But he forced himself to push the