Raise your wings and don't fall. [Open to 1]

Icepaw snuffled loudly at the grass under his paws—the sound was audible to him but he was focusing very hard on trying to sniff out something good. That was important, and prey was tiny. Logically the very best way to look for it was to stick your nose right down until it was brushing the dirt and attempt to inhale the entirety of the forest floor. It was fool proof! Genius really! Okay, so he kept sneezing every few pawsteps, but he was sure he was gonna find a mouse.

Think of how proud everyone’ll be! Icepaw felt a glow of pride in his chest. He hadn’t been an apprentice for long, but he’d yet to catch even a whisker of a mouse let alone bring any prey back to camp. Training was hard. There were loud noises in the trees that drew his attention and enticing adventures beckoning him from the shadows. Not this time though! I’ll catch the biggest, fattest mouse that the whole Clan has ever seen!

For the moment absolutely determined in his task, and wholly focused on it, the young apprentice didn’t notice that a Clan-mate was nearby. In fact, he didn’t even notice much of anything about where he was going. His blue eyes kept going all cross-eyed because of his singular focus, and he was weaving oddly through the undergrowth.

It was luck that had him practically stumbling over a particularly stupid field mouse. Icepaw caught the strong whiff of prey-scent and his head snapped up. For a moment that was strangely comical the mouse stared at Icepaw with its mouth opened wide to try and bite down on a seed. Icepaw stared back at it, his eyes going wide and an exclamation—“Oh!”—gusted out of the young apprentice’s mouth.

The single word shattered whatever spell was on his prey, and the mouse sprang away with a squeak of terror. Icepaw bounded after it, plumy tail shooting straight up behind him as he dove after the creature. He didn’t even notice Firefalcon until he crashed to the ground in front of her—classic Icepaw style, forepaws somehow pinned beneath his own bulk with his blue eyes wide and bewildered as if to question where his footing had gone.

“Aw! I was real close that time,” Icepaw said cheerfully, despite the words themselves. He hauled himself to his paws, blinking and lifting his tail when he recognized the cat who had witnessed his debacle. A purr rumbled out of his throat, and he bounded around Firefalcon, pleased that she had seemed willing to encourage him.

He seemed intent on leaping around her like a rabbit for a few moments, before he stopped—nearly stumbled again—and grinned at her with everything he had. “Ya think so?! Thanks Firefalcon! I was real close! Didya see how fat it was!? I wonder if I can still catch it?”

As if thinking he must be able to, Icepaw thrust his head into the bushes and pulled it out only a heartbeat later with a twitch of his whiskers. Turning to the she-cat he exclaimed, “Gosh, mice are fast!”