Snow Hunt (Assignment for CatsOfTheMoonFall)

Mosspaw felt a shiver run through her bones as she looked out across the frozen landscape. Okay. The wind tore at her fur like thorns. Brokenstar said that if each cat brings back a couple pieces of prey, we should be good until tomorrow. She drew in a long breath, tasting the air on her tongue. Huh. No prey-scent. Her stomach growled at the thought of food. Maybe this wouldn't be so easy...

          The BreezeClan apprentice began to trudge forward, her eyes scanning the snow crust for tracks. Each step sent twinges of cold shooting up and down her legs. She thought longingly of her nest in the apprentices' den, wishing she were still curled up next to Ryepaw. The thought sent a warm blush creeping through her pelt. She shook her head fiercely and tasted the air again. Shut up and concentrate! You're looking for prey, remember?

          Up in the frosty sky, the cold leafbare sun broke through the clouds, turning the landscape into a blazing, glowing sheet of white. Mosspaw stumbled, her paws tangling in the snow. Curse that sunlight! How was she to catch anything if she couldn't see?

          Squinting, she stopped walking for a moment, hoping her eyes would adjust. Something squawked off to her left. Mosspaw swung her head around. Prey?

          Crouching, she crept toward the sound, her belly fur whispering across the top of the snow. She thought she could smell some kind of prey-scent up ahead, but the wind was coming from the wrong direction. She turned and began to move downwind.

          "SQUAWK!!" An enormous black bird erupted from the snow, its feathers silhouetted against the sun. Mosspaw's heart beat double time. A crow like that could feed the clan for a moon! She dashed forward, bunching her hind legs and launching herself at the bird at the last second. Every inch of her was reaching for the crow, but the sun was blinding her – she couldn't see –

                   She landed in a tangle of legs and tail. She got to her paws, shook the snow from her ears, and glared fiercely up at the sky. The crow was circling high above her, squawking madly. She drew her lips back in a snarl. "Curse you, you wretched piece of foxdu-"

          The ground chose that moment to give way beneath her. She tumbled through the air, paws flailing. "Mrrrr-ow!!"

          Mosspaw hit the icy bottom with a thud. She scrambled to her paws and turned in a tight circle. What in StarClan...? Tall, white walls of snow surrounded her on all sides, the mid-day sky a dazzling blue patch above her. Gazing up at the top of the banks, she could see the skid marks where she must've fallen in. She reared up on her hind legs and put her forepaws on the bank. They sank deep into the drift. She sat back and fluffed out her short fur. How am I supposed to get out of this one?

          As Mosspaw sat there, shivering, she caught a faint whiff of something other than snow and ice. She stood and tilted her head back, tasting the frigid air that wound its way down into the hollow. Is that...? Mosspaw's stomach growled, her mouth watering. Rabbit!

          Bunching her muscles, she leapt into the air, her forepaws reaching for the top of the hollow. FWOOMP! A frosty cloud erupted around her, and Mosspaw came crashing back down.

          "Puh!" The she-cat got to her paws, spitting out snow and shaking the stuff from her pelt. Squinting – the blasted sun was out again – she looked up at the spot where her paws had hit, her gaze trailing down the new skid marks. Her ear twitched. She had almost reached the top. She crouched again, her gaze fixed on the top of the drift. This is all that stinkin' crow's fault, she thought with annoyance. As soon as I'm out of here I'm going to hunt it down and make it wish it had never been born!

          Pleased with herself, she sprang into the air, her forepaws reaching... reaching... reaching...

          She landed at the bottom of the hole again, an avalanche of snow tumbling down after her. She let a snort of frustration. At this rate, I'll have the whole snow bank down here with me before... She stopped mid-thought. The whole snow bank... "That's it!"

          She began to dig away at the drift, her energy restored. The snow came away easily under her paws, fresh snow falling to replace what she'd dug away. Mosspaw glanced up at the top of the drift. There was a downward curve to it that she was sure hadn't been there before. Her pelt warmed with pride. I'll be out of here in no time!

          Mosspaw kept digging, tossing the snow behind her as fast as she could manage. Every once in awhile she'd look up to check on her progress. Each time she thought, It's getting lower! I'm almost there!

          The afternoon was sliding into dusk when she finally stopped. Everything ached – her paws, her back, her legs, her shoulders... Even her eyes were sore from the brightness of the snow. She shook out her pelt and sat back on her haunches. Well, she had gotten the crest of the drift to sink down a bit. She flexed her sore muscles. But will it be enough?

          The gray apprentice backed up as far as she could, her tail pressing against the bank behind her. Crouching, she fixed her gaze on the swooping crest. Come on, Mosspaw. You've got this! She let out a slow, foggy breath. And then she leaped, her paws pushing away the ground and her body stretching out, reaching for the lip of the hollow...

          She landed just short of the top and felt herself begin to slip back down. NO! Her hind legs scrabbled against the snow, her forepaws churning. The bank was giving way beneath her. With a mighty, panicked heave, she dragged herself up and over the lip of the hollow. She heard the drift she'd been on collapse behind her, and when she looked back she could see the hollow filling up, the snow as light as thistledown.

          Mosspaw lay there for a few moments, her breath scraping in and out of her exhausted lungs. She closed her eyes. I did it. The thought felt warm, like her mother were giving her a nice long bath after a long day of battle training.

          "CAW, CAW!"

          Her eyes snapped open. "You stupid birdbrain!" She scrambled to her paws and looked up, scanning the gathering twilight for the crow. Her gaze landed on a dark speck that was tracing circles in the sky near the river border. "I'll get you for this," she muttered, creeping toward it on half-numb paws. "Just you wait...."