The starry-eyed gazes of their peers did not go unnoticed. Snailpaw, on the other hand, felt a growing pit of dread within their stomach. Hearsay was their best defence against the blue cat's wrath but without the protection of their mentor and the Deputy, all their flaws could be laid bare within an instant. Politely listening, their paws kneaded against the ground, their eyes lighting up in a strange delight as they were designated to hunt by the Horseplace. Ah, he hadn't gotten to go there in forever!. Nodding enthusiastically, they slipped into the tall moorland grasses, their grey pelt giving them all the camouflage they needed to sneak up on some bunnies. They didn't know of any warrens out by the Twoleg's area, but then again, they'd scarcely visited the place for WindClan's benefit. The horses were beautiful, with coat varieties like cats, they'd even named a few of them! As they moved, they wondered if it was Snail Jr. or Clam Jr. that would be out that day, or if the dreaded Spidereater would grace their eyes that day.
Settled atop a moor overlooking the horseplace, they peered through a gap in the trees, nearly falling back at the sight of a large chestnut stallion romping around the enclosed area. 'Of course.... Spidereater...' They shook their head. 'Nope. Not important. Not important. Focus Snaily, focus.' Zigzagging on either side of the hill, sapphire eyes eventually locked onto a fallow creature hopping about in the dandelions. They crouched instantaneously, holding their breath. Snail stalked forwards, tail hovering just above the earth and their belly practically touching the bottom of the grass. It'd never been hunting they struggled with, they thought. Killing prey wasn't always easy, though they'd come to terms with its necessity, yet the running and the stealth were as natural as breathing to the twelve-moon old. It should've been a regular chase and dispatch, even with shot nerves they could focus on the bunny through the long grass. Then, because the universe's cruelty knew no bounds, Snailpaw's nostrils were suddenly alight with a sensation that left their face creasing uncomfortably. They tried to hold it in, but a sneeze soon erupted through the area.
The rabbit bolted immediately, and cursing the very grasses that gave him protection, Snailpaw ran after it in hot pursuit. It briefly disappeared over the hill that the tabby had been using to scout but Snailpaw, even with their littler limbs, bound over it with ease. They spotted the zigzagging lapine once more and darted downwards towards it, ears briefly flattening at the steepness of the hill. A few times Snailpaw was certain their legs would give out from under them, but they managed, barely having time to breathe a sigh of relief as the ground leveled out once more. They followed the rabbit, right into the horseplace, slipping underneath the fence with ease and gaining on the frantic rabbit when.... PHRGEEEE. Their eyes shot up at the sound of such an awful bray, catching the glimpse of hooves the size of their head hovering above them. The tabby scrambled away from their folly, the crunch of grazing grasses cracking in their ears. So narrow-focused on the lapine, they had barely registered that Spidereater was still around. 'Stars, that was almost my face!' Loud stomping behind them caused them to shoot a glance over their shoulder at the horse, its ears pinned back and loud snorts filling the air around them. Snailpaw got the message.
No matter how much he loved to observe the equines, the large creatures were as temperamental as the weather, and technically, Snail had trespassed onto their land. With their prey long since disappearing, Snail flashed a timid grin, their heart damn near beating out of his chest. "Tell me if you see the little fella again, ok? Ok?" The horse's stare was furiously blank at their mews and the apprentice gave a quick nod of understanding (Forged understanding. The horse had no idea what Snailpaw had said) before scurrying out of the horse pen. The aggressive stallion had given them a chance to leave, they weren't going to take that for granted. Death was a terrifying prospect but a fear not suited for a WindClanner. They briefly wondered if it'd been worth pushing their luck, perhaps trying to find a domestic animal to nab, but it wasn't worth the risk to Snailpaw. Their clan favoured boldness, not stupidity, they would not make the mistakes of their elders when they had neither the knowledge nor the failsafe to ensure it would work. He was empty-pawed for now, but he was alive, that had to count for something, right?
Returning to the starting point, fur more than frazzled and carrying a mouse by its tail, they could at least feel relieved that the other apprentice hadn't faired much better. One had caught something meager, the other nothing at all. They didn't have age on their side, but they also hadn't been asked to hunt in one of the more dangerous sections of WindClan land. Their stomach churned at the sight of blood dripping from Goldenpaw's face and they were more than happy to rip their attention away from him to look at Sootstar instead. Disappointing others was something the marbled tabby was used to, but anticipating it when their circumstances had been tumultuous a mere moon ago left them feeling worse than usual. In every other hunting scenario they'd performed excellently, so what was it about the pressure of failure that made them so... weak? Dropping their paltry findings, they took a second to let their lungs recover. "To be fair..." They said through an exerted breath, trying to excuse themselves. "It's not every day a rabbit and a horse are in cahoots." The Queen had eyes and ears everywhere, they didn't doubt she'd seen at least some of the incident at the Horseplace. It wasn't like Snailpaw had eight more goes at living if that place took another life.
