Pebbles don't float >open<

[Hamster]

Bah, this clan is no fun at all, thought Pebblepaw grumpily. He pricked his ears and he caught the sound of the bubbling river surrounding the Brookclan camp. "Well, there's nothing else to do." Quickly making up his mind, he slunk toward the water until he reached the edge. A faint mist sprayed him and he shook his head in discomfort. The apprentice was unaccustomed to water, having not a mentor to teach him how to swim.

"I'll just have to teach myself, then!" he thought aloud.

He waited. Nothing happened. "Hmph. So that's how you want to play." Gingerly dipping a paw into the water, he shivered and yanked it out. The water was fast, and it was cold. It laughed at him, taunted him with each ripple and wave. Frustrated, he was about to head back when something shoved him over and flung him into the current.

[ghostdance]

Fawnstar stalked through the undergrowth, her mouth open slightly to draw in the scents of the forest around her and the wind that blew towards her from the direction of the river, which she could hear bubbling and roaring somewhere in the distance. Her ears were held pin-point straight, her green eyes open wide as she scanned the undergrowth for the tiniest sign of life. The patrols had been arranged back at camp, and the usual hectic bustle of the morning had passed. Now that she could be alone, Fawnstar had decided that she would spend her morning on a hunting expedition. She felt it had been a while since she had hunted something that didn't swim, and was eager to try hunting on dry land for a change. Fawnstar had to admit, she wasn't the best hunter when it came to mice and birds, but it couldn't hurt to try.

The reddish brown she-cat paused when a scent reached her. It was a warm scent that reminded her of the fresh kill pile back at the camp. Fawnstar strained to see through the lush undergrowth, then spotted a bird at the base of a small tree, pecking at a worm that it was struggling to pull out of a speck of a hole in the ground. Fawnstar felt her mouth water as she watched the brown flecked bird peck at the worm, then dropped immediately into the hunter's crouch, slowly begining to pull herself towards the bird. Luckily, the wind was blowing towards her. The bird would not detect her until it was too late.

Fawnstar drew ever closer and closer, so close that she could see the tiny details in the bird's feathers. She was aware that the river was very, very close now; the roaring it caused was louder than ever. As she prepared to pounce at the small, feathered creature, the wind changed suddenly and blew in gusts from behind her, blowing her scent right at the bird. Fawnstar cursed beneath her breath and launched herself at the bird as it fluttered its feathers and began to take off. Her claws managed to scathe the tips of the bird's wings, but the she-cat had missed her prey. It managed to escape high into the air above the tops of the trees. Fawnstar plummeted back towards the earth, and crashed into a soft warm body beneath her. She heard a splash in the river, and recovered herself in time to see that she had just knocked a cat into the river with her clumsy hunting strategy that had failed miserably.

"Oh, dear!" Fawnstar mewed, watching the cat flail around in the gray waters. She realized that, as she looked closer, the cat was Pebblepaw. "I'm so sorry!"