Warriors : The lost adventures of Yellowfang
Cobwebs.
That's what I'm looking for right? Cob webs. Cob webs stop bleeding, so I must be bleeding.
Why is everything so fuzzy, mousedung! A small root caught my paw in its crook, making me
Stumble. What's wrong with you Yellowfang? Your memory and eyesight are superb; perhaps
You're going into shock. Like hell I'm going into shock. Just, just sit down.
I took a deep breath and looked down at the grass, its long and untidy blades pressing up
Against my sodden fur. A burning pain shot up my left hind leg as I lowered myself to the
ground. Although it hurt like thistles, I didn't allow myself to wince. My amber eyes shut,
closing the green hues that danced before them in the soft breeze. Focus Yellowfang, recall.
Recall what memory you've lost.
My kit. Brokenstar. He…he wants me dead. Why would a kit wish this upon his own mother?
Of course, he knows not that I am his mother, perhaps he never will. He's become as cruel as a
badger, and keen as an ader. Obviously my blood runs in him, though I am ashamed to say so.
Even I would not give apprentices their warrior names before fit. He could have doubled
patrols, he could have set watch on the other clans, he could have done so much, however it's
clear he chose to do as little as he needs to. What would the other clans say if they knew about
the apprentices?
"Is leader of Shadowclan a joke to him?" I burst, eyes opening to glare at the frightened fonds of grass.
"What kind of a leader would do such things?" My voice grew quieter, though my ears stayed
flat against my broad skull. I shook my head lightly, wincing at the pain. Enough about this,
Brokenstar is a waste and a pathetic excuse of a leader, even though he shares my blood. That
simply gives me all the more reason to spill it.
A rustling in the ferns caught my attention, making my ears shoot up and eyes shrink into
mere slits. Once more the rustling reached my ears, the sound of fonds spreading apart to let
some small rodent pass. I rose silently from the grass, pivoting to my left on light paws. My
mouth hung open as I scented the air. The scent of mouse danced into my open maw, and
tickled my tongue. Fresh and plump by the scent. This thought delighted me. How long had it
been since I ate? Starclan knows, perhaps once I eat a good piece of fresh kill I can get this all
sorted.
I lowered my frame close to the earth, tail rose to stop any unnecessary noises that would
cost me this delectable piece of kill. On silent paws I stalked forward, the grey coat of the field
mouse almost matching mine when it came into view. Five…four…close enough. Like I had done
many times before I tensed, hind legs tightening then I shot forward, pushing lightly off the
ground but moving with great speed.
Then it was gone. I fell to the ground, banking myself on a shoulder as I slid a short distance
on my side. The pain shooting up my leg was unbearable, another yowl, quite like the one that
had set off the mouse, left my maw. Then my head lowered against the ground, I looked at the
world in front of me. It seemed to be tipped on a sort of angle, put off balance. The off
balanced world only pushed my outrage to greater lengths. Yellowfang, not being able to catch
something simple as a mouse? Bah! This will not do.
Whilst lost in my own thoughts, my claws slid in and out of their soft sheathe. Pain continued
to coarse down my left side, pulling me free from presumptuous thoughts. For the first time, I
twisted my neck back to observe my leg. My eyes rounded, going large like the sun as the image
began to register in my mind.
Blood trickled down my leg, seeping from four neat fang marks just beneath my left thigh. It
was hot and sticky, now that my senses pushed passed the deep stinging sensation. My fur,
slick against my frame, no longer a deep grey, but a dark brown as the blood crusted. A light
trail of crimson trickled from the punctured skin, adding emphasis quite nicely when it dripped
off my leg, and onto the delicate blades of grass, defiling them. Although this wound looked
deep enough to cause some descent bleeding, surely I can cope with a meagre bite. What was
the bite from again? Let's see, Brokenstar ran me out, I spent a few nights in Shadowclan
territory undetected, and then Clawface found me and gave me some good exercise. Who
would have thought a tom his size could run so fast? After I escaped him there was the thunder
path, when I crossed the thunder path there was the…
Fox. Of course. Yellowfang you twit! I sat abruptly; however my quick movements did not
increase the amount of blood seeping from the wound. You need Cobwebs, just in case. Some
burdock would do nicely I suppose, I know where all the Shadowclan stores are, but I couldn't
possibly go back there. Although, Windclan might be a capable donor, since I'm here already.
Well let's get to it then, cobwebs and burdock.
The scent of the burdock was easy enough to detect, it doesn't have a very 'subtle' smell if
you know what I mean. At the same moment the scent of burdock began to prick my tongue, I
heard some yowls coming from the east. I can't believe how loud these Windclan cats are
sometimes, honestly. The territory did not meet my expectations. Alright, the grass was long,
and there was a breeze. So? Where is the howling wind that should be blocking out the
Windclan warrior's voices? It wasn't there. Maybe it was a slow day, or something.
As the clan cats advanced, I could start to make out what they were saying.
'Mudclaw stop that!' A feminine voice chirped, by the sound of her paws I could tell she was
pivoting away from this, Mudclaw.
'Oh come on Ashfur, there's no one out here.' The tom's voice was deep and gruff, I knew who
both of these warriors were, however, Mudclaw was one cat I could do without encountering.
As their voices continued to grow louder, I looked for a place to hide. Running would make far
too much commotion, with this leg they'd catch me and gut me, given Mudclaw's reputation. I
had been following a small rabbit trail, or perhaps it was a trail the warriors used. They were
quite scrawny. The voices grew louder and soon the nearby fonds started to rustle, this is it,
hide or have a standoff. I thought to myself.
Well. I could give a go at hiding in that bramble patch. It looks like a descent enough place,
with the small opening and all. On the other paw, I could stay here. Maybe I'd catch them off
guard; the wind is on my side. They obviously haven't been able to scent me yet; I might get a
few seconds to jump at one of them. These thoughts were all quite brief, I may be trained a
warrior in Shadowclan but I'm not stupid. The brambles tore at my fur as I slipped through the
small opening, of course it didn't penetrate through my thick fur, but it still made me uneasy to
have thorns that sharp closing me in.
I made it into the brambles and lowered myself to the ground, staying as close to it as
possible. A set of grey paws danced by, with amazing speed. Perhaps I'd call this cat graceful,
her steps where so light and dainty, however that's all I could see, her paws. Another set ran
past, and then came to a slow in front of the brambles. A deep purr left the brown cat.
'Ashfur you're such a tease." Said the brown cat, given the statement I suppose this was
Mudclaw. Somewhere out of my view I heard a light mew of amusement.
'Oh am I Mudclaw? Tsk tsk, I mean not to distract you.' Said a sweet and coy voice, belonging to
the grey female Ashfur. I could see where this conversation was going, and I did not like where I
stood.
'You know I think Onewhisker was jealous, seeing me run off on a hunting patrol with you
alone.'
'Oh Mudclaw, come now. It isn't as if we're doing anything. Simply a hunting patrol, as you
stated.' Ashfur said. Oh didn't she know how to work this tom? I could see his brown hackles
rise as a shiver ran down his frame.
'Well, we are supposed to be hunting. No one else is here after all, we could always slip by that
empty badger set by the Riverclan border, no one would notice if we were gone for a little bit.'
'Why I never! Mudclaw you cheeky tom. I can absolutely not have this conversation with you.'
Said the she-cat in a coy and teasing voice. A soft patter, growing distant let me know the
feminine Ashfur had run off.
'Ashfur wait up! I was just poking fun at you, mostly.' The tom meowed with slight frustration
and his brown paws left my vision as he ran after the she-cat. Isn't that just dandy? Maybe the
whole clan is hormonally disrupted, and then I could simply get the burdock I needed and leave
without a big fuss.
I slipped out from under the brambles, leaving behind a nice chunk of fur. My eyes narrowed
viciously at the brambles, my grey pelt splayed in their boughs like a trophy.
'You're lucky you're a plant.' I remarked in an immature fashion, then turned and trotted off
with a limp, scenting the air for my precious burdock. Quickly the tangy scent pranced upon my
tongue, and I readjusted my course. It's amazing how at ease I was in this territory, or even
Riverclan's when I had to pass through. I'd probably be at ease in Thunderclan's territory as
well; perhaps I'd try it sometime. However, I know all too well how stressed I would be in
Shadowclan territory.
A sharp prick on my tongue pulled me from my thoughts, and I looked around. Not ten tail
lengths away I spotted the leafy plant, large green leaves laying just above the ground, and
becoming smaller as they wound up the plant. I closed the distance between me and the plant,
then paused for a moment, listening intently. When no obstruct sound reaches them I chew up
the burdock leaves quickly, then twist my body and remove the cobweb with a paw. After the
cobwebs are removed, I spit the mixture into the wound. For a moment it stings and I cringe,
my ragged pelt pricking, but this passes eventually. Once I'm sure the mixture is secure I limp
slowly back the way I had come, towards the brambles.
I suppose hiding my scent would have been a good idea, they might attack my clan for
having a Shadowclan cat in Windclan territory. However, Brokenstar needs to be attacked. He
has to be over powered, and killed. This grim thought made my ears flatten, not knowing the
future of my clan, it makes me weary. I limp along; going the way Ashfur and Mudclaw had
gone. This 'empty badger set' intrigued me, so long as those two weren't occupying it, I could
use it for the moment to rest. Of course, if those two moon struck mice were, ah, occupying it I
suppose I'd have to cross into Riverclan territory to find a suitable place to wait out the healing.
You never squeeze into holes; you never go looking in holes. At least, kits and apprentices
aren't supposed to. Under normal circumstances I would not dare venture into an empty set or
burrow, however these aren't normal circumstances. If a badger set offered protection and a
place of refuge, I'd take it.
I followed the scent of the two Windclan cats, it wasn't fresh of course, I hid in the
brambles at sun high, and the sun was casting a red glow across the sky already. It had been
some hours since I'd seen the two, although I'm not looking forward to seeing them again. The
trail they left was easy enough to follow, I just prayed to Starclan it would lead to the badger
set, not Riverclan camp.
The terrain benieth my paws begain to slope, and I could tell the river was close. This would
have also been a dead giveaway if I was deaf, but since I'm not I could hear the rushing water.
My ears perked and eyes focused as the grass began to thin. No noise came from my paws as I
slowed my pace, then came to a halt at the edge of the grass, looking out across the open
stretch.
Long fonds of grass blew gently at either side of me, the ground being soft and penetrable.
No feline movement was visible; however the scent of a Windclan patrol was respectably fresh,
as was Riverclan. The clan's fish scent was being blown across the river, making my pelt crawl. I
never did like Riverclan; they smelt odd and had far too many dealings with twolegs. With a
deep breath, I walked out into the open, my path locked towards an old and dying tree, bare of
leaves and all signs of life. From my view I could see a small black void near its trunk, I assumed
this could be the empty badger set Mudclaw had spoken of, and there was no scent of badger
in the air.
I stopped in front of the set; I now could determine that it was most definitely a badger set,
an unused one to be exact. My leg was still pained as I stood before the set, my ears perked as
they strained to pick up any noise. When nothing reached them I took a deep breath. As a kit all
warriors are told the same by their mothers, don't go parading into holes. However, I was about
to do just that, only perhaps in a more graceful manner. Another set of deep breaths followed I
entered the set, walking into its broad entrance and followed the path as it narrowed. The cold
earth surrounded me like a coffin, the walls felt as if they would fall upon me without a
moment's notice, and Yellowfang would cease to exist.
Of course the walls did not fall on me, I was simply being paranoid. When I reached the open
space of the set where a badger's nest would have been, I craned my neck back to look at the
entrance. It was a glimmering splotch of light, it seemed so distant. Looking at it made me tired.
I felt my legs weaken, my injured one seeming to groan. My eye lids grew heavy and I fought to
keep awake. Briefly I inspected the set, it was empty, no bedding. There was a scent of
Windclan in there, and even Riverclan. However they were very stale, so I didn't worry. Once
the set was secure, I curled up at a back corner, wrapping my grey tail over my nose, then set
off into a deep, and well deserved sleep.