The first story/tale thingy... Enjoy!
Oh yes, and apologies to all those Darkstar fans from TWW. ;) But the relationship between Darkpaw and Frostpaw had to start somewhere, didn't it?
Marsh water, musty logs, water vole, willow trees.
Jaws apart, inhaling, she could smell all that, and more.
Breath of wild winds from the moors,
Distant smell of trees and earth,
And the tangy, rotten smell of shadows, way too strong.
The silver tabby narrowed her eyes. ShadowClan had not been particularly hostile with them, but then again, they weren't particularly friendly either. It wouldn't surprise her to find a ShadowClan cat this side of the border.
She crouched, creeping forward almost silently, her belly fur brushing the swampy ground, ears pricked and alert. She waded through the tangle of reeds, her tabby stripes almost making her inconspicuous as she pinpointed one lone figure crouched on the bank.
Their side of the bank.
Making sure she was downwind, the she-cat skirted the bushes, out-of-sight until she was in the perfect position to pounce. Crouching down on her haunches, she waited a moment before she sprang. But she had hesitated too long.
The ShadowClan cat noticed just in time, and quickly rolled out of the way to avoid injury. Frostpaw landed on empty grass, but quickly regained her bearings to face her opponent. It was a dark grey tabby she-cat, spitting in hostility, her pelt reeking of the sour smell of ShadowClan.
"How dare you tresspass on RiverClan territory!" Frostpaw snarled, claws unsheathed. She swiped a forepaw angrily at the ShadowClan cat's nose, drawing blood. Her opponent yowled in fury, blood trickling down her jaw.
"RiverClan has been the most well-fed clan for as long as any cat can remember! You sit around, even in leaf-bare, watching us all starve to death while you gobble down the best prey. But now," Her strikingly amber-red eye flashed as she crouched, getting ready to pounce. "That will all change." With a swift leap, the cat leapt, claws outstretched to injure.
Suddenly, a flash of a ginger pelt whipped across Frostpaw's vision, knocking the ShadowClan intruder to the ground. "No it won't," she hissed, "Now if I were you, I'd go crawl back to the stinking hole you came out of."
The young RiverClan apprentice felt a wave of relief at seeing her mentor. "Rushbrook!" she exclaimed. The RiverClan warrior flicked her ears in acknowledgement, her light blue eyes not moving from the ShadowClan cat.
Suddenly, at the opposite side of the river, two ShadowClan warriors emerged from the shadows, their pelts bristling.
Rushbrook glanced up at the two new cats, lip curled. "Shadowblaze, I'm assured that you have a good reason to have let your apprentice trespass on RiverClan territory."
"A simple mistake." The ShadowClan deputy replied, "She accidentally ran over the border. A common error made by many apprentices, don't you agree?" Frostpaw noticed the black she-cat's eyes trained on her, and she snarled back.
"The border is a bit hard to miss," Rushbrook retorted, gesturing at the trickle of water which separated the two parties, "Your apprentices must really be dim-witted if they ignore something as obvious as a stream."
The ShadowClan apprentice under Rushbrook writhed in fury, "At least I don't ignore the opportunity of success." She spat, "Unlike some."
"Darkpaw, that's enough." The other cat snarled, "Release her, Rushbrook. She's learned her lesson."
"No, Ivyclaw." Shadowblaze had her green eyes narrowed thoughtfully, "I don't think it's Darkpaw who needs a lesson, so much as overfed warriors. What do you think? Do you think maybe we should show them what it's like to be hungry?"
"You shall do no such thing." A pale white warrior emerged from the bushes, another warrior by his side, "But if you are smart enough to realize that you're outnumbered, I would suggest you leave."
Shadowblaze's eyes flashed. "Very well. Come now, Darkpaw" Her white-tipped tail flicked, beckoning the intruder back over to where she belonged. Rushbrook sat back, watching them leave. But just as the dark apprentice vanished back into the shadows, she turned to face Frostpaw.
"I promise you, though." She spat, "This is only just the beginning." And with the look of certainty crossing Darkpaw's amber eyes, Frostpaw knew she meant it.
Just the beginning.