Listen to the Apprentices
Summary: Listen to the apprentices – you just might learn something.
Note: Hey everyone :). Well, here's my second Warrior's story! After reading the part on Long Shadows where Tigerpaw fools Littlecloud without any trouble, I decided to write this thing, to maybe explain how Littlecloud was fooled so easily. And plus, it may shed a little light on....well, if I say his name now, it'll ruin the story ;). Anyways, have fun reading!
Warriors. Is. Not. Mine. Clear enough for you?
Listen to the Apprentices
Littlecloud, Shadowclan's medicine cat, layed down in his fern nest, lined with soft pine needles and moss, feeling utterly helpless. The strange loner, Sol, had managed to infect Shadowclan – even Blackstar! – with the flea-brained idea that Starclan didn't exist.
Slowly, the Clan was disbanding, the Warrior Code lying forgotten under Sol's influence. To make matters worse, Tawnypelt and her kits had left for Thunderclan, not wanting to belong to a Clan that didn't believe in Starclan. Littlecloud sighed. How many others would follow suit and leave before everyone came to their senses?
The small tabby tom looked up through a crack in the ceiling in his den, a clear look of longing in his blue eyes. The half moon shone proudly overhead, calling him to the sacred Moonpool. Blackstar – no, Blackfoot now, Littlecloud corrected himself – had forbade him to go along with the other medicine cats to share tongues with Starclan.
Suppressing a yowl of grief, Littlecloud placed his head wearily on his paws, and fell quickly into the darkness of sleep.
Littlecloud opened his eyes, looking around himself in surprise. He was in a forest, not unlike that of Starclan. But, this one had a dark feeling about it. The air was uncomfortably clammy, and the heavy scents of carrion and toadstools hung all around him. There was light, but it was a sickly gleam, radiating from all sorts of ghastly fungus, instead of the magnificent glow of Starclan.
And then, Littlecloud heard a twig snap. Spinning wildly, he tried to locate the sound, but his efforts were in vain. Whatever had snapped the twig, it was gone now. Littlecloud sat down, the tabby fur along his shoulders still bristling. Something was watching him, he was sure.
Suddenly, Littlecloud felt a heavy weight crash down on his back. Thorn sharp claws dug into his fur, and he felt teeth meet his ear. Screeching, Littlecloud struggled, and managed to tear the weight off of him.
Turning, Littlecloud was shocked to see that there was nothing there. The medicine cat looked around uneasily. What had just attacked him? And then the crushing weight pinned him down again, pushing his muzzle into the dirt. Cat-scent wreathed around Littlecloud. It was alarmingly familiar, but the tabby couldn't place it. He was distracted by a deep, hoarse growl of a voice, right next to his ear.
"Keep your wits sharp, and your claws sharper, Littlecloud!" it hissed.
Littlecloud froze. For a heartbeat, he was transported back to the old forest, when he was Littlepaw, doing fighting drills with Wetpaw.
The bigger apprentice had him pinned down, pushing all of his weight onto Littlepaw's throat. Just when the smaller tom was beginning to feel faint from lack of air, a paw knocked Wetpaw off of him, and Littlepaw found himself face to face with the horribly scarred muzzle of his mentor.
"You can't always think your way out of a battle!" he yowled as much to him as to the other apprentices. "Starclan gave you claws and teeth, so use them! Thinking strategically is great, but you need to apply it to your fighting." now, the cat leaned down next to Littlepaw's ear, and recited one of his favourite quotes.
"Remember the most important rule of battle, Littlepaw. Keep your wits sharp, and your claws sharper!"
"Clawface!" Littlecloud gasped, wriggling out from underneath his former mentor. Looking up, Littlecloud concluded that it was indeed Clawface, from the long, dull, brown fur, to the four long claw marks that raced from his shredded left ear to his chin, which had given him his warrior name, to the bright green eyes, which were staring at him with a gaze that lingered somewhere between amusement and disgust.
"I was beginning to think you'd forgotten who I am - or who I was, I should say." Clawface meowed, standing up and shaking out his already ruffled fur. Littlecloud hissed. What was Clawface, his old mentor, doing here?
"What are you doing in my dream?" he growled, fur bristling. Clawface only stared at the medicine cat, completely unfazed.
"Aren't I allowed to visit my old apprentice every once and a while?" he asked mockingly. After a heartbeat Clawface shook his head, suddenly serious.
"I always knew you'd never be a warrior." he sighed, eyes facing the dark sky. Littlecloud stared at Clawface in confusion.
"W-what do you mean?" Littlecloud stuttered, feeling nervous. Clawface's green eyes swivelled to gaze at Littlecloud, and the medicine cat suddenly felt like he was an apprentice on his first hunting assessment. Clawface's glare always seemed to do that to him.
"You were never fierce enough be a Shadowclan warrior. I knew that from the minute Raggedstar gave you to me as an apprentice." Littlecloud narrowed his eyes.
"Then why did you bother training me?" he spat, feeling indignant.
"Because I'm stubborn, and didn't want to admit that my apprentice wasn't going to be a warrior. I thought that if I pushed you harder than any of the other apprentices, I'd be able to mould you into a warrior. Turns out I was wrong." the brown warrior hissed, his lank fur bristling.
Littlecloud flicked his ears, suddenly understanding what his mentor meant. It reminded him of Leafpool and Jaypaw; Jaypaw had never wanted to be a medicine cat, so Leafpool had to be tough on him. Or, as tough as Leafpool could be on a cat.
"I forgive you." Littlecloud meowed, dipping his head. Instantly, Clawface jumped to his paws, fur bristling.
"I wasn't asking for your forgiveness! If you say something mouse-brained like that again I'll claw your ears off!" he spat, green eyes blazing. Littlecloud managed not to flinch, fixing Clawface with a calm stare until he sat back down.
"Anyways, there are more important things to discuss. Starclan won't tell you, but I will." Littlecloud frowned. What was Clawface talking about? What had Starclan not told him about?
"But, but isn't this part of Starclan?" he meowed, motioning to the forest around him. Clawface snorted and stood up, his tail lashing.
"I should hope not!" his meow became more subdued, lowering to a hoarse growl. "No, this is where the souls of those who have caused great suffering in their lives are destined to wander. Starclan calls it Place Of No Stars. I call it home." Littlecloud backed up a few paces, ears flattening. This forest wasn't part of Starclan at all!
"But, but why are you here?" he stuttered nervously. Yes, Clawface had always been fierce and cruel, but Littlecloud didn't want to think that his mentor had ended up in such a Starclan forsaken place such as this! Clawface sat down, and his whole body seemed to sag.
"When I was raiding the Thunderclan nursery, Brokenstar had given me specific instructions to kill the Thunderclan medicine cat, Spottedleaf." the brown warrior shrugged. "A leaders' word is the warrior code." Littlecloud hissed in shock. Clawface had killed a medicine cat!
"But you were only following orders!" he meowed. Clawface let out a long, weary sigh, and Littlecloud only then realized how old his mentor looked. If he were still in Shadowclan, he would be in the elders den, or already with Starclan. Littlecloud flicked his ears. An old Clawface. What a weird thought.
"It is the truth to say that I was ordered to kill their medicine cat, but it would be a lie to say that I wouldn't have anyways." Littlecloud stared at his mentor. Clawface would have killed Spottedleaf!? Clawface must have seen the look of revulsion on Littlecloud's face, and he grinned without humour, his scars twisting his mouth into an awkward grimace.
"Spottedleaf's mother, Swiftbreeze, was the one who gave me my scars, when I was only an apprentice. Everyone, even Yellowfang, thought I was going to die, so Raggedstar performed the ritual given to a dying apprentice so that they may go to Starclan a warrior. Suffice to say I lived, and I've had to live with the name 'Clawface' and these scars ever since." he murmured, drawing a licked paw slowly across the ragged scars stretching across his face.
"A revenge kill." Littlecloud muttered, thinking carefully. Finally he looked up. "I think I understand." he mewed finally, and Clawface grunted in acknowledgment.
It seemed to Littlepaw that he looked much more at ease. Perhaps, now that a medicine cat had forgiven him, their warrior ancestors might let Clawface into Starclan. Suddenly, the brown tabby tom looked up at the sky, which was turning a heavy gray.
"Dawn approaches. Goodbye, Littlecloud." the brown tom turned, waving his tail goodbye. Littlecloud was just beginning to turn, when Clawface stopped, looking over his shoulder.
"Listen to what the apprentices have to say. They might save Shadowclan yet." he mewed unexpectedly.
"Wait, what do you mean? Come back!" Littlecloud called, but it was all in vain. The medicine cat was awake. With a sigh, Littlecloud looked up. It was already noon. Sighing, the Shadowclan medicine cat sat up, and began his assessment on the herbs in his store.
All of a sudden, he saw the tabby pelt of Tigerpaw pelting towards him. Clawface's warning flashed in the back of his mind. Littlecloud sat down, wrapping his tail around his paws.
He sure hoped Clawface was right.
THE END
Well, I hope that everyone enjoyed this! And please, no flames! (but I would still LOVE some reviews ;P)
StarsAndSparks44