TWO
Viperpaw of ShadowClan
I stand rigid, staring up at this huge tomcat. I feel my ears flatten against my head involuntarily. Are we in trouble? Did we do something wrong? What is he going to do with us?
I glace over at Windpaw and Owlpaw to see their reactions. Their faces appear shocked, probably mirroring my own. Owlpaw has a suspicious glint in his green eyes. "Aren't you the RiverClan deputy?" he boldly inquires.
The massive tabby nods. "I am." His expression is very calm and kind. It relaxes me a bit. He jerks his head in the direction of a large holly bush at the edge of the clearing, beckoning us with his tail. Windpaw takes a hesitant step forward, and Owlpaw falls in beside him. I slowly trail along behind. The RiverClan deputy ducks underneath the spiky branches of the holly and sits down with his tail wrapped around his paws.
"Now, in case you don't know already, my name is Beechnose. As I am the deputy of RiverClan, it is of utter importance that our meeting be kept a secret."
"What is all this about?" Owlpaw demands.
"Patience, Owlpaw. I am getting to that."
The little brown tabby's neck fur spikes up. "How do you know my name?"
"I know all your names. You're Owlpaw, he's Windpaw and she's Viperpaw. But that doesn't matter. The point is, I was observing you tonight during the Gathering, and you are all incredibly promising young cats. I would like to start an alliance between RiverClan and the three of you."
"Just us? Not all of ShadowClan?" Windpaw interrupts.
Beechnose appears to be thinking about something. "No," he mutters, as if half to himself. "It'd be too dangerous." More loudly he adds, "Just the three of you. I will offer you training, to make you better warriors, better than what you could be with only your mentors' training."
"Are you saying we wouldn't get good training in our own Clan? ShadowClan is ten times as great as RiverClan!" Owlpaw growls.
"I'm not saying anything." Beechnose has an air of eternal patience about him. Is that a glint of amusement in his eyes? "This agreement will strengthen you. A smart cat would be wise to accept the deputy of another Clan as an ally. Do you accept?"
My fur bristles along my spine. I flash a warning glance at Windpaw, and give a tiny shake of my head. I am too afraid to speak up, though. Windpaw blinks at me to show that he saw. "What is all this about? What is the real reason for all of this?" he asks.
Beechnose sighs. "I wish I could tell you, but not now. All in good time. But I need an answer. The Clans are beginning to leave."
The three of us exchange a glance. Owlpaw sweeps his tail to beckon us to huddle. We crowd together, our heads pressed close.
"Do you actually think this is a good idea? I think it's completely mousebrained!" Owlpaw hisses.
"Well…" Windpaw hesitates.
"Windpaw, we'd be setting ourselves up for ambush!"
"Um, I think he can hear us," I whisper. Owlpaw's hissing isn't exactly soft. The brown apprentice glances over his shoulder at Beechnose, then adds more softly, "What do you think, Viperpaw?"
"I- I don't know." I mew. "It might be a good idea, but it would be unsafe."
"I think we might be stupid not to accept," Windpaw declares. "It's the RiverClan deputy, for StarClan's sake!"
"How about this," says Owlpaw. "We go once to see what it is about, and then decide whether we want to keep going with it. Deal?"
"Deal." Windpaw and I mew in unison. We turn around to face Beechnose.
"Okay. We'll meet you for training," says Owlpaw.
Beechnose lets out a deep purr. "Thank you. You will not regret this. Meet me tomorrow night at the halfbridge between our territories at moonrise. I'll be waiting." Without another word he stands and pushes his way out from under the holly.
"Let's hope we haven't just agreed to something incredibly mousebrained," Owlpaw murmurs. I nod in agreement. Now that we've agreed to meet this tom, I'm extremely nervous, but Windpaw thinks this is a good idea, and I usually trust his judgment. I follow Windpaw and Owlpaw out from underneath the bush, to see that ShadowClan is about to leave. My mentor Ghostfrost rushes toward us from the crowd.
"We've been looking everywhere for you!" he meows. "We're about to leave." I pad by his side toward the group of ShadowClan cats. "I found them," Ghostfrost calls. Smokestar flicks his ears in acknowledgement and leads the Clan off the island.
I lay curled up in my nest next to Windpaw, unable to sleep. When I close my eyes I can still see the kind expression of Beechnose looking down at me. Something about him draws me to want to know about him, to want to learn from him. There seems to be a gentleness and patience about the tom that I like. The way he looked at us was almost, I don't know, fatherly? Except I don't really know what that looks like. My father and mother both died long ago. Windpaw and Owlpaw's mother Dewleaf raised me, so I guess I know what it's like to have a mother, but my father died in battle before I was born, in the same battle that killed Windpaw and Owlpaw's father. Maybe Beechnose could fill in the gap in my heart where I know my father should have been.
Another thought occurs to me: what if it was all just an act? What if we are all going to get ambushed tomorrow by RiverClan? We may leave ShadowClan to visit a strange tom and it could cost us our lives. But then Beechnose's calm, fatherly gaze swims back into my mind and I don't think that is possible. Besides, I have to trust Windpaw. Windpaw feels good about it, and that's all that matters. Even if Owlpaw is suspicious.
I snuggle deeper into my moss nest, trying to get comfortable. I can feel Windpaw's back against mine in his nest next to me. I relax, my worries eased slightly by the presence of the gray and white apprentice, and I finally sink into sleep.