CHAPTER 4

Growing Closer

The black cat stretched as he heard yowling and screeching in the clearing. For some reason he didn't waste time getting out of the apprentice's den. Honeypaw, Frostpaw, and Snakepaw grumbled as he rushed out.

"Flowerfrost! You are not supposed to be fighting with your clan mates! Especially a kit!" The silver- gray she cat was outside the leaders den. Dark green eyes glared down at the tumbling cats.

A light brown tuft of fur blew by Ravenpaw on a small breeze. Mousekit immediately floated into the sleepy apprentice's mind. Ravenpaw was in mid leap when Midnightstar's growl reached his ears, "Don't you dare interrupt! This doesn't concern you either, Flamecloud!" He couldn't disobey the leader. "If anyone, other than myself, interrupts them they will be on Elders duty. Warrior or not."

The two cats, in the center of the now gathered circle, finally stood apart, facing each other. Everything was being jumbled in his mind, Mousekit and Flowerfrost. Why are they fight? Mousekit is still a 'kit! Flowerfrost has more fur gone than Mousekit! Actually, the black apprentice didn't see any tufts of fur missing, except the small patch at the base of her tail.

Flowerfrost bunched his hunches up getting ready to spring again when a ginger tom stepped in between them. "This is useless. There is no reason for a warrior to be fighting with his kit!" the ginger tom growled. "Why are they fighting in the first place?" Green fire seemed to seep out of the tom's green eyes.

"Why they're fighting isn't any concern of the Clan's." With a twitch of her tail she silenced Owlwing before she could get a word in. "Flamecloud, as promised, you're on Elder's duty for a half moon." Jumping down from where she was standing she padded over to the three cats. "There is no need for fighting. Mousekit, you have proven yourself to me of what you are capable of. Flowerfrost, you have one chance. Ravenpaw," The cream and white she-cat looked at him. "Take Mousekit and go. Owlwing and Pebblepath, he is excused of any work until sun high."

Sky blue eyes met the black tom's green ones. Leaves scattered and they were gone. She's really upset. I need to know what happened, thought Ravenpaw. He left the staring eyes behind him to go to his friend, the one who he'd never meet another like her, in all the lives StarClan could give him. She was something no one could replace.

He soon saw her sitting on the shore. "This isn't fair. She shouldn't replace herself with another cat." Ravenpaw wasn't following. "Its nothing against you. It's just, that if she didn't want kits she shouldn't of had us!" Midnightstar, he hissed under his breath. "Don't get me wrong, I'm glad I'm here it's just I would for once like to have my mother there for me and not afar. I love Crowfur, but I can see that taking care of Dovekit, Cinderkit, and I is putting a strain on her. She's not as young as she was." He padded over to the she-cat and wrapped his tail around her.

"On top of my mother, my own father hates me. This morning I was talking with Midnightstar and Owlwing, it was an okay conversation, when Flowerfrost came in. When his kit is in the leader's den is when he wants to play the concerned father role. Why can't I have a father like Lionflight?" At the name of his father surprised him. He, himself barely knew his father, but of what he had heard he loved him. Spiderminnow and Ravenpaw were the only important things to him other than the Clan its self. "I don't mean to bring anything bad up about you and your family or anything but, I just don't see why StarClan is giving me this "important" choice that depends on the Clans future.

"Leafpool must not be in her right mind! The whole of StarClan isn't! I can't even keep my own temper under control, let alone figure out a stupid prophecy! Am I just freaking out too much? I mean Flowerfrost was going to attack Owlwing for no reason. I can't believe I stepped in for that traitor! I should've let him scratch her eyes out!"

Mousekit hung her head, and she leaned against him. "Leafpool is in her right mind. She and the Whole of StarClan wouldn't have given the responsibility to a cat who couldn't do it. Your temper is just part of your charm!" He touched his nose to her ear. "Someone who can't handle you and everything that comes along with you is not one you can rely on. The prophecy is something that takes time. Plus you're not alone in this, she came to both of us!

"Two heads are better than one. I couldn't think of another cat to have my future in their paws. No one knows anything about freaking out. It's different for every cat. Why don't you tell me what happened the other day."

Mousekit talked about what Owlwing had said about his father and why Owlwing dislikes him so much, the truth to why she didn't meet him at the Big Elm, and what had happened leading up to the fight with her father. The truth to why Owlwing was even more surprising than hearing his father's name. Lionflight and Owlwing? Friends?, if Ravenpaw haven't heard it from Mousekit he wouldn't have believed it.

There was still plenty of time from when she finished her story till sun-high, so the two cats stayed where they were looking out on the waves of the lake. At one point the brown tabby talked about what she saw in the gentle waves. Her sky blue eyes shone with amusement, when he told her he didn't see what she saw.

"There, about half way in the middle. There's a cloud, that you wouldn't normally call a cloud. It's funny looking!" She purred. Ravenpaw looked out over the lake where she said she saw the cloud and the glare of the sun.

The black tom immediately jolted up. Puzzled sky blue eyes seared his pelt.

"We have to go back. Midnightstar said till sun-high." He wished he could stay like this with her for a while. He knew it was wrong, but he knew how he felt. The light brown tabby stood up and walked with him back to camp. As they got closer they heard yowls of rage coming from the tunnel.