Well, it's been a while, hasn't it? :D Sorry. Apologies to everyone, but I hope an update will make you happy, and hopefully, you will forgive me! I've been starting to try to figure out a schedule for writing, but updates will probably be delayed. You know, the usual busy from school and family.
Mayosoul: Sounds like an interesting cat! I like the purple eyes.
Robinpaw: Maybe once I finish I'll do that! It sounds like an interesting story to try to figure out. But I have another idea for a story that I'll maybe put out there when I finish one of the other stories, maybe Bloom in the Storm. That one shouldn't be too long, but long enough. Also, Rascal and Oreo are black and white. Oreo is black with white paws and her tail is speckled with white. She has steely gray eyes. Rascal is mostly white with black speckles along his back and some spots on his face. He's got blue eyes, I think, but I'm not entirely sure. It's hard to come up with what characters look like, you know, forever…
Guest: Glad you like it! I will continue trying to make each chapter just as good. And I actually didn't know, thanks for telling me! I don't know if I'll be able to get it as soon as it comes out, my parents probably won't let me. -.-" They don't take my Warriors adoration seriously.
Guest: Like the guest above, I'm glad you liked my story! Also like the guest above, I didn't know, thanks for telling. I'll get it as soon as I can!
Growing
-2 moons later-
Rust was 5 moons now, and almost as happy as she thought she could ever be.
Emphasis on almost.
There was an empty spot inside of her heart that ached and throbbed whenever she thought about Oreo and Rascal. They'd been her only family for half of her kithood, and there was no way she could forget them anytime soon. Rust thought she would never forget them. She missed the cozy den and the warmth of Rascal beside her as she slept. The motherly care of Oreo and Rascal's boisterous mew. Frog was the good fatherly sort, but there was no way he could be the kind of friend that Rascal had been.
But when she wasn't focusing on that, Rust was usually busy learning. Frog had told her much on the journey home, but now she had an itching desire in her paws to know. To be the strong, experienced cat that her father was.
She'd told Frog this, and he'd been more than delighted. Thrilled, even, that his kit wanted to learn, and from him, no less.
But, the road to success wasn't easy, as Rust soon learned.
Frog would wake her up early to go hunt. After they'd hunted, he'd teach her other things, like climbing trees or how to fight. Rust liked these lessons the best. It was an altogether different sort of glee when you could flip backwards or best your father in a spar. Rust was a quick learner, and Frog was an excellent teacher, full of patience and love for his young daughter. He knew that someday she would need these skills, and someday she would leave him. Someday, he wouldn't be there to protect his baby from the world. The thought tugged at his heart, and he forced himself to abandon the thought to the back of his mind. But that was always how it worked.
For now, Rust was content. And that was all that mattered.
XxXxXxXxXxXxX
"Frog, what's that smell?" Rust asked, wrinkling her nose. Today he'd taken Rust farther through the woods than usual. They'd been walking silently, senses open, when Rust had detected an unfamiliar, unpleasant, odor.
Frog raised his nose in the air and pricked his ears, instantly on alert. Than his hackles raised and his tail puffed put to twice its size.
Rust was immediately worried. Frog wasn't scared of much, and the smell must be something to be afraid of. Something to really be afraid of.
"That's the smell of other cats. Other loners, like us." Frog's usually quiet voice had dropped down into a whisper that Rust had to strain her ears to hear. "I don't know if they're hostile or not, but we had better return home before they find us."
"But you promised to teach me a new battle move today!" Rust protested loudly.
Frog smacked his puffed tail across her mouth.
"Hush, Rust." Frog snapped, still managing to keep his voice to very quiet whisper. "We must keep quiet, unless you want to be found."
Rust looked up at her father, not fully comprehending the urgency. She spat his tail out her mouth and tried to get the fur out of her mouth without making much noise, which only succeeded in making her look ridiculous. Frog looked on, shaking his head slowly. He got Rust's attention and set a brisk pace through the woods, back home. Rust shook out her thick, dark fur, and followed, having to run to keep up. There was something in her father's eyes that left her speechless and shocked. Her father was truly scared.
XxXxXxXxX
What could it mean?
Darkpelt closed her eyes and leaned her head against the cool stone of the medicine den.
What did StarClan want from her?
It was dusk, and the sun was setting. The medicine den was cool and dark, perfect for thoughts to tug on her focus and abandon her herb sorting to bang her head against the wall.
What could it mean?
She hadn't received her full name more than a moon ago, and only because her mentor had died. Darkpelt hadn't felt ready to have her full name, and had no idea what to do now. Everyday it was the same routine. Collect the herbs, sort them out, put them away, deal with warriors, deal with kits, deal with elders. It was a busy sort of life, and when Darkpelt needed to think, she always found some sort of tedious chore to keep her paws busy while her mind swirled.
"Darkpelt, what are you doing?"
The medicine cat sighed inwardly and wished she could bang her head against the wall, for real this time, and not just to shake up her thoughts.
"What does it look like I'm doing, squirt?"
"My name isn't squirt and you know it. It's Berrykit."
"Whatever you want to call yourself, squirt."
"Darkpelt! Why are you in such a bad mood?" The kit complained.
"Hmm. Maybe it's because an obnoxious kit has walked into my den when she's supposed to be in the nursery." Darkpelt responded dryly.
"How do you know if I'm supposed to be in the nursery?" Berrykit mewed.
"I was a kit once, too." Darkpelt responded. Not too long ago either.
"Maybe things have changed since you were a kit." Berrykit said testily. "Or maybe I just get special treatment because I'm going to be a medicine cat some day."
Darkpelt ground her teeth together, her stomach twisting in rage. She shoved her face harder against the stone wall.
"How do you know, squirt?" She managed to force out.
"Because I want to be." She said indignantly. "Pebblecreek says I can be whatever sort of cat I want to."
Darkpelt's misty eyes squeezed together.
"And I spend enough time in here anyway, so why wouldn't Nightstar let me be the medicine apprentice? The spots open now that crazy old Badgerstripe is dead, and now that you've got your name." Berrykit continued.
Darkpelt had had enough. Her eyes snapped open and she twisted to face the kit.
"You knew nothing about him." Darkpelt growled, glaring at the kit with everything in her arsenal. "You do not know how much suffering that "Crazy old cat" went through. His whole family and every one of his friends was dead. You think it's easy being the medicine cat these days? This is war, Berrykit, and cats are suffering. Cats are dying. Our Clan is the smallest. ShadowClan is losing, Berrykit, and you have the nerve to speak about that cat and be grateful he's gone to StarClan? Everyday, cats would carry home other dead cats than collapse themselves from wounds they carried. We do not live in a favorable world, Berrykit. I am a full medicine cat who is 9 moons old. I do not have the patience to be a mentor, and you don't have the stomach to be my apprentice. I'm not old enough to have an apprentice anyway, and I don't want one. So if you dare to say anything bad about Badgerstripe; remember this: he was a better cat then you will ever be."
Darkpelt snapped her mouth closed and continued to glare at the kit. Half of her was morbidly interested in what she would respond with.
Berrykit, frozen with fear and shock, snapped out of her trance and scrambled backwards a few steps.
"I'm telling Pebblecreek." She said, and flipped around, her paws skidding on the stone on her rush to be out of there.
As soon as she was out, Darkpelt crumpled to the ground, the prophecy pounding through her head once more.
Two from beyond will come, but only one will be the one. That which stains will purify the Clans to their former glory. Not all is as it seems, so do not judge at first sight. If Shadow chooses not to heed my words, all will come down and the Shadow will be lost for generations to come. Shadow must trust each other or all efforts will be for naught, the path will not be easy, one mistake may bring the future toppling down on your heads. Without the one, you will fail, and chaos will reign. If the Clans will heed the one, peace will reign for longer than ever before.
Darkpelt shakily got to her paws, and limped slowly out of the medicine den. It was official. She must tell Nightstar. She couldn't contain the prophecy by herself.
Cats stared at her as she emerged into the deep inky blackness of the night. She'd been lying on the floor for longer than she thought.
She could feel Pebblecreek's eyes boring into her neck as she passed the nursery, probably for the awful scare she'd given Berrykit. Darkpelt didn't care. Pebblecreek could go to the Dark Forest.
She stiffly inched into Nightstar's den, and the young black leader raised her head. Not even the old ShadowClan leader had made it through the war, and the young deputy had become the young leader, much too early for anybody's taste. You could clearly see that the stress was breaking her.
"Yes, Darkpelt?" Nightstar was perfectly alert, and though she was supposed to be resting, it was clear she hadn't been.
"I have received a prophecy from StarClan."
Nightstar was instantly on her feet. "I've been waiting for this, Darkpelt. Aid is being sent our way!"
Darkpelt winced. "I don't know, Nightstar."
The leader's expression darkened. "Let me hear it."
Sighing, the medicine cat sunk to the floor, knowing the prophecy would drain the energy out of her.
Nightstar listened attentively as Darkpelt spoke the words with a voice that seemed to rasp and rattle like any elderly cat. The words held real power, and Nightstar knew that if she could command ShadowClan right, the Clans would be saved. Even as Darkpelt passed out on the floor, Nightstar's heart lifted with hope. She exited the den and bounded onto the Highstone in one smooth motion. She pointed her nose to the stars and they seemed to twinkle brightly, just for ShadowClan. Nightstar would hold this bizarre hope in her heart until she won or until she died in the fight for peace.
So? How'd you like it? I thought it turned out pretty well. You guys ready for excitement next chapter? The beginning is a little fast-paced, but that's ok, right? Action is always good. Anyway, I'm a bit tired now. A review would make me the happiest girl in the world! They may even inspire a quick update. After all, the stories with the most reviews update the fastest, am I right?
-Graywhisper