Back to the normal story; Training, hunting, and so forth. I'd like to thank GinnyStar, Dawnfire17, Starpaw, Lilypelt and Angelfang for reviewing. Wow, quite a few names. Um… I hope you enjoy this chapter. It didn't take me as long as the last chapter, but the next chapter is taking so long, I won't be able to update right away. But I'll update as soon as I can. So here's Chapter Six. Hope all of you like it.
Chapter 6: Honors
"Hey Mosspaw, are you awake?" a voice whispered in her ear. It was two days after her talk with Bluestar.
"I am now." she growled, opening her eyes. She saw Firepaw standing over her.
"Oh sorry, it's just… Bluestar called a meeting and I thought you might want to come." he mumbled looking at the ground.
"Stupid furball. Of course I want to go to a Clan meeting. Is Graypaw out there?" she meowed, stretching her legs.
"No, he went on the morning patrol. I woke Ravenpaw up though. He's already out there."
"Then let's go." Together they trotted out into the clearing. Ravenpaw had saved them a seat as Bluestar was just beginning to talk.
"Two of our apprentices have been injured, while one has been sharing mentors. We need to speed up the training of our young cats. From now on, I will take on Firepaw as my own apprentice. And I want to warn you all that a fox is still in ThunderClan territory. Don't let any kits out of camp, and always be wary when you're out in the forest. You are dismissed." Ravenpaw and Mosspaw stared at the ginger tom with wide eyes and open mouths.
"Wow, Bluestar hasn't mentored a cat in forever." Mosspaw meowed.
"Yeah, the last cat she took on as an apprentice was Runningwind." Ravenpaw added, pointing to a tabby by the fresh-kill pile. "He was made a warrior before I was kitted. Moons before."
"So this is a big honor?" Firepaw asked, tilting his head.
"Bigger than a kittypet deserves." Tigerclaw growled. Ravenpaw instantly ducked his head and flattened his ears. Mosspaw stared at the giant tom with wide and slightly frightened eyes. Firepaw just glared at him and refused to break eye contact. The other two apprentices waited until one of them cracked. Bluestar noticed and came over.
"What are you two doing?" she sighed, sitting next to Mosspaw.
"Nothing. Just wishing Firepaw luck on being your apprentice." Tigerclaw responded with an icy tone. Bluestar rolled her eyes as Tigerclaw left.
"He thinks I'm as blind as a new-born kit. That stupid thistle-brained tabby." Bluestar half growled. The three apprentices looked at her. "Sorry, I don't mean anything by it."
"You sure? I know that I'm not that only one that feels this way, but Tigerclaw is menacing. Like a creature with no heart. He cares only about himself, and scares several cats. Father says he'd never trust Tigerclaw even if he was the last cat to live." Mosspaw meowed to her leader, hatred coating her voice. Ravenpaw shuffled his paws as he opened and closed his mouth.
"Don't let him catch you saying that!" Ravenpaw finally choked out.
"Don't let any cat catch you saying something like that. I don't want my warriors turning on each other." Bluestar snapped at them. Ravenpaw frowned when she said that. He even gave a small growl.
"Calm down. I wasn't being that serious." Mosspaw defended herself, causing Ravenpaw's expression to revert back to normal.
"Spottedleaf says you two are healing up. In fact she says you to can go back to apprentice duties starting this morning." Bluestar replied, changing the subject. "So you three are coming on patrol with me." The apprentices' ears twitched as they lifted their heads. Their jaws dropped a little as their eyes grew wide.
"Are you serious?" Mosspaw asked. Using her tail, she snapped shut her friends' mouths.
"Why of course. Your mentors won't mind if I steal you for the day. And Firepaw is now my apprentice. I want him to come on patrol with me as well as his two friends. And you two haven't been out of camp for awhile." Bluestar responded. Firepaw felt a few inches taller as he heard Bluestar say he was her apprentice.
"Thank you Bluestar." All three apprentices meowed, bowing their heads. The gray she-cat gave a small laugh.
"Come on then." she purred, trotting to the camp entrance. The three young cats padded after her, not noticing the look they were getting from Tigerclaw and his small gang of followers.
"Where are we going?" Firepaw asked, as they followed an invisible trail.
"No where in particular. We're just running along the border. When we're done, we'll hunt before heading back." Bluestar answered scenting the air.
"Can we start with the ShadowClan border?" Mosspaw requested, as she climbed atop a giant bolder. She gave a small shudder as she remembered the RiverClan patrol.
"Yes. And don't worry about foxes." Bluestar replied.
"But you told us we should, at the meeting." Mosspaw argued.
"Not exactly. I said to look out and be cautious, not to be worried out of your fur."
"Yes Bluestar." The young she-cat sighed. As the group of cats headed along the border, Ravenpaw grew tense. He jumped at every sound and every moving shadow.
"Nothing's going to get you." Firepaw muttered after his black-furred friend bolted from a falling leaf.
"Sorry. It's just that I haven't been out of camp for awhile and I'm a bit edgy." he replied, moving away from Firepaw. He moved closer to Mosspaw as they continued to walk.
"It's natural. I'm afraid of foxes right now because of what happened to me." Mosspaw reasoned, giving her nervous friend a soothing lick on the ear.
"Thanks." he smiled, touching his nose to hers.
"And if you want, we can claw up Firepaw and show him how we feel." the she-cat suggested as she grabbed the ginger tom's tail. He turned around and gave a fake hiss as he pulled his tail away.
"I'd like to see you try." he warned before he started laughing. The other two joined in as they continued to walk.
"Now, now, you three, calm down. We're nearing ShadowClan territory. I want you all to be on your toes and watch each others backs." Bluestar instructed them. The three apprentices' laughter died away as their eyes hardened and their fur rippled.
"Yes Bluestar." they responded at once. Their leader nodded as they scanned the border. Mosspaw was the first to notice something wrong. She smelled a sour scent that made her fur prickle. As the scent flooded her senses, she scrunched up her nose, hoping to get rid of the foul scent.
"It's a rogue's scent. They were here a little while ago." she pointed out.
"You're right. Come on. Let's go track them down." Bluestar ordered, bounding after the scent. The young apprentices chased after her, staying right on her trail.
Is it one of the cats that attacked our Clan when Wolfkit was killed? Or are even more rogues showing up? Mosspaw thought to herself as she ran alongside Ravenpaw and Firepaw. If it's the one that took my brother's life, I will kill them without a second thought. Even if it's seen down upon by our ancestors.
The patrol followed the scent across ThunderClan territory. As they ran, they passed the Great Sycamore, the Training Hollow and the Owl Tree. The rogue was still moving fast, but they never saw him. Along the way they found a half eaten piece of prey, marked with the rogue's foul stench. Mosspaw grew angrier as she traveled further.
No good filthy piece of crowfood! Trespasses, steals our food, and doesn't even finish it! They are going to pay when I get my claws on them! She growled in her mind at the thought of the rogue actually turning out to be the cat that took her brother away from her.
Bluestar stopped at the edge of the river and scented the air. Mosspaw dug her claws angrily into the damp ground, imagining it as the rogue's fur. Firepaw and Ravenpaw stared at her with slightly frightened eyes as their friend glared at the ground with eyes full of rage. With a defeated look on her face, Bluestar looked at the trio of young cats.
"It's no use. They're RiverClan's problem now." the leader meowed.
"So we're just giving up?!" Mosspaw raged.
"We can't go over into RiverClan. And that's where the rogue went." Bluestar tried to reason.
"So! That cat trespassed and stole our prey! They need to pay!"
"Mosspaw calm down!" Firepaw snapped. The she-cat turned her attention towards him. Her fur lied flat and her eyes were cleared of rage.
"Fine, if you want to be a spineless mouse, then I'll go after him myself." she growled, turning her back towards them. Instantly she tore at the ground as she raced away from them. Ravenpaw went after her while the other two stood speechless.
"Stop acting like a kit!" he yowled at her as he tried to keep up.
"Leave me alone!" she roared at him, watching her steps as the mud around the bank grew towards the forest.
"Mosspaw, listen. You can't take on the rogue without having a clear head." Ravenpaw called. She ignored him and sprinted thirty mouse-lengths ahead of him. Snarling he called within himself and tried to summon enough power to run faster than her and to get in front of her. Then he could stop her.
Lunging, he flew past Mosspaw and swerved in front of her. She skidded to a stop and barely missed crashing into him. Ravenpaw whipped around to face her. He hardened his eyes as he refused to let her pass.
"Come on, you really can't be that angry at a rogue. What's going on?" he asked calmly. Mosspaw flexed her already out claws.
"Leave me alone or I'll push you into the river." she threatened. Again he stood his ground, and didn't move.
"No. I won't let you do something you'll regret later." he hissed. Anger shined in her eyes she turned around and started to run the other way, just to get away from him. But Ravenpaw grabbed her tail in his mouth and bit down, hard. Mosspaw whisked around and raked her claws down his side. Blood swelled out of his flank and clogged the fur on her paws. He let go of her tail and bit down on her neck, taking advantage of her past wound. She shrieked in pain as the wound sent pain throughout her body.
Her eyes then grew dark, a scowl formed on her face, and she could think of nothing but bringing pain to the one's that got in her way. She actually thought about killing him; her friend that she had known since she opened her eyes, the friend that she now wanted to destroy. Oh StarClan! What am I doing?! She screamed in her mind, but it was pushed away by malicious thoughts.
You're taking down the one that stands in your way. Now kill him, and avenge your brother! The voice rang in her head as she clawed at her dark-furred friend. Ravenpaw's eyes widened with fear, as he fought for his life.
Poor Ravenpaw and Mosspaw, but then again all relationships have their rough patch. Oh! Did I just ruin one of the secrets yet to come?! Kawakage, you ignoramus! I guess I'll now have to be extra careful. And I know a few chapters ago; I said something about asking names, well now is the time to reveal the cats I need names for. I need two names of apprentices from RiverClan, both are she-cats, a male warrior from RiverClan and a tom apprentice from WindClan. I also need their colors, markings, anything unique about them, etc. And I'll announce the names I chose in a few chapters, and they'll be a major-ish part of the plot. But I should say that they only appear for two or three chapters. You can be as creative as you want. But I need the male warrior sooner than the apprentices.
Disclaimer time! I do not own Warriors.
Firepaw: Finally, I get to say something. Is Mosspaw alright? She never told us her past.
Mosspaw: Because some things are meant to be secrets!
Graypaw: Blame Firepaw! I told him not to say anything.
Ravenpaw: I blame you both. Leave her alone once in awhile.
Firepaw: Sorry I said anything.
Graypaw: Me too. So Ravenpaw, do you have anything against Tigerclaw? Firepaw told me about your little confrontation before going on the patrol, without me.
Ravenpaw: *glares at a certain ginger tom* He's a little harsh and not that good of a mentor. I'll leave it at that.
Mosspaw: I'm glad Mousefur's my mentor. She's the best. And… Lionheart's okay, but seems to let Graypaw off with too much.
Graypaw: Hey! He's great and there's nothing wrong with me!
Firepaw: Except for the fact that you eat more than Mosspaw, Ravenpaw and I combined.
Graypaw: Oh hush! At least I'm not-
No more Graypaw.
Firepaw: Now that's-
No more for you either. We've run out of time, again.
Mosspaw: *mutters under breath* You two always waste our time.
Ravenpaw: See you next time!
And please review!
