Disclaimer: Warriors by Erin Hunter
Thanks to reviewers: xXthunderspiritXx, Graysky, xXXMoonfireXXx, Ginnystar, Anidori-Isilee, Wolfgaze, and xxSnowfirexx.
This is still a story. They will start and end with italics, but the middle will be normal.
vote for your favorite main character (of my fanfics) on my profile. So far one vote for Fallingsnow(star)!
Graysky, I will reveal the answer to your question in probably ten chapters. I don't know when, but Raven and the rest of the old Clan will make an appearance.
Chapter 7
Time moved on in Summerheat. Petalfur became one of the senior warriors. Then a mysterious thing happened one day. Goldengrove, the deputy, didn't return from a patrol. Glide sent warriors to find the golden tabby she-cat but no one ever could. The last to see her was Redfoot, but Petalfur's brother could only say Goldengrove wanted him to leave. He hadn't seen the reason to fight against his deputy and did as asked. Besides, this wasn't the first time she'd done such a thing. The last time Goldengrove disappeared, she had kits a few moons later.
Everyone thought this was the same. That she'd come back after being with her rogue tom. Unfortunately, she didn't come back for one moon and Glide knew it was serious. It was time for a new deputy. He'd sent out warriors for her, but they caught neither sight nor scent of her and had to give up. Glide took to the Low Branch the night he decided Goldengrove wasn't returning.
"She was a great deputy," he meowed. His body was hunched over, not only in sadness, but with age. All of the apprentices in his day were in the elders den, many having died.
"But she made her decision, whether she left us to live a better life, or that she's gone to StarClan, we must accept that she is not coming back to us," Glide sighed. "Not since my days as Glidingcloud have I had to make such a hard decision. Goldengrove was with me since I took on my leadership from Dark. Life with her was easy for me, but now I realize I have to choose a cat that will likely take leadership from me. It has been a hard decision as there are many wonderful cats in this Clan. Many who are wise, young, and even great leaders, but hardly any have as much experience in life and death as the cat I will call. She has gone through everything: near death experiences, not listening to mentors, having an apprentice not listen to her, giving and receiving help, learning all techniques even if she failed many times. A cat of patience and reliability. I call Petalfur to be the deputy. In the sight of StarClan, I ask you to accept her."
Petalfur looked up in surprise. She hadn't realized he thought so highly of her. Now she looked up at her leader and realized what he was giving her. When he was gone, the Clan was hers and she had to guide them through hard times as well as easy, but it would be the hard ones they'd rely on her the most.
The Clan yowled their agreement to the sky. They didn't object to this decision of Glide's. They didn't often disagree with the leader, but there were times it happened. Petalfur knew she'd have to accept the times the Clan wouldn't listen or agree with her. It was hard to believe that would actually happen to her. Petalfur, a leader?
"Come here, Petalfur," Glide invited her.
Petalfur got up on her numb legs and stood right under the Low Branch staring up at the long furred white leader. His green eyes looked down at her in compassion, probably remembering his own ceremony.
"Petalfur, do you accept this responsibility of watching out for the Clan and being the cat they will trust to help them when I cannot?"
She nodded, unable to talk.
"Then I ask StarClan to accept this new deputy of Summerheat and help her to do your will," Glide meowed, head tilted to the stars that they could see through the clearing of trees.
The Clan called out Petalfur's name. Among them she could pick out Redfoot, Waterdrop, Desertfur, and Clearecho calling out the loudest. These were her friends and family. The cats she'd known all her life. She smiled at them, knowing that she wasn't alone. She had them with her and no matter what they wouldn't guide her wrong. They'd tell her if she wasn't doing what she was supposed to or if the Clan was frustrated with her. She closed her eyes and let their calls fill her heart.
-Line-
"Now you know the highlights of my life," Petal meowed to Frog where he was curled up in her belly fur. He wasn't listening. He was sleeping already exhausted by the trek. Now they were at rest, sheltered and waiting for morning to come.
"So becoming leader wasn't one?" Lightberry asked, looking at her leader.
"Not really," Petal confessed. "I'd already expected it once Glide called me as deputy. So after he died from the greencough, it felt natural. The Clan were calling me Petal once they knew."
"What about-" Cloverleaf started to ask.
"Another time," Petal laughed. Her laughter was raspy and it gave evidence to her age. She might have been fit, but she was still old and soon she'd start to show it. Even Waterdrop, who was older than she, was starting to walk with a slower step. Petal finally had to admit to herself they weren't just going slow for Frog, but for her. She didn't want to be old, she realized. There was so much to do and what if she died out here away from camp. Would StarClan be able to find her? Who would lead these five other cats without her? She had a feeling she'd have to look out for the right cat very soon.
"You all have stories to tell," Petal meowed, looking between them. "When you're done, I may tell you more, but I can't take up all the time."
Lightberry seemed disappointed.
"So who goes next?" she asked.
"You can," Petal suggested.
Lightberry vigorously shook her head.
"I will," Cloverleaf offered.
"Then next sunhigh, you will start," Petal told her.
Cloverleaf nodded, accepting.
Petal was actually interested in hearing her warriors' stories. She didn't know them personally. That had ended as the cats her age and older left to StarClan and the ones younger only knew her as leader and weren't friendly with her. They saw her as a leader, the decision maker, not as a friend. Bluelightning had to be the go between, just like Petalface had been for Glide.
Petal knew there were many other stories she could have told, but those had been the ones she thought important and ones she thought influenced her the most. She wondered what the others would tell. She lowered her head, seeing Duststripe take up the night guard position. She wondered what stories he had to tell and if he would make them exciting for his son. Petal wondered what it would have been like to have a kit. But she knew the only cat she'd ever love hadn't seemed so interested in family life as her. She wondered if in this new life of running there would even be time to finally ask him if he loved her. She glanced over at the silver-gray tom and felt glad that he'd been by her side all the time, even after Redfoot died in the same greencough wave that had killed Glide.
She closed her eyes and let herself drift, remembering her life as a plain warrior.
-Line-
The next day came, and Frog was up early. The sun was only starting to light up the sky. Frog was by Cloverleaf's side, staring at her when she opened her eyes.
"It's your turn," Frog whispered to her.
Cloverleaf blinked at him and closed her eyes, too tired.
Frog frowned at her.
Duststripe meanwhile, mrrred with pleasure. His son was humorous at times. He also certainly needed to be told 'no' once-and-awhile. This was a good time to learn. Duststripe knew his son was spoiled. He was the only kit in their group. Yet Frog also wasn't spoiled because no kit would have been expected to do all this, walk and wait for food, and sometimes not getting any. It was almost like his son was already an apprentice.
As Frog went to bother Waterdrop, who'd gone in search of more strengthening herbs, Duststripe wondered who would mentor his son. He wanted it to be a good cat but at the same time he doubted anyone would have time to teach Frog. They were on the run. When would they teach Frog to fight or to hunt?
Duststripe looked in the direction of the rising sun. He couldn't see the forest at all now, just rolling hills of grass and the occasional tree. Tanglewood was far behind. Duststripe missed his old life. He missed being in a Clan and knowing what to expect. He liked the patrols and the hunting and the relaxing, knowing he was home and not having to look over his shoulder all the time. All this walking wasn't what he wanted. He knew he could never handle being a loner. They always seemed to travel.
"Frog!"
Duststripe looked over. It was Lightberry. She'd brought prey. Now she was calling Frog back to them. Waterdrop was nowhere in sight. Duststripe wondered how the tom had lost the kit. He could see Frog pouncing on top of a grasshopper, throwing it into the air. At Lightberry's second call, the kit came running, his tail waving in the air.
"Look what I brought you!" Frog proudly told her. He placed the grasshopper at her feet.
"Good job!" Lightberry praised. "It's big!"
Frog purred happily.
"As a reward," the brown she-cat told him. "You get first pick."
Frog looked at her catch and picked out the rabbit. It was bigger than the kit. Lightberry let him take it, smiling in amusement.
"Think you would share?" Duststripe asked his son, coming over.
Cloverleaf got up, roused by the smell of blood. Petal slowly opened her eyes. She seemed to sleep later and later. Duststripe hoped she'd feel better soon. He didn't know what they'd do without her.
"Okay," Frog agreed. He put the rabbit down, which he hadn't managed to drag far.
The rest of the prey was distributed and they ate, waiting for the order to move again. They didn't have much relaxing time when they were walking. Only when they felt safe and didn't see the rogues would they take most of the morning to start again.
Waterdrop came back later with herbs. He passed them around and they started walking over the empty hills and to the long horizon. Sunhigh almost came too soon for the rest of the cats. They stopped and laid around in the sunlight. Duststripe looked into the sky. The sunlight seemed to be getting weaker and weaker. He knew greenleaf was ending. Soon the rains would come. He hoped they wouldn't be stuck out in them. He wished they'd find a forest soon.
Cloverleaf sat up, getting ready to tell her story. Lightberry abruptly jumped in before the dappled she-cat could continue.
"I'd like to do mine, if you don't mind," Lightberry meowed.
Cloverleaf looked surprised. She'd volunteered last night to tell her story. Lightberry had looked like telling hers would have been torture. It seemed she'd changed her mind.
"We might as well go oldest to youngest," Lightberry meowed with a small smile.
"In that case, Waterdrop should have gone first," Petal smiled at the silver tom.
He only looked slightly amused. Duststripe knew Waterdrop didn't like talking. He certainly never said much unless he was extremely annoyed. Duststripe had only experienced that a few times and didn't want to again. Only Petal could get away with teasing the leafcat. Waterdrop didn't look like he'd share his story. He kept his mouth closed and looked back at Petal.
"You don't mind if Lightberry goes first?" Petal asked Cloverleaf.
The dappled she-cat shook her head and laid back down. "Go ahead."
"Thanks," Lightberry smiled.
Frog, meanwhile, curled up beside Duststripe, looked interested. Duststripe was sure he didn't care who told the story as long as someone did. Frog was just interested in how the older cats behaved with each other. Duststripe was sure if Frog's brothers were around, they'd be practicing letting the other cat take their turn. With that thought Duststripe's mind wandered to his other sons, Fox and Bee. He wondered how they were and what they were learning. Did Sullen follow the code or had he made the kits apprentices too soon?
"I'll start with life when I was a kit," Lightberry meowed, drawing attention.
Duststripe looked up at her and thought she looked regal. The sun lit up her fur and even if she wasn't big on sharing things about herself, Duststripe could already tell she was a great storyteller.
Frog's ears perked up as Lightberry gazed at the kit, seeming to speak directly to the tom.
-Line-
Light and Dusk were like opposites. Though their coloring wasn't opposite- he was dark dusky ginger and she was light brown with dusty gray spots- the differences were in their personalities. He was excitable and adventurous. She was more reserved and loved staying in the nursery by their mother. However when Dusk came to her with an idea, she never let him down, eager to go with him anywhere. Such was the case one newleaf morning.
Their mother was still sleeping. She was so far the only queen in the nursery and her two kits managed to exhaust her. Dusk came up to Light, over the bundles of moss and feathers, and nudged his sister awake.
"Let's explore," he meowed.
That was her cue. Light got up, carefully untangling from her mother and snuck toward the nursery entrance with Dusk. The nursery was a large rose bush, shaped into a gloomy, warm dome. Large thorns had been trained to poke outward in a protective shell. Currently, rose flowers were in bloom, filling the camp with their strong scent. Light knew it would cover her and her brother's own. She giggled, thinking how this was like hunting prey. She hadn't done that yet, but her father, Silvertips, said that the hunter had to be quiet. She crouched down, moving one foot in front of the other. They hopped out of the entrance, pushing away the brambles placed in front of it.
One scratched her ear. She stifled a painful squeak and hurried after her brother.
Out in the grassy clearing, no cats stirred. Leaves were starting to grow on the trees and bird calls twittered above them. The chilled morning air stung Light's scratch and she licked a paw, swiping it over her wound. The sun was barely over the horizon, covering what it could reach in a golden color. Dusk looked around and then marched for the forest. Light hurried after.
"Where are we going?" she whispered.
"The field," he whispered back.
Light looked at him in surprise. She'd only heard about the field from Mother who hunted rabbits there. Light didn't even know where it was! They'd have to go through all that forest to reach it! Light looked at Dusk doubtfully.
"Trust me," he purred, his eyes shining.
Light smiled. She trusted him.
Dusk started walking again, Light by his side. The clearing was large but they finally crossed it. Light was not yet exhausted, but her legs ached. That had been too much sneaking! She stood up straight, giving that up. There wasn't any need to hide anymore. No cat would find them now that they were out of the clearing.
Once in the forest, they had to cross a fallen log. Light stared up at the smooth side, feeling down. They'd never get over that, she thought, but Dusk had an idea. He crouched down, telling Light to get onto his back. She did. He stood up slowly, getting Light halfway up. Light wobbled on her brother's back. Her claws came out and he winced.
"Jump already," he encouraged.
Light jumped for the log. Her claws dug in and she pulled herself up. Soon she was at the top. She looked around, her chest filled with pride at what she'd accomplished. She looked at the forest, thick with growing ferns and bushes and was in awe. The place was so big. Golden drops of dew covered everything, some larger drops falling to the ground in small puddles. Light's brother joined her a while later. He was breathing heavily.
"Now where?" she asked, turning away from the beauty.
"Follow me," he mewed.
She did. Somehow they got out of the forest unharmed. Of course it took almost the whole day and Light longed to go back to the nursery. She was hungry and tired but Dusk led her on. He was determined to find the field. Light trailed after, bored. She'd always thought the forest was exciting, full of prey and foxes. She'd seen nothing and complained about it. Dusk told her they'd see something. They never did. Light wished her mother would come and rescue her. She wanted to be back in the warm den. She thought she heard calls but she wasn't sure and didn't call back.
Then they found the field. The forest just ended and out stretched the longest clearing Light had ever seen and she thought she'd seen a lot. Bushes, rabbits, flowers, tall grass to hide in. Light was suddenly not tired as she looked at this field. She yowled in joy and raced out. Dusk followed, calling out just as happily.
Dusk pounced on Light and they tussled for a short time in the tall grass. Then they played scent-and-track, hiding and then springing out at each other. Once they even chased a rabbit around. Light soon grew tired again and realized the sun was starting to sink. She'd gone so long without a nap! Wouldn't mother be furious!
Light looked around, wondering where her brother was so she could encourage him to take her back to camp. She couldn't find him at first and then she saw him at the far end of the field where there was a dark line. She wandered over. He was staring down a slope. Light joined him and looked down too. Below them was a stream. It was the biggest stream she'd ever seen! She looked down at it, watching shapes below the water. She wanted to jump on them. To take them out of the water to see what they were. Just then Dusk stood up.
"Want to see what I can do?" he asked her.
Light nodded vigorously. It had to be something exciting. He didn't do boring things.
Dusk stood up and along the edge of the slope, started walking in a straight line. Light watched breathlessly. He was actually balancing on the edge! Small trails of dirt trickled down the slope at every step. The dark shapes darted away when some fell into the water. Then Dusk came to a rock. He leapt on top and then started balancing on three feet, then two. Finally he lifted up both his back legs and started balancing on his front.
Light cheered. He was so great and brave. She'd never do anything like that herself. She wouldn't have been able to think of it. Now she wanted to go do it. She walked over but in that instant someone shouted.
Light looked up just as Dusk flinched, startled. He fell. Light turned away from the three cats coming toward them and stared at the rock. Her brother wasn't there anymore. Light's eyes widened and she raced forward, not noticing the other cats do the same. Light ran to where her brother had been. She looked for him and saw him at the bottom of the slop, halfway in the gently moving water. He lay next to a smaller rock. On top of the rock, Light thought she saw something red and wet. Just then the warriors arrived.
One cat dove over the slope side, running down to Dusk. The other three stayed with Light, one pulling her away from the edge. Light protested, she wanted to see her brother. Why wasn't he moving? She tried to slip away but the cat grasped her by the scruff and started carrying her away.
"What do I do? What do I do?" the ginger cat by her brother yowled. "Do I move him?"
"I don't know!" the gray she-cat yelled back. "Leave him. I'll get Silvertips."
Light knew her father was the senior leafcat. She also knew that whenever anyone got the leafcat, something serious had happened. She felt scared for the first time.
"Dusk!" she wailed. "Dusk!"
But the cat holding her continued to take her away. Back to her mother, back to camp. Light didn't think she'd ever see her brother again.
***I know I said I wouldn't update until summer. I thought I'd be busy. I think I might have a way to work this out so I can update once a week. Hurray! I don't know about Unkown Skies though. I'll have to see.
Hey if you want to know the allegiances of the old Clan (during Petal's apprentice story) look down:
Leader Glide- long-furred tom with green eyes
Deputy Goldengrove- golden tabby she-cat with dark black ears
Leafcats Creamfur- creamy brown she-cat (apprentice: Water)
Silvertips- black and gray tom with silver paws, ears, and tail
Warriors
Whiteleaf- white she-cat with two brown spots
apprentice: Mist
Stormshadow- dark gray she-cat with silver chest and creamy paw, Glide's mate
Windheart- silver she-cat with tortoiseshell back
Brownfur- dark tabby tom
apprentice: Feather
Tawnyear- dappled tom with white ear
Dawningsun- silvery-white she-cat with ginger belly
Voletail- brown tom with missing tail
Tigerlily- dark brown tabby she-cat
apprentice: Petal
Narrowtail- black she-cat with small tail
Fallingtree- ginger tom with striped legs and green eyes
Apprentice: Red
Apprentices
Feather- light gray she-cat with creamy underbelly
Mist-gray she-cat
Clear- white she-cat with a brown chin
Water- silver gray tom with blue eyes
Petal- red-brown she-cat with light gray spots
Red- ginger tom with white tail tip
Queens
Cherrynose- light brown she-cat with blue eyes, mother of Brownfur's two kits: Dawn (gray she-cat with golden eyes) and Forest (white tom with silver legs and green eyes)
Elders
Gingerflame- large ginger tom with one white paw
Flickerbreeze- gray she-cat with white and black spots
Swiftclaw- brown and ginger tom
