Eaglewing took a step forward, his eyes glinting in the sunlight. "Spottedpaw, you will understand once you're older but…"

"But what?" Spottedpaw snapped, glaring at her mentor, her tail lashing. "You want me to keep quiet about code breaking? That is outrageous!"

Eaglewing glanced at Rosethorn and took a step closer to the WindClan she-cat. The two touched noses before Eaglewing looked back at Spottedpaw, who had a scowl on her face. "Please," he whispered. "I can't bear to stop meeting Rosethorn."

"I can't allow this to happen," Spottedpaw growled. She turned away and turned her nose up. "Especially not when I know that my father will explode when he hears of this." She began to head off towards the camp only to fall to the ground as Eaglewing pounced on her.

Her mentor kept her pinned to the ground and placed his muzzle close to Spottedpaw's ear. "You will tell Carpstar nothing of this, do you understand?"

"What happens if I do," Spottedpaw retorted.

Eaglewing clouted her ear heavily with a sheathed paw. "You don't want to know," he responded before heading back to Rosethorn with a purr. "She'll keep quiet about this, don't worry."

Spottedpaw whirled around and raced over with a loud growl. "No!" she screeched. "This is wrong! Kill me if you must but," she dropped into a crouch with a wry grin. "It won't end well for you."

"Traitor!" Eaglewing growled, whipping around to face his apprentice, curling his lips back to reveal sharp fangs.

"Traitor yourself!" Spottedpaw snapped back.

"I'll go now," Rosethorn responded, looking a bit wary. At Eaglewing's glance she turned and dashed away, her tail streaming out behind her.

Eaglewing turned to Spottedpaw and swiped a paw at her ear. Spottedpaw ducked, letting out a gasp when she felt claws barely touch her ear. She narrowed her eyes and leaped to the side as Eaglewing leaped at her. She dropped to her belly and nipped his hind leg before leaping upwards and racing away. She knew she didn't stand a chance against a seasoned warrior, especially after that fox attack. Her only hope was to run.

Camp isn't that far away, she thought as she let her paws thrum the ground. She pushed herself faster and faster, unaware of the territory flashing by her. She turned her ears backwards to hear pawsteps steadily thrumming the ground in an even rhythm. The pawsteps were coming steadily closer and Spottedpaw slowed and whirled around, preparing to fight. She dropped into a crouch, snarling and glanced around at her surroundings. There was nothing she could use to her advantage and she turned to face Eaglewing, stifling a pang of dread of facing such an experienced opponent with unsheathed claws.

Before she could defend herself a dark brown tabby blur leapt in front of her with bristling fur and a hiss escaping from its jaws. Eaglewing skidded to a halt, eyes wide as the tom leapt at her mentor and the two cats crashed to the ground, hissing and spitting. Spottedpaw dashed in and broke them apart with a loud growl, her growl faltering when she got shit of the tom. He was a dark brown tabby with bright green eyes. His tail had a white tail tip and he was lean and muscular. There was a small scar on his right ear and a few scars on his muzzle which suggested that he'd been in a few fights.

"Hello," Spottedpaw meowed as she glanced back at her mentor. Eaglewing was sitting, his tail twitching and ears flattened but he made no move. Instead his eyes glinted with something almost similar to amusement. Stifling an irritated snort, Spottedpaw turned back to the tom and tilted her head slightly, realizing that he wasn't much older than she was. "What's your name?"

"Sparrow," the tom responded with a respectful dip of his head. "What's your name, miss?"

Spottedpaw smiled, pleased to be addressed with such respect. She dipped her head in respect. "I'm Spottedpaw," she responded. She flicked her tail in her mentor's direction. "And that insufferable tom over there is my mentor, Eaglewing."

Sparrow took a step back, his eyes widening slightly and his pelt beginning to bush up. "Spottedpaw, Eaglwing," the tom muttered as if he was testing out their names. "You're Clan cats!"

"That's right," Eaglewing growled, getting to his paws and moving forward a few paces to stand beside Spottedpaw. "And you're on our territory."

Sparrow cast him a glare, letting out a low growl. "Make me leave then," he challenged.

As a response, Spottedpaw leaped forward only to realize that the tom had stepped away from her. She whirled around to see that Eaglewing had leapt forward and was meeting the rogue's blows evenly and quickly. She moved forward slowly before leaping and barreling into the tom, causing him to fall to the ground, her tail flicking slightly. Sparrow twisted and landed a blow on her shoulder and Spottedpaw just twitched her whiskers, realizing that the paw was sheathed. Eaglewing seemed to have realized the same thing and just glared down at Sparrow.

"You seem reluctant to fight," Eaglewing sneered with a delighted gleam to his eyes.

Sparrow's eyes flashed but to his credit, the tom didn't flinch. Instead, he met Eaglewing's gaze, seemingly unafraid of the aggressive warrior. "I would like to speak to your leader," he stated in a calm tone.

Spottedpaw narrowed her eyes slightly and flicked her tail. She refrained from attacking, seeing that there was no use in doing so. Yet, she couldn't help but feel that the tom was hiding something. Sparrow seemed almost eager to see their leader and he was way too calm for a rogue. What was going on? She glanced at her mentor, wondering what he thought about Sparrow's request.

Eaglewing's gaze was unreadable as he stepped off the tom, tail flicking. Sparrow got up and shook his pelt free of the dirt and dust that he had collected during the fight before sitting down. The tom looked unruffled even though he sported a few scratches that showed plainly against his dark brown tabby pelt. "Well?" the tom probed gently when the silence stretched on. "Can I see your leader?"

Eaglewing curled his lip slightly but half-turned away from the rogue. His ears flattened slightly before he set off in the direction of the camp. "Might as well," he grumbled as he moved. Sparrow followed Eaglewing, his fur smooth and flat as Spottedpaw took up the rear, glancing around.

"Thank you," Sparrow stated politely. "I really appreciate it."

"Save the smooth talk for Carpstar," Eaglewing snapped. The warrior glanced over his shoulder at the tom, his eyes flashing. "And don't try any funny business on the way back to camp."

To Sparrow's credit, he remained slient as they trekked back towards the camp. Spottedpaw was relieved since she didn't want to prod her mentor anymore than was necessary. After all, Eaglewing was already irked at her for talking back to him and refusing to keep his secret about that WindClan she-cat. Rosethorn, wasn't it? Spottedpaw thought as she padded asbentmindly through the territory, trusting her paws to know where to go.