Silver-Jaws
Pandean, I hope I've caught Nettleskip's personality right! Oh, and I hope you don't mind that she is becoming a quite important character. To everyone: Enjoy!
Nettleskip curled up in her bed. Inside, her feelings were a confused mess.
I thought… Well, I don't know what I thought! StarClan showed me the prophecy, then they showed me the reason that Nightpaw was evil! I walked in Featherwing's dream, and I watched her re-live the moment in her mind… But Nightpaw didn't seem evil when I met her today! And I saw Daypaw, and he seemed like an utter show-off!
She couldn't sleep, despite tiredness clogging up her eyes. She heaved herself out of bed, and wobbled out of the medicine cat's den. The camp was silent, except for Foxtail, who was guarding the camp, and he believed whatever he was told anyway.
"Collecting herbs," Nettleskip told him as she walked past.
He frowned. "Is some-cat ill?"
"No, I just running out of- "Make a herb up, Nettleskip! He won't know! "Berry… Powder."
"Berry powder?"
"Yep."
"In the middle of the night?"
"Medicine cats can make Berry Powder, but only in the middle of the night." Nettleskip made her voice all dreamy, and magical-sounding.
"Really?
"But I have to go now…" Her voice turned sharp.
Foxtail got the hint. "Right. Sorry."
Nettleskip padded away, pretending not to notice the look of wonder and admiration in the ginger warrior's eyes. Mouse-brain.
She slipped through the camp entrance, and out onto the moonlit moor. She walked slowly, moving where-ever her paws led her.
After a while she reached a place she hadn't visited in seasons.
Why here? She wondered, and made to walk away, when she realised that the fear that usually attacked her when she was here hadn't arrived.
I can't avoid it forever. She thought, and shakily padded forward.
The beautiful, green moor changed to dirty, dry, dead grass. Brown leaves crumbled under-paw, and she winced at every sound.
The last time Nettleskip had come here, it hadn't ended well. As much as she tried to push the memories away, they took over her mind, bringing pain with them…
The sun was bright, though occasionally dark clouds drifted across the sky. Nettleskip (But she was Nettlepaw then) trotted happily through the moor, her paw not wounded at all.
"Catmint…" She murmured to herself, her amber gaze flicked to the place where the grass died. She could see a fresh bunch of the herb growing next to a pile of leaves. She bounced over to it, and went to grab it, when a strange smell reached her nose.
"Rabbit? But… It smells like crow-food…" She mewed, puzzled.
Turning around, she saw a silver glint from under the pile of leaves. Instantly, she pounced on it.
They were like silver jaws, whipping out from under the leaves. Yelping, she turned away, but her paw was caught. The Silver-Jaws bit down harder, and sticky, red blood coated her paw.
Looking to her right, she saw a dead, brown rabbit. It was unlucky, and had its spine snapped by Silver-jaws.
From the distance, Nettlepaw heard Two-leg talk. She began struggling more energetically.
The pain that the Silver-Jaws were making blurred Nettlepaw's vision. She had been medicine cat apprentice for long enough to know that she was losing blood too fast. Soon she would feint.
'Snap!' The Silver-Jaws bit through some of her toes, skin, bone and all. Nettlepaw felt that she was going to die if she felt this pain a moment longer.
Whimpering, Nettlepaw wriggled her paw, creating more scratches… But also loosening it.
Along with a yelp of agony, Nettlepaw tore her paw away, and limped as fast as she could away from the two-leg trap.
Nettleskip panted. She began to tread more slowly, praying the moonlight would be enough to guide her away from any Silver-Jaws.
Soon, she reached the pace where she had nearly died.
What was that? It was exactly where she had scarred her paw. Creeping forward, Nettleskip's eyes widened with wonder.
A thick, golden feather lay on the ground. Next to it, was a coal-black one. Resting in the middle was a nettle leaf.
A silent breeze touched the nettle leaf, but the feathers stayed where they were. The nettle leaf twirled around, bouncing between the golden feather and the black one. Finally, it came to a rest on the black.
"StarClan?" Nettleskip whispered.
Snowstar's scent wrapped around her, along with the words: "Dreams are often just dreams, Nettleskip…"
Nettleskip looked around, but Snowstar was nowhere to be seen.
Slowly, Nettleskip walked back to camp. As she went, a sliver of movement caught her eye. Over on the other side of the lake, a silver she-cat was padding by the water. She lifted her head, and saw Nettleskip.
Everything was quiet. Silent, even.
Nettleskip dipped her head, in apology.
Slowly, Silentsong walked towards her friend. It was still a full moon, and Silentsong stayed within a fox-length of the lake, so StarClan couldn't tell them they were wrong.
When Silentsong reached Nettleskip, Nettleskip looked at the ground. "Silentsong… Look, I need to ask you something."
Silentsong watched Nettleskip interestedly.
"D- Did Nightkit try to kill Daykit?"
After a long hesitation, Silentsong nodded, slowly.
Nettleskip felt as though her thoat was blocked.
"S- So you have an evil cat as your apprentice?"
Silentsong shook her head determinedly. Then she thought. Then she spoke.
"Her mother is Featherwing."
Nettleskip stared at Silentsong. "You can speak?"
"Obviously," Silentsong smiled.
"Then… Why don't you?"
Silentsong ignored the question. "Her mother is Featherwing." She repeated.
"How does that have anything to do with-" Nettleskip thought for a moment. "Wait, is Featherwing the one who said that there was a fox attacking a patrol, when really the patrol had just smelled some fox-dirt?" Thinstar had announced that at a gathering.
Silentsong nodded.
Nettleskip realised what that meant. "So… When she said Nightpaw had attacked Daypaw… Nightpaw could have just unsheathed her claws?"
Silentsong nodded.
The wind picked up, making the ThunderClan trees rustle. This seemed to remind Silentsong she needed to get back to her territory, so she turned and began to run away.
Nettleskip turned back to her camp as well, when she remembered to call out:
"Silentsong? Tell Nightpaw that at the moment, I'm on her side!"
Yay! Nightpaw's got another supporter!