Warriors Series 5.5: Echoes of the War
Book 1: Faded Boundaries
Chapter Nine

"I swear to StarClan, Amberpaw, could you have tracked any more mud in here?"

The she-cat bristled. "I'm muddy from catching your squirrel there, Snowpaw, so shut it."

Silentpaw flattened her ears against her head. It had been raining hard on and off the last five days. Patrols had been scarce, only enough to keep the Clan fed. Silentpaw and the other apprentices had spent most of the day in their dens. After so many hours cooped up together, tempers were high.

"Well don't get it in my nest."

"Then don't make your nest spill over into mine!"

Blazepaw was the only one who was silent besides her. Silentpaw couldn't see his expression, but she could hear his paws shuffling uncomfortably. Brightheart and Cloudtail's kits didn't argue often, but when they did, they argued loud.

Dewpaw let out a low hiss. "Maybe your nest shouldn't take up so much space!"

That does it. Silentpaw rose to her paws. "I'm going out." As the three siblings continued to rage behind her, she padded to the den entrance. She hesitated for a moment, then pelted out of the den and across the camp. Her pelt was completely soaked through by the time she reached the nursery. She paused just inside the den, shaking off as much of the water as she could, to the displeasure of those inside.

"Great StarClan!" Hazeltail flinched away from the shower of water, her fluffy tail sweeping over her kits to shield them. She could hear Petalkit and Finchkit squeaking in surprise as the droplets rained on them. "Silentpaw, be more careful." Rosepetal, Lightkit, and Sparkkit were further in the den, and just looked up as she entered.

The apprentice dipped her head. "Sorry," she mewed. "I'm here to speak with Dovewing." She sniffed lightly. The young queen's scent was strong; she had to be in the den.

There was the sound of fur shifting, then Dovewing's sleepy voice spoke. "Oh, hello Silentpaw. How can I help you?"

Silentpaw's ear flicked uncertainly. She would have rather spoken to Dovewing about this in private, but she wasn't willing to wait any longer. It had been several days since she had last asked about RiverClan, and now the rain had only gotten worse. She had to find out how they were doing.

Even as Hazeltail, Rosepetal and their kits listened, Silentpaw asked boldly, "Have you seen how RiverClan has been doing in the rain?"

There was the sound of something shifting, and tiny paws on a sandy floor. "Why RiverClan?" Petalkit asked brightly, as she and her brother approached Silentpaw "Are we going to fight them?"

Finchkit cuffed her ear with a small, furry paw. "Of course not, mousebrain. Pay attention."

Dovewing glanced uncertainly at the kits before admitting, "Not very well. I can't see much through all this rain. But I can tell they haven't been able to hunt very well. They've been driven even further inland now that the lake's flooding again. I can hear the kits wailing. They haven't each much the last few days. And... I think they lost something in the flood. I could hear cats yowling that someone got pulled into the lake."

Silentpaw's chest tightened. It sounded like things had gotten worse for RiverClan. She'd been afraid of that. With all this rain, how would they possibly be able to hunt in the lake? And now some cat had died.

Out loud she mewed, "We have to help them."

Dovewing's ears twitched uncertainly, but before she could speak, Rosepetal beat her to it. "Why should we help RiverClan? We have enough problems with this storm ourselves."

"We're doing well enough right now," Silentpaw countered. "But RiverClan is in real trouble. They've been driven out of their home, and they're starving. Who knows how long until cats start dying?"

Sparkkit snorted. "Why should we care?" he asked with flick of his white-tipped tail. "It's RiverClan's job to feed itself."

Silentpaw lashed her tail. Sparkkit had always liked to puff his chest out when he talked about the other Clans. His brother was alright, and Sparkkit was fun to play with sometimes, but mostly he just got on her nerves. "We should care because that's what warriors do," she argued with an edge to her tone. "The Clans depend on each other. What would happen to us if RiverClan died, or was driven away?"

"Silentpaw, I know you just want to help. I do too," Dovewing mewed carefully. Her tail swept closer to her belly as she continued, "But we have to focus on our own Clan right now. ThunderClan needs to be fed and safe."

There was a sinking feeling in the young she-cat's chest. She had heard stories of how Dovewing had once sneaked into WindClan territory to check on the safety of an enemy warrior. If even she wasn't willing to help, would anyone else?

Hazeltail spoke up from across the den. "Dovewing's right. We need to worry about our own cats right now. We have our own kits and elders that need feeding."

"Once we've made it through the storm, I'm sure Bramblestar will be willing to send a patrol to RiverClan," Dovewing added.

The apprentice snarled in frustration, "But by then it could be too late!" Frustration tugged at her paws. No one is listening to me!Ignoring Dovewing calling after her, she turned and raced out of the den.

Silentpaw knew exactly where she had to go next. There was only one cat she could talk to who might actually do something to help. Determined she bunched up her muscles and hurled herself towards the High Ledge. She launched herself at the rock face, struggling to find purchase for her claws on the wet surface. With a bit of slipping and fumbling, she managed the scale the rock and climb into the den.

There were a couple mews of surprise from further in the den. Bramblestar and Squirrelflight were both inside the den, curled up together as they sheltered from the rain. Both leader and deputy looked up as the apprentice climbed in. "Silentpaw? Is there something you need?" the leader rumbled.

Silentpaw shook out her pelt again, trying to get rid of the miserable feeling of her pelt clinging to her frame. Once she was done, she answered, "I've been talking with Dovewing. Are you going to do anything to help RiverClan?"

Bramblestar's ear flicked in surprise. "How did you know about that? I asked Dovewing to keep that between us."

"Oh, it's not her fault," Silentpaw mewed dismissively. "I was eavesdropping." She heard a disapproving grunt from Bramblestar, and an amused snort from Squirrelflight. She ignored them and continued, "But that's not the point. RiverClan is starving. A cat has died. How are we going to help them?"

"Slow down, Silentpaw," Bramblestar told her.

The deputy added, "We've been asking Dovewing to keep an eye on all the Clans. But right now, our main concern has to be ThunderClan."

Bramblestar's hefty tail swept across the cave floor. "We're doing alright for now. But things could easily become worse. Our prey is being driven into hiding by the heavy flooding. If the flood waters extend any farther, we might even have to evacuate the camp. We have to focus on our own Clan first."

"But RiverClan cats have died," Silentpaw protested. She couldn't understand how Squirrelflight and Bramblestar could seem so unconcerned. Weren't the Clans supposed to help each other in times of need?

"We understand that, Silentpaw," Squirrelflight mewed firmly. "No one is happy to hear of the death of more warriors. But we can't spare any cats to send to RiverClan right now. It's not safe to travel with this rain. Besides, if we do evacuate, we'll need every cat here to help move the kits and elders."

Silentpaw must have looked as frustrated as she felt, for Bramblestar assured her, "Once the rain dies down, we'll send a patrol to RiverClan. Just be patient."

The apprentice could feel anger making her paws tremble, but she forced herself to keep from yowling at her leader. "Yes, Bramblestar," she mewed between clenched teeth. Before Bramblestar could continue to lecture her, Silentpaw turned and bolted out of the den, slithering gracelessly down the wet rock face back onto the floor of the camp. If the leader was calling after her, she couldn't hear it through the rain.

Now that she was out of that den, Silentpaw tried to sort through her tangled thoughts. On one paw, she could understand where Bramblestar was coming from. He was the leader of ThunderClan – he had to make the cats under his care his first concern. But ThunderClan was fine right now. They had been lucky enough to get through the flood with no losses, with their territory and their camp still mostly intact. RiverClan was losing cats, and they had been driven from their home. Wasn't it the duty of the Clans to support each other in times of need? The Clans had fought side by side in the battles against BloodClan and the Dark Forest, and they had made the Great Journey together as one. It had been the only way to ensure they all survived. That was how it had always been; each Clan balanced the other. One could not survive without the other. Why didn't anyone listen to her when she said it?

Silentpaw shook her head irritably, trying to get rid of the uncomfortable, angry thoughts buzzing around in her head. She was still sitting out in the middle of camp, letting the rain soak her all the way down to her bones. The small she-cat considered going back to the apprentice's den, but if Brightheart's kits were still arguing, she would be just as miserable as she had been a few minutes ago. She didn't exactly feel like going to the nursery and hearing more lectures from the queens, and she doubted a runty little apprentice like herself would be welcome in the warrior's den.

Slowly, Silentpaw realized that she didn't feel like staying in camp just then. An idea of where to go was starting to come to her. It was a dangerous, mouse-brained idea, but Silentpaw was too angry to care. If Bramblestar wasn't going to listen to her, then she'd take matters into her own paws. She would go and help RiverClan on her own!

The she-cat's tail shot up with confidence as she started to pad towards the entrance of the camp. Her decision had almost instantly put her mind at ease. It made so much sense. Bramblestar had said it was too dangerous to ask any of his cats to travel to RiverClan and help another Clan, which most cats seemed reluctant to do. Well, he hadn't asked her. She was going of her own will. As for hunting and helping the Clan out, well, how much was ThunderClan going to miss one blind apprentice for a few days anyway? RiverClan obviously needed help more than ThunderClan did right now, so she would see what she could do to aid them.

As Silentpaw passed through the camp entrance, she heard soft pawsteps behind her. "Silentpaw?" The small she-cat nearly leaped out of her fur at the sound of her name. It took a few moments for her to recognize Ivypool's mew, and her faint scent through the rain.

"Oh, hi Ivypool," she replied, trying to hide the way her fur had fluffed up in surprise. "I thought I'd go for a walk."

"In this weather?" her mentor asked dubiously. Silentpaw felt a cool nose poking at her pelt, sniffing her over. "Silentpaw, you're soaked. Go back to your den."

She felt a brief rush of panic. "I can't!" she blurted out. Ivypool's muzzle jerked back in surprise. Quickly, she tried to cover up her slip. "Er, well, everyone's stepping on each other's tails in the apprentice's den. Amberpaw, Snowpaw, and Dewpaw keep yowling at each other. I just need to clear my head for a bit. I figured I'd at least get some hunting done. Maybe those three just need me to stuff a mouse in their jaws to make them shut up for a bit."

There were a few moments of silence. Silentpaw wished she could gauge Ivypool's thoughts, but the rain was too loud for her to hear or scent any of the usual hints of her mentor's mood. Finally, Ivypool mewed, "Alright. Hurry back."
Relief crashed over the small cat. "I will," she lied quickly. The apprentice bounded away, leaving behind the camp as quickly as she possibly could. She felt a little guilty for lying to her mentor, but surely she'd understand. The Clans needed to help each other.

Once she'd left the camp a good distance behind her, she started thinking about the best route to take to RiverClan. They lived on the opposite side of the river from her Clan. To get there, she'd either have to pass through WindClan or ShadowClan territory, unless she had plans on swimming. ShadowClan had a reputation for being pretty prickly about strangers, but they also had more trees to shelter her from the rain. And as long as she kept two foxlengths from the lake's edge, they couldn't challenge her. That was the best way to go.

The she-cat slunk through the forest, her belly low against the ground as she tried to pick her way through the undergrowth in the rain. After two moons of training, most of ThunderClan's territory felt familiar under her paws, but now everything was flattened and muddied by the rain, and all the familiar scents were masked by the thick smell of rain. She swung her head side to side, trying to catch any familiar scent, but there was nothing there but rain.

After wandering for a bit, Silentpaw felt the ground under her paws become soft and muddy. She struggled to lift one paw and put it in front of the other. The swelling confidence she'd felt only a few minutes before had been replaced by irritation. Great StarClan, you'd think just finding my way to the lake wouldn't be so hard!

No sooner had she thought it than she felt thick mud pulling at her paws as she tried to step forward, making her stumble forward. Mud spattered onto her muzzle and face, but there was something else there too – water. Cold water lapped at her muzzle and chest. Silentpaw struggled to her paws, feeling a new surge of confidence. She'd found the lake!

After falling, though, the apprentice was a bit turned around. She wasn't quite sure where she was in relation to the camp and the other territories. Silentpaw looked this way and that a few times, sniffing the air uncertainly, before turning to the left and padding off. She was sure to be going the right way. She'd pass through ShadowClan territory, make it to RiverClan by nightfall, and start helping them recover from the flood.

Her Clanmates were sure to understand. They had to.

Disclaimer: This was written before Bramblestar's Storm was even announced. Any similarities to Bramblestar's Storm and it's plot are pure coincidence, you can check the dates, please don't kill me.

At long last, here's the newest chapter of my fanfic. I'll try to update this more frequently now. I have so much of this planned out, you wouldn't believe how much time I spend planning out allegiances and future kits and relationships and plotlines and such. Anyway, Silentpaw has decided to disobey her leader and go help RiverClan on her own. Thoughts?