A/N: Hi again! First off, I want to apologise for this being so late; college is just so packed it's hard to find time to write (and when I do, I'm usually so tired I just drink copious amounts of tea and play solitaire on the laptop) Good news though; I finally got this chapter finished! Bear with me, I had to alter some things since the timeline wouldn't fit. Secondly, I know it sounds stupid to have to say it, but we're giving the cats a bit more humanisation, in so far as yes, they are too old to play if they were kitties in our world, but I am letting them anyway...a pointless thing to say, since their being humanised anyway...Whatever. Let me know if you think the chapter doesn't flow well; kinda packed a bunch of stuff in. Enjoy the chapter, and reviews and comments are always appreciated!
"Have courage. We still have our clan."
She wasn't sure how late they had gotten back from the Gathering, but she did know that she had fallen asleep almost before she had hit her makeshift moss nest.
Swiftpaw was woken early in her awkward position, legs splayed everywhere, her head twisted in an abnormal manner. Sunningrocks was not an ideal place for a camp; there were no overhangs to shelter under if it rained – although it wasn't while she was sleeping – and it lacked any sort of reeds or willow shade that kept the light from her eyes while she slumbered. Greenleaf nights were short enough as it was, and the lack of coverage caused the sun to itch in her eyes almost as soon as dawn had broken.
She got to her paws slowly, feeling stiff and tired, stretching out her front paws, her claws popping out one by one as her back arched. Straightening up, her tail flicked up, waving from side to side, and loosened out, and she felt much better, though couldn't prevent a yawn escaping from her jaws. Beside her, Lionpaw snoozed, snoring away. She was surprised he hadn't woken her earlier with the sound he was making. Brackenpaw was lying in his bed, his eyes sleepy as he lifted his head, watching her. The she-cat thought it was amusing that even though they were not in their camp, and no one had told them, the apprentices had still grouped their nests together. She could smell Lilypaw and Rosepaw on different beds as she stepped away from the moss.
She hadn't expected Cottonpaw to be back with the apprentices when she had returned from the Gathering, but it still made her a little uneasy, missing the white pelt of her brother. She always felt closest to the cat, even though he said and did some pretty stupid things, and it didn't make her feel good, sleeping away from him, and not knowing if he was alright. She flicked her tail again, creeping away from the two toms and padding into the clearing of Sunningrocks.
The sun was shining, baking the grass and the rocks, and she could see immediately that something was off in their makeshift camp. Runningstar was moving about, looking like he had caught a moon of sleep and hadn't been up all night thinking. His actions told her otherwise. He spoke to one cat and then another as he wove through them, his eyes darting constantly from the ThunderClan treeline to their own island. Swiftpaw wondered how long he had been awake, and if he had ventured across to assess the damage yet. Judging from the harried look shown by the older warriors, she could only assume that he had, and it wasn't good. Or else he hadn't, but she was pretty sure that that wasn't good either.
Greypool and Sandpelt alternated between sitting and patrolling, their eyes fixed on the ThunderClan territory, gloomy and looking more like a Newleaf night than Greenleaf splendour. She spotted Ashfeather and Dreamstorm, Splashtooth behind a few paces, moving off along the bank, crossing the river deep into RiverClan, at a safe distance from the island. It seemed a little early for a hunting patrol, and the dawn patrol had probably already set off. How strange.
The little cat didn't really think much more about it though, feeling her insides grumble with hunger, and she forgot about it completely when she caught sight of a small pile of fresh kill, salvaged from the island, and probably topped up by a patrol before the Gathering, when she had been napping. She selected a trout, pausing for a moment to test her fish knowledge. She was pleased that she could identify a pike, minnow, and a flat, and trotted towards the area she had left Cottonpaw yesterday, her nose full of fishy oils, and her head full of pride. She could tell Willowbreeze that she was getting better at it; she figured she'd be as good as him before Leaf-fall at the rate she was going. Swiftpaw felt a certain twinge of smug satisfaction at that. Wouldn't Oakblaze be so proud? And her mother too?
"Hello, Mistypaw," she mumbled in a greeting, startling the other apprentice slightly, her jaws full of fish. She dropped it to the ground, dipping her head in apology as the grey cat whipped around to face her, hackles slightly raised, "I didn't mean to make you jump." The older she-cat relaxed, shaking her head to brush off the half-apology. Swiftpaw picked the fish up again, her eyes shooting around Mistypaw, viewing her brother sprawled out on the ground, limp.
"No, sorry, Swiftpaw," the medicine cat apprentice answered, "My nose is so full of Silverfur's herbs that I couldn't smell a cat if they rolled in horse dung for a day." Swiftpaw gave a small chuckle, nodding in amusement, but not trying to speak again, knowing what she wanted to say would come out as half-meows. She padded over to Cottonpaw's head, dropping the fish in front of him, and sitting down, waiting. She had pretended to be asleep enough times when they were kits to know her brother was faking it, but with Mistypaw sorting through herbs beside her, she thought it wouldn't be appropriate to poke him with her paw. That, and she didn't think it would do his head any good.
So she sat, and waited for the smell of fish to hit his nose, and spark a loud grumble from his stomach.
"Swiftpaw?" he asked, as his eyes opened slowly, blinking in fake bleariness that she had perfected as a kit. He had never been any good at it; Whitetail had always known when Cottonpaw wasn't really sleeping. Again, she had to resist giving him a good prod with blunted claws. She kept her paws firmly on the ground, and gave a nod. "Yes, Cottonpaw, I brought you a fish to share," Swiftpaw said, by way of greeting. The white tom glanced over to Mistypaw, who nodded in assent, and then he brought himself into a sitting position, his paw going to his head, rubbing his face. Swiftpaw might have thought he was cleaning his face, had he not been going the complete wrong direction. She suppressed the urge to laugh as she remembered Whitetail's exasperated meows at her children.
"Away, Cottonkit! You push away from your face! What, do you want Runningstar to have to change your name to One-eye? And you, Lionkit! I don't know why you're laughing, you're brushing your nose. You'll be more like Half-nose by the time you're a warrior if that's how you're going to clean yourself; look at Rosekit, she's doing it right."
"What are you looking at, Swiftpaw?" Cottonpaw asked suspiciously, breaking her away from her thoughts. She had been staring blankly towards him, her eyes a little glazed. He was still rubbing his head. "It's really sore," he complained, glancing towards Mistypaw again. The grey she-cat glanced up from the array of leaves she had laid out in front of her and sighed. "If you stopped rubbing it, then it wouldn't be sore, mousebrain," she pointed out, shaking her head, "I'll give you some willow bark after your fish, if it's still sore." Cottonpaw gave a relieved nod, and turned back to his sister, bending down to bite off a chunk of the fish. Swiftpaw bent to take her own part, chewing slowly. The white tom was chewing in what seemed like a thoughtful expression, but she doubted he was going to come out with something as insightful as Runningstar usually did when he took on that expression.
"I think I'm in love, Swiftpaw," he eventually said, as she was still chewing. Swiftpaw nearly choked on the fish. Her throat closed briefly, and she let out a hacking cough, forcing the fish down, her eyes wide. She coughed again as it left her mouth and made it to her stomach, and shot a look towards her sibling. He was still chewing with that thoughtful expression, blissfully unaware he had almost killed his sister. "What?" she asked, and then shook her head, "Wait…what? Who?" She wasn't even sure who it could be. There was Lilypaw, of course, she was pretty like her sister and mother, Greypool. Maybe it was an older cat, like Dreamstorm. There wasn't too much of a difference. Dreamstorm was nice, although she didn't seem like the sort to be into Cottonpaw's advances. She could look after Dreamstorm's kits, if they had any; she was sure she'd like those kits.
"Mistypaw," he meowed dreamily, slicing off another part of the fish.
"Are you completely nuts?" she yowled, startling the grey she-cat yet again. She gave the apprentice a look of apology before turning to her brother. "Are you out of your mind?" she hissed, tempted more than ever to whack him, although that would shake his brain even more, and probably make him more intent on this idea. "Out of my mind, maybe," Cottonpaw answered, chewing, "But into my heart. She is the one for me, Swiftpaw, I know it."
Her brother was an idiot.
"Did you tell her this?" Swiftpaw asked, unable to eat anymore of the fish, despite her stomach protesting. If he had revealed this startling bit of news he had formulated to her, she would never be able to look Mistypaw in the eyes again, ashamed of what her brother was and did. "I just hinted so far," he meowed, oblivious to the murderous look on Swiftpaw's face, "Silverfur's always here, and I was asleep when you were at the Gathering; but I'll find a time." His voice rose at the thought.
"Not this again," Mistypaw groaned, and this time it was Swiftpaw who jumped, snapping her head to the she-cat as she rolled her eyes, clearly listening to the conversation. The older apprentice closed the distance in two steps, heaving another sigh. "He's been switching from loving me to hating me," she threw at Swiftpaw, who gave a baffled nod as Mistypaw stuck her face in front of Cottonpaw. "Listen to me, mousebrain; that Twoleg didn't knock your brain completely out of your head when it hit you," she meowed, and even when her voice was firm, and her words scathing, Swiftpaw could still detect the soft manner that would make Mistypaw a great medicine cat when she had her ceremony. "You don't love me. You don't hate me. I am like a fish to you, Cottonpaw; useful when I'm around, but you can always find something else if the fish isn't there," she continued, and then groaned at the confused expression on his face, "Forget it, I'll explain when you're not fuzzy up there. Go finish your fish."
Swiftpaw was fairly sure that Mistypaw could handle her brother in the same way Whitetail had been able to in the nursery. She finished off her part of the fish in less than a couple of heartbeats, and gave her brother an affectionate flick of the tail as he slowly ate his half, though the motion held a bit more sting than normal, a warning against his antics. "Enjoy the rest of the fish, Cottonpaw," she meowed, "And rest up. The Gathering was pretty tense last night; Birchstar isn't happy." She caught the sound of the medicine cat apprentice sighing at the news. "I don't know how Brightflower deals with ThunderClan," she muttered to herself. Swiftpaw cast her a curious glance, but when she was offered no explanation, she turned her gaze back to her brother. "And don't go acting on your foxdung feelings, Brother. Just because Mistypaw's a nice cat, doesn't mean she's above slipping you some unsavoury berries," she snapped, watching Cottonpaw's eyes widen, "And she knows all the berries. You wouldn't even be able to taste the difference."
At least that would keep him on his toes, knowing the grey cat was familiar with toxic materials.
Swiftpaw padded away after dipping her head in farewell, her head down slightly. She sensed Cottonpaw's head was not entirely there this morning, and guessed she would have to repeat her story of last night again if she told it now. She padded around the rocks, thinking about the events the previous night, able to form an idea now that her stomach was not complaining. Runningstar was on edge. His movements were like a jackrabbit that smelled a WindClan warrior. He was expecting an attack, that was for sure, and most definitely didn't like it. Swiftpaw could understand that; his Clan was in a vulnerable position, away from their stronghold, and would probably have to relinquish Sunningrocks if Birchstar got it into her head to attack. She knew what Runningstar would normally do in this situation, and fight fire with fire, and launch his own attack on their camp, but he was smart enough to know he was in no position for that.
Why hadn't he just told Birchstar the reason they were at Sunningrocks in the first place? She would have understood; the leaders were just and fair, and would never try and harm a hurting Clan. It was in the Code somewhere, she was sure; why else would Runningstar have given Breezestar drinking rights? Instead he had seemed to get all huffy, and now they were in an even worse position. The she-cat had seemed crazy, with a tenuous hold of power, but there had been something in her that had made the previous leader appoint her deputy, and Swiftpaw would never underestimate someone like that. Still, crazy she might be, but she was not crazy enough to go against StarClan. No one in their right or wrong mind would do that.
She had felt awful, obeying Ashfeather's stern headshake, and not revealing anything of the previous day's encounter to the other apprentices. Cottonpaw would have liked her to boast about his bravery, but she had had to just sit there, and pretend like Runningstar didn't have any more news. She didn't like it, this side-stepping.
"Swiftpaw, have you seen Oakblaze?" Swiftpaw almost fell over her paws as she literally side-stepped to avoid bumping into Willowbreeze as he spoke, his tail swishing slightly. He had crept up on her without her even knowing, and she silently cursed herself. She needed to pay attention, especially now, with the Clan on edge. "Umm…No, Willowbreeze, I haven't," she meowed, thinking she should have found her mentor from the beginning, "I went to see Cottonpaw." The tom nodded, his scarred side dipping away from her slightly, as was his custom. "She said she was going on patrol soon, and Ashfeather assigned me to hers too," he continued. The apprentice didn't miss the flash of happiness in his eye as he spoke. "I figured since you'll be trailing her like a kit, I find you, I find her."
It made sense.
Swiftpaw gave a small nod in return, indicating towards the treeline. "Maybe she went to make dirt," she suggested, then reached over to place her tail onto the tom as he moved away. "I don't think she'd appreciate you interrupting her there," she meowed dryly, a little amused at the older warrior's lack of tact when it came to her mentor. Willowbreeze gave a pause, then sat down, inclining his head towards the apprentice to do the same. She curled her tail around her paws beside him, waiting for the ginger she-cat. "What did you think of the Gathering then?" he asked.
"It was…strange, I suppose. Making friends for once a moon?"
"It's a good experience. You can learn a lot from it."
"Yeah, I guess. Although, somehow I don't think 'friends' ever comes up when Birchstar and Runningstar are speaking. She was almost at his throat."
"You're right; there's a pretty bitter rivalry there," Willowbreeze admitted with a chuckle.
"What do you mean?" Swiftpaw glanced at him, curious.
"I shouldn't laugh, it's quite serious really. Birchstar and Runningstar are pretty much the same age. Both were apprenticed at the same time, but Runningstar became a warrior first…got his first apprentice first…became deputy first…And then there's the whole issue of his brother confessing his love and then promptly disappearing."
She gasped. Was Willowbreeze actually suggesting that Birchstar murdered Runningstar's brother?
"Yep, Streampaw and Birchpaw had a real historic love moment; could have gone down in Elder lore," Willowbreeze continued, "Until Streamnose decided Clan life didn't suit him, and ran off with some loner. That was quite a while ago now. I hope he's happy with her. Good StarClan, I had forgotten about Streamnose…" Swiftpaw thought her version of the story was much better.
"So Birchstar is against anything 'Runningstar', but to be honest, there's no love lost with him either," Willowbreeze finished, "Anything else happen?" Swiftpaw thought for a moment, her head falling down towards her paws. "Well, I met some apprentices. Mousepaw from ThunderClan seemed pretty nice; he didn't get the 'friend' thing either," she meowed slowly, and the tom gave a nod of approval. "It gets easier."
They fell silent, Swiftpaw thinking about the knowledge of Birchstar. She had broken the Code, and yet still rose up in the ranks of ThunderClan. There was definitely something in her that Swiftpaw just hadn't seen if that was the case. Something fierce. If she hadn't done something as mousebrain as breaking the Code, the apprentice would almost admire the she-cat leader. At least she had been pretty honest when delivering her news. Still, she had to stop dwelling on that; it was Runningstar's news to share as he saw fit. Being a leader called for decisions, whether his Clanmates approved or not. The she-cat blinked her way out of her thoughts as Oakblaze appeared from the direction Swiftpaw had guessed earlier, rising to her paws.
"Ah, Swiftpaw, you found Willowbreeze," Oakblaze meowed in greeting as she approached, "Runningstar has said the four of us will be examining the island together, after he speaks to the Clan." The apprentice gave a short nod, calm on the outside, but growing fiercely excited on the inside. She was the apprentice that was allowed onto the island first! How exciting. She knew it was because Lilypaw was already out, and could see Brackenpaw over at the far end, with Gorseclaw, and guessed he would be departing shortly.
"Let all cats gather 'round to hear my words!" Runningstar gave a low yowl of announcement, mainly to stop any murmurs since the Clan was already around. Swiftpaw stayed standing beside her mentor, Willowbreeze climbing to his paws and looping around to stand at the ginger's other side. Runningstar looked small in front of the treeline, but his words were strong as he spoke. "You may already have noticed more cats have been leaving; I have decided that until it is safe to move back to the island, the patrols will be doubled. A patrol will consist of three cats, and I encourage you to fish along the way. ThunderClan are not happy with us, and we must be prepared for an attack. If your patrol is ambushed, send an alert straight away and we will fight together." There were a few ripples of meows in the gathered cats.
"I am investigating the island now; we will know more after sunhigh." Runningstar finished and trotted towards Swiftpaw, who straightened up a little more, her tail carefully controlled so it refrained from brushing off her mentor. The tom gave an almost harried nod in greeting to the two warriors, idling on Swiftpaw for a moment before nodding to her as well. Swiftpaw recalled an earlier time when she had assumed apprenticeship would involve lots of nodding. It was a true statement to say the least as she nodded yet again to the leader. Her neck would be weary before sunhigh at this rate. Runningstar flicked his tail, signalling to move out. Swiftpaw fell into step behind the older cats, close enough to hear anything that would be said, but far enough that she doubted she would be asked questions. She was tired from the previous night; she didn't think she'd get anything right if asked.
Had they been going the direct route to Sunningrocks, Swiftpaw would have been there and back before Cottonpaw had finished his fish. Runningstar left their temporary camp and struck off to the left though, following the river towards the Treecut Place, to loop back around on themselves later. "If Twolegs are still around," Oakblaze informed Swiftpaw over her shoulder, "Then it would hardly be a good idea to lead them right to Sunningrocks." The apprentice thought her leader was very sensible. Reedstar had made a good choice regarding his successor. Runningstar would always put RiverClan's safety first. Maybe that was why he hadn't said anything at the Gathering…she pondered this as they splashed along the river. Following the Code was a little trickier than she thought. Runningstar was right to worry for RiverClan, but wrong to withhold news. He was wrong to think the other leaders weren't as noble as he was.
Did those two wrongs make his right alright?
It was very confusing thinking of such things in such a tired state. She concentrated instead on the three cats just ahead of her, thinking how clumsy she still looked in the water. Even Willowbreeze with his limp, looked like a fish slicing through the water. She spared a glance down at her paws, seeing the water churn with each step. "Glide," she whispered to herself, trying the tone Oakblaze normally used. Focusing on the physical action kept her mind from straying to her leader's motives, her paws barely cutting the water's surface in an effort to look smooth. It was difficult, but she sensed it would be more difficult upstream. The low level didn't help either.
She barely noticed her body follow the older cats across the river, the only thing registering in her mind being the water rising up her leg to stroke her underbelly. She briefly wished it was higher, not just for fishing, but for its cooling effect. She could feel the sun hot on her back, uncomfortably prickling her skin; submerged in the water would be a relief. Her eyes drifted back up to the others as they pulled off the bank, pebbles changing to dry grass, pricking at her pads. Runningstar paused, calling a halt. "Take a break. It's hot," he meowed, his ears flicking as he added, "Obviously." Willowbreeze instantly reclined, stretching his foreleg out in front of him. Swiftpaw could see his body strain with the movement. Oakblaze returned the way they had come, taking a drink of water.
Swiftpaw glanced at Runningstar, who stayed standing, his eyes far off gazing at the barn in the distance. Of the three older cats, he was closest to her height. She doubted she could square up to him though. "Do you think they'll be gone?" she asked him, earning a startled head turn from him in return. "What? Sorry, oh, no, I don't think so," he answered, "I think there's more chance of Birchstar giving us ThunderClan territory than that." He gave a small snort at the thought.
"But…why are we going over then?" she meowed, her head tilting.
Runningstar gave her a pointed look. "So we can return to camp and say that we will be okay. That we are RiverClan, and we will survive."
That didn't really make sense to her. Surely he could say that without having to go to camp?
"Think of it like a death, Swiftpaw," Runningstar explained, "When Rippleberry died, Rapidtail needed to know he'd be okay. Our camp has been defiled and possibly destroyed. The Clan need to know it'll be okay in the wake of destruction."
Did that mean they'd never get back to camp?
"Don't worry, Swiftpaw. You'll understand soon enough," Runningstar said. Swiftpaw assumed she had a confused look to match her thoughts. She didn't think she wanted to understand though; to understand would mean she had to deal with destruction, or death again. She didn't want that. She just wanted peace. Weren't they in a time of peace, after all? That was what Berryfall used to say.
"Come on, let's keep moving," Runningstar meowed, giving Oakblaze a signal with his tail. She returned from the river immediately, covering the distance with a quick bound. Willowbreeze got to his paws more slowly, and when they set off again, it was the tom that trailed behind. Swiftpaw kept pace with Oakblaze this time. Questions hadn't been asked thus far; the closer they got to camp, the less likely they were to speak, if the hackles on the warrior she-cat were any indication. The apprentice cast an occasional glance across the field, her eyes falling on the barn, and the 'tents' that surrounded it like a guard, a field of danger. She wondered did Xena have the same problem, dealing with Twoleg pests in her home. Probably not.
The island grew larger with a quickness that hadn't been there when they were looping away from it. Swiftpaw felt her own heart start to quicken, her head remembering the crunch of tree against cat, and despite the heat, she felt a shiver run through her spine, curving along her tail. Every few paces, Runningstar would break stride, tasting the air for Twoleg. Even without mirroring him exactly she could scent the heavy smell around the river. Sunningrocks on the far side looked quiet and empty. Her Clan blended well, she could credit it to them. The lithe tom ahead of her lifted his tail, pointing cautiously to the island.
They stuck close to the grass until the last possible moment, and then scurried to the river, slicing through it – Swiftpaw splashed, despite her best effort – and pulling onto the island bank with intense focus. The apprentice remained as silent as she could, trotting up to the ruined entrance, climbing through it behind Runningstar and Oakblaze. "Willowbreeze, keep an eye on the field," Runningstar meowed softly over his shoulder. Swiftpaw cast an eye back in time to see the scarred tom nod and remain outside.
Her paw landed in a pawprint that was not feline. The print was long and wide and the only distinct one on the island clearing. The surface had been trampled on by weight far heavier than cat, and she didn't think it could be considered a 'clearing' anymore. Her tail flicked in annoyance at the sight of shells and moss strewn around the place, haphazardly. Some berries from Silverfur's den had rolled into the middle. 'I hope they ate some,' the apprentice thought harshly, sniffing at the berry, her eyes noting the branch that had injured Cottonpaw thrown to the side.
"Their scent is fresh," Runningstar mused. Oakblaze gave a short nod and answered, "More recent than the young ones from before." Swiftpaw glanced around the area, and then brought her eyes to the warriors. "Do you think they brought some big ones back to hunt us?" she asked, flattening her ears at the thought. The tom was silent, his paw drawing in the dirt for a moment. "I don't think so," he finally meowed back, "Twolegs don't hunt us like mice; they like to take us away. I think they have claimed the island as their territory though." He didn't sound happy as he spoke the words, the thought worrying to Swiftpaw's ears. Their territory? For good? "Thank StarClan they always seem to move off in a moon or so," Runningstar continued to Oakblaze, "Ashfeather and I will check the island every second sunhigh until we think it safe for us to return. Until then…we're stuck at Sunningrocks."
What an awful thought. Sunningrocks had no shade in the heat. Swiftpaw felt deflated, even though Runningstar had already said to expect this. Willowbreeze brought his head through the debris at the entrance that had been acting as a wall. "There's Twolegs in the distance, coming closer. I think we should leave, to be safe," he meowed, his words directed at Runningstar, but Swiftpaw saw his eyes stay on Oakblaze while he spoke. The other tom nodded in agreement, and flicked his tail at the two she-cats. The apprentice trailed again, silent once more. They looped the other way this time, trotting the whole way to the Twoleg bridge before Runningstar thought it would be safe to turn back. The tom halted at the bridge briefly, marking the border frequently, but Swiftpaw could still scent the strong WindClan smell around the river. Clearly they were making use of Runningstar's offer already. She doubted a border marker would keep them away, but she could recognise her leader's scent, and was sure some WindClan cats would differentiate him as well.
Her paws began to drag as they neared their camp, her eyes drooping toward the ground. How did the older cats do it? Stay awake for the whole night and then do all that was required of them in the daytime. It was insane. Runningstar never slept it seemed. "Swiftpaw, when we get back, you and another apprentice should make sure the elders have enough moss for their beds," Oakblaze meowed down at her, causing her eyes to snap up to the ginger, "There wasn't much time yesterday to sort it out properly." She gave a small nod, too tired to reply with words, concentrating on Sunningrocks as they struck out of the ground.
She left the patrol when they reached the clearing, seeking out her sister, hoping she had returned. "Rosepaw!" she called, swishing her tail, pleased to see the white cat was around. The other apprentice looked up from where she had been tidying the fresh kill, her claws hooking them into a neat pile. She gave a purr of greeting to the tabby, casting her eyes around her before she actually spoke. Swiftpaw's head turned to follow her gaze, watching Runningstar break off from Oakblaze and move to speak with their mother. Whitetail's black tipped tail was curled around her as they began to meow, too far away for her to hear words. The two disappeared behind the rocks, and Rosepaw started to speak to Swiftpaw.
"He doesn't look very happy," she said, her ears flattening. Swiftpaw shook her head.
"He's not. We're going to be here awhile. Oakblaze wants me to get moss for the elders. You want to help?"
"Of course; Ashfeather went off on patrol and sent me to help collect herbs for Silverfur." The white cat wrinkled her nose. "I don't mind doing that, but it doesn't make my paws smell very nice."
Of course her sister would worry about that. Swiftpaw gave her an exasperated sigh, and flicked her tail towards the way she had come. "I thought I saw some nice bits by the bank back there," she meowed. Not that there was a lot of nice moss in this weather. Rosepaw nodded, and the two sisters trotted off on their job.
"Did you enjoy the Gathering, Swiftpaw?" she asked, Swiftpaw catching the tilt of the she-cat's head. She gave a small nod. "I met a nice cat from ThunderClan; Mousepaw," she answered, "Lionpaw was obsessed with a WindClan she-cat." Rosepaw gave a small mrrow of amusement. "I hope he doesn't think Brightpaw will mind?" she said with a chuckle, her paws light and dainty against the pebbles. "She'd probably claw his fur off, if she eventually coughed out that she thought the stars shone out of him," she added. Swiftpaw swished her tail at the thought. Her sister gave a small snort of derision. "Why anyone would go for a tom like that, I'll never know," she meowed, flicking her ears up, "I mean, really, someone has to teach him a thing or two about washing. Mother would be embarrassed. I'm embarrassed for him."
Of course her sister would be embarrassed by that.
"Have you been training, Rosepaw?" the she-cat asked as they reached the area that did actually have moss. She felt like she never saw Rosepaw. They always trained at different times. Rosepaw was giving an enthusiastic nod, her eyes gleaming with excitement. "Ashfeather is teaching me how to fight in the water! 'Silent as a fish, Rosepaw'," she meowed, failing to achieve any sort of impression of the deputy with her words. Swiftpaw mrrowed in amusement. "That sounds great! You'll have to demonstrate; I can try it out on Cottonpaw once he's better," she answered. The white cat swished her tail, unabashed in her pleasure. "Ashfeather said you can even take down cats much bigger than you when you get it right," she continued, "I should try to fight Lionpaw, or Stonecloud with it!"
The excitement at the thought of taking down the giant toms – their brother was going to be larger than Stonecloud if StarClan could help it – tore Swiftpaw's mind away from their camp, and she got caught up in Rosepaw's actions, watching the smaller she-cat dart in and out of the water as she remembered different techniques. The tabby tried to copy the apprentice's movements on land, but seemed to lack the gracefulness her sibling had. Maybe it was just because Rosepaw was in the water. Still, Swiftpaw knew that even though she was the larger, the white cat could easily overpower her with one of the surprise leaps from the water.
"Catch!" Rosepaw yowled.
Of course Swiftpaw didn't have time to catch her sister, as the white cat flung herself onto the tabby, bowling the two of them over against the pebbles. Swiftpaw scrabbled for a foot hold to anchor herself and get the momentum to throw her sister off, but none were there, and she went limp under Rosepaw. The little cat peeled with laughter as she bounded off Swiftpaw, trotting away. Swiftpaw got to her paws, creeping after her. Each foot was placed carefully to avoid the pebbles. "Oh Swiftpaw, you're going to have to practice that and –."
Rosepaw's words were cut off as Swiftpaw sprang at her from behind, landing squarely on her back and flattening the white cat into the pebbles and dust. She squirmed underneath the hold Swiftpaw quickly found, pinning her with a front paw. "Okay, okay, I surrender, I surrender," Rosepaw mumbled under tabby fur, "Let me up, you're getting my chest fur dirty." Swiftpaw gave a roll of her shoulders as she stepped away, purring contently.
"Good StarClan, it's true, they actually are at Sunningrocks."
Rosepaw gave a small squeak and darted to her paws and back beside Swiftpaw. The tabby cast a quick glance back to Sunningrocks, still within earshot and sight of the camp, and then back towards the source of the voice. She recognised his meow, and even his smell, underneath the ThunderClan stench; Mousepaw was its owner, standing on his side of the territory with three other cats, all older, staring back at her. She thought she recognised another from last night, but his features lacked any of the warmth from the Gathering that she couldn't be sure.
"This is our border, RiverClan," the patrol leader meowed, her voice flinty and hard as claws, "Our side of the river."
"The river is ours," Rosepaw replied. Swiftpaw flicked her gaze to her sister, noticing that she was as surprised as the tabby to have the confidence to speak. The she-cat, dark grey in the gloom of the trees, glared back and opened her jaws to speak.
"We're in the riverbed, ThunderClan," Swiftpaw found herself saying, boosted by Rosepaw's courage, "See? Pebbles. I don't know if you get them over in your territory." She caught the white cat's slight wince at the words. Maybe her tone hadn't been as emotionless as she planned. The ThunderClan cat had a look of outrage at the thought of being uneducated.
"Why are you at Sunningrocks?" Mousepaw meowed unexpectedly, his words sharp, swiftly silenced by a look from another cat. Rosepaw blanched at the words, shooting a look to Swiftpaw. She knew they didn't need to answer that. They were entitled to be in their territory; but RiverClan were weak right now, and a false pawstep might land them into trouble. What would Runningstar say?
"Admiring the view beyond the treeline," she snapped, her words cool and even, watching the patrol leader contemplate the words, and then swish her tail at the patrol.
"They were on their territory, Frostwing, I don't see why you…" Mousepaw's voice faded away as the ThunderClan patrol went deeper into their territory. Swiftpaw let out the breath she hadn't realised she'd been holding. So that was Frostwing; from what she had understood at the Gathering, that was Mousepaw's mother. She didn't seem like him at all. Rosepaw heaved a sigh beside her. "That was close…I wish you hadn't said that though, Swiftpaw," she meowed, staring across at the ThunderClan territory, "Birchstar is going to think it's a threat against her Clan." Swiftpaw hadn't thought about that. Her tail drooped slightly and her head followed. Rosepaw's head leaned into her neck and twitched.
"Come on, Swiftpaw, don't worry; let's just get the moss."