~ Just like fire, burning up the way. If I could light the world up for just one day. Watch this madness, colorful charade. No one can be just like me anyway! Just like magic, I'll be flying free. I'ma disappear when they come for me. I'll kick that ceiling, what'cha gonna say? No one can be just like me anyway! Just like fire!. ~ Just Like Fire, by P!nk

Chapter 21

"Just like Fire."

5/22/17 - 5/23/17 - 5/24/17

~ Emberpaw ~

It feels as though her brother is possessedby a chattering StarClan cat. She is relieved to be separated from Leopardpaw when Featherwing takes her, Ivyheart, Stormwhisker and Sagepaw out to check their borders.

Featherwing yawns and catches Ivyheart's attention.

"Are you sleeping alright? You've been tired for two days now."

The light grey she-cat straights up. "No, no. I'm alright."

Emberpaw pads ahead to get a look WindClan's moors.

"Get back here!" Stormwhisker snaps. "Are you trying to start a fight?"

The ginger she-cat glares at him when she returns to the patrol. "I just wanted a good look at the moors. Is that a crime?"

"It's a crime to talk back to a warrior." Stormwhisker growls. Emberpaw narrows her eyes and opens her mouth when Ivyheart suddenly stops and smells the air. "Is that… crow-food?"

Stormwhisker turns his attention from Emberpaw and leads the she-cats to a rotting squirrel carcass near WindClan's stream.

"Did WindClan do this?" Emberpaw demands.

Stormwhisker smells the crow-food. "I smell another scent, but it's not WindClan. I think it's RiverClan."

Featherwing wrinkles her nose. "You think?"

Ivyheart checks the crow-food. "It's very small. If RiverClan is stealing from us they made sure to hide their scents."

Stormwhisker twitches his whiskers. "Littlestar should know about this."

Emberpaw waits anxiously for Stormwhisker to finish his report on their findings.

"Emberpaw, stop that. You're tearing the sparrow into pieces." Sunpaw said.

The short furred ginger she-cat looks down on her bird's torn feathers and exposed skin. Emberpaw stands up and pads to the three toms.

"I don't understand why RiverClan is doing this, they have all the fish they could eat." Stormwhisker told Littlestar and Lightstripe.

"Olivestar's always been more aggressive than Cloudstar, but this is out of character for her." Lightstripe said.

Littlestar's tail twitches. "The only thing I can think of is that their water became tainted. This wouldn't be the first time that happened to RiverClan."

"That's still no excuse for them to trespass on our territory." Lightstripe reminds his nephew. Littlestar nods. "I know that."

"So are we gonna fight RiverClan?" Emberpaw busts in. The three older cats look at her in dismay.

"Emberpaw, this is warrior business - go back to the apprentices." Stormwhisker growls.

Emberpaw squares her shoulders. "It's just a question."

"No. We're not going to fight RiverClan, they might claim we attacked them unprovoked. We'll have to wait and catch them in the act."

Emberpaw lashes her tail. "That's all?"

"Littlestar's orders." Stormwhisker said. Emberpaw glares at him.

"I was talking to him!"

Littlestar frowns. "Yes, Emberpaw, that is it."

"So leave. Now." Stormwhisker orders in a clipped tone. Emberpaw growls at the arrogant tom as Sunpaw leads her away from him.

Featherwing and Emberpaw go out the next day for hunting practice. Emberpaw caught a dove and buried it before leaving. When she approaches the ferns where she buried her dove, she hears dirt scraping.

What is that?

Emberpaw cautiously pads to the ferns and sees three cats she's only seen at the Gathering, and the fish smell is apparent. It was RiverClan!

Emberpaw's claws flexed with the urge to go ahead and tear them apart. Her violent day dreamings were interrupted by a bright ginger pelt appear from the bracken and freeze under the RiverClan cats' stare.

Sunpaw!

"Look what we have here, Bouldertooth." One tom chuckles.

Sunpaw slowly backs away and quickly runs.

"Larkflight, stop her before she brings help!" Bouldertooth exclaims.

Emberpaw had no time to think. She burst from the ferns and jumps on top of Larkflight before he could attack Sunpaw. She looks at her sister.

"Get Lightstripe! Now!"

Sunpaw nods and scampers away. Emberpaw is hit in the cheek by claws and rakes her own across Larkflight's face, above his eyes. Bouldertooth lunges for her with claws out. Emberpaw dodges by jumping back, and lunges forward and rakes her claws on Bouldertooth's chest.

One other cat, a brown tabby, came from nowhere and knocks Emberpaw down with a hard smack on the head. Emberpaw falls on her back with her soft belly exposed and Larkflight pinning her down with his blood dripping on her muzzle.

Emberpaw kicks him off and latches herself on the brown tabby and bites her ears and claws on her shoulders.

"Olivestar!"

Emberpaw breathes with relief and jumps off - who she realizes is the RiverClan leader. Littlestar lunges himself on Olivestar while Lightstripe, Featherwing chase off Bouldertooth and Larkflight. Littlestar throws Olivestar across the clearing by her scruff.

"Stay out of our territory! You will not get away with this!" He yowls as she escapes from the forest, following her warriors.

"Emberpaw, are you okay - you're bleeding!" Featherwing examines the blood on Emberpaw's muzzle.

The ginger she-cat shakes her off. "It's not my blood, it's Larkflight's."

Sunpaw appears and looks at her sister. "Are you okay? I shouldn't have left you…"

"I told you to go get help." Emberpaw reminds her.

"And you did the right thing. Although Emberpaw was foolish to fight full grown warriors on her own, she was also fighting to protect you." Lightstripe said.

Littlestar nods. "You did great, Emberpaw."

The ginger she-cat smiles at his praise.

"Emberpaw."

The short furred, ginger she-cat rolls her eyes, looking at Stormwhisker.

"I heard you fought the RiverClan leader today."

"Yeah, what of it?"

Stormwhisker smirks. "That's an impressive feat… for an apprentice."

Emberpaw's temper flares and jumps Stormwhisker. She slams her paws on his chest and feels the impact of his back hitting the ground. Cats stop and look at her and Stormwhisker as she gets off and smirks down on him.

"Yes. An apprentice who put you in your place."

Emberpaw flicks her white tipped tail and strides away from him. Stormwhisker is still on his back when he hears a snicker. He leans his head back and looks at Lionfang upside down.

"Sucks to be put in your place, huh?" Lionfang asks.

Stormwhisker quickly rolls on his back, sputtering and desperate to groom his dark blue fur flat, hoping to get rid of his embarrassment and spark of emotions.

I should be sleeping. I shouldn't be posting a chapter at 3 am, but I am. And there's an 80% chance that it will come back to bite me later... Oh well! ~ Kyubi