=Ravenstrike=

Ravenstrike crossed his arms, trying to ignore the cold of the oncoming leaf-bare as he watched his apprentice. The girl seemed uncomfortable, as her tail twitched with uncertainty along with her fingers. She'd been standing like this for a good few minutes, and Ravenstrike's patience was running thin. They didn't have time to wait around like this, since they were still on patrol and needed to catch up with the rest of the group.

"Well?" he asked, trying his best to hold down his annoyance. He'd been making an honest effort to have more tolerance with Hazelpaw, as Ravenstrike had noticed that the girl wouldn't do much if she was met with a snippy attitude. She was just as hard-headed as any other apprentice, perhaps even more.

Hazelpaw looked at his with a slight glare, "How am I supposed to do it with someone watching?"

Ravenstrike sighed, reaching up to pinch the bridge of his nose, "The same damn way everyone else does it. You just do."

That didn't seem to be enough for the ginger-haired girl, as she drew her face into what almost looked like a pout. With flattened ears, she said, "Well, you could at least turn around."

"Great StarClan, give me patience," Ravenstrike muttered. He set his dark gaze on his apprentice and said, "Look, if you do it where you are, I won't see a thing. So just crouch and let go."

Hazelpaw shifted on her feet, "Turn around."

"No. I have to make sure you do it right," the warrior retorted. That, of course, was mostly the truth. As her mentor, it was Ravenstrike's job to supervise the girl, and that included making sure that she marked a border correctly. There was that, and the fact that Ravenstrike didn't want to give in and turn around because his apprentice, who was only ten years old, told him to.

"How can I do it wrong?" Hazelpaw asked in a rhetorical tone.

"Exactly, how can you do it wrong? There's only one damn way to know, and that's if you just do it already!" Ravenstrike snapped, completely abandoning the idea of patience, his tail lashing with clear irritation.

It seemed that Hazelpaw was fed-up as well, as she cried out, "Fine!"

With that, the girl quickly crouched down and took a breath before beginning to mark the border. Foliage covered her from view for the most part, as her mentor could only see her calves and feet, something that likely made her feel a bit better about the situation. Ravenstrike watched carefully, making sure that there wasn't a glint of wetness running down her legs in the sunlight. She seemed to do well, until Ravenstrike realized that she'd been marking the border for far too long.

"Hazelpaw, stop! You're doing too much!" Ravenstrike told her. It was never good to over-scent a border, as the other Clans seemed to take it as a threat or means of intimidation. Considering the hostile way ShadowClan had been acting recently, Hazelpaw's mistake could lead to more trouble than Ravenstrike was willing to deal with at the moment.

The girl looked up, peering over the leaves of the fern before her, "What? Why?"

"Damn it, girl, you can't do that much! Cut it off and save it for later," Ravenstrike replied, hoping that there wasn't so much that ShadowClan wouldn't pay too much mind to the amount of ThunderClan scent that Hazelpaw would leave behind.

It seemed as if Hazelpaw was a bit surprised by his words, but nonetheless muttered an 'okay' and began to stand. Before she was fully up, however, she fell forward, letting out a yelp as she did. The sound was enough to catch Ravenstrike off-guard, and he found himself rushing forward to check on his apprentice before he actually thought about it. Reaching her, Ravenstrike felt a rush of relief to find that the girl was perfectly fine, albeit surprised.

With his concern gone, Ravenstrike felt oncoming annoyance at Hazelpaw's clumsiness. Kneeling beside her, he said in an exasperated tone, "Just how in StarClan's skies did you trip over nothing?"

Hazelpaw, with some dirt clinging to her face, sat up and looked at him with narrowed eyes. Defensively, she growled, "I didn't trip! Something pushed me!"

"Really, ThunderClan apprentices are so clumsy."

Hearing a new voice, Ravenstrike snapped to attention, his ears perked in alarm. Looking passed his apprentice, he saw a young girl who could be no more than fifteen on the other side of the border; a ShadowClan apprentice. The girl bore a smug look, something that made Ravenstrike realize that she was undoubtedly the one who pushed Hazelpaw. None too soon after noticing her, two more figures made an appearance, coming into view as if they were melting from the shadows. Staying true to the nature of ShadowClan, no doubt.

One of the new arrivals, a fair-skinned man, rested his hand on the apprentice's shoulder. In a chastising tone, he said, "Now, Nightpaw, what have I said about being nice?"

"But they're ThunderClan," Nightpaw said matter-of-factly, as if that truly made a difference in how she should act.

"She's right," the woman beside the man said, "Only nekos deserve kindness. ThunderClanners are just foxes in disguise."

"What did you just say?!" Hazelpaw asked in a furious tone. The girl was about to jump up, but was stopped when Ravenstrike pushed her back with one arm. Although he wanted nothing more than to teach the three a lesson himself, Ravenstrike knew it wasn't wise. It would be him and a ten-year-old against an older apprentice and two warriors. Even as his fingers itched to grab onto the short-haired woman's throat, he had to admit that fighting them wouldn't have a good outcome.

"Ooh, I think I know you," the woman said, pointing at Ravenstrike, "You're Ravenstrike, right? What's with that face? Angry isn't a good look, you know."

Clearly seeing her companion's words as an opportunity, Nightpaw jumped in to tease the ThunderClanners some more, "You're right, Tigerflower, he does look mad. But doesn't all of ThunderClan look like a bunch of badgers?"

Ravenstrike felt his ears press back with anger, wanting nothing more than to teach the two to keep their mouths shut. However, he was still thinking clearly, and decided that it would be a good idea to just leave the group behind, not wanting to stoop to the level of the two idiots. He stood up, passing a glance towards the man who stood behind his clanmates. A feeling of disgust came over him as he saw how the male had stepped back a bit, clearly having no intention of stopping his companions, despite the look of discomfort on his face.

No longer wanting to see the coward and his nasty friends, Ravenstrike reached down to take hold of Hazelpaw's arm, ready to pull her to her feet and usher her away. Just at that moment, however, the ShadowClan apprentice made another snide remark.

"Where are you going? Back to your camp and that WindClan reject?" Nightpaw asked tauntingly, sounding quite smug as she spoke.

Just like that, a hot wave of anger came over Ravenstrike, and he was just about to snap at the teenager before he felt Hazelpaw retch her arm out of his hold. He watched in shock as his apprentice leaped at the older girl, clearly aiming to harm her.

"You flea-pelt, take that back!" Hazelpaw hissed, reaching out towards Nightpaw's face, her claws poised to do some damage.

Ravenstrike's attention wasn't on his charge, however. No, instead he focused on the sight of the female warrior, Tigerflower. The woman had immediately reached down upon seeing Hazelpaw charging forward, and she raised a section of a broken branch, prepared to slam the heavy-looking object onto Hazelpaw's head.

Seeing her lift the branch up was the last thing Ravenstrike remembered before he was suddenly over the border, clutching the woman's wrist with a harsh grip, stopping her from moving the branch downward. Tigerflower's eyes widened upon feeling his hand on her wrist, and it seemed that she only then realized how out-sized she was. With hot fury still burning within him, Ravenstrike ignored the sudden fear in the woman's eyes and fixed her with a hard glare.

"You will not hurt her," he said in a low, threatening tone. Were he thinking clearly, Ravenstrike would have backed off from the woman, as he didn't particularly like harming or scaring females. But he wasn't, and he saw Tigerflower as a threat before he saw her as a woman.

He released the ShadowClanner's wrist, causing her to drop the branch as he did so. Ravenstrike only barely acknowledged the male warrior, whom had jumped away when he'd crossed the border. Feeling that he'd made himself clear enough, Ravenstrike reached down, grabbing Hazelpaw from where she was wrestling with Nightpaw before throwing the girl over his shoulder. He chose to ignore the girl's insistent struggling as he crossed back onto ThunderClan land and started walking away, leaving the ShadowClanners behind.

Once he was about a fox-length or two away, he heard Tigerflower shout over to him, "Don't think you'll get away with that, Ravenstrike! Don't think any of you will get away with what you're doing! 'Cause guess what; we're all watching you! ShadowClan, WindClan, and RiverClan! You hear me?! We're watching you!"

Without turning around, Ravenstrike said back, "Yeah, and you can all watch me make dirt for all I care."

Ravenstrike later found himself regretting his actions.

After walking for a bit with his apprentice still writhing to get free from him, his burning rage had reduced to little for than a speck of annoyance. And with his lowered anger, his head cleared of the sound of roaring flames, allowing him to think over what had just taken place. The more he thought, the more he realized that he'd acted just as immaturely as that haughty apprentice. Had he not done so, he likely wouldn't have had to inform others of the encounter, but now it was necessary.

He groaned now, as he could see the entrance of camp growing closer and closer. Ravenstrike had already had to explain the incident to the rest of the patrol, whom he and Hazelpaw ran into by pure coincidence. Bloodsky, who had been leading the patrol, had simply shook his head and let out an exasperated sigh upon hearing the story. Despite the man's mild reaction, Ravenstrike still dreaded having to inevitably inform his uncle of the event. Duskleap was certainly firmer than most others, and Ravenstrike doubted that he'd get off easy with the man.

"Ugh, I still can't un-see that snob's face!" Hazelpaw ranted from her place beside him. The girl had been allowed to walk on her own after the two met up with the patrol, and she'd been fuming the whole way back to camp. She hissed out, "She's such a mange-ridden, maggot-faced, nasty-breathed, mealy wormed—uuuggghhh!"

As Hazelpaw seemed to be overcome by her own frustration, Ravenstrike swatted her over the head, telling her, "Yeah, she's terrible, I get it. Hush up, alright? We're about to be home."

Aside from a huff of annoyance, Hazelpaw seemed to lock up the rest of her fury as the two entered camp. And just like that, Ravenstrike forgot all his worrying and irritation, having immediately sought out Briarsong without even thinking about it. What he saw made his mouth instantly become dry.

She was standing outside the nursery, clearly enjoying use of her newly-healed ankle. In her arms, she held Barkkit, one of Copperwind and Fennelfur's new kits, having been born just two days before. However, it was what she was doing with the kit that caught Ravenstrike's attention. Briarsong's breasts were fully exposed, allowing the milk-filled bosom to be showed-off as Barkkit nursed from her. The pregnant queen looked up upon hearing the arrival of the patrol, and Ravenstrike saw her eyes brightened when she noticed them. With her typical friendly smile, Briarsong began making her way towards Ravenstrike and Hazelpaw, with the former trying to tone-down his body's reaction as she drew closer.

Of course, it was pretty damn hard to calm his increasing arousal, and Ravenstrike cursed his body as he felt his loins stir. But how could he look away when the curvy brunette was approaching him with those full, lovely breasts bouncing with every step?

With his mind having drawn a complete blank, the first thing Ravenstrike found himself saying to her was, "What's with the kit?"

Briarsong's brows raised upon hearing the question, but the look soon faded as she turned her gaze to Barkkit, her green eyes full of warmth and fondness, "Oh, Fennelfur had her hands full with the others, so when Barkkit started crying, I offered to help out. That's all."

"Ah," Ravenstrike said, having turned his gaze away from the woman, trying to see more interest in the ground than in Briarsong's alluring form.

It seemed that Hazelpaw had forgotten about her anger as well, as she asked, "Is he done? Can I have him?"

"Huh? Oh, yes, he's just finished," Briarsong replied as she carefully removed Barkkit from her breast, passing him into the arms of his elder sister. Hazelpaw seemed to cheer up instantly upon having hold of her brother, and walked off with him in his arms, whispering all sorts of nonsense to the confused kit.

Ravenstrike sent a glare to his apprentice's back, wishing that she hadn't asked to take the baby off Briarsong's hands, as he'd gotten a good look at the woman's breasts when she did. And he'd gotten to see a faint dribble of milk run down her soft flesh, just before she pulled a covering over the two globes. Unfortunately, Ravenstrike's body had already taken a toll from the short-lived sight, leaving him begging StarClan not to let Briarsong see how she'd affected his lower half.

Damn, if only he hadn't been ignoring his urges for the past moon or so. With the arrival of Briarsong, Ravenstrike had completely stopped going to see his usual lays, in spite of the whining he initially received from the women. No, he'd been too preoccupied with watching the freckled queen, and he strayed even further from the topic of pleasure as he became more invested in her.

'Fuck', Ravenstrike thought. He was only just now realizing how involved he'd become with this woman. How in StarClan did that even happen without him noticing?

"Ravenstrike?"

Hearing his name, Ravenstrike snapped back to attention, realizing that he hadn't been listening to a word the woman had been saying. Doing his best to play the embarrassment off, he asked, "Yeah, what is it?"

"I said that I needed you," Briarsong restated, her words causing Ravenstrike's heart to race as he processed them. But just a second later, his assumption was shattered as she continued, "I need you to talk to Duskleap about extending the nursery. It's getting pretty cramped, and it'll only get worse once the kits start growing. I'd do it myself, but I haven't been able to find him. So, I figured that you might know where he is, since he's your uncle and all."

"Oh," Ravenstrike said, trying to hide his disappointment. He sighed with the knowledge that he wouldn't be getting what his body desired. That, and he knew that he would be talking to his uncle anyways, remembering the encounter with the three ShadowClanners.

However, before he could reply to her, he felt a hand clamp down on his shoulder, and the all-too-familiar voice of Hawkspeck met his ears.

"Sure he can, he's on his way to the deputy anyways," the senior warrior said in a light-hearted voice, a tone that he often used with the brunette girl.

Briarsong quirked her brow, "Really? Why?"

"Just a simple report," Hawkspeck replied with a smile. He then turned to Ravenstrike, his amber eyes clearly demanding some form of agreement, "Right, boy?"

Ravenstrike met his former mentor's gaze with a half-hearted glare. Begrudgingly, he nodded and agreed, "Yeah."

The relationship between the two of them had become a bit strained since Briarsong injured her ankle. Apparently, Hawkspeck had gotten wind of Ravenstrike's overreaction; and it wasn't much of a surprise, considering how fast word spreads in ThunderClan. It was the man's response that shocked Ravenstrike, as he'd found himself being pinned to the ground during a simple hunting trip, Hawkspeck's hand pressing his chest with near-painful pressure. With the angriest look he'd ever seen in Hawkspeck's eyes, his father-figure had uttered some simple words of advice.

"You best learn to control yourself, Ravenstrike. I like you, you know I like you. But I can't have you hurting that girl. Just remember that."

And with that, Ravenstrike had been released, and Hawkspeck left him to recover from the shock of the incident in solitude. He wanted to brush the older man's hand off his shoulder now, still remembering the pressure on his chest that day.

"I'm sure Duskleap would like to know just how much material will be needed," Hawkspeck said, directing the words towards Briarsong, "Would you mind finding that out?"

"Oh, yeah. I can do that just fine," the freckled woman replied, appearing quite confident in her estimation skills. With that she said a quick 'I'll be moment' before waddling back towards the nursery. Ravenstrike watched her go, not willing to admit to himself that his gaze wasn't innocent, as his eyes were completely focused on her plump bottom.

His attention was taken away from the woman when he heard Hawkspeck ask, "So, what's this I heard about ShadowClan?"

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A/N: Yes! It's finally done! Well, that took a while, but I think that it was certainly worth it! Hopefully, you guys think so, too!

So, as you can tell, there was a bit of a time-skip here. It is know early December in the story, which means that Briarsong is only about a moon away from having her babies!

Speaking of babies, Copperwind and Fennelfur are now the parents of three new kits: Barkkit, Cherrykit, and Rosekit (see the allegiances)! So they now have 8 kids! Wow….

Fun-Fact: Briarsong was originally going to have a very alluring voice, but this element of the story was forgotten by the author.

Please remember to review! They really do help me out with motivation, and I appreciate every single one! It's your reviews that keep me writing these new chapters, since they really let me know that you're reading and enjoying these stories! Thanks so much!

Also, be sure to ask Patchpaw some questions in the Blurred Drama Story, and to vote on the poll on my profile! Thanks!

Later, my lovelies~!

- Tina