Chapter 19
Lakepaw, ShadowClan
"Tuck your paws in Frostpaw! No, not like that! You look like a roosting chicken!" mewed Frogleap, exasperated as Frostpaw ended up once again with all her paws together right underneath her. Lakepaw walked over and nudged Frostpaw's front paws forward. "You need them out, otherwise how are you going to spring?" she teased. Frostpaw applied the correction, and began to leap and land on the blade of grass. "Duskpaw, keep more of your weight on your hindquarters! That way you will be able to stalk as quiet as a mouse." mewed Snowheart patiently.
Lakepaw glanced over just in time to see Duskpaw's stalk. Duskpaw practically glided over the brittle grass, none snapping, before leaping and landing on a clump of leaves. "Oww! I stepped on a thorn!" yowled Duskpaw. "We've had enough of those these last few days. This heat is making all the thorns spikier than usual. Well, let's go back. It's time for the dusk patrol anyway." sighed Snowheart. Because of the abnormal heat, the patrols had been shifted, and so had the apprentice's training. Lakepaw thought back to her kit days, when she had played in the snow. 'Snow….' She thought, then sighed. Now it was practically impossible to believe that snow had ever existed, or even leaf-bare! Lakepaw wished that it would rain, otherwise she was afraid the fire would burst out, and destroy the Clan.
The group all walked back,and the apprentices weren't racing ahead like they usually did. They were so hot and tired that they just couldn't muster the energy to jump around, or speak. The tall pine trees no longer protected the ShadowClan cats from the blistering heat. Everything was dry, and the only relief was the shrinking lake and rivers. Duskpaw was leaning heavily on Snowheart's shoulder, limping. Lakepaw padded after them, her head bowed. They entered the camp, and Lakepaw took a slight relief in the shade that the edges offered. Icepaw bounded up to her, a sneering look on her face. "Defeated again, are you! I bet that-" Icepaw was cut off sharply by Lakepaw's mew.
"Just go away Icepaw. I can't be bothered to answer to your un-developed shots at me." Lakepaw couldn't even muster any emotion in her voice, and didn't even laugh when Icepaw reared back, her mouth still hanging open. Lakepaw turned away, and padded after Duskpaw as her sister disappeared into the medicine cat grotto. Lakepaw vanished into the ferns after her.
Okay, so you may have realised that I sort of messed up the chapter numbers. I changed it, so this chapter is actually chapter 19, while the chapter before was chapter 18, even though it said chapter 17. Also, I kind of messed up the updating, and I had this whole chapter ready, and everything before I realised that I had to update about five chapters before it. So sorry again for the long wait, and please review on the kit names! I also changed the date for the names until my birthday, 4th May 2017.
-WarriorsErin