Chapter 11

"This should help with the pain." Speckledlight was mewing, smearing a thick green poultice over Buzzardpaw's injured paw.

He sighed, his ear tips twitching as he watched the she-cat heal him. When Russetprowl came to wake him up for the dawn patrol, he pretended to trip over his nest and was dismissed from his duties for the day. I'd much rather be training than cooped up in this dusty den!

"Are you sure you only tripped?" Speckledlight asked, tilting her head. She had a knowing look on her face. "That was quite a fall for it to be sprained like this."

Buzzardpaw nodded. "Mhm. How much longer will I be here?"

The she-cat clicked her tongue, turning her back to sort through herbs. "It is not sprained too badly, so later on I will have you do some exercises to stretch it out." Buzzardpaw perked, and Speckledlight seemed to notice this. "Oh, but don't expect to train for a while. I say you spend a few more sunups resting before I send you back out." Buzzardpaw groaned, sinking back into his nest. This sucks!

A few moments later, Goldenstar and Fawnleap crashed into the den, making Speckledlight drop the bundle of herbs she was holding in surprise. Buzzardpaw looked at his parents, a small scowl on his face.

"Buzzardpaw! Are you alright?" Fawnleap mewed, rushing over to him to lick between his ears.

"I'm fine."

"What happened?" Goldenstar asked, his eyes dark with worry.

"He tripped over his nest." Speckledlight answer for him, giving the leader a sideways look. Goldenstar held her gaze for a second then turned back to his son, his eyes narrowing. Does Speckledlight know?

"How much longer will he be here?" The massive tom questioned, his eyes boring into Buzzardpaw's. He gulped. Is he angry?

"A few more sunrises, then he can get back to training. I'm going to let him walk around camp later to stretch his legs."

"But surely he should be laying down?" Fawnleap asked, worry in her mew. "We don't want him to get any more hurt."

Speckledlight blinks warmly at the she-cat. "His paw is sprained, not broken. It would do him more good to exercise it rather than let it stiffen." Fawnleap still looked unconvinced, and the medicine cat gave her a small smile. "Come on. Why don't we pick him out a piece of prey?" Reluctantly, Fawnleap tore herself away from her son, padding out of the den backwards to keep him in her sight. Buzzardpaw rolled his eyes. I know she's worried, but now she's just being silly!

Buzzardpaw quickly realized he was in the den alone with his father, who was staring at him intensely. Buzzardpaw looked up at him sheepishly. Is he mad at me?

Goldenstar finally spoke, his mew quiet. "You didn't really trip over your nest, did you?" Buzzardpaw shook his head, looking down. "It came from the Dark Forest, didn't it?"

Buzzardpaw remained silent.

"Who did it?"

"It's nothing-"

"Who. Did. It?" Goldenstar's growl was forceful and dark.

"Some RiverClan warrior." He could tell that his father wasn't pleased with this answer. "Rippleclaw is his name."

Goldenstar nodded, his expression stony. "You won't have to worry about them anymore." Buzzardpaw froze. What was Goldenstar thinking? He would likely never meet the warrior, so why did it matter? Is he gonna march into RiverClan camp and give him a stern talking to? He rolled his eyes at the thought.

His father was still speaking. "I'm assuming you'll be going there tonight as well. It would be smart if you didnt train."

Buzzardpaw shook his head. "Darkenedstreak is intent on training me tonight. She said so herself, ``I'm not getting out of it that easy."

Goldenstar looked confused, his eyebrows furrowing. "Why would she do that?" After pausing for a second, Goldenstar nodded, as if he thought of something. He spoke again. "Just take it easy, alright? I don't want my little warrior getting hurt anymore."

Buzzardpaw nodded, slightly confused. What was that look on his face, just now? He was cut from his thoughts as Fawnleap padded into the den, a squirrel in her jaws. She dropped it at her son's feet, attempting to lay down, but was shooed out by Speckledlight.

"He needs his rest. Go." Fawnleap's mouth opened to protest, but Goldenstar stood and nudged her out, murmuring in her ear. Tucking into the prey, Buzzardpaw rasped his tongue over his jaws as he finished. He closed his eyes for a quick nap, his dreams pleasant.


Buzzardpaw woke to a cold nose nudging his shoulder. Mumbling quietly, he blinked open his eyes to come face to face with Speckledlight. Bright sunlight streamed through the den entrance, making Buzzardpaw squint.

"I'm sorry to wake you, but it would be a good time to move around now. Most cats are out training or hunting, so you'll have plenty of room. Just make sure you stay in camp!" She stepped back, letting Buzzardpaw rise. He wearily placed his paw onto the ground, surprised by the dull pain. It still hurt a bit to put his full weight on it, but at least he wasn't limping as badly as he was before. Mewing a quiet thanks to Speckledlight, Buzzardpaw hobbled out of the medicine den.

Stepping into the middle of the camp, Buzzardpaw was surprised to see the sun high in the sky, filling the gorge with a bright light. The camp was mostly empty, sans Newtwhisper's kits playing near the nursery. Buzzardpaw idly shuffled around the camp, his whiskers twitching as he listened to the kits bounce around. LIfting his head, he was surprised to be met with an unfamiliar, musky scent.

Turning his head, Buzzardpaw looked up the steep gorge, a small figure sitting atop a tall rock. Narrowing his eyes, Buzzardpaw realized that the figure was looking directly into the camp. What the?

"Just make sure you stay in camp!" Speckledlight's voice rang in his head. Looking around, Buzzardpaw inched towards the bramble entrance, trying to seem as unsuspicious as possible. Brindlekit looked in his direction, but was unable to say anything due to his sisters tackling him. Taking his chance, Buzzardpaw scurried out of camp as fast as he could.

Pausing at the end of the bramble entrance, Buzzardpaw looked around, sniffing for the stranger's scent. Finding it, he circled around the gorge's edge, the mysterious cat coming into view. It hadn't noticed him, and Buzzardpaw crept closer, laying low to the ground. Not watching where he was going, his sprained paw sunk into a dip in the rocky wall, making him hiss in pain. The cat suddenly looked up, bolting away as it noticed the apprentice. Buzzardpaw dashed after it, ignoring the pains shooting up his paw.

His tail flashing out behind him, Buzzardpaw bolted after the figure as fast as he could, weaving between trees and brambles as he followed the intruder. The cat was getting away, and Buzzardpaw pointed his head towards the ground, his paws pushing him as fast as they could. You aren't getting away from me that easily!

Buzzardpaw suddenly collided with a furry object. The stranger yowled, pinned to the ground by the apprentice's weight. Buzzardpaw stared into the cat's yellow eyes, glaring.

"What are you doing on ThunderClan territory?" He hissed in the toms face, digging his paw deeper into his chest. The tom was strikingly beautiful, and his silky pelt could easily be mistaken for a she-cat's. Giving the intruder a quick sniff, Buzzardpaw was able to confirm that it was indeed a tom. The apprentice kept his injured paw against his body, protecting it in case the cat decided to strike back.

The cat looked at Buzzardpaw's injured foot and smirked, flashing his paw out and smacking it hard. Yowling, Buzzardpaw leapt off, his eyes narrowing at the intruder who had backed away. He was looking at Buzzardpaw curiously, his long tail swaying behind him.

Licking his paw tenderly, Buzzardpaw got a good look at the cat through narrowed eyes. The tom was small, his brown and orange mottled pelt shiny and sleek. The bright splash of white on his belly seemed to glow, and his yellow eyes did as well. The cat was well groomed but lean, making Buzzardpaw unsure if he was a run-away kittypet or a loner. The cat moved closer, making Buzzardpaw hiss and unseath his claws.

"What are you doing on ThunderClan territory?" Buzzardpaw repeated, baring his teeth. The tom seemed unafraid, his eyes twinkling mischievously. Finally he spoke, his voice low and smooth.

"I was just watching." He mewed, stepping forward once more. Buzzardpaw hissed louder, wanting him to back off.

"Why?"

"Why not?"

Buzzardpaw growled. This was getting nowhere. "You can't just do that." He meowed, standing his ground. "With the way you ran away, I'm sure you were up to no good."

The tom rolled his eyes. "No good? Oh please. I only ran away because I thought you were a dog." Buzzardpaw narrowed his eyes even more. The cat raised an eyebrow, giving him a coy smile. "Though.. If I had noticed how handsome you were, I wouldn't have run away at all." He purred.

"That's-" Buzzardpaw stopped, shocked. What? He blinked rapidly, his mouth gaping as he tried to muster up something to say. Seeing that he couldn't, the cat continued.

"I'm Orion." He mewed, his whiskers twitching mischievously. "What's your name?"

"None of your business." Buzzardpaw growled, his tail lashing.

Orion wrinkled his nose playfully. "I knew before that Clan cats have odd names, but that's just mad." The tom had a faint accent, and he spoke quickly and elegantly. "Well, mister 'None of your business', what are your parents feeding you to get you that big? You're bigger than the barn I live in."

Buzzardpaw hissed, swiping at Orion, who was only a tail length in front of him. The dappled tom giggled playfully, swatting his paw away. "Careful now, you don't want to hurt yourself. Oh wait, you already did." He broke into a fit of laughter at his own joke, tears forming in his eyes as he did so.

Buzzardpaw looked on disdainfully, his lips curled back into a scowl. "Trust me, rat, if my paw wasn't sprained, I would have flayed you."

"Ooh. I'm so scared." Orion purred, making his eyes wide to feign fear. "Are you gonna tell me your name now or what?"

"No!"

"Okay okay, have it your way then."

Buzzardpaw glared at the tom, a low growl rumbling in his thoat. "Why are you here?" He growled for the third time. "Do you want to join the clan or something?"

Orion scoffed, rolling his eyes at the suggestion. "Oh please, the Clans are overrated. I'd much rather spend my time with my group."

"Then whhy are you here then?!" Buzzardpaw yowled, irritated.

Orion barely seemed affected by his loud voice. "I'm here because- '' He was cut off by the sound of rustling leaves, which was coming from behind Buzzardpaw.

The scent of ThunderClan grew stronger. A patrol was coming! Orion seemed to notice this, his eyes widening in real fear. "Oops, looks like that's my call to leave." The tom dashed for the trees, his tail slapping the ground behind him. "Goodbye mister handsome giant!" He called, his voice ringing behind him.

Rolling his eyes, Buzzardpaw turned to face the patrol. Dragonflywing, Aloefang and Palecloud burst through the bushes, their pelts bristling. "Who's there?" The white she-cat called out, immediately noticing Buzzardpaw. "Buzzardpaw, who were you talking to?" Aloefang questioned, flattening her pelt.

Buzzardpaw shrugged. "No one."

"I smell rogue." Dragonflywing mewed suspiciously, circling Buzzardpaw. "You smell like a rogue."

Buzzardpaw tried to remain nonchalant. "There was a rogue here earlier, but I chased him off. There's nothing to worry about.

Dragonflywing scoffed. "Ha! With your crippled paw, you couldn't chase off a mouse, let alone a rogue."

"I'm not crippled!"

"Oh yeah? Then why are you clutching your paw like a queen holding a kit?"

Buzzardpaw opened his mouth to protest, but couldn't, as Palecloud had moved himself in between the bickering toms. "Alright, quiet you two." He looked at Buzzardpaw, his eyes kind, but stern. "I appreciate you chasing off the rogue, Buzzardpaw, but you should be in camp getting rest. You don't want to injure your paw any further."

Buzzardpaw nodded and followed behind the patrol, limping badly. He had hurt his paw again from all the running he had done, and now that the adrenaline was gone, the pain was almost too much to bear. Dragonflywing turned around to smirk at him, his discolored eyes twinkling. "Awe, did the wittle kit hurt his fwoot?" He mewed in a baby voice, pretending to pout. Buzzardpaw glared at him, wanting to claw the silly look off his face. Ooh, that tom! I'll show him some day.

Finally reaching the bramble entrance, Buzzardpaw felt like he had walked a thousand miles. Just before he stepped into the camp, a black and white paw flashed under his able paw, sending him crashing face first into the sandy hollow. All the cats in the clearing turned to face him, their eyes shocked. Buzzardpaw whipped his head around to Dragonflywing, who was struggling to keep in his laughter.

His parents ran over to help, their eyes alarmed. Before they could reach him however, Buzzardpaw hissed at them, roughly pushing past them and heading towards the apprentice's den. He threw himself into his nest roughly, his sprained foot throbbing painfully. Growling, he closed his eyes. Stupid paw!


Author's Note:

Sorry, I couldnt get three chapters uploaded this week! I should be able to next week and the week after though, because my school is closed due to the virus. Stay safe everyone, and remember to keep your hands clean!

Thanks for reading!