Spottedleaf watched Firepaw and Graypaw sulk around camp for the next few days, with Ravenpaw sometimes lending a mildly sympathetic ear to their grumbling, but always pointing out that what they did was wrong, which usually netted him a pair of matching glares.
Graypaw resumed training with his mentors, and Firepaw spent more time with Spottedleaf in the meantime, learning herbcrafting. Firepaw was turning out to be a natural at it, and she sometimes answered questions before Spottedleaf could ask them, much to the medicine cat's delight.
"Seems rather silly all apprentices don't take a moon or two to learn this stuff," Firepaw mewed. "This would cut down on your workload a fair bit and let you out of the camp more often."
Spottedleaf blinked in surprise. "I leave the camp!" she mewed defensively. "I'm not a total shut-in. I do plenty outside the camp!"
"Like visit that handsome loner out by WindClan?" Firepaw asked innocently.
"There's plenty of handsome loners out around ever clan," Spottedleaf pointed out. "Who's to say it's not one of them I fancy?"
Firepaw tilted her head. "Because as far as I know, you haven't ever visited any of them?"
"Exactly," Spottedleaf mewed. "As far as you know."
Firepaw snorted softly, fur rippling in amusement. She then got a sly look in her eyes. "Since I can't leave camp by myself, and none of the warriors seem keen on letting me tag along, perhaps we could go visit Barley and Rusty? Have our own little gathering, perhaps?"
Spottedleaf stared at the apprentice thoughtfully, ears turning this way and that. "I don't see the harm in that," she eventually mewed. "Always nice to get out of the camp, especially during Greenleaf. Besides, perhaps Rusty can teach you a thing or two about fighting and hunting."
"He can do that?" Firepaw asked. "I thought it was a clan thing."
"The clans aren't the only groups of cats out there," Spottedleaf pointed out. "There's a lot of things no clan cat knows, yet your average kittypet or loner might. Look at your knowledge of healing plants, for example Did any of your friends know how to do that?"
Firepaw's nose twitched and she nodded. "I see your point. When should we go?"
Spottedleaf's tailtip twitched and she got to her paws, brushing past Firepaw. "No time like the present, I suppose." She glanced back at her. "Unless you had something else planned for today?"
Firepaw snorted and followed after her.
They emerged from the fern tunnel leading to the medicine cat clearing and ran into Redtail and Graypaw as they were exiting the apprentice den. Graypaw had a slightly less depressed look on his face than usual, tail held high.
"Going out for some training?" Spottedleaf asked, stopping and exchanging nuzzles with her brother. He nodded, brushing his tail over Graypaw's shoulders.
"He's come a long way recently, so I've taken some pity on him. And what are you two up to?" the deputy asked. It was Spottedleaf's turn to draw her tail over Firepaw affectionately, and the apprentice glanced at her, taking note of her twitching nose.
"We're heading out to Barley's for some training of our own," the medicine cat mewed. Redtail hummed thoughtfully, before brightening, ears and tail coming up.
"Mind if we come with you? Learning from loners sounds interesting."
Darkstripe, who was padding by, let out a derisive snort. "What can they possibly teach you? You've been trained by the greatest cat to ever grace the forest, what more do you need?"
"You've never trained me though," Redtail replied without batting an eye, which caused Darkstripe to pause for a moment, and he stalked off in a huff, tail lashing angrily.
"We'd better get going before you really say something mouse-brained," Spottedleaf mewed, purring warmly.
"Not my fault he can't take a compliment."
The trip towards the barn was mostly uneventful, although Firepaw finally got her first close look at a monster as it roared along the Thunderpath between ThunderClan and ShadowClan territory, heading towards FourTrees.
"I can see why you avoid them," she mewed once she could hear again. "That was nerve-wracking."
Redtail shook his head and spat out some grit the monster had kicked up. He licked his fur, face screwing up in disgust. Graypaw was little more than a gray ball of fuzz as he peeked around a tree, eyes wide. Spottedleaf simply kept walking, eyes slightly unfocused, lost in her thoughts. Firepaw and Redtail both kept a wary eye on her, using their tails to guide her in a relatively straight line.
The group stopped at the rise above FourTrees and looked around, their ears coming up, listening for anything out of the ordinary. A dry heat rolled over them and Graypaw grimaced, panting softly.
"The sooner I get some water, the better," he mewed, mouth open.
"We're almost there," Redtail mewed encouragingly, nudging him along. "The sooner you keep moving, the sooner you can relax."
"Wait," Spottedleaf hissed, eyes clearing, and she snapped her head around. "What's that?"
They followed her gaze and saw a few cats making their way towards FourTrees, coming up from the southwest.
"That's RiverClan territory," Redtail murmured. "What would they be doing out here?"
"…Maybe we could ask them?" Firepaw suggested. She shrank a bit as Redtail shot her a sardonic look, which softened slightly as he rolled his eyes.
"Standing around here isn't going to give us answers," he mewed, heading towards the oaks, tailed by the rest.
Rusty lifted his head from his paws as a voice called out from the front of the barn. Getting to his paws, he jumped down to the floor of the building and exited, squinting against the sunlight. As his eyes adapted, he caught sight of a few cats standing around, tails waving to and fro. They stank of fish and he flared his nostrils before padding towards them.
The light-brown tabby noticed him first, tail tapping against a silver-and-black tabby to get her attention.
"Silverpaw, meet Rusty," Crookedstar mewed. She shyly mewed a greeting and Rusty dipped his head.
"Welcome to the both of you." He looked past them at a golden dappled tabby and reddish-brown tom. "And you as well, Leopardfur, Oakheart."
The two warriors barely acknowledged him, instead sniffing the air curiously. Oakheart frowned.
"That's ShadowClan. What are they doing here?"
"They visit from time to time, same as you," Rusty mewed. "And here comes ThunderClan."
Leopardfur turned to see Redtail's group approaching, and she bared her fangs. "This is getting ridiculous. What are they doing here?"
"I could ask the same of you," Rusty mewed, eyes darting between Crookedstar and Leopardfur.
"Simply visiting," Crookedstar mewed. "Silverpaw wanted to meet you."
"I thought you'd be scruffier," the silver molly mewed, blue eyes bright with curiosity. "Most other cats are since they don't swim like we do."
"Taking care of yourself is usually enough to keep one's appearance presentable. Just ask Redtail and Spottedleaf," he added, flicking his tail at them. Silverpaw turned to look at them, and her eyes lit up.
"Your pelts are so pretty!" she mewed, taking a step towards them before she paused and looked at Crookedstar, who nodded. She then approached them and sniffed them, wrinkling her nose at their earthy scent.
"How's life in RiverClan?" Redtail asked Oakheart. The deputies exchanged cordial nods with one another as they sat down.
"Going as well as it can, given the heat. Water's flowing, Twolegs are pestering, and prey's running. What of ThunderClan?"
"Much the same," Redtail meowed. "Although our water isn't flowing nearly as well as yours, but we make do. Thank you for the other day."
"Don't get used to it," Leopardfur snapped, hackles rising.
"Leopardfur," Crookedstar chided her, tail lashing. "This is neutral ground." She looked away, ears flat, muttering under her breath.
Oakheart nodded. "As long as you don't steal our prey or cross the border, it's fine."
"So what brings ThunderClan out here in this oppressive heat?" Rusty asked. "Actually, before you answer that, you look parched. There's water over there, in the trough." He gestured at a long wooden thing standing by the fence. The forest cats approached it and Firepaw took the lead in jumping up on it.
"What do the Twolegs use this for?" she asked, looking down at Rusty.
"It's usually for the horses, but they're over in the stables today," Rusty mewed.
"Horses?" Firepaw tilted her head, and Rusty explained what they were to her. "Interesting." She drank her fill and leapt down so the others could drink their fill. Once the clan cats were watered, Rusty reiterated his question.
"Just visiting, mostly," Spottedleaf mewed. "Although Firepaw may want you to teach her some fighting moves, if you feel up to it."
She hadn't meant it as a challenge, but Rusty's green eyes flashed nonetheless.
"Fighting in any weather is paramount to any living creature," he mewed, fur rippling. "You never know when you might be attacked, and being prepared for anything is…actually kinda stupid because your enemies probably aren't dumb enough to suffer twice as much by expending the energy needed to haul themselves to you in the first place…"
"Typical," Leopardfur murmured smugly, shaking her head. Oakheart cuffed her ear with a growl as Crookedstar snorted softly.
Rusty ignored them. "Still," he continued. "Let's see what you've got." He motioned to Firepaw and Graypaw, then glanced at Crookedstar. "Are you going to join, or…?"
Crookedstar glanced at Silverpaw thoughtfully. "What do you think?"
Silverpaw shrugged. "I don't see why not. Never hurts to learn new things. Figuratively speaking."
She joined the other apprentices and Rusty examined their basic hunting crouches, then moved into mimicking what he'd done with Spottedleaf. Silverpaw was able to dodge his strikes much better than the ThunderClan apprentices, much to their chagrin as they nursed their buffeted ears.
"It's because it's like fishing. You need quick precise movement to catch them, coupled with fast eyes and faster reflexes," Silverpaw mewed, preening slightly. Rusty then swept her paws from under her, flipped her over, and sent her careening towards Crookedstar, who caught her with a paw. Silverpaw let out a sharp gasp and blinked. "How-"
"As you said," Rusty meowed, drawing a paw over an ear. "Quick precise movement, coupled with some sleight-of-paw and being underestimated by your opponent."
Leopardfur stared at him with slightly more respect and Oakheart purred in amusement.
"Glad you stayed?" he mewed quietly to her. She glared at him and said nothing as Rusty's training continued.