CHAPTER THIRTY SEVEN
She had to work harder than any other apprentice in order to gain her leader's approval. Longkit, Bramblekit, Marshkit and Newtkit had finally become apprentices. Because there was a shortage of warriors, Russetstar had made Snowstorm a mentor at a very young age. She was mentoring Marshpaw, a young apprentice with what felt like boundless energy. Talonclaw mentored his own son, Bramblepaw. Sleetstorm and Nightclaw got Longpaw and Newtpaw as apprentices.
Now the apprentice's den was getting cramped, and Smokepaw was forced to sleep outside once again due to her lack of ShadowClan blood. She was furious that she couldn't just rip their fur off and take her place as top apprentice. But that would only make the Clan suspicious of her actions. Whatever happened, Smokepaw knew that her life was completely changed after joining ShadowClan.
Her fur now longer had any of it's kit-fluff. Her green eyes were sharp as ever, constantly scanning the forest for signs of danger. Lean muscles showed under the fur that was groomed to a glossy shade of black. Smokepaw was one of the best fighters the Clan had ever seen. She had even managed to defeat Talonclaw in a mock fight. The ShadowClan warrior was miffed by her recent victory, and would often use her as target practice for Bramblepaw. Smokepaw learned to go with the flow, and take whatever they had to throw at her.
At night, Russetstar continued his relentless training. Smokepaw used the anger from those days on her training. Anger made her stronger. It made her dangerous. Russetstar used that to his advantage. She had already killed a few rogues who dared trespass on ShadowClan territory. She wasted no time in her battles. She would often return in the middle of the night with fresh wounds and learn to ignore them overtime. If she kept returning to the medicine cat's den, Scorchheart would get suspicious. Ravenflight was already suspicious that she was doing more than just hunting in the middle of the night.
Smokepaw merely brushed off the pain, realizing that it didn't compare to the training that she received every night. Cats were afraid of her, now. They looked at her with renewed fear as she took her place in the Clan. It made her feel better about herself, for some reason. She loved knowing that they feared what she could do to them.
"Smokepaw, you seem perfectly capable of joining a hunting patrol," Grayshadow meowed as he approached her. He was the only cat in the Clan to do so. Smokepaw marveled at his bravery, or sheer stupidity. Either way, she wished she could have that air of bravery when she was younger. "Briarheart and Poppyfur are leaving now."
She followed his gaze to where the former queen, Poppyfur was currently waiting alongside her mentor. Briarheart was completely unaware of her secret training with Russetstar. She just thought that her training had finally rubbed off on Smokepaw after all these moons. That thought alone made Smokepaw roll her eyes at the dense she-cat. She nodded to Grayshadow before joining the two she-cats. Ravenflight and Scorchheart were constantly stopping by the nursery, and she passed the medicine cats as they checked on Thistlepatch, whose kits were due any day now.
More kits means more mouths to feed, Smokepaw thought as she approached her mentor. And more warriors to defend the Clan, another thought reminded her. Smokepaw couldn't help but purr at the thought. More warriors was always a good news to the Clan.
"I'm glad to stretch out my legs," Poppyfur said once they had left the camp. "It feels like I've been stuck there for moons!"
"Well, technically you were," Briarheart teased her. "You make a good mother, and that's what is important."
Smokepaw rolled her eyes at their banter. Briarheart always seemed to talk about mothers and kits rather than the important aspect of the Clan. Defending the borders and keeping the Clan fed was more important. Smokepaw was beginning to understand which cats cared more about the Clan.
"Alright, Smokepaw. Let's see just how good you have gotten at hunting," Briarheart meowed once they were deep enough in the marshy forest.
She just wants to get rid of me. The thought sent shivers of fury through Smokepaw, but she didn't bother saying anything. Instead, she was going to prove to Briarheart that she was more than ready to catch whatever was sent her way.
It didn't take her long to find a frog hopping along the marshy undergrowth. At one point, the thought of frogs had disgusted Smokepaw. But now, she had gotten used to them and the odd taste they provided. Smokepaw was careful not to make her presence known by the hopping creature, which could easily slip away if she wasn't paying attention. Smokepaw was ready to make a killing blow when someone beat her to it.
The frog was dead in an instant when the cat stood up and purred in triumph. Smokepaw's eyes narrowed in disbelief; she was not going to let this cat get away with hunting her frog! Smokepaw let out a furious growl, causing the intruder to stiffen in surprise.
"Mousebrain! How dare you steal from ShadowClan?" she demanded after tackling the intruder to the ground. She used all of her weight to keep the intruder down. Thanks to her training with Russetstar, Smokepaw had learned to tackle opponents twice her size.
"ShadowClan?" the she-cat intruder repeated. "I-I don't know what you're talking about!"
"Don't you know a scent-marker when you smell it?" Smokepaw growled, pressing her paw harder against the she-cat's neck. That was when she noticed something familiar about this cat. She hardly recognized the dark gray cat with yellow eyes staring back at her in fear. "Luna?"
"Smoke?" Luna's eyes widened in disbelief when she realized that the cat attacking her was her sister. Smokepaw suddenly released her grip on Luna, letting her back on her paws. "It really is you!"
"Luna, I can't believe you're still hunting near ShadowClan territory!" Smokepaw hissed, ignoring her sister's look of hope.
"Well, it wasn't like I had another choice," Luna spat as she looked crossly at the frog she'd caught. "Mother left us to fend for ourselves, and we've been struggling ever since. For whatever reason, she left you with the Clans."
Smokepaw felt her fur prickle with unease when Luna said that. She had always felt as if mother abandoned her because she was weak and useless. Because she had broken the rules and nearly gotten herself killed for it. Now she understood that mother was just preparing her for the worse.
"Look, I won't hurt you this time for intruding on ShadowClan territory, but next time, I won't take it so easy on you," Smokepaw growled once she recollected her thoughts. Luna's face hardened as she realized Smokepaw was deadly serious. "I'm an apprentice now, and you are nothing more than an invading loner."
"You must think you're so high and mighty, don't you?" Luna asked, narrowing her eyes with outrage as she glared at Smokepaw. "Just because the Clans took you in, that makes you better than the rest of us."
"Actually, it does," Smokepaw replied in a smug tone. "After all, we are bound by a code, and we live with honor, unlike you loners." She spat the last words out, causing Luna to flinch.
"I can't believe we're even related," Luna snarled. "Dusk would be shocked to find out how much you have changed."
"I've changed for the better, and you never really cared for me in the first place!" Smokepaw retorted, letting anger get the better of her. "No one did!"
That did it. Luna lost it at that moment, making the mistake of attacking her. Smokepaw smirked and easily dodged to the side, letting the smaller she-cat crash into the ground right beside her. Luna leaped back to her paws in an instant, and, without missing a heartbeat, she lashed out across Smokepaw's back legs. Smokepaw bit back a yowl of surprise before twisting around and snapping her fangs at Luna's paws.
Luna leaped back just as Smokepaw was about to lung. Than an idea suddenly sank in. A cruel idea that would leave Luna with an idea of just how difficult life as a warrior really was. Her pelt was sleek and glossy, with few scratch marks that were visible. Smokepaw was going to change that. Luna managed to wriggle herself free from Smokepaw's grip when she had pinned her down. But just as she did that, Smokepaw took the opportunity and bit down on her neck, hard.
"Smoke, please... don't..." Luna breathed out the last words, struggling for air as Smokepaw held her down with one paw. She raised her free paws, claws extended, and did something that would forever mark Luna that day.
"I'm going to leave you with something to remember us by," Smokepaw sneered, venom dripping from her voice. Luna let out a screech of pain as Smokepaw dragged her claw across her face. She didn't bother checking to see if Briarheart or Poppyfur had watched. This was personal.
Once Smokepaw was finished, she stepped back and marveled at her work. Luna's face now bore a heavy wound that resembled deep claw marks. As Luna struggled back to her paws, Smokepaw couldn't help but smirk. This was what she deserved for thinking that she could just as easily invade ShadowClan territory.
"What... have... you done to me?" Luna managed to wheeze out, coughing as she struggled to stand on her own paws.
"It's just a little mark of mine, a tradition passed down by our leader," Smokepaw replied with a hint of amusement in her voice. "Let this be a reminder of what happens when you trespass, and hunt, on our territory."
She left Luna standing there; a shivering mess of blood and fur. But Smokepaw wasn't finished with her just yet. She glanced over her shoulder to where Luna was glaring at her, and picked up the frog she had stolen earlier.
Smokepaw left her at that, a feeling of triumph surging through her. Russetstar would be more than proud with how much she had changed. Luna would remember ShadowClan for seasons to come with those new scars. She could already imagine the horrible nightmares of reality she would face later on.
"Smokepaw, we were wondering what happened to you," Briarheart meowed when Smokepaw returned to their meeting place.
"Sorry, I got caught up in hunting that I lost track of time," she replied innocently. Briarheart looked at her meager catch and rolled her eyes.
"And that was all you could catch?" she asked in annoyance, looking pointedly at the small frog.
"Come on, we've caught plenty of prey ourselves," Poppyfur reassured her with a nudge. Smokepaw hadn't missed the fact that they caught a bundle of prey - more than enough to restock the fresh-kill pile.
Relief washed over Smokepaw's shoulders as she followed the pair back to camp. She carried her frog while Briarheart and Poppyfur carried their own share of fresh-kill. Smokepaw noticed that camp was buzzing with activity as Newtpaw and Marshpaw pounced on one another. Most of the Clan was gathered around the nursery, and it only just dawned on Smokepaw that Thistlepatch must have given birth.
"Thistlepatch had her kits," Ravenflight announced as she emerged from the nursery. "Both are healthy she-cats."
"That's great news!" Barktail, her mate, purred. Without a second word, Barktail pushed his way past the crowd and entered the nursery.
Smokepaw was tempted to see what the kits looked like. But she knew that one wrong move would leave her with nasty claw marks from Thistlepatch. The tabby queen was not the friendliest she-cat in the Clan, and she made that apparent to Smokepaw.
"Smokepaw, a word?" She flinched at the sound of Russetstar's voice. Ignoring the look that Briarheart was giving her, Smokepaw dropped her frog at the fresh-kill pile and approached the ShadowClan leader. "How did your hunting patrol go?"
Smokepaw narrowed her eyes as she wondered where he was getting at with this. He couldn't have known about Luna, right? Yet she saw the look of amusement flashing in his eyes, and realized he probably did know.
"It went better than I planned," she replied, keeping her voice steady as she locked eyes with him.
"Oh, I'm sure." Smokepaw didn't miss the look he was giving her. "I sent Talonclaw to observe your hunting skills, and he reported that you ran into an old friend."
Almost at once, Smokepaw felt her hackles rise with outrage. "She was hardly an 'old friend'," she scoffed. "She was my sister, and I left her with a mark to remember us by for hunting on our territory."
"Than you have passed my expectations," Russetstar purred, earning a look of surprise from Smokepaw. "I think it's time you had your final assessment, tomorrow. You are more than ready to take your place as a warrior of ShadowClan."
For the first time in moons since joining ShadowClan, Smokepaw felt a surge of excitement course through her. She wasn't expecting that kind of response from her leader. But it made her realize just how much she had progressed through her training. And she was more than ready to prove herself as a loyal warrior. She wasn't going to let Russetstar down, not anytime soon.
