Cinderblaze Apprentice Love

Lionpaw felt weariness weighing his paws. Why should he have to prove himself to Hollypaw? I haven't done anything wrong! Cinderpaw trotted over to him and greeted him with a purr, banishing his moody thoughts by rubbing her cheek against his, a purr rumbling through her body.

Lionpaw settled down in his nest, feeling Cinderpaw twist and lap at his golden pelt with soothing sleepy strokes, obviously worn out from the battle training she had been busy with earlier. He rasped his tongue along her spine and the gray tabby stretched until she shivered before curling up with her head on her paws, tail entwined with his, one paw over her nose. Lionpaw put his head down across her shoulders and half closed his amber eyes, feeling sleepy and worn out. "Night Cinderpaw." He meowed softly and got a purr as a reply before his amber eyes slid completely closed and he dreamt of chasing a large plump mouse.

Crack!

A stone clattered against the wall of the camp and thumped onto the ground outside the apprentice's den.

Lionpaw lifted his head from Cinderpaw's shoulders and blinked in the darkness. Was a rabbit foraging near the top of the hollow?

Crack!

Couldn't be a rabbit. The first clatter would have sent it fleeing into the forest.

Curious, Lionpaw got quietly to his paws, carefully avoiding waking up his gray tabby not quite mate. He glanced at Hollypaw. She was sound asleep. Thank you Brackenfur! Hollypaw's mentor had taken her hunting deep into the forest. She had come back exhausted, her paws sore, but happily carrying three mice. Lionpaw slipped past her nest and froze, looking behind him to see Cinderpaw stirring slightly, blue eyes cracking open, black nose twitching slightly, stretching her spine as if she had woken up by his absence. He waited until she stopped moving and curled back up into a ball before he ducked out of the den.

Crack!

Thump!

A pebble landed near his paws. He skittered backward and looked up cautiously. Two round eyes shone at him from the top of the cliff, then blinked.

Someone was spying on the camp! Should he tell someone? He glanced around the empty moonlit clearing. No cat stirred. He didn't want to wake anyone until he was sure there was danger. He would look foolish if he called the alarm because some inquisitive fawn had discovered the hollow. He would investigate first and call the alarm if there really was any danger.

Whitewing's pelt glowed at the camp entrance. She must be on guard. If there was trouble he could call to her.

Lionpaw slipped around the edge of the clearing and pushed his way among the brambles beside the medicine den. He knew he could climb the cliff behind them. Reaching up through the prickly branches he felt the first ledge with his paws and hauled himself up. Then, moving carefully so as not to send grit showering down, he scrabbled up from ledge to ledge until finally, he pulled himself onto the grass at the top. Panting a little, he began to creep around the edge of the hollow.

"Lionpaw!" A soft mew hissed from beneath the ferns ahead. He froze as Heatherpaw slipped out from beneath the arching fronds. "Thank Starclan it's you."

"Did you drop those pebbles?" Lionpaw stared at her in alarm. What if she were caught here? What was she doing there? "Is everything okay?" He couldn't resist asking, worried about his friend.

"I had to see you!"

He felt a spark of worry, guilt, and annoyance flare up in his chest. She was more stubborn and brave than he thought. He briefly wondered if he should call Whitewing so he could return to his warm nest but decided against it, he would find out what she wanted. But he had to get her away from the camp. "Follow me," he hissed. He hared off lakeward down the slope. But Heatherpaw didn't follow.

Come on!" Lionpaw hissed, skidding around and looking back.

Her eyes were shining. "Don't go that way! I've got something to show you!" She turned and ducked away under the ferns.

Lionpaw hurried after her, not wanting her to run into any trouble. "Where are we going?"

"Wait and see!"

She seemed to be heading toward the old fox den. Lionpaw slowed down. "Be careful!" he warned, heart pounding at the thought of foxes.

"It's okay," she told him. "There aren't any foxes." She paused in front of the thick brambles that crowded the bottom of a steep slope. "Wait here."

She dived beneath them, and Lionpaw watched her tail disappear into the dense foliage, making the bushes tremble. What was she doing? An owl called in the branches above his head. Lionpaw fluffed out his fur and glanced around nervously. The chilly night air was making him want to return to camp and curl up in his nest with Cinderpaw, the smaller and shorter furred she-cat was probably feeling the chilly air now that he had left. The image of going back to his nest was a pleasant one, warm in the apprentice's den, in his comfortable nest, with Cinderpaw's sweet herb and forest scent filling his nose...

"Here!" Heatherpaw's voice startled him.

Lionpaw looked up the steep slope and saw her blinking at him from the entrance to a small tunnel. "What are you doing in there?" It looked like a rabbit burrow.

"You'll never believe what's inside! Come on!" Heatherpaw scooted backward into the darkness

Paws pricking Lionpaw squirmed under the brambles, wincing as their barbs tugged his fur. He heaved himself up the slope, out of the thorny tangle, and paused at the burrow entrance. "Heatherpaw?" he called, his heart pounding.

Come inside!" Her mew echoed strangely from the shadows.

Lionpaw squeezed in after her.

The tunnel was pitch-black. Crouching, he wriggled forward, damp earth pressing against his pelt. What was Heatherpaw up to? This place was hardly big enough for a rabbit, let alone a cat. Suddenly he felt space around him, cold air washing over his fur. The tunnel had widened.

Relieved, he straightened up and padded forward until he felt Heatherpaw's breath on his cheek and took a few paw steps back. The chilly air made the idea of going back to camp even more appealing. He was starting to feel guilty as well after Cinderpaw and Hollypaw had caught him and Heatherpaw, he and Cinderpaw had ironed out their differences and the pretty gray tabby had admitted that she had feelings for him that were as strong as his were for her. Since then the two of them had become really close and were often seen together around camp or on patrol with their mentors. He hadn't seen Heatherpaw since that night and wasn't eager to explain things to her.

"It leads to a cave!" She mewed. "There are loads of tunnels under this part of the hill, and one of them leads right to Windclan territory."

"How in Starclan's name did you find it?"

"Breezepaw sent me to catch mice between the rocks just over the top of the moor, not far from camp. I chased one down into a crack and realized that the crack opened into a tunnel. When I went inside I found that there were tunnels leading everywhere."

"Weren't you frightened of getting lost?"

"I exploded slowly at first, making sure I got to know each route really well before trying another. And the I found one that led to a cave. It's amazing. There's a hole in the roof where the light comes in. Then I found a way into your territory!" Her mew was triumphant. "Isn't it wonderful?"

Lionpaw could hardly believe his ears. "A tunnel from our territory to yours!" he gasped. "That's fantastic! If there was an attack or a fire, Thunderclan could use it to escape-"

"No!" Heatherpaw's mew was sharp with frustration. "We mustn't tell anyone else. Don't you see? This can be our place!"

"Our place?" He questioned, the thought hadn't even occurred to him. Now that it had he knew he couldn't agree to this, the image of being curled up with Cinderpaw in the apprentice den flashed in his mind once again, making the guilt worse and his resolve strengthen.

"We can meet here without anyone ever finding us! Even Hollypaw won't guess where you're going."

"Heatherpaw," He mewed, trying to be as gentle as possible, "Hollypaw is right, I can't be a faithful warrior to Thunderclan if I'm breaking the warrior code every night. If I'm going to be the warrior I want to be I can't keep being distracted by these nightly meetings."

"But, Lionpaw-"

"No, Heatherpaw," Lionpaw mewed firmly, "I have to focus on my training to become who I want to be. A loyal Thunderclan warrior."

"Does this have to do anything with your sister and that gray tabby discovering us?" Heatherpaw asked him, her mew was sad and upset.

"Only partially," Lionpaw kept his mew calm, "my sister was worried that I won't become a warrior and Cinderpaw was just protecting her."

"What changed?" Heatherpaw's mew was almost a whisper.

"I decided to stop being a mouse-brain and be done with all the lies." Lionpaw mewed in return, "I'm sorry Heatherpaw."

"You know what? Fine! It doesn't matter anyway!"

Lionpaw felt Heatherpaw's tail tip brush his nose as she turned and fled, leaving him feeling a little more light-hearted and free.

"Lionpaw?"

Lionpaw heard Cinderpaw's drowsy mew when he entered the den and carefully avoided his sleeping sister's nest.

"Where'd you go?" The groggy apprentice asked, lifting her head with her blue eyes half open and drowsy.

"Nowhere Cinderpaw." He mewed back, settling back into his nest, the gray tabby's fur brushing his. "I needed to fix a few things, that's all."

"Why do you smell like Heatherpaw?" The tabby's mew was drowsy and she obviously wasn't completely awake.

"Because I had to talk to her." He licked the gray tabby's head between the ears as she pressed closer to him, putting her head back down and closing her blue eyes.

"You're not meeting with her anymore are you?"

"No, not since you and Hollypaw caught us."

"Good, night Lionpaw."

"Goodnight Cinderpaw." Lionpaw's mew was also drowsy, his head laying across the smaller she-cat's shoulders, amber eyes closed.

Character Emails (all are gmail accounts)

Caylee and any other side character – youngcrazyteenageauthor

Cynthia – athleticsapphiresinger

Leon – athleticgoldenboy

Bree – cheerfulcuriosity

Jay – perfectgrumpytone

Holly – emeraldintelligencequeen

Fini – gingerandwhiteteenager

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