A/N
FULL CHAPTER TITLE: Two Types of Love: A Father's Love and Lovestruck Hearts
SilverW01f: Snailpaw is one of my favs too! SnailReed is one my fav ships as well. ;)
Shorty: We see more of Nightpaw in the next chapter, which sadly won't be fore a while. The end of chapter will explain.
BrightMind: Acornheart and Hickorynose were raised a rogues, along with Plumflower and some others, so some would know about angels, depending if they lived with Two-legs for a while. Hickory was raised as a kittypet, and Acorn and his sister were raised by a kittypet as their mother who told them stories of it.
(Recap)
"Dragon's our step-father and leader of the Wrath Tribe." Cas growled, his eyes slitted with clear hatred.
"Leader is an understatement!" Evie snapped her jaws in fury. "He's an overlord! Enslaving she cats, forcing them to be obedient queens and tom's personal toys!"
"Evie, you should maybe calm down a little," Nicky suggested, his voice low, but Evie didn't fazed by his words.
"No, I'm not going to calm down, Nicky!" Evie hissed back. She stalked up to Hickorynose, shoving her muzzle to his with ferociously blazing eyes.
"It's your fault this is out of control!" Evie snarled. "If you appointed a new deputy, or just flat out killed him, this issue wouldn't exist!"
Cas and Nicky exchanged worried looks. "Evie, please. Maybe you should sit down or something." Cas meowed, tugging on her scruff but Evie whirled around and snapped her teeth at him in blind anger.
"But oh no, you had to up and leave the street cats to themselves!" Evie turned back to Hickorynose. He backed up a few pawsteps in hesitance.
"Evie, stop it," Nicky warned, trying to squeeze his way between the two but to no avail.
"What about all those she cats?" Evie hissed, her voice sharp with bitterness. "I smell a she cat on you; is that your mate? What if she was left out here, starving and unable to defend herself?"
"Evie," Cas growled to her, but Evie slapped his paw away.
"But, no worries!" Evie exclaimed in a sarcastically cross tone. "We're fighting an endless battle to overthrow him! We lose countless lives every day! Countless she cats are stolen from under our watch to be mating toys of the Wrath Tribe! Like our own mother!"
"Evie!" Nicky snarled, raising his voice.
"Cats like you are the reason our father is dead!" Evie screeched at Hickorynose, tears now filling her amber eyes.
"EVIE!" Cas and Nicky screeched at her, yanking her away from Hickorynose. Evie collapsed to the ground, sobbing hysterically into her paws. Nightpaw took one glance at her friend and was comforting her in an instant.
"Has the Wrath Tribe really gotten that controlling?" Hickorynose asked once he regained the ability speak, still stunned by Evie's outburst.
Cas and Nicky nodded solemnly. "I'm afraid so." Nicky sighed, his voice back to being soft. "The Liberty Tribe is a movement to free all the captured cats from the Wrath Tribe, but they greatly outnumber the Liberty cats. Any she cat who wanders into Wrath territory is taken as a slave, and defeated she cats from the Liberty Tribe risk being snatched as well."
Cas flattened his ears. "We recently lost three cats: Toffee, who is our deputy, and the inseparable sister fighters, Hex and Hope."
Nightpaw backed up from Evie, assuming a defensive stance. "I smell cats!" She yowled, standing over her friend protectively.
"And we smell intruders!" A muscled tom hissed from atop a fence, seven other cats standing around him like an army. "Wraths, attack!" He ordered, but his cats looked hesitant.
"A-are you sure, Dax? They outnumber us…" One small, black tom whimpered, his tail between his legs nervously.
"Shut up, Beetle!" Dax hissed. He looked around at the cats below him. "Attack them, fools!"
The clan cats instantly launched themselves forward, barrelling into the few cats that dared attack them.
Jaytalon flew to his daughter's side, their backs against each other as Evie scrambled to fight beside Nicky and Cas.
Nightpaw cried out as claws met her cheek. She slid under the Wrath's belly flipping him over and biting his ears and scratching at his underbelly with her back paws.
Reedpaw and Olivestep protected Snailpaw as she kept herself hidden behind a rose bush.
"Hand over your she cats and maybe we'll consider letting you join our noble tribe." Dax cackled as he towered over Acornheart. The chocolate tabby yowled in fury, battering his hind paws into Dax's underbelly mercilessly.
Breezepaw and Forestclaw fought side by side like brothers, Sedgelight and Lionpaw on the other side of them. Lionpaw let out a shriek as she was tackled by a brownish tom with a large black stripe down his back.
Rabbitleg pounced out of nowhere, rolling off with his claws dug into the Wrath's shoulders and away from Lionpaw. Sedgelight dashed to Emberfang's side as a light brown tabby tom with a white underbelly and droopy eyes began to overpower him.
Cas and Nicky showed no mercy, but no form, as they wrestled with the cats. A dark grey tom with black paws pinned Nicky to the concrete, but Cas tore at the flesh in the Wrath's shoulder brutally, giving Nicky the chance to shove him off.
Reedpaw hissed throatily as a white tom with ginger striped tail chomped down the side of his neck, sinking his teeth in and drawing blood. Breezepaw pummeled into the Wrath cat with a snarl and unsheathed claws lashing at his face, freeing Reedpaw.
Hickorynose easily overpowered a small grey tuxedo tom, his yellow eyes narrowed with rage as he clamped his jaws over the tom's neck, pulled back, and snapped. The grey cat fell dead under Hickorynose's paws.
The Wrath cats stopped their fighting to stare at their fallen tribemate. "Retreat, Wrath Tribe! They've killed Woof!" Dax screeched, wriggling out from Acornheart's grasp and running free with his tribemates following him in cowardice.
Reedpaw stumbled to the ground, panting heavily and struggling for breath. The clan cats and the three rogues guiding them all spun around to gawk, and their faces turned horror struck.
Reedpaw collapsed, his breathing shallow as the blood around him pooled from the wound in his neck. Snailpaw was shaking him desperately, her eyes watery with tears. His eyes fluttered closed and darkness engulfed him.
…
Reedpaw opened his eyes, only to find himself at the base of an old oak tree. Short, green grass was underpaw, with berry bushes and thorn thickets all around. Thick tree tops nearly blocked out the clear, blue sky. A familiar, bittersweet scent washed over Reedpaw.
"What are you doing here?" Reedpaw rolled his eyes. The chocolate tabby in front of him purred in amusement. He had hazel-brown stripes and a fluffy white chest with identical blue-green eyes to Reedpaw. His pelt was thick and lush, covering a scar that ran down his back.
"C'mon, you couldn't have forgotten me, could you?" The tom chuckled. Reedpaw rolled his eyes.
"How could I forget?" Reedpaw asked, the memory flashing in his head.
(Flashback of Reedpaw)
"Wh-where am I?" Reedpaw called out in uneasiness. It had been the night of his first day as an apprentice and he had suddenly found himself in a very life like dream.
The tall trees surrounding him on all sides, berry bushes and thorn thickets forming an almost circle around the clearing which centered around an old oak tree. The sky was pitch black, not even a single star shining in the loneliness. The bittersweet smell of a cat bathed Reedpaw's tongue.
"Hello, Reedpaw," a chocolate tabby with hazel-brown stripes and a white chest meowed, padding out from behind the oak tree. His blue-green eyes glowed eerily in the darkness. The heartbeat he stepped into Reedpaw's view, the entire forest lit up. There was birdsong, the sky was blue and clear, and it seemed almost welcoming, despite the suffocating feel of so many trees.
"H-how do you know me?" Reedpaw stammered, backing up in hesitance. "A-and how did you light up the forest?"
The strange cat flicked his tail over his paws, smiling to Reedpaw. "I guess you could say… I light up this world!" He exclaimed, a goofy grin on his face. Reedpaw stared at the cat with a bland look.
"I would laugh," Reedpaw meowed, "but I have no clue who you are." The older tom cat frowned.
The spirit cat led Reedpaw to a pond, their reflections wavering in the clear water. "Look, there Reedpaw. I see a strong handsome tom, with a bright future. Oh, look! You're there, too! Well, that is a bright future until I died."
Reedpaw looked at the tom cat with a questioning expression. "Died? Am I dead, too?!"
"Now, don't be a mouse-brain," the StarClan tom chuckled, peering back into the pond water. "Take a closer look."
Reedpaw stared into the puddle, studying the spirit cat's reflection beside his own. It was as if someone had swapped Reedpaw's white stripes and his hazel-brown chest with the StarClan tom's hazel-brown stripes and white chest. It reminded Reedpaw of a cat his mother had told him stories about.
"Are-are you my father?" Reedpaw whispered, staring at the older tom's reflection. "Are you Thornsnag?" Reedpaw looked up at the StarClan cat, who was sticking out his tongue playfully.
"Hawky told you about me, didn't she?" Thornsnag purred at the thought of her. He leaned in to Reedpaw's ear. "All good things I hope."
"Y-yeah, but what are doing here?" Reedpaw gasped, his mind racing. "I thought StarClan cats only visited special cats! Like ones that are in prophecies and stuff!"
Thornsnag beamed. "Aw, come on! I bet you've waited your whole life for this meowment! Eh? Get it, get it?" Thornsnag fell back into a fit of laughter, smiling as if his pun was the best joke in the world.
Reedpaw puckered his lips together in an effort not to laugh at the horrendous pun.
(End of Flashback)
Reedpaw shook his head, cringing that the thought. "I can't believe you can barely go a sentence without making a pun."
Thornsnag mock frowned. "Aw, come on! That's it, you can't be my son. This is simply a CATastrophe!" Thornsnag slumped to the ground, snickering.
Reedpaw rolled his eyes and sighed. "Dad, is there a reason you're here? Am I dead? Ready to live up in the sky with you?"
Thornsnag's head shot up and bolted towards Reedpaw. "No, no! You won't join me for many, many moons to come. Don't say that. Luckily Evie had some knowledge of herbs and managed to stop the bleeding in your throat. She also put Snailpaw's shoulder back into place."
Reedpaw nodded curtly, then stopped. "Wait, then what's the reason you're here? More battle training? Fatherly advice?"
Thornsnag sighed to himself. "I'm afraid not. I won't be able to reach your dreams in the Two-leg place. It's goodbye until you get back. But, I do have one last bit of advice for you."
Reedpaw's eyes lit up. "Really? What?"
Thornsnag smirked slyly. "If there's a she cat that's waiting for you and you happen to like her, even if you don't know it yet, go for her. Watch the sun set. Go hunting. Protect her like I did your mother."
"And most of all," Thornsnag's voice had begun to fade away with the dream. "Cherish her, for she'll be the first cat you see when you wake up and she'll be beside you."
…
Reedpaw's eyes snapped open. He lifted a paw to his throat, finding it bandaged with hay and marigold. He opened his mouth to talk, but it burned, and no voice came out.
Reedpaw sighed to himself, attempting to turn on his side, but some sort of lump was in the way. He turned his head around to see Snailpaw, sleeping soundly and her shoulder binded in a firm branch to keep the shoulder healing in place.
Reedpaw slapped himself with a paw as he felt the traces of a soft smile on his lips. What in the name of StarClan…? He thought to himself. I've gotta be losing it. Dad's just getting in my head again.
"Oh!" Evie's voice gasped behind him. "You're finally awake!"
Reedpaw stood, stretching his long legs out. He tried to form words, but it only stung in his throat. Evie smacked him harshly.
"That cat did a number on you, Reedpaw! He nearly tore out your windpipe. I managed to save you, but you can't talk or you could compromise it." Evie sighed in exasperation.
Reedpaw tried to growl in frustration, but he found it caused him more pain. Evie smacked him again.
"It's only for a few days, Reedpaw. Just take it easy for now." Evie growled in frustration. "Maybe Snailpaw can keep you company. She can't do too much with that injured shoulder."
Reedpaw recoiled, shaking his head furiously. Evie raised an eyebrow. "Okay, fine. Don't hang out with her. Not my problem you're lovestruck."
Reedpaw grunted in shock. He shook his head again, but couldn't help looking over at sleeping Snailpaw. He looked away quickly, his heart thumping and blood roaring briefly in his ears.
"Wh-wh-where?" Reedpaw croaked as he looked around their surroundings, Evie slapping him for the third time.
"We're in the Liberty Tribe camp. Acornheart carried you after you went unconscious. That was three days ago…" Evie explained with a soft sigh. "Our own leader went missing in a blizzard three days ago as well whilst looking for our missing cats, and she's not back yet. But um, we're safe. The Wrath Tribe can't reach us here for now."
Reedpaw frowned in thought. If that stupid tom hadn't nearly killed me, I would be able to say something!
Evie's eyes suddenly went wide, as if she'd thought of something. "Hold on, I think I know a cat that could help you!" Evie raced out of the den, struggling through the snow and returning with another cat.
Reedpaw took a wary step back at the sight of the cat. Their eyes were slightly bulging, and as if the cat had stars inside of their eyes. They had a fluffy, cream coat with several different shades of brown flecks, giving off the appearance of ruffled feathers.
"Evie, dear, why did you bring me here?" The cat asked, but did not move their head to look at Evie.
"Snowdrift, this is Reedpaw. He can't speak because his windpipe is damaged. Can you help him?" Evie asked kindly, touching her tail tip to the cat's forepaw. They nodded in agreement, touching their nose to Reedpaw's nose.
Reedpaw felt unnerved by the cat for two reasons. One being their eyes, blind yet filled with the stars, and two, he couldn't smell a gender on this cat.
"Just think anything and so long as your noses are touching, Snowdrift can hear it." Evie explained, noticing his puzzled expression.
The ability reminded Reedpaw of Morningfeather, but on a different level. Okay, well, first off, I can't smell a gender on you. Are you a she cat or a tom? Reedpaw thought. Snowdrift only chuckled.
"I am neither," Snowdrift replied, smiling softly. Reedpaw nodded slowly in understanding. Though he didn't quite understand, it was not his place to judge how they chose to live their life.
Reedpaw knew his next question. What is up with your eyes? It looks like your eyes captured Silverpelt and locked them in there. Again, Snowdrift laughed softly.
"I had an accident when I was around four moons old. I fell into a hollow and hit my head. Clots of protein and blood pigments formed. I had already been born with a rare case of cataracts, and this stole the remainder of my sight, leaving me only ten percent of it," Snowdrift's voice grey soft and sorrowful. "My clan cast me out, seeing me to be useless. StarClan then granted me a gift to help cats. So long as our noses touch, I can read every running thought."
Clan? Reedpaw echoed in his mind. You were part of a clan? Snowdrift didn't reply to his question this time. "If you need me again, I'll be with the elders." They turned away, padding elegantly away in the snow.
Evie turned to Reedpaw. "Since they can't hunt, Snowdrift prefers the company of the elders. They are our interrogator, though. Snowdrift's probably heading over to our prisoner now, actually."
Reedpaw nodded again in understanding. Snailpaw shifted behind him, and he heard her stand up and pad towards Evie with a limp. "When can I take this stupid brace off?" Snailpaw growled, gnawing at the thick branch with her teeth.
"Same as Reedpaw; two days," Evie answered strictly. "I'm on the next hunting mission. I'll leave you two to… whatever it is you do." Evie flicked her tail dismissively, charging out into the snow and catching up with cats that were unfamiliar to Reedpaw.
Snailpaw turned to Reedpaw. "You were unconscious a long time." She whispered, her voice thin. "You really scared me… Don't ever do that again, you hear me?!" Her voice suddenly turned bitter and loud. Reedpaw flinched, looking away and down.
"Oh, you can't talk, can you?" Snailpaw realized, leaning so they were making eye contact. Reedpaw shook his head.
"Mm," Snailpaw murmured in a defeated tone. "Guess we're stuck together, right?" She rolled her eyes. "Not like I want to be with you or anything."
Reedpaw lashed his tail in agreement, narrowing his eyes. Reedpaw gazed at her paw, subtly placing his paw over hers. Her paw moved slightly, but didn't leave from under his paw. She flicked her tail over his.
"Hey, Snailpaw!" A voice called loudly, Reedpaw and Snailpaw tearing away from each other like it never happened. Reedpaw didn't recognize the cat calling Snailpaw's name.
The she cat was a fluffy white, with black and orange splotches covering her entire body. Light amber eyes gleamed in their sockets with kit like energy.
"Oh, h-hey, Callie…" Snailpaw trailed off awkwardly. Her voice dripped with disappointment. Callie didn't seem to notice.
"Ooh!" Callie squealed, noticing Reedpaw. "Is this that yummy, more than chummy tom you told me about? He is a cutie, fluffy ball of summer beauty with a nice booty!"
Reedpaw's face burst into flames. Snailpaw looked awkward as well. "What?" Snailpaw asked, trying to comprehend the fast way Callie spoke.
"What?" Callie echoed back, her tail tip twitching as she shook her head. "Anyhoo, Snailpaw," Callie turned to Reedpaw with a sly smirk. "You hold onto him nice and tight or imma be comin' for 'im."
Reedpaw's eyes went round in surprise, opening his mouth to protest, but no words forming. Snailpaw found herself gawking at him wordlessly.
Callie winked at the both of them, the young calico skipping away gleefully towards another calico, most likely her older sister.
"Th-th-that's just Callie…" Snailpaw chuckled nervously, rolling her eyes dramatically. "She's a little high-strung."
Reedpaw nodded his head, rolling his eyes in agreement, but stopped mid roll. Snailpaw and I almost mimic each other; maybe we're not so different after all.
"High-strung… like you," Reedpaw choked out, his hoarse voice taunting and sour. Snailpaw shirked away in shock, then straightened up.
"Screw you, Reedpaw," Snailpaw fired back without missing a beat.
"You wish," Reedpaw smirked, his voice raspy but still full of spite.
Snailpaw's face suddenly turned dull. "I know you hate me, Reedpaw. A-and I hate you as well, but you sound like you're in pain, so…" Snailpaw cleared her throat, resuming her haughty attitude. "So, just shut up!"
Reedpaw pulled back, confused by her words. She sounded bitter and harsh, but her words seeped with caring. Snailpaw's eyes widened her eyes, looking at the light snow.
"Um, bye," Snailpaw squeaked, darting off with her limp.
Maybe I'm pretending to hate her, and she's pretending to hate me. And maybe we're both to stubborn to admit that we're both playing the same game here… Reedpaw thought to himself with a soft smile to himself and curling up into the nest inside the medicine den.
A/N
Aw, how cute! But this isn't the end! Keep on reading!
Reedpaw yawned, turning to the Liberty medicine cat, a grumpy golden-brown tabby tom with a flat face called Ruse. The tom turned to Reedpaw, sighing. "Just wait a few more hours and you can take off the omotati." Ruse's voice held a noticeable thick accent. (pronunciation: like it looks)
Reedpaw cocked his head in puzzlement.
Ruse frowned to himself, bonking his head with a paw. "How say... um... oh! The wrap. A few more hours and the wrap can come off."
Reedpaw grinned in delight. A commotion from outside the den drew his attention. Reedpaw got up from his nest, stretching and padding outside.
"Our vođa has returned, Reedpaw!" Wile, Reedpaw's new friend, meowed with glee and dragged his father, Ruse, the medicine cat towards the clearing. Reedpaw knew Wile meant 'leader', but with Ruse as his father, he combined the two dialects often. (pronunciation: vodja)
The small group of the Liberty Tribe gathered around a weak she cat, her creamy fur matted and, lumped against her frail figure with snow and mud and slosh.
Jaytalon shoved his way to the front of cluster of cats, his jaw dropped at the cat he saw in front of him.
"I could place those eyes anywhere… Lijep, is that you?!" Jaytalon gasped.
The she cat looked down, shaking her fur of muck. She stared sheepishly up at Jaytalon. "Y-yeah, it's me," she breathed, her eyes rolling back into her head and collapsing.
(POV change; Hawkpool)
"I can't believe Snailpaw would run off like that," Hawkpool sighed, frowning to herself as she sat beside Pebbletail outside of the nursery. "I can still train her!"
Pebbletail chortled. "Sure, but I'm positive that's not why she left. Who else went on that mission, eh?"
"Uh, Acornheart, Hickorynose and Reedpaw? Wait," Hawkpool stopped herself, realizing it. "Reedpaw. Snailpaw followed after them, because of my son." Hawkpool cupped her face in her paws. "How could I not see that? It's so obvious they like each other!"
Pebbletail sniggered lightly. "All the young warriors ship them together."
Hawkpool looked hurt. "I'm a young warrior! Well, queen currently, but still young!"
"I meant newly made, like Antclaw and Treeshadow and such," Pebbletail clarified with a smile at Hawkpool's flustered face.
Hawkpool sighed heavily, her warm breath exhaling a soft fog. Hawkpool grinned like a kit at the mist her breath made. She turned to Pebbletail, blowing air on his face with a childish giggle.
"You have morning fish breath!" Pebbletail teased, pouncing on her playfully. "Rawr!" He growled as he pinned Hawkpool down. They both were laughing.
He bumped his nose to hers, his amber eyes affectionate and gentle. Hawkpool licked his cheek. "I love you." She whispered, beaming as he let her up.
"No roughhousing!" Morningfeather snapped from across the clearing. A few stray cats lingering in the clearing turned to look at Pebbletail and Hawkpool. The two mates awkwardly clambered off each other.
"I get you are still a young queen, Hawkpool," Morningfeather sighed as she made her way over to the pair, "but that doesn't mean you should endanger the kits on their way."
Hawkpool hung her head. "I understand. I would never want to hurt my kits."
"Morningfeather!" Breezepaw yowled from across the clearing. "It's Birchpaw!"
Hawkpool exchanged a quick look with Pebbletail before sprinting off after the medicine cat.
"Birchpaw, can you hear us?" Hawkpool cried out, staring at her groggy kit. "It's mom and the medicine cats."
The brown tabby mottled apprentice tossed and turned in a cold sweat, his limbs twitching with a nightmare. Soft murmurs were heard, but no words made sense to the trio of she cats.
Birchpaw's eyes squeezed tightly, then slowly fluttered open, bleary and damp with sleep. He lifted a forepaw to his throat, faintly wrapped in cobwebs from the shallow cut Dustsnow gave him. It was scarring over.
"Uggghhh," Birchpaw groaned, dazed as he grew accustomed to his surroundings. "What the-" Birchpaw winced as he saw his mangled leg, binded in cobwebs.
"Dustsnow!" Birchpaw suddenly exclaimed, his voice high pitched in fear. Hawkpool rested her tail on his back soothingly.
"Don't worry, she's being taken care of. I'm so glad you're okay! You were out for almost a whole quarter moon!" Hawkpool embraced Birchpaw gently, but firmly.
"You have to take it easy," Morningfeather began. "Your leg is fractured in several places."
"I-I can barely move it," Birchpaw admitted. "There's very little feeling in it." Morningfeather and Breezepaw's faces grew grim, Hawkpool's worried and puzzled.
"Can you feel this?" Breezepaw blatantly asked, pricking her claws into the skin that led to the hind leg. He held his breath and nodded. Breezepaw drew her claw up, poking at his skin every now and then with the sharp tips as her paw traveled down his injured leg.
"What about now?" Breezepaw asked, sinking a claw slightly into the flesh of his upper middle flank. This time, Birchpaw shook his head.
Breezepaw slid her claws back in, giving his small wound a brisk lick. "Birchpaw, I'm sorry." Breezepaw mewed, her clouded, blue eyes staring dully in his direction.
"Sorry?" Birchpaw repeated, puzzled, looking anxiously worried. "Sorry for what? What's going on?"
Hawkpool curled around her son, shushing him softly, but for the first time, Birchpaw pushed his mother away. She looked at him, hurt. He glanced back, apologetic, but did not say anything.
Birchpaw struggled to his three good paws, his left hind leg dangling loosely, but he managed to firmly stamp it on the ground, looking almost normal aside from the ugly twist. "What is going to happen to me?" Birchpaw demanded, his growl hoarse.
Morningfeather turned to face him, her stream blue eyes gazing unnervingly into his pine green eyes. "You can never be a warrior, Birchpaw."
(POV change: Reedpaw/Snailpaw)
"Snailpaw!" Reedpaw exclaimed with joy, tackling the she cat from behind and the two of them tumbling across the clearing until he firmly pinned her, a wide grin on his face.
Jaytalon was discussing his shock with Lijep, who had woken up a few hours later. The clan cats were mingling with the Liberty cats like their own clan.
"Reedpaw!" Snailpaw squealed. "You can talk again!"
Reedpaw opened his mouth to speak, then turned his head away, sneezing. Snailpaw took his moment to push him off. "Yuck, are you sick?!" Snailpaw gagged, glaring at him. "You better not have gotten me sick, fuzzball!"
Reedpaw shook his head, turning back to her. His nose was faintly running. "Nah, just a measly cold. Nothing to worry about." He clarified, tapping his poofy tail tip to her nose, causing her to sneeze. She narrowed her eyes as he laughed, but there was a hint of amusement.
"Snailpaw?" Reedpaw's voice suddenly turned serious. Snailpaw nodded for him to continue. "I don't hate you; in fact, it's the opposite."
"You love me!" Snailpaw exclaimed instantly in a sing-songy voice. "I love you, too!" She hummed gleefully, embracing him sweetly.
"Aw, really?" Reedpaw groaned. "I had this whole poem o-or speech or whatever you call it!"
"No, lemme hear it!" Snailpaw begged, her smallish eyes round with excitement, but Reedpaw stubbornly shook his head.
Snailpaw's eyes suddenly sparked with an idea. She cleared her throat.
(You Snuck Your Way Right Into My Heart; by Phineas and Ferb)
Snailpaw moved around him gracefully, trailing her tail along his spine. "I should've known
From how I felt
When we were together
And even more when we were apart
You tiptoed in
And got under my skin
You snuck your way right into my heart."
Reedpaw smirked slyly. He pinned her down, his blue-green eyes burning into her soft green eyes. Reedpaw parted his jaws, singing along with her. "I put up barriers
To shield my emotions
A wall that you could never break apart
But like a ninja of love
Rappelling down from above
You snuck your way right into my heart."
(End song)
The duo stared at each in utter silence for several heartbeats, before they nuzzled against each in bliss.
"Dungface," Snailpaw whispered as he licked her nose. He feigned a hurt look.
"Fox-heart," he retorted back at her with a cocky grin. Snailpaw mock growled, swatting him with a sheathed paw, and surprisingly, he staggered to the ground.
"Reedpaw?" Snailpaw's voice was fretful. "Are you okay?"
He nodded weakly, struggling to his paws. "Y-yeah," he breathed. "Just worn out still."
Snailpaw didn't look convinced, but she didn't protest. Her soft green eyes were slitted with doubt and worry.
"Maybe you should go see Ruse," Snailpaw suggested, but Reedpaw shrugged her off.
"I'm fine, Snailpaw," he insisted, running circles around her. "See? Healthy." His breathing was ragged, and sounded forced, his sides heaving with exhaustion.
Snailpaw rolled her eyes. "Fine, but if you get sicker don't come crying to me." She waved her tail dismissively, sitting beside Callie across the clearing, her back turn to him.
Reedpaw groaned to himself as a series of sharp pains in his chest seized him, crippling him to the ground. He looked around, making sure no one was watching and dragged himself behind a large patch of undergrowth.
Reedpaw choked back a powerful cough, the wheezing stealing the majority of his breath. Reedpaw gazed in shock as a fluidy goo of a sort stained the perfect white snow underpaw from his coughs.
Reedpaw shook himself, concluding it was a side effect of his healing windpipe, and padded next to Snailpaw. "Join me on a journey to the stream?"
Snailpaw cast Callie and her sister, Maggie, an apologetic look. "Sorry guys, it seems he's not giving me another choice." She growled teasingly, their tails linking as they trotted side by side.
"It's really c-cold," Reedpaw chattered, his pelt puffed out, but he was still shivering. Snailpaw stared at him oddly, shrugging him off.
"Can I try something?" Reedpaw asked slyly, his eyes skittish. Snailpaw mumbled a quiet 'yeah.'
Reedpaw leaned slightly pressing his lips to hers. Snailpaw's eyes shot wide in shock, then quickly kissed him back, a soft hum of glee escaping her smiling face.
Their kiss lasted what seemed like so long and so short, like an eternity had passed and time had stopped. Their whole beings were focused on the kiss, on each other, that they couldn't think of anything else. Tasting each other, their tongues gingerly touching only to retract and then charge in a few seconds after with no hesitation.
After they slowly, and regretfully, pulled away from each other, they wore identical, blissful smiles. Reedpaw's nose dripped, as if he had allergies, and he breathed raggedly. Snailpaw's suspicious were at a maximum.
"That's it. Give me your paw," she ordered, her eyes stern. Reedpaw turned to her, his teeth chattering.
"M-my paw?" He asked, confused, but he held out his paw as Snailpaw's gaze grew heavier and more intense.
Snailpaw pressed her nose to his paw pad, then drew back in surprise. "You're warmer than I expected! Even I can tell you have a raging fever! Come on, we're going back before you get me sick."
"Aw, come on!" Reedpaw wheezed. "Just let me get some water?"
Snailpaw turned around, sighing in exasperation. "Fine; just getting water. But I am coming with you, numbskull."
Reedpaw smiled in thanks, sneezing on the snow. Snailpaw cringed in pity and mild disgust. He grinned sheepishly.
"Look, the stream!" Snailpaw exclaimed, then her face drooped. "It's frozen over…"
"I got it, no worries," Reedpaw rasped, picking up a pointed stone into his maw and smashing it into the ice. He dipped his muzzle into the hole in the ice, cautiously lapping the cold water.
"Reedpaw, we should be getting back. To the camp now; the sun is setting," Snailpaw pointed out, staring up at the pink, orange and purple sky.
"Hold up," Reedpaw whispered back, his eyes glued to the darkening sky. "Look; isn't this sunset beautiful? It's worth it."
Snailpaw hissed loudly, openly clawing his ear with an unsheathed paw. "You're worth it, you fuzzball!" She was crying now. "Why can't you see that?" She stared up at Reedpaw with bleary, tear-soaked eyes.
Reedpaw's face was one of astonishment for a heartbeat when he turned to her, then developed into one of shame, not speaking as he stared at his paws. Another series of coughs rattled through his body.
"Fox-heart," Reedpaw meowed under his breath, but Snailpaw caught it. She narrowed her damp eyes.
"Dung-face!" Snailpaw fired back, anger, confusion, frustration and sadness all bundled into one emotion.
"Mistake!" Reedpaw snapped, his claws flexing into the snow. His pelt billowed in the freezing winds, the tom shivering pitifully and looking faint.
"Tree-hugger," Snailpaw growled to him, referring to his one quarter ThunderClan blood from his half-clan father.
"Beautiful," Reedpaw breathed, staring into her eyes deeply. Snailpaw opened her mouth to fire back an insult, only to shut her mouth when she realized he had complimented her.
Snailpaw skidded forward, burying herself into his thick fur. He was warm to the touch, but looked he was going to freeze. His eyes glowed with malaise. Snailpaw pressed an ear to his side, listening to his chest gurgle and rattle with every painful breath.
Overwhelming concern washed over her like an overflowing river. She angled her ear closer to lungs, pulling back in shock at the faint sound she heard. Liquid. It bubbled and sloshed and rose like it was filling up inside his chest.
"Oh my, StarClan," Snailpaw choked on her words. "There's fluid trapped in your lungs. You have a raging fever, but you're cold. Please, Reedpaw! If you don't get help, you are going to die!"
Reedpaw looked like he fought to speak his words. "I-I'm not worth it, Snailpaw. I'm the forgotten sibling. The disappointment of a son to my parents. Expected to be like my funny, clever and strong father. But, I'm not! I won't live up to either of my parents… I'm better of dead." He grumbled, his voice raspy.
"You're never forgotten by me," Snailpaw purred encouragingly, her eyes round in pleading. "You're everything and more to me. You can be whatever you want; witty, smart, powerful. Just never be dead." She whispered, quietly sobbing into his fluffy hazel-brown chest, her heart aching as she heard his pain within his lungs.
Reedpaw opened his mouth to reply, but suddenly felt attacked by a wave of nausea, black dots invading his vision. A whirlwind of heat and chills came and went repeatedly through his pelt.
"Are you okay?" Snailpaw was borderline yelling. "You like you're going to retch!"
Reedpaw tried to speak, but all that came out was an agonizing cough, spewing blood instead of words. Reedpaw staggered, collapsing to the ground. He struggled to breath, wheezing through the series of hacking that had seized him.
Snailpaw screeched in shock and horror, frantically looking him up and down. "What's wrong? How can I help? Frog-dung, where's a medicine cat when you need one?!"
Reedpaw's sides heaved with his shallow breathing, fighting to drink in the precious air. More of his blood tainted the sloshy snow. Snailpaw shook him desperately as he his eyes began to shut.
"No, you keep your eyes open, fool," Snailpaw snapped, but her tear-stained face showed no trace of anger.
Reedpaw laughed dryly, rolling his eyes as if Snailpaw was asking him to grow wings. He winked at her. "S-s-see you in a-an-another life."
Snailpaw sobbed hysterically as Reedpaw's eyes fluttered closed, but it was clear he tried to fight it. A few several time they snapped back open, Snailpaw catching a glimpse of his enamoring blue-green eyes, but they were glazed over, until they closed completely.
Snailpaw panicked for several heartbeats, managing to take control of her emotions to listen for a heartbeat. It was hard to hear over the gurgling of fluid in his lungs, but there was the faint thumping, seeming to slow down.
Snailpaw gripped his thick scruff in her small maw and doing her best not to drag him in the snow, but to no avail; he was a lot larger than her now after all. Her paws carried her with determination, her leftover tears falling onto his chocolate fur.
You will not die. Snailpaw thought, though it was more of a prayer. You will be everything you are to be; everything that StarClan planned. And… I'll be there, too. Beside you when you pull through.
A/N
SOrry that took a long time! I combined two chapters, so love me.
Who likes Snowdrift, the agender rogue! Aren't they amazing? Their eyes were based off of Zeus the owl. Also, who thinks they know what clan Snowdrift is from? (And maybe their littermates? Snowdrift's coat and their siblings' coats would be somewhat similar in color) More LGBTQ+ to come, so if you don't approve, I'm sorry to say you can go. I'm a pansexual myself, who recently broke up with my boyfriend and got an amazing, WONDERFUL girlfriend. I'm also questioning my gender indentity. So y'all judgy and rude people like that can leave. (Also tell me if I fudged Snowdrift's pronouns when I was typing!)
I'm going to Washington State this month so there won't be another update for a while so I mashed the chapters. You're welcome.
Don't forget to leave a review just way I like 'em ;)
Now a little question to test your knowledge on this fanfic! Whoever get it correct first recieves a (invisible) plush of any cat from the story, except Hawkpool and Thornsnag. (Too many ppl asked for Hawk and Thorn is my bby)
Question: Who is Ferretnose's and Doestripe's parents?
Bonus Question to previous: How are Ferretnose and Doestripe related to Hawkpool?