Ooh... this one's a short one!
Here we are with chapter fourteen, and back with Tigerpaw! It's been a while writing him, but I'm hoping to have fun with it!
Two sunrises had passed since Tigerpaw's scuffle with Stoatpaw. Two sunrises. And throughout the scuffle, Tigerpaw could tell that Stoatpaw was hiding something.
But... Tigerpaw was also hiding something. He was hiding his dreams about Silverpaw, the she-cat he liked a little more than he should. But... pudgy little Stoatpaw wasn't supposed to rise up like he did. He was only supposed to go into the battle confident and come back out wrecked!
A kit crush on a friendly apprentice isn't anything to worry about, Tigerpaw reasoned as he finished cleaning the mouse bile from his paws. He turned his gaze to Mothpaw, whose sleek golden pelt glimmered in the sunlight that came from the cave's entrance. I should probably focus more on Mothpaw... she's the closest to a friend I've ever had, and we share the same views.
But... he couldn't. He couldn't bring himself to get closer to Mothpaw for fear of damaging his relationship with Silverpaw. The golden she-cat sitting in front of him was pretty, but she was no Silverpaw. Mothpaw could never make him feel the way he did about Silverpaw.
"Uh... Tigerpaw?" Mothpaw's voice snapped him out of his thinking, and he lifted his gaze to meet her silver one. Tigerpaw thought it odd how her blue eyes were as pale blue as Silverpaw's coat. Mothpaw blinked, and said awkwardly, "You're staring at me."
She shuffled her paws, swinging her tail around her feet as Tigerpaw blinked a few times to wake himself out of his stupor. He shook his head and stood up, stuttering, "I uh, sorry. I'm... gonna go clear my head." he left Mothpaw's side, clambering over to and up the cave wall, exiting into the outside world. He knew exactly where he was going: the Oakclan border.
He knew that if he was going out, he might as well bring back prey. He caught two mice and burried them to collect them on his way back.
Once the roar of the river reached his ears, his heartbeat quickened. He burst through the ferns lining the riverbank, his blue eyes wide as he searched for Silverpaw. His dreams made him worry that it was her who had drowned... but a flash of silver later, and he was staring into her beautiful blue eyes.
"Tigerpaw? Tigerpaw, it's you!"" she exclaimed, her face lighting up as she leaned forward to look at him. Her whiskers were soon covered in water from the spray of the river. "Wait, hold on- I'll come over!"
Her pelt shimmered with each movement as she bunched up her muscles, getting to leap. Tigerpaw's heart fluttered as he watched a cute look of determination cross her face right when she was about to jump. As much as he wanted her to do so, he knew she couldn't. He quickly shouted, "Wait, Silverpaw, don't-"
Splash! She was already swimming through the water, a determined glint shining in her blue eyes. She resurfaced on the other side, climbing out and nuzzling Tigerpaw. She breathed, "Tigerpaw, I've been... thinking about you."
"You've been in my dreams, to be honest," Tigerpaw exclaimed, staring into her blue eyes lovingly. She giggled, turning her head from his. He leaned towards her even more, saying, "Oh, Silverpaw! I haven't seen you in so long. How are things in Oakclan?" he sniffed her, thankful that the river had temporarily masked her scent.
"Oh, things are perfect. Duskpaw and I... we're close to becoming warriors!" she giggled, then explained when she saw a concerned look spread aross Tigerpaw's face, "Duskpaw is my brother. He and I came with our mother, Spiderfur, to one of the hot springs recently... it was really fun! Anyway, how is your clan going?"
"Things are going great. There's a new apprentice! Her name's Mothpaw, and she has pretty golden fur." he nuzzled her when he saw her face fall. "But definitely not as pretty as yours." Silverpaw purred at that, and the two crawled close to each other. Silverpaw's wet pelt pressed into Tigerpaw's dry one, and he purred deep in his throat.
"Tigerpaw, I... I wish we were warriors already!" Silverpaw wailed, dashing the dirt with a paw. "Then, maybe Oakclan and Steamclan would allow us to be... together." Tigerpaw's heart soared; he was a young apprentice, and Silverpaw wasn't very far from her own warrior ceremony. But the way she made him feel was indescribable.
He stood up, nuzzling her one last time. "Don't worry, Silverpaw. Whatever happens, I'll... I'll be here." Their tails entwined, and they bid farewell to each other. Tigerpaw turned around to head back to camp, and decided to go on a little hunting spree until the sun set bow the horizon.
Picking up his catches, he went back home. Silverpaw was the only thing on his mind.
"Tigerpaw, you're positively soaked!"
"Woah, Tigerpaw! Did you go to the river?"
"Of course not, he brought back mice!"
Brambleoak pushed her kits back towards her, purring. She then looked square at Tigerpaw. "I don't know what you were doing, but you better go get cleaned up! You look a mess!"
Tigerpaw nodded. "Okay, Brambleoak." he left her and her kits, feeling Larkkit's gaze linger on him. His fur stood up. What is with that cat? Larkkit is certainly something else...
He cleaned himself up and went over to the fresh kill pile, grabbing a sparrow and heading off to a cozy corner by the Apprentice's Pool. Mothpaw joined him, shivering.
"I don't know where you ran off to, but Stoatpaw is weird. All throughout practice he kept mumbling to himself!" she took a bite of her mouse, scooting closer to Tigerpaw. The brown and white tom shifted. "Seriously! And, he's been getting better. Like, he's still pudgy and all, but he's faster than a bird!"
Tigerpaw flicked an ear. "Did he beat you in a fight?"
"Pssh, no. He'd never beat me in a fight. I'm stocky like my dad!" she finished her mouse, licking her lips and discarding the bones. "Well, here he comes. I'm going off to bed before he can talk to me about it!"
Sure enough, Tigerpaw turned his head to see his fluffy white brother. Only now did he notice a small nick in his brother's ear. He shot up.
"Stoatpaw! Where's you get that?" he asked, gesturing to Stoatpaw's ear. Stoatpaw looked away.
"I snagged it on some brambles coming home from training with Leafclaw... it's nothing to worry about, Tigerpaw." He left his brother's side, heading into the den.
Something was off. Stoatpaw was hiding something.
But... you're hiding something too. You're hiding Silverpaw. He brushed it off, following his brother into the apprentice's den for bed.
Aah, there we go! Finished! Also, this chapter was beta'd by the lovely SilverMidnightMoon! Please, go check them out!
Also, thanks for all of the lovely reviews I got! Still only four, but hey, it's a personal record!