Apprentice and Pregnant 2
Chapter 11: He Hates (Loves) You
Okay, we had a fight, so what
Don't act like you've never done me wrong, hold up
So yeah I got mad, and called a tow truck
And it ended up costing you four hundred and fifty four bucks
But um, you shouldn't have yelled like that
You know me; you know I'll be yelling right back
You know what I'm about and you know where my minds at
And if you wanna disrespect me then I'm gonna fight back
Hollyshine waited impatiently, staring over at the camp entrance for what felt like the zillionth time. I can't wait to hear how the gathering went! She thought. I don't know why it's taking them so long to get back… The moon is going down and it's gonna be morning before you know it.
Then the bushes around the entrance started to move, and Hollyshine pricked her ears. Finally! She watched as Tigerstripe walked in first, followed by Pinepaw and a few others.
I wonder if Laurelpaw had a good time!
She smiled as her daughter finally made her way in last, next to Firepaw and Swallow Star. Her heart dropped slightly as she saw the sheepish look on Laurelpaws face, and the way Firepaw looked like he was going to cry.
Why do they look so weird? And wait… who's that kit that's with them?
She ran forward at once, curiosity making her move quickly.
"Hey, Laurelpaw!" she called out. "How was the gathering? Did you have fun?"
She was stopped quickly by Swallow Star, who warily stepped in front of her. Hollyshine tried to move past him, but he stood his ground.
"What the heck are you doing?" Hollyshine snapped, wondering what was up with him. "You're in the way! I want to go talk to my daughter."
"Talk to her in the morning, Hollyshine," Swallow Star sighed, looking very fed up with everything. "I need to talk to you before you talk to her. The gathering took an odd turn for the worse."
"Can I talk to you," Laurelpaw begged, following Pinepaw into the apprentices den. "Please, Pinepaw! I need to explain myself!"
"I think the situation pretty much explains itself, don't ya think?" Pinepaw laughed rudely and shoved past her, making Laurelpaw claw the ground in frustration and worry. Ugh, she's gonna tell Ivypaw all the wrong things! She thought angrily. She likes Firepaw so much… when she hears about what happened, she's gonna hate me!
"Pinepaw," Laurelpaw pleaded, walking in after her into the den. "I need to tell you what really happened."
"Oh, hey guys," Ivypaw said in a sleepy voice, looking up from her nest and yawning. "Wow, it's late. How was the gathering?"
"It was a night to remember," Pinepaw growled, glaring hatefully at Laurelpaw. "Do you want to tell her or should I?"
Oh my god, Laurelpaw felt her legs go weak and she suddenly felt dizzy. "Pinepaw… please listen to me-"
"What's going on?" Ivypaw asked, her blue eyes growing wide with alarm. "Did something happen?"
"You better believe it," Pinepaw smirked, walking over to stand by Ivypaws side.
"There was a misunderstanding-" Laurelpaw started, in a sorry attempt to explain herself before Pinepaw could intervene.
"Laurelpaw and Firepaw got caught doing it in the trees," Pinepaw cut her off. "And the whole gathering saw."
The silence that met her words was hideous. Laurelpaw involuntarily lowered her head in shame, feeling like the world's biggest loser.
"What the hell," Ivypaw whispered. Laurelpaw looked up sadly, knowing that there was no hope for her to explain what really happened. But she couldn't help herself from trying again anyway.
"It wasn't what it looked like," she said, but her words were hollow. Ivypaw and Pinepaw stared at her with disgust, shaking their heads. Ivypaw looked downright stricken.
"How could you," Ivypaw said after a long moment of silence. Her sadness was replaced with anger, and her whole body trembled. She glared at Laurelpaw as if she was about to attack her. "How could you, Laurelpaw! You know I'm in love with him!"
"You freaking backstabber," Pinepaw hissed.
"You stupid bitch!" Ivypaw screamed, lunging forward. Laurelpaw cried out in alarm and dodged quickly to the side, getting very freaked out.
"We all need to calm down!" Laurelpaw cried, backing up in fear. Ivypaw snarled and dived at her again, this time Laurelpaw had no time to move out of the way. Ivypaw bowled her over, scratching and screaming. Laurelpaws back pressed against the den wall, and she clawed back defensively.
"I LOVE him!" Ivypaw screamed, slicing angrily. Her claws pierced Laurelpaws nose and she screamed. "YOU KNEW THIS, LAURELPAW! WHY WOULD YOU DO THIS, YOU DON'T EVEN LIKE HIM!"
"I didn't," Laurelpaw hissed, getting angry. They're calling me a bad friend? Ha! Some friends they are, they won't even listen to me! They won't even give me a chance!
"You don't even like him and you go screw him at a gathering, of all places," Ivypaw snarled, still going strong with the scratching. "You idiot slut."
"Don't CALL ME THAT," Laurelpaw screamed, a fierce anger building up inside her like a storm. She felt a new energy, and she stopped clawing back defensively.
This time Laurelpaw lashed out in an attempt to hurt her back.
Her claws connected with Ivypaws face, drawing blood from one side right under her eye. Ivypaw recoiled slightly, but it lasted for only a heartbeat. With a blood curling scream she rushed forward, knocking Laurelpaw into the wall of the den again. Laurelpaw was dimly aware of the groaning sounds the once stable wall was making. It wouldn't take much more for it to give way, but there was no time to dwell on that fact. Ivypaw grabbed her by the neck and knocked her head against it painfully.
"GET OFF ME!" Laurelpaw hissed, kicking back with her hind legs. This sent Ivypaw flying across the den, and she crashed into the opposite wall. Pinepaw rushed over to help her up, and Laurelpaw used this slight time allotment to regain herself and move away from the wall.
"Firepaw hates you, you know," Ivypaw said. Laurelpaw felt as though she had hit her again, even though she didn't move. The word "hate" made her feel sick, and she wondered why Ivypaw was saying such things.
"You think he likes you, but he doesn't," Ivypaw continued, smiling as she realized she had hurt Laurelpaw. "You think he's just teasing when you two fight, but he's not kidding around. Want to know what he called you last time we spoke?"
"How about we stop now," Pinepaw said, staring at Ivypaw with a worried look. "Ivypaw, I know you're mad but please, don't tell her what-"
"He said you're a worthless," Ivypaw stepped forward slowly; spitting each word like it was poison. "Pathetic, good for nothing, ACCIDENT."
"He never said that," Laurelpaw whispered. Now she was the one trembling. "He never said those things."
"Hey, what's going on?"
Laurelpaw winced as she saw Silverpaw poke his head in the den. He looked terribly awkward and freaked out.
"So, can we stop the screaming and fighting now?" Silverpaw mumbled. "Cause the rest of us want to come in and sleep and-"
"GET THE HELL OUT!" Ivypaw screamed. Silverpaw didn't need to be asked twice and left at once. Laurelpaw felt terrible at the thought of Firepaw saying those things about her, and she felt an odd twist in her heart. It was scary, because it was a feeling Laurelpaw had never felt before. Not even when Hollyshine had told her about how she was born.
No, this was different.
Laurelpaws heart felt like it was on fire, melting her insides.
Leaving gray, dirty ashes in the shape of Firepaws face.
"I'm never talking to you again," Ivypaw said. Laurelpaw was aware of how her tone had changed, not quite as angry. It sounded almost apologetic, as if Ivypaw realized that she had crossed the invisible line. She opened her mouth as if she was going to say something else but stopped as Swallow Stars angry face looked in.
"YOU THREE, GET IN MY DEN, NOW," He yelled furiously before leaving. Laurelpaw sighed, only realizing how they must have looked. Blood was everywhere, staining all three of their pelts and the ground. And he probably heard us all screaming too. Ugh, how much trouble can I honestly get in today?
They all left the den without a word. As Laurelpaw padded across the clearing to Swallow Stars den, a huge gust of wind blew through the air. There was a huge crash behind her, and Laurelpaw turned around in alarm.
The apprentices den had collapsed to the ground.