Chapter 3: Joy Ride
Duskpaw could have sworn that there was not a scrap of fur on him not soaked in mouse bile or foul smelling mud. He and Granitepaw had been searching the elders, Shrewscruff and Ragtail, for ticks earlier that day. Even Rosepaw, BrackenClan's empty-headed apprentice, could have seen the inevitable problem of being in the same den as Granitepaw when his paws were full of putrid bile-soaked moss.
The elders had spotted the problem, too, and had booted both Duskpaw and Granitepaw out of their den, before they had to abandon it in favor of one that actually smelled better than the clan dirtplace.
Duskpaw now crouched side by side with Foxpaw and Granitepaw, all of them scooping pawfuls of mud out of narrow tunnels that laced the bottom of the clay-filled hollow, as punishment for their mischief two days earlier.
The hollow that housed the Clan camp was lined with clay, which trapped any rainwater that fell into the hollow. Trapped rainwater was the only source of water in the whole forest for the Clan cats, since the nearest river ran through the far side of BrackenClan territory It was the sole duty of the apprentices to dig tunnels that rainwater could flow into, lest the Clan wake up one day to find their camp underwater.
That didn't make digging drainage tunnels any fun, though, as Duskpaw could attest to. Soaked in filthy water that had been left stagnant for StarClan knew how long, Duskpaw couldn't help feeling angry at Granitepaw for getting him into such deep trouble. At this rate, Duskpaw thought glumly, Brightstar will never make me a warrior thanks to Granitepaw and his wonderful ideas.
Looking up, Duskpaw saw Lightfoot heading towards the three apprentices crouched over the tunnels. Lightfoot had been in a bad mood ever since he had learned his apprentice had found himself on the wrong side of Brightstar yet again, and Duskpaw noticed a touch of remaining distemper in his voice as he meowed, "That's enough for today. You three had better get something to eat from the fresh-kill pile, before it all turns to crow-food."
Duskpaw glanced up hopefully at his mentor. "Lightfoot? Can I go out hunting tomorrow?" He was eager to prove his worth to the Clan, and he might even be able to make up for fooling around with Granitepaw so much.
"No!" Lightfoot snapped, as Duskpaw's spirits sank. "You three are being punished, and all of you have to remain in the camp until Brightstar clears you."
"Well, it was worth a try," Granitepaw whispered to Duskpaw as Lightfoot stalked away. "We wouldn't have to try if you hadn't gotten us all into this mess!", Duskpaw retorted.
Foxpaw stretched up, his fur matted down with mud. "Well, if you two are done quarreling like two old hedgehogs, let's go grab a mouse or two. I'm starved!" he meowed.
As the sun began to set, they padded towards the large fresh-kill pile, well stocked as it had been ever since the Clan had arrived at their new territory. Duskpaw chose an enormous blackbird and tucked in, spitting out feathers as they tickled his mouth.
Foxpaw looked up from his thrush and swiveled his head around until he spotted Rosepaw, who was eating a mouse and meticulously avoiding getting any blood on her muzzle. "Excellent," Foxpaw muttered to Granitepaw and Duskpaw, "I need an outlet for this frustration I've been building up all day."
Duskpaw groaned, even thought he felt the same way. Someone was going to pay for his filthy pelt, and right now he didn't care who.
"You two watch how the master of mischief operates," said Foxpaw, a grin creeping up his face as he turned, abandoning his dinner, and headed for the medicine den.
"Well," meowed Granitepaw, "Whatever Foxpaw'll do to Rosepaw will probably make up for the whole rotten day."
"Are you mousebrained?!" Duskpaw hissed into Granitepaw's ear, "We'll all just get into more trouble!"
But Foxpaw was already bounding down from the medicine den, his jaws clamped around several light green leaves. "Wood sorrel," he announced as he set them down and began rolling the leaves into tiny balls, "Helps cats who are having a little trouble around the dirtplace."
"Oh, no," meowed Granitepaw, but his sides were already heaving from the effort of not laughing. "Poor little Rosepaw! She'll be up all night long!"
Foxpaw grinned. "That's the spirit. Now you two just sit back and enjoy your dinner and a show."
Duskpaw watched from across the hollow, his whiskers twitching in amusement, as Foxpaw trotted over to Rosepaw and her mouse. Rosepaw glanced up and gave him an unfriendly look as he broke into conversation with her. Although, Duskpaw thought dryly, it could hardly be called conversation when one party refuses to acknowledge the existence of the other.
Foxpaw suddenly stiffened and glanced over Rosepaw, his tail raised in alarm. Falling for the ploy, she abruptly turned around, and as she did, Foxpaw quickly stuffed the balled-up wood sorrel he had been hiding in his paws into her half-eaten mouse.
Rosepaw turned around and glared at Foxpaw, who merely shrugged and turned away, making for Granitepaw and Duskpaw.
"You know what, Foxpaw," said Duskpaw, with a glimmer of amusement in his eye, "I think that was just what I needed tonight."
***
Crouched in the twilight, Duskpaw could barely make out the squirrel he was stalking. The sky overhead had only early stars in it, and the moon had not yet risen high enough to provide light. Catching this squirrel would make for a real challenge; Duskpaw had only ever hunted in daylight before. The squirrel moved out into a stray beam of moonlight, and Duskpaw could see it for the first time. It looked skinny and sickly to him, but he had already pounced towards it. Somehow he trapped it on its back as he landed on it, so he slit its throat with a single sharp claw, cringing at the spray of blood that would come out. But it never came.
Instead, the neck of the squirrel was dry and pale, only containing sinews and flesh, bleached of any color that came from live-giving blood. Horrified, and yet still driven with curiosity, Duskpaw took a bite of of the squirrel's flank, to find it just as dry and tasteless as the squirrel looked.
"Hey!" a voice crashed abruptly into his dream. "Take a bite of your own tail, will you?"
Duskpaw blinked awake as Granitepaw looked down at him. Duskpaw realized he had the tip of Granitepaw's tail in his mouth. "Oh. Sorry, Granitepaw...I...It was just a dream..."
Granitepaw looked amused. "Well, anyways," he continued, "Rosepaw's not in the apprentices den. I guess Foxpaw really does know his herbs!"
Duskpaw let out a short bark of laughter. Inwardly, though, he felt shaky and relieved. His dream had been so real, but it had only been Granitepaw's tail that he had tasted. It'll be a while before I eat another squirrel, though, thought Duskpaw.
He and Granitepaw settled back down into their moss-lined nests, and Duskpaw carefully draped his own tail over his nose before closing his eyes. Right before he slipped into slumber, he thought he could hear a young she-cat's groans drifting over from the dirtplace on the far end of the camp. Duskpaw allowed himself a small grin before he finally did succumb to the warmths of his nest.
It seemed to Duskpaw that he had barely closed his eyes before he was wakened by a noise akin to the whole forest filled with fighting, spitting cats. Granitepaw and Lilypaw, the other two apprentices in the den, sat bolt upright, staring with eyes wide with fear up a a section of the woods that seemed lit up with some strange, harsh light. Duskpaw couldn't help but to snicker when he remember that Rosepaw must still be in the dirtplace.
"Come on out, you three," Lightfoot appeared in front of the apprentices' den and beckoned to them with his tail. Following him into the clearing at the center of the hollow, it seemed to Duskpaw that most of the Clan was gathered, fearfully gazing up towards the section of the woods ablaze with light.
The horrible noise seemed to be getting louder, and suddenly a small, open Twoleg monster roared past the top rim of the hollow, its eyes shining out beams of light and its paws churning up snow. Another monster roared by, and another, all of them trampling the undergrowth. Next to Duskpaw, Lightfoot hissed. "They'll be chasing away all the prey in the forest!" Duskpaw agreed, but he was more concerned with the monsters themselves. What if one of them decided to come into the hollow?
The monsters began to roar by again, and they sped by the rim of the hollow again, close enough to ruffle the fur on the watching Clan cats. One monster, however, broke away from the group and veered towards the hollow. The Clan cats scattered, yowling in fear. But just as the monster was about to breach into the hollow, it rammed into a large oak that sheltered the Clan, scattering snow over the watching cats from its overhanging branches as the impact vibrated up the trunk.
Duskpaw peered out of the apprentices' den and saw a Twoleg crawling out of the wreck of the monster, mewling to the other Twolegs, who had turned and came to help their fallen clanmate. The injured Twoleg crawled into another monster, and they roared off into the night again, at a much slower pace.
The roaring died away into the darkness of the night, and the Clan crept back out into the hollow, hesitantly heading towards the smoldering and mangled Twoleg monster.
"Dovekit! Come back!" commanded Ravencloud, his mother, and Duskpaw saw Dovekit bounce over towards the monster. Dovekit took no notice, but before he could reach it, Brightstar grabbed him deftly by the scruff with practiced ease and set him down by his mother's side.
"Brightstar, what should we do?" asked Rainwhisker, his eyes alight with worry. Brightstar himself looked rather ruffled, but Duskpaw reminded himself that there probably wasn't a cat in StarClan whose hackles weren't raised after seeing those monsters race by, so close to the camp. "Keep the kits and apprentices back," commanded Brightstar after a pause. Duskpaw felt anger flare up inside him. Like he wouldn't be careful around an unknown Twolegs thing! Remembering Granitepaw, though, Duskpaw cooled down as he saw the wisdom in Brightstar's words.
Brightstar continued, "No cat is to approach the monster unless I give my permission. For now, Yellowstripe, Wreneye, and myself will take a good look at it.
Wreneye padded over to Brightstar immediately, but Yellowstripe flashed a menacing glare at Granitepaw, his apprentice, and hissed, "If I catch you near that thing, I swear you won't become a warrior until I die!", before he went and joined Brightstar, leaving Granitepaw with a mutinous look in his eye.
Duskpaw could have bet a moon of dawn patrols that Granitepaw would be bouncing all over the carcass of the monster before sun-up.
Can you say plot development? What does Duskpaw's dream mean? And what problems will the wreck bring? Here's a hint: a lot. Thanks for the reviews everyone, I LOVE getting feedback and more are welcome of course =) next chapter will be up next weekend. btw, readers, don't be suprised if an earlier chapter is changed whenever you look at it again: im constantly editing this whole story.