Chapter 2

Hey, it's NoGameNoLifeHere!

First of all, I like to thank those who left me reviews, favorite and followed my story. I still need some OCs, so I'll be glad if any of you could suggest some more in the reviews.

Second note, these OCs will be featured in this story Sweetly since I'm really too dumb to come up with extra warriors. I really hope to get as much as possible in order to continue this fanfic.

Now, that I have gotten this out of the way, here's chapter 2. I hope you all enjoy.

...

I have only one memory of getting there; and even that is just a single image: thick, soft black fur which was silky to the touch, sliver stripes barely visible but curling, and the gentle sway that could only mean he was carrying me. I tensed for a moment; but feeling the young tom carrying me stiffened in alarm, I immediately relaxed my muscles, letting him think he was just imagining it. Using the amount of energy I had left, I scanned my surroundings with narrowed eyes, careful to not allow any cat to realize I was awake.

Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted the flame-ginger pelt of my brother Axel stumbling along in the snow, supported by a tabby with pinkish brown fur, concerned amber eyes constantly swerving in my direction. Two other cats flanked us; their pelts blurry due to the snowstorm raging hard all around us. Raising my head slightly, I could make out the faint outline of tall trees ahead of us. Are we heading there? Do these cats live in the forest? Whoever they are, Ginger and his friend had not known about this.

Turning my attention back to the tom carrying me, I couldn't help but felt a sense of familiarity coming from his fur, scent, ears, the way he walk…

Closing my eyes, I let sleep take over me once more.

…

"Ansel, you're safe now."

The scent of pine leaves and warm rich prey wreathed all around me, making me feel dizzy. I cracked open an eye and raised my head, trying to see whoever was talking to me. His mew made my heart pound fast, the type of exhilaration you felt when knowing the hunt is almost over and the prey is right in your paws.

"Live and be free love. Don't get tied down by bonds driven deep by your past."

His pelt was the color of autumn, dried leaves vibrant with red and yellow, orange and brown. His eyes were the darkest green I have ever seen.

And when I woke, I was curled up in a nest made of bracken and soft scraps of moss. I got up slowly, the memories of my previous dream slipping away as fast as it came. I had that dream before so many times, I had already given up hope on wondering what it meant. It was no use asking Axel, he refused to give me answers. All I know, this must be related to the incident I gotten myself into a moon ago, which took away all my memories of what happened last moon. It was what made my brother agreeing to find the "paradise" with me, which made the friends I had in the alleys wary of me all of a sudden. Some were even glad to see me go.

Whatever it is, I don't really care anymore.

Groaning, I stretched my sore legs, feeling the muscles slide beneath my pale-gray pelt, pushing the dream back to the far corners of my mind. I had never felt so much warmth in moons. However, my actions woke Axel up, who was sleeping next to me on the stone-cold floor. Amber eyes fluttered open, blinking a few times to rid of the sleepiness before widening in relief.

"Softfeather, she's awake." He called out, and like a flash a tabby and white she-cat with pale green eyes appeared, carrying the scent of herbs on her pelt. From the graceful way she carried, and the silky movement of her fur, one can guess she wasn't the fighting type. Nonetheless, I bared my teeth in a growl as she moved forward towards me, fluffing my pelt to twice my size. Who is this? What the hell is going on? Suspicion rose as I caught the packet of herbs held firmly in her jaws. I was raised in the alleys to not let my guard down at all times, even if I was facing a soft-looking kittypet.

"Ansel stop," I freezed at Axel's stern mew,"she's here to help. Softfeather was the one who treated you, she's the medicine cat." I shot a surprised glance at my littermate but slicked my pelt back to its former size.

Relived that I had calm down, the she-cat – Softfeather, nudged the leaves to me, her mew soft and smooth like honey: "eat this Ansel, it will help." Obediently, I lowered my head and ate the herbs, wincing as the bile juice ran down my throat. Knowing that I had swallowed the medicine down, she padded to the back of the den, where I noticed in surprise, held a small pool of crystal clear water and standing beside it was rows of shelves stocked high with different kinds of herbs. Shafts of sunlight pierced the bramble roof arching high overhead, dotted with tiny patches of blue beyond.

Whoa, where am I exactly? Everything seems so neat and organized.

"Ansel," my brother gave an affectionate lick to my ears after my examination of the den, his tail flicking from side to side, "thank Starclan you're finally awake. Do you know how worried I was? Bonestar and Applefur were quite worried about how long you were out and the rest – ". He started rambling different kinds of names and words such as "border patrols" and "Thunderclan" and I frowned for a moment at his sudden different choice of words.

Confusion was making my head spin, and the splitting headache pounding in my skull is really not helping. I tried to move my jaws and form a question, but everything seemed to ache, from the tips of my ears to the ends of my claws. And for some other reason, my belly hurts as though I had swallowed down crow-food or something vile.

Axel, seeing the confused look I had, quickly brushed the tip of his tail to cover my mouth, silencing me, his amber eyes apologetic. Sorry about my rambling. Look, let me explain, just don't talk and listen, okay? Nodding my reply, he removed his tail and settled it comfortably around his paws. He hesitated, before starting off with a "This is going to take a while."

…

Apparently, I am in this place called Thunderclan.

Axel had been telling me about Clan life – about hunting patrols and border patrols. He had explained how a warrior hunts first for the clan and then only for himself, how apprentices had mentors to teach them battle skills and also hunting, how the elders were retired warriors always ready to share stories of their own wisdom, how there were medicine cats who kept the clan healthy and the leaders and deputies, who ran the clan.

He also told me about the other clans: Shadowclan, Riverclan and Windclan. Each clan had different ways of fighting and hunting, even the way they sleep and how each territory is different and important to them. And there was Starclan, where every cat who dies goes to in peace.

"We interpret signs from our ancestors," Softfeather, whom actually wasn't as shy as I thought would be, explained when I asked what Starclan does, since Axel doesn't know much about it either. "Though they cannot change the future, they send omens for us medicine cats to share with their clan, informing us about what's coming next." I nodded along, chewing my mouthful of squirrel thoughtfully. To be honest, I don't believe in such tales, but how can I judge the beliefs of the cats that saved me and my brother from the snowstorm?

Also, I wasn't that dumb to insult or questioned them, not when they can throw us out at anytime they want. I hadn't healed much, but I'm getting stronger in each passing day. I was hoping to meet the other cats of Thunderclan besides Softfeather.

And today was the day.

"Are you ready?" Axel paused, his amber eyes raking me over as I padded over to his side, just a pawstep to getting to the world outside of unknown customs and different cats. Softfeather was behind me, her smile radiating encouragement although I couldn't see it. A purr rumbled in my throat; I'm glad to have a friend like the medicine cat, I hope the others outside are as friendly as her.

"I'm always ready," I mewed back, though my paws felt wobbly and my tail waving from side to side. My brother had a gleam of amusement in his gaze, but he just stepped outside without another word, me following closely behind him.

The brambles scraped my pelt as I wriggled out of the medicine cat den, the sunshine stinging my eyes. Stumbling out, I blinked the glare from my eyes and the camp opened out in front of me like a dream. A vast sandy clearing stretched away to a rock that cast a shadow so long, it almost touched my paw-tips. A jumble of pelts with different colors – ginger, black, gray, white, calico, tortieseshell and more, were moving around, laughter constantly being heard from one cat to another. Some were sharing prey; others were sharing tongues in the warm rays of sunlight.

Beyond a group of younger cats – they must be apprentices – lay a fallen tree, its tangled branches folded on the ground like a heap of skinny, hairless legs. Several tail-lengths away stood a low bush spreading its branches over the ground, accompanied by the mewling of new-born kits. Ferns crowded a corner of the den, behind them rose a barrier of gorse which I guess must be the entrance to the camp. Excitement thrilled through me and I felt like a kit again exploring something new.

Suddenly, I was conscience of the eyes resting on me as I stepped outside of the medicine cat den. Some cats stopped eating and joking to stare at me, their gazes burning holes through my pelt. Axel, seeing this, quickly stood protectively in front of me, blocking me from their curious stares. I felt a wave of gratitude for my littermate. I never once doubted nor wanted another cat as my brother.

"Bonestar, Applefur," Softfeather's mew rang around the clearing as she emerged from the den behind me, motioning to two cats sitting stiffly under the shade of the huge rock. They stepped forward from the shadows, their pawsteps light and eyes glinting almost dangerously. It was quite obvious these two were the leader and deputy of Thunderclan from the way the cats parted to form a path for the two as they approached us.

Bonestar must be the huge, broad-shouldered tom with a pelt as white as a cleanly-picked bone and intent golden eyes. He radiates authority from the way he holds himself, towering above the smaller tabby with pinkish brown fur matching his pace next to him. Applefur has a wiry frame, her soft looks completed with her alluring blue eyes. I swallowed slightly as they finally reached us.

There was a pause, before a deep growl rumbled from Bonestar's throat: "So this is Ansel?" His eyes seem to be able to see through me, inspecting me from my head to my paws. Applefur was much friendlier, nuzzling my shoulder warmly in welcome as Axel exchanged a few words with her leader. Soon, a crowd of cats were pressing against me, their purrs of welcome echoing in my ears. I learned a few names as I returned their warm smiles, relieved that these cats were actually quite friendly, even to outsiders. Although, I spotted a few who refused eye contact with me and remained sat on the ground, their hostility spiking their fur and making mine bristle uncomfortably.

However, what caused me to freeze was when I met the same pair of bright green eyes who I remembered saving me from the snowstorm. He sat alone next to a clump of nettles, hunched over a piece of vole. He seems to be a few moons older, but something about him just feels old. It's not his glossy black fur with faint sliver stripes, not his paws but in the way he holds his shoulders, in the way his head droops down, something that makes me think he's handsome and dangerous at once. Our eyes lock for a small moment, his eyes that don't match the tired look of the rest of his body – the gaze that shoots through the air and startles me. I glance down, and when I look back up, he was hunched over his meal again. I made a mental note to thank him for carrying me back, although from the way he was distanced from everyone else, that might be challenging.

From the corner of my eye, I could see my brother's shoulders tensing, his entire body going rigid as his conversation continues with Bonestar. All thoughts of the black-pelted tom flew from my mind as I glared at Bonestar. I immediately didn't like the huge white furred tom. Whatever he was saying to my brother, he was making Axel anxious, an expression I would not want my littermate to have on his face. Even if he's leader of Thunderclan.

I really don't like Bonestar.

…

So that was the end of chapter 2. I think the ending was sudden and abrupt but I had to finish this somehow.

Anyway, remember to review; fav and follow. Suggest some OCs to be put in this story. The format can be seen in the previous chapter. May Starclan light your path!

-NoGameNoLifeHere