Disclaimer: I do not own Warriors they belong to the Erin's
Chapter 1: First Light
Hawkpaw knew he was dreaming but he didn't know that at first. His first thought was that the surrounding landscape was unfamiliar and frightening. He could hear whispers to faint to make out and through the darkness he could make out shapes moving but they disappeared before he could get a good look at them. Above storm clouds were gathering thunder boomed and lightning pierced the sky. It had started to rain but it wasn't rain that fell, it was blood. The red stickiness of the liquid started to form pools around his feet and cling to his paws. Cats were coming out of the pools they were almost transparent and dark like shadows. Lightning was striking around him and the shadows were coming closer. Hawkpaw backed up terrified of the shadows and the land around him. Then one of the lightning strikes caught him he felt a strong jolt and a spasm went threw his entire body. Hawkpaw opened his eyes at last, someone was poking his side.
"Wha-?" he asked turning around.
"Come on our mentors will be here any minute and we have to show them were ready to learn." meowed his best friend Darkpaw.
"I don't think we'll impress them much if we're dead on our paws." Hawkpaw retorted.
Darkpaw choose to ignore what he said.
"I'm sort of glad you woke me up though, I was having a terrible dream." Hawkpaw mewed flicking his tail back and forth nervously.
"Really, what was it about?"
But Darkpaw never found out what the dream was about because at that moment their mentor's walked out of the warrior's den.
"You better get Lightpaw her mentor just stepped out of the warriors den and it looks like they're going with us." Darkpaw mewed
"Ok." Hawkpaw replied
Hawkpaw padded back inside the nursery to where the cream haired she-cat was curled up fast asleep.
Hawkpaw poked and prodded Lightpaw in her flank saying things like "Come on up on your paws." And "Get up lazy bones."
" 'eve me alone." Lightpaw said drowsily.
"Should I tell Sparrowtail to leave you alone?" Hawkpaw asked cheekily.
"No, I'm up." Lightpaw mewed as she finally stood up and stretched.
"Thought not." replied Hawkpaw as he followed her out.
The weather was making out to be perfect. The sun was rising steadily in the sky the trees surrounding their camp were crisp and green for the first days of newleaf. Hawkpaw inhaled deeply even the air smelled new and clean.
"Alright so the first thing we need to show you is the territory and the lake that all the clans' surround." stated Yellowfur.
"We'll start at the lake and work our way down to the Windclan border then we'll double back and patrol the Shadowclan border." added Woodfur.
"Are you three ready?" asked Sparrowtail
"Yes." meowed the trio of apprentices unanimously.
"Then let's head out." Yellowfur meowed.
The patrol followed Yellowfur out into the woods. Sunlight streamed in between the branches and leaves of the trees high above Hawkpaw's head. The apprentice's followed their mentors in awe who seemed to know exactly where they were going. Soon they had approached the lake, the waves lapping gently on the shore. You could see the entire clan territory.
"Off to the left you can see the moors, the row of hills and grassland that makes up the whole of Windclan, to the left of Windclan is the horseplace, which used to have cats in it, has been abandoned for seasons." explained Sparrowtail.
The patrol walked along the lake shore in direction of the border. Looking up Hawkpaw could see thunder storms were gathering low behind Windclan.
"Looks like Windclan are going to get rain tonight." Hawkpaw thought silently.
The three mentors suddenly stopped at a small stream that started northward and ended at the lake.
"This is the border to Windclan we cannot cross this way unless Eaglestar sends a patrol to talk to Windclan or when there is a gathering taking place." Woodfur explained
"For no other reason should you cross the border, Eaglestar would claw all your ears off and then He'd claw you're mentors ears off, meaning us." Sparrowtail meowed giving them all the evil eye.
"Right shall we continue then?" Yellowfur mewed as he started walking back into the trees.
The rest of the cats followed Yellowfur back into the undergrowth. Hawkpaw liked learning about the Windclan border but he was reluctant to go to the Shadowclan border he heard that they were being troublesome lately. Hawkpaw heard a twig snap behind him he turned expecting to see a piece of prey, instead he looked right into the eyes of another cat. The cat was gray haired she-cat with green eyes; she was hiding in the bushes a couple fox lengths away staring right at him. One thing was very strange about the she-cat she had a collar of bones on her neck. The she cat stared at him coldly for another second and then fled.
"Hey, Hawkpaw catch up don't lag behind." called Yellowfur.
"Sorry, I'm coming." Hawkpaw called back still staring at the spot where the cat was.
He turned and sped after the rest of the patrol.
"Listen, I need to tell you guys something later." Hawkpaw hissed to Darkpaw and Lightpaw.
They both nodded and didn't ask any questions, Hawkpaw was thankful for that; it gave him a chance to think. Who was that cat he knew it wasn't any of his clanmates and she didn't smell like any of the clans but she did smell bad like she took a dive in a swamp.
"Maybe she had been in Shadowclan," Hawkpaw reasoned in his thoughts. "She must have been in Shadowclan earlier maybe a Shadowclan cat saw her.
"Hawkpaw you mouse-brain watch were your going!" Yellowfur yelled.
Hawkpaw looked up and realized he had padded right into Shadowclan territory.
"Hawkpaw get out of there Shadowclan is coming." Lightpaw screeched
Sure enough Hawkpaw could smell them and they were close. There was no time Hawkpaw just managed to turn around when the Shadowclan cats stepped out from behind a tree covered with vines. They stared at him for a heartbeat in surprisement, and then they let out a screech and tore after him. Hawkpaw had never run so fast in his life. He kept his eyes focused on the border then took a fantastic leap over the border just as a Shadowclan warrior came with in a whisker of clawing his fur off. Shadowclan stayed on their side of the border but they were seething with rage.
"What were you doing on Shadowclan territory?" Spat a Shadowclan warrior.
"Diamondheart, my mousebrain of an apprentice had his head up in the clouds he didn't mean to trespass on your territory."
Diamondheart didn't seem convinced "How do we know you weren't trying to steal prey from Shadowclan." Diamondheart asked the patrol menacingly.
"Do you see any prey with us?" Sparrowtail retorted sweeping her tail around her.
"Just stay off our territory." spat an apprentice.
Hawkpaw suddenly thought of the cat he saw "Have any of you seen a strange cat one that isn't from the clans?"
Diamondheart looked at him coldly "No we haven't."
"O-Ok." Hawkpaw stammered
"Well we'll be leaving now." Woodfur mewed flicking his tail back to camp.
The Shadowclan cat didn't reply instead they just stared at the patrol coldly. The Thunderclan cats padded away from the Shadowclan border and headed back to camp. Hawkpaw was about to crawl through the brambles when Yellowfur held him back. The others passed and Lightpaw shot him a glance that seemed to say "Good luck".
When the others had gone in the camp Yellowfur turned to Hawkpaw "All right out with it what cat were you talking about?" Yellowfur asked.
"I thought I saw a cat by the Windclan border on our territory."
"Was it from another clan?"
Hawkpaw shook his head "No it didn't smell like Windclan or Shadowclan and it didn't have the sleek body of a Riverclan cat."
Yellowfur thought for a second before speaking again "Is there anything else about it you can tell me about the cat?"
Hawkpaw shrugged "Only that it was a she-cat and she had a collar of bones."
Yellowfur was staring at Hawkpaw intently.
"Err, does that mean anything to you?"
"It might," Yellowfur had a puzzled look on his face "listen I won't mention what happened at Shadowclan to Eaglestar, think of this as a warning."
Hawkpaw brightened up "Thank you Yellowfur."
Yellowfur walked through the brambles back into camp, Hawkpaw was about to follow him when a voice behind him spoke "Hello, young one."
Hawkpaw jumped a tailength in the air and turned to the voice. The gray she-cat had been standing right next to him. She still looked the same except this time she was smiling, it wasn't a warm happy smile either it was cold smile like stone.
Who are you, what do you want? Hawkpaw hissed.
"Do not worry yourself soon you will know and soon you will be dead." meowed the she-cat simply.
"Who are you?" Hawkpaw asked again.
"I'll be contacting you again soon Hawkpaw."
H-How do you know my name." Hawkpaw stammered.
The she-cat didn't answer. Instead she simply turned and left the Thunderclan apprentice, to return to her own clan.
