I woke up; surprised Nightstar had not visited me in my sleep.
Nightstar, are you there? I asked him as I stay curled up in my nest.
No reply.
Adderpaw stood up in the den and said," Come on, dawn patrol."
I nodded, remembering that we were doing the dawn patrol today. I stretched my legs and then padded out of the apprentices den. I yelped in surprise, as my paws were covered in some cold, wet, white stuff. Adderpaw was sniffing the ground cautiously.
"Snow already? But its barely halfway through leaf-fall!" Adderpaw exclaimed.
I scampered over to him, the stuff spraying up by my hind paws.
"What is this stuff?" I mewed.
It only went up to my paws, but it scared me. I thought the moor was supposed to be brown, green, and yellow. Why was it white?
"This stuff is called snow. In leaf-bare it falls from the sky sometimes. And it can so deep cats can get stuck in it and die. Snow only comes when it is very cold though," Adderpaw explained.
I then realized it was colder then usual, but I had a thick coat, so it didn't bother me. But Adderpaw's tabby coat was thin, and he shivered. Littlepaw came out and joined us. Her fur was thick like mine. Adderpaw shivered some more and leaned against her. I snorted and splashed snow onto Adderpaw's pelt. He yelped and kicked up snow with his hind paws that landed on my face. Soon Adderpaw and I were throwing pawfuls of snow at each other, while Littlepaw watched in awe.
"Hey!" Breezefur yowled.
We both froze.
"I understand snow may be fun but we have a patrol to go on," Breezefur snapped.
I shook the snow from my fur and ran towards the gorse bush, Adderpaw at my heels. Sparrowtail was in the lead.
"Lets go to the Thunderclan border first. Then we can go to the Riverclan border," Sparrowtail ordered.
I followed the patrol, pouncing along in the snow as I went.
"Quit bouncing Lightningpaw unless you want to chase the prey all the way back to the Riverclan border," Breezefur snapped.
I walked at a brisk pace to keep up with the others. We came to the stream, and I leaped across as easy as the others could. Our border line was just among the trees here. Adderpaw and Sparrowtail marked the border, and we headed back. This time, Adderpaw didn't time his jump quite right, so he landed in water up to his belly fur. I let out a mrrow of laughter as I flew over the river with a whole fox-length to spare from the shore.
It was a long, boring walk back to the Riverclan border, and I instantly recognized the area from when I had gotten lost yesterday. We began to mark the border, when I heard growling from within the reeds. Jaggedtooth, Archpaw, Stonepelt, a gray tabby she-cat with green eyes, a brown tom apprentice with ginger flecks, and a golden brown tabby tom appeared from the reeds.
"Sageflower, what do you want from us?" Breezefur hissed.
"Leaf-bare has already begun, and the first snow has fallen upon us. Riverclan is large, and not even all our fish can sustain us," Sageflower (gray tabby she-cat with green eyes) snarled.
"Get reinforcements. Now," Sparrowtail breathed in Adderpaw's ear.
Adderpaw zoomed off. I was surprised he hadn't sent me.
"We want more territory," the speckled tom growled.
"We don't want more territory Specklepaw, we need it," the golden brown tabby said.
I prayed to Starclan that Adderpaw would come back soon.
"Don't you dare cross our border," Sparrowtail snarled.
"Don't you tell me what to do," Jaggedtooth snapped as he set his paw over the border.
I unsheathed my claws and dug them into his paw until he finally shrank away in pain.
"Every part of you that crosses this border will be drenched in blood like Jaggedtooth's paw," I hissed.
"Oh so the little kit-warrior is gonna tell us what to do now," Jaggedtooth laughed.
I wanted so badly to dig my claws into that face of his.
"Enough chit chat. Riverclan, ATTACK!" Sageflower screeched as she surged forward.
More strength poured into me, and I knew Nightstar was preparing me for battle. I leaped straight towards Jaggedtooth and like I said, sunk my claws deep into my face. He let out a yowl and I released my grip. He spat blood out onto the ground and lunged for me, but I rolled to the side and clawed his underbelly with my hind paws. He stood up again, and I dove beneath his legs, nipping and clawing at his underbelly. Remembering Adderpaw's tip, I didn't keep at for too long, in case Jaggedtooth figured out how to stop me.
I heard a battle yowl, and saw Pebbleclaw, Littlepaw, Brackenclaw, Darkpelt, Dawnpaw, and Cloudstorm racing down the hill.
Jaggedtooth took his chance, and bit me while I was distracted. I fell to the ground and he clawed at my muzzle and attempted to crush me.
"Stupid kit!" he yowled.
I let out a battle screech and I sliced my claws against his nose. Jaggedtooth let out a yowl and I leaped onto his back, digging my claws into his back. I bit down on his ear, and blood welled from the wound. Then I bit down on his shoulder before leaping off and rolling out of the way. Jaggedtooth went up on his hind paws, but I dove towards his belly and kicked him with my hind legs as I went. Brackenclaw then came running to help me, and he bit down on Jaggedtooth's shoulder. I nipped at his heels, and when he tried to run away, I stuck his claw in a bunch of ferns, and he wrenched it, yowling out in pain.
I turned around, ready to face another opponent, but all of the Riverclan cats were fleeing.
"This territory is ours now! A new border will be set!" Pebbleclaw yowled.
I panted and saw blood dripping from my shoulder where Jaggedtooth had bitten me. I couldn't believe I had beaten a full grown Riverclan warrior almost all on my own!
"Is everyone okay?" Pebbleclaw yowled.
"NO!" Adderpaw yowled from deep within the reeds.
I raced over, and he was leaning over Littlepaw. I gasped.
The cat Littlepaw had been fighting had completely mauled her. Her face was torn and completely red from all the blood, one ear was shredded nearly down to the nub, her back leg was in a very awkward position and most likely broken, and her body was covered in bites and claw marks.
Pebbleclaw, Brackenclaw, Breezefur, and Sparrowtail raced over.
"We can't move her. It would just damage her more. Lightningpaw, go get Sweetflower and Birdsong. Quickly," Pebbleclaw ordered.
Run fast little one, the life of your clanmate depends on you. Nightstar said as I sped off.
I dashed across the moor as fast as I could, and I zoomed into the medicine cat den.
"Littlepaw is terribly injured. Her face and ear are torn, her leg is broken, and she is covered in scratch and bite marks. We must hurry!" I yowled.
Sweetflower immediately began rolling up herbs in a leaf wrap, and so did Birdsong. Birdsong grabbed only some poppy seeds, marigold, and cobwebs while Sweetflower seemed to be grabbing much more. Once they finished we ran towards the battle site. I ran ahead of the two of them. The ground was all soggy, most of the snow had melted from the sun by now.
I began walking slowly over to the battle scene, hoping I'd receive medical attention there.
I got over to the battle scene as quickly as possible. Sweetflower was looking at some of the other warriors' wounds while Birdsong was most likely with Littlepaw. I went over to where Littlepaw last was, ignoring Sweetflower's calls to check my injuries. Littlepaw hadn't moved an inch, but the blood had been licked from her body. Cobwebs covered her torn ear, and part of her muzzle. Adderpaw dabbed what looked like marigold on each of her wounds, while Birdsong began to slowly shift her leg back in place.
"Once I'm finished with this I must look at your injuries Adderpaw," Birdsong persisted.
"No! Not until Littlepaw is safe!" Adderpaw snapped.
"Do you want my help?" I asked.
"Don't touch her!" Adderpaw snarled.
I shrunk back, startled by his fierceness.
"She is safe Adderpaw. It will take a long time for her to heal, but she is safe. She will not die. Lightningpaw brought us here fast enough so that we could save her. You should be thanking him, not screeching at him. Take your anger out on Riverclan, not your own clanmates who fought beside you," Birdsong said gently.
Then Littlepaw blinked a few times, and opened her eyes slightly.
"Littlepaw, are you okay?" Adderpaw asked urgently.
Littlepaw didn't answer, but her eyes stared blankly ahead.
"Is she dead?" Adderpaw breathed.
Birdsong shook her head," No, she's breathing. See her flank moving up and down?" Birdsong was right, she was still breathing, therefore, alive.
Then suddenly her eyes opened wide in shock, and she let out a screech that nearly shattered my eardrums. When she stopped she was panting heavily.
"Littlepaw? Littlepaw? LITTLEPAW!" Adderpaw yelled.
"STOP! Your panic is making it worse! You're making her panic!" I yelled, shoving the apprentice aside.
I looked into Littlepaw's eyes, and tried to stay as calm as possible.
"Its okay Littlepaw, you're going to be fine. Birdsong is tending to your injuries, and you are safe. Soon you will be in a nice warm den, surrounded by your family and friends," I said.
Adderpaw's eyes glared with fury and the fur along his back bristled, but he said or did nothing to stop me.
"Who is this?" she asked.
"It's me, Lightningpaw. You are safe now. There is no need to worry. Now just go to sleep," I prompted.
"Are you safe?" she whispered, her eyes closing a little with drowsiness.
"I'm safe. We're all safe," I replied.
"Is that fox-hearted Adderpaw safe?" she asked.
Now Adderpaw's eyes glared with shock.
"Yes he is," I replied.
"Mouse-dung. He saw me being brutally beaten by Hawkfeather, and he didn't defend me. He wasn't even fighting another cat. He just stared at me in shock," Littlepaw rasped.
"Sssh. You can tell me all about it later," I whispered as I brushed my tail against her cheek. She let out a sigh, and within moments she was in a deep sleep.
"You did a great job Lightningpaw. You would have made a great medicine cat," Birdsong praised as she finished making the splint for Littlepaw's leg.
"Too bad I was destined to be a warrior," I shrugged.
"How could she call me that?" Adderpaw gasped.
"Well it's a terrible deed if you did," I said.
"Shut up you mangy mongrel!" Adderpaw snarled at me.
"Adderpaw, stop spitting your envy and pain on other cats," Birdsong hissed.
Adderpaw hissed back and clawed at the ground before scampering off.
"I'm glad he's gone. That stuck-up tomcat never caused anything but trouble," I said as I sat by Littlepaw's head.
"Yes he did. it's a shame my sister Maplewhisker has to deal with him," Birdsong said.
"Poor girl. Ravenclaw must be terrified," I whispered as I stroked my tail against her cheek back and forth.
"Such a beautiful cat too. Ruined," Birdsong agreed.
"When I get my claws on the cat that did this to her….." my fur bristled.
"Lightningpaw, I doubt you could defeat a full grown warrior," Birdsong said.
"I can to!" I yowled jerking to my paws," I defeated Jaggedtooth almost all by myself. Brackenclaw gave him the last blow before he went scampering off as scared as a mouse!" "Then I'm sure you could rip the fur off any warrior especially when you get older, bigger, and stronger," Birdsong said.
Oddly, Birdsong's green eyes were gleaming with pride. But then again, she was very close to us because Lilyfoot was her best friend.
"Okay, I think I've done the best I can for her for now. But I won't be able to move her for at least a day if not more. She'll have to spend the night out here," Birdsong said.
"I'll stay with her, to keep her warm and give her company," I said.
"Very well. But I need to check out your injuries before you do anything," Birdsong said as she walked over to inspect me.
I let her look over me, and she said all I needed was a little marigold on my bite and I was good. While she chewed up the marigold I couldn't help but ask her a question.
"Did you know Sparrowtail has the same ice blue eyes as Thrushpaw?" I asked.
Birdsong gulped, and coughed out a bit of marigold.
"Lots of cats have blue eyes you know," she said.
"Yeah but its different though. Like how Maplewhisker and Dawnpaw have the same amber eyes," I said.
"Its probably just a coincidence. I mean, its not like you're related to him or anything," Birdsong replied.
"That's true," I shrugged.
"Alright you can go now," Birdsong said.
"No. I need to stay here and protect Littlepaw," I said.
"Very well. I will help Sweetflower and I'll inform the rest of the clan about Littlepaw if they do not know already," Birdsong said as she left.
I curled up on the ground next to Littlepaw and let out a sigh. Nightstar (in his ghostly form) appeared out of the ferns and touched his nose to Littlepaw's flank. Then he padded over to me.
"It is very strong of you to spend the night out here on new Windclan territory with your denmate. You should catch some prey first though for when Littlepaw wakes," Nightstar suggested.
I heard cheers come from deeper in the territory, and I assumed the warriors had just finished marking the new border. I stood up and waited for the warriors footsteps to fade away before I exited the fern clearing.
"You'll watch her right?" I asked.
"Of course," Nightstar nodded his head.
I crept around our new territory, and quickly caught a mouse and a blackbird. The territory was prey rich, as if Riverclan never hunted here. I dragged the prey back to the clearing, and Littlepaw woke up from the smells of prey.
"Oh. Thanks Lightningpaw. Where are the others?" she asked.
"Back at camp. I offered to stay the night here with you. Birdsong said she wouldn't be able to move you until at least tomorrow," I explained.
"Oh. Hey, can you get me some water?" Littlepaw asked.
I nodded and left the ferns.
"There should be some moss in a rotten tree stump nearby," Nightstar called after me.
I quickly spotted the stump and gathered as much moss as I could from it. Then I went down to the lake and soaked the moss. I ended up dragging it on the way back, for the drenched moss was too heavy for me. But I made it back, and Littlepaw happily sucked every drop of the water before beginning to nibble on the blackbird.
I gulped down the mouse, and I realized how hungry I was.
"So who did this to you again?" I asked.
"Hawkfeather did. He was the golden brown tabby," Littlepaw replied.
"Well I'll wait for the evening patrol to come around and give him a piece of my mind…." I muttered.
"No don't," Littlepaw protested.
Grumbling to myself I sat down on the ground and began grooming my thick fur. Littlepaw let out grunts of laughter.
"What's so funny?" I asked.
"You! You're so tiny but you're ready to stick up for me!" Littlepaw purred.
"I beat Jaggedtooth almost all by myself!" I snapped to my defense.
"Then you will make a fantastic warrior someday," Littlepaw sighed.
"I'll be right back," I said as I padded away.
I grabbed a bunch of moss from the tree stump and I found some feathers lying around. I grabbed those too and headed back to the clearing.
"What's all that for?" she asked.
"Nests," I replied as I spat it all out.
I formed a moss and feather nest around Littlepaw, and I made sure to elevate her broken leg. Then I built a nest for myself right next to her. It was only a little past sunhigh, and I had already done everything to keep Littlepaw comfortable.
"So did you defeat Jaggedtooth all by yourself?" Littlepaw asked as I sat down in my nest.
"Almost. Brackenclaw came running and gave him one blow with his claws before the fish face ran off," I replied.
"He's a pretty big warrior. A snobby one too," Littlepaw mewed.
A purr rumbled in my throat. He was a very snobby warrior.
"I feel so hopeless. You've been training for a day and you defeated a warrior. I've been training for 5 moons and I was mauled by one," Littlepaw sighed.
"Don't feel bad. Hawkfeather is an extraordinary warrior. And I'm sure you got plenty of blows on him too," I ensured her.
"I guess…" Littlepaw sighed.
I couldn't think of what else to say and soon she fell asleep again. The sun was slowly beginning to set when Birdsong came to check on us.
"Good you made her a nest. Has she woken up yet?" Birdsong asked as she dropped a rabbit at my paws.
"Yes. I caught a blackbird and she ate the entire thing. I also got her some water in some moss," I replied.
"Very good. I think you'll be fine taking care of her tonight. I would do it myself but something may happen in camp…" Birdsong said.
I nuzzled Birdsong and whispered," Don't worry. She's safe with me."
"Of course she is," Birdsong purred before leaving.
"Hey Nightstar, keep an eye on Littlepaw for me. And tell me if she wakes up," I said.
"Where are you going?" he asked.
"I'm going to go and make sure Riverclan sticks to their own side of the new border," I hissed.
"That's my little warrior," Nightstar purred.
I raced to the border. It felt good to stretch my legs and feel the wind through my fur. But soon I smelled Riverclan, and I slowed down to not cross the border.
The border was a small stream now, and I found a spot between some ferns and reeds that I could see what was happening but they wouldn't be able to see me. I quickly put some new markers on the border, so if they smelled fresh cat they would think the evening patrol had just left.
I waited for ages, but Nightstar did not signal me that Littlepaw had awoken. But soon I heard cats footsteps. I lifted my head slightly, and saw Robinpaw, Eagleclaw, a scrawny brown she-cat, and a fluffy light-gray tom.
"Stupid rabbit-chasers stealing our territory," the brown she-cat muttered.
"Hush Mousetail. They won the battle fair and square. We will get them back someday," the light gray tom said.
"Featherwhisker is right. This isn't the end with our quarrel against Windclan," Eagleclaw said as the wind buffeted through his fur.
"I hope their kits weren't harmed. Especially Lightningkit," Robinpaw mewed.
My ears perked up. Robinpaw had remembered me!
"That's it! We should sneak into their camp and steal one of their kits! And then we'll say we'll only give the kit back if they give us some of their territory!" Mousetail meowed.
"No. The warrior code prevents harm from any kit no matter what clan. And that would cause more uproar then 5 battles in a span of a quarter moon themselves. Riverclan would lose its respect and be hated by all clans for moons," Eagleclaw said.
Mousetail started muttering under her breath. What a loony cat!
"Come on, let's mark the border and go home. I'm starving!" Robinpaw suggested.
The cats continued on, until I could see them better. They went to the border, and Mousetail smelled the air and drew her lips back into a snarl.
"Windclan," she hissed.
"This is the Windclan border mouse-brain. And we just had a battle so their scent is bound to be fresh," Eagleclaw reminded her.
"No like super fresh. Like they were just here fresh," Mousetail snarled.
"Their border markers smell fresh. Their evening patrol must have just left," Robinpaw suggested.
"That makes sense," Eagleclaw nodded.
"Who said we shouldn't have one last hunt on our old territory?" Featherwhisker asked as he dug his claws into some ferns on the ground.
"I agree we should," Mousetail said.
"Their evening patrol just left so there won't be any cats here until dawn. We could pull it off," Featherwhisker said.
"Alright but only for a few minutes. You two can do it, but I'm not stepping a paw over the border," Eagleclaw said.
"Me neither," Robinpaw stated," It's unethical and against the warrior code."
Mousetail snorted and leaped over the stream with Featherwhisker right behind her. I unsheathed my claws and sprang forward, digging my claws into his back.
Strength filled my body again, and I bit down hard on his ear. Featherwhisker flipped me off and was about to beat me with his forepaw, but instead I bit down hard on it and clawed at his chest. Mousetail snatched me by the tail and was about to throw me into the ferns when I latched myself onto her face. She screeched and I bit her nose, making it bleed.
I jumped off her, my fur bristling and my yellow eyes blazing with fury.
"Now stay off Windclan territory you bunch of mangy fish faces!" I snapped.
Eagleclaw and Robinpaw just stared at me in shock and surprise.
"Ooh I'm so scared. A day old apprentice is gonna beat me up!" Mousetail meowed sarcastically.
I leaped forward and clawed her muzzle and bit down on her shoulder in one move. She yelped and scampered across the border and through the stream. Featherwhisker screeched and ran through the stream as well.
"And don't think about coming back over here!" I yowled.
"Lightningkit, are you supposed to be out of camp?" Robinpaw asked.
"I'm Lightningpaw now! And I'm going to be the best warrior the clans have ever seen!" I replied.
"I can tell…." Eagleclaw muttered under his breath.
"So stay off my territory unless you want another beating! Especially when I'm bigger, stronger, and better!" I yowled.
Mousetail and Featherwhisker went fleeing while Eagleclaw and Robinpaw just padded away, bewildered.
I snorted and headed back to the clearing where Littlepaw was luckily still asleep.
"I am very proud of you. You gave those Riverclan warriors a beating they won't soon forget," Nightstar praised.
"You saw?" I asked.
"I see everything," he replied.
I ate half of the rabbit and then curled up in my nest.
"No training for tonight. You just had two battles in one day, and you need your sleep," Nightstar murmured.
I merely blinked in response and fell fast asleep.