I'm really sorry I haven't been active with this, I just lost all inspiration. Well, now I'm back, and so is Flaming Sky!

Chapter 10

Snowpaw opened her eyes, scenting the cold morning air as she looked around. Stormpaw and Drizzlepaw were still asleep, Stormpaw's whiskers and paws twitching as he dreamed.

Deciding she should go see where everybody else was, Snowpaw got up, padding out of the den as quietly as possible so as not to awaken the two sleeping toms. She looked around at the camp, which was shrouded in a damp mist. Snowpaw could see the silhouettes of several apprentices by the gap behind the medicine cat den. She padded closer, stopping as she heard Rainpaw's voice.

"…Had her scent all over it. I knew there was something up with her, and now I've gotten proof!"

Oakpaw's harsh voice hissed out. "Stinking kittypet wouldn't care about clan boundaries, would she? She may be able to fight, but she's just like the rest of the kittypets. Stupid, and lazy."

"You both are jumping to conclusions." Snowpaw heard Thistlepaw's calm and assuring voice. "Snowpaw may have been near the ShadowClan border, but haven't we all? There is a logical explanation for every event."

"Logic, peh!" Rainpaw scoffed. "She's a traitor, and that's all there is to it."

"I wouldn't be so quick to judge, Rainpaw." Darkpaw's soft voice mewed. "I mean, she's been near the ShadowClan border, yeah, but like Thistlepaw said, we've all been near the border, checking up on ShadowClan. As far as Rainpaw's claim that she had been using the narrow gap by the stream to cross over, I don't know."

"You both are reading too much into this." Thistlepaw meowed firmly over Oakpaw and Rainpaw's indignant mews. "Snowpaw is as loyal as I am. You two have despised her ever since you first set eyes on her, and now you've taken your hatred too far. Accusing Snowpaw of being a traitor is a low move, and you both know it."

There was a pause as Oakpaw and Rainpaw growled slightly, before Thistlepaw stood up. "Come on, Darkpaw. Leave these two to their suspicions and accusations."

Darkpaw followed Thistlepaw as the two toms departed, leaving Snowpaw to backtrack to the apprentice's den, where it appeared that Stormpaw had woken up.

"Hey, what's up?" He meowed immediately after seeing the look on her face.

"It's Rainpaw and Oakpaw." Snowpaw growled. "They were trying to convince Thistlepaw and Darkpaw that I was a traitor because Rainpaw said he found my scent by the narrow part in the border stream."

"You're not a traitor, right?" Stormpaw mewed, ducking as Snowpaw swiped at him. "I'm just kidding! C'mon, Snowpaw, Rainpaw and Oakpaw are just jealous fur balls, and you know it. They'd say Flamestar himself was a traitor if they knew it would get you in trouble! Just ignore them."

Snowpaw nodded, feeling better. "Let's go find Rubyheart or Flamestar to see if we should go hunting, if we can even find them in this fog!"

Stormpaw laughed, seemingly forgetting that Drizzlepaw was in the den with them. The smaller tabby jerked awake, shouting. "The goose is in the apple on the Highledge!"

"Whaaaat?" Both Snowpaw and Stormpaw asked incredulously.

"Huh?" Drizzlepaw looked at them, confused.

"What was that just now?" Snowpaw asked.

"What was who just now?" Drizzlepaw mewed.

"Wait, what was who?" Stormpaw meowed, severely confused.

"Who was what?" Drizzlepaw grinned, enjoying the confusion that emanated from the other two apprentices.

"Stop it." Snowpaw snapped. "We're sorry we woke you up."

Drizzlepaw smirked. "Good. Now who was what when-"

"OH STOP IT ALREADY!" Snowpaw shouted, smacking him over the head with a paw.

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Later, when all the apprentices had gathered in the misty training hollow, Rubyheart and Lionmane stood in front of them.

Lionmane meowed. "We just need to wait for Pinepelt to begin."

"What are we doing?" Stormpaw asked, looking around for his father as the gray and brown tom entered the clearing, his eyes glinting with some form of malice.

"You all are excellent fighters, but you have little experience of the chaos of battle. We will divide you into groups, one representing ShadowClan, the other ThunderClan. You will fight till your opponent cries for mercy, at which point you will release him or her. Got it?" Pinepelt growled. Snowpaw noticed he had been looking at Rainpaw when he had said "Excellent fighters."

Like Rainpaw could fight any better than a kit. Snowpaw thought disdainfully.

"Snowpaw, Stormpaw, Oakpaw, and Darkpaw, you are ThunderClan along with me. Lionmane, Pinepelt, Rainpaw, Drizzlepaw, and Thistlepaw are ShadowClan." Rubyheart meowed.

"But they have more than us!" Stormpaw protested.

Pinepelt rounded on Stormpaw, spitting with fury. "When you are outnumbered, you make do with what you have! If you were taking example from your brother, you would know that!"

"Pinepelt, that's enough." Flamestar's calming voice came from through the heavy mist as he emerged. "As I am here, I think that evens the odds. No need to worry, Stormpaw."

Pinepelt still looked furious, and Stormpaw looked disgruntled. Snowpaw looked around, and most everyone in the clearing looked distinctly uncomfortable.

"Well, shall we begin?" Lionmane meowed.

Rubyheart nodded, and lowered himself into a crouch. There was a moment of silence and tension before Pinepelt let out a high, shrieking battle cry and lunged at Flamestar.

The clearing exploded into battle, with Snowpaw ducking under Thistlepaw. She caught him with an explosive kick with her hind legs and, turning quickly, pinned him down with her teeth at his throat.

"I give up! Don't eat me." Thistlepaw's eyes sparkled with mischief, and Snowpaw grinned as she released him.

As Thistlepaw vanished into the mist, there was a yowl of fury and something slammed into Snowpaw from behind. "What's wrong, kittypet?" Rainpaw's voice hissed in her ear. "Can't fight?"

"You wish!" Snowpaw twisted violently, breaking out of Rainpaw's grip and grabbing his throat in her jaws.

There was a low snarl in her ear, and she was suddenly flung into the air, then a gray and brown tabby tom pinned her to the ground, his teeth at her throat with no sign of stopping. Pinepelt was hissing with fury, and even as she cried out, he bit down on her throat with killing intent-

"Father!" Pinepelt's fangs stopped their crushing attack, and pulled away. Snowpaw leapt to her paws, looking over at who had called out.

To her surprise, Rainpaw was staring at his father with horror, as though he couldn't believe what had been happening.

Flamestar's yowl made all of them look up. "Well done." He rumbled. "You now have experienced a little taste of the chaos of battle in bad weather conditions. Well done, all of you!"

"Back to camp." Pinepelt hissed. Snowpaw got a glimpse of his face before he vanished, and he was almost as stricken with surprise as Snowpaw at Rainpaw's intervention.

"Hey?" Stormpaw padded over to her, looking concerned. "What happened?"

"Nothing." Snowpaw mewed, her heart pounding violently. "Nothing at all."

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Snowpaw hissed with frustration as she missed another mouse. This StarClan forsaken fog was really irritating. It made her feel like a kit, inexperienced. Like a kittypet.

Stormpaw emerged from the fog, holding the mouse she just missed. "Bad luck, that was. Here." He placed it in front of her.

"No, Stormpaw, I can't-"

"It's alright. Man, this fog is annoying." Stormpaw meowed, looking around at the whiteness that blanketed the forest.

"Wait." Snowpaw sniffed slightly. There was a scent on the slight breeze that blew about the fog. She recognized it immediately.

"ShadowClan!" She hissed.

"What? Where?" Stormpaw straightened up, his eyes flashing.

"Heading towards camp!" Snowpaw shrieked, dashing off towards camp. "This is what Pebblestar was waiting for! This fog would roll in, muffle the scents, and we would be sitting ducks!"

"We have to warn-" Stormpaw broke off as they entered the camp, and immediately saw Rainpaw speaking to Flamestar, his eyes wide in terror.

"ShadowClan is attacking!" Flamestar yowled, just as a shape emerged from the mist, a gray cat with pitch black paws…

"I warned you, Flamestar." Pebblestar meowed, his eyes glinting with malice. "ThunderClan have been the tyrants of the forest for too long."

"Pebblestar, if this is about territory-" Flamestar broke off as ShadowClan warriors appeared behind the gray tom, their claws unsheathed and their fangs bared.

"Territory? No, Flamestar. This is about all the wrongs ThunderClan has done to my clan. I would say something memorable, but I doubt many of you will be alive to remember this." Pebblestar's face twisted in a snarl of defiance and flung himself at Flamestar. The clearing exploded into battle.

Yes, I'm evil. I left you all with a cliffy. Muahahahahaa! Now, review, and see if I kill anybody.