Chapter 3
Rusty awoke from the basket and noticed that Scourge and Moss weren't with him. He bounded out of the basket. He lapped up the water in the dish and pushed his way through the cat flap into the garden. He saw Scourge stretched out in the sun. Moss was beside him grooming his sleek black fur. Rusty purred in amusement at the annoyed look on Scourge's face. He started toward them when he heard a voice meowing at him from the fence.
"Hi Rusty it's about time you woke up." meowed Smudge as he sat on the fence. Scourge lifted his head and looked irately at Smudge before glancing over at Rusty. Moss meowed a greeting to Smudge before going back to grooming Scourge. Smudge looked nervously from Scourge to Rusty. Smudge hadn't forgotten the time Scourge almost clawed his ears off after he mistook Scourge for Rusty hiding behind a bush, Smudge warily avoided Scourge as he hopped down to stand in front of Rusty.
Smudge shook his head slowly. "You are going to get as bad as Henry if you start sleeping in."
"The three of us went into the forest last night." Rusty meowed.
"Oh yeah I forgot about that, you say Scourge and Moss went too?" Smudge asked. Rusty looked over at Scourge who had moved away from Moss and was currently giving himself a wash. Moss simply laid stretched out in the sun. Scourge glanced up at Rusty briefly before he went back to his wash.
Rusty nodded "Yes they followed me out to forest and we ran into some wild cats."
Smudge's eyes widen "Really, were they violent ,did you have to fight them?" Smudge's eyes were filled with curiosity and wonder.
Rusty closed his eyes and briefly recalled the excitement and fear he felt from his battle with the young Graypaw. He opened his eyes and explained all that happened that night in the forest.
"So these cats want all of you to join them?" Smudge looked at Rusty in slight disbelief. "Scourge I can see them asking to join their group or whatever, but you and Moss? She's too nice to join the likes of them." Moss gave him an amused stare.
"It's true, and decided that I want to go." Rusty mewed firmly. Scourge had finished grooming himself earlier and had settled down, His ears twitched and he walked over to Rusty and the shocked Smudge.
"Are you sure?" mewed Scourge. " It won't be easy. I lived in the street for most of my life it was tough and food was sometimes hard to come by."
"Yes I want to join. Will you both join as well?" asked Rusty. Moss rose to her feet moving over to sit beside him.
"Yes I will join I had decide I would join last night but I wanted to wait for you and Scourge's decisions." She purred softly.
Scourge looked at them for a moment thinking back to the conversation in the forest. He was more curious about the Clan leader since she seemed oddly familiar. "I will join as well." Rusty's eyes brighten considerably and he blinked affectionately at his brother.
"No don't go Rusty" wailed Smudge. Scourge cringed slightly and glared at him.
"Don't worry Smudge I'm sure my housefolk will get another cat." meowed Rusty comfortingly. "Smudge I'm sorry, but I can't stay here I have to go." Smudge gently touched noses with Rusty and asked if they could play together one last time before they left. Rusty agreed and the started to gently wrestle with each other. Moss leaped onto the fence and stared thoughtfully into the forest. Scourge stretched himself out once more and settled down to wait for sunhigh.
The three approached the spot where they had spoke to the clan cats the night before. Scourge paused suddenly and tasted the air. He smelt the scent of Lionheart and another cat that was with him. He looked over at Moss who also seemed to have picked up the scents. Rusty glanced over at Scourge.
"Tell me Rusty," Scourge meowed slowly. "What do you scent?" Rusty started scenting the air and smelt the stale scents of Graypaw and Bluestar and a slightly stronger scent of Lionheart.
"Bluestar and Graypaw aren't here." meowed Rusty "and Lionheart is close by." Scourge sighed slightly but remembered that Rusty had lived his life so far as a kittypet and wasn't use to having to distinguish between scents.
"Yes he is but there is someone else with him" meowed Scourge "can you smell them?"
Rusty looked slightly alarmed to hear that there was another cat with Lionheart. He started to taste the air again, when Lionheart came out from behind a bush.
"I see your life outside of a twoleg nest served you well Scourge." meowed Lionheart. He looked over at Rusty. "You didn't do bad but you have a long way to go Rusty." Another cat came out from behind the bush. He was a long bodied muscular white tom.
"This is Whitestorm" meowed Lionheart. " we were sent to bring you back to camp." Whitestorm gave each of them a curious sniff and stared thoughtfully at Moss, who looked just as curious.
"Greetings, I have heard much about you three." murmured Whitestorm.
"Lets go, we can talk when we get back to camp." growled Lionheart. He turned and dashed away into the forest. Scourge and Moss were hot on their heels with Rusty a few pawsteps behind them. The warriors led them through the undergrowth. They barely slowed their pace as they leaped over fallen trees. Moss and Scourge stayed close on their heels clearing the fallen trees in one leap as the warriors did. Rusty struggled to keep up but didn't fall far behind them. They came across a ravine and halted.
"We are near our camp." meowed Lionheart. Rusty started to strain to see through the undergrowth, but Moss nudged him slightly.
"Use your nose" She murmured to him. Rusty once again tasted the air.
"I scent many cats." meowed Rusty at last. Whitestorm and Lionheart nodded in approval while they gave each other amused looks.
"Come Bluestar is expecting us" meowed Lionheart. He led the way to a gorse tunnel and pushed his way through. Scourge followed him, then Rusty, Moss followed closely behind Rusty, with Whitestorm taking the rear. There was a bare clearing. There were many cats lying next to each other or sitting by themselves. The cats had started to pick up Scourge, Moss and Rusty's scents and looked at the three warily. Bluestar bounded over to them .
"They came" purred Bluestar pleased. "What do you think of them Whitestorm?"
"They did well on the way here." admitted Whitestorm "Moss and Scourge know enough that I think they should be made warriors." Scourge perked his ears up after hearing this, while Moss' eyes brightened considerably.
"I thought so too, So we are agreed?" meowed Bluestar, both warriors nodded. "Very well." Bluestar leap to the top of a large boulder.
"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey join here beneath Highrock for a Clan meeting." Cats came over to crowd beneath the rock and looked up curiously at Bluestar. She began to speak to her Clan about a need for more warriors.
"I have decided to take these three outsiders into our Clan to be trained." meowed Bluestar. Cats started to mutter to one another and some gave Rusty, Moss and Scourge a few glances.
"They are kittypets, look at their collars" sneered a pale tabby.
"We don't need any soft lumps of fur to feed" hissed a small dusky brown she-cat sitting next to him.
" They probably will run back to their twolegs' nest the moment they start a battle." spat a sleek black and gray tabby tom.
Moss, Scourge and Rusty looked over at the direction the voices came from. Lionheart bent down and began to murmur to them.
"The pale tabby is Longtail, the black and gray tabby tom is Darkstripe and the she-cat is Mousefur they are challenging your right to the Clan." he hissed "Will you meet their challenge.?" Scourge looked at Rusty who looked at him and they both looked at Moss who gave them both a nod. The three began to pinpoint where their mockers were sitting. Scourge twitched his ear as a signal and they leaped as one onto their respective opponents. Rusty leaped onto Longtail's back and sank his teeth into his scruff and began to rake his back with his claws while Scourge sank his teeth into Mousefur's scruff and began to violently shake her and take swipes at her with his claws. Moss knocked Darkstripe onto his back and slapped his face with her claws unsheathed before leaping back to safety. Darkstripe scrambled to his paws charging for Moss who dodged out of the way and raked her claws down his side. Wincing Darkstripe turned back-kicking Moss who rolled with the impact and landed on her paws quickly. Darkstripe tackled her to the ground his teeth catching her collar. Moss kicked him in the stomach with both her hind legs flipping him over her and snapping her collar a few tail lengths away another collar snapped.
Longtail started to flip onto his back hoping to crush Rusty beneath him but Rusty was quicker he leaped off and as Longtail rolled over Rusty raked his claws over his belly, but he was too close to Longtail and one of Longtail's paws hit his head. Longtail quickly got to his feet and leap at Rusty's throat snagging the collar between his teeth.
Mousefur slashed at Scourge with all four paws and he loosened his grip. She wiggled free and moved to slash at Scourge's face. Scourge ducked out of the way and spun around quickly back kicking Mousefur a few tail lengths away. Slightly winded Mousefur rose and tackled Scourge. The two of them wrestled and there was a snap heard a few tail lengths away while Scourge's collar slid off from around his neck. Immediately Bluestar said it was a sign that they were to join the Clan. She beckoned The three over with her tail.
"Moss, Scourge do you promise to uphold the warrior code and defend this clan, even at the cost of your life?" meowed Bluestar
"I do" meowed Scourge.
"I do" Moss meowed.
"Scourge from this moment on you will be known as Scourgeclaw I accept you as a warrior of Thunderclan." She lowered her muzzle onto his head and gently told him to lick her shoulder. He did and took a few steps back.
"Moss from this moment on you will be known as Mossflower and accept you as a full warrior of ThunderClan
"Scourgeclaw, Mossflower, Scourgeclaw, Mossflower" cats yowled. Some yowled a bit reluctantly.
Bluestar looked over to Rusty and beckoned him over. "By naming apprentices, we show that Thunderclan will survive and remain strong. From this moment on, until he has earned his warrior name, this apprentice will be known as Firepaw."
(Okay I know that the fight that occurred between Firepaw and Longtail didn't happen that way, but remember Scourge was teaching him how to fight before he came to Thunderclan. I think this is a good place to end it. I might make time pass a lot faster than it did into the books. I chose Mousefur to be the other mocker because I thought she would be perfect for it. I did consider Darkstripe but only after I had finished the scene. So in the next chapter I plan on having Scourge make a friend maybe more if he behaves. Also he is going to meet an old acquaintance from his kithood)
