Chapter 3: Shadowberry
Shadowberry turned around and hissed, "Come on, Sprucepaw!"
The dark brown tabby tom disentangled himself from a clump of brambles. "Coming," he grumbled. "I've got a thorn in my pad."
Shadowberry doubled back impatiently with Bushtail on her heels. "Don't pull it out," the older warrior warned.
Shadowberry's apprentice flattened his ears in pain. "Why not?"
Shadowberry spoke up. "We're following a fox, remember? If you pull that out, it'll smell your blood."
Bushtail nodded, and Sprucepaw dipped his head in submission. "Don't blame me if it gets infected," he hissed.
Falconclaw's dark ginger pelt was barely visible in the dusk. "Be quiet," the deputy ordered. "The fox den is just ahead."
Sprucepaw followed Shadowberry and Bushtail as Falconclaw discussed the plan. "It's hunting," he murmured. "When it comes back, we'll ambush it, drive it off, and take its prey."
"Nice plan," Bushtail muttered, "but what exactly will we do when we ambush it?"
Falconclaw flicked his tail over Bushtail's ear; in spite of age, Falconclaw had a higher position than the pale-brown-tailed warrior. "Sprucepaw and I will attack at first; Bushtail, you and Shadowberry will go around and catch it when it tries to flee."
"What if it goes in a different direction?" Sprucepaw wondered, shifting to take weight from his injured paw.
"That's why I chose this spot," Falconclaw replied. "This is the only place where brambles thrive; after all, it's right by the Moonriver, where there are brambles like LightningClan. For a fox, there are only two ways out of this thicket." Falconclaw smirked. "And we've got them both covered."
A sharp scent of fox hit Shadowberry's nose, and the patrol fell silent as one.
The fox, a large dark russet male with a thick tail, entered the clearing with a rabbit in his jaws. Shadowberry briefly wondered what a rabbit was doing here in the pines.
Falconclaw leapt out of the brambles with a fearsome caterwaul, signaling with his tail for Sprucepaw to cover the entrance to the fox den. The fox skidded to a halt, threw down the rabbit, and snapped viciously.
Shadowberry had one eye on the fox and the other on Falconclaw's tail, waiting for the signal. Oh, StarClan, let him not do anything foolish.
Falconclaw's tail quivered as the fox advanced, then he raised it sharply enough to surprise the fox.
Shadowberry leapt out with Bushtail behind her, spitting.
Falconclaw kinked his tail over his back; Bushtail leapt onto the fox's back with claws unsheathed. Shadowberry flicked her ear as a flying piece of fox fur brushed it.
The deputy must have given Sprucepaw a command; the apprentice had the rabbit between himself and the den now. Shadowberry smirked in triumph; part of their mission had been completed.
The fox did not take kindly to the stealing of the stolen. He snapped and barked at Sprucepaw, but the tom did not budge. Instead, he grew all the fiercer, daring to dart out and lash a clawed paw across the reddish muzzle. Shadowberry had to clench her teeth to keep from spitting mouse-brain at her apprentice; with an injured paw, he wouldn't be able to fight nearly as well as he could.
Bushtail bit down firmly on the fox's ear, causing blood to spurt over Sprucepaw's fur. He spat furiously as the rank blood sprinkled into his eye. In spite of the situation, Shadowberry suppressed a snort of amusement; the youngest in the patrol had achieved the most injuries, so far.
The fox howled as its ear tore beneath Bushtail's thorn-sharp teeth. The warrior spat out the flesh with a disgusted grimace and started on the other one.
The fox shook itself vigorously in an attempt to dislodge Bushtail. Bushtail persisted, even lashing a paw at its eyes.
The fox howled in pain as blood flowed freely from its new wound. Still howling, it managed to shake Bushtail off—partly because Bushtail let go—and fled in panic toward the gap guarded by Falconclaw. The deputy nipped at the fox's heels, herding it toward LightningClan territory.
"Is that a good idea?" Bushtail panted, hurrying after Falconclaw with Shadowberry right behind. "You know how frail Mothstar has been lately."
"Do you think I have a choice?" Falconclaw snapped, barely breaking stride. "It's a fox, and we're chasing it. There's no time to think about where it's going."
The patrol halted at the scent lines around the Moonriver. The fox, still panicking, ran over the edge of the hollow. Shadowberry didn't flinch as it landed with a sickening crunch.
Falconclaw peered into the hollow. "That's one less fox in the forest," he noted breathlessly. "Let's get back to camp after we round up Sprucepaw."
{ :] victory! }
Shadowberry nudged Sprucepaw to the medicine cat den. She had escaped with no injures aside from treading on a sharp bit of bracken. Bushtail was injured, as if he had chased off a lone trespasser. Falconclaw had more injuries, but Sprucepaw, young and inexperienced, was wailing as if he had fallen into a clump of nettles after falling into a bramble thicket, all while as bald as a bird.
"Will you be quiet?" Bushtail grumbled. "You're wailing like a kit."
At that, Sprucepaw finally lapsed into a sullen silence, glaring at Bushtail with his good eye. The other was swollen shut from being splattered with fox blood. On top of that, the thorn had been driven deep into his pad, causing him to walk with a limp.
"Oh, dear," Hootclaw meowed. "Let me fix you up." The medicine cat was usually ill-tempered, but Dawnspirit had discovered a clump of burdock while hunting, and Hootclaw had gotten a chance to replenish the supplies used up after the rat attack.
The dark brown tabby sniffed at the blood on the apprentice's pelt. "Is that fox blood?" Sprucepaw nodded. "After I take care of you, go wash it off."
Sprucepaw followed Hootclaw into the medicine den. Shadowberry waved her tail meaningfully at Falconclaw and Bushtail.
"I'll go in when he's done," the deputy replied. Bushtail nodded agreement.
Shadowberry settled down on some pine needles and began grooming herself. The half moon shined brightly above the trees. Shadowberry ached to the tips of her claws, but she wanted to get the stench of fox out of her fur.
"Shadowberry!"
Shadowberry's head jerked from where she was tugging something out from between the claws of her back foot. "Who's there?"
"You know who I am, Shadowberry."
Shadowberry turned her head to see a pure white tom with gleaming amber eyes.
"I am Whiteblaze," he told her.
Memories flashed through Shadowberry's mind. A white tom, running for his life from the jaws of a Twoleg monster. It was futile; the monster hit him without a second thought. A Twoleg came from the side of the monster, picked up the tom, and left in the monster.
"You're dead, then. What does StarClan want with me?" Shadowberry snapped.
Whiteblaze flattened his ears. "Why, no less than saving the forest with the help of three others."
"What?"
Whiteblaze's eyes flashed. "Was I not clear enough, or are you deaf? You have a fate that is twined with three others. Do not fail, or the forest will be destroyed."
Shadowberry could only watch helplessly as the dead tom vanished unblinkingly.
[ O_o ]
DarkClan Allegiances:
Leader: Weedstar: dark gray and dark brown tabby tom
Deputy: Falconclaw: dark ginger tom with yellow eyes
Medicine cat: Hootclaw: dark brown tabby tom with creamy patches
Warriors:
Mudsplash: dark brown tom splashed with pale brown
Shadowberry: very dark gray, almost black, she-cat with bright green eyes
Cedarleap: powerful dark ginger tom
Dawnspirit: dark gray she-cat with a creamy underbelly and blue eyes
Badgerfang: black-and-white tom with amber eyes
Tawnysky: tawny gray-and-dark ginger she-cat with green eyes
Berryshard: dark ginger tom with black patches and yellow eyes
Applesky: ginger-and-gray patched she-cat
Smokefang: dark gray tom
Hazemoon: dark gray she-cat
Lilyshade: gray-and-dark gray she-cat
Thistlefang: dark brown tabby tom
Bushtail: dark brown tabby tom with a paler brown tail
Apprentices:
Amberpaw: pale ginger she-cat with darker patches and amber eyes
Bogpaw: very dark gray tabby tom with brown flecks
Maplepaw: dark ginger-and-black tabby she-cat
Sprucepaw: dark brown tabby tom
Slatepaw: stony gray tom
Sandypaw: pale brown tabby she-cat
Queens:
Whispershadow: pale gray and black she-cat
Dappleshade: dark tortoiseshell she-cat, mother to Smokefang's kits: Ravenkit, a jet black tom; and Foxkit, a very dark ginger tom
Elders:
Russetclaw: elderly dark ginger tom
Cloudwind: pale gray and white patched she-cat