Now the time has arrived for another chapter of SkyClan's Return! Stuff will happen, Flowerpaw will be mean to Talonpaw, and things will be done! As usual, I guess.
Chapter 6
"Warriors of ThunderClan!" Firestar called from the highledge. "Blackstar has declared war, so we will meet his call!"
Talonpaw shifted around excitedly next to Flowerpaw. "I can't believe we're going to be part of a battle!"
"Stop that fidgeting, would you? I'd hate to waste my skills and energy in holding you down," Flowerpaw replied with a humorous tone.
Half a moon had passed since Mousewhisker's patrol had discovered ShadowClan scent over the border in the clearing, and since then ThunderClan had increased their patrols. Even so, the ShadowClan scent kept coming, and it strayed further inside the border each time. Sometimes there would even be scattered feathers or blood on the ground that reeked of ShadowClan. Firestar had sent a patrol to question Blackstar, but the ShadowClan leader had denied all of their accusations. Eventually, a border skirmish broke out between patrols, and after that, Blackstar had declared war on ThunderClan.
Firestar continued his speech. "We will depart at sunrise tomorrow, and bring the fight to them."
A chorus of supportive yowls could be heard from the Clan.
"Blackstar had better stay away from our borders!" Cloudtail announced. "I'll rip those ShadowClan thieves to shreds!"
"They have to right to steal from us!" Dustpelt agreed.
Talonpaw looked around. Most of the clan looked prepared to race straight in to ShadowClan's territory, but he knew that his clanmates had more sense than that.
"Our strategy will be similar to our previous battles. We will send a patrol of strong cats, and then once those cats are worn out, we will follow it up with another fully-fit patrol to surprise them," Firestar said.
"Who will be going?" Ivypool spoke up.
"The first patrol will consist of Foxleap, Rosepetal,Brackenfur, Ivypool, Lionblaze, Mousewhisker, Berrynose, Cinderheart, Dustpelt, Me, Seedpaw, Lilypaw, and Flowerpaw," he told the clan.
"Ooh, I get to be in the first attack with Firestar!" Flowerpaw chirped. She looked at Talonpaw. "I guess you're on the second patrol."
"Yeah, I am," he replied, trying to sound disappointed. "But the second patrol is always the one that finishes them off!"
"Not if we beat them before you get there," Flowerpaw retorted. She cuffed Talonpaw over the ear and they broke out into a mass of rolling fur and claws.
"Hey, stop that, you two!" Brambleclaw meowed sternly. He pushed his way in between them just before Talonpaw got a good swipe in. "How could you fight at a time like this?"
They didn't answer. "I would've totally beaten you," Talonpaw muttered.
"In your dreams! You couldn't beat a kit!" Flowerpaw shot back.
Brambleclaw sighed. "The apprentices these days don't know their manners."
"You sound like an elder, you know that?" Squirrelflight told him, who was sitting a few tail-lengths away.
Brambleclaw sniffed. "It'll be a while yet before that happens."
Talonpaw knew that Brambleclaw had been mentored by Firestar himself long ago, back when the Clans lived in their old home, and he could see flecks of gray growing on the deputy's muzzle. He pushed the thought away. Like he says, it'll be a while yet.
"The second patrol will be Spiderleg, Thornclaw, Millie, Cloudtail, Blossomfall, Toadstep, Squirrelflight, Birchfall, Brambleclaw, Graystripe, Talonpaw, and Fallowpaw. The rest of you can stay back and guard the camp in case they attack here."
Firestar leapt down from the highledge. "You can return to your duties."
Just as quickly as the clan had gathered, they split up again.
"Hey, Talonpaw!" Brambleclaw called from near the camp entrance. He was with Ivypool, Hazeltail, and Bumblestripe. "We're going hunting."
"Coming!" Talonpaw nodded and bounded over to them, all thoughts of the battle gone from his head.
ʕ•ᴥ•ʔ
"Talonpaw, Talonpaw!" a paw prodded his side.
Wha… is it morning? He placed his forepaws over his muzzle. "Just let me sleep."
The paw started prodding him harder. "We're going to battle!"
Everything rushed back into Talonpaw's head. Blackstar declaring war, and the meeting the day before. We're going to fight ShadowClan! He sat bolt upright, fully alert. "Are we leaving now?"
Flowerpaw looked at him, amused. "You're on the second patrol, remember? I'm the one who's leaving now."
He frowned, wishing he could go with Flowerpaw. "Well, you have fun beating up ShadowClan, then."
"Stupid furball, you still get to fight," Flowerpaw pointed out. "Not to mention that you get to go with Fallowpaw."
Talonpaw brightened up a bit when he remembered he was going with a friend. "I guess you're right. We get to go with you as well, but we hang back until you start getting tired."
Flowerpaw started padding out of the den. "That's right, you get to watch me kick ShadowClan tail, and then come in for sloppy seconds. How proud will Brambleclaw be that his apprentice defeated some worn and beat ShadowClan warriors?"
"Hey, I bet you guys'll need our help by that time! We're going to swoop in and save you!" he protested.
By the time Talonpaw had finished, Flowerpaw had left.
Thinks she's so great? Talonpaw thought, taking a moment to wash his gray and red flecked fur. I'll prove to her I'm the best apprentice in ThunderClan!
"Okay, so the first patrol will attack, and we'll sit back and hide for a little while. When the first patrol is worn out, we attack from multiple strategic angles and catch ShadowClan by surprise," Brambleclaw was explaining the battle plan to Talonpaw.
"Don't forget the tree thing," Cloudtail meowed as he was passing by.
The tree thing?
"Right," Brambleclaw agreed, "We're planning to have a chosen group of cats hide up in the trees at a certain point, and then drop down on ShadowClan from the canopy. The last time we battled them this worked, so we're hoping that the same will apply this time."
"That sounds great!" Talonpaw exclaimed. "Who will be doing it?" He hoped that he would be chosen for something as cool as that. He had recently been getting rather good at tree climbing, and he thought he would be perfect for the job.
"I'm not sure yet, but Firestar says they'll be from the second patrol," Brambleclaw responded.
Even better! He bounded away without another word to Brambleclaw. He was hoping to find Firestar and ask him if he could go. Looking around, he saw the orange tom standing on the Highledge, looking ready to announce something. This must be it!
"The cats on tree patrol will be…"
Talonpaw growled in frustration when Icecloud blocked him from seeing Firestar, causing his leader's words to be too difficult to hear.
Flowerpaw came dashing over to him. "Isn't this great?"
"What?" Talonpaw replied, bewildered.
"You're on tree patrol!" She told him as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
Talonpaw gave a little bounce of satisfaction. He was glad to have been picked, but now a dark cloud of nervousness about his first battle was building up inside of him. Would he be any match for a ShadowClan cat? "That's cool," he mewed to Flowerpaw, then raced away to find his mother, Brightheart. His worries were still getting worse, and he wanted to find out if his mother or father would ever be scared before a battle.
"Oh, Talonpaw, what do you need?" Brightheart mewed when he skidded to a halt in front of her.
Talonpaw licked his chest in embarrassment. How do I say this? "Are you ever… scared before a battle?"
Brightheart looked at him, almost seeming amused. "Of course!"
Talonpaw was surprised. Why would a full-blown warrior be scared? "Are you sure?"
Talonpaw's mother licked his ear affectionately. "Even the strongest of warriors would be a fool to not be scared." she explained. "Being nervous before a battle is completely natural. I'm not on your patrol, but I'm sure you'll be fine."
"Thanks," Talonpaw mewed, comforted by his mother's words.
"Any time."
Despite what his mother had said, Talonpaw was still plenty nervous for the battle. He shook himself, angry that he was so weak. I just need to go straight into this battle instead of overthinking it, he decided. Now to find my patrol.
He looked around for a moment, then realized he didn't know who was on the patrol with him, meaning he would need to find a cat that did. He walked up to Brackenfur, then spoke. "Do you know who's on tree patrol with me?"
The tom turned around from talking to Thornclaw. "Oh, hello Talonpaw. I believe it was Foxleap, Birchfall, Fallowpaw, Blossomfall, and Squirrelflight."
Good, I'm still with Fallowpaw, Talonpaw thought, relieved. "Thanks, Brackenfur."
"Uh huh," Brackenfur said, turning back to Thornclaw, who was demonstrating how he would shred ShadowClan and hadn't noticed Brackenfur wasn't paying attention.
Talonpaw searched the camp for his patrol, then finally found them preparing to leave by the entrance.
"Talonpaw, there you are!" Blossomfall meowed when he approached. "You're the last one, so we can move out as soon as the first patrol does."
"Great," Talonpaw replied. Something was stirring in his chest. It was a feeling of intense anticipation and determination like Talonpaw had never felt before, and he knew it was abut the battle.
I'm finally having my first battle, and I'll show every cat in ShadowClan that they've no right to trespass in our territory!
(A/N) Alright people, so while I was writing this I read book one in Vision of Shadows, and without spoiling anything, it used my plot a little bit. HOWEVER, this is a fanfiction, and it's clearly not canon, so I will continue it either way with a few minor changes to the plot.
Anyways, hope you enjoyed, and don't forget to REVIEW!