Hi! Feathers here, I figured out how to put in an authors note, hooray! As I'm sure you noticed this is the second chapter of All That Glitters, I hope you enjoy it!
First, a response to my first (and only) review.
MeowMix1028 - Thank you so much! I'm really excited to be writing Downstream, it has such a wonderful premise!
Magpiepaw woke to the smell of mouse; opening her eyes she could see a small gray body in front of her nose. Gritting her teeth the black and white she cat dragged herself into a sloppy sitting position, ignoring the sharp flashes of pain that the motion caused.
Leaning down Magpiepaw took a large bite of the mouse, allowing the flavor to fill her mouth before swallowing it and taking another bite. She had wolfed down half of the prey before she realized that Mittens must have brought it for her. She paused, looking around of any sign that the loner was still near by. Seeing none Magpiepaw went back to eating, carefully licking all traces of the delicious meal off her paws and muzzle when she was done.
Realizing that her fur was in complete disarray the apprentice began to wash her pelt, taking extra care with the white patches, just like her mother always said. A small sigh escaped her at the memory of Willowflower teaching Magpiepaw and her siblings how to wash their coats.
It was a warm Newleaf day and the Shadowclan camp was filled with sunshine, the sound of birdsong and rustling leaves filled the air. Sitting in a patch of sun, Willowflower had her three kits lined up in a row in front of her. The pretty gray queen was slowly licking one paw and rubbing her face with it; the kits were copying with varying levels of success. The first kit, a pretty gray she cat like her mother was neatly cleaning her face in a near perfect imitation. The middle kit, this time a dark gray tabby tom, had gotten distracted by a falling leaf and was batting at it instead. The final kit, a scruffy white and black she cat, was doing her best to copy her mother but only just brushing the ends of her fur and rendering the action somewhat ineffective.
Willowflower was doing her best encourage her kits. "Very nice Dovekit, don't forget to wash your ears though. Thrushkit! Stop playing and pay attention, this is important. Remember Magpiekit; you have to clean the white spots extra thoroughly because they get dirty more easily."
"Why is keeping our fur clean important?" Thrushkit groaned.
"Keeping clean is very important, how can you hold your head up high if your fur is messy? What would other clans think of Shadowclan if they saw you with your coat in such a state? You see little one, we are proud to be warriors, proud to be Shadowclan. We must be sure that we are the best we can be to show how great Shadowclan is and that means washing your fur." Willowflower answered gently.
The three kits gazed up at her, eyes wide at the talk of pride and honor, images of proud warriors flashing trough their minds, warriors with perfectly groomed coats of course.
Magpiepaw purred softly at her kit self, how grand it had sounded, tales of great warriors and fierce battles. Now look at me, an apprentice who has to be taken care of by a loner. Magpiepaw thought sadly, gazing down at her paws, homesickness welling up inside her. What she wouldn't give to be training with her friends or racing across the territory or even searching the elders for ticks. Anything just to be home again, back under the shade of the pine trees surrounded by the familiar scents of the forest, knowing that her clan wasn't far away.
Well, all this moping and self-pity isn't helping you get home, no use sitting here doing nothing. Get up and do something for Starclan's sake. The sharp voice of Magpiepaw's mentor, Aspenpelt, rang through her head. With an effort the black and white she cat stood, shaking her head to clear the spots dancing in front of her eyes. Gritting her teeth against the pain flaring through her side and legs Magpiepaw carefully took a few small steps forward, bringing herself out of the box and into the alley.
The alley wasn't much to look at; it was made of cold gray stones with damp, slimy moss creeping across them. There was a fragment of blue sky above and a few slivers of sunshine that had made their way into the alley. Despite that the backstreet was chilly and cast in shadow, Magpiepaw shivered as the cold made it's way through her thick pelt.
Opening her jaws to scent the air the small she cat padded forward to the mouth of the alley. Staring out at the strange landscape before her she felt another pang of homesickness. She allowed her gaze to roam across the tops of the buildings until she spotted treetops; her heart sank. The forest was so far away, how was she ever going to get home?
By walking, honestly Magpiepaw, you'd think you could figure that out on your own. You have a brain don't you? Use it! Aspenpelt's voice rang in her ears; she smiled sadly at the familiar scolding tone.
Squaring her slim shoulders the black spotted apprentice set her gaze towards the forest and took a step forward. She hissed in pain as the abrupt motion jolted her injured leg and side, blinking away the tears of pain Magpiepaw sat down. She'd only made it a couple of fox lengths; she could never walk home with these injuries, her ears flattened against her head.
Maybe Mittens was right? Maybe you should wait until your injuries are healed? A small voice in her head reasoned.
Shaking her head the small she cat growled at the thought. "I can't wait an entire moon to go home, everyone probably thinks I'm dead, I can't keep them worrying like that." She said aloud, her blue eyes sparkling.
"Yeah well you're going to have to, you can't walk, as I'm sure you've noticed. You are going to rest and heal, then you can go gallivanting off on your warrior adventures." Magpiepaw whipped her head around to see Mittens standing in the shadow of a building, something leafy clasped in her jaws.
"Don't do that! You scared me out of my fur! Anyway, I can't wait a moon, my clan will be worried about me." The apprentice yelped.
"Look Magpie, you can wait and I will make you if I have to. You can afford to be away from your precious clan for a moon and a half." Mittens growled, brushing by the younger she cat.
"A moon and a half? You said a moon!" Magpiepaw said, surprised and rather upset at the loner.
"No, I said a moon, if you don't do anything stupid. This my friend, counts as stupid."