The sun was high in the sky, shedding its warm light on the gray pelt of the tom below it. Thorntail's fur stood on end, and his sapphire eyes were wild with fear. Suddenly, his gaze rested on the pale ginger pelt of one of the senior warriors of the Clan – and one of the cats who knew what was going on.
"Where is he?" Thorntail questioned Sandpelt, who looked just as worried and fearful as he did. The gray tom's eyes lost their fear in an instant – in order to be strong for the she-cat that stood before him - and it was replaced with sheer concern for his friend- the deputy of ThunderClan. "Please, Sandpelt!" he pleaded when she didn't answer him. "Where is Swiftfoot?!"
The pale ginger she-cat looked down at her paws. "He's- he's in Rosepaw's den." She meowed simply, her voice void of all emotion.
Thorntail suddenly felt cold. Rosepaw…Rosepaw… surely, with only the half-training of a medicine cat, she wouldn't be able to save the deputy. Thorntail was furious, of course, and for a moment actually considered clawing Sandpelt's eyes out for not protecting the tom, but then decided against it – it wouldn't solve anything, besides Swiftfoot was deputy and was supposed to be protecting her. Which she had done, admittedly.
"Swiftfoot!" Thorntail yowled, letting all his grief, and rage exit from his body with that one pitiful cry. The sound of it rang in the air for a few moments, and during that time Thorntail regained his composure, and was able to ask the she-cat calmly; "Sandpelt, what happened?"
Sandpelt hesitated for a moment, as if she really didn't want to speak right now, but at last she gave in. "We were patrolling- Swiftfoot, Gingerleaf, and I…the ShadowClan border. We were ambushed, simple as that." Thorntail dug his claws into the earth at that sentence. Just like ShadowClan! Never coming out to fight their enemy face-to-face, but lurking in the shadows, waiting for the perfect time to strike – when the enemy least expected it. This was probably one of the reasons they got their name. Thorntail flexed his long, silver claws, and felt a need to run from camp right then and there, and go and claw the leader's ears off.
But if he was angry then, then he was furious as Sandpelt continued. "They took down Swiftfoot without much effort – they surprised him, you see. We fought them off, but Swiftfoot was injured…he didn't look to good…"
Before Swiftfoot's semi-secret semi-not mate could finish, Thorntail couldn't stand it anymore. He had to check on his former mentor, and friend. So he disappeared into the brambles of the medicine cat's den, even while Sandpelt was still speaking.
As Thorntail felt his paws touch the warm earth of inside Rosepaw's den, he let his eyes flash about, as if he expected one of the ShadowClan warriors to come lumbering out from the darkness to face him. He never liked the dens of medicine cats much, but right now, he more or less needed to enter.
Finally, his furious, flashing sapphire gaze rested on the tabby pelt of Swiftfoot, and Thorntail sighed with relief – especially when he saw the dark ginger body of the medicine cat leaning over the deputy, her expression full of concentration.
"Is Swiftfoot going to be alright?" He asked – though he was almost positive Rosepaw wouldn't want to be bothered right now.
The young dark ginger she-cat's ice blue eyes were scanning Swiftfoot carefully, as if Thorntail hadn't even spoken. She made no acknowledgement of the uninjured warrior in her den.
"Well?" he pleaded when there was no answer. How could she just ignore him?
Rosepaw said nothing but she was clearly annoyed with the gray cat that was harassing her, from the look in her eyes. But still she made no effort to answer any of Thorntail's questions. But soon – most likely annoyed by the vicious hissing Thorntail had started to make, she placed a single forepaw on the ThunderClan deputy's leg, and stared up at Thorntail with robin-egg-blue eyes like stone.
But to Thorntail's surprise, she nodded in answer to his question. Swiftfoot was going to be alright! Swiftfoot was going to be alright!
"Really? That's great!" Thorntail purred, flicking his tail with delight. "I can't wait to tell Sandpelt. She'll be so pleased! When will he be able to patrol again? I can't wait- he can come with me, and we can get revenge on those ShadowClan cats." Thorntail purred again with joy. ShadowClan failed! They didn't remove part of ThunderClan's hierchy! Excellent! He wanted to yowl to the heavens with joy, to make sure StarClan knew that Swiftfoot had narrowly avoided joining their (admittedly) taunting, starry ranks once again!
However, Rosepaw didn't seem too thrilled. In answer to his second wave of questions, she shook her head.
Suddenly, Thorntail felt a cold shiver crawl up his spine. "Wh- what do you mean, Rosepaw? Will he be able to patrol again?"
Rosepaw shook her head. No.
Thorntail suddenly felt like the rabbit that had avoided the owl, but had run straight into the cat's paws. Swiftfoot would live, but he would have to retire to the elder's den… However, Thorntail couldn't help but be more annoyed, rather then sad, or angry. Why wasn't Rosepaw speaking? How the heck could the ThunderClan medicine cat/medicine cat apprentice…thing…be so cold!
"I- I should tell Streamstar, shouldn't I?" he asked, in a failed attempt to hide his anger.
Rosepaw closed her icy eyes for a moment. When she opened them, she nodded.
Yes.
….
Streamstar took the news better then Thorntail had expected, but then Streamstar wasn't one to show grief. At all. So Thorntail wasn't needed to comfort her, or tell her that she was doing a fine job of leader, or tell her that it wasn't her fault. If anything, if he came too close to her, she probably would have snapped at him to back off.
So it wasn't long, before Thorntail was back in the clearing of the camp, sharing tongues with his friend, as he scarfed down a vole.
"I can't wait to sink my fangs into a ShadowClan cat's flesh!" Thorntail snarled, digging his fangs into the piece of prey like it was a ShadowClan cat.
Thorntail's companion, the black tom Blackshadow, curled his dark tail in understanding, and tightly closed his amber eyes, as if, if he did that all the ShadowClan cats would go away, and Swiftfoot would be miraculously better. "I want to too." He mewed simply, leaving Thorntail to disembody his vole in silence. However, the growls of fury, and the countless small curses Thorntail was starting to say to his vole, must've started to annoy the tom, because he reopened his eyes to slits, and asked, "What did Rosepaw say?"
"Nothing," Thorntail sighed, his gray tail, which was high in the air as he harassed a dead creature, dropping to the dust. "She just nodded and shook her head… now that I think about it…the whole time I've lived in ThunderClan, I've never heard her speak…around me, anyways. Blackshadow, does she have something against me?" Thorntail waited for Blackshadow's answer, and recalled all the times he had ever needed to go see Rosepaw. Apprentice's journey to Highstones – she gave him the herbs, no kind words. When Thorntail got a furious rabbit's claw stuck in his side, Rosepaw had helped him get it out, but still had never said anything. Just nodded, shook her head, and…that was about it.
"Rosepaw doesn't speak to anyone." Blackshadow explained to him, as he grabbed a thrush from the fresh-kill pile. "Before you joined the Clan, she wouldn't shut up. But then her mentor, Flamesoul left-"
Thorntail yowled in anger as he dug his claws deep into the earth. Flamesoul! If Thorntail ever saw that no-good medicine cat that ThunderClan used to have, he'd first, claw his ears off, and then force him to come back to ThunderClan so a fully-trained medicine cat could take care of the Clan! At least until Rosepaw had learned enough!
"Why did Flamesoul leave?" Thorntail snarled, curling his upper lip in distaste. "He barely had time to teach Rosepaw anything! ThunderClan is practically without a medicine cat! If he was still here, I guarantee you that Swiftfoot would be able to continue being deputy. And then leader, after Streamstar." Thorntail swung his head down, and took another ferocious bite from his vole, finishing it up.
"I don't think we'll ever know why Flamesoul left." Blackshadow pointed out quietly. "However, you seem speak highly of him. When he left, you were still a loner scrounging for food. You never met him"
"And then Swiftfoot found me…" Thorntail murmured softly, as he remembered. "And saved me from being alone for my whole life. I'll never forget that."
Blackshadow's amber eyes glowed with sympathy. Blackshadow at first had- like the rest of the Clan- Not wanted a loner joining the Clan. But later, once Swiftfoot had convinced him, Blackshadow got to know Thorntail quite well, and now they were the best of friends. When they weren't clawing each other's ears off over a she-cat, or a petty argument.
Another thing that I owe Swiftfoot! Thorntail realized, watching Blackshadow for a moment, as the dark tom slowly chewed on his thrush.
"Anyways," Thorntail sighed. "Do you know why Rosepaw stopped speaking?" Thorntail asked, flashing his gaze towards the medicine cat's den, as if he could see through the brambles and could catch sight of Rosepaw. "She's a very attractive cat- I would love to hear her voice."
"She's a medicine cat!" Blackshadow snapped quickly, lashing his tail. Thorntail was surprised at how fast Blackshadow scolded him for having eyes for pretty cats, and Thorntail was about to ask him about it, but Blackshadow swept on. "Thorntail, there are plenty of she-cats in ThunderClan that are perfectly available to you! You ask, they'll call. If you tried hard enough, you could probably even have Streamstar- and she's our leader! Leave Rosepaw alone and take another cat! Like Featherfrost, or
Applefur…or Gingerleaf! GINGERLEAF!" Blackshadow yowled to the heavens, as several cats turned to look at the crazed warrior who was yowling out names of she-cats. Thorntail suddenly noticed a few queens usher their kits into the nursery – he would almost imagine them telling their beloveds to stay away from the crazy black tom. But Blackshadow continued, as if he hadn't noticed the confused glances he was getting from his Clanmates. "Isn't Gingerleaf your mate? Why are you looking at medicine cats?"
Thorntail chuckled lightly, both at Blackshadow losing his sanity for a moment, and because the thought of Gingerleaf brought back quite a few memories – some happy, some not so much. "Gingerleaf? Oh yeah, her." He mewed, as if he just recalled that she existed. He didn't touch on the subject of Gingerleaf again, however, and went straight for Blackshadow's jugular. "Why are you protecting Rosepaw so much?"
"Do you know nothing of the Warrior Code? Medicine cats can't have a mate!" Blackshadow insisted, lowering his gaze to stare at his thrush as if it were the greatest thing StarClan had ever put in the forest.
"Neither can she-cat leaders," Thorntail mewed carefully, narrowing his blue eyes into slits. "But you suggested Streamstar to me…" Thorntail suddenly realized something – the reason why Blackshadow wanted him to stay away from the young medicine cat apprentice! "Blackshadow, if you have a thing for this Rosepaw, just tell me."
Blackshadow glared at the other ThunderClan warrior, before turning his back on him. "I think I'll take Badgerclaw and Frostfang on a patrol…" he meowed softly, not even bothering with Thorntail's accusation. But it must've annoyed him, because it was just a few moments before he whipped around and hissed, "And Thorntail, I mean it! Stay away from Rosepaw! She's a medicine cat apprentice. She belongs to StarClan- understand?"
Thorntail gave his smoky-gray chest a few quick licks. "Whatever, Blackshadow." He mumbled. "I just think you should practice what you preach."
Blackshadow hissed furiously, before gathering up his two friends, and padding out of the gorse tunnel, as Badgerclaw (who must've overhead the conversation) started teasing Blackshadow about, what Thorntail thought, was an apprentice's crush.
Thorntail sighed heavily, when Blackshadow and his patrol was out of sight. Swiftfoot was injured. Blackshadow was hunting or patrolling or… whatever Blackshadow had said he was going to do. The only thing to do was find a she-cat and enjoy himself.
"Thorntail." A she-cat's voice called him from the other side of the clearing. He turned his gaze towards her, and saw the pale ginger she-cat, Gingerleaf, sitting on her haunches, and flicking her long tail for him to come over and meet her.
The former loner chuckled to himself, as he got to his paws and trotted over to see her, flicking his own tail in greeting.
"Hey, how's my pretty little Gingerleaf?" he asked in a sing-song voice, as he licked her ear affectionately. "Do you wanna go to Sunningrocks…and enjoy ourselves?"
"Thorntail," Gingerleaf sighed backing away from him a few pawsteps – much to Thorntail's disdain. She shifted uncomfortably, before continuing. "I need to talk to you." In other words, he had to sit out her little rant before they could do what mates do best!
"Okay," Thorntail yawned, lying down knowing this would probably take awhile. "Yack away." He cooed, lightly touching Gingerleaf's flank with his tail.
"Thorntail, Swiftfoot can't be deputy anymore. Rosepaw told me herself." Gingerleaf's voice was cool, and sophisticated, all most as if Gingerleaf was pretending to be a Clan leader while they had this conversation.
Of course, Thorntail couldn't help but wonder. Why did Rosepaw talk to Gingerleaf, and not him?
He didn't have long to dwell on that thought, because Gingerleaf's voice was so commanding now, it demanded attention. "Streamstar is going to need all the support of her warriors now. In fact, I think I might become deputy." She said this with her voice beaming with pride, and Thorntail had to stop himself from gagging. If Gingerleaf became deputy, then ThunderClan would join StarClan before the next Gathering – which was just a few sunrises away. "And even if I don't…" Gingerleaf continued, "I think you're becoming obsessed with it. I don't want to be with a cat obsessive with being deputy."
Then I'm not the cat for you! Thorntail though smugly, as he thought of his biggest goal and ambition. He was one day going to be deputy, and leader afterwards. And besides, Gingerleaf was a fun play thing. They did have some good times under the stars of Silverpelt, alone, but things do get boring quickly. "Okay," Thorntail purred, licking one of his paws gently as he answered Gingerleaf's statements. "That's fine with me."
Thorntail had to keep himself from rolling onto his back to purr hysterically at Gingerleaf's shocked expression.
"What? You don't even care?!" she burst out, curling her upper lip to show her snow-white fangs.
"Why would I? You broke up with me." Thorntail asked calmly, taking his tail away from her flank so he could give it a thorough wash.
"I thought you would…" Gingerleaf trailed off, but then started a new sentence, with her voice strong and clear. "Thorntail, what's more important?!" Gingerleaf snarled. "Becoming Clan deputy, or me!?"
That was easy. "Becoming Clan Deputy." Thorntail mewed without hesitation.
Thorntail didn't have time to even cringe in fear. The ginger claws flew into the sky, and then were scraped across his face.