AN: HAHAHA! I am back! It's a miracle! So keep your shirt on DREAMFeathersong! Once more you can all thank DREAMFeathersong for this being posted. We have a nice agreement going. Thank you all for reading and reviewing, it is much appreciated!
Disclaimer: FOR THE LAST TIME I DO NOT OWN ANYTHING! (except lots of stuffed animals :D )
We padded back to camp together, Darkthorn never letting me leave his sight, which I found a bit obnoxious. As we passed through the entranceway we were greeted by Fernstar herself. "Just where have you two been all this time," she snarled at us, more out of annoyance than anger.
I heard the low murmur of "I bet I can guess," coming from Darkthorn's brother, Nettlefang. Nettlefang took every chance he got to tease his brother. I let out a low hiss at his comment.
Darkthorn glared at his littermate before turning to Fernstar and saying, "I found Whispering-grass as you instructed me to, but by that time the storm was starting. We hid out in a cave until it passed." I groaned inwardly, he shouldn't have said cave, that was one of the first mistakes I had made too, but I was just an apprentice then, as a warrior he should have more sense.
"A cave?" Fernstar's expression turned worried. "Was there any fox smell to it," she asked in alarm.
"Oh, uh," Darkthorn stammered, realizing his mistake. I decided to pipe up.
"No Fernstar, I think it was an old rabbit warren. Darkthorn and I can fill it in tomorrow if you think a fox might try and use it though."
"Yes Whispering-grass, I think you should do that, we don't want any foxes to think we're welcoming them. Can you and Darkthorn do the job alone, or do you need more help?"
"No the two of us is fine," I answered in a semi-panic.
"Good, see that it is done by sun-high tomorrow."
"Yes Fernstar," Darkthorn and I said together as we turned away. Fernstar us a curious glance before returning to her den.
I beckoned with Darkthorn to follow me behind the warriors den. There was a nice spot there, comfortable for even three full grown cats. "Nice going mouse-brain," I started. "Now we have to go at dawn pretend to fill in a den that doesn't exist!"
"Look Whispering-grass, it's not my fault, I don't have the experience you do with this!" Darkthorn hissed back at me. As we argued, neither of us noticed the pair of amber eyes that watched us retreat to the spot we were currently sitting at. How could we have, when we were too busy glaring at each other.
"From now on Darkthorn, you need to be more careful with what you say and do. I didn't protect this secret for so long only to have you mess it all up!" With that, I turned my back on him and stalked away. I was aware he was following me, and so I was glad when Nettlefang intercepted him. I could vaguely hear what they were saying, but to get a better idea, I padded over to the fresh-kill pile and pretended to contemplate my selection.
"So Darkthorn, you two just waited it out it that little private cave? Nothing happened?" Nettlefang was grilling Darkthorn with all his perverted questions. I gave a growl. Snakefrost, the warrior sitting next to me looked up in alarm. I shot him a glance that sent him scurrying away.
Darkthorn was clearly having the same reaction I was. "Yes Nettlefang, only you would think of it any other way," he snarled.
"You know, if I were you, I would have taken Sweetflower." However, after Darkthorn gave a particularly ferocious growl, Nettlefang dropped the subject, much to my relief. I had to wonder how much truth there was to Darkthorn's statement though. Maybe he was wrong, other cats might actually believe the things Nettlefang was saying. Of course, I'm not sure even Nettlefang believed what he was saying. He was just using it to provoke Darkthorn. So maybe I was safe from ridicule.
"Hey Whispering-grass I heard someone say you and Darkthorn were together outside camp when the storm hit," Falconpaw said as he bounced out of the apprentices' den. Then again, maybe not.
"Great Starclan, not you too Falconpaw!" I cried out.
"Huh," Falconpaw cocked his head to one side. Oh, stupid me. He was just an apprentice, he wasn't trying to be like Nettlefang.
"I'm sorry Falconpaw. I overreacted. Come on, we're going out hunting again. The night-prey will be venturing out now it's dark and the rain has stopped, and you need to work on your marshy hunting techniques anyway. I don't think we have practiced night hunting that much though, so this should be pretty challenging."
"Hey wait up Whispering-grass, I'll come with you two!" I turned, even though I already knew who was talking.
"No thank you Darkthorn, I believe I've had quite enough of you today." I barely glanced at his hurt look before pushing along a very happy Falconpaw. "Come on, we're leaving," I muttered to him.
As we walked away, I heard Owlflight, one of our elders comment to Darkthorn, "she-cat troubles, eh? I remember being shut out by a plenty she-cats in my day. Why, when I asked Tansypool, and she was Tansypaw then mind you, to take a simple hunt with me, she walked away in a huff!"
I purred out loud when I heard Tansypool screeching from the elders den, "you stupid furball! That's not what happened at all! Darkthorn, you come right over here and I'll explain what really happened! And as for you Owlflight, just because I'm an elder does not mean I've lost my sense of hearing!"
"Let's go Whispering-grass!" Falconpaw called as he leaped ahead, only to slip on a new patch of mud. He stood up, dripping mud from his muzzle.
I purred, "maybe Fernstar will have to rename you Mudpaw!" He shook himself off, purposely trying to get mud all over me. "Hey, Falconpaw! Show some respect to your mentor!"
After a while Falconpaw was getting really good at avoiding the mud patches while hunting, and was relying on hearing so much instead of sight that when I finally called, "OK, that's enough for tonight I think," he jumped a fox-length.
When we entered camp, he gave a huge yawn and lumbered over to the apprentice den without so much as a backwards glance. I shook my head, thinking he needed to learn respect before I walked into the warriors den. Much to my dismay, the only open nest was directly next to Darkthorn. Worse, he was facing it, though I think only so that his back was turned to Sweetflower, the warrior next to him that had snuggled as close as possible. She was a real pain, always pretending to be perfect and as nice as her name suggested, but she was really quite a mean she-cat. It was no secret she liked Darkthorn either, always being a bother and complaining when she wasn't on a patrol with him. I snorted and gently dragged my nest as far away from Darkthorn as I could before curling up and immediately falling asleep.
AN: Ho hum... nothing much happens. Lots of filler, lots of new cats, but a story can't be all action, and I'm too lazy to write anymore. Yes, I changed some things up from the last time, I needed to introduce Sweetflower before the next chapter though. Review please! Confirm my beliefs! (That's its a wonderful story and there are miniature errors everywhere.)