In my last story, Redemption, it seemed like everything was super ironic. This time I just pick on Sanddune constantly. Poor guy.
Just to let you know I, against my better judgment, am starting a new story in the middle of writing this one. It's called Inconsistency and it uses a different writing style each chapter. (You can read more about it when you look at it.) The prologue is out as we speak.
Now back to this story.. New character! Yay! Enjoy :)
Chapter 6
"Mountainkit. Get up now. We have to move."
The two sunrises following Dewkit's death had consisted of nothing. No matter how hard Mountainkit had tried to get his father to respond, do something, get food at least, he had just buried his nose deeper into her fur or snapped at him with such fury that Mountainkit had thought he would slash at his own son.
Then suddenly, on the third morning, Sanddune was up and alert, prodding Mountainkit awake and commanding him in a quiet but sharp tone.
"Mountainkit, we have to move now."
Mountainkit's stomach rumbled and his blue eyes were dull. He could barely get to his paws. "What is it?"
"Cat," Sanddune meowed. His fur was matted and filthy and his eyes were lit with purpose in a crazed way that made Mountainkit flinch. "Now roll in the mud by the stream. I'm going to try to cover our tracks. We need to be long gone."
Mountainkit couldn't help but glance at Dewkit's body when he turned to the stream. He still couldn't believe that she was gone, but the sight of the unmoving lump of gray fur sent pain once again to clench his heart in its tight grasp. The smell of death was becoming stronger and large crowd of scavengers had gathered and were circling the skies above. The flies were already swarming, bringing fresh tears to the brown kit's eyes. They were eating his sister… his beautiful, wonderful sister… Soon there would be nothing left but bones and memories. She was so young! But, as Mountainkit thought that, he felt so old. He was barely a moon old, yet he had experienced the pain of an adult. He felt like his childhood had been taken away.
"Mountainkit, now," Sanddune growled.
Mountainkit realized that he had stopped and quickly continued on to the stream. He collapsed to the ground and with the last of his strength he dragged his pelt through the mud, rolling, and got back to his paws. He teetered unsteadily.
Sanddune's tone changed drastically: from a tough command to a sad whisper. "Oh, Mountainkit, I'm sorry. I should have… I was just… I'm sorry." There was nothing more to be said. Besides, both cats' ears were pricking. There a snap in the undergrowth.
Sanddune glanced quickly to the canopy above them. "Quickly, do you think you can…? No, I'll carry you. Hold on." Mountainkit felt Sanddune's jaws close on his scruff roughly in his scramble. He felt the weirdest sensation when his father leaped onto one of the near maple trees. He bumped into the trunk once, twice… The rest of the way he barely brushed it and as quickly as it had started it was over. He was safely tucked between a thick branch and the trunk, high enough that he got dizzy but low enough that he could easily make out the cat that emerged in the clearing.
The cat had a fresh kill hanging from its jaws that made Mountainkit's mouth water. He watched the stranger's dark brown back as it stepped towards Dewkit's body. With breathtaking speed, the gaze probed the ground, moving steadily from the body to the stream and to the maple tree. It shot up the trunk, not stopping until it rested on the branch that Mountainkit was crouching on. It hesitated for a split-second, flicking to find what it was looking for, until Mountainkit found himself looking directly into piercing hazel eyes.
.
Two Moons Earlier (One Moon before the Rainy Night)
Sanddune felt the battle rage in his head. Barely a moon later than Cherrystem's death, and Tidepool had already declared his new mate. His sister had confessed to Sanddune that she was showing signs of pregnancy, but it was too early to tell Tidepool and the Clan. He tried not to worry, but it plagued him always.
Almost more importantly was the apprentice at the front of the Clan, receiving his warrior name.
"Watervapor! Watervapor!"
It was a name that not too long after a tiny kit would hear his father say and not understand it at all.
Now it was a name that made Sanddune cringed. The battle intensified. He remembered the tragic result of the last time he had pointed out something that no one else seemed to see. And this time that result would be a wound to his own Clan. He didn't know if he had the strength to do the right thing a second time. Last time it had come from a burst of anger.
Sanddune focused on the newly named Watervapor and tried coax the fury out when he saw that glint of superiority in the tom's eyes. Instead, exhaustion overwhelmed him. He sighed and convinced himself that he should speak to Northstar first anyways.
He looked for the old tom and found him jumping down from the Cliffledge and making his way towards his den. Sanddune meandered through the crowd towards him, catching up to Northstar's slow pace in moments.
"Northstar, I have something to inform you of," he meowed, trying to sound formal and respectable.
"Another whiff of MapleClan on our territory?" Northstar's voice was bored.
"Patrols have scented MapleClan again?"
"Yes, Sanddune," Northstar snapped, "They've tried to move the border again. It shouldn't be a surprise."
Sanddune tried to keep the worry from distracting him from his original purpose. "No, no, I have something else."
"Did Nettlestar kill someone too?"
Sanddune gritted his teeth against a retort. Couldn't he get a single ounce of respect? "I have something to report of Waterpaw… Watervapor."
Northstar still didn't seem interested, but he at least said, "Go on."
Just state it straight out.
"Watervapor is the cause of the border battle."
As Sanddune recovered, he kept a close watch on Waterpaw. That nagging feeling never left him. The idea had sprung, much like with Fogstar, and he couldn't let it go. Why had Waterpaw left camp when his mother had been killed? It wasn't like the apprentice to go off on his own. Sanddune had expected him to be near his mother's body, receiving as much sympathetic attention as he could get.
But this time, he wanted to be sure. He didn't want to just guess. He wanted to know.
Finally, he caught the apprentice leaving through the tunnel alone. He watched his long gray tail disappear from view before getting up from the midday shadows to follow. No one seemed to notice either of them leave. Waterpaw was still grieving and they assumed Sanddune was going alone to think, as he always seemed to be doing.
Sanddune followed Waterpaw the same way he had followed Riverbend: completely relying on scent and keeping a healthy distance. He kept at a steady trot along the passageway and into the pine trees. When he began making his way through the forest, the scent would grow stronger every once in a while as the apprentice stopped to hunt and Sanddune would have to slow his pace.
It was ages before he finally reached the first maple. He could faintly scent MapleClan, as if not every patrol came this far. It calmed him a little, knowing that at least not every MapleClan cat wanted to start a war.
Waterpaw's scent trail continued. Sanddune slowed as he approached the border. He kept thinking of Riverbend and Autumnleaf… talking about Sanddune coming to the Gathering… just falling in love…
There was still no sign of Waterpaw. Sanddune was lightly surprised but didn't know whether to be angry or satisfied for suspecting right. He waited in the undergrowth until Waterpaw appeared again, coming back from across the border. The gray apprentice had two kills in his jaws, less than what he would usually be smug to come back with. Everything was confirming Sanddune's suspicions. There was just one more thing to do. He slipped from the undergrowth and headed towards the border, scenting the air constantly to make sure no MapleClan patrols were around. He crossed, following Waterpaw's scent until he came to a mossy clearing. There, in the middle, was…
"He's been leaving dead prey covered in OakClan's scent in MapleClan territory. That's why they're mad. That's why they've been pushing to change the border. With OakClan weak, why just fight back for the normal border? Why not fight for even more?"
For a moment, Northstar said nothing. His head was facing away from Sanddune so he couldn't see his expression. "And you know this for a fact?" he asked finally.
"Yes, I've seen it. I followed him."
Northstar's voice was full of hard anger. "Everyone here likes Watervapor. He provides for the Clan. He's loyal. You seem to be the only cat who doesn't like him."
Sanddune clenched his teeth harder. "I'm the only cat who isn't blinded by his skill. Just because he can hunt and fight for the Clan, doesn't mean he's planning something against it."
"Blinded, hm? And what makes you better than everyone else, Sanddune? Yeah, you're the only one to voice your concerns about Fogstar, but you know what? Even at my age I could provide better for my Clan. You're like an elder that's being repaid for the service they didn't do. You can't hunt. You can't fight. Watervapor does both fantastically. He can provide for the Clan. He can defend his Clanmates. Now get over your jealousies, because it's not going to change anything."
Sanddune was stung.
He can provide for the Clan.
Northstar continued onto his den and Sanddune let him. He could hardly breathe. His leader's words had knocked the breath out of him.
He can defend his Clanmates.
Guilt and grief washed over him. His own leader blamed him for Cherrystem's death.
You're like an elder that's being repaid for the service they didn't do.
.
"Bring that kit back down here," the dark brown cat meowed calmly after dropping the mouse. The voice was female. "I don't want it to fall."
Mountainkit wondered how she knew that he had someone with him. He didn't even know where Sanddune was.
"You won't attack us on the way down?"
Sanddune's voice was just as calm and Mountainkit looked up to see where it had come from. He saw his sandy brown father perched farther up, nestled in sun-dappled leaves and on the opposite side of the trunk as the she-cat on the ground.
"That wouldn't be fair."
"It probably wouldn't be fair either way," Sanddune muttered, barely loud enough for Mountainkit to hear. He began the careful scramble down the tree, gripping the bark and going down only a few paces at a time to recover on a branch. Two tree limbs later and Sanddune had reached Mountainkit. He picked the kit up, gently this time, and continued in the same pattern: descend to a branch, stop, descend to the next branch. Finally, with a last leap, the two cats reached the ground and Sanddune placed Mountainkit lightly onto the soft grass.
"Did you think I wouldn't know that you were up there?" the dark brown she-cat asked, a hint of smugness in her tone. "The body was days old but hadn't been touched. Your tracks shouldn't be covered after a few days if there was no rain. Mud isn't going to mask fresh scent."
Mountainkit looked to his father. Three mistakes? Three?
"Are you going to fight me?" Sanddune inquired, seemingly oblivious to the cat outperforming him.
The she-cat looked from silent Mountainkit to Dewkit's body to mud-covered Sanddune. "You're not worth it," she stated, "You'll die on your own soon enough."
Mountainkit was extremely offended and embarrassed for his father but, again, when he looked Sanddune, the brown tom was calm. "What's your name?" he inquired.
She looked suspiciously at the tom she just insulted. "Serenity."
"Are you a rogue?"
"I don't know."
"But you don't live with a Clan?"
"I don't live by pathetic codes."
Sanddune relaxed.
Serenity became even more suspicious. "You smell like Clan. What's your name?"
"Sanddune. This is Mountainkit and…" When he looked at Dewkit, whose body was still not far away, he trailed off and his composure buckled.
"What happened?"
"Infection."
Serenity was in disbelief over how stupid she thought Sanddune was. "Don't you know any-?"
"No." There was such a sudden rush of anger in his voice that Serenity instantly fell silent. Sanddune closed his eyes and took a breath to regain himself. "In Clans we rely on medicine cats."
"Where's your Clan?"
"Gone."
Mountainkit saw Serenity's expression change. It had been smug and superior at first, but now it was slowly softening to sympathy.
"I wish I could have been there to help."
There was a moment of silence as Sanddune attempted to control himself. Mountainkit felt grief tug at his heart again.
Serenity looked at Mountainkit, studying him. She looked back to Sanddune. "Do you want some prey? Your son looks half-starved."
If Sanddune was to retain any shred of dignity, at least he should be smart and let her help. He nodded curtly, hiding his emotions. Mountainkit bounded forward and took huge, grateful gulps of delicious meat.
Serenity watched the kit sadly until he finished. Then she looked back up at Sanddune. "I can get you some too," she offered.
Mountainkit could see a mutinous spark in his father's pale blue eyes that was quickly suppressed. How insulting to be offered to hunt for. He managed to change the fury to gratefulness. "That would be great."
Mountainkit watched the incredibly confused Serenity nod and disappear into the forest. He felt just as confused. How could Sanddune bear the insults and the pity? He didn't know which was worse, but both would have been unbearable to him.
"Time to go, Mountainkit."
Mountainkit's gaze snapped to his father. "What?" he asked blankly, "But-"
"I did the best I could, but she's starting to realize it. We need to go."
"I thought-"
"I'm sorry if I embarrassed you," Sanddune interrupted him again. "I had to make myself seem stupid so she wouldn't attack."
Understanding filled Mountainkit's gaze. Sanddune had deliberately made the mistakes of covering their tracks and rolling in mud. He had accepted his clumsiness in fighting and used his brain power instead to avoid it. If the cat thought he wasn't very bright, they might not attack, just as Serenity had said it wouldn't be worth it. He felt a piece of pride for his father return and his brilliant blue eyes sparkled. "You outsmarted her," he meowed with satisfaction.
Sanddune nodded, his eyes sparkling too.
The happiness didn't last long. As they turned to leave the clearing, they found the tiny gray body blocking their path. By leaving the she-cat, they were leaving Dewkit behind too. No amount of 'outsmarting' would avoid it. Neither could the two toms avoid the flood of sadness that coursed through their veins. Gritting his teeth against the smell and the flies, Mountainkit padded up to his sister and pressed his nose into her fur for the last time.
Sanddune couldn't even look at the tiny kit anymore. It reminded him too much of her mother and how quickly death could come and take someone he loved away from him. "Come on," he murmured to Mountainkit, stepping around the body.
Mountainkit looked up and watched Sanddune pad away without looking back. He got to his paws, his legs suddenly stiff and tired, and slowly made his way around the body of his sister. He took a few steps towards his father and looked back.
"Goodbye, Dewkit," he whispered.
Then he was gone.