Disclaimer: I do not own Warriors they belong to the Erin's
Chapter 1: First Light
Hawkpaw knew he was dreaming but he didn't know that at first. His first thought was that the surrounding landscape was unfamiliar and frightening. He could hear whispers to faint to make out and through the darkness he could make out shapes moving but they disappeared before he could get a good look at them. Above storm clouds were gathering thunder boomed and lightning pierced the sky. It had started to rain but it wasn't rain that fell, it was blood. The red stickiness of the liquid started to form pools around his feet and cling to his paws. Cats were coming out of the pools they were almost transparent and dark like shadows. Lightning was striking around him and the shadows were coming closer. Hawkpaw backed up terrified of the shadows and the land around him. Then one of the lightning strikes caught him he felt a strong jolt and a spasm went threw his entire body. Hawkpaw opened his eyes at last, someone was poking his side.
"Wha-?" he asked turning around.
"Come on our mentors will be here any minute and we have to show them we're ready to learn." mewed his best friend Darkpaw.
"I don't think we'll impress them much if we're dead on our paws." Hawkpaw retorted.
Darkpaw choose to ignore what he said.
"I'm sort of glad you woke me up though, I was having a terrible dream." Hawkpaw mewed flicking his tail back and forth nervously.
"Really, what was it about?"
But Darkpaw never found out what the dream was about because at that moment their mentor's walked out of the warriors den and it looked like they were coming right for them.
"You better get Lightpaw her mentor just stepped out of the warriors den and it looks like they're going with us." Darkpaw mewed
"Ok." Hawkpaw replied
Hawkpaw padded back inside the nursery to where the cream furred she-cat was curled up fast asleep.
Hawkpaw poked and prodded Lightpaw in her flank saying things like "Come on up on your paws." and "Get up lazy bones."
"Leave me alone." Lightpaw said drowsily.
"Should I tell Sparrowtail to leave you alone?" Hawkpaw asked cheekily.
"No, I'm up." Lightpaw mewed as she finally stood up and stretched.
"Thought not." replied Hawkpaw as he followed her out.
The weather was making out to be perfect. The sun was rising steadily in the sky the trees surrounding their camp were crisp and green for the first days of newleaf. Hawkpaw inhaled deeply even the air smelled new and clean.
Hawkpaw's mentor was flicking his tail back and forth with excitement. It was his first apprentice and he wanted to make sure that Hawkpaw would become the best warrior ever.
"Alright so the first thing we need to show you is the territory and the lake that all the clans that surround." stated Yellowfur.
"We'll start at the lake and work our way down to the Windclan border then we'll double back and patrol the Shadowclan border." added Woodfur.
"Are you three ready?" asked Sparrowtail
"Yes." meowed the trio of apprentices unanimously.
"Then let's head out." Yellowfur meowed.
Sparrowtail took the lead and the patrol followed her out of the camp entrance into the clan territory. Sunlight streamed in between the branches and leaves of the trees high above Hawkpaw's head. The apprentices followed their mentors in awe who seemed to know exactly where they were going. Soon they had approached the lake, the small waves lapping gently on the shore. You could see everything from that one spot by the lake. Hawkpaw and the other apprentices were amazed.
"Off to the left you can see the moors, the row of hills and grassland that makes up the whole of Windclan, to the left of Windclan is the horseplace, which used to have cats in it, has now been abandoned for seasons." explained Sparrowtail.
The patrol walked along the lake shore in direction of the border. Looking up Hawkpaw could see thunder storms were gathering low behind the horseplace.
Storm's a coming. Hawkpaw thought silently.
The three mentors suddenly stopped at a small stream that started northward and ended at the lake.
"This is the border to Windclan we cannot cross this way unless Eaglestar sends a patrol to talk to Windclan or when there is a gathering taking place." Woodfur explained
"There is an exception." Yellowfur added. "If we need to travel anywhere we are allowed to go only two feet off the waters edge in another clan's territory."
"For no other reason should you cross the border. Eaglestar would claw all your ears off and then he would claw you're mentors ears off, meaning us." Sparrowtail meowed giving them all the evil eye.
"Right shall we continue then?" Yellowfur mewed as he started walking back into the trees.
The rest of the cats followed Yellowfur back into the undergrowth. Hawkpaw liked learning about the Windclan border but he was reluctant to go to the Shadowclan border he heard that they were being troublesome lately. Hawkpaw heard a twig snap behind him he turned expecting to see a piece of prey, instead he looked right into the eyes of another cat. The she-cat merely looked at Hawkpaw with cold green eyes. Then the cat seemed to disappear into the undergrowth. Did I just see a cat or did I imagine things? he thought.
"Hey, Hawkpaw catch up don't lag behind." called Yellowfur.
"Sorry, I'm coming." Hawkpaw called back still staring at the spot where the cat was.
He turned and sped after the rest of the patrol.
"Listen, I need to tell you guys something later." Hawkpaw hissed to Darkpaw and Lightpaw.
They both nodded and didn't ask any questions, Hawkpaw was thankful for that; it gave him a chance to think. Who was that cat? He knew it wasn't any of his clanmates. In fact the only thing he could smell from her was the strong scent of fox-dung.
"Hawkpaw you mouse-brain watch were your going!" Yellowfur yelled.
Hawkpaw looked up and realized he had padded right into Shadowclan territory.
"Hawkpaw get out of there a Shadowclan patrol is coming." Lightpaw gasped.
Sure enough Hawkpaw could smell them and they were close. There was no time Hawkpaw just managed to turn around when the Shadowclan cats stepped out from behind a tree choked with vines. They stared at him for a heartbeat in bewilderment and then they let out a screech and tore after him. Hawkpaw had never run so fast in his life. He kept his eyes focused on the border then took a fantastic leap over the border just as a Shadowclan warrior came with in a whisker of clawing his fur off. Shadowclan stayed on their side of the border but they were seething with rage.
"What were you doing on Shadowclan territory?" Spat a Shadowclan warrior.
"Diamondheart, my apologies, my mouse-brain of an apprentice had his head up in the clouds he didn't mean to trespass on your territory."
Diamondheart didn't seem convinced "How do we know you weren't trying to steal prey from Shadowclan." Diamondheart asked the patrol menacingly.
"Do you see any prey with us?" Sparrowtail retorted sweeping her tail around her.
"Just stay off our territory." Spat an apprentice.
Hawkpaw searched the patrol to see if any of them was the cat he had seen. None of them were.
Diamondheart looked at him coldly "We will be reporting this to Thornstar."
Hawkpaw stared at them still.
"Well we'll be leaving now." Woodfur mewed flicking his tail at the patrol.
The Shadowclan cat didn't reply instead they just stared at the patrol coldly. The Thunderclan cats padded away from the Shadowclan border and headed back to camp. Hawkpaw was about to crawl through the brambles when Yellowfur held him back. The others passed and Lightpaw shot him a glance that seemed to say "Good luck".
When the others had gone in the camp Yellowfur turned to Hawkpaw "All right, what was that back there." Yellowfur's was even neither cold nor angry.
"I thought I saw a cat by the Windclan border on our territory."
"Was it from another clan?"
Hawkpaw shook his head "No it didn't smell like Windclan or Shadowclan and it reeked of fox-dung." Then Hawkpaw added quickly. "I might have just imagined it."
Yellowfur shook his head "No one can imagine smells."
There was silence between mentor and apprentice.
"Look I won't mention what happened at Shadowclan to Eaglestar, think of this as a warning."
Hawkpaw brightened up "Thank you Yellowfur."
Yellowfur walked through the brambles back into camp. Hawkpaw was about to follow when something made him turn around. Maybe it was the eyes he felt on his back or maybe it was the smell Hawkpaw couldn't be sure. He turned to once again meet the gaze of the green eyed she-cat. The stare down lasted but a second before the she-cat seemed to melt into the woods. Hawkpaw backed up his eyes wide. Dear StarClan am I losing my mind?!
