AUTHOR'S NOTE: Thanks for the reviews guys! c: And just to let you all know, we'll be sticking with TimberClan until chapter three, then chapter four - fiveish we'll be with StreamClan and then chapter six - eightish we'll be with MarshClan. c: Then it'll rotate back to TimberClan.
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"Rookpaw's a little strange, isn't he Ashpaw?" The cats gathered for the ceremony had all left for patrols or training. All that was left now were a few stragglers, intermingling with each other. Ashpaw, herself, had yet to leave, mainly because her new mentor, Hawkfeather had to yet to leave as well. He had to talk to someone or, something, so, Ashpaw spent the time talking to the few cats still in camp.
"What?" Looking up, the bubbly black she-cat cocked her head, staring at Splashspots as she approached. Splashspots had only been a warrior for a moon or two now, alongside her sister Heatherclaw. Ashpaw didn't mind either of the cats but, she knew that there was some sort of mutual hatred between Splashspots and Rookpaw. Her eyes narrow for a moment, confusion etching her face. "What do you mean, Splashspots?" From beside her, Ashpaw could see that Snowpaw had gone stiff, her body tensing up as the older she-cat finally moved closer to speak.
"I mean, he's crazy! He's jumpy, paranoid, always having bad dreams..." Splashspots shook her gray head, closing her amber eyes as if she felt a great deal of sympathy for Ashpaw. "Pigeonspot even heard him yelling at himself earlier today, before your ceremony!" Ashpaw's eyes widened a bit, and the tiny she-cat shook her head, ears pulling back against her head.
"Rookpaw isn't crazy! He just has bad dreams a lot of times!" The older she-cat shook her head, tsking. "Denial, it's horrible." Throwing her head back, the older cat grinned. "Everyone sees it, I just can't see how you don't. He's a crazy tom, must be because of your loner blood. You're alright but, he's just... Why, I heard when you guys were found he was all coated in your mom's bl-"
"Splashspots! Fueling rumors again? Get out of here, leave the apprentices be."
From out of the corner of her eye, Ashpaw could see the form of a large, gray she-cat approaching. Dark blue eyes glinted angrily and, Splashspots, upon seeing the newest arrival, let out a fearful shriek."Ah, sorry Mistpelt- I was just having some fun-" "What did I say? Get out of here."
Ashpaw, for once, was glad to see the rather intimidating and blunt she-cat. No one messed with Mistpelt, not if they didn't want to find their ears cuffed. "Thank you Mistpelt, she was being so mean..." The older she-cat relaxed a bit, turning around to face the black she-cat and her white companion. "It's fine." Turning her attention to Snowpaw, the she-cat tossed her head back, motioning at Pinefang at the camp entrance.
"Snowpaw, your mentor is waiting, you're having battle training today, remember?" The little apprentice's eyes widened at this realization and, she gave a sheepish squeak. "Oh, sorry!" Standing to her paws, she took off, waving Ashpaw goodbye with her tail. "Bye Ashpaw, see you later!" And with that, she vanished out of the camp entrance, into the dense woods awaiting her.
Mistpelt's eyes softened for a moment, before she turned her attention back to Ashpaw. "Hawkfeather wanted me to fetch you, you're going on a hunting patrol." The little apprentice's amber eyes lit up, jumping to her paws, all previous thoughts forgotten.
That was the good thing about Ashpaw, she got over things rather quickly.
"Yay!" Bouncing, the she-cat bounded forward, before stopping. "Wait, shouldn't Hawkfeather give me a tour first...?" Mistpelt shook her head, as if that was one of the dumbest questions she had ever heard. "He'll give you the tour while on patrol now, go one, it's rude to leave someone waiting." A broad grin stretched across Ashpaw's muzzle and, with a happy squeak, she shot off. Hawkfeather, like she had guessed, was waiting patiently outside the camp entrance. He nodded her over with a smile and, while motioning for her to follow, started their trek.
"I take it Mistpelt sent you?" Ashpaw nodded, her tiny head bobbing up and down as she struggled to keep up with her bigger mentor. "Yup! She said we're on a hunting patrol...?" Hawkfeather nodded, trudging through the forest with little grace. The little black cat watched prey shoot off out of the corner of her eyes, vanishing beneath the underbrush. "Yeah, we're going to hunt some and then I'll take you on the tour. Wildstar noticed the fresh-kill pile was low so, she sent us and a few others out."
Nodding, Ashpaw stopped as her mentor motioned her to. Ahead, a mouse scurried, stopping to look up every now and then and chitter at the air. "Now," Hawkfeather started, smirking as he leaned in closely to Ashpaw. "catch that mouse."
Whaaat?
She didn't know how to catch anything yet though!
"But-" "Sh, you'll scare it off. Go on." Blinking in confusion, Ashpaw shrugged, lowering her body close to the ground. She cocked her head to the side, opening her jaw to breath in the scent of the mouse and, pushing her bum up into the air, she leaped.
And, failed miserably.
The mouse, hearing the push off of her feet against the underbrush, saw her coming and, scrambled off beneath the roots of a tree just in time. With the mouse gone, that left Ashpaw flying through the air, she landed, rather unceremoniously, facefirst into the dirt. The force of the impact sent her skidding in the dirt, as well, leaving a strange face-shaped trail on the ground.
For a moment, she allowed herself just to lay there, shell shocked.
"Ack, terrible!"
And then, she allowed herself to wake up. Groaning, she pushed herself up, staring up at her mentor with a look of confusion and rage. "Why'd you make me do it then? I've never hunted before!" Hawkfeather shook his head, tsking. "Well, some cats, even as kits, have a very basic understanding of it, I wanted to see if you had it..."
He trailed off, shaking his head in dusgust. "But, yeesh! No no, guess we'll have to start from the beginning."
By the time Hawkfeather had determined Ashpaw had even the most basic understanding of pouncing, the sun was high in the sky, scorching the cats below with heat. Together, the two had managed to catch a measly three sparrows and, one mouse they had to scrap. Hawkfeather had been sure the mouse was sick with something which, was just Ashpaw's luck because she had caught it.
So, that of course meant that tomorrow they'd spend all day hunting and training in "the ways of pouncing" but, for now, they had to return back to camp to put the freshkill up and then go back out in the heat for a territory tour.
Ashpaw was pretty excited for the tour but, was already hot and tired so, the prospect of going back in the heat just put her in a bad mood.
But, then again, finally being able to see the territory over-rode her bad mood.
She was just about bouncing on air on the way back, the dead sparrow hanging limply from her jaws. It made her hungry, the scrumptious smell of the sparrow did but, Ashpaw had a feeling if she ate it that Hawkfeather would just postpone her tour and make her pick ticks off the elders.
And, that, that was something Ashpaw did not want to have to do.
Slipping into camp, the she-cat dropped the sparrow on the fresh-kill pile and, turned to leave back behind Hawkfeather. She stopped short however, when she spotted a familiar black pelt near the apprentice den. "Rookpaw!" Grinning, Ashpaw bounded over to her brother, the tour pushed to the back of her mind.
"Did Falconclaw show you the territory?" The tom's eyes were glazed over, as if he was asleep and, when she neared him, Ashpaw heard him muttering things to himself. And that was when her conversation with Splashspots finally returned to her head. Crazy. Rookpaw wasn't crazy! He wasn't... right?
"Rookpaw?" "Huh?" The tiny tom blinked, shaking his head and, Ashpaw gave him a cautious smile. "Did you see the territory?" "Hm? Yeah, Falconclaw showed me the borders... RubbleClan's just as bad as my dreams..." "What?" That was strange, Rookpaw rarely mentioned his nightmares to anyone, een Ashpaw herself and, for him to mention it as casually like that...
Something must have been wrong with him. "Huh?" "You mentioned something about your dreams..." "Oh, I-" "Ashpaw!" Freezing up, Ashpaw glanced behind her shoulder, grinning sheepishly at Hawkfeather, who was waiting at the camp entrance. "You better go." She frowned. "Oh right, see ya Rookpaw!"
He nodded and, Ashpaw turned around, chasing after her mentor with a worried look.
Something was wrong with Rookpaw...
Or, maybe she had just finally noticed his strange nature...
Maybe he really was crazy...
No!
No, he wasn't. Splashspots had just been lying, just to egg on her on.
...right?
"You need to get your heads out the clouds."
"Huh?"
"Agh, my point." "Sorry Hawkfeather!"
It was hot.
Hot hot hot.
Was it suppose to be this hot during newleaf?
Ashpaw didn't this it was.
Groaning, the she-cat rolled her head back, wishing more then anything that she could take a cool dip in the river next to them. But then again, that wouldn't really be wise. The river was wide and deep, and, today, it was rushing like the wind, lapping overtop rocks in the middle of it. So far, Hawkfeather had shown her the RubbleClan borders (from a distance) and, now they had moved onto the StreamClan borders.
"StreamClan and TimberClan have a treaty now, we were fighting quite a lot way back when." Sitting down, the tom motioned Ashpaw next to him, casting his sight out to the land beyond TimberClan borders. "StreamClan has the second largest amounts of territory, second to only MarshClan." Ashpaw blinked, taking in this knowledge.
"So, we're the tiniest clan?" "...Yes." "Why don't we take some more territory then?" "If we took some from StreamClan, we'd be starting a war."
She blinked, sighing. "Oh... Wait! What about RubbleClan's! They don't use it anymore!" Hawkfeather's eyes widened at these words, his green eyes turning to stare intensely at Ashpaw. "Ashpaw, that territory is set aside out of respect to RubbleClan's lost souls." "But... MarshClan has some of it..." Hawkfeather let out a sigh, turning his eyes away from the she-cat.
"Ashpaw, there is another reason why we don't take RubbleClan territory. Do you know how RubbleClan vanished?" She shook her head. "No one does, there were no bodies... Nothing but, story says it was a bloody mess." Drawing in a breath, Hawkfeather turned to give Ashpaw a hard look, his eyes glazed over as if he was renumbering something from long ago. "No good comes from that territory, it is best to leave it as it is, lest, we bring doom upon our own clan."
Ashpaw blinked, nodding slowly.
She kinda got it...
But still...
"Now, let's go, there's a gathering tonight and, I have a feeling you'll be going." "Oh, yay!"
A gathering!
She'd see MarshClan and StreamClan cats and, maybe, hear some interesting news!
...
Oh yes, the news would certainly be interesting.