Hola!
Recap: An hour earlier, Olivepaw and Frostpaw talk about Cedarpaw and Ratpaw after the ShadowClan patrol leaves for ThunderClan. But soon, a RiverClan patrol appears, announcing that they're taking Frostpaw back to camp with them, and that if Minnowstar doesn't surrender by sunhigh the next day, Frostpaw will die. Olivepaw volunteers to take her place. In present time, Olivepaw talks to Rusestpaw, who's trying to make her feel better. Olivepaw wonders if anyone cares enough about her to try and save her.
Thanks so much to everyone who's reviewed :) heartheart. And Jayfeather4ever, your comment made me laugh because that was just what I was thinking when I wrote that!
Love y'all.
Chapter 21
Mission to RiverClan
[Ratpaw]
Ratpaw clenched his eyes shut, trying to clear his head. Voices were everywhere; everyone was panicking. He heard Minnowstar trying to yell over the crowd as she demanded what exactly had happened. A few cats frantically talked to each other, eyes wide.
"What?"
"Olivepaw was taken?"
"What are we going to do?"
Ratpaw flattened his ears, glancing around. The small group of ThunderClan cats stood together, not speaking.
He took a step back, shaking his head softly. Everything around him was a blur, and he could hear the blood pounding in his ears. He blinked and looked over; Frostpaw was glancing at him. Flattening his ears, he hurriedly walked over to her.
"Frostpaw, what happened?" he hissed in a low voice, eyes wide. "What happened...?"
Frostpaw frowned, lowering her head, eyes narrowed slightly. "RiverClan came while you were gone," she murmured. "Blossomstar... She took Olivepaw. She said that if Minnowstar doesn't surrender by sunhigh tomorrow, then..." She trailed off, looking up desperately at Ratpaw. He stared back at her.
Before he could speak, a loud voice called out, "Attention, ShadowClan! Attention!"
Heads were raised towards the top of the Tallstump, where Minnowstar was standing, tail lashing rapidly, blue eyes narrowed to slits. The crowd quieted down a bit, but they still shuffled restlessly.
Minnowstar swept her icy gaze over the Clan. "I understand that a lot is going on," she meowed. "But we all need to remain calm. We have a few things to talk about. First, for those who didn't join us on the patrol, Bumblestar has agreed to join his Clan with ours, under my rule." The cats who hadn't known this mewed with surprise, and everyone glanced over to where the ThunderClan cats stood huddled together. "Doing this is our best chance of surviving this leafbare," she continued. "Bumblestar has given up his warrior name and shall now be called Bumbleclaw. Spotfur will become a warrior of normal rank, and Onespot will join Willowfall in the medicine den." Onespot bowed his head, though he looked shaken and tired.
"ShadowClan territory and WindClan territory is now open to everyone here," Minnowstar said, "but we must be careful with the borders. Blossomstar could be planning to expand her territory even further. And speaking of which..." She paused, whiskers twitching, apparently deciding how to put this. "...Olivepaw has been captured by RiverClan, as many of you know. Do not fret over this. She will be fine." But Ratpaw had the strangest feeling that Minnowstar wasn't being completely honest, because as she said this, she was looking away.
Cats began to chatter again. Willowfall and Frostpaw were showing Onespot to the medicine den. Cinderblaze, Furzetail and Icewhisker were showing the warriors around. Other than Bumbleclaw and Spotfur, there were only four. Ratpaw spotted two other cats; one was a gray she-cat who looked pregnant. Another- a tom, also gray- looked about his age. Ratpaw narrowed his eyes slightly, wondering if this was Grasspaw, the tom that Russetpaw had told him about. Snowcloud quickly bounded over to the two and began to talk nonstop, and they looked at her with an expression oddly similar to horror.
Ratpaw shook his head, digging his claws into the snow. How could they all be acting so calm when his sister was probably being tortured by Blossomstar? He narrowed his eyes, quickly glancing around. He had to find her. He had to find her and rescue her before it was too late. Because what if Minnowstar didn't want to put her whole Clan in danger for Olivepaw? Ratpaw didn't want to take that risk. He knew that he was probably crazy, considering he had no idea how he could possibly rescue his sister, but he didn't care. He swallowed, lowering himself to the ground and slowly making his way towards the slope. He had to do this.
He glanced over his shoulder through the falling snow. Everyone seemed preoccupied with the ThunderClanners to really notice him. Swallowing, he turned and darted up the slope and into the woods before he could convince himself not to.
He began running through the trees, panting, heart drumming against his chest. He felt that with every stride, he was getting no further.
What was he hoping to do? Wasn't he just putting himself in danger, too? This couldn't be helping anyone... He irritably pushed away these thoughts, knowing that Olivepaw would have done the same if it had been him in RiverClan right now.
He stopped in his tracks, panting, heart racing. He looked around, trying to decide where to go. He hadn't been paying much attention.
Flattening his ears, he began to take a step forward, when...
"Ratpaw, wait!"
He flinched, one paw still hanging in the air as he lowered himself to the ground, hesitantly glancing over his shoulder.
He let out a sigh. About a dozen foxlengths away stood Frostpaw, eyes glimmering intensely, a frown on her face as she looked at him. Flattening her ears, she walked towards him, tail flicking.
"What are you doing here, Frostpaw?" he asked quietly, feeling anxious to get to RiverClan.
She blinked slowly. "I could be asking you the same thing. Ratpaw, are you going to RiverClan?"
He stared at her, not sure how to respond.
"Ratpaw, don't," she murmured, looking straight into his eyes. "I know you want to help her, but it's you against the entire Clan. You're only putting yourself in danger..."
"That's a risk I'm willing to take," Ratpaw shot back. "She's my sister. I can't just sit around and do nothing."
"Well how do you plan to rescue her?" Frostpaw countered.
He looked at her, mouth open slightly. Bitterly, he looked away. "I... haven't quite figured it out, yet." He quickly shook his head, looking at the medicine cat apprentice. "Frostpaw, I know it's dangerous, and I know you're only looking out for me. But I need to do this. I..." He sighed, closing his eyes for a moment. "Growing up, me and Olivepaw had to rely on each other. Bramblestripe did what she could, but without my father there..." He shook his head, looking at her. "Please understand, Frostpaw. I love Olivepaw, and she would have done the same for me."
There was a long silence between them. All around them, wind was rustling the branches of dead trees. A crow cried out.
"I see I can't change your mind," sighed Frostpaw. "If you want to go, then go."
Ratpaw smiled slightly. "Thank you, Frostpaw."
"But I'm coming with you."
The tom stared at her, wide-eyed. "Frostpaw, I don't-"
"...Want to put me in danger," the she-cat finished with a flick of her tail. "Ratpaw, I... If it hadn't been for Olivepaw, I'd be the one in RiverClan right now."
Ratpaw blinked, not understanding. Frostpaw sighed.
"Blossomstar had chosen me to take back to camp. Just as we were leaving, Olivepaw told her that she wanted to take my place. I didn't want her to, but it was too late. They were gone. She... saved me."
Ratpaw looked at her. He hadn't heard about this.
"...Alright," he murmured after a few moments. "We'll both go. And two is better than one, anyway, right?" He smiled slightly at her. She smiled back.
"Yeah."
The two continued on together, side by side. For awhile, they didn't speak. The snow continued to fall around them, eventually erasing their pawprints. Frostpaw kept sending him unsure glances, as if there was something she wanted to say. Swallowing, she smiled slightly and mewed, "So, who exactly is that she-cat you like...?"
Ratpaw flinched slightly, sending her a glance. He wondered why he had told her in the first place. He hadn't expected her to give it much thought, but apparently she had. She knew that she was just trying to be friendly and break the silence, but now Ratpaw's mind rushed as he tried to think of what to say.
"Uh..."
Frostpaw smiled at him, though it seemed forced. "Let me guess. Uh... Snowcloud?"
He blinked a few times, swallowing. Frostpaw's smile faded, but she quickly revived it.
"I'm right, aren't I?" she mewed, giving him a nudge.
"Uh... Yeah," he lied. "You are." He flattened his ears, guilt burning through him like a fire. He hadn't wanted to lie to her, but what else could he have done? The alternative was her finding out the truth, that he was secretly meeting a ThunderClan cat (well, now she was a RiverClan cat), which seemed worse.
Frostpaw stopped in her tracks, and it took Ratpaw a few seconds to notice. He paused, looking back at her. She had a strange expression on her face, the emotion in her blue eyes impossible to read.
"What's wrong?" he asked quietly, fur prickling nervously.
"I... was talking to Olivepaw this morning," she mewed. "We were just gossiping. She... said that if you liked Snowcloud, then she would know." Frostpaw shook her head slightly, smiling a bit. Ratpaw stared at her. He had a feeling that she could see straight through his lie, but instead of calling him out on it, she simply said, "I guess even Olivepaw has some things to learn about you."
"Y-Yeah," Ratpaw stumbled, ears flattened. "Listen, Frostpaw, can you... Can you keep this between us?"
"Of course," the she-cat mewed, tail flicking as she forced another smile. "But what if Snowcloud likes you back?"
Ratpaw felt his heart sink. "Does she...?"
"StarClan knows," Frostpaw muttered as she continued walking alongside him. "You talk to her more than I do. She still hasn't said a word to me ever since I tried asking her what was wrong."
He glanced at her, frowning when he saw that she was looking gloomily at the ground.
"What exactly did she say to you...?"
"She..." Frostpaw trailed off and blinked a few times, as if just remembering something. "Well, the thing is, I asked her what I did wrong, and she said nothing... yet."
"Yet?" Ratpaw echoed. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"I don't know," the she-cat sighed. "After that, she stormed out. Now she keeps sending me dirty looks as if I've murdered someone or something."
Ratpaw felt his fur rise a bit, her words suddenly bringing back the memory of his encounter with Willowfall, when she told him that she had killed Graystar all those moons ago. He glanced warily at Frostpaw. Part of him had an overwhelming desire to tell her. Willowfall was her mentor, after all; didn't she have the right to know?
But then, Willowfall's words echoed in his mind. "I won't speak to anyone of you and the ThunderClan she-cat. In return, I expect that you won't tell anyone anything I just told you..." He suddenly felt as if all his secrets were crushing him. The truth about Willowfall, his meetings with Russetpaw...
Russetpaw. His eyes suddenly widened slightly. It hadn't occurred to him that he might see her in RiverClan. So why did he feel his heart sink? Didn't he want to see her? He remembered that tom she'd told him about- Grasspaw. He knew that he shouldn't be feeling jealous, but the way her eyes looked when she spoke of him... And the way she'd reacted when he told her about their plan to go to ThunderClan to demand more territory. She'd been angry. And he felt a surge of irritation as he thought about this. Didn't she care that his Clan was literally starving? Didn't she care that one cat, an apprentice not much younger than her, had just died from lack of food?
He wondered why he was suddenly thinking about her so negatively. He glanced at Frostpaw, remembering what she'd told him. Getting to know a cat took time. Well, maybe he was finally getting to know her.
"What is it?" Frostpaw mewed, breaking him from his thoughts and not realizing that he was staring at her with a small smile on his face. His ears flattened in embarrassment.
"Nothing."
She looked at him curiously before a small smile crept onto her own face. She turned away, as if shy.
The RiverClan border was right up ahead; they could smell it, knowing that RiverClan had passed through this way with Olivepaw not long ago.
Frostpaw suddenly froze, blue eyes wide. Ratpaw looked at her.
"What's wrong?"
"Someone's up ahead," she murmured.
Ratpaw squinted his eyes; through the snow, he could see a small, light brown shape up ahead.
"They're alone," Frostpaw whispered. "I think we're safe."
The two cautiously crept forward, and when they were closer, they realized who it was.
"Cedarpaw!" cried Frostpaw.
The light brown tom jumped and turned around, tail lifted in alarm.
"What are you doing here, Cedarpaw?" breathed Ratpaw, suddenly realizing that he hadn't seen him since they'd just gotten back from ThunderClan.
Cedarpaw flicked an ear, glancing back and forth between them. He always made Ratpaw feel uneasy, for some reason.
"Are you going to look for Olivepaw?" mewed Frostpaw quietly. Cedarpaw said nothing. That probably meant yes.
"Cedarpaw, go back to camp," Ratpaw murmured. "You shouldn't get involved with this."
Cedarpaw narrowed his eyes slightly, whiskers twitching. He glanced at Frostpaw, who flattened her ears.
"Ratpaw, let him come," she murmured. "He has just as much of a right to go as I do."
The dark gray tom looked at her before glancing uneasily back to Cedarpaw. He and Olivepaw were friends.
"Fine," Ratpaw sighed. "We'll all go. But we have to make sure they don't hear us." He realized that that wouldn't be a problem for Cedarpaw.
The three cats passed the RiverClan border, stepping out into the open. They couldn't see any cats around. Ratpaw flattened his ears, realizing it would have been a much better idea to come here when it was dark. But they couldn't turn back now.
Cedarpaw took up the front, and Ratpaw and Frostpaw walked together a couple of taillengths back.
"He seemed eager to come," Ratpaw muttered to the she-cat beside him. Frostpaw looked at him, as if surprised. Finally, she let out a sigh.
"Ratpaw, he and Olivepaw like each other."
He blinked, mouth open slightly as he stared at her.
"They what?"
"Honestly, Ratpaw, you're Olivepaw's brother," murmured Frostpaw, shaking her head. "How did you not see this? I was talking to Olivepaw about it earlier, and I could just tell."
Ratpaw didn't know what to say. He knew that the two had always been friends, but could it really be something more? The way Cedarpaw had been acting lately, Ratpaw couldn't really imagine him loving anybody, as harsh as that may have sounded.
They began to stray further away from the shore and further into RiverClan territory. Ratpaw had never gone this far before. It was usually lush with reeds and plants, but the frost and snow had killed them all.
There was a clump of dead trees up ahead, and Ratpaw could hear the trinkling of a stream in his ears. Not too far in front of them was a triangle of land in between two streams, protected by trees and dead plants. This is where RiverClan's camp was.
Ratpaw narrowed his eyes as the three cats lowered themselves to the ground, slowly coming closer. They reached the stream and the tom quickly glanced down, catching a short glimpse of his own reflection before it was blurred away.
"Let's go," he murmured to the others, leading them across the stream and at the very edge of their camp. They hid behind a tree, and Ratpaw thanked StarClan that the wind was going towards them so RiverClan couldn't smell them.
"Do you see her?" whispered Frostpaw, tail twitching in anxiety.
Ratpaw glanced around the trunk, scanning the camp. It was full of other cats, wandering around or chatting or eating. He noticed that the cats who had come from other Clans tended to clump together, away from the RiverClan cats, who kept shooting them disdainful looks.
He pricked his ears when he spotted a thorn bush across the camp, guarded by a stern-looking orange and black tom he recognized as Thornfang. He was sitting rigidly, a scowl on his face as he looked over his shoulder and into the den every now and then.
"I think they're keeping her in that thorn bush," he whispered to Cedarpaw and Frostpaw. "It looks like Thornfang is guarding it."
"How are we going to get there, then?" rasped Frostpaw.
"Let's go around to the other side," Ratpaw murmured. "Maybe there's a back entrance into the den. We can get Olivepaw and sneak out."
Frostpaw nodded. Cedarpaw flicked an ear, turning away and saying nothing.
But they had only taken a few steps when there was a loud snap.
Ratpaw froze, his heart nearly stopping. He'd stepped on a twig.
At once, the heads of many cats shot up, eyes darting into their direction. They lowered themselves to the ground, praying that they wouldn't see them behind the tree.
But their hopes didn't last long.
"It seems like we have some guests," a voice called out loudly, and chills shot down Ratpaw's spine when he realized it was Blossomstar. "Why don't you come here where we can all see you...?"
Ratpaw and Frostpaw exchanged worried glances. What should they do? Should they make a run for it?
Ratpaw heard a soft chuckle erupt from Blossomstar's throat, a moment later, she said, "Alright, then. Perhaps they need a bit of... persuading." With a lash of her tail and a soft smile, without turning to him, she mewed, "Thornfang, bring the prisoner outside."
Ratpaw's ears pricked, eyes widening slightly as the black and orange tom retreated into the den. A few moments later, a small cat was shoved outside, landing roughly in the snow with a wince.
"Olivepaw!" Frostpaw breathed quietly. Ratpaw said nothing, eyes wide as he watched. He blinked as he spotted Thornfang retreat from the den, followed by... Russetpaw. His heart quickened.
Blossomstar grinned, slowly padding over to the ShadowClan prisoner. She stopped and smiled down at her, yellow and blue eyes shining brightly.
"Poor little ShadowClanner," she cooed, tilting her head almost thoughtfully. "It doesn't look like Minnowstar will be saving you this time."
Ratpaw watched as Olivepaw narrowed her eyes, looking up at Blossomstar with a disdainful look, lips pulled back.
She opened her mouth to speak, but before she could say anything, Blossomstar suddenly swatted her across the face. Olivepaw yowled out in surprise as drops of blood splattered onto the snow. Ratpaw's eyes narrowed to slits. Before Cedarpaw or Frostpaw could stop him, he ran out from their hiding place and right into the middle of the camp.
"Stop!" he snarled loudly, but when the cold eyes of dozens of cats turned to him, his ears flattened, feeling anxious. For a moment, everything was quiet, and Ratpaw could only feel the cold chill of the wind and snow falling increasingly harder, blurring his vision.
A second later, he felt Frostpaw and Cedarpaw walk up beside him, saying nothing. The three of them stood facing Blossomstar, and all around them, cats watched with extreme interest to see what would happen next.
The smile on Blossomstar's face grew. "And what do we have here?" she purred, lazily taking a few steps towards them. "Three little apprentices, coming to save their friend...?"
"She's my sister," growled Ratpaw, claws digging into the snow. From the corner of his eye, he could see that Olivepaw was staring at him in disbelief.
Blossomstar's face softened, and for a moment, she actually seemed... kind. "How sweet," she said quietly, smiling slightly. "And tell me, how exactly do you plan on escaping with this cat...?"
Ratpaw had no idea. But he couldn't let Blossomstar see that. He glared at her, refusing to break eye contact. More than anything, he wanted to leap forward and swat this cat across the face.
"I suppose we could do with a few more prisoners," Blossomstar mewed thoughtfully. Her deputy, Blacktail, walked over to her side, flicking his tail as he looked at the three apprentices expressionlessly. "We have plenty of room in the den. Perhaps Minnowstar will be more inclined to surrender, now that there's more at stake than the life of one useless she-cat."
"How dare you," growled Ratpaw, and he felt as Frostpaw pressed herself against him, shooting him a warning glance. But Blossomstar didn't seem to hear. Mismatching eyes glimmering brightly and a wide, toothy smile on her face, she flicked her tail, calmly mewing, "...Seize them."
A second later, Ratpaw could hardly tell what was going on. RiverClan cats were running for them, fangs bared, claws lashing out. The ThunderClanners and WindClanners seemed to be watching from afar, eyes wide but saying nothing.
He felt a searing pain course down his side; glancing over, he lashed out a paw at Whiskerfur, who had attacked him, slicing her across the chest. He was readying another blow when he heard a loud hiss right behind him. Whirling around, he saw that a lean ginger she-cat had shoved Cedarpaw to the ground and was now sinking her long claws into his shoulders, snarling in his face. Ratpaw realized that the she-cat was Sunnyheart, the cat that Cedarpaw had almost killed himself.
"See what you did to me?" Sunnyheart was snarling loudly. "See what you did, you filthy apprentice?" Ratpaw leaned his head over to see, and when he did, he let out a small gasp. The warrior was completely covered in scars, especially on her stomach and her face. She was missing fur in a few places, and a patch of skin on her stomach looked red and raw, as if it had gotten infected. He glanced warily at Cedarpaw. Had he really done that? He thought about what Frostpaw had said- that he and Olivepaw liked each other. But how could he trust this sort of tom to be near his sister...?
Haven gotten distracted, he felt as a large cat shoved him to the ground. But before it could pin him down, Ratpaw quickly rolled over onto his back. He knew that exposing his stomach was dangerous, but this was the only way he could get a chance to strike. When he looked up, he saw that it was Blacktail who had attacked him. Ratpaw quickly kicked out his back legs, lashing out a paw as he landed a strike on the bigger cat's face. Blacktail hissed and recoiled, taking a step back and letting Ratpaw get to his feet.
He feverishly glanced around. He could no longer see Frostpaw or Cedarpaw. But then, he saw a flash of ginger to his left; glancing around, he saw Russetpaw, trying to reach him through the crowd. Her green eyes were wide with alarm.
"Ratpaw!" she called. "Ratpaw!"
The tom looked at her, panting, his heart beginning to speed up. The noise of fighting and struggling cats, the noise of Blossomstar laughing softly as she watched, the noise of Olivepaw calling out, trying to reach the crowd so she could help her Clanmates... they were all suddenly blocked out of his ears. He felt a strange sensation come over him, as if time itself was slowing down. His fur prickled as he heard his own panting and beating of his heart in his ears, and before he could even think about what was going on or what he was doing, he found that he was flinging himself towards Russetpaw, their eyes meeting for half a second before he landed on her and shoved her into the snow.
"Ratpaw!" Russetpaw squeaked in shock, struggling beneath him. "What are you-!" In a maddened daze, Ratpaw pinned her down onto her side, leaning down and putting his weight on her, digging his claws into her shoulders so that she couldn't move. She let out a gasp of pain as she stared up at him, eyes round and full of hurt and confusion. "Ratpaw, please," she gasped, voice quivering. "Ratpaw, what are you doing...? It's me, Russetpaw-"
"Stop!" Ratpaw called out loudly, keeping the ginger she-cat pinned firmly to the ground. A few seconds later, cats began to raise their heads, trying to figure out what was going on. Frostpaw and Cedarpaw were staring at her, their eyes wide, but he refused to meet their gazes. He quickly glanced at Olivepaw; she was looking right at him, not daring to move an inch.
"What's this?" growled Blossomstar, her aggressive side having returned to her. "What is the meaning of this? Why are these ShadowClanners not captured yet?"
"Shut up!" yelled Ratpaw, which gave Blossomstar a slightly shocked look. He looked frantically around the crowd, eyes narrowed as he panted. "Nobody move if you want Russetpaw to survive."
He heard Russetpaw let out a weak gasp, but he ignored her, swallowing hard and trying not to let his emotions stop him from going through with this. He spotted Flamepaw, Russetpaw's brother, standing at the edge of the camp. He was glaring at Ratpaw with an intense hatred burning through his eyes, but even he didn't dare take a step forward and risk the death of his sister.
"What do you think you're doing, kit?" Blossomstar growled in a deep voice, looking at Ratpaw through narrowed eyes.
"Release us," Ratpaw breathed, shaking his head as if in disbelief that any of this was actually happening. "Release me, Cedarpaw, Frostpaw and Olivepaw. Let us go back to ShadowClan safely. If you refuse, I swear to StarClan I'll kill this cat." He couldn't bear to look down and see the expression on Russetpaw's face.
The anger seemed to have vanished from Blossomstar, and her familiar grin appeared on her face, though it was closer to a smirk. "Fine," she purred lightly, shrugging. "Go ahead. Kill her."
A few cats gasped and stared at their leader in horror, but Ratpaw realized that the cats who did this had all been from ThunderClan. Most of the RiverClan cats were smirking and snickering to themselves. The WindClan cats remained silent.
Ratpaw narrowed his eyes. "You want her dead? Why...?"
Blossomstar burst out into a surprisingly loud laugh. "Honestly, do you really think I care about this cat? She's a useless ThunderClan cat. RiverClan would be better without her. Honestly, kit, you'd be doing us all a favor if you killed her." She smirked, teeth glinting in the dim light. "So do it, kit. Kill her. I dare you. It makes no difference to me."
Silence. Ratpaw was frozen in shock from Blossomstar's response. He glanced around as every cat watched him, waiting for him to make his decision.
But before he could even have time to think, a loud, familiar voice suddenly called out, "Stop!"
Ears pricked and heads turned, and Ratpaw's eyes widened. Minnowstar has appeared from behind a clump of dead trees, Harestep at her side. A second later, the rest of his Clan filed in, eyes narrowed as they looked around the RiverClan camp in disgust. Following them were seven of the nine ThunderClan cats who had just joined them. Onespot and the pregnant queen weren't there, but Ratpaw recognized who he thought was Grasspaw. And beneath him, he thought he felt Russetpaw flinch, confirming his theory.
"Ah, it appears we have some... guests," Blossomstar said with a wide smile. "Welcome, Minnowstar, please come in. One of your apprentices was just threatening one of mine with her life."
Ratpaw flinched, ears flattened. Minnowstar glanced over at him, eyes narrowed to slits. But a second later, she turned back to Blossomstar.
"We're here for my apprentices," she said, her voice hard and icy cold. "Give them back, Blossomstar."
But the white RiverClan leader was watching the ThunderClanners with curiosity. "Well well, Minnowstar. It looks like you convinced whatever's left of ThunderClan to join you. Wanted to feel more in power, is that it?" Minnowstar narrowed her eyes even further, if that was possible. Blossomstar laughed. "Now, now. No need to get so angry. You can have your apprentices back today, Minnowstar."
Minnowstar seemed surprised by this, as did the rest of her Clan.
"You're just giving them back? Without a fight?"
"Don't act so surprised," Blossomstar said with a long, over-exaggerated sigh. A smirk formed across her lips. "I'm letting you off easy today, Minnowstar. You should be grateful. But mark my words, this isn't over yet. Indeed, by the end of Leafbare, you'll have all either joined me... or have died."
Minnowstar pulled her lips back, but she didn't respond to these words. Glancing over the crowd, she called out, "ShadowClan, let's go. Now."
Shakily, Ratpaw stepped off of Russetpaw, letting her up, his ears flattened with shame.
Finally letting himself look at her, he said, "Russetpaw, I..."
"What in StarClan's name was that?" she hissed, eyes narrowed and burning with anger. "You threatened to kill me when I was coming over to try and help you! I thought we liked each other. Do I really mean so little to you?"
"Russetpaw, I panicked," he murmured, looking at her desperately. "I didn't know what to do. I didn't want anything to happen to Olivepaw-"
"Stop," she growled. "You know as well as I do that you didn't do that for Olivepaw. You did that for yourself." She shook her head as Ratpaw stared at her in disbelief. "I can't believe I ever had feelings for you."
"Russetpaw-"
"Don't touch me," she hissed. "And don't ever talk to me again. Whatever we had is over." And without another word, she stalked away, a bit of blood sticking to her fur from where Ratpaw had dug his claws into. He watched as she left, awestruck. A few moments later, he lowered his head, turning and quickly catching up with the rest of the group. He walked with Cedarpaw, Olivepaw, and Frostpaw in silence.
When they got back to their camp, Minnowstar was furious. She had pulled Frostpaw, Cedarpaw, and Ratpaw aside to yell at them. Beside her sat Harestep, Ratpaw's mother Bramblestripe, and Frostpaw's mother, Furzetail. Willowfall was there, as well. Swallowflight was nowhere to be seen.
"How could you be so stupid?" hissed Minnowstar, pacing back and forth. "The three of you, running off by yourselves, straight into RiverClan's clutches! You're lucky you aren't all dead!" Her fur was fluffed up, eyes ablaze. Ratpaw was staring at his paws. He rarely saw his leader this angry. "Thinking you could save Olivepaw... Honestly, you should have left it to me! You only made things worse! Do you realize what your mothers went through when we realized you were gone? We thought for a moment that you had all been abducted, too!"
Ratpaw flattened his ears, glancing over to see that Frostpaw looked as if she wanted to sink into the ground. Cedarpaw looked oddly calm, yet his expression was grave.
"I'm ashamed of you three," said Minnowstar icily. "But I understand that it's been a long day. Get some sleep. I will talk to your mentors about punishments tomorrow." Ratpaw thanked StarClan that their lecture was over.
Just a few minutes later, the sun finally sank and disappeared beneath the horizon, covering the camp in darkness. Ratpaw had sat himself down at the edge of camp, feeling exhausted yet unable to go to sleep. He shivered as the snow fell, watching as the others retreated to their den and showed the ThunderClanners where to sleep.
He heard pawsteps approaching him and glanced wearily over to see Olivepaw.
"Hey," she said softly. He looked at her, smiling slightly.
"Hey, Olivepaw."
She gave a forced smile before she sighed. "Look, I know that Minnowstar chewed you out pretty badly, but... Thanks. For trying to save me. I..." She shook her head, looking at the ground. "I was scared that no one would come. That Minnowstar would just let me die. It... It was so hard..." She glanced up, eyes shimmering as she smiled a genuine smile this time. "Thank you, Ratpaw."
Ratpaw smiled and took a step forward, pressing his muzzle to hers and letting out a rasp purr. "I'm just glad you're safe," he murmured, pulling away and grinning weakly. "You should get some sleep, Olivepaw. I bet you're exhausted."
The she-cat nodded quickly. "I will. You too, Ratpaw."
He waved his tail in goodnight as she padded away, to meet with Cedarpaw. He sighed, sitting back down and wrapping his tail around his legs, watching them vanish into the apprentices' den. But he only had about a minute of solitude, because he heard another pair of pawsteps approaching. This time, it was Frostpaw.
"...Can I sit?" she asked quietly. Ratpaw nodded.
"Of course."
She sat down beside him, letting out a long sigh as she looked around the emptying clearing.
"I though you were very brave today, Ratpaw," she said quietly. "Braver than I was. It really showed how much you care about your sister."
"I'm sorry for dragging you into all that, Frostpaw, I never should have-"
"I wanted to come, remember?" she murmured softly, smiling a little as she looked at him. "Don't blame yourself." Ratpaw looked at her worriedly, but nodded, though not completely reassured.
A few seconds passed before Frostpaw spoke again. "That ginger RiverClan cat... Russetpaw... She's the cat you like, isn't it?"
Ratpaw's ears pricked and he looked at her with alarm, eyes wide.
"W-What..."
"Ratpaw, it's okay," she said quietly. "You can trust me."
The tom looked away, closing his eyes. He let out a long sigh before whispering, "How did you know...?"
A small, almost sad smile fell upon Frostpaw's face. "I could just tell. And I knew you weren't telling the truth when you told me you liked Snowcloud. You're not a very good liar, you know," she added with a light laugh. Ratpaw found that he was smiling a little, but it quickly faded.
"What I did was stupid," he murmured. "I talked to her after. She never wants to see me again. She says that anything we had is over." He sighed. "But I can't blame her. Putting her life at risk like that... I was so stupid."
"The past is the past," Frostpaw mewed softly, nudging him.
Ratpaw smiled slightly and nodded. "Yeah," he whispered. "Yeah, I guess it is."
Frostpaw smiled and looked at her paws before finally getting up. "I'm going to bed. You should too, Ratpaw."
"Yeah, I will soon."
"Alright. Goodnight..."
Ratpaw looked at her, their eyes meeting for a long enough time that he began to grow embarrassed. But he smiled slightly and said, "Goodnight, Frostpaw."
And with that, the medicine cat apprentice turned and began to walk away, but not without another glance over her shoulder at the tom who was staring at her, now hardly noticing the cold.
lalalalala
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TNT,
Pearly