Cinderstar: I don't own Warriors. As I say...every chapter!
Snowstar: We say that for a reason, Cinders. If we don't we can get SUED!
Cinderstar: What a load of fox dung. Every author on this website can't get sued, and every fanfic writer does not have to say that because NONE of them own Warriors!...unless one of the Erin Hunters came on and wrote FF's.
Snowstar: It's respect, Cinderstar! Something you never had!
Cinderstar:...:O how dare you!
Heather: Were drawing smily faces Cinders? I didn't know we were! Cat! =I-I=
Snowstar: How is that a cat?
Heather: Whiskers!
Hoppaw's POV
The next morning Hoppaw was waken up by a rough paw. "Come one, Hoppaw! You need to clean out Lightfur's nest."
Hoppaw blinked and saw a dark shape leaving the apprentice den. Who was that? He wondered. The stranger had left behind a tangy scent. Herbs?
Stretching his stiff legs, the tabby apprentice padded out of the den and over to the medicine cat den where he collected a pile of moss. Taking the moss over to the elder's den, he spent until sun high- when he had started at dawn- clearing and replacing Lightfur's nest. At the end when he was almost done, Firepaw limped over to him and helped carry out the old nest.
"Thanks," Hoppaw huffed.
Firepaw glared at him but couldn't speak because of the moss in his mouth, which made Hoppaw grateful- he didn't need Firepaw's sharp tongue at this moment.
Later her grabbed a mouse from the fresh kill pile and decided he would clean out the leader's den next. Firepaw was busy cleaning out Grasslace's and Gorgepaw's nest and Hoppaw wanted to be as far away from his brother as possible.
Sunset
It was sunset and Hoppaw saw Yellowstar pad to his den. I hope I did good enough on it Hoppaw thought.
Then, for the first time that day, he saw Gracepaw and Jumppaw awake- he was in the elder's den when they left.
"Hi Gracepaw! Hi Jumppaw!" he meowed, walking over to them.
"Hey Hoppaw, I need to tell you about the gathering!" exclaimed Jumppaw. He told Hoppaw about Gracepaw falling in and what Vinestar said.
Hoppaw blinked. He hadn't heard about the news yet because he was so busy cleaning out nests, and fetching prey for Lightfur and Yellowstar. "Wow!" he breathed. "I can't belive she managed to take land from both us and Riverclan! And also... does anyone have like, a tangy scent or something in camp?" he asked carefully.
Gracepaw and Jumppaw both shook their head. "No, no one does," Gracepaw confirmed.
Unsetteled, Hoppaw shared a rabbit with his siblings and gave the rest to Amberpaw when she got back from the sunset patrol.
Then he heard a voice in his ear, and smelled the same tangy scent. The hopping hare will have more pain than it can bare.
It paused and then continued. You are the hopping hare.
Jumppaw's POV
The next day Hoppaw was allowed to leave camp and do a small border patrol on the Windclan border. Jaggedfur, Patchfur, and Jumppaw also tagged along.
"Hi Jumppaw! I can't wait for you to see the Windclan border! Its so cool!" he mewed.
Hoppaw grumbled, "no it isn't. We don't even get to see the real border."
Patchfur cuffed Hoppaw on the ears. "stop it! Your right, but we wont be attacking until all six of you get battle training. Then we will get the stream back."
They were now by the border, only a couple of fox-lengths away from it. "Look through those trees," Jaggedfur instructed. "What do you see?"
It wasn't very wooded, so it was easy for the two new apprentice to look. "Oh! I see a stream!" Hoppaw exclaimed. "Is that the real border?"
Jaggedfur nodded. "Yes. But not right now..."there was a hint of sadness in his voice. "Vinestar is a fox-heart!" Patchfur growled. "She needs to be taught a lesson!"
Jumppaw replied, "Yeah! She does!" and Hoppaw murmered agreement.
They continued along the 'border' and walked in a straight line until Jumppaw could smell more scent marks- but this time, no Windclan. Just Thunderclan.
"This is the border to ward of rouges and loners," Patchfur explained. "This does not border Windclan at all."
"Yep," Jaggedfur agreed. "I remember chasing off a dog her as an apprentice! I was so proud of myself!"
"And if I remember the story correctly, you spent a moon checking the elders for ticks!" Patchfur growled. "I wasn't alive then."
Jaggedfur and Patchfur sprang into a mock fight battle, using really cool moves-at least, it looked cool to Jumppaw. Hoppaw looked bored.
"Wow!" Jumppaw exclaimed. "Did one of you do that jump and kick move Brighttail once taught Robinpaw?"
Jaggedfur nodded. "I did."
"So cool..."
Hoppaw only muttered, "yeah right." and Patchfur cuffed him again. "No disrespect!" the black and white warrior mewed. "Anyway... now we are going to the training hollow so we can practice some fighting moves. The stronger you two are, the better."
Jumppaw and Hoppaw followed their mentors to the soft and sandy training hollow, where they saw Lilypaw and Yellowstar there.
"Hello," Yellowstar grinned as he demonstrated a move to Lilypaw. "We are doing the belly rake. Patchfur, can you help me do that one? You be Shadowclan, and I'll be... myself."
After getting into positions, Patchfur yowled and sprang at Yellowstar, who in turn growled mockingly and charged under the other warrior's stomach. With sheathed claws Yellowstar batted at Patchfur's belly. Then Yellowstar shot out from beneath the tom's belly and to the other side of the clearing.
"That was awesome!" Jumppaw gasped. Lilypaw's eyes sparkled with admiration, but Hoppaw just grumbled, "Nice...?"
Yellowstar nodded and meowed, "Okay then. How about... Jumppaw, you use that move on Hoppaw. Lilypaw, when Gracepaw comes, use it on her."
Jumppaw turned to Hoppaw, who groaned. What's wrong with him? Jumppaw wondered. As he hesitated, Hoppaw raced at him, slid under his belly, and pummeled him with forepaws. Then Hoppaw rolled to the side, forcing Jumppaw to the ground as his two right legs were knocked out of the ground.
"Off!" Jumppaw huffed as Hoppaw sat up. "You beat me up well!"
"Good job!" Yellowstar praised as he watched them. Hoppaw grinned happily, and it seemed to Jumppaw that the apprentice couldn't be more proud of himself for executing a move properly and adding his own trick- then being praised by the clan leader.
"Can we try that again?" Jumppaw asked as Gracepaw entered. The calico apprentice ran over to Lilypaw and the two she-cats started trying the move out.
"Yes, just watch out for Hoppaw. I think that he is going to be one of the best fighters in the clan someday!" Yellowstar replied, and padded to watch Jumppaw's siblings.
Sunhigh- Amberpaw's POV
Amberpaw walked over to the medicine cat's den. "Grasslace? Grasslace?" she called out.
The old medicine cat stiffly responded by appearing from the bramble screen and with, "Yes, Amberpaw? What is it?"
Amberpaw began. "Well, I really want to become the medicine cat of Thunderclan...and I was wondering... when do medicine cats retire?"
Grasslace smiled. "You want to know when Gorgepaw can train you, eh, and for me to retire? Don't you?"
"I- um, no! I just really want to be a medicine cat..." Amberpaw was taken aback by Grasslace's resopnse. The medicine cat was smart!
"Well, the answer is that even when we get old, we still help our clan mates. So in a way, never. But we do retire at an old age. Is that what you want to know?" the medicine cat meowed.
"Err... so, even if your an elder you could still help?"
"Of course! It isn't good to just stand back and watch your clan mates die, and even more so when it is a very young medicine cat that has almost no experience." Grasslace nodded wisely. "So yes."
Feeling happeir, Amberpaw dipped her head. "Thank you Grasslace! And, um... when are you going to retire?"
Later, as she ate an afternoon meal with her sibblings, she still heard the echo of Grasslace's words: Sooner than you think, youn' one.
Since Firepaw was checking Lightfur for ticks, Gracepaw and Lilypaw were out on a hunting patrol, Hoppaw was moody, and Jumppaw was resting, Amberpaw was bored. What do you know- five siblings and I'm still looking for another friend.
She sighed. She felt like she was wasting away, and no use to anyone. Then it hit her- the prophecy! The leaves of amber will waste away! So the 'Three' or whatever had to take her to a specail place... but who where the 'Three'?
She remembered the legends of five cats -Thunder, River, Shadow, Wind, and Sky- who had mad the clans. But Windclan was anything but helping right now, and Skyclan was destroyed, so did that mean that the rest- Thunder, River, and Shadow- were supposed to help her?
Amberpaw shook her head. Too much confusion and not enough information! I need to rest. She padded to her nest nest and laid down.
I need some answers. Before I waste away.
Lilypaw's POV
"Go back to camp and fetch help!"
Yellowstar, Heatherfang, Robinpaw, and Laurelclaw were battleing a large badger, and Lilypaw knew that she only had one move she knew- and it was for fighting against cats, not badgers!
Lilypaw nodded and raced back to the stone hollow where she panted, "Badger! Hel-help!"
Raventooth and Jumppaw where in the clearing- the only ones- when she alarmed camp, so they jumped up and came to her aid. "Where is Brighttail and Mudwing?" Raventooth demanded.
"The-they went out with Firepaw to collect moss! Their by the Great Skyamore and Gracepaw already went off to warn them!" replied Lilypaw. She was really tired.
"Good! Now stay in camp, you two" Raventooth pointed with his tail at Jumppaw and Lilypaw. "You both can't fight well yet, so guard camp with Slowwing and Hoppaw. Though none of you will be much use, you can hold off the badger if it gets this far while another cat warns Shadowclan or Windclan."
Jumppaw growled, "but we want to help too! Robinpaw is fighting!"
"No!" Raventooth yowled. "Stay here! Robinpaw is older and had more experience!" and with that he ran off into the bushes by the edge of the stone hollow, following Lilypaw's scent of fear trail.
"I wish we could help!" exclaimed Lilypaw a few moments later. Jumppaw had just gotten Hoppaw back and the three were waiting by the thorn tunnel.
"You did help!" Jumppaw pointed out. "But all we are here for is to tell any warriors if the badger got close to camp or not."
"Yeah, but we can't! We have warrior instinct, we can fight!" Hoppaw bellowed.
"I know!" Lilypaw cried out. "But you two can't fight. How about Jumppaw and I circle around the stone hollow to make sure no one is about to attack?"
To her surprise, the distraction worked and Jumppaw turned right and padded on the rim, ears pricked.
"Well, I'll go around the other way," Lilypaw meowed, and walked the opposite way of her brother.
Twenty minutes later, Gracepaw appeared, exhausted but unhurt. "Hey! If you need me, I'll be in camp, looking out for Slowwing." The calico apprentice slid into a short part of the stone hollow where she couldn't get hurt.
Lilypaw nodded, and as she passed Hoppaw she told him about Gracepaw. Then Jumppaw.
"So she can guard Lightfur and Slowwing, and Gorgepaw and Grasslace are getting out herbs...all the warriors are fighting the badger...I'm so sick of waiting!" Jumppaw had complained to her.
"I know!" Lilypaw had repeated.
The tiny she-cat continued around the perimeter of camp, eyes alert.
Suddenly she heard a rustle in the bushes. She looked closer and saw a bleeding heavy paw. It was huge and black but something wasn't right about it..
Then a large snout poked out from behind a maple. Lilypaw stared in shock at it. BADGER!
She couldn't move- she was paralyzed with fear. And she was at the very back of the hollow, where no one could see her, in tiny clearing. She was trapped!
The giant badger rammed its paws at her and she was slammed against a tree. With a large Thump! She fell to the ground, stunned. She realized she was as small as a kit. The badger could kill her for food. I'm done for, she thought. Moaning, she tried to get up, but the badger smacked her again. She was bleeding on her head and her skull ached.
The badger opened its jaws and lunged for her. Yelling, "Help!" she closed her eyes and prepared for the blow.
There was pain, and there blackness.
Firepaw's POV
Firepaw was nervous as he stalked through the undergrowth. He was told to go back to camp but had lost his way. Where am I? He wondered. He was near some silver bushes and tall, thick trees with ivy growing on them. This was definitely not near camp.
The orange tom thought quick, closing his eyes and choosing a random direction. That's when he heard a shriek. "Help!" And it sounded close by. Firepaw sniffed.
Lilypaw. And badger.
Firepaw is near camp when he hears Lilypaw, sorry if I didn't clarify. Heh. Anyway, please R&R!