Chapter 7

The apprentices' eyes blazed with awe, as Graytail finished explaining what has happened.

"Now we're on some crazy mission to save the forest." Carvy quickly finished it up.

"WE WANT TO COME!" Bunnypaw jumped like a kit, her green eyes wide and sparkling. Foxpaw widened her one dark dawn colored eyes in plead.

"No, you can't come." Carvy grumbled.

"I have to agree with Carvy," she rested her tail on Carvy's shoulder. She felt him jump a little,

"You can't come. You're still apprentices. I promise we'll come back and be in time for your warrior ceremonies, okay?" Bunnypaw's eyes got dull, and she buried her nose into her fur as if Graytail were her own mother. Foxpaw's one amber eye looked down in sadness.

"Okay." Bunnypaw finally meowed, and got up to touch noses with her mentor. Foxpaw walked up to her mentor and rubbed against his leg in farewell.

"Come back soon, please." Bunnypaw looked down at her paws in sadness.

"Don't worry. Wolfear will train you until I come back." Graytail meowed to Bunnypaw,

"And I bet Pineheart will train you well." She meowed to Foxpaw.

The apprentices' eyes brightened a little, then they walked into the distance.

Carvy looked at Graytail,

"Are we off, then?" he asked.

Graytail nodded.

The trip up to the Sacred Hills was easy, but when they got past it, the ground got harder.

They finally made their way past the Sacred Hills.

"arffffgrrrr"

"What was that?" Carvy growled.

In the distance, Graytail saw a white figure walking toward them, the half of it's face black, it's sharp ears erect, along with a short, bushy tail.

"It's a dog!" Graytail shrank back next to Carvy's side.

The dog's blue eyes, scars running through them, burned on Graytail's pelt. "Why must you ruin path?" the dog growled oddly.

"You can talk cat?!" Carvy's icy eyes looked up at the blind dog.

"Of course Aruq talk cat!" the dog snapped,

"How you think Aruq speak to cat?"

Aruq, the blind dog, crouched down and sniffed them. Carvy let out a warning hiss, but Graytail purposely stepped hard on his paw, he winced loudly, which shut him up.

"Where are you going?" Graytail asked carefully.

The dog's blue gaze grew gentle,

"Aruq must find who he is. Aruq walked all way from mountain."

Aruq pointed with his nose to the direction of the Sacred Mountains.

"That where we need to go!" Carvy whispered into Graytail's ear.

"Shhh! Cat must be quiet now!" Aruq whispered loudly.

He growled softly in the direction where a rustling grew louder.

Once the figure exploded out, the dark gray pelt, the long fur, the dark amber eyes…

"Y-you're in S-Stormclan territory!" a striped apprentice popped out of the bushes.

Graytail sighed. She had thought it was someone else. But she felt as if someone else was with them.

"That's not how you do it, Tigerpaw!" they heard a yowl from far behind. A mud colored tom walked into the clearing,

"You're in Stormclan territory." the tom hissed. "Since you've seen the apprentice's mistake." he flicked his tail, and it whacked Tigerpaw's ear. The apprentice looked down at her tiger-like paws.

"We're only passing by!" Carvy snarled back.

"More cat! Aruq not have time for nonsense!" The blind dog woofed out the words, and turned to leave.

"Wait! Aruq! Come back!" Graytail yowled after him.

The dog stopped,

"Aruq is dog. Why you want Aruq with you?"

"We need to get to those mountains," Carvy meowed before Graytail could reply, and pointed to the same direction Aruq has pointed earlier.

"Are you forgetting your on our grounds?" the mud colored tom growled once more,

"No, Aruq not forget," Aruq reared up and faced the tom, noses touching. He hissed.

"We shall leave." He growled, as he looked at the darkening sky.

As they walked away, they heard the hiss of the mud colored cat.

"Don't listen to stupid furball. Aruq, if see again, will give mud a snapping at!" Aruq woofed with amusement.

The rustling started again,

"Who else wants to attack us?!" Carvy growled under his breath.

The familiar shape rolled out from the bushes,

"Bunnypaw!"