Ugh, ew…I just reread that last chapter and realized how bland it was…0.o. Hopefully this one will be better.

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Icepaw gagged as the bitter taste of dock leaves slammed into the roof of her mouth.

"Don't put those on me!" she choked out, snatching her paw away from Robinpaw, who was prodding the leaves toward her.

"Don't be such a kit, Icepaw, they'll make you feel better," mewed the dark ginger she-cat in exasperation, her whiskers twitching as she took in Icepaw's disgusted expression. "I promise."

Another drop of crimson blood welled between Icepaw's toes and splashed onto the muddy ground, joining a pool of fellow drops that was gradually growing larger. With another disdainful sniff, Icepaw grimaced and extended her paw, where the gash left by a claw-like thorn was oozing red.

"Shortwhisker showed me how to do this yesterday morning," mewed another voice that belonged to Sparrowpaw, the new medicine cat apprentice. Crouched beside Robinpaw, she had already chewed up one leaf and was moving on to the next.

"Will it…sting?" Icepaw mewled tentatively, peering at Sparrowpaw through narrowed eyes. The tortoiseshell shook her head, her mouth full.

"It feels like pouring cold water onto the cut," Robinpaw explained. "Only…it's not cold."

Icepaw snorted, but she felt somewhat reassured. A moment later Sparrowpaw padded forward and nosed Icepaw's pad gently, before extending a tongue and licking the dock poultice into the wound. The white she-cat braced herself for a blaze of pain, but all she felt was a delicious coolness begin to spread through her paw.

"You were right!" she mewed delightedly to Robinpaw, relaxing as Sparrowpaw finished administering the herb.

"Try walking on it," the tortoiseshell directed, stepping back to admire her handiwork. Icepaw put her paw on the ground and leaned forward, wincing as the pad throbbed.

"It still hurts a little bit, but not as bad," she explained, settling back on her haunches and inspecting the wound with a frown.

"Lemme just get some cobwebs and then you can go," Sparropaw meowed. She darted into the fern tunnel to the medicine cat den, leaves waving in her wake.

"Where'd you pick up that thorn anyway?" Robinpaw questioned, curling her tail neatly around her paws.

Sheepishly, Icepaw replied, "I got up early…and went out hunting."

"By yourself?" Robinpaw mewed incredulously. "Why?"

"I was bored, and…well, I wanted to impress Stonepelt. I didn't catch anything the last two times we've gone out, and I think he's starting to get frustrated." Icepaw didn't include the fact that she'd felt the need to prove herself to somebody. For three suns Mossfur had continued to taunt her at every chance he got, and sharing a den with Tansypaw wasn't doing her any good either. If she didn't accomplish something soon she was afraid she might finally give in to their taunts and make a fool of herself. Not that she hadn't already done that numerous times…

"You mouse-brain," Robinpaw muttered. "You could have woken me up or something instead of going traipsing into the woods on your own. You never know what sorts of nasty things will find you if you're by yourself – a badger would snap up a single apprentice in a heartbeat."

Icepaw gaped at her. "Really?"

"Now Robinpaw, don't give Icepaw the wrong idea. Badgers don't even like the taste of cat," came an amused meow. Both the apprentices jumped and whirled around to face Stonepelt, who was standing a few paces away, a piece of fresh kill at his feet.

"St-stonepelt!" Robinpaw squeaked, her eyes wide with surprise. She was still paranoid about how much the gray tom had overheard of their conversation about his past.

"Badgers will only attack you if they're starving or afraid," Stonepelt continued explaining, his gaze flickering to Robinpaw before returning to Icepaw. The white she-cat gazed back, ashamed of herself. She'd been trying to prove herself to her mentor, when really he was one of the only cats who seemed to believe in her. "It's the foxes you need to watch out for," Stonepelt concluded with a sly smile. He winked at Icepaw, a glitter in his eye, before picking up the fresh kill and padding away.

"Huh," Robinpaw grunted, her shoulders sagging. "I swear, I'll never get a wink of sleep until I know if he heard us that day or not."

Chuckling, Icepaw flicked her friend's ear with her tail. "I don't think he minds, Robinpaw. I'm sure it's not as big a deal as you make it out to be."

Robinpaw opened her mouth to reply, but at that moment Sparrowpaw's multicolored head emerged from the ferns, followed by a paw that was wrapped in a wad of cobwebs. She hopped towards Icepaw, keeping her sticky forepaw off the ground.

"Here," she mewed, plastering the stringy webs onto Icepaw's wounded pad. "These will stop the bleeding." She looked proud of herself for being aware of this fact, and for a moment Icepaw wondered what it would be like to be a medicine cat apprentice. She'd never considered it as a possible path. But when she thought of how distasteful the dock leaves had been, she instantly rejected the idea. Spending her life cooped up in a den full of herbs definitely wasn't the right way to go.

"Ugh," Icepaw muttered dismally as she and Robinpaw padded away from the medicine den. "Now I can't go on patrol with you!" She shook her paw furiously, willing her wound to heal faster.

"You'll be able to go tomorrow!" Robinpaw mewed reassuringly, laying her tail over Icepaw's shoulder. "Besides, it won't be very interesting. RiverClan just spends their time fishing all day instead of crossing the border. And it's not like ShadowClan ever does anything interesting – they're too preoccupied with….with lurking." The ginger she-cat narrowed her eyes as she mentioned ShadowClan.

"Why is ShadowClan so bad?" Icepaw mewed, hoping she wasn't asking another ridiculous question.

Robinpaw's eyes widened, but then she mewed, "I don't really know. They just always are. The elders say that the cold winds chill their hearts, but that's just stories. I would hate to be in ShadowClan – that forest is so dark." She shuddered.

As they padded back to the den, Icepaw's mind wandered past her throbbing paw. Though she was still learning about the Clans, it was amazing how easily she seemed able to slide into Clan life, as if she'd been born in the forest. She felt complete, as though she'd been missing something all her life but she hadn't known exactly what it was, and now she'd finally found it.

"Icepaw!" someone hissed. Icepaw was yanked roughly out of her thoughts by the harsh voice that sent a chill down her spine. Robinpaw paused beside her and turned to stare as Mossfur, his pelt rumpled, emerged from the elder's den. His eyes were narrowed and glittering.

"Oh, great…" the white apprentice grumbled, her tail drooping. Robinpaw swallowed nervously, her paws twitching. "You go on patrol," Icepaw mewed, pushing Robinpaw gently away.

"Are you sure?" Robinpaw asked. She looked torn between staying to defend her friend and heading out on patrol with Oakshadow and Tanglethorn.

"Of course. If I can't handle one mangy old elder, I'll never be a warrior. Skin some ShadowClan cats for me, and maybe we can hunt later, if my paw doesn't hurt." Icepaw replied. She felt a little sick to her stomach, but she didn't want Robinpaw to hear Mossfur's scathing insults.

"Okay. I'll catch you later then," the ginger apprentice meowed, almost apologetically. She cast one more wary glance at Mossfur before padding away.

"What do you want, Mossfur?" Icepaw mewed tiredly as she turned back to face him.

The brown tabby elder stalked towards her, his yellow eyes narrowed.

"You hurt your paw?" he spat, circling her like she was a scared piece of prey. His tail switched back and forth as Icepaw's face betrayed no emotion. By this time she had perfected her 'mask of stone', and no matter how much Mossfur's comments stung, she hadn't lost composure yet.

"Yes," she retorted, her voice smooth but cold. "I stepped on a thorn."

Mossfur snorted. "That's too bad."

Icepaw didn't believe for one second that he was being compassionate, so she began to get suspicious. What horrible trick was he going to play on her when she could barely walk on four legs? How far would Mossfur go to get her kicked out of ThunderClan? After all, she'd made it past her first moon, and Cinderstar had said she could stay in the Clan if she didn't run away during that time. If she was still here, why did Mossfur still hate her?

"Why?" she hissed, her composure slipping just the slightest bit.

Mossfur seemed to realize that he'd hit a nerve, and his lips twitched. Was he smiling? Icepaw shuddered.

"That's too bad," he meowed, his tone almost cheerful, "because I haven't eaten until dawn! I'm ravenous, but my bones ache! Oh, so terribly!" He threw back his ears and gave a pitiful moan. Stonepelt, who was devouring his squirrel by the stump, looked up, his ears flickering towards the apprentice and the elder.

"What do you want?" Icepaw muttered, although she already knew the answer.

"Well," Mossfur mewed, his eyes wide with innocence. "Since I have such trouble walking, it'd be so generous of you to catch a few pieces of prey for me. After all, it is your duty as a warrior apprentice."

"Im the one with the bandaged paw," Icepaw pointed out in exasperation. She could already practically feel the pain that jumping on her foot would cause.

A twinkle formed in Mossfur's eye, and Icepaw began to back away, but it was too late. The elder strode forward and lashed out at her. One of his dull front claws snagged in the cobwebs as Icepaw tried to limp away, ripping Sparrowpaw's careful handiwork from Icepaw's wound. The wad of silky strings drifted to the dust at Mossfur's feet.

"Please?" mewed the elder, his whisker's curling at the ends.

Desperately Icepaw glanced over at the stump, but Stonepelt was crouched over his prey, seeming not to have witness any of the confrontation.

"I said I'm ravenous," Mossfur insisted, flicking the cobwebs away. He glared fiercely at Icepaw, his hackles raised. "And I'll tell Cinderstar if you refuse to perform your duties."

Wearily, Icepaw shook her head. "Please, Mossfur. I can barely walk. Can't you let me alone for once? I'll hunt for when my paw heals."

Mossfur's glare intensified, then he opened his mouth and yowled loudly, "Don't be a slacker, Icepaw! Or are you just a lazy kit who can't even lift a paw to help an old clanmate?"

Immediately, as if the whole thing had been planned, Stonepelt turned and jumped to his feet, striding over to the pair in a heartbeat.

"Mossfur? Icepaw? What's going on?" meowed the gray tabby, his expression concerned. Icepaw was glad to find that he didn't look entirely convinced that Icepaw was at fault. He probably disliked Mossfur as much as she did.

"Stonepelt! Glad to see there's a warrior here who still feels a shred of duty to his elders," Mossfur grumbled. Icepaw had to admit, he was a good actor when he needed to be.

"What's this? Icepaw, are you refusing to help Mossfur?" Stonepelt accused, though his voice was gentle.

Icepaw opened her mouth to explain the situation, but Mossfur cut her off. "I haven't had a piece of fresh kill until dawn, and Icepaw here says she's too tired to hunt for me. I thought apprentices had to hunt for the Clan before anything else. Isn't that part of the warrior code?" He directed these last words to Icepaw with a taunting twitch of his whiskers.

Again, Icepaw tried to get in a word, even more desperate to explain her side of the story, but now it was Stonepelt who interrupted.

"Yes, it is. Icepaw, as my apprentice, you should know better. Please, hunt for Mossfur now, and we can discuss this later." The gray tabby blinked at her once, a frown on his face, before nodding to Mossfur and padding away.

"A mouse would be nice, if possible. Thank you oh so much, Icepaw," the brown tabby purred with a sly grin. He flicked Icepaw's ear with his tail and then whipped around and loped away.

Feeling betrayed, Icepaw bent her head and hopped dejectedly to the thorn tunnel. She looked back at Stonepelt, who was slipping into the warriors den, her pelt hot with embarrassment, before padding out of the camp.

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Don't worry; this part of the story is not quite over, I just felt that it need to be split in to two chapters. Hope you like! Sorry it took me so long to update this, I had to write an essay for Science class. I know right, an essay for Science? What is the world coming to?

-ASTER