STEPPING OUT FROM THE CONFINES of the ShadowClan camp, Kestrelpaw felt the cool press of pine needles beneath her paw pads for the first time, and her body gave an involuntary shiver as it dawned on her at last — she was beyond the walls of the camp!
The territory stretched out before her now, the shadows of towering pine trees patterned along the faded trail that her paws were set upon, casting an ominous gloom over the forest. There was no undergrowth, but the ground felt moist, hinting at the marshlands that surrounded the ShadowClan warriors.
Cindercrow, Ashclaw, and Nightpaw were padding ahead, so Kestrelpaw rushed to join them, slowing only once she had caught up to and was walking alongside her mentor.
The broad-shouldered senior warrior had her green eyes fixed on the distance, ears pricked, pawsteps near-silent against the marshy ground. Hit with so many new scents and sights, the apprentice had to force her fur to lie flat, unsure of how to feel by this sudden shock to her senses.
As if noticing her visual discomfort, Ashclaw let out a grunt. "You'll get used to it, you both will." His tone was gruff, harsh, even, but Nightpaw seemed unbothered by such a tone as she picked up her pace to trot alongside Kestrelpaw.
"I never thought the forest would be this beautiful," the snow-white she-cat purred, her fluffy fur smoothed down neatly as they padded along the faded trail, "I wonder if the other Clans have land as breathtaking as ours."
Ashclaw, having heard her words, let out a snort. "They'd like to believe as such, and there are parts of each territory that are, admittedly, beautiful. But no amount of their fields, streams, meadows, or cliffs can compare to the freshness of the pine forests."
"ShadowClan is the greatest," Nightpaw meowed proudly, puffing out her chest fur as her paws crushed pine needles that lay scattered on the ground. Kestrelpaw flicked her tail, chuckling as she let her eyes wander around, taking in the sight of the towering trees and damp, marshy ground of which she had heard so much about.
This was her home. The Clan she would come to defend with her life was all around her, and she now trudged through it for the first time. It was hard to believe that she would one day know each and every turn by heart, be able to hunt on her own wherever she pleased within the borders of her home.
Being a warrior was all she ever wanted.
Cindercrow looked over her shoulder at the other members of the patrol, twitching her ears slightly. "We'll be heading to the SkyClan border first, and it's just up ahead."
Nightpaw inclined her head, slowing her pace just slightly to think for a moment. "The border is a twoleg path, right?"
Ashclaw flicked his tail over his back. "Correct," he told his apprentice, "ShadowClan and ThunderClan decided long ago that we would divide up our territory and each give part of it to SkyClan. Our border changed from being the clearing, which now is part of SkyClan to the twoleg path we're going to see."
"Good riddance, I say," Cindercrow sniffed, "too much blood was spilled between ShadowClan and ThunderClan over that forsaken clearing, anyway. I'm glad the two Clans gave up on it and pushed it onto a Clan where we wouldn't fight over it."
Kestrelpaw halted beside her as her mentor stopped walking, now facing a sandy path that stretched out in front of them.
Ashclaw and Nightpaw came up at their sides.
"This is the twoleg path." The older she-cat meowed, placing a paw down on the gritty earth. "Beyond it lies SkyClan territory."
Kestrelpaw wrinkled her nose. "It smells weird."
Both of the elder cats purred in amusement at that. "The other Clans all stink," Cindercrow explained, jerking her muzzle toward the other Clan's territory.
"But not us," Nightpaw replied smugly as she licked her paw and drew it over her ear. "We smell great."
Ashclaw dipped his head. "Exactly. However, I'd think the other Clans would have to disagree."
"There is no way that they think we smell bad when the stench of SkyClan already burns my nose." The fluffy white apprentice hissed, shooting a look toward Kestrelpaw, who snickered in agreement. The smell was awful, and she had to force her fur to lie flat against her shoulders to hide that fact. Did all of the Clans smell this bad, or was it just SkyClan?
Shuffling slightly, the silver tortoiseshell twitched her ears once before pinning them against her skull. "Could we go? I won't be able to ever smell anything again if we stay much longer."
Nightpaw let out a mrrrow of laughter, flicking her tail as both of the older warriors shared a glance. "It isn't that bad," Cindercrow snorted, but retreated back into the trees. Ashclaw followed her, and the apprentices took up the rear.
"Where are we going next?" Kestrelpaw asked, relaxing slightly as the border disappeared behind them.
Ashclaw glanced over his shoulder at her, green eyes slitted. "ShadowClan has another border, as well as the lakeshore and the and you'll need to become familiar with them as well if you want your training to be off to a good start."
Cindercrow cast him a glare. "Let's show them the lakeshore, then see how their paws feel about it, shall we?"
"Mouse-dung! I toured all four borders on my first day beyond the camp walls." The scarred gray tom snorted, lifting his muzzle up slightly.
"Yes, well, not all of us are as amazing and strong as you, Ashclaw." The she-cat replied flatly, keeping her gaze ahead of her. "I'm sure the other four Clans are shaking in their pelts at the mere thought of you, but do remember that Kestrelpaw and Nightpaw are not you, and will probably be normal warriors."
"Too bad," Nightpaw sniffed sarcastically, nose twitching as she shot the other apprentice a side-eye full of mischief, "normal is boring."
Kestrelpaw snorted a laugh, picking up her pace to a trot as Cindercrow weaved around tall pine trees. The shadows stretched long across the marshy ground, casting patterns of shade which crisscrossed along the soft pine needles littering the forest floor. A beautiful sight from above, it must have been. She wondered how the world would look from the eyes of a bird soaring overhead.
Perhaps she would ask Wanderwing later on.
As the trees became less in number, the ground opened up to reveal a grassy hill that ended in a sharp drop. The sweet scent of fresh water hit the nostrils of the new apprentice, and she bounded ahead of the patrol in order to halt at the edge, where the ground gave way to a sandy bank. Stretched out before them, a glistening expanse of rippling water crashed against the shore, its volume seeming endless in the eyes of the young cat.
"Whoa . . ." She breathed, whiskers twitching as she stepped back, ears flat against her skull.
"Breathtaking, isn't it?" Cindercrow mewed, halting at her side with her fur rippling in the light breeze. "This is the very center of the territories. The lake sustains all five Clans, bringing life to the rich forests and moors that surround it.
"It's beautiful," Kestrelpaw twitched the tip of her tail, tearing her mismatched gaze away from the mesmerizing waves to look at her mentor. "Could we go down and get a closer look?"
Ashclaw cleared his throat, exchanging a long look with the other warrior and shaking his head. "I'm not sure that would be wise—"
"It will be fine." Cindercrow interrupted, flicking his ear with the tip of her tail. "Every cat should have a chance to feel the lake against their paws."
"But RiverClan—"
"RiverClan doesn't own the entire lake, no matter what they've claimed." The she-cat mewed, before beginning to stalk down the rise toward the shore. "If they say anything, or if a patrol suddenly jumps out to confront us, I'll take care of it." She twitched her ear and glanced back toward the apprentices, beckoning them to follow.
Kestrelpaw shared a long look with Nightpaw before bounding down the rise, skidding to a halt beside her mentor with a squeak as sand sprayed up, lashing at her face once individual grains caught in the wind.
The sand was soft beneath her silvery paws, warm. Before her, the water of the lake stretched, glistening waves catching the rays of the sun and reflecting across the beach. She stepped closer, until she was close enough to the lake water so that the next pulse of waves washed around her, rippling at her lower legs. It was a cool sensation, strange. Close to unpleasant, and causing the young cat to be relieved that she hadn't been born in RiverClan.
Shivering, she stepped back, shaking each of her paws and glaring over her shoulder at everyone else. "It's weird." She hissed.
Nightpaw snickered, dabbing at the water with a single paw before backing up, an expression of disgust scrunched up on her muzzle. "Why would any cat like water?" The white she-cat demanded, turning her nose up and padding back toward her mentor.
Ashclaw twitched his ears, clearly amused by the way his apprentice was acting. "Seasons of living near RiverClan, and I still can't seem to figure that out." He huffed, bending over to lick one of his paws. Cindercrow snorted a laugh, turning away from the water and steadily climbing back up the rise.
Following her mentor on light paws, Kestrelpaw relished the cool brush of long grass against her legs, releasing a low purr of content. Cindercrow flashed her an amused look, waiting for Ashclaw and Nightpaw to scale the rise and halt beside them.
"Well?" The dark-furred scarred tom twitched his tail expectantly, watching the two apprentices with an eager expression. "Do you think you'll be able to make it to the RiverClan border, or should we wait until next sunrise?"
The young silver tortoiseshell wanted to admit that her paws felt as though they were about to fall off , but she couldn't bring herself to speak, especially not as Nightpaw bounced gleefully. "We can make it."
Both mentors exchanged a long look, a knowing one, before Ashclaw turned, taking the lead now as he weaved around the trees marking the pine forest of ShadowClan's territory. Cindercrow followed him, each stride of her powerful legs sending her muscles rippling through her pelt. Kestrelpaw was honestly awestruck by the sheer glory with which her mentor held herself. A true warrior.
Falling into step behind their mentors, both Nightpaw and Kestrelpaw trotted at a quicker pace than before, paws crushing the pine needles which littered the forest floor as far as the young apprentice could see. The scents of the forest brought an odd relaxation to her bones, which she wasn't aware had been tense previously.
It was beautiful. The land which she would learn to protect with her life took her breath away, with rustling pine trees towering high above as far as the eye could see. Birds fluttered around overhead, whispering amongst themselves as they passed one another in the air. Kestrelpaw pricked her ears to catch a murmur of their conversations, only receiving a sliver of words uttered by a robin who had stopped to perch on a branch. He spoke of his new nest, and his mate, who prepared to lay the first eggs of the season. That was all the apprentice managed to catch before he swooped off, further into the woods with a noticeable bounce in his flight.
She held back a laugh and picked up the pace, trotting to catch up to the others just as her nose was hit with a completely new — and rather unpleasant — stench.
"StarClan!" The apprentice hissed, flattening her ears as she came to the side of her mentor. "That's worse than SkyClan!"
Ashclaw snorted, lashing his tail as though anxious. "It's the thunderpath," he explained, jerking his muzzle toward the hard path that stretched out before them. It was smaller than the twoleg trail, which marked ShadowClan's border with SkyClan, but still smaller than the stories her mother had told her of the stinking paths which monsters roared across.
"RiverClan territory is on the other side," Cindercrow meowed, her ears angled forward, "you can tell by the smell of fish."
Nightpaw was bristling, her white fur standing on end. "I don't smell fish."
The dark gray she-cat let out a laugh, her green eyes lit up with amusement. "You'll eventually learn how to differentiate certain scents layered together," she meowed, turning her gaze onto the white apprentice, "but for now, I can understand why the thunderpath might overpower the scent of our neighbors."
Ashclaw narrowed his eyes, gazing across the border before turning back toward the others. "We should start heading back to camp. RiverClan will be headed this way soon to check the border, and we shouldn't interrupt them."
The other mentor nodded once, swishing her tail to beckon toward the younger mollies. "Come along. It's getting late, anyway, and I'm sure you'll want to get back to camp so you can rest your paws, right?"
Kestrelpaw nodded, letting out a sharp exhale.
Once again taking the lead, Cindercrow strolled back into the dark woodlands, her pawsteps sure and steady. The rest of the small patrol followed her, keeping close as the shadows grew longer with the slow descent of the sun.
The trees rustled with life, but now Kestrelpaw began to notice that the forest floor also teemed with critters who emerged as the sun began to sink. Mice scuttled out from holes in tree roots, while squirrels scrambled down the trunks of the pine trees. Their relaxed conversations drifted through the air, causing Kestrelpaw to keep her ears pricked.
Somewhere, she was aware of a pair of squirrels chattering about the acorns they'd stashed during the day, while two mice tussled together. On her other side, a sparrow dropped from a branch to the ground, nosing through the needles that scattered on the ground.
Then, in a burst of motion, Ashclaw shot forward, startling Kestrelpaw and causing her to stop walking.
The large tom lunged for the sparrow which the silver tortoiseshell apprentice had just spotted, and the little bird had no time to react before his paw slammed down on its back. A single shriek was cut off as it perished under the savagery of Ashclaw.
He returned to the patrol, the bird dead in his jaws. Nightpaw seemed in awe of the catch, but Kestrelpaw was less than pleased to see the innocent creature hanging limp.
And that scream . . .
That scream echoed in the apprentice's ears.
She knew that none of her Clanmates would have heard it, but that scream had been a cry for help, for mercy.
Such a cry shook Kestrelpaw to her very bones.