Clawpaw awoke to Leafpaw prodding her and Lavapaw sitting on her. Glancing out of the den, she expected it to be far past dawn, but it was pitch black outside.
"Why do you have to wake me up right now?" she was about to complain loudly, but Lavapaw slammed a paw on her mouth, keeping it shut.
"Be quiet," Lavapaw snapped, "We're going to ShadowClan tonight, and this time you finally woke up, so we can bring you now."
"Nightshade wants to meet you!" added Leafpaw. Lavapaw cautiously took her paw off Clawpaw's face. I was right! They did go to ShadowClan without me!
"Okay, I'm coming. Give me a moment. Also, Lavapaw, can you get off me?" Clawpaw said. As Lavapaw got off, Leafpaw led the way out of the camp with Lavapaw close behind. Clawpaw lagged a bit after and made twice as much noise as Lavapaw and Leafpaw combined.
The trio moved through the shadows of the camp, their paws barely making a sound on the soft earth(except Clawpaw). Leafpaw and Lavapaw exchanged a glance, silently urging Clawpaw to be more stealthy. Despite their efforts, Clawpaw's every step seemed to echo in the night.
As they walked, Lavapaw turned to Clawpaw with an annoyed tail flick. "You need to be more stealthy. ShadowClan won't be happy if we wake up the whole forest." she hissed.
Clawpaw huffed, "It's not like I can make my paws stop making noise."
Leafpaw intervened, "Just try to step more lightly. We're almost at the ShadowClan border."
They reached the border without alerting any guards. Leafpaw gestured for them to crouch down as they approached the scent markers that separated RiverClan from ShadowClan territory. Lavapaw shot Clawpaw another cautionary look.
"Now, remember," Leafpaw whispered, "we're here to meet Nightshade, so no unnecessary noise or questions. We also need to disguise our scent,"
Leapaw rolled in the border markers, and Lavapaw copied her, wrinkling her nose at the scent. Clawpaw followed, rolling in the border markers until she felt something squishy, that smelled of a fox.
"Fox dung!" She said.
"Quiet!" Leafpaw hissed at her "And no swearing."
"I wasn't swearing!" Clawpaw protested.
Lavapaw snickered, "Clawpaw smells like fox dung,"
"Enough, let's go," Leapaw hissed.
Clawpaw nodded, trying her best to mimic her littermates. They padded over the border and into ShadowClan territory.
Leafpaw led them deeper into ShadowClan territory until they reached a secluded clearing. In the dim moonlight, Clawpaw could see the silhouette of a cat approaching. It was Nightshade, a sleek black cat with a calm demeanor.
"Leafpaw, Lavapaw, and this must be Clawpaw," Nightshade purred.
Clawpaw stepped forward, "That's right. I think you're my father."
"Now, you promised you would show us to be more sneaky, like you," reminded Leafpaw.
"That's right," said Nightshade, "I think I'll start with Clawpaw. Clawpaw, show me how you walk."
Clawpaw obediently walked a few paces while Nightshade adjusted her legs and changed her posture until Clawpaw could silently walk across the clearing until she fell on her face. Clawpaw stood and glared at a rock as if she could break it with her stare.
As they talked, sharing stories and insights, Clawpaw found herself drawn into the mysterious world of ShadowClan. The night unfolded with tales of the stars, ancient battles, and hidden secrets in the shadows. For the first time, Clawpaw forgot about her grudge against Raincall, lost in the allure of Nightshade's words and the world beyond RiverClan's borders. She truly felt as if she truly belonged there.