Chapter 40: Truth in Lies
Ice had finally made itself present in the forest. No snow had yet fallen, but frost nipped at the grass. Some of our close ponds had frozen over as well, though it was just mainly the surface. Ravenfeather and I were lounging in the camp, having previously helped Yellowfang with some herb collecting before the cold snap killed it all. Any normal cat would be content, but I was not a normal cat. I'd been letting my ambitions fall by the wayside as current pressing issues kept deflecting me off my goal. I still lacked connections.
I was fortunate to find Whitestorm was back early. He'd sent Sandpaw on a solo hunting expedition. Lionheart, who had developed a pronounced limp after his injury, greeted the senior warrior. I let them get settled into a conversation for a while before I made my play. I then approached them confidently, Ravenfeather tailing me all the while.
Lionheart noticed my approach. "Ah. Smudgefoot and Ravenfeather. How are two of our newest warriors doing? It was unfortunate that you two didn't get apprentices this time." He mewed cheerfully.
"I honestly don't mind. Bluestar gave me the offer, but I told her there was a specific kit I wanted to mentor eventually." I responded.
"I don't think Fireheart and Graystripe were very lucky to get apprentices. I've played with Cinderpaw and she's a bit too willful and headstrong to be taught easy. Meanwhile Brackenpaw is… a bit of a yes cat. He kind of just accepts what's given to him without thought. It's a shame too because he's clever." Ravenfeather mused.
Whitestorm and Lionheart looked at Ravenfeather with slight shock. They didn't know Ravenfeather was as observant as he was. He's kind of the type of cat to be lost in a crowd. If he were a human, he'd be almost an unperson with his ability to just not be noticed. This also made him a fantastic eavesdropper. Thanks to our relationship, I had an amazing collection of trivial blackmail for nearly every cat in the clan.
Whitestorm snapped me out of my thoughts. "Sounds like you two escaped a badger. So tell me, who is this kit you've got your mind set on?"
"Ashkit. He's already showing signs of having a strange mind. I've had a similar condition, so I believe I'd be the best fit to train him. Fernkit looks gentle enough for Ravenfeather. Mousefur could probably take Elderkit, and, if Darkstripe is available, he could take Tulipkit." I stated.
Whitestorm pondered that choice for a moment. They were his kits after all. Slowly he nodded. "That does seem to be a good selection, but they're still far to young to decide yet. Who knows? Maybe one of them will take up medicine."
Lionheart decided to leap into the conversation again. "Speaking of kits, this Leafbare is going to be a cold one. The snap came early this year, and that's usually a bad sign. Fortunately, there hasn't been any snow yet, but the cold is making my bad leg ache."
"You sound like an elder." Whitestorm teased.
"I don't see an easy Leafbare for us. Riverclan is still pushing our borders, and Shadowclan might start getting ideas. We were spotted escorting Windclan, so they might use that to unify Shadowclan and Riverclan against us. If it's going to be a cold one, Riverclan might get desperate as well." I stated.
"Riverclan is already mad at us over the last battle of Sunningrocks. I'm surprised they haven't invaded." Lionheart mewed.
I decided to do something a bit risky. Tigerclaw was too confident in his position. I wanted him to realize how close to a knife's edge he was actually walking. Whitestorm and Lionheart were clever cats. More importantly, Bluestar trusted them. I was going to give them a lead on Tigerclaw's true nature.
"I don't see why they'd be mad. They lost their deputy in a freak accident. No cat expected that rockfall." I mewed clearly.
Whitestorm tilted his head, questioning what I just said. "Rockfall?"
I pretended to not understand his confusion. "Yeah. Rockfall. That's what killed Oakheart, at least according to Riverclan. They thought it was a vengeful act of Starclan."
"But Tigerclaw killed Oakheart in revenge." Lionheart mewed in a confused tone.
Again, I pretended to be confused. "Where'd you hear that? I wasn't really paying attention when we joined, so I must have missed the story. I asked around, but no cat seemed to keen to tell me. I just got lucky Riverclan wasn't so tight lipped."
"So Riverclan has a different story. I wonder why?" Whitestorm mewed, lost in thought.
"Something doesn't add up." Lionheart responded.
"I can only tell you what I heard." I answered. "Ravenfeather doesn't remember what all happened that well. Must have gotten knocked in the head a bit in the battle because he said his memory is foggy."
Ravenfeather only nodded, not confident in his ability to lie. Thankfully, simple body language is the easiest thing to lie with. They took the nod as fact.
Ravenfeather and I left the two to ponder their new conundrum. That old malicious smile was faintly present on my muzzle. I must be somewhat corruptive, because I saw that same smile on Ravenfeather. Maybe he just liked the idea of messing with Tigerclaw. Ravenfeather and I convened in the warriors den, just out of sight but close enough to hear the coming confrontation. Whitestorm and Lionheart caught the deputy as he returned from a patrol.
"You know, Whitestorm and I heard something interesting. Apparently, according to Riverclan, Oakheart died in a rockfall. I've got to ask, why do they think that?" Lionheart prompted.
It was amusing to see Tigerclaw reel back like that. He'd been caught out in a lie. If I were him, I'd have an answer ready. Tigerclaw was not me. Tigerclaw took easy answers. Tigerclaw never believed his previous decisions were incorrect. His only answer was to bluff.
"Like Riverclan would ever admit their deputy was a code breaker. They probably came up with it to save face." Tigerclaw poorly lied.
Lionheart and Whitestorm were more convincing liars. They couldn't call out Tigerclaw now, but he was to suspicious to leave alone.
"That does sound like Riverclan." Lionheart mewed.
"Not that it matters. They killed our deputy first." Whitestorm stated slowly.
He'd been watching Tigerclaw's eyes closely. There was a brief moment where they contracted before returning to normal. Whitestorm seemed to have caught something. Hopefully this would push Tigerclaw right back into my paws.