CHAPTER 5

"Adderpaw! Wake up!" hissed a voice from beside Adderpaw. Adderpaw groaned and opened his eyes sleepily to find Amberpaw hovering over him, her eyes annoyed. "C'mon, we have the dawn patrol. Stormsight's going to be mad!" Amberpaw hissed.

"Ugh…" Adderpaw grumbled, standing up and shaking himself. He lapped at a few pieces of unruly fur before padding after his sister and emerging into the hollow.

The sun was just beginning to peak over the horizon, casting an orange glow upon the ThunderClan camp. Adderpaw joined Stormsight, Silverstep, and Redfur near the camp tunnel. "What took so long?" Stormsight asked, annoyed.

"Sorry," Adderpaw muttered, licking at one of his paws and drawing it back over his ear.

"Adderpaw, you need to be more responsible. It's been a moon since you were a kit, so why are you still acting like one?" Stormsight hissed sharply. Adderpaw widened his eyes. His mentor wasn't usually this short-tempered.

"I'm sorry. I'll do better," Adderpaw mewed guiltily.

"I sure hope so," Stormsight snorted, before whirling away and stalking off. The rest of the patrol followed, exchanging uneasy glances. Adderpaw and Amberpaw sagged behind.

"Sorry about that. He's in a foul mood today," Amberpaw whispered.

"I can tell," Adderpaw snorted. The two were silent for a moment.

"So, how's Jinxpaw?" Amberkit asked in a sing-song tone.

"Why don't you ask her yourself? You two are denmates as well, you know," Adderpaw snapped. Amberkit glared at him. "Sorry. I'm trying not to do that as much. But anyways, she's good. We're going hunting later." Warmth filled Adderpaw's heart as he thought of Jinxpaw's joyful green gaze.

"Adderpaw, Amberpaw! Quit dawdling!" Stormsight barked, interrupting their conversation.

"Sorry!" Amberpaw replied, quickening her pace. Adderpaw did the same, until they were right behind Stormsight. Suddenly, the patrol stopped as they reached the WindClan border.

"Adderpaw, go refresh the scent barks up there," Stormsight ordered, nodding towards the section of the stream. Adderpaw did so quickly before returning to the patrol.

"Are you done?" Redfur asked Adderpaw. Adderpaw nodded.

The rest of the day went by quickly, filled with lots of chores from Stormsight, until finally Adderpaw was dismissed from his duties. He met Jinxpaw at the Sky Oak to begin their hunt.

Jinxpaw's fur glowed in the light as she padded alongside Adderpaw. Her emerald eyes shone as she laughed. To Adderpaw, she was the picture of perfection.

"I smell rabbit!" Adderpaw announced as the two paused by a juniper bush. Jinxpaw tasted the air and nodded.

"I smell squirrel. I think it's down by the bank. Meet you back here?" she suggested. Adderpaw nodded, watching as she bounded off in the direction of the lake. Once again, he tasted the air, and dropped into a hunter's crouch as he spied a black and white splotched rabbit shuffling through the grass in front of him.

Suddenly, he sprang. But when he landed, it wasn't on top of the rabbit. He had slammed into another cat. He scrambled off, shocked. The rabbit, now spooked, scurried away, leaving Adderpaw and the strange cat alone.

"I'm so sorry!" Adderpaw exclaimed, embarrassed. In front of him was a beautiful young she-cat. She was slender, and had a white pelt dotted with black splotches. Her eyes were ice blue, and her ears were small. Adderpaw didn't recognize her scent.

"It's alright," she mewed, her voice soft, and she scrambled up into a seated position. "I-" she began, but was quickly cut off by Jinxpaw's yowl.

"Adderpaw? Where are you?" Jinxpaw called, her voice getting closer and closer.

"Quick! Hide!" Adderpaw hissed, shoving the strange she-cat into a small gap under a heather bush.

"Adderpaw! There you are!" Jinxpaw meowed, bursting through the bushes and into the small clearing. A juicy squirrel dangled from her jaws.

"Yeah. Sorry, I didn't get the rabbit," Adderpaw told her, shuffling his paws nervously.

"Oh, that's fine. This squirrel is enough for the whole clan," Jinxpaw chuckled, clearly proud of her catch.

"Ha! Yeah, good job. Why don't you bring that back to the elders and I'll keep looking for something. Stormsight will bite my head off if I come back empty-handed," Adderpaw told her, his tail twitching.

"You're right," Jinxpaw giggled. "See you later!" Jinxpaw waved her tail in goodbye and bounded away. Adderpaw hesitated a few moments.

"You can come out now," he meowed, turning around. The she-cat cautiously padded out.

"Don't worry, I won't hurt you," Adderpaw mewed reassuringly. "I'm Adderpaw, by the way."

"Thank you so much, Adderpaw. I'm Twilight. No offense, but your name is kind of…odd," Twilight told him. "Oh gosh! I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to say that!"

Adderpaw chuckled. "It's totally fine. I'm a ThunderClan cat, and in clans, we have different names," Adderpaw explained.

"I see. I've heard about your clans," Twilight meowed. "They sound neat, but definitely not for me. No offense."

"None taken. I'm guessing you're a loner, right?" Adderpaw asked.

"What's a…oh, wait, you're talking about cats that don't live in clans or with Twolegs, right?" Adderpaw nodded. "Yeah. That's what I am. Well, I live with Blue. Oh shoot, Blue's gonna kill me if I'm not back before dusk!" Twilight exclaimed. "I'm so sorry, but I've gotta run." Twilight began to whirl around and rush into the undergrowth.

"Wait!" Adderpaw shouted. Twilight paused. "I'll escort you to wherever you need to go. Other cats won't be as nice to trespassers as I am."

"Really? Thank you, Adderpaw," Twilight meowed. "I live in the old barn."

"Okay. That's not too far. We should be able to get you back before nightfall." Adderpaw looked up at the quickly fading light. He could make it back before anyone noticed. Maybe. Whatever. I can't let this poor cat wander the forest alone. "Ready?" Adderpaw asked. Twilight nodded. "Let's go!"

"So, what's clan life like?" Twilight asked after a few moments of them padding along in silence. Adderpaw thought for a moment.

"It's nice, I guess," Adderpaw finally replied. "You have a whole clan of cats by your side, and there's always people to support you. Plus, there's always fresh-kill to go around."

"That does sound nice. We get the occasional mouse in the barn, and Blue rarely lets me go out to hunt. I'm not very good at it, anyways," Twilight meowed. Adderpaw glanced over at her and noticed how her pelts clung to her ribs, and there was a dullness to her gaze.

"I'm sorry," Adderpaw mewed softly.

"It's alright. We're used to it," Twilight told him. Suddenly, an idea flashed through Adderpaw's mind.

"What if I bring prey to you two?" Adderpaw suggested. Twilight gaped at him.

"But isn't that not allowed? Besides, we don't want to take prey from your clan." Twilight's tone was unsure, yet a flicker of hope glimmered in her eyes.

"It's no trouble at all. It'll be good practice for me, anyway. And I'll bring it to you at night. No one will notice." Excitement pulsed in Adderpaw's chest. He could really make a difference!

"If you're sure…" Twilight muttered. "But really, thank you Adderpaw."

"It's the right thing to do. I want to show kindness to you and Blue," Adderpaw mewed.

"You might not think that after you meet Blue," Twilight snorted.

"She can't be that bad," Adderpaw laughed. Twilight flashed him a look, and they both burst into laughter.

"We're almost there," Twilight told him after a few minutes of light conversation.

"Okay. I-WHOA!" Adderpaw yelped as he plummeted downwards. He tumbled down a slope until he finally stopped in a dark, cool chamber. "Twilight?" he called, his voice echoing around the cave.

"I'm here!" Twilight replied. Adderpaw looked up the tunnel and saw her concerned face staring down into the cave.

"It's just an abandoned fox den," Adderpaw reassured her. He tasted the air, a very stale fox scent lingering around the cavern. "I'll come up now," he added, beginning to scramble up the slope. His paws aching, he finally reached the top, stretching out his limbs.

"Are you okay?" Twilight asked, her eyes wide. Adderpaw nodded.

"Let's keep going. It's getting really dark," Adderpaw meowed. The two began to trot side-by-side, the moonlight illuminating their pelts.

"We're here," Twilight told him moments later. The two brushes past a fern bush and emerged beside a huge wall made of hard red Twoleg stuff. Twilight guided Adderpaw around a corner until they stood before a huge red entryway. A dark-pelted she-cat was pacing frantically inside the barn.

"Twilight!" she yowled as the two trotted inside. The she-cat Adderpaw assumed must be Blue ran up to Twilight, circling her and sniffing her pelt. "Where have you been? Are you hurt? Are you hungry?" Blue asked. "Who's this?" Blue asked, narrowing her eyes and wrinkling her nose as she finally noticed Adderpaw.

"Blue, this is Adderpaw. Adderpaw's my friend. He's part of ThunderClan," Twilight explained. Adderpaw dipped his head to the elderly she-cat.

"It's nice to meet you," he told her respectfully.

"Hmph," Blue sniffed, her tail waving.

"Adderpaw has offered to bring us fresh-kill from the forest," Twilight added, flashing Adderpaw a small, grateful smile.

"Hmm. That's nice of him, I suppose," Blue sighed. "I like voles." With that, Blue gave Adderpaw a haughty sniff before whirling around and stalking off into the dark, dusty barn.

"Anyways, Adderpaw, thanks again. When should we meet next?" Twilight asked.

"How about tomorrow night?" Adderpaw suggested. "Meet me by the old fox den since it's on the very edge of our territory. There's rarely any patrols there."

"Okay," Twilight agreed. They stood there awkwardly for a few moments before Twilight added, "Goodbye for now, Adderpaw."

"See you," he meowed, dipping his head. With that, he turned away and headed off into the night.

Oh god. What did I get myself into?

Notes: So. Do you like Adderpaw x Jinxpaw or Adderpaw x Twilight better? Personally, I think Jinxpaw and Twilight are pretty similar so far and it's hard to choose. Also…

EXCITING ANNOUNCEMENT

I'm hosting a competition to determine the names of four kits: Two she-cats and two toms

Tom #1: A brown tabby tom with white paws and ginger splotches

Tom #2: A silvery-white tom with gray and black splotches

She-cat #1: A brown tabby she-cat with white socks, white paws, and a white underbelly and neck

She-cat #2: An amber-brown tabby she-cat that looks like a tiger

INSTRUCTIONS: PM me with name ideas for whatever cat you want (be sure to specify she-cat #2 or smth). You can offer suggestions for one or all of them. Also, they are clan names, so they should end in 'kit'. If you want to guess who the parents are, feel free to comment or add that in your PM. Be warned, your name may not be used. Please do not spam me if it isn't used. If I DO use your suggestion, you will be credited. Best of luck to you!

Sincerely,

Onyx

AKA ur fav fanfic writer! :D