Rising from the Ashes

Chapter 7

It had been a half-moon since the volunteers had arrived in GrassClan. By now, Bramblestripe had taken his turn staying in camp, hunting and patrolling the Clan's borders. He was beginning to get to know his new Clanmates and got along with them too. He had fallen into the rhythm of GrassClan. It was a lot of hard work but it was also everything Bramblestripe had been hoping for in his new Clan.

He was on the dawn patrol this morning. He had a feeling it would be interesting. Swanflight was leading it but Hareflight was there just in case she needed it, along with Birchleg. He wouldn't have had the two most timid cats in the Clan paired with the most energetic. It was almost like Thistletail wanted them to fail. The GrassClan deputy had made no secret of his disdain for the volunteers so it was no surprise.

Back in OakClan, their borders had all been woodland. Here in GrassClan, all of their borders were completely different. They started off on the section of meadow that bordered an unclaimed woodland. Thankfully, the border was quiet, save for Birchleg. The mottled tom charged ahead and chattered excitedly. Swanflight didn't seem to mind. Of course, they had come from the same Clan so she was probably used to it.

Bramblestripe found Birchleg's energy refreshing. It would never have been allowed in OakClan. His birth Clan had been so strict about everything. He was glad to see that GrassClan was nothing like that, allowing cats to have far more freedom. It was one of the things he had been looking for when he left OakClan.

They left the woodland behind as they reached the ravine. It wasn't a real border as of course the ravine belonged to all four Clans. It was also the shortest border. They mostly patrolled this stretch to make sure that PineClan stayed on their side of the ravine. Thankfully, all appeared quiet.

It was when they turned onto the river trail that things got interesting. Without hesitation, Birchleg leapt into the river with a splash. The rest of the patrol stayed on the trail, watching their Clanmate with wide eyes.

"Come on in, the water's fine!" Birchleg invited, diving under briefly before resurfacing.

"Birchleg, this is a border patrol!" Swanflight exclaimed.

"And the river is our border, isn't it?" Birchleg blinked up at his Clanmate, clearly unconcerned. "Hey, is anybody hungry? I could catch us a fish!"

"Birchleg, no!" Swanflight protested but it was too late.

The mottled tom had already slipped under the water.

"Is he always like this?" Bramblestripe asked, cocking his head.

Swanflight sighed. "Yeah."

Birchleg resurfaced with a silver fish clamped in his jaws. He clambered back to shore and shook himself off, splattering the rest of his patrol in the process. "Let's eat!"

Bramblestripe and Hareflight exchanged a look. Bramblestripe had never been tempted to eat fish before and he could see the same doubt in Hareflight's eyes.

"Er, thanks, Birchleg but I'll pass," Bramblestripe meowed.

"What about you, Hareflight?" Birchleg asked.

Hareflight shook his head. "I, I'm not hungry."

"More for me and Swanflight then," Birchleg chirped.

The two former WillowClan warriors ate the fish in neat, famished bites while Bramblestripe and Hareflight waited nearby. They finished quickly and then kept moving. Even though it cut through OakClan territory, Bramblestripe had never given much thought to the river before. Here out in the open, he could see its broad expanse sweeping endlessly by; it had its own beauty and soothing rhythm. Not that he would ever want to start swimming or eating fish but he could understand why WillowClan chose to do so.

Too soon, the forest rose up before them. For the first time, Bramblestripe hesitated. He had left his birth Clan behind for many reasons. He had no desire to return or even get close. Yet, he was a part of the border patrol. Besides, he didn't want to be afraid forever. He had left that behind in OakClan.

He had to do this.

"Hey, Bramblestripe! You coming?" Birchleg called at the edge of the trees.

"Yes," Bramblestripe meowed. He had stopped just short of entering the forest, the rest of the patrol drawing ahead of him. He willed himself to move and rejoined them.

The acrid tang of charred wood and ash wafted over them. It had been four seasons since the fire that had ravaged GrassClan and part of OakClan. Yet, the damage still remained. Even now, it made Bramblestripe uneasy, remembering the horror of the fire. It hadn't come close to OakClan's camp but even this was too close for comfort.

The patrol fell unnaturally silent, even Birchleg. The weight of the tragedy was heaviest here. The meadow had mostly recovered, springing back to life and hiding the still scorched earth in the tall grass. Yet, there was no hiding here. The undergrowth was only now beginning to grow back, slowly, hesitantly, as if it too were unsure whether it should be here.

Would the forest ever recover?

Bramblestripe could only hope so. It was a beautiful place, if not as resilient as the meadow was. While there weren't many, he did have some fond memories of the forest. Given enough time, the undergrowth would reclaim the burned wood, hiding the scars as if they had never been there in the first place. If only I could do the same, he thought wryly.

Swanflight hesitated, glancing through the trees with an uncertain frown on her face. Her tail twitched and she cast a glance at the rest of her patrol.

"Still haven't got your bearings yet, huh?" Bramblestripe guessed with a sympathetic look.

Swanflight flinched away from him and Bramblestripe tried not to take it personally. He was big, he was scarred and he was little more than a complete stranger. Of course, gentle little Swanflight was going to be afraid of him. He hoped that she would come around to see that he wasn't as scary as he looked. For now though, he took a step back, not wanting to make the white she-cat any more uncomfortable than she already was.

"I think it's this way!" Birchleg exclaimed, darting off in the completely wrong direction.

"No, it isn't!" Bramblestripe called, relieved that Birchleg immediately veered back to join them.

Hareflight stepped forward. "The border is that way," he meowed with a flick of his tail.

Swanflight blinked gratefully at the brown warrior before taking the lead once more. Now that she knew the way, the white she-cat picked up the pace and it didn't take long for them to reach the border. It was no surprise that the OakClan dawn patrol had already passed through, leaving their scent markers good and strong. They had been doing that since the volunteers arrived in GrassClan, no doubt warning them that they wouldn't tolerate trespassers, former Clanmates or otherwise. Not to mention, OakClan was large enough to have multiple border patrols so they could finish far faster than their smaller rivals who only had one.

It hadn't taken long for the musty scent of OakClan to become suddenly repulsive to the former OakClan warrior; he much preferred the clean, fresh scent of GrassClan. As they moved along the border, Bramblestripe checked for one scent in particular. He felt a wave of relief as he found it wasn't there. The stretch of woodland that belonged to GrassClan wasn't very big and Bramblestripe was thankful that the fire damage stretched far enough into OakClan that no rival patrols could sneak up on them. They were able to travel quickly along the border and it wasn't too much longer before they were leaving it behind them.

As they left the forest behind, the almost oppressive air that had hung over them thick as a cloud lifted. The tall, cool grass and clear sky above them was a welcome change. They each relaxed, picking up the pace once more as they wound their way back through the meadow. The dawn patrol had done its duty. Now it was back to camp for their next task!