Warriors: Crow's Carrion

Chapter Ten

     Ospreypaw followed Darkshadow closely as he led them along the river. Webheart and Eelmask walked with them; their ears were perked, and their eyes scanned the far shore for any signs of disruption. So far, they'd traveled around at least half of the island without encountering any issues. They hadn't had a chance to inspect the opposite shores, and Ospreypaw doubted they'd be able to.

     With the sun high in the sky, they padded past the huge tree-bridge. Ospreypaw searched the water's edge for signs of an easy catch, but saw nothing until they were near the northern fork in the river.

     They caught sight of a school of minnows, and peered down at them from above. "Can we stop to catch these?"

     "Hm." Darkshadow glanced around. "We really shouldn't. It'd be best to report back first, and then we can come back out to fish if it's needed."

     "It couldn't hurt," Eelmask mewed quietly without looking at Darkshadow. "We could all catch something."

     "Eel is right," Webheart said, flicking his tail. "Besides, I'd like to see Osprey's progress. All of the apprentices wanted to be assigned to you, you know."

     "Alright, fine," Darkshadow said after a few moments of consideration. "It's not like I can argue with two senior warriors. Go ahead, Osprey."

     Ospreypaw crouched quickly, eyeing the fish as they swam circles in the shallows. They pulled their paw back with claws unsheathed, ready to fish them out and present them to the older cats. Just as they tensed their muscles to lash out, a commotion sounded from NightClan's shores.

     They perked their ears and glanced at the patrol briefly. Webheart, Eelmask, and Darkshadow each angled their ears toward the noise as well. Ospreypaw looked across the river and saw a group of NightClan cats walking down from the distant river beyond Clan territory. Starfalls is up there, Ospreypaw thought, narrowing their eyes. One day, I'll have to travel there, too, to complete my training.

     Ashenpeak, Finchcall, and Rookshade were all on the patrol. Ashenpeak and Finchcall walked closely together, their grey and brown pelts brushing, while Rookshade walked at the rear of the patrol. There were two more cats with them—a slender grey molly named Nyx, said to be the mother of Ashenpeak and Rainberry, and a dark brown tom that could only be Gladepaw, one of Finchcall's kits.

     Suddenly, Ashenpeak broke away from the group to splash around in the shallow water. She called for Finchcall to join her, her voice echoing over the still river. Gladepaw padded closely by Rookshade's side, both of them watching their Clanmate.

     "I'll join you if you can catch a fish," Finchcall meowed, her ears flattened in disgust.

     "Easy," Ashenpeak laughed loudly, waving her tail at her patrol before turning to look at the water. "Watch this."

     "Ash!" Nyx snapped, approaching the water's edge fearlessly. "Get out of there before you cause more trouble."

     "Relax, mom," Ashenpeak said, splashing the water back at her. "If anything happens with RushClan, we'll just pummel them again—I'm sure Daceclaw and Mudbreath won't soon forget how their fights went!"

     Beside Osprey, Webheart stifled a low growl. They glanced at him and caught him digging his claws into the sandy earth. Mudbreath is still suffering because of them! Ospreypaw thought angrily, lashing their tail.

     "Web, Osprey, relax," Eelmask urged quietly, brushing against each of them. "We'll be able to return the favor soon enough. They'll be sorry, then."

     "They're snake-hearts," Darkshadow muttered, lifting his chin. "The whole Clan is—especially Falconstar and his coward deputy, Fogsight."