The Night Circle (The Red Tide #1)

Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Ashpaw's tail whisked behind her as she trotted after her mentor. Quickstrike's head was up and her tail lashing; she trotted ahead of her apprentice with purpose. Ashpaw followed her, steps in line with the apprentices beside her, still unsure where they were going. Quickstrike hadn't told her what they were doing when she'd swooped into the den and called all the she-cat apprentices from their sleep.
"Up!" she'd said , voice taut and lacking the calm authority it usually carried, nudging each she-cat until she uncurled from her nest. "We have something to do."

Now, all five she-cats followed behind Quickstrike, exchanging quizzical looks.
"What are we doing?" Applepaw murmured, voice still bleary from sleep.

"No clue. You?" Honeypaw turned her golden gaze on Ashpaw. "You're her apprentice, after all."

Ashpaw shook her head.
"No idea."

Rainpaw and Seedpaw were quiet beside her, tails swishing as they bounded after Quickstrike. Applepaw and Honeypaw fell back a bit, their paws reluctant.
"Come on you two," Quickstrike meowed, flicking her tail to beckon them forward.

Applepaw fell in step beside Ashpaw, and the black and gray she-cat tried to ignore how her crush's tail kept accidentally flicking hers. Get a grip already, she scolded herself, but the butterflies kept on fluttering.
"What do you think this is about?" Applepaw meowed, turning to Ashpaw. The delighted "ooh, she talked to me!" dance of her heart diverted her attention, and she took a calming breath. She asked you a simple question, she reminded herself. Don't stammer, or she'll think you're a mouse-brain.

Her mind whirled, trying to come up with something memorable to say, but she needed to respond fast and there wasn't a reply on the tip of her tongue. Time to wing it.
"Oh, I don't know, probably some night hunting or something. You know how Quickstrike is," she replied, then congratulated herself on the nonchalant tone of her voice. So smooth.

"Mm, maybe," Applepaw twitched her ears in contemplation, "that is something she would do."

They followed Quickstrike through the forest until they reached a small clearing Ashpaw had never been to before. It was shadowed by large trees whose canopies spread over the whole area, and they had to squeeze through a tangle of vines to get there. The grass was cool underpaw, and moonlight filtered through the leaves in little silvery patches. It took Ashpaw's eyes a moment to adjust, but soon she could make out the faces of her companions again.

"Sit down, all of you," Quickstrike ordered, swishing her tail. The five young she-cats sat in a semicircle around her, and she settled into the grass as well. A young owl screamed somewhere in the darkness, prickling Ashpaw's fur along her spine. Apprehension nestled deep in her belly, and based on their expressions, the other she-cats were feeling the chill as well.

"I want you all to remember a few very important things as you go throughout your lives, things that will make the difference between a happy life and a miserable one." Ashpaw gave her mentor a confused look. What was she on about?

"First, always remember that you can share your opinions whenever you like, no matter what anyone says. Second, keep in mind that toms can never control you. And most importantly, if someone, no matter who they are, tries to pressure you into a life you do not wish to have, there is always a way out." Quickstrike's voice was filled with intensity as she spoke, and she fixed her fierce sapphire gaze on the five bewildered cats before her. Her tail lashed, a black snake in the soft grass, and there was something captivating about her aura in that moment that took Ashpaw's breath despite her confusion.

After a long silence, Seedpaw spoke.
"Is that all you had to say, or... was there more?"

Quickstrike opened her jaws as if to speak, then shook her head.
"No," she meowed, "you may return to camp. But remember, if it gets bad, come to this clearing on clear, crescent-moon nights. We will be here to help."

The she-cats exchanged baffled looks and left the little shelter, trotting back to their nests. The crescent moon was high in the night-darkened sky, and the stars winked softly at them as they made their trek back.

"That was the weirdest ever," Rainpaw meowed, "like what? Those were the most obvious things ever, and she said it like we were all going to forget by tomorrow, and why did we have to go out in the middle of the night to talk about that like it was some big secret?"

"I'd never been to that clearing before," Applepaw replied, "maybe she didn't want the other mentors finding it? I mean, that doesn't make a lot of sense, but..."

What other explanation was there?

"Who knows? Let's just get to our nests so we can sleep," Honeypaw sighed, dramatic as always, and flicked her tail in dismissal.

Ashpaw wasn't ready to brush this strange night away just yet, not privately at least. Anxiety, unfamiliar but persistent, was crawling through her pelt like hordes of scuttling ants, prickling her in all the wrong places. She hated the worry, but it wouldn't leave her. Why was Quickstrike so intense about reminding them that they had choices? Why had she only called the she-cats out of camp to talk about this? What had she meant when she said "if it gets bad?"

And most terrifying of all, why had her eyes been so full of what almost looked... like fear? Ashpaw had never seen that on her mentor, and it scared her more than she would ever admit.

She thought of Fernpaw then, desperately worried over a little argument, and rolled her eyes at herself. This was so unnecessary; she didn't need to fret over every little thing like he did. Giving herself a shake, she quickened her pace and lifted her head.

No more worrying, she told herself, but her mind kept whispering. Even if it was strange that Quickstrike had brought them out here in the middle of the night? Even if Quickstrike had looked... scared, like something was coming to take their voices away? It was unimportant, Ashpaw was fine, and she needed to put it out of her thoughts. Sucking in a deep breath of crisp night air that danced on her tongue, she forced her nerves to settle. Everything was okay, this was nothing.

As Ashpaw settled in her nest and closed her eyes, clouds drifted over the moon, dark as a raven's wing, and star-guided rain began to fall.