Prophecy

Chapter 4: Darkpaw's POV

As Darkpaw and Tallshadow walked out of camp, Darkpaw noticed Shadepaw and Littleshine talking. 'If she wants to be a medicine cat, let her be a medicine cat,' Darkpaw thought as she focused on the path out. "What will we be doing today?" Darkpaw asked. "The territories," Tallshadow said, as if she should have known before. "So you don't stumble upon them while we practice hunting."

Darkpaw fell silent. 'He doesn't mean that,' Darkpaw hoped. 'Does he?'

Tallshadow lead her to a sunny-looking place, with little brambles. "This is the moor," He started. "Where LightClan lives. Cross onto their territory and your crowfood."

"Are they the only rival clan we have?" Darkpaw asked. "Well," Tallshadow's tail was swishing from side to side. "We have BorderClan."

"BorderClan?" Darkpaw was genuinely confused. "What type of name is that?"

"Not even a clan," Tallshadow snarled. "Just a pathetic rouge group that started showing up at our gatherings and started calling themselves a clan."

Darkpaw could tell he had something against them. "Anyways, best I show you BorderClan's territory," Tallshadow growled. 'He just speaks with growling and snarling,' Darkpaw joked to herself. They padded through brambles and through thicker parts of the swamps. Finally, they reached half-cleared half-swampy territory, like the swamps but less, well, swampy. "Welcome to BorderClan territory," Tallshadow glared into BorderClan's territory. Darkpaw's eyes filled with wonder as Tallshadow glared at her. Darkpaw just ignored it, then she heard rustling coming from BorderClan's side of the border. "Why, exactly, do they call themselves BorderClan?" Darkpaw asked. "They live on the border of DarkClan and LightClan," Tallshadow snarled as if Darkpaw was stupid. "That should be obvious."

"Well," Darkpaw snapped back. "Sorry I am a new apprentice and know nothing about BorderClan or Light--," Darkpaw was cut off by a huge warrior from BorderClan pinning her down. "Get away from our territory," He snarled. "Invaders!"

It seemed the tom had been alone, so Darkpaw slashed his face and pushed him off. Darkpaw lunged at the tom when another cat bolted from the bushes and yowled, "Stop!"

Darkpaw stopped her lunge, and the tom didn't seem happy the she-cat interfered.

"Nettle, let me kill the DarkClan cat," said the tom. "She seems young," Nettle objected. "She probably didn't want to cross, Bush."

Bush stalked off into the bushes, and hissed over his shoulder, "Your lucky Nettle stopped me, but next time you won't get lucky."

"What in StarClan was that!" yowled Tallshadow. "I thought he was alone, so I tried to attack," Darkpaw trailed off. "I should teach for battle, so next time your opponent will be the one to almost die," Tallshadow smirked as if he had killed his one clanmates. "First, how to swipe at another cat."

Tallshadow unsheathed his claws as he spoke, then swiped for Darkpaw's ear. And before she could react, Tallshadow had slashed her ear and left a tear. "Yeorw!" Darkpaw yowled as she felt blood trickling down her shoulder and on to the dusty ground. "Why did you do that?!" Darkpaw winced in pain. "That," Tallshadow started. "Was for almost getting yourself hurt."

Darkpaw looked at Tallshadow with fear. 'Will he do this again?' She thought. Tallshadow continued. "You need to curve your paw, like this."

He curved his paw like how Littleshine picked up herbs in the moons Darkpaw had been in the nursery. Then, he swung it in the air at Darkpaw again, but Darkpaw dogged. "Now you try," Tallshadow hissed. Darkpaw curved her paw, and swung it at Tallshadow. He dodged carelessly and said, "Better aim next time, you swung at my neck."

"That's not true!" She snarled back at him. "I swiped at your ear!"

"Enough, we should head back to camp, you useless lump of flesh," Tallshadow said coldly. They turned and headed away from the clearing. "But I aimed at his ear," Darkpaw whispered to herself. "Learn to be less careless," Tallshadow  sneered as they neared camp.
"Also," he continued. "Get that ear checked out."

Darkpaw felt a wave of anger wash over her. They entered camp and she and Tallshadow went to different directions. Tallshadow headed to the elders den and Darkpaw headed to the medicine den. "Shadepaw?" Darkpaw asked. "Are you here?"

"You bet I am!" Shadepaw chirped with joy as she bounded over to Darkpaw. Shadepaw glanced at  the violent tear in Darkpaw's ear. "What did you do?" Shadepaw's face grew close to Darkpaw's as she continued speaking. "Thorns nicked your ear?"

"Yeah," Darkpaw said, wincing at the sting of the tear. 'She can't know Tallshadow did this,' Darkpaw realized. 'Who knows what Tallshadow will do to her.'

"Let's patch up that ear for you," Shadepaw said kindly as she brought her face away. She went into a small cave in the side of the den and mewed something Darkpaw couldn't hear. Just then, Littleshine emerged from the cave, herbs in her mouth. "This is a good opportunity for you to learn a few things, Shadepaw," The brown tabby mewed.

As Littleshine worked a weird green poltice into Darkpaw's ear, Shadepaw looked at her in awe. "I can't believe there is so much to learn!" She squealed. "You should stay in the medicine den for awhile," Littleshine mewed caringly. "We wouldn't want that wound getting infected now, would we?"

Darkpaw couldn't get her mind off Tallshadow. 'He'll get caught doing that again eventually,' she hoped. Another part of her hoped that Tallshadow would continue to hurt Darkpaw, but next time it would be more then a few nicked ears.