Rainpaw awoke the next morning with a yawn, she had been out since moonhigh. Nightfur had decided to turn retrieving the prey into a game. Rainpaw and Ashpaw V.S. Brightpaw and Nightfur; They split the prey into two equal parts and ran from there to the fresh-kill pile. Whoever finishes first, wins. Rainpaw's team lost, but it didn't bother her much because she was too tired to worry about something like that.
Rainpaw had the same nightmare again last night too, except this time, no one woke her up. The monster came closer and then anguish had consumed her. She had tried to meow out in pain, but nothing came out but strangled gurgling sounds, while a metallic taste filled her throat. Her body was mangled and her fur was soaked and matted. She had lay there for a moment before everything suddenly felt light and she slowly closed her eyes. She let the darkness consume her as she still heard the whooshing and roaring of the monsters. Then she woke up to her heart pounding and her ears ringing. It was still night so she eventually went back to sleep.
She rose to her paws, dim light filling the cave. She turned towards Ashpaw, who was still asleep beside the spot where she had lay and looked down at her. She was beautiful, in Rainpaw's eyes, with her sleek pelt that seemed to be 50 different shades of gray and her vibrant green eyes. She didn't realize she was smiling until the sleeping cat began to stir. Rainpaw crouched down into a stretch, acting as though she had just awoken.
"Morning Rainpaw" Ashpaw greeted with a yawn, starting to stretch as well.
Rainpaw stopped stretching and quickly groomed her front paw. Ashpaws soft fur rubbed her flank as she brushed up to Rainpaw, and then they both bounded out of the den to meet Nightfur. Brightpaw was already waiting when they arrived. They mewed a greeting and then waited for instructions.
Silence. Nightfur was staring over their heads at seemingly nothing.
The three exchanged glances.
"Um- Nightfur?" Brightpaw said, breaking the silence.
"Hm?" Nightfur asked, turning towards them.
"What are we doing today?" asked Rainpaw
Nighfur shook herself "hunting assessment, I will be watching all of you. Hunt until sunhigh and bring back your kills."
And with that the three apprentices ran off into the forest.
~fifteen minutes ago~
Nightfurs POV
Morning birdsong filled her ears, and stirred her from her sleep. Half-way opening one eye, she looked at the light that reflected onto the ground, judging what time it must be. About fifteen minutes before the apprentices would awake.
She looked over at Whitefoot and Yellowfur, two toms who were also beginning to wake. Yellowfur is father to Brightpaw. Tucked in the opposite corner of the den sat Foxtail, who was grooming his fur. Rustpaw, Maplepaw, and Ashpaw are his kids and he is currently mated to a gray tabby queen, Graypelt. Graypelt doesn't have any kits at the moment, but she chose to stay a queen. There were 10 other cats in the den, excluding the deputy, who were all still asleep.
She gave Oakfang, the tan furred deputy, a nod of respect and slipped out of the den. Outside, the air was crisp and smelled of fresh rain. She slid her paws forward and leaned down, stretching her back. The ground was cold and damp from the morning dew. She switched to a sitting position and began to groom her fur.
After a bit, she stopped and sat in the peacefulness of the quiet camp. She was glad the warrior's den was right next to the camp entrance, so she only had to walk a couple paw-steps to get there.
"Ten more minutes," She thought, "Then the apprentice will wake."
A crackle of leaves behind her sounded, and she spun around to the direction of disturbance. Now facing the gorse tunnel, she opened her mouth, breathing in the scent of the unknown character. Nightfur froze at the foul scent. Letting out a shaky hiss, unsheathing her claws and baring her fangs. She waited for an attack, but none came. The scent slightly faded away, back out of the camp. She darted out the tunnel and into the dawning light of the marshy territory, following the scent.
"When I find you, I am going to tear you to shreds, Redfang!" She hissed quietly into the now-eerie silence.
She padded in small circles sniffing the air. He seemed to have walked around the entrance multiple times before entering camp and drawing her out, making it near impossible to find his exact location. Pausing, she took in the scents around her, finding the stalest and newest ones. She rechecked herself before deeming it the correct scent.
She thought to herself, So you're over there!-
Before she could leap, a gray mess of fur tackled her to the ground, pushing her onto her back as he put his paw on her throat.
"Well, hello again, Nightfur" He hissed
She kicked at his stomach, a futile attempt at freedom, as he simply unsheathed the claws from the paw at her neck. The tom glared at her, which seemed to give a silent threat 'try that again, i dare you', before speaking again.
"Look i'll make this short, you don't tell anyone else about this, and i won't kill you, and every cat you care about." He said, pure malice laced in his voice, "come to the four trees at dusk, and i'll discuss with you my reasons for being here"
He removed his paw from her throat and leaped back and darted a couple fox-lengths away, before looking back. "Be there" he hissed, before slipping away.
Nightfur shook out her coat, giving her chest a nervous lick. What am I supposed to do? She asked herself, She knew for herself that Redfang made no empty threats. She stood up and padded back into the camp, and saw the apprentices beginning to rise. She sat at the entrance and let herself take the next few minutes to fully process her encounter.
She hadn't even realized that the apprentices had arrived until she heard Brightpaw mew "Um- Nightfur?"
"Hm?" She said in return, turning her head to face them.
"What are we doing today?" asked Rainpaw
Nighfur shook her thoughts away "Hunting assessment, I will be watching all of you. Hunt until sunhigh and bring back your kills."
She watched the apprentices disappear into the forest, and gave it a few seconds, before darting in after them and starting after Brightpaws scent first.
Word count: 1101
A/N: I finally got this chapter done! I've been struggling with the wording and events for a bit but I think I got it pretty good! Thank you for reading!
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A Warrior Cats Tail
FanfictionA young kit named Rain Cloud with a rainbow pelt, thinks she's the cause of her parent's deaths. She then meets the young leader of Shadow Clan, a black cat named Stormstar. She is determined to prove herself to her new clan and become the best warr...
