Warriors: The Fall of the Clans: Sunlight

Chapter 10

Dawnpaw scrambled away. Her breathing came erratically. Dove wing was dead, and a murderer in their midst. "All of you! Stop! Get in your Clans spots at once!" Nightstar roared, her eyes glinting with anger. Froststar leaped down, and began nudging warriors away. "Stop! Back away, please. Let Willowstar through." He said authoritatively. Dawnpaw numbly backed away, finding herself next to Foxpaw, who looked equally disturbed. Willowstar's tortoiseshell fur was bristled, and her haunches raised. Her eyes looked as though they were filled with shock and indignation. She leaped down, stumbling a bit, and then approached Dovewing's body. "Fawnlight? Please check if Dovewing has joined StarClan." She said briskly. Dawnpaw thought the leader would be a bit more grieving, but apparently not. Even Nightstar looked somewhat taken aback by the she-cat's composure. Fawnlight padded up to Dovewing, and touched her nose to Dovewing's neck. She stayed like that for a moment, a bated moment filled with unease.

Fawnlight looked up. "She's dead." She said morosely.

Willowstar closed her eyes, and made a soft strained sound, before looking up, sharp as ever. "Right. Mistedfog, Ravenwing, Pondfly, Runningfoot, please help me take her back to ThunderClan, as our only elder cannot carry the weight by himself. Ravenwing and Pondfly murmured assent, too busy looking at Dovewing in regret. Froststar looked over. "Cloudsky? Go with them please." The she-cat nodded. She exchanged a lopsided worried smile with Skynose, before padding over to join Ravenwing, Runningfoot, Pondfly and Mistedfog, as they began to carry Dovewing away.

Dawnpaw ambled over to her mentor. "Uh, Skynose? What'll we do now?" The tom looked tense. "I suppose the leaders will disperse back to their Clans." He said tersely. She nodded, seeing he was no help and walking towards Snowpaw and Moonpaw, but bumping into someone small and dark russet.

"Foxpaw?! Mousebrain, can't you watch where you're going?"

"Oh please, you're one to talk, Dawnpaw."

"You look as freaked out as a mouse that's caught on to the fact it's being hunted." She said.

"So do you. It's because we are." He said darkly, glancing towards Moonpaw and Snowpaw. "We should really get going..." Dawnpaw nodded. "I'm sure that Froststar will announce our departure soon enough." She looked around. She found it strangely endearing that Foxpaw was so caring of his siblings. It was nice. She looked for her own brother.

Dawnpaw's heart began to sink. "Stormpaw?" She looked around wildly. "Where is he?!" She asked, paranoia kicking in. "Stormpaw!" Foxpaw looked around. "Relax. He's probably around here somewhere." Dawnpaw couldn't hear him. She thought of all the teasing and mean things she'd done and said to Stormpaw. She'd never gotten a chance to fix that. And now she never might...

Dawnpaw began to walk hastily after her brother's scent. "Dawnpaw! Stop! Where are you going?" Foxpaw called exasperatedly at her heels. "Dawnpaw! Dawnpaw! Listen." She had to stop as he blocked her way. Dawnpaw hissed. "What?!" He twitched his ear. "Listen." He said calmly. Dawnpaw stopped for a moment, her ear swivelling slightly, searching for sounds.

"Hah. Nah this is freaky..."

Stormpaw's voice filled Dawnpaw with relief. "I'm going to kill him..." Foxpaw sighed and rolled his eyes as she began to stalk towards her brother. "I'm too stuck for my own good..." Foxpaw muttered. Dawnpaw didn't have time to decode or demand what he meant. She was busy tackling Stormpaw. "Ow! Dawnpaw?! What in StarClan?" She got up. "Don't scare me, fishbrain!" She said indignantly. She noticed Nightstar calling ShadowClan together and avoided her gaze. "RiverClan! Let's go!" Froststar's cry made them begin to move back towards him, and she rejoined with Moonpaw."Where were you? Moonpaw asked curiously. Dawnpaw flicked her tail. "I'll tell you later. Not here..." Moonpaw nodded, although now more curious than ever. They began running, sprinting the distance of moorland, before suddenly stopping at the stepping stones, causing quite a few cats to stumble into one another. Dawnpaw stopped just short, as the cats began swimming and hopping across onto the island. She leaped into the water, smiling as the waves lapped past her fur, and she propelled herself with her legs,
V
*
I
As they reached camp, Dawnpaw was too exhausted to confront Streamfeather, as shed promised to do. "Hey, Stormpaw? Listen, um, it's about our father..." She mumbled as they stopped. Her brother looked puzzled. "What about him?" Dawnpaw stared at the floor. "Streamfeather...explained that Hailclaw wasn't who we thought he was. And she promised to explain the whole truth to both of us now." Stormpaw gaped for a moment. Dawnpaw tried to gauge his reaction. His mouth twisted into a frown. "And you only tell me now?" He demanded. Dawnpaw felt sheepish. "No, I just didn't see you, and the Gathering, all the stuff that happened, and it just happened before-" He interrupted. "And you couldn't tell me this. At all." He said monotonely. Dawnpaw looked down. "I'm sorry Stormpaw. Really." He looked angry, but didn't fume. "Whatever, Dawnpaw. It's always like this with you. What's new?" He turned, stalking into the apprentice den. Dawnpaw sighed.

She followed after him, nestling into her nest after seeing all the apprentices asleep, save for one empty nest, which belonged to Foxpaw. Being Foxpaw, he was probably up to no good. Dawnpaw yawned. She'd check later...her nest was surprisingly soft, softer than she'd remembered...her muscles felt exhausted, to point of collapse. Dawnpaw
drifted to sleep.

*

"How am I supposed to leap and slash his back?!"

Stormpaw rolled his eyes. Snowpaw sat in the centre of the small clearing-like training area, bordering the shoreside with a small wading area. He scratched his ear patiently. Moonpaw was watching from the outskirts with a gentle smile, as Dawnpaw's agitated and annoyed tone cut into the air, as always. Foxpaw looked strangely tired, and kept glancing around uneasily.

Dawnpaw realized she might've sounded a bit annoying, but focused on Skynose, who looked equally agitated. "Dawnpaw. Please. Just. Do. As. I. Say." He said, straining not to snap at her. Dawnpaw sullenly glared at Snowpaw,before crouching, bending her back legs and getting ready to jump. "Remember, claws sheathed." Dawnpaw flicked her tail to tell her mentor she had heard, and bolted upwards, for a moment flying, before coming to her senses, and trying to land on his back.

She'd jumped too far.

With an impressive splash! Dawnpaw fell into the water, her eyes widening as she made contact with the water. Her fur began to drag her down, an panic began to set in as she realized what kind of water she'd gotten thrown into. The Currents waters had somehow gotten here and she hadn't noticed...

This was just the same as that dark night when they'd swum through the Currents. Only why would anyone save her now? Dawnpaw's lungs ached, screaming for air, but she was too deep to get any. She began to fall, deeper, and deeper, and as she fell, her heart began to sink, her vision began to darken, and her ears popped.

She wanted to protest, to scream out for help. Anything. Why wasn't anyone trying to reach her? Didn't they care? Why wasn't anyone rescuing her?

Was she that worthless?

Did she not deserve to be saved?

Dawnpaw's vision faded entirely. Her lungs stopped screaming. And for a brief second, she felt peaceful. Tranquil. More so than she had her entire life.

Dawnpaw saw her life. But it hadn't been one future. There'd been several. Her becoming a warrior. Falling in love with a reddish-furred tom, becoming mates, being happy. Teasing her brother. Expecting kits. Becoming a mother. Mourning her own mother. And eventually becoming an elder, telling young hopeful apprentices her adventurous tales. Mourning her mates death. And dying.

But there was a different one. She saw herself running away. She saw herself grown up. She saw herself settle down with a mate, but he ran away one she'd had her kits. She saw herself scraping by. She saw the reddish furred tom again, a leader, and tried to rejoin. He let her. She became an outsider. The Clans went to war. Until no Clan remained. And she died.

Dawnpaw wanted to warn her friends. She wanted to do something. But she couldn't.

Because, as a small bubble finally escaped her lips,

Dawnpaw died.