Warriors: What Is There To Do?

Chapter 18- He Has A Name Now

"Yeah, it's crazy," Moonpaw muttered, sending a sidelong glance at Splitpaw as if to say, 'who in Starclan is this mouse-brained tom?', or at least that's what she read out of it.

The tom sat down, as if nothing was out of place, and started cleaning his paws. His lithe grey-silver body, now that he told them what clan he was from, held obvious signs of Riverclan, such as his hooked claws and glossy fur. He has larger than normal paws, each looking fluffy and adorabl-

Wait, what was she thinking?! He was Riverclan, it didn't matter that his paws looked softer than swan feathers, she will still hate him! He's Riverclan, the clan that abused her. Ignored her. Destroyed her early moons. Made her apprentice training twice as hard as it should be, and made her feel like a stranger in her own body at times.

"I caught a rabbit a bit earlier and it was too big for me to finish, so if you two want some you can," the tom spoke after a moment's more of cleaning, and got up. He reminded her of another cat, she realized, but she couldn't remember who...

"Wait, isn't that breaking the Warrior Code?! You can't hunt on another clan's territory!" Moonpaw looked bothered. It was one thing that they were talking with a Riverclan cat, but it was a completely different leaf if said tom just broke the Code.

"Who cares? Haven't you heard? Windclan is extremely short on cats right now, they won't risk losing any more in petty prey fights."

Moonpaw looked taken aback, and struggled for a retort. The tom didn't look satisfied that Moonpaw didn't agree.

"Besides, maybe I am Windclan, and I'm just testing you to see how you react to a cat breaking the Warrior Code?"

Splitpaw's head started to hurt. Would he really do something like that? Would he attack them for being on his territory after all?

"Or maybe I'm Thunderclan, and I'm speaking to you because we're about to ambush Windclan's camp? What would you two do then?"

Saying the last part, he looked straight into her eyes. Splitpaw tried to imagine what he saw when he looked at her.

He saw a small she-cat, the size of a large kit with a messy pelt, full of black and orange, with a ruffled white chest and underbelly. He saw perked ears, angled to take up every noise, eyes that were strangely two different colors, a nose that was split in two, and a face that should make him wince, flinch and turn away...

But he hasn't. This silver tom hasn't flinched at her. He hasn't mentioned her face, or her eyes... or even say anything to her.

"Well, never mind that, 'cause I am Riverclan, on a mouse-brained mission without a mentor, heading to the Twoleg place to grab catmint. We don't even need catmint! We have plenty, I saw Dreamsong with two huge piles drying in the sun! 'It's good experience,' my mentor tells me!"

Splitpaw flinched only the slightest bit when the medicine cat's name was called. The tom's eyes flickered to her for half a heartbeat before going back to coasting over the edges of grass.

Moonpaw, not caring in the slightest, had gone and dragged the rabbit out into the open to start eating. He motioned with his head, asking her if she wanted any, but if felt like the traveling herbs were still working for her, she felt really... full, even though she felt her stomach grumbling quietly.

"Oh, I'm Rapidpaw by the way, what are your names?"

"I'mph Moonpaw," her partner mumbled through a mouthful of rabbit.

"Apmh shmps-" the mouse-brain grey tom finally swallowed the rabbit in his mouth.

"And she's Splitpaw."

Rapidpaw looked at her for another moment, then up at the sky, which although still dark and cloudy, one could tell it wouldn't be long before the sun began setting.

"I've got to go if I want to make it to the Twoleg place by tonight, I'll see you guys at the Gathering!"

Moonpaw nodded, took one last bite of the rabbit, and began to disappear into the grass.

Splitpaw was just about to follow him into the shadows when a tail wrapped around hers.

"Promise you'll come to the Gathering?"

Rapidpaw's pale blue eyes stared right back into hers with intensity that took Splitpaw by surprise and left her a stuttering mess, "Y-Yeah, I'll... I'll try,"

He grinned, white fangs flashing, "Great, I'll see you there!"

And just like that, he was gone. What in Starclan...

So, he was a Riverclan tom. An apprentice, probably around her age of nine moons.

But, even if he was older, there had been no apprentices in Riverclan when she was born. She was an only kit to Strongsoul and Skyheart.

So, who was Rapidpaw?