A Twisted Fate (Warrior Cats)

Chapter 2

   *Unedited

“Birdpaw? Birdpaw, it's time for dawn patrol!” a mew rang in Birdpaw’s ears as she yawned, and blinked open her sleepy eyes. The den was still dark, filled with sleeping warriors. It was her mentor, Blacktail. His tail twitched impatiently, and she shook herself to get rid of the moss bits that clung to her fur.

Birdpaw stretched, and asked, “Dawn patrol? It’s not even dawn yet! The sky’s still dark!”

“Hailstar sent us on the dawn patrol. He said to patrol the borders along Iceclan, and we hunt along the way. Now hurry up before you wake the whole clan!” he snapped. She flinched at his harsh tone, and the warrior continued in a gentler voice, “Come on Birdpaw. You’re an apprentice now, not a kit in the nursery. This is your duty, to protect your clan from possible enemies.” Birdpaw nodded drowsily, and followed him outside the den. The air was crisp and cool, and there were traces of mist everywhere, making it harder to see. Blacktail had already padded away towards the camp entrance, and Birdpaw quickly bounded to him, following him through the fog and racing through the forest.

                                                                                     ~*~

They had patrolled around warm-grass and the Iceclan border, and were stopping to hunt. Birdpaw had scented a strong smell of rabbit, and had noticed the fluffy creature some distance away, feeding on some grass. She instinctively dropped into the hunter’s crouch, and began to stalk silently towards the rabbit, paws skimming over the leaves like a slight breeze. The creature hadn’t noticed her until the very last moment, when she pounced on it. It tried to run away, but Birdpaw was too quick, and gave it the killing swipe. She snatched up the rabbit and headed back to her mentor, head held high.

“Nice catch!” Blacktail meowed while sizing the rabbit up, “It’s going to feed at least half the clan!”

“Thanks,” Birdpaw squeaked, pleased with her mentor’s praise, “Should we bring it back to camp?”

“No, not yet. We still have some territory to patrol, so bury it and we’ll come back for it later.”

Birdpaw gave a small nod, and scraped some dirt over her kill. “Done,” she mewed. Blacktail nodded, and without another word he turned and ran towards the borders, her at his heels.

                    ~*~

“Whoa! Is this where apprentices train their battle moves?” Birdpaw’s eyes were wide as she kneaded the ground with her paws in anticipation. They had finished patrolling and had just arrived at the Log Place, a clearing with a few fallen logs here and there that were provided to train with.

“Yes. This is where every apprentice trains with their mentors for their necessary skills in order to become a warrior. Today, we will practice some simple fighting.” he led her to a small area filled with soft dirt, backed away from her a bit, and spoke,  If I were a fox that was about to eat you, what would you do?”, then spread his legs apart and bared his teeth, spitting. Birdpaw’s thoughts were whirling. She had to think fast, but she couldn’t just charge into him. There had to be some sort of plan that she could follow, but what? Birdpaw also knew she couldn’t look at the area where she was going to lunge, or he would anticipate her. Oh...I’ll think about it after I attack. She pushed all her thoughts away, and charged towards him. He braced her attack and shot forward to meet it, toppling her over and pinning her to the ground. A few heartbeats later he let go, and retreated to a sitting position, waiting for Birdpaw to get up. She staggered as she heaved herself up, and shook her pelt lightly to clear out all the dust.