Warriors: Starbound Paws

Starbound Paws: Chapter 5

"Spottedpaw, wait!" Skunkpaw was gasping for breath. Spottedpaw was running impossibly fast, her paws naturally moving along the roots and plants scattered among the darkened ground. She wasn't sure why her fellow apprentice had taken off at the drop of a mouse, but every hair on her pelt had screamed for her to follow. Now she was racing through an unfamiliar forest, the pounding of paws drawing closer with each step.

Without warning, a body slammed into Skunkpaw's side, her breath leaving her body in a pained gasp. "Stop!" Bluewind had pinned Skunkpaw to the ground, her freshly sharpened claws poking out of her paws and teetering against Skunkpaw's chest. "Tigerjaw, I've got Skunkpaw!" A loud grunt sounded beside them, but had already begun to fade away as it reached them. "What in Starclan's name are you doing?!" She questioned, her mud-colored eyes staring intensely at Skunkpaw's.

"I... I wanted to help," Skunkpaw lied, thinking of how much trouble Spottedpaw would be in for her meeting with Ravenleaf.

"You could've helped by staying put," Bluewind hissed angrily. "Cloudsky is probably out of her skull with worry!" Skunkpaw shrunk back, the hot breath of the Fireclan deputy on her face furthering her worry for Spottedpaw. With a sigh, Bluewind stepped to the side, allowing Skunkpaw to roll back to her feet and shake the dirt from her pelt. "You're all still in trouble, but..." she leaned forward, "Smokestar was right to take you as his apprentice."

Hot with embarrassment, Skunkpaw looked down at her paws. She knew the only reason she had chased Spottedpaw was to see what she was doing, not to help locate the intruder. We were the ones that brought the intruder, anyway... Bluewind was staring intently towards where Spottedpaw and Tigerjaw had disappeared, her ears twitching with each crackle of greenery.

"What did you find?" Bluewind asked, rising to her paws. Skunkpaw looked around, giving the air a tentative sniff to see who Bluewind was talking to.

"A lost kit and a dead trail," a mew sneered beside her, sending chills down Skunkpaw's side. "Clearly, we're giving out apprentice names too soon." Tigerjaw had padded into the clearing; his eyes brimmed with rage and nostrils flaring. Spottedpaw stood beside him, one paw hung at her side and her eyes at the ground.

"Smokestar's not going to be happy," Bluewind sighed, nudging Skunkpaw back towards camp. "Let's get back, you've both got explaining to do."

-

"We're waiting," Smokestar mewed calmly, but Badgerpaw could tell he was ten shades of furious.

"I... I went out to make dirt and I smelled something odd," he began, hearing Lightpaw snicker from his spot near the apprentice den.

"Smelled something odd at the dirt place, what a mouse-brain," a stern glare from Coalfur silenced him.

"I followed it, and I found a bush that smelled like the border," a brief glance at Smokestar revealed nothing. Badgerpaw shifted on his aching paws for what seemed like moons before Smokestar jumped down, padding forward to look into Badgerpaw's eyes.

"Is that so?" Badgerpaw nodded, staring back at the calm green orbs. "Tempting as it may be to lie to save your own pelt," he began after a moment. "Lies only lead to more lies." His nose was barely a hair-length from Badgerpaw's nose. "I cannot command liars... so I'll ask once more. Is that so?" He repeated the question, his eyes challenging Badgerpaw to speak up.

For a moment, he was tempted to spill what he had seen and heard, but there were too many blank spots in his story. How could he possibly tell Smokestar what he knew, knowing how incriminating it would sound? "That's what happened," he mewed, holding Smokestar's gaze with as much strength as he could muster.