Realm of Shadows

Chapter Four

Bright sunshine slashed into Aquapaw's eyes like an enemy warrior's claws. She let out a soft whimper, her paws still aching from the journey before.

A paw nudged her, and a gruff voice mewed, "Get up, you soft lump of fur. The dawn patrol's heading out soon."

The dawn patrol wasn't even out yet! Aquapaw turned on her side and curled her tail around her nose. "Wake me up later," she mumbled.

The paw nudged her again, harder than before. "All of you Felidae cats were snoozing! Everyone else is up, flea-pelt. What are you, a dormouse?"

She groggily picked herself up on her paws with eyes blurry from sleep. "Who are you calling a flea-pelt, fox-heart?" she snarled at Earth, the tom she confronted last night. "Why don't you go pick the bones clean from a frog or something?"

"Why don't you go back to where you came from?" he growled, but then leaped out of the hole so she couldn't retaliate.

Aquapaw glanced around the hole. No one was in there with her, not even Sunpaw.

She twisted her head and licked her gray pelt, smoothing down the ruffles so it looked cleaned and refreshed. She started on her face before Hollypaw poked her head in and narrowed her eyes.

"I volunteered you for the dawn patrol. Shouldn't you be leaving?" Her meow was icy.

She gazed up at her black-furred friend, her words like a blow to the chest. "D-dawn patrol?" she stuttered. "Shouldn't you have told me?"

"I thought you were in the crowd, paying attention, but you aren't even out of your nest yet!" she scolded, sounding so much like Bramblespots Aquapaw glanced around to see if he was there.

"Sorry! Apparently these cats wake up earlier than us. Not all of us used to live here, Hollypaw." She bunched her muscles and leaped out of the den.

Hollypaw escorted her to the patrol, green eyes shadowed with exhaustion. "I know," she meowed shortly, and then padded up to Dawnheart.

Along with Dawnheart and Hollypaw, Aquapaw had to join Pit, a black she-cat and her apprentice, and a ginger tom.

The black she-cat stared coldly at the Felidae cats, and she shuffled the gray apprentice closer to her. "Stay away from them, Wolf. No one knows when they'll slit your throat."

"Hi, I'm Wolf!" he chirped, ignoring her warning.

"I'm Aquapaw," she replied, her whiskers twitching angrily. The untrustworthy, bloodthirsty Realm of Shadows cat thought they would do such a thing? She wouldn't trust this she-cat even if it meant her life!

Wolf's mentor hissed at her, a slow and disapproving one with her lips curled back from her teeth. "Stay away from him, you outsider," she spat.

Aquapaw swallowed down a snarl with Leafpelt's words echoing in her mind. The most important thing is that it won't get to you, and you won't start thinking like them.

She gave the she-cat another glare before leaping up the ledges on the side of the camp, leading to the surface. Dawnheart gave her a sideways look, but padded on when Hollypaw nudged her.

Don't look at me like that. You know they bother you, too, she thought.

Suddenly, a huge figure nudged her side, almost bowling her over. "Hey, new one!" he meowed, and gave a friendly swish of his tail. "My name's Scar. I know I look big and scary, but you cats aren't half-bad. I know Night back there seemed a bit of a mouse-brain, but that's normal around here."

Aquapaw peered at his face. Scar was big, furry, and ginger, but his loveable appearance was shredded by the long scar on his face. As if sensing her direct look, he twitched his whiskers and sniffed. "I got it when I was an apprentice, and I got renamed. I used to be Fire, but now I'm Scar." His voice held a trace of bitterness.

He doesn't seem like he belongs here, or even wants to belong. He doesn't really go with big and scary, she observed. She nodded slightly, and replied, "My name's Aquapaw."

"Aqua, like water. Our names could've been opposites from each other." Scar sighed, but then brightened up as Hollypaw slowed down to them.

"Hey, Holly! I haven't seen you since you were an apprentice. Shouldn't you have what you call a warrior name by now, instead of sticking with these lame 'paws?" He purred a little in Aquapaw's direction.

"Yeah, but Leafstar wanted me to train in the Felidae ways. I didn't immediately tell them of my heritage." She shifted uncomfortably and glanced away.

"Leafpelt," Aquapaw murmured.

"Yeah. Right." Hollypaw's tone didn't sound very sure.

"Scar, you take two Felidae cats and cover the eastern border. I'll take the remaining mouse-brain and check the west," Night called from the rear.

"Good idea." Scar's voice lowered to a whisper. "This is a good chance to get on her good side." Raising his voice again, he called, "Take Aquapaw while I catch up with Holly, will you?"

"No! No!" she hissed, but Night only shoved past her and beckoned her with a flick of her tail.

Dawnheart's blue eyes were soft as she glanced back at the apprentice. She flicked her tail encouragingly before heading in the separate direction with Scar and Hollypaw.

"So... um," Aquapaw mewed as she shrunk into her fur. Being around Night made her the size of an ant. "H-how do you like training an apprentice?"

"Better than answering mouse-brained questions from an outsider," the she-cat snarled. "Quit wasting time and move it! We have borders to check!"

Tail drooping, she padded behind them. Why did Scar have to be so optimistic? This Clan will never welcome us! she thought sourly before Wolf dropped in next to her.

He lowered his meow to a whisper. "Night's pretty snappy and rude all the time, but you'll get used to it. She's actually quite tolerable when she isn't biting your tail off."

She purred a little at his words. "Thanks. I guess living in the heat all your life makes you pretty grumpy."

Wolf's whiskers twitched in amusement, and he purred with her. Night suddenly whirled around and shoved her face nose-to-nose with her apprentice. "I can make Claw keep you an apprentice forever if you disrespect me like that again!" she hissed. With her ears flicking and tail lashing, she turned around and put a scent marker on a boulder.

The gray tom sent her a wild-eyed look before hurrying after his mentor. Aquapaw sighed—is she not allowed to make new friends?—before Scar and Dawnheart's pawsteps thrummed on the desert ground.

"Help! Please help! Hollypaw's gone missing!" Dawnheart wailed.