Warriors: Black Rain

Chapter 10

      "Scarpaw. Scarpaw, get up!" A strong paw padded the apprentice awake with a jolt. Scrambling into a sitting position she recognized her mentor, Stormspirit, looking down on her in amusement. 

      "The patrol will be leaving for Sky Rocks soon. I assume you got some food in your belly before dozing the day away?" Scarpaw blinked, looking around. The sun was beginning to set behind the trees, and the cicadas were singing loudly throughout the marsh, signaling dusk. Scarpaw shook her pelt, shuffling her paws in the dirt. 

      "Sorry, Stormspirit. I have a full belly, I promise- I guess I didn't know how tired I was," she muttered. Stormspirit flicked his ear, smiling softly. 

      "It's alright. You've put up with some tough training in the Mud-Hollow these last few sessions; I'll be speaking to Snowstar soon about moving your training back near the stream." Scarpaw's eyes glowed, purring excitedly. 

      "Could you go find Woodpaw?", Stormspirit mewed, "we need all patrol cats ready to leave. I believe Snowstar will be wanting to get to the Sky Rocks as soon as we can." Scarpaw nodded, leaving her mentor to search for the small brown apprentice. Woodpaw's affections towards Scarpaw were quite obvious, yet she had barely spoken to him at all since she was apprenticed in RainClan. He clung close to Maskpaw's side, and the tortoiseshell tom spat insults at her whenever he could. Seeing Maskpaw sitting alone near the Half-tree, Scarpaw padded up, her head held high. Maskpaw sneered as she drew closer, but she ignored him, staring defiantly in his narrowed eyes.

      "Maskpaw, have you seen Woodpaw anywhere? We need to get ready to leave with the patrol soon." Maskpaw spat, sitting straight. 

      "No need to remind me about the gathering, Scarpaw. Just know you're only going because Snowstar doesn't trust you. Who knows what you'd do, here in the clan without him to watch over you like a lost little kit?" Scarpaw fought the urge to tackle him there, taking a deep breath. 

      "Save your breath. I just want to know where Woodpaw is." Maskpaw snorted, turning away from her. 

      "I don't know. Find him yourself." Her pelt prickling in annoyance, Scarpaw spun away, letting frustrations guide her. She had finally been chosen to attend the gathering, with Stormspirit's help no doubt, yet Maskpaw still didn't trust her loyalty to RainClan. Scarpaw was sure no cat had worked as hard as she had to be a true RainClan cat, yet every time she felt truly accepted, Maskpaw ruined it with his insults and sly remarks. "Someday," she thought, "he'll see. I'll prove my heart lies here, with RainClan."

      Blinking herself out of a daze, Scarpaw realized her paws had led her to the entrance of the elders den. Slowcloud was sitting close by, Deadmouth laying close to his side as usual. Fawneyes and Coldclaw lay asleep, tucked close to the thick bramble encasing the den.

      "Scarpaw, is everything alright?", Slowcloud mewed, eyeing her in surprise. She twitched her tail in embarrassment, bowing her head. 

     "Sorry, Slowcloud. Everything is fine. I'm looking for Woodpaw; we will be leaving for Sky Rocks soon, and no cat seems to know where he is." Deadmouth raised his head slightly, light gleaming in his eyes. Slowcloud twitched his ears. 

      "Actually, Deadmouth and I caught sight of him leaving camp with Venomsight earlier. They could be out training still." Scarpaw nodded. 

      "Thank you, Slowcloud. I'll go search for them now." As she turned to leave the den, Slowcloud sat up, mewing to get her attention.

      "Before you go, Scarpaw, I wanted to say that I'm proud of you. No cat can deny that you deserve to be going tonight." The sudden praise made her paws warm, and she stared wide eyed at the elder as he continued.
      "However, I warn you to stay watchful. With the recent prophecy, many cats will be on edge at this gathering, including Venomsight. Your loyalty to us is clear, but that cat has a few thorns in his pelt- he'll be watching how you react to your birth clan. Don't give him a reason to be skeptical of where your heart lies." Scarpaw stood silently, in shock. The wise elder had just confirmed her worries, yet she had never voiced them to any of these cats. Looking to Deadmouth, laying at his side, Scarpaw saw something in the old tom's eyes that made her blood run cold, but his expression was partially hidden in the shadows of the den. Nodding, Scarpaw slowly backed out of the den. 

      "Thank you, Slowcloud. I won't," she mumbled, padding back into the clearing.

      The patrol was waiting for her at the camp entrance, Venomsight and Woodpaw among them. Padding up to the brown apprentice, Scarpaw noticed the only cats missing were Snowstar, and his deputy, Suntail.

      "Woodpaw, where were you? I was looking all over camp for you," Scarpaw sighed, still slightly dazed by her encounter in the elders den. Woodpaw's eyes flashed slightly, his expression hard to read. 

      "Venomsight and I were just training. It took longer than expected," he quickly mumbled. Eyeing him curiously, Scarpaw decided not to press him any further. Her own nervousness about the gathering was enough, and she needed to keep herself calm. Stormspirit appeared at her side, licking in between her ears. 

      "What's with that expression? You're starting to look like Toadface," he purred, "tonight will be wonderful, I promise. Gatherings are always a mystical experience, even for old warriors like me." Nightbreeze came padding up, a hint of amusement in her eyes as she looked at Stormspirit. Scarpaw recognized her as Maskpaw's mentor. 

      "This fur-ball always gets excited over Gatherings. But he's right, you know; it's an honor for apprentices to join the patrol. Try to show some gratitude." Scarpaw bowed her head, intimidated by the warrior. With a prickle of discomfort, Scarpaw realized that her apprentice, Maskpaw, had not been invited to the gathering while she was.

      Just then Snowstar emerged from his den with Suntail following close behind, both neatly groomed and eyes gleaming. Snowstar addressed his patrol, nodding in approval. There was a moment of silence while all cats watched him intently, eyes shining against the dark hues of dusk, until Snowstar grunted, padding toward the entrance. 

   "Right. Follow me," he yowled, and sprinted out of the thick mangrove tunnel.