Ravenblaze's Determination [Warrior Cats Fanfiction]

Chapter 2

The sun was about to sink behind the trees when Ravenblaze, Thistleblaze and Cloudpaw were approaching their side of the borders SnowClan shared with AmberClan. A cool breeze swept over the open, flat moor with few trees scattered here and there and through the cats' furs, providing Ravenblaze the chill she needed not to be so hot.

Cloudpaw hated the wind, and made it blatant. She kept her ears flattened against her head, and grimaced whenever a particularly strong gust of wind hit the three. She stood on the left end, so that she could be shielded the most from the wind, which was blowing from the right, where Ravenblaze stood closest to it. Thistleblaze stood in between the two, not seeming to mind or dislike the gusts.

Ravenblaze couldn't help but notice the sky darken, not only because of how fast the sun was setting. The clouds were drifting across the sky faster than usual, and the new ones floating overhead seemed to get grayer each cloud.

She shook it off as they stood at the edge of the border. It was marked by the strong, mingling scents of both clans, as well as a sparse line of uneven bushes that apparently had marked the borders initially when the clans were first formed, as Ravenblaze had been told as a kit.

Thistleblaze was the first to speak. "I'll take Cloudpaw and go this way," he said as he flicked his tail towards the right. Cloudpaw nodded and already started to walk along the border. Thistleblaze quickly caught up to the eager apprentice and called out to Ravenblaze, "Don't forget to mark our scent!"

Ravenblaze turned the other way and began to stalk the opposite direction. She had barely went five fox-lengths when she heard a loud holler, from a short distance away. She flattened her ears, the sound hurting them.

The black she-cat turned and hissed defensively at whatever made the noise, only to see Thistleblaze and Cloudpaw in the distance in battle stances, as though about to attack. She could see three other cats on the other side of the border who she couldn't make out. She quickly darted over to the scene.

"You!" A ginger tom on the other side of the border snarled, his angered green eyes locked in Cloudpaw, who looked just as infuriated. "You were on our side of the border!"

Cloudpaw struggled to hiss back, since she appeared to have something in her mouth. "Liar!" Thistleblaze stood next to her, claws unsheathed as a method of defense.

There were two cats who stood on either side of the ginger cat, one a black tom and the other a brown tabby she-cat.

The black tom saw the marigold clenched in Cloudpaw's mouth, and relaxed a little. "Relax, Gingerleap, she only took some herbs." The ginger tom eyed his clanmate with an angry expression. "How do we know that for sure, Darkdrop?" He asked the black tom.

Cloudpaw dropped the marigold at her paws and looked at Gingerleap. "My sister is the medicine cat, and she's running low on marigold. I would never take prey from another clan." Ravenblaze thought of the medicine cat Brokenflower, who had been Dawnripple's apprentice after she broke her leg as a kit. Cloudpaw was the only one able to put up with Brokenflower's angry attitude, and the two were inseparable.

Gingerleap only saw what Cloudpaw had said as another weapon to use in the argument. "So you aren't even a medicine cat!" He spat, enraged, at the gray apprentice, who was beginning to look worried.

The brown tabby she-cat has stayed out of the argument, but she couldn't no longer when she saw the hurt look on Cloudpaw's face. She stepped in front on Gingerleap in a heartbeat and snarled at him. "That's enough, Gingerleap! Let the apprentice go. You're making a huge deal out of this," she yowled.

Cloudpaw wore a thankful expression for the tabby's strong words, and Gingerleap took a step back. "Okay. We'll let her go this time, Sparrowheart. But next time, she may not be so lucky." The black tom and tabby she-cat both turned and began to walk further into AmberClan territory, but Gingerleap gave Cloudpaw one hard last glare before he joined his clanmates.

Ravenblaze was relieved. Not only had Cloudpaw gotten away with taking some herbs, but Thistleblaze hadn't embarrassed them all. But Ravenblaze was still worried about what would come next.

"Thistleblaze," she began, "I think you should be the one to tell Darkstar about what happened here." Thistleblaze immediately began to whine. "Why me?" He complained loudly.

Ravenblaze felt like raking her claws through the tabby tom's brown pelt. He always whined when he had to do something he didn't want to!

"Because Cloudpaw's your apprentice, and you should've kept a better eye on her! Take responsibility for once, Thistleblaze!" Ravenblaze scolded him.

Thistleblaze flinched for a second, but started to trudge towards camp. He let out another loud moan as Cloudpaw and Ravenblaze followed.

Ravenblaze couldn't help but feel a stab of guilt abandoning the border patrol. Next time won't be like this, she thought. Not if Thistleblaze doesn't come.