The Cat and the Fox

Chapter 27

            Stonepaw awoke and padded out of the apprentice den, yawning. It reminded him of when Icestar was mentoring him.

            "Good morning, Stonepaw," Cottonnnose said.

            "Hey, Cottonnose," Stonepaw replied. "What will we be learning today?"

            "We will be seeing the territories," Cottonnose replied.

            "Cottonnose, I've seen them before. I was an apprentice before, remember?"

            "There have been changes," Cottonnose said.

            "What changes? FoxClan and CloudClan live here," Stonepaw said.

            Cottonnose shook his head. "CloudClan left the forest. NightClan and BirdClan live here now."

            "NightClan? BirdClan?"

            "Follow me," Cottonnose said.

            He led Stonepaw into the woods, showing him the familiar territory. He then padded to the FoxClan border.

            "This is FoxClan," Stonepaw said.

            Cottonnose nodded. They padded until they came to Snake Falls, the waterfall that led through SnowClan territory.

            "What's that weird smell?" Stonepaw asked.

            "That's the NightClan scent. Their territory is on these hills. The top of the mountain is still empty. BirdClan lives near the Great Oak and Moonstone. They are a small clan, but they'll grow."

            "I see," Stonepaw said.

            He gasped as he saw cats walking on patrol. A white tom led the patrol, followed by four apprentices and their mentors.

            "SnowClan cats! What are you doing near our border?!" the white tom hissed.

            "Relax, Cloudstar. I'm just showing my apprentice the territory," he said.

            "That better be all!" a silver tabby she-cat hissed.

            Cloudstar held the she-cat back. "It's alright, Silverstripe. They are doing no harm."

            Cottonnose and Stonepaw padded away.

            "Who put brambles in his nest?" Stonepaw growled.

            Cottonnose shrugged. "NightClan is not a friendly clan. It's best you know that."

            "Who's BirdClan's leader?" Stonepaw asked.

            "Bumblestar. He's very kind, actually."

            "Is Sunstar still the leader of FoxClan?" Stonepaw asked.

            Cottonnose nodded. "You should probably go gather moss for the elders."

            Stonepaw groaned. "I forgot about that," he said.

            Cottonnose and Stonepaw padded farther into the forest to gather moss. Stonepaw dug some up, squeezing it to get rid of the water. He stomped on the moss until it was dry enough.

            "Good routine," Cottonnose said.

            "Icestar taught me it," Stonepaw replied.