Warriors: Flesh and Bone

Chapter 2

      Hawkheart watched her young apprentice through the large maple leaves hanging above in the tree. Her forest-colored pelt helped her hide on the branches, eyeing Buckpaw closely. He was only named her apprentice a few sunrises ago, and he was young; but he showed strength. She watched as he lowered himself to the forest floor, eyes locked onto a nearby shrew, wiggling his behind before pouncing towards the creature. His technique was sloppy, but as was expected of a new apprentice- she smiled.

      Announcing her spot in the tree with a yowl, she leapt down through the thick branches, landing on the sandy ground with a thud. Buckpaw seemed taken aback by his mentor's sudden and swift appearance, but tried disguising it by puffing his chest out.

       "I really tried that time," he grumbled, eyes falling to the spot the shrew disappeared into. His dark grizzled coat was spotted with the sunlight filtering in through the trees above.

      "Keeping your behind still helps, for starters," Hawkheart mewed. Her voice was steady and authoritative, but her eyes glinted with a hint of mischief. "It's alright. I was impressed on how you stayed silent through the hunt." Her words brought Buckpaw's gaze back towards her, and he nodded. 'Not much of a talker,' Hawkheart thought, stretching out on the sandy floor. 'That's alright. I'm not, either.'

      "Let's keep moving through the territory," she spoke, looking up into the forest slope above. "I'd like to take you along the great-lake and towards the ravine." Buckpaw's eyes lit up at this, standing to follow his mentor.

      "The ravine is massive and dangerous, isn't it?" he said, worry filling his voice. "I heard Sootstep fell in recently, and thats why he hasn't been doing his duties as deputy. I heard he broke his back legs."

      Hawkheart's eyes flashed, remembering the patrol she was on with the deputy, renewing their scent markers at the ravine. Sootstep was always a cat full of laughter and good-spirit, attempting to catch a fish in the shallow stream flowing through the bottom to prove a point to Fernpaw. The deputy took a fateful step on a slippery stone close to the edge, falling dangerously into the rocky ravine, landing heavily with a crack. Smallglow declared both his back legs to be broken shortly after they carried him back into camp. Hawkheart was closest to the warrior when he fell; she could have grabbed him. She should have.

      Buckpaw was watching her with interest, so she blinked out of her daze. "In green-leaf the lake sometimes flows through the ravine, creating a small river. You can catch fish there, if it floods enough." She attempted to shift the conversation away from Sootstep and the recent incident, continuing on through the forest.

      "Yuck, fish? No thank you," Buckpaw groaned. Hawkheart sighed with relief at his lack of questions.

      "I've only ever seen the ravine flooded once before; it makes it easier for Rainclan to cross our border," she mewed, "So we like to patrol it often." Feeling the undergrowth beginning to thin out around her, she realized they were nearing their edge of the great-lake. Hawkheart waved her tail for Buckpaw to stop, slowing her run to a swift walk. She sniffed a bit before walking through the last of the bushes in front of them, revealing the sandy shore of the lake ahead. The maple trees stood tall behind them as the lake stretched out far ahead, rippling and sparkling in the sunshine. Buckpaw gasped, eyes wide, as he stared at the vast expanse of water ahead.

      "Woah," he breathed, captivated. Hawkheart watched him for a moment before looking out towards the opposite shore, flicking an ear.

      "See the dark marshy woods across the lake there?" she mewed, nodding her muzzle. "That is Rainclan territory."