Warriors: Sun and Moon - Into the Town

Chapter 5

  The cats had left for the gathering. Riverpaw, Aspenpaw, and Slatepaw had all been chosen to go.  

Supaw glared at Moonpaw while standing with their nest between them.

"I'm not sleeping with you," Sunpaw hissed, "arrogant furball!"

"Misguided fool," Moonpaw responded.  

Sunpaw extended her claws and grabbed a pawful of moss. She scraped it to the edge of the den. She turned and turned before laying down in it, the corner chillier than the center.  

Littlepaw was puzzled, but for a while said nothing. Shortly after Sunpaw started shivering, the chocolate ticked tabby moved across the den and settled beside her friend, curling her tail around the white cat. The tailtip tickled Sunpaw's nose, but she didn't mind because of the warmth she received from the older apprentice.

Sleep hit hard. After closing her eyes, Sunpaw found herself standing at the lake. She looked toward the island and wondered how the gathering was going. Was Snowlily there sharing more about his culture?

She wasn't alone long. A black and white tom came, the black and white tom who had met her before.

"You again!" She meowed with excitement.  

He purred, "Greetings, dear."

"What will you tell me tonight?" She asked enthusiastically.

He tapped the edge of the lake with his forepaw. Ripples expanded from his paw and turned into waves, waves the engulfed the island and the edge of the forest. The water touched the horizon.
Sunpaw's nostrils were hit with a sting. She lapped at the water and found it to taste nasty, as if it were tainted with salt or something.  

"This water is not to drink," he said.

"Then what is it?" She asked.

The tom explained, "You're looking at the Goddess Pool. This is where cats gathered on Day of No Night to cry their woes to Goddess and pray for something better. This is where high priestesses would gather kittens with blue eyes. They'd take on daughters and throw the sons to the sea wolves, the orcas."

As he spoke of the strange thing Sunpaw had never heard of, a black and white creature, broke the water's surface. It was like a giant black and white fish without scales! Her eyes widened in shock and her fur stood on end with fear.  

"Why would they do that?" Sunpaw asked.

The tom explained, "Toms are good at causing trouble. They make kittens and, because of that, they are good at tempting priestesses. Any tom who has abilities that rival a priestess' should be cleansed from the society. One could only imagine what a tom would do with such power!"

"Oh," Sunpaw breathed. She imagined if Riverpaw had special powers; he would surely cause nothing but mayhem!

"Hello?" A voice called out behind them.

Sunpaw looked over her shoulder and saw a white and black she-cat.  

"Who are you?" She asked.

The she-cat's odd eyes widened, "You're the wild cat I saw from the window!"

Window?

But it did make sense, Sunpaw realized she had seen this cat before. It was when she was walking with Milkpetal and Cloudeye.  

And she recalled what the tom had told her.  

"You're a priestess!" She stepped toward the she-cat happily, wanting to touch her as if it would pass something on to her.