Swiftstar's Prophecy - Unofficial version

Chapter Twenty-seven

"I want you to try to hit me," Blizzardtail challenged, his blue eyes narrowing as he stared at Swiftpaw. The calico apprentice was taken back a bit, her tail wavering back and forth. "Excuse me?" Swiftpaw asked. The two cats were still sitting on a stranded log, the sun slowly rising to its highest peak. After heartbeats of silence, Blizzardtail had challenged her.

"Try to hit me. I want to see what you can do before any battle training," The white mottled tom meowed, not even fazed by Swiftpaw's face of confusion. Battle training? Oh no, am I even good? Hotness rose underneath her fur shyly, I can't even swipe!

Swiftpaw then stood up, eyeing her mentor warily. He just sat there, his gaze now shifting over to a small butterfly balancing on a grass stalk. I shouldn't underestimate him, but... It seems that he's underestimating me! But she calmed herself down; her tail relaxed, her fur laid flat, and she narrowed her eyes. That was when she leapt at him, her forepaws out to tackle him down.

In a flash, Blizzardtail stepped off the log. Swiftpaw sailed past him into the uprooted roots of the log, dry dirt flying everywhere. "Agh!" She spat a chunk of mud from her mouth, and shook her head. Her pelt was littered with mud, and it was tufted up here and there.

Her mentor then challengingly crouched, his tail lashing back and forth enticingly. Swiftpaw now charged at him, skipping off the log and towards him. She didn't know what she would do once she crashed into him, but Swiftpaw was a bit relieved that Blizzardtail's paw slammed down unto her head, pinning her down to the forest ground.

"You're very quick, but without any thought or motives," he then released her head, and shook his mottled fur free from any stray pieces of dry mud. Swiftpaw stood up, and drew a paw over her ears. "How can you move that fast? You're old!" she squeaked.

He then chuckled lightly, "Well, I practiced. And you're going to be the same,"

"But we barely started!" Swiftpaw pointed out, her tail sticking up straight. I can be the most lethal warrior ever if I was as quick as Blizzardtail! He disregarded her statement, and gestured over to his left with his muzzle. "I want you to run a whole lap around the cherry blossoms, and return here. But don't tire yourself out, pace yourself. And expect to do this every day three times." he ordered her. Swiftpaw let out a sigh. All that running? That's ridiculous! 

Letting out a groan as her response, Swiftpaw was about to begin her stride, when her mentor's tail-tip rested on her shoulder. "I know that the rest of the Clan may not think you're going to be a good warrior, especially Redstar. But I will make you into the best warrior, surpassing me at everything. This all may be overwhelming to you, but you're the most dangerous cat in TideClan."

Chills ran down her spine, and her gaze lifted up to him. "I-I'm dangerous?" Though she never really cared about what her clanmates said about her, or in fact, even thought about her, Blizzardtail's words made her heart skip a beat and her body freeze. Don't tell me it's because of my attitude towards Redstar... 

Blizzardtail exhaled, looking tired and stressed, but he motioned her to sit down with him. "The night you were born to Echoflower and Redstar was when everything changed. I'm sure you have heard of the black-cough spread last leaf-bare, right?" Swiftpaw's eyes widened, and she lowered her muzzle, mumbling, "I've heard of it, but no one ever talks about it.." It must've been a devastating time... 

"Although BoulderClan suffered the most, TideClan lost its warriors, too. So many queens, kits, elders died," His eyes glazed slightly at the mention of the queens and kits, but Swiftpaw didn't question it, "Warriors also died from the extreme frostbite and hunger in the tail-high snow. The wind was piercing and icy, almost as if it could pierce through your chest. At late leaf-bare, we were lucky that there were more apprentices than warriors, and only a special few queens survived. It was miracle that Mudstrike, Splashfur, Carptooth, and Hailfrost were able to keep up with the other starving warriors, too, though it was a tragedy that Argentpaw drowned." Argentpaw...a cat without a warrior name. That must be devastating. Swiftpaw thought, her heart aching for the fallen warriors. 

"Fallowpaw and Acornpaw nearly starved, so did Echoflower. Luckily, we were able to find a pocket of fish in the Grand River. But when you and your littermates came into this merciless world, our clan was overjoyed; not only were they Echoflower's kits, the only litter she was expected to have, but also that TideClan had hope of surviving." Swiftpaw's heart warmed at the mention of her mother, and she gently asked him, "Did Echoflower love me? And my siblings?"

He nodded, his eyes glistening with hope. "Of course she did. She loved all four of you. But the moment you were born, I knew that StarClan entrusted its powers unto you." At that moment, the wind blew roughly, ruffling up Blizzardtail's fur. In a blink, he looked so much younger, his blue eyes weren't strained anymore, the graying hairs on his muzzle didn't matter anymore, but Swiftpaw knew that it was the hope that was displayed on his face that made him younger. He looks so... powerful like that. She liked that look of hope. 

From the tall stalks of grass, Swiftpaw could scent approaching TideClan cats. She stood on her guard, her eyes narrowing at the approached, but relaxed when Blizzardtail warmly greeted them, "Mousetail, Baydawn, Brookpaw, it was about time you arrived," The senior warrior dipped is head in utter respect, but Swiftpaw was confused. I wonder if they're with Blizzardtail... 

Mousetail jokingly rasped, "Baydawn was too scared from Redstar that he could barely move!" The elder chuckled, while Brookpaw lashed her tail, sitting down beside Swiftpaw. "Does she know of the prophecy yet, Blizzardtail?" the brown tabby apprentice asked, ignoring Mousetail's joke. The enlightened joke easily fazed away with seriousness, and all of the five cats went silent. 

Baydawn was the one who murmured, "I think it was time you knew the prophecy, Swiftpaw." The gentleness in his eyes disappeared, and suddenly, it was like he was a whole different cat. 

___________________

My boi Baydawn be fortune tellin'

-Troutpath