The Five Giants - Book 1

Chapter 10 - Stone

"Stonepaw! Get over here! You're patrolling, not sleeping!"

I looked to where the voice came from to see my mentor, Poppyfern. I could already tell that things weren't going to be great in my apprenticeship. Poppyfern was a nice cat, but she had a hard time dealing with me.

Kind of a specialty of mine, not gonna lie.

She was kind in trying to keep Dusk and myself in the same patrols. I wonder why Dusk was paired with me, anyway. She isn't big, and as far as I know, she wasn't all that strong either.

I got up and padded over to where Poppyfern was standing, by herself this time. "Stygiastar said she just wanted the two of us to patrol. It'll be quick, we're just heading towards the Riverclan border. We'll see if we can catch anything along the route as well."

I nodded in response, and followed her out of the camp. Once we were a good distance from camp, Poppyfern turned to me, still walking. "Stonepaw, I'm sorry if I come off as rude, but is there a reason you're always so difficult?"

I tilted my head in thought, not looking towards Poppyfern. "I don't know if there's an exact reason, but I've never really been social. I guess it's just hard for me to trust people."

She nodded. "Do you trust me?"

"Well, I trust you more than I trust a lot of others, but I can't put all of my trust on you. I've seen you've tried to put Duskpaw and myself on the same patrols, and that really helps."

"Do you want me to continue putting you two on the same patrols?"

I shook my head slowly, "While I really appreciate the effort, try not to. The reason is personal, but we honestly have a long-standing rivalry."

"How long-standing could it be? You're barely 8 moons old!"

"You'd be surprised."

By this time, we had reached the border with Riverclan. The overwhelming scent of fish filled my nostrils, making me gag. I feel bad for Heron. He's probably gotten used to it by now, but Starclan, that stuff stinks.

We trekked along the border, occasionally stopping every time we scented a mouse or vole. Near the end of the patrol, Poppyfern suddenly stopped. "Riverclan patrol coming. Act normal, and don't screw anything up. We don't want to get into a fight."

I turned back to look at the border, and saw three cats coming our way. A blue-grey cat, and two white cats. That small one looks a lot like Heron.

"Mistheart, Snowface, how are you?" Poppyfern Said

"We're doing well Poppyfern, thanks for asking." Snowface responded. "Who's the apprentice?"

"This is my apprentice Stonepaw. He's a little over 8 moons, and progressing very nicely through his training. He shows great potential."

Mistheart responded this time, "I would expect nothing less. This here is my apprentice Heronpaw. He's also a little over 8 moons, and is doing well."

Heronpaw and myself locked eyes, and continue the stare for awhile, until he smiled. "Good to see you, Stone." He whispered.

"Same to you. Have you seen any of the others?"

"No, but Lion is my brother. He's already tried to kill me once. I wouldn't put it past him to do it again soon. What about you?"

"I got Dusk as my sister. I don't know why she was born with me, we don't have much in common."

Heron's eyes showed confusion. "Well, you have similar minds, right? And you're both intimidating, so there's that."

While he was right, there wasn't that much of a similarity in appearance. I had deep brown fur, while Dusk had creamy golden fur. She was a lot smaller than me as well, and it showed even now. Our only physical similarity was our eyes, which could kill a hawk with a single glance. Her's were emerald green, unlike mine, but they were still very piercing.