Cursed (Book 2 of the Outcast Quartet) Is Cancelled

Chapter 10 (Jadepaw)

It was nice to finally be away from the camp. Slipping between a clump of ferns, I arrived to a small clearing filled with sunlight. This was my favorite spot in the forest, the warm light calming my nerves and the silence was much needed. Sprawling out against the grassy land, I closed my eyes and gladly soaked up the sunshine. I’m not sure how much time passed but when I heard the grass rustling in front of me, I cracked open my eyes and winced as I saw a pair of yellow paws stop in front of me. “Hey Yellowpaw, lovely weather we’re having,” I looked up to stare into my sister’s sightless eyes, which have narrowed in annoyance.

            “You’re supposed to be resting properly in the camp,” she frowned when I let out a sigh.

            “Yeah that’s the thing, I think I was starting to get cabin fever,” Yellowpaw wouldn’t understand, she always enjoyed staying at the camp and being around the others. To me, staying back at the camp made me feel imprisoned.

            “Fine, next time you have an urge to leave camp let me know,” Yellowpaw’s whiskers twitched slightly, a sign that she was thinking. “I’ll let you come herb gathering with me every so often.”

            I studied Yellowpaw warily, ever since the time I ran away she never really showed me much kindness. “Okay, I guess that can work.”

            “Good, now come on there’s an herb I need,” Yellowpaw abruptly turned away and I was left scrambling after her. We didn’t speak as we walked, and I made sure to keep a slight distance between us. Where had our friendship gone? “Alright, this is what I need,” Yellowpaw stopped by a clump bright red flowers. “These flowers are poppies, once they dry out I’ll be able to harvest the seeds,” she explained while gently biting the stems. Two flowers collapsed to the ground and she gestured for me to pick one up. Before I could move, Yellowpaw suddenly turned her gaze towards me. There was a sort of look on her face, almost like she was unsure, before she spoke. “I think I understand why you wanted to leave… You aren’t meant to be in a Clan,” she smiled sadly before turning away. “I forgive you Jadepaw, and I’m sorry for taking so long to realize this. One day, you’re going to leave and that makes me fearful…” Yellowpaw trailed off and she pawed at the ground. “Please when you do leave, at least say good-bye.”

            “I can do that…” unsure as to what else to say I padded past Yellowpaw in order to pick up the flower. Yellowpaw smiled warmly at me before she picked up the other flower. We began to head back to camp, my tail resting slightly on her shoulder to help her navigate the woods, when I heard a scared wail. Glancing over at Yellowpaw, I confirmed that the cry hadn’t been my imagination. Her ears swerved and she abruptly changed direction, most likely heading towards the cries.

            We wove past some brambles and then I spotted three small kits huddled together. They looked hardly a moon old and they all had silver stripes marked with black stripes. The only differences between the three was that they all had different eye colors. One had blue eyes, another green and the third had amber. I started to approach them when Yellowpaw held up her tail to signal for me to stop. Putting down her flower she whispered softly. “Something’s coming.”

            Setting down the flower I carried I wondered aloud. “What is it?”

            “I don’t know,” Yellowpaw frowned as she angled her ears to catch some sound I couldn’t hear. Her nose wrinkled as she caught a disgusting scent and she let out a soft growl. “Whatever it is, it’s loud.”

            We didn’t have to wait long before we saw a giant black head with stunning white heads pop out from behind some ferns. Its large nose was twitching wildly and its small black eyes focused on the three kits. “A badger,” I hissed, recalling the stories of them I heard. “It probably heard the kits and came to see if they’d be easy prey.”

            “What should we do?”

            “I’ll distract it, you get the kits out of here,” I instructed and, before Yellowpaw could protest, I dashed out to face it. Putting myself between the kits and the badger I let out a growl. Glancing over at the terrified kits I exclaimed. “Hurry over to Yellowpaw, she’ll help you.”

            As the kits tumbled on shaking legs towards my sister, I launched myself at the much larger animal. I swatted at its large clumsy paws before leaping away as it tried to swipe me away. The diversion worked, Yellowpaw was herding the kits away and the badger’s attention was solely on me. I swatted at it one last time before turning and dashing away, leading the badger farther from the others.

            For a big brute, the thing was rather fast. It was easily able to keep up with me and when I glanced over my shoulder, I noticed it was even gaining ground. I skidded to a halt taking in swift shallow gasps, since it hurt to breathe too deeply, and again faced the badger. What should I do now? Yellowpaw and the kits are probably safe now, but there was no way I could get away from this badger.

            Crouching low to the ground, I unsheathed my claws and arched my back. I’ll have to fight, maybe I’ll be able to hold on long enough for help to come. With a yowl, I leapt upwards. I landed squarely on its back while digging my claws into its thick course fur. It easily shook me off and as I landed clumsily back onto the ground, it lashed out at me. Its claws ripped across my shoulder sending me tumbling across the ground. Coming to a halt, I lay winded and the badger took this as its chance.

            The strike came quickly. Its claws crashed down on me. My already broken ribs cracked against the pressure and my vision blurred from the burning pain. Its hurts… hurts so much…