°|° Woodland °|° ✓

| Chapter 6 |

(Cat above is  Thrushfeather)

The tunnel collapsed!

Fear washed through Berrypaw as her lungs ached for air. No! I can't die! I need to find WoodClan!

Sharp teeth sank into her scruff. Red fur flashed before Berrypaw's eyes as she was hauled out onto the snow.

"Cherrypaw!" Berrypaw gasped out, coughing up soil. "Thank you so much!"

"Eh, it was nothing," Cherrypaw muttered, her tail tip twitching with embarrassment.

"Did you hunt?"

"Yes. Two voles. One each."

Berrypaw spat out some dirt, then looked around. They were almost halfway across the meadow. She could see a damp forest on the other side. "We're close!"

"To what?" Cherrypaw was washing some blood from her paws with the snow. 

"WoodClan, you mousebrain!" Berrypaw teased. 

They ate the voles in a few famished mouthfuls, then set across the meadow again. Before sunhigh, they had finally reached their destination. The forest swarmed around and frozen streams ducked between the trees. 

"Now be careful," Berrypaw warned quietly. "Stay quiet."

They slid through the snow, leaping into bushes and trees. Still there was no sign of cats. Berrypaw made up a challenge where you had to kick up snow as you went.

With frozen water clinging to their muzzles, neither of them heard the pawsteps of a five-cat patrol. 

Sharp claws suddenly dug into Berrypaw's shoulders, and she rolled over with a yowl, pushing her attacker into the snow. Nearby, Cherrypaw fought three other cats away. 

Berrypaw sliced the attacker's nose, then yowled again as it bit into her tail. She whirled round and slashed both of their ears. The attacker lunged at her, but twisted in mid-air, landed just beside her and raked thorn-sharp claws down her side, slipping through the fur.

Berrypaw ducked away, gasping for breath. She finally got a good look at her attacker. It was a small, long-furred,  light brown tom. His fur carried the scent of kits and cats and prey.

A WoodClan cat!

The battle around them died down. Cherrypaw stumbled to her sister's side, ears flat and her lips curled back in a snarl.

One of the cats Cherrypaw had fought, a large grey tom, stepped forward. "Who are you? Why are you trespassing on WoodClan territory?"

"We're sorry." Berrypaw dipped her head in respect. "We came to find WoodClan."

A very, very, very small black she-cat padded forth to stand beside the grey tom. "Why?"

"Hush, Antfur," the grey tom watched them carefully. "What are your names?"

"I'm Berrypaw, and this is Cherrypaw." Berrypaw flicked her tail. Antfur's eyes widened.

"Stonestar!" She meowed to the grey tom. "It is them!"

The brown tom's eyes met Berrypaw's, and she felt her fur grow hot. Stonestar blinked. "Thrushfeather, is this the cat you fought?"

"Yes," answered the small tom. "She battled well. Like a true Clan cat."

"We're apprentices of ThunderClan." Cherrypaw piped up. "Our leader was Tawnystar."

"Tawnywhisker? Then Swiftstar died?" Thrushfeather widened his eyes in surprise.