Fallenpaw didn't know how to feel about all these cats. They were nice to her, sure, but they also kidnapped her. It had been a full week since she had been captured and today was the day One-Foot planned to take back their companion. Fallenpaw was told to stay back in camp with the kits while everyone else went off to attack BirchClan.
"Stay safe, kits," Orange meows, touching noses with them each gently.
"Don't worry," Fallenpaw meows. "I'll make sure they don't go anywhere.
"Thank you for watching them," the large grey tom, who Fallenpaw now knew as Scar, nods to the pink-ish-red she-cat.
"Of course," Fallenpaw smiles.
"We'll bring you back to WillowClan if all goes well," One-Foot meows, shaking out her fur. "See you then."
And with that, they were all off, leaving Fallenpaw with the three kits.
"Fallenpaw," Silver mews. "What are we gonna do while everyone's gone?"
"I dunno," Fallenpaw flicks her tail. "What do you guys wanna do?"
"Can you show us how to do some warrior moves? I wanna learn how to fight!" Root exclaims.
"Yeah!" Storm bounces excliedly.
Silver shifts her weight nervously. "I always fall over when we do that, though..."
"You've just got to find your center of balance. I used to have that problem. Thicker fur weighs you down, so you've gotta-" Fallenpaw gets into a hunting crouch, "-Distribute your weight to all four paws like this."
Silver copies Fallenpaw.
"Yeah, like that!" Fallenpaw encourages. "Root, Storm, get down like this."
"We already know how to do a hunting crouch, though," Root complains, following her instruction anyways.
"I'm showing you how to pounce," Fallenpaw explains. "Now, I'm going to pounce on that rock like it's a cat, ok? Watch how I do it."
Fallenpaw creeps forward, careful not to swish her tail around excitedly. She leaps up and lands on the rock. As she clambers off of it, Fallenpaw looks back at the kits. They were still in their crouches, but their big eyes reflected their awe.
"Wow! Where did you learn how to do that?" Root asks.
"My mentor, Silverstripe, taught me," the pink-ish-red she-cat puffs out her chest a little. "Now, you guys try it on each other, but no claws. Got it?"
"Uh huh!" the kits nod vigorously.
They start tumbling around, giggling as they get thrown into the dirt. Fallenpaw smiles, watching them play. They were such sweet kits and they all acted like Fallenpaw was their big sister.
Is this what it feels like? Is this how Mom feels watching me and the kits grow up and accomplish things? Fallenpaw wonders. It feels nice.
***
The patrol hadn't come back yet. Fallenpaw and the kits had curled up in the hollow stump after Fallenpaw had convinced them to eat the sparrow she'd caught in mid-air to show off a little. They'd curled up against Fallenpaw's belly and nestled into her thick fur. Fallenpaw almost felt like a mother for a split second before letting herself drift off. It was only in her dreams that she worried.
She got horrible nightmares where she was left alone in the middle of nowhere and she'd starve, or where she fell into a void of darkness. The like.
Fallenpaw eventually just lay awake, refusing to fall asleep. Now, she was staring at the entrance to the stump, waiting. Counting stars hadn't helped pass the time, and listing off every noise she heard just made her paranoid. She glances at the kits before looking back at the entrance again.
That's when she heard the rustling of leaves.
Fallenpaw gets to her paws, careful not to wake the kits before peeking out the den. A group of cats was coming her way. Fallenpaw slinks back into the den and unsheathes her claws. One could never be too careful. The pink-ish-red she-cat waits patiently for the cats to get closer. She'd jump out and start slashing at them. That would scare them off.
"RAH!" Fallenpaw screeches when the cats got close enough.
"Whoa!"
Fallenpaw was thrown to the ground by a larger cat. She squirms, trying to get away, but the cat didn't let her up.
"Stars, what's your problem, Fallenpaw?" One-Foot's voice comes out of the darkness.
Fallenpaw stops wiggling, realizing the big cat was Scar. "Sorry," the young she-cat mutters. "I thought you were intruders."
Scar huffs and lets Fallenpaw get to her feet.
"THIS is the cat who you left to guard the camp?" a snobbish voice scoffs. "She's hardly bigger than Bark!"
"Hey!" the small brown tom complains.
"Oh, you must be Cloud," Fallenpaw grumbles, spotting the white and grey she-cat.
YOU ARE READING
Distant Sun - Clouds
FantasyBook 1 Fallenpaw has a secret. She hasn't told anyone about it, not even her best friend. If her Clanmates knew, she would be scorned and hated. It's her fault the medicine cat apprentice vanished, after all. As the signs start pointing towards some...
