Warriors: Frecklesky's Heart

[ 35 ]

"She can join us," Larkstar declared, her eyes fixed to Frecklesky's. Relief crashed over the warrior in a wave, and she nearly fell over in her surprise.

"Oh, thank StarClan," she muttered, rubbing a paw over her eyes. "Thank you, Larkstar. Truly, thank you."

Larkstar's whiskers twitched in amusement, while Chiveclaw blinked at the tortoiseshell warrior in surprise. Beside him resided Heronwing and Fallowstep. Fallowstep's eyes were blank and depressed. Heronwing didn't seem to care at all. Frecklesky turned her eyes to Larkstar, her whiskers trembling.

"May I tell her?" The tortoiseshell's paws itched with impatience. It was sun-high of the day following Larkstar's meeting with Rachel. She was inside of the hollow stump that made up the leader's den, having been called in to hear Larkstar's final decision.

Larkstar's face relaxed to a grin. "You may."

Frecklesky burst to her paws, ready to explode out of the den and run across the territory. She kept her cool with a sharp breath, closing her eyes for a moment. "Thank you," she mewed calmly, but she couldn't keep the smile off her face.

"You're welcome." Larkstar's eyes warmed, and she watched quietly as Frecklesky eagerly trotted out of the den.

The large warrior made her way swiftly across the clearing, but it didn't feel fast enough. Her paws were nearly soaring when she pushed out of camp and began running, unable to keep to a steady pace.

She was far too impatient to wait any longer.

She just had to see her precious Thunderpath.

Joy flooded through Frecklesky's heart as she raced across the territory.  Her fur felt lighter than ever, whisking through the blasting wind as she leaped over puddles, kept her head above the grass, and ignored prey as it scurried along around her.

Rachel would be joining ShadowClan. Larkstar approved of the kittypet. Larkstar welcomed her. It was like StarClan themselves had blessed the two, and Frecklesky knew, with every fiber of her being, that they would be happy together. For all of eternity.

Her chest heaved for breath and she slowed to a walk. Patience. I need to be patient. Rachel won't even be here until sundown. Her eyes darted to the sky. It was still a long ways until sunset, she noted as she neared the thunderpath. I can wait. As long as I can tell her that she'll be joining me, I can wait for moons.

She jumped onto the boulder and stared at the forest beyond, her racing heart slowing to a normal pace, but occasionally skipping with excitement. Her paws kneaded against the hard rock, her idea of patience quickly forgotten. Couldn't Rachel arrive sooner?

The sun dipped towards the horizon, as slow as a slug, until finally, the stunning oranges and pinks of sunset befell the sky. Clouds crept across the vast air, building a remarkable view unlike what Frecklesky had ever seen before.

Then, darkness fell.

Frecklesky waited and waited, her heart twisting and turning like a knotted clump of fur. The moon rose gently overhead, barely shining past the overcast of clouds.

"Rachel!" Frecklesky shouted, her heart clenching. "Rachel, are you here?"

Worry gnawed at her chest. Where is she?

The warrior dropped from the boulder and began to pace. Rachel had only been absent once—and that was when she'd been trapped by her twolegs. But that couldn't be the case now, could it? Did she realize she doesn't want to be a warrior? Frecklesky swallowed uneasily, her paws guiding her along the thunderpath.

Perhaps Rachel needed to avoid a ThunderClan patrol. After all, she said they'd been growing more active.

As she strolled along the long sheet of asphalt, another odor picked at her nostrils. A feeling of wrongness strummed at her chest. Something odd pricking at the pads of her paws.

Now on edge, Frecklesky dropped to a crouch, her eyes and ears strained to their fullest as she continued along.

The marsh rattled noisily under a cold wind. Clouds swept by overhead, and as they breezed away from the moon, leaving a sliver of an opening for light to shine down on the world, she spotted it.

On the edge of the thunderpath lay a small shape. She could hardly make it out from where she was, but as she grew closer, a horrified realization began to dawn on the warrior. She rose out of her crouch and began to run, her heart hammering.

"Oh, StarClan! Thunderpath, is that you?" Frecklesky cried, her voice pitching to a wail as she raced towards the gray smudge. Red seeped across the asphalt sheet like a crimson puddle collecting after a rainstorm. She felt nauseous as she stumbled up to Rachel's cool body, still and lifeless. Scratches lined her pelt, now dried with old blood. The white flowers Frecklesky had gifted her lay scattered across the earth.

How long had she been there, collecting dirt like old crowfood?

Frecklesky pressed her nose into Rachel's soft fur, breathing in her sweet lavender scent, choked beneath the breath of a monster. "You're okay," she whispered. "You're okay, my darling. Please, wake up."

Frecklesky began to lap at Rachel's cheek. Desperately. The former kittypet remained still, however, not even her chest stirring from a breath.

As a cold, hard realization slammed into Frecklesky, she noticed that tears were flooding down her cheeks. A screech caught in her ears, and it took a few heartbeats for her to realize that it was coming from her.

She stumbled slightly, dizzy with grief as her eyes found Rachel's, honey yellow and glazed over in death.

It felt as though Frecklesky's entire world had come crashing down.

Rachel had been caught by a monster.