Warriors AU: Into the Wild

Chapter 2

"Well?" hissed Oakstar, her face only a mouse-length from his now. Frostfur remained silent as he towered over Sandy.

He flattened his ears and crouched under the white warrior's cold stare. His fur prickled uncomfortably. "I am no threat to your Clan." he mewed, looking down at his trembling paws.

"You threaten our Clan when you take our food," yowled Oakstar. "You have plenty of food in your Twoleg nest already. You come here only to hunt for sport. But we hunt to survive."

The truth of the warrior queen's words pierced Sandy like a blackthorn, and suddenly he understood her anger. He stopped trembling, sat up, and straightened his ears. He raised his eyes to meet hers. "I had not thought of it that way before. I am sorry," he meowed solemnly. "I will not hunt here again."

Oakstar let her hackles fall and signaled to Frostfur to step back. "You are an unusual kittypet, Sandy," she meowed.

Silverpaw's sigh of relief made Sandy's ears twitch. He heard the approval in Oakstar's voice and noticed as she swapped a meaningful glance with Frostfur. The look made him curious. What flashed between the two warriors? Quietly he asked, "Is survival here really so hard?"

"Our territory covers only part of the forest," answered Oakstar. "We compete with other Clans for what we have. And this year, late newleaf means prey is scarce."

"Is your Clan very big?" Sandy meowed, his eyes wide.

"Big enough," replied Oakstar. "Our territory can support us, but there is no prey left over."

"Are you all warriors, then?" Sandy mewed. Oakstar's guarded answers were just making him more and more curious.

Frostfur answered him. "Some are warriors. Some are too young or too old or too busy caring for kits to hunt."

"And you all live and share prey together?" Sandy murmured in awe, thinking a little guiltily of his own easy, selfish life.

Oakstar looked again at Frostfur. The white tom stared back at her steadily. At last she returned her gaze to Sandy and meowed, "Perhaps you should find out these things for yourself. Would you like to join Thunderclan?"

Sandy was so surprised, he couldn't speak.

Oakstar went on: "If you did, you would train with Silverpaw to become a Clan warrior."

"But kittypets can't be warriors! Silverpaw blurted out. "They don't have warrior blood!"

A sad look clouded Oakstar's eyes. "Warrior blood," she echoed with a sigh. "Too much of that has been spilled lately."

Oakstar fell silent and Frostfur meowed, "Oakstar is only offering you training, young kit. There is no guarantee you would become a full warrior. It might prove too difficult for you. After all, you are used to a comfortable life."

Sandy was stung by Frostfur's words. He swung his head around to face the white tom. "Why offer me the chance, then?"

But it was Oakstar who answered. "You are right to question our motives, young one. The fact is, Thunderclan needs more warriors."

"Understand that Oakstar does not make this offer lightly," warned Frostfur. "If you wish to train with us, we will have to take you into our Clan. You must either live with us and respect our ways, or return to your Twolegplace and never come back. You cannot live with a paw in each world."

A cool breeze stirred the undergrowth, ruffling Sandy's fur. He shivered, not with the cold, but with excitement at the incredible possibilities opening up in front of him.

"Are you wondering if it's worth giving up your comfortable kittypet life?" asked Oakstar gently. "But do you realize the price you will pay for your warmth and food?"

Sandy looked at her, puzzled. Surely his encounter with these cats had proved to him just how easy and luxurious his life was.

"I can tell that you are still a tom," Oakstar added, "Despite the Twoleg stench that clings to your fur."

"What do you mean–still a tom?"

"You haven't yet been taken by the Twolegs to see the Cutter," meowed Oakstar gravely. "You would be very different then. Not quite so keen to fight a Clan cat, I suspect!"

Sandy was confused. He suddenly thought of Henrietta, who had become fat and lazy since her visit to the vet. Was that what Oakstar meant by the Cutter?

"The Clan may not be able to offer you such easy food or warmth," continued Oakstar. "In the season of leaf-bare, nights in the forest can be cruel. The Clan will demand great loyalty and hard work. You will be expected to protect the Clan with your life if necessary. And there are many mouths to feed. But the rewards are great. You will remain a tom. You will be trained in the ways of the wild. You will learn what it is to be a real cat. The strength and the fellowship of the Clan will always be with you, even when you hunt alone."

Sandy's head reeled. Oakstar seemed to be offering him the life he had lived so many times, and so tantalizing, in his dreams, but could he live like that for real?

Frostfur interrupted his thoughts. "Come, Oakstar, let's not waste any more time here. We must be ready to join the other patrol at moonhigh. Goldenflower will wonder what has become of us." He stood up and flicked his tail expectantly.

"Wait," Sandy meowed. "Can I think about your offer?"

Oakstar looked at him for a long moment and nodded. "Frostfur will be here tomorrow at sunhigh," She told him. "Give him your answer then."

Oakstar murmured a low signal, and in a single movement the three cats turned and disappeared into the undergrowth.

Sandy blinked. He stared–excited, uncertain–up past the ferns that encircled him, through the canopy of leaves, to the stars that glittered in the sky. The scent of the Clan cats still hung heavy in the evening air. And as Sandy turned and headed for home, he felt a strange sensation inside him, tugging him back into the depths of the forest. His fur prickled deliciously in the light wind, and the rustling leaves seemed to whisper his name into the shadows.