Warriors AU: Into the Wild

Chapter 20

By the time Sandpaw returned, the camp was starting to look a little better. Parties of cats had clearly been patching and repairing continuously throughout the day. Lionheart and Tigerclaw were still busy fortifying the nursery walls, but the outer wall looked solid and secure once more.

Sandpaw trotted across the clearing to see if there was any fresh-kill around. He passed Firepaw and Fernpaw, who were preparing to leave in the next patrol.

"Sorry," mewed Firepaw, as Sandpaw sniffed hopefully around the eating area. "We ate the last two mice."

Sandpaw shrugged. He would catch something for himself later. He headed back to the apprentices' den, where Silverpaw was sitting with his back resting against the tree stump, licking a forepaw.

"Where's Patchpaw?" Sandpaw asked as he sat down.

"Not back from her task yet," replied Silverpaw. "Look at that!" He held out his paw for Sandpaw to inspect. The pad was torn and bleeding. "Goldenflower sent me fishing and I stepped on a sharp stone in the stream."

"That looks pretty deep. You should get Spottedleaf to take a look at it." Sandpaw advised. "Where did Goldenflower send Patchpaw, by the way?"

"Dunno. I was up to my belly in cold water." muttered Silverpaw. He stood up and limped away toward Spottedleaf's den.

Sandpaw settled down, his eyes fixed on the entrance to the camp, and waited for Patchpaw. After overhearing the warriors' conversation last night, he couldn't shake the feeling that something dreadful was going to happen to his friend. His heart lurched as he saw Goldenflower enter the camp alone.

He waited longer. The moon was high in the sky. Surely Patchpaw should be back by now? Sandpaw found himself wishing he'd spoken to Oakstar when he'd had the chance. He could see Darkstripe and longtail guarding her den now, and he certainly didn't want them to overhear his concerns.

Goldenflower had brought back fresh-kill, which he was sharing with Brindleface outside the warriors' den. Sandpaw realized he was very hungry. Perhaps he should go and hunt—he might come across Patchpaw outside the camp. As he wondered what to do, Sandpaw saw Patchpaw trotting through the entrance of the camp. A thrill of relief raced through him, and not just because Patchpaw was holding fresh-kill between his teeth.

The apprentice came straight over to Sandpaw and dropped the mouthful of food on the ground. "Enough for all three of us!" she mewed proudly. "And it should taste extra good—it's from Shadowclan territory."

Sandpaw gasped. "You hunted in Shadowclan territory?"

"That was my task," Patchpaw explained.

"Goldenflower sent you into enemy territory to hunt!" Sandpaw could hardly believe it. "We must tell Oakstar. That was too dangerous!"

At the mention of Oakstar's name, Patchpaw shook her head. Her eyes looked hunted and shadowed with fear. "Look, just keep quiet, okay?" she hissed. "I survived. I even caught some prey. That's all there is to it."

"You survived this time!" Sandpaw spat.

"Shhh! Goldenflower's looking. Just eat your share and keep quiet!" snapped Patchpaw. Sandpaw shrugged and took a piece of the fresh-kill. Patchpaw ate quickly, avoiding Sandpaw's eye. "Shall we save some for Silverpaw?" she asked after a while.

"He went to see Spottedleaf." Sandpaw mumbled through a mouthful. "He cut his paw. I don't know when he'll be back."

"Well, save him whatever you want," replied Patchpaw, suddenly sounding worn out. "I'm tired; I need to sleep." She stood up and pushed her way into the den.