Cinders to Flames

Chapter 25

That morning the forest was alive with birdsong. For the first time in moons the sun shone through the treetops, illuminating the leaves so they shone a vibrant green. Cinderfrost felt herself relaxing as she enjoyed the sound of a warm breeze rustling leaves and the sound of a thrush fluttering back and forth as it worked hard building a nest. She was looking for Blackwhisker, who was on a border patrol around the DarkClan border. There were voices up ahead, and Cinderfrost ran to catch up. The patrol was being led by Iceleap. A few other cats walked behind him. Blackwhisker brought up the rear. He seemed to be walking apart from the other cats, who sent him resentful glares from over their shoulders. Cinderfrost bit down on her tongue to stop herself from growling.

"Blackwhisker!" She hissed under her breath. The black tom slowed to a halt, sending her a curious glance. Cinderfrost secretly loved the way his eyes lit up when he saw her.

"Cinderfrost? What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be on a hunting patrol right now?"

She rolled her eyes with impatience. "Yes, but this is more important. Come with me."

He glanced guiltily back at his patrol, which was now disappearing into the trees. "But I can't just abandon my patrol right now. Everyone already hates me enough because of Paleear. Iceleap was the only cat who actually wanted me on a patrol."

Cinderfrost's ear twitched in irritation. "You're their clanmate," she argued, "they shouldn't be mad at you for skipping one patrol. Come on."

Blackwhisker sighed and followed her in the opposite direction of the border patrol.

"What did you want to tell me?"

She took a deep breath before replying. Saying something aloud was different than saying it in her head. "I'm going to leave The School," she said finally, her voice growing quiet.

"I'm glad," he meowed. "You should have left moons ago. In my opinion you shouldn't have joined it at all."

Cinderfrost stayed silent, hating the anger in his mew.

"What made you want to leave all of a sudden?" He asked curiously.

She flinched, looking away. The memory of Olive's death was still fresh in her mind. "I don't want to talk about it."

"Alright." He didn't pry for more information, but there was concern in his gaze.

She stiffened when she caught a familiar scent in the air.

"What is it?" Blackwhisker asked her, glancing around like he was searching for what had caught her attention.

"It's nothing," she replied quickly. "I just thought I smelt a squirrel."

"I don't smell any squirrel," he said, brows furrowing with confusion.

"That's because your nose doesn't work, silly," she teased lightly, hiding the concern she felt. "I'm going to go and check it out. You stay here."

As soon as she was away from his view she broke into a run, until she reached the edge of the Untaken Lands.

"What in the name of StarClan are you doing here?" She hissed.

Bronze flattened her ears, shifting her paws with guilt. "I was just hunting. I'm not in clan territory."

Cinderfrost let her racing heart slow. "Yes, alright. Pixie didn't instruct you to go here or anything?"

"No! Why would she do that?" Bronze replied, her voice rising.

Why was she getting defensive? "Fine, just make sure no clan cats see you. Another one of the clans is trying to take over the Untaken Lands, so they might be hostile and drive you out," she warned.

They said quick goodbyes, and Cinderfrost returned to Blackwhisker.

"You were right, no squirrel." She ducked her head in fake embarrassment.

"Phht, look whose nose isn't working now," he mocked lightly.

On their way back to camp, Cinderfrost reflected back to her encounter with Bronze. Why did she look so guilty when she mentioned Pixie? Was Pixie sending cats into the forest? And why?

She tried to shake off her worries, but kept her up at night. If the rogues were planning something, was it really a good idea to leave? She tossed and turned in her nest until Blackwhisker laid a comforting tail on her flank and gently told her to get some sleep.

Her dreams were full of shadows and betrayal, and the only cat she could truly trust was the one who lay next to her, deep in a restless sleep. 

Surprise! I actually decided to finish this chapter after publishing that announcement lol.