Leafshade's Revenge

Chapter Four

Chapter Four

Leafpaw padded around camp, her muscles aching and her fur rippling with the small breeze. Leaves fluttered in the air, and the ground, now damp from all the rain, left paw prints where her paws had been. Some of the dens looked a bit out of shape...she assumed the apprentices and some of the warriors would be getting those fixed up.

Thornpaw and Amberpaw have been apprentices for a while, she thought. They are probably having their warrior ceremonies soon...while I pick fleas out of the elders' fur. She pricked her ears as Crowflight—a dark black tom—and Thornpaw walked over towards her.

"You'll be excited to know," Crowflight meowed, "that we're on cleanup duty."

Leafpaw sighed, stretching. "I'm so thrilled," she responded, her voice dull.

Thornpaw's eyes sparkled. "Come on, it won't be that bad," he mewed cheerfully. He turned to go towards one of the dens. This is going to be a long day, Leafpaw thought sadly, following Thornpaw with a lot less enthusiasm. Crowflight fell in behind her.

+++

"Thank goodness we finished," Leafpaw mewed, her body sore now. She padded over to the fresh kill pile and grabbed a mouse. "Want to share it with me?" she asked, not sure she could finish it all by herself.

"Sure," Thornpaw replied, swiping his tongue over his lips. He settled down beside Leafpaw, blinking tiredly. He took small bites, chewing slowly on what little he bit off. His short fur had little twigs and leaves stuck to it, and Leafpaw looked down at her own messy fur. Fox-dung! I'm a mess.

When she finished the mouse, she began to groom her fur, getting dirt and rocks out of it. Thank goodness I don't have long fur! She thought, casting a glance at Crowflight, who's fur was definitely longer than hers.

She stretched and got up. "I'm going to go see if there's anything else to do," she mewed, though she was actually just going to sleep. So...tired...she thought miserably. She went to the apprentice den, curling up on her bed next to Splotchpaw, who was sound asleep. Amberpaw and Thornpaw were out working, and she saw Tigerpaw attempting to get the elders to listen to him. She let all the tiredness overwhelm her and she fell asleep quickly.

+++

Leafpaw squeezed her eyes shut as cats came into the apprentice den. She recognized them as Swallowfur, Mothlight, and Clearfrost, one of the most negative cats in the clan. Well, he wasn't always negative, but he wasn't the most positive either, she thought. He had thick black fur, and frost-blue eyes, like hers.

"Leafpaw, we know you're not sleeping," Mothlight meowed softly, her voice tinted with amusement. "Get up, we're going hunting." Leafpaw sighed and got up, stretching. She blinked sleepily, and she gave her pelt a good shake.

Swallowfur nodded. "Alright, come on. Mothlight, get Tigerpaw, we'll meet you at the lake." He took off, his pace quick, and Leafpaw had to trot to keep up. She stayed close to her mentor, still nervous from the last attack, and she glanced behind her every few steps to make sure no one was hiding.

"Leafpaw, calm down," Clearfrost meowed, shaking his head. "There aren't any cats following us. And if you keep on like that, you're going to hit a tree." He picked up his pace, his strides smooth and long. His tail stayed just above the ground, barely touching the leaves that fell from the trees.

"It's getting colder," Swallowfur commented, shivering. He broke into a run as the lake came into view. Yes! Finally, she thought excitedly, bounding after him with her tail high in the air.

+++

With the leaves falling from the trees, and the air becoming so much colder, the moons seemed to pass very slowly...but finally, finally, there was only a half moon left before Leafpaw would be a warrior. She was so excited. Her tail twitched as she stalked a mouse, nibbling on a little seed. I've got you now, she thought with determination.

She sprung up and pounced, landing on the mouse and killing it with a quick bite. Her face beamed with pride as Sorrelfur, the clan deputy, Thornpaw, Amberpaw, Crowflight, and Mintfern came over, dropping their prey beside hers. Skystar had sent extra cats on the patrol this morning, with leaf-bare coming. She hoped their prey would be enough to feed the whole clan.

She shook out her pelt as little snowflakes fell and landed on her tortoiseshell coat, dappling white against her mostly dark colors. She blinked. "That's good, right?" she meowed, looking at Sorrelfur for approval.

The deputy nodded. Sorrelfur shook out her golden fur with darker brown specks. "That's enough. Let's take it back to camp," she ordered, picking up a vole and a mouse, and taking the lead back to camp.

Amberpaw and Thornpaw fell in beside Leafpaw, looking excited. "We passed our warrior assessments," Thornpaw told her, a bounce in his step. "We're going to be warriors—finally!" He picked up his pace, trotting smoothly beside Amberpaw and her.

Amberpaw's whiskers twitched. "Remember, we promised not to brag about that if Leafpaw doesn't brag about her excellent fighting skills...and she's kept her promise." He looked at Thornpaw expectantly, his amber eyes gleaming.

Thornpaw sighed. "Right. Sorry."

Leafpaw glanced at them, sighing. "Ok. I give you thirty seconds to brag and be so happy about being a warrior before me." Nothing. "I mean it—you have thirty seconds, starting n—"

Thornpaw dropped his prey, springing up. He leapt into the air, legs extended and fur fluffing out. "YES!" he yowled, landing with a hard thump. He ran ahead of everyone. "I'm going to be a warrior!" She could hear him still cheering, though the noise started becoming quieter.

"Your thirty seconds are done now!" she called after him, then picking up his dropped prey with Amberpaw. They made eye contact.

"No victory celebration for you, huh?" Leafpaw mewed through mouthfuls of fur and tails. They fell farther behind from the rest of the group, but stayed in sight. Amberpaw, as he got older, started to become a lot less immature like...well, Tigerpaw? No, he was getting better. A lot less pranks. He was serious and strong and...nicer? More likeable, she added happily to herself.

Amberpaw shrugged, looking more nervous now. "No victory celebration needed?" he suggested. He stumbled a little over a rock, regaining his balance and trying to focus on the ground now. He stared at the snow-specked ground below him, as if it was the most interesting thing ever.

"Let's just get back to camp," he muttered, hurrying up and leaving her behind.

Her pawsteps faltered. What is going on with him? She wondered.