Warriors: The Blood Moon Rises

Chapter Ten

Tears rolled down Icypaw's fluffy white fur. The claw-moon reflected off of the round tears as they cascaded to the ground. Icypaw was sitting vigil for her mother, Snapperwhisker. Snapperwhisker's health slowly declined from the time of Icykit's birth. She had stopped eating, even though Icypae begged her to. Icypaw knew that her mother had been messed up in the head, but she couldn't help but blame herself for this. Snapperwhisker's white and ginger coat shone underneath Silverpelt. Today had been the worst apprentice ceremony ever. The scene played in her head again.
"Icykit, you will now be called Icypaw!" Troutstar had proudly boomed from the middle of camp. Everyone cheered her name, until a cold shriek silenced everyone.
"Snapperwhisker's not waking up! Oh StarClan, help!" Pebblestream's wail sounded from the nursery. Pearlnose rushed to the den, and after a few moments of deafening silence, she solemnly walked out, shaking her head. Troutstar stood there, eyes wide. He walked to his den, emotionless, and stayed there. Technically, apprentices weren't supposed to sit vigil, but Icypaw begged and begged, and now here she was.
Icypaw couldn't contain herself anymore. She let out a wail and sank to Snapperwhisker's skinny body.
"This is all my fault! If I were never born, you'd still be here!"
"Oh, don't say such things, Icypaw. Snapperwhisker needed peace, and now she has it in StarClan."
Icykit had forgotten that Pebblestream and Brooksplash were also sitting vigil with her.
"Snapperwhisker was my littermate, and even before you were born, Pearlnose was always trying to figure out what was wrong with her. Her head just worked differently. She thought in a way that may seem odd to the rest of us, but made perfect sense to her. That was why she was always upset; nobody understood her." Pebblestream explained. Icypaw had never thought of it that way before.
"I just wish I had a normal mother, like every other cat," Icypaw sniffled and wiped her tears. "Tadpolepaw and Shellpaw have two! Maybe they should share," she joked halfheartedly
Brooksplash and Pebblestream's whiskers twitched in amusement.
"Well, RiverClan almost didn't let us raise Shellpaw and Tadpolepaw." Brooksplash looked up thoughtfully.
Icypaw was intrigued.
"Ever notice how neither of them look like us?" Pebblestream gestured to her tan coat. The thought had never crossed Icypaw's mind. Come to think of it, her two friends showed almost no resemblance to their mothers.
"That's because they aren't really our kits. Biologically, anyways. We didn't give birth to them. Another tom named Thicketnose was in love with a cat from another clan, so Troutstar made the decision to banish him. He didn't want to take his kits with him, so he entrusted them to me since we were littermates." Brookesplash looked off into the sky.
"But didn't he want them to be with his mate?" Icypaw was confused.
"The she cat didn't want anyone to know what happened. She still lives in her own clan today."
"How do you know?" Icypaw gasped. "You know who it was?"
"Yes. But we swore we would never tell. I've already said to much. Look, the sun is rising. It's time to say goodbye."
A pang of reality hit Icypaw.
"You know Icypaw, I think this is for the best. You loved Snapperwhisker, but the things she said made you think horrible things. Though she never meant to say any of it, it still hurt."
This was true. Snapperwhisker always seemed to be upset. Icypaw nodded and bent down to her mother. She had no tears left for her. "May StarClan light your path, Snapperwhisker. Mother." Icypaw stood up and walked back to camp under the sunrise.
~
"All cats old enough to swim, gather round for a clan meeting!" Troutstar's loud voice sounded around the camp as paw steps padded to gather round. Icypaw sat next to her mentor, Brooksplash, who had a serious expression on her face. "As all of you know, Snapperwhisker is no longer with us. While we all grieve this loss, I must choose a new deputy. I already have a cat in mind, but any cat who does not feel comfortable with this responsibility, please step back."
In response, Maplegaze and most of the younger cats stepped back.
"Brooksplash, please step forward."
Brooksplash's ears twitched and her eyes widened as she stepped forward.
"Brooksplash, I have chosen you to be the new deputy of RiverClan. Do you promise to protect the clan, even at the cost of your life, and assume my role as leader when I am gone?"
"Yes. I am honored to be chosen," Brooksplash nodded.
"I trust that you will use your wisdom and strength to help me guide RiverClan. Come join me up here."
Brooksplash smiled proudly as she hopped up by Troutstar.
"Brooksplash!"
"Brooksplash!"
"Brooksplash!" Cheers rang through the camp for the new deputy.
"That's my mom!" Tadpolepaw screeched and bounced up and down.
"Clan dismissed."
Brooksplash leaped down to Icypaw, who could barely contain her excitement. "My mentor is the new deputy!" She squealed.
"It's no big deal. I mean, it's an honor, but I'll still be the same mentor," Brooksplash reassured with a smile. "Let's go fishing to celebrate!"
Icykit hopped all the way to the river excitedly. Fishing was so much fun, especially when Shellpaw fell in the river. Shellpaw was padding right behind her. Icypaw noticed that he looked really tired and had a small scratch on his ear.
"Where did that come from?" Icypaw inquired. Shellpaw's fur ruffled.
"I just had a thorn in my nest."
But the nests were just checked for thorns. What was Shellpaw hiding?