-[ Warriors: With The Fallen ]-

Part Two: Chapter Fifteen~ Empty

~Feather'spot~

The apprentice den was awfully dark today. Did the sun die or something? He craned his eyes open, and it finally hit him. He and Rose'fall were in the nursery, and were supposed to be Distanced by now.

'Well, I'm not crazed, but what about Rose'fall?' He thought, and quickly turned to check on the she-cat.

She remained right where she had been thrown yesterday morning. Feather'spot had tried to talk to her, but she would not respond to him. Besides the occasional grumble of 'go away, Feather'spot, you're awfully annoying.'

He thought they were better after he gave his place to her for the Gathering. Apparently not. The following events really took a toll on her.

They also hurt Feather'spot. Scarred him. However, he had to look forward, and not look back at the past. That way, it wouldn't drag him down.

He heaved himself up. The wound on his neck hissed out as he moved.

He gave himself a task, and then went out to do it. 'I'm hungry. I'm sure Rose'fall will be too when she wakes up. I'll go hunt something.'

Slowly, one by one, Feather'spot removed the carelessly thrown branches that barricaded the entrance. Did his clan even put any effort into blocking them inside?

Before he stepped outside, he ran back to check on Rose'fall. Feather'spot crouched down by her, and made sure she was still breathing. He lightly pawed her too, just to make sure she had not turned. Rose'fall mewed something incoherent, before she turned away.

Feather'spot let out a sigh of relief, before he ran outside. He stopped for a moment, as the sun reflected brightly on the slushy snow. Last night must have been raining. Whatever trace left of Cloud'clan, was now gone.

"Foxdung." He cursed in a hiss. They were truly by themselves.

He shook his head, "We'll find them later. Right now, food."

He parted his jaws. The slight scent of home wavered to him. The place he ran about with Dusted'paw, and joked about she-cats. The place where he had been trained. The place he had been born, and raised, with his two older brothers. The place he had planned out to settle down here. Maybe even move up in the ranks, and become a father.

All of that gone.

This was sure easy to slip down into depression.

He couldn't let himself, though. Not while they were still alive, and not turned.

"Food. We need food." Feather'spot reminded himself quickly.

He trotted out a little farther away from camp. The scent of a sparrow wavered to him. Feather'spot began his journey towards it. His large paws thumped on the snow.

The snowy forest was silent. That made some of the fur prick on his back. On the bright side, this also made it incredibly easy to spot the sparrow.

Its molten brown feathers flapped slightly. The bird pecked away at something in the snow. Unknown to the fate that lay soon for it.

The tom bunched up his haunches. He remembered Wolf'fang's tactics for hunting things of that size, and swiftly launched onto the small bird. It let out a small squeak, and then stilled. Feather'spot felt some pity for the bird.

' Fawn'tooth dung into the scruff of his neck. Her sharp fangs quickly got a hold of him. Wolf'fang struggled feebly from where he lay on the snowy floor; his paw twisted at a bad angle.

Feather'paw whacked at her, but to no avail. Was there really any point when he was to turn into the same... monster she was?

He caught sight of Rose'paw. The white furred she-cat stood in the snow as she watched the scene. Her bright blue eyes were wide in horror that froze her.

"Rose'paw, help!" He yowled out to her.

Sharp pain filled him more so as Fawn'tooth dug her fangs deeper. She shook the large apprentice around, like one of those Twolegs' dogs playing with its toy.

She dropped the oversized branch she held, and ran towards her Distanced mentor. Rose'paw closed her eyes, and swung at Fawn'tooth's throat.

The pressure released from the back of his neck. Rose'paw looked to Feather'paw, who gaped at her, and then to his overwhelmingly large bite mark. She had saved him. '

The sharp tang of the blood filled his senses. It brought him out pf the quick flashback from two nights before. The taste of it distracted him from a low branch that dipped overhead. It roughly scraped at the slowly-healing bite wound, and reopened it.

"I feel so smart," He murmured through his mouthful of sparrow.