𝐀𝐅𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐁𝐔𝐑𝐍 〖ʷᵃʳʳⁱᵒʳ ᶜᵃᵗˢ〗

XI

A warm breeze swept over the clearing. "Hey, Larkpaw, watch out!" Goosethroat cried with alarm.

The molly tried to pounce down on the many leaves she had gathered, but instead it just made the problem worse, and they swept across the clearing. Larkpaw's ears flattened with shame.

"Don't worry," the she-cat's mentor purred, relaxing down from where she had been standing on her hind-paws and weaving flowers and pretty leaves into the dens. "We can gather more."

Spiderpaw's whiskers twitched with amusement. The Festival of Joy was on its way, and would be upon them tomorrow. Every cat had to help with preparations. From where she was sitting, she could also see Marigoldpaw and Rainwhisker weaving leaves together and chewing a poultice to make them stick, which would be used in one of the many competitions.

Most of the cats who would be participating in the competitions would be allowed some rest. Apprentices were not allowed to participate, as it would be too dangerous. According to Palebriar, there would be a leaf-gathering competition, a race to the stream and back, a hunting competition, a tracking competition, a climbing competition, and finally a Clan-wide game of hide-and-seek. The only cats not allowed to join the final game were Maplewhisker and Palebriar, as in case anything went wrong, they had to be allowed to navigate the territory with

Excitement filled Spiderpaw at the thought of seeing her Clanmates engage in such friendly competition.

Soon enough, Marigoldpaw and Rainwhisker were done with the basket-weaving, and they both approached Spiderpaw. "Hey, Spiderpaw," Rainwhisker said, the four pouches they had woven in their jaws. "Can you bring these to Petalcloud? She's going to be running the events and she's the one who asked us to make this."

"Of course," Spiderpaw purred, taking the pouches from the older molly. Without another word, she padded off and into the advisors' den, where Petalcloud was talking in a low voice with Fleckleaf, by far the best hider in the Clan. He would be the one who the trackers had to find during the tracking competition.

"Well I was thinking, if you took this route, then maybe it would make it a bit less clear," Petalcloud murmured, a certain tiredness to her voice. "Then they couldn't find you at all."

"I suppose that's true. But the goal is for me to be found eventually," Fleckleaf pointed out.

Before Petalcloud could reply, Spiderpaw stuck her head into the den. In the dirt on the ground, the two cats had illustrated a rough scheme of the territory. It seemed as though they were discussing what path Fleckleaf should take. Spiderpaw noticed that Petalcloud's pelt seemed a bit ruffled. As soon as she peeked in, both cats stopped talking.

"Ah, sorry to interrupt," Spiderpaw said sheepishly.

"No, don't worry about it." Petalcloud purred, padding over to the prophet apprentice. "I see that Marigoldpaw and Rainwhisker have finished the pouches for leaf-gathering. That's great. Really quickly, would you mind letting Palebriar know that she should collect some moss?"

"I'm on it," Spiderpaw agreed before heading off, her tail held high. This time, she pivoted off towards the prophet's den. Inside, Hornetclaw was looking hurt and holding out his paw tentatively so that Palebriar could get a better look at it.

"Ouch!" Hornetclaw yelped as Palebriar pulled a thorn from his pad before licking it.

"Tell one of the apprentices to change out the moss in your nest, in case any more slipped in." Palebriar instructed, her rasped voice soft as a feather.

"I will," Hornetclaw insisted.

Without another word, the tom exited the den. Palebriar sighed. "So many minor injuries during this time of year. Painful but not long-lasting." She turned to Spiderpaw. "Need something?"