𝐀𝐅𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐁𝐔𝐑𝐍 〖ʷᵃʳʳⁱᵒʳ ᶜᵃᵗˢ〗

XVI

Eventually, Spiderpaw crept out of her bush, once Larkpaw and Comfreyheart's voices faded into the nothingness around her. Then, she slowly padded back to camp, seeing that the guard watch had ended due to moon sinking in the sky. She gave a wary look to the cats inside of her den. Which one of them was a cruel liar?

Well, finding out whoever it was would have to wait till morning. Resolute, Spiderpaw curled into a tight ball in her nest, hoping to block out all of the problems she had to deal with.

—

The prophet apprentice was surprised to feel a paw prodding her side. With a sharp intake of breath, she saw Palebriar standing over her. She didn't feel at all pacified by the pact, however, quickly getting to her paws. Maplewhisker was checking herb stores a few paw-steps away, a thoughtful look in his eyes.

She didn't want to believe that either of them were killers. She didn't want to think of the idea that they could do something so heartless. So, instead, she put a smile on her face. "What's the plan for today?" She asked, her tail whisking around.

"Seems like we're out of celandine," Maplewhisker huffed. "We're going to have to go to the stream for it."

As Palebriar responded something about celandine being important for eye pain, a spot of hope opened inside of Spiderpaw. Maybe, if they were out in the forest, she could get them to explain what happened. But she would have to be subtle—if one of them was a killer, who knew how far they would be willing to go to keep their secret?

"Spiderpaw," Palebriar meowed with a hint of exasperation in her rasped voice, "are you coming, or do you need to stay in camp for the day?"

Silently, Spiderpaw got to her paws as the three cats headed out. Maybe it was just how she was feeling, but there was something sinister about the forest. The sky completely blocked out the sun, blanketing everything in a dreary pale gray. She flanked her two mentors as they walked towards the stream.

"Okay, we can check upstream first." Palebriar meowed. "Then we'll make our way downstream. Since we only have a singular bulb left, its going to be important to stay attentive."

Spiderpaw didn't argue. However, as they walked, she decided it was time to ask. "I've been thinking a lot about Stoatnose," she confessed to her senior prophets. Both of them turned their heads to give her concerned looks.

"Well, that's natural." Palebriar meowed absently. "Such a tragedy, the way she died. A fox mauling you to death is never a good way to join StarClan." She moved aside a tall patch of reeds, sniffing and shifting her paw through it, looking for the herb. Before Spiderpaw could respond, she turned back to Maplewhisker. "See anything?"

The tom shook his head. "Maybe it was all sucked in by the stream's flooding," he noted with distaste. Spiderpaw thought it had gone down slightly since the night before, but it was still angry, almost lapping at her paws.

"I can't believe we got a flood in greenleaf," Palebriar snorted in agreement. "Let's walk a bit further downstream. Maybe we'll find something there."

As the three cats made their way down the bank, Spiderpaw distracted herself by peering down into the stream's waters. In the grayish, cloudy flow, tiny minnows darted away from her shadow. She often wondered why MorningClan never made use of the stream as a resource for prey. But, on second thought, the idea of eating a slimy-textured fish made her internally gag.

Eventually, however, Maplewhisker was a notable distance away from Palebriar and Spiderpaw. "So, you were saying about Stoatnose?"

"I don't buy that she was killed by a fox," Spiderpaw said confidently. "Someone in our Clan killed her."