Caɾղaցe Ɱօօղ ~𝙰 𝚆𝚊𝚛𝚛𝚒𝚘𝚛𝚜 𝙵𝚊𝚗𝚏𝚒𝚌

46 🌙

"I hid in that rock crevice behind the Highrock. I had to run because Quietdew almost beat me to it." Tinypaw explained when Crescentpaw asked how she avoided the wolves.

She thought of the cracked stone behind Highrock. Its crevice was deep and narrow, facing toward the dirtplace bramble walls and nearly impenetrable for an adult wolf.

"It was something I thought of before the fact, so I wouldn't expose myself. But I don't think it'll work every time." Tinypaw's meows turned bitter.

"Using the cleft seems to be Quietdew's survival strategy, so she doesn't have to run across the clearing or swarm up a tree with the other cats.

Usually she screams at Emberfawn to join her, but he never does."

"Emberfawn's nice, but I don't like his mom Quietdew. She doesn't like me either." Cheetah added to the conversation.

"Yeah, he's cool. Did you make friends with him?" Crescentpaw asked. Cheetah nodded, then burst out;

"Yeah! He's amazing. He actually asked me to hunt the other day, it was crazy. And he said he likes fishing. He showed me this cool fishing spot underneath a weeping willow tree, and we talked so long the sun almost set without us noticing!" Cheetah giggled.

Crescentpaw purred. "That sounds nice." She was happy for her friend.

"Crescentpaw, I've been meaning to tell you something. It's not good news." Tinypaw looked ashamed, her eyes downcast. The lithe she-cat stared at her paws as they sank into the peaty earth.

"What?" The tabby apprentice's mew was apprehensive.

"Houndspots knows!" She burst out, while Cheetah bounded over a fallen twig ahead of them.

"I... It was my fault. I told him. I screwed up, because he kept pressuring me about my training and asking if something was wrong and saying there must be something off with me, I-"

"Slow down." Crescentpaw's steps dwindled to a stop, as she murmured at her sister with concern.

"It's okay. What happened right before you told him?"

"Well-..." she flattened her ears.

"Houndspots started arguing with me about how I haven't been hunting or changing nests well. I lied and told him I'd had a crush on Tidepaw, so that it would explain the change in my training after we returned."

Crescentpaw nodded. Houndspots would believe it, since Tidepaw had died while they were trapped in the Twoleg nest, and they had found out after their return.

"But he said that was no excuse to perform so poorly in training. He pushed me, and argued, and scolded me. He said that since I couldn't catch a single fish in days, then what was I good for? So I blew up on him," Tinypaw explained. Cheetah turned on her heels and watched with genuine interest, although she had most likely already heard it before.

"I told him the real reason why I'm failing my training. That the twoleg took my claws." she swiped at a leaf-stalk that was growing in her walking path. It flicked back up, unscathed.

"And, surprisingly, his reaction caught me off guard." Crescentpaw stared at her sister, fully invested in whatever came next.

"He said it was okay. Houndspots said that it wasn't my fault, that he would help me hide my secret from the rest of the clan." The she-cats gaze softened thoughtfully.

"I was questioned about my future, though." Tinypaw lifted her velvety black muzzle, whiskers twitching as she scented the wind. "He asked me if I planned to flee the clans, become a loner or rogue or kittypet; if things ever got too bad."