Warriors: What Is There To Do?

Chapter 17- Yay! Leaf-Bare Is Coming

The descent from the mountain in the morning light was peaceful, if you could ignore Moonpaw's clumsy stumbles, sending rocks into tumbles down the slight cliffs to the grassy meadows of Windclan's territory about twenty tail-lengths below. The silence between them was comfortable, both of them still tired from their small doze at the Moonstone.

To Splitpaw it had been disgruntling, having been told that she was like one of the great oaks at Fourtrees by the ignorant tom she had known in Riverclan, Iceheart.

To be honest, she didn't remember anything else after that. Like, she knew that something else happened, she knew that, she just didn't know... what.

"It sure is getting foggy... the leaf-bare weather is starting to set in! I can't wait to see snow! It's supposed to be so white that it makes your eyes hurt and cold enough to make your tongue numb!"

Moonpaw is suddenly spouting random things about the upcoming cold season. Against her will, she wondered how Riverclan survived if snow was supposed to bring a chill that would freeze the rushing, powerful river. She had seen it once, when she had been dragged to the gathering, and she found it hard to believe that the river could be tamed by a cold wind.

But, of course, that had nothing to do with her. She didn't care if Riverclan would suffer this leaf-bare.

"...Splitpaw? Are you listening to me at all?!" Moonpaw walked up in front of her and stood in her path, looking at her with an annoyed expression.

"...No, sorry, Moonpaw. What did you want to tell me?"

"That I can smell a Windclan patrol nearby, but I think if we hurry we won't be confronted."

"Would they confront us? We're just two apprentices!"

Moonpaw paused in his tracks and looked at her like she was a frog-brain.

"Yeah, two Shadowclan apprentices. Haven't you been told the stories about how Shadowclan makes their 'paws eat bones to become warriors?"

"Uh... no?"

"Well, those rumors are out there, and I'm pretty sure Windclan wouldn't just let us go by."

Now on edge, Splitpaw looked out into the tall grasses. While talking, they had left the rocky mountain path and their sore paws were greeted by lush green stalks of grass once more. The sky was indeed getting foggy, accompanied by a cold, dewy wind and the sense of coming rain from the direction of the heavily covered sun. The grass around them waved around in a rhythm of mayhem as the wind increased.

"We better leave here before the rain comes, or we'll be soaked again!"

"...Yeah," Moonpaw muttered, looking into the grass on his side. His ears were pricked and eyes narrowed, making Splitpaw go into high alert. She didn't hear anything, but she could smell the wild scent of Windclan cats.

"Let's get out of here, before we get caught too," she muttered, unsettled by Moonpaw's wariness.

"Not so fast, you guys," a smooth voice called out from a gap in the grasses ahead.

Both of them gasping, they took a moment to pry their eyes away from the tom to get into fighting positions.

The tom was a light blue-silver with icy, pale blue eyes. He was larger than her (which wasn't saying much) and a bit taller than Moonpaw, but he was most likely a young warrior.

"Why are you two on Windclan's territory?" he asked. His eyes weren't narrowed, but his lithe, thin form was tense. It was obvious he didn't think of them as a threat, and that irritated Splitpaw. Just because she was small didn't mean that she was weak!

"We are on Shadowclan business," Moonpaw stated boldly, his voice sounding much braver than she knew he felt.

"What does Shadowclan need at Windclan's empty border?"

"We just got back from the Moonstone, thank you,"

"Oh yeah? Where's your mentors?"

"I-it's part of the assignment for us to go alone,"

The tom looked amused.

"I didn't know Shadowclan did this too!"

Splitpaw and Moonpaw both looked at the silver grey tom with confusion. What in Starclan was he talking about?!

"Haha! I really got you guys! I'm not a silly Windclan cat! I'm a Riverclan apprentice. They sent me on this task without a mentor too! It's totally mouse-brained, don't you think?"

Splitpaw stared. This cat was a Riverclan cat? But she didn't recognize...

It was then with a jolt she realized that this cat can't be Riverclan, she was the only kit in the clan at the time!

He was also one of the only cats to not have flinched or said anything about her face by now.

...And he claims he's Riverclan, the clan that abused her.

So, why did she think he was cool?