Shadowstripe's Treachery

Chapter 12

Shadowstripe moved his head from side to side warily; the enclosed warriors den was almost as dark as he felt on the inside. He looked down at his paws, which were now back to normal and without any bloodstain on them. He began to wonder if he had actually murdered two cats after all. Was it just a dream? He thought, it feels so unreal...

He couldn't get back to sleep no matter what he tried, so he just stared at the wall. I wonder how those stupid MountainClan cats will react now, he smirked, I bet they'll think twice before stealing our prey again. I'd like to see the looks on their faces! He remembered how blood-soaked the ground was, and thought of the mutilated bodies of his victims. He recalled one of them, Fawnleap, who he usually sat by at gatherings, but he didn't know the tiny orange apprentice from anywhere. She must have been pretty young.

He sighed, suddenly noticing that his sister and her mate weren't present in the group of sleeping warriors. They're probably off in the woods somewhere... I don't really care to know what they're doing though. He shook his head repeatedly to get the thought off his mind. He stiffened, I wonder how long they were out there. What if they noticed me leave?! Fox dung!

Immediately, he got to his paws, not able to sit still any longer. He ran out of the den, just to see the couple returning with love struck gazes. They bumped into each other playfully, and Shadowstripe tried not to gag at their disgustingly bubbly behavior. He sighed in relief as he stared at them, they were probably too distracted to know that I was even gone. He relaxed his shoulders and made his way back into the den, able to fall asleep again.

But he didn't sleep for too long. A loud noise startled him awake, and he leaped up when he realized that he was the only one in the den. Where is everyone? Once again he made his way out of the den, and he saw warriors in small, huddled groups talking quietly amongst themselves.

He strode to where Snowfall was sitting and cleared his throat. "Hey." He mewed in almost a whisper.

She turned her head, her sky blue eyes filled with worry, "Oh hey, Shadowstripe." She said in a distant voice.

He sat beside her, "What's wrong with everybody today?" He asked.

Snowfall didn't make eye contact with him when she started to talk, "Well, Eaglestar and the deputy are in the camp right now. They said that they had a very important matter that he needed to speak with Birchstar about. He seemed pretty serious." She took in a shaky breath, "I hope everything is alright."

Shadowstripe immediately tensed, "Fox dung!" He spat.

Snowfall narrowed her eyes, "What?"

"What? Oh! Nothing. I... I just hope that everything is okay, too. That's all." He lied, every hair on his pelt prickling.

She tilted her head sideways, "Shadowstripe, are you okay? You seem a little jumpy this morning."

"No! I mean yes! I'm fine." He replied quickly, his heart starting to beat faster from the stress.

"You seem a little different. Something smells off." She pointed out, "You might want to see Russetleaf, I don't want you to get greencough."

Shadowstripe clawed the grass, "Yeah, I probably should. See ya later, Snowfall." He immediately left without waiting for a reply. I'm not going to that stupid medicine cat den for anything. He shook his head and rolled his eyes, planning to go straight back to the warriors den and hide.

"All cats old enough to catch their own prey join here beneath the Highrock!" Shouted Birchstar. Shadowstripe flinched and turned around.

He could hear all the cats whispering to each other, wondering what in StarClan was happening. He tried to look as clueless as the rest of them, but he knew exactly what this meeting was going to be about. He attempted to keep his fur flat, but it was almost impossible because of the stress he was feeling.