Warriors || Hopestar's Choice: Book 2 (2 of 3)

Chapter 13

The cats in WindClan closest to her age were Crowfeather, Skybreeze, and Cloudpool. Both Crowfeather and Cloudlool were extremely uneasy around her, but Skybreeze seemed somewhat accepting. The blue-gray she-cat ate most of her meals beside Hopeflame, and she wondered if it was because she felt bad for her.

Either way, Hopeflame was glad for the company. She woke late the next morning, exhausted from her night visit to the border. The clan was already up and busy accomplishing their daily tasks. Mudclaw, Ashfoot, Tornear, Breezetail, and Soarpaw were returning from the dawn patrol. Tawnyfur ate alongside her mate, Tallstar, and Runningbrook's kits were exploring outside the nursery.

The three she-kits have been named Heatherkit, Larkkit, and Lilackit. Even though they were only a quarter moon old, they were already so filled with adventure. Larkkit was the little ringleader and they always seemed to find trouble. Hopeflame knew that they would make great additions to TigerClan.

"Hopeflame!" Skybreeze called as she bounded over. "Do you want to come hunting with me and Crowfeather?"

She hesitated since she knew how Crowfeather felt about her. But it was a fact that not everyone would like or trust her. "Okay, where are we going?"

"The rabbit warrens," Skybreeze answered excitedly. Her tail waved in excitement as she trotted to the camp entrance. "Leaf-bare is coming and the clan needs to prepare."

A chill raced down Hopeflame's spine. When the first snow fell, WindClan would fight for their lives. She didn't want to drag Barley's family into this as it was already going to be messy enough. Her mind flew back to Free and she decided to go visit him soon. She needed answers from him and Ravenpaw.

Crowfeather approached them and wrinkled his nose at the sight of her. "You invited her?" He cast a disgusted look in Hopeflame's direction, causing her to bristle with indignation.

Skybreeze gave Crowfeather a look. "Please be nice? Can't you see how hard she's trying to fit in? She's even starting to look like a WindClan cat!"

Hopeflame snorted at Skybreeze's naive comment. She would never look like a WindClan cat. Her body was too stocky with strong hindquarters and shoulders. Not to mention her long fur. No cats in WindClan had long pelts.

The black tom muttered something under his breath but didn't argue further. Satisfied, Skybreeze led their small patrol out of camp. They ran together over the moors and Hopeflame fluffed out her long pelt. There was a deep chill in the air and frost clung to the grass. Leaf-bare was certainly on its way.

Overhead, the sky was a dull gray color and the moorland grass was browning. Whenever Hopeflame passed the forest, she could see that the leaves now exhibited the bright colors of leaf-fall. She missed the forest and all it's hidden beauties. The moors still looked the same to her wherever she went.

Soon they reached the rabbit warrens and immediately started to hunt. WindClan cats relied mostly on partner hunting since it was difficult to chase down a rabbit by yourself. Hopeflame pricked her ears and saw a lone rabbit nibbling on the grass. Crowfeather directed them into position with mere tail signals. Skybreeze started to circle around the rabbit. She would strike first, driving the rabbit towards Hopeflame and Crowfeather.

Hopeflame ducked down with her belly fur brushing the moorland grass. She flattened her ears against her head and lowered her tail to the ground. If the rabbit happened to look over here, it wouldn't see her or Crowfeather who was copying her motion. They were invisible to the rabbit.

Out of nowhere, Skybreeze shot from her hiding spot and charged the rabbit. Startled, it took off in the opposite direction, heading straight for them. Hopeflame unsheathed her claws, prepared to strike. When the rabbit got close enough, both she and Crowfeather lunged. The black tom pinned it down while she took it by the throat. The rabbit struggled but was soon dead.

"Good job!" Skybreeze exclaimed as she trotted over, an excited gleam in her blue eyes. "That rabbit never stood a chance!"

"Are there any more?" Hopeflame wondered, looking around. She couldn't see of smell any. It had been a rush hunting the rabbit and she wanted to do more.

"I think we scared all of them into their burrows." Crowfeather told her. For once his voice didn't drip with disdain and his blue eyes weren't cold and unfriendly. He seemed to be looking at her, really looking at her. When WindClan Merged, Hopeflame wondered if she and Crowfeather could be friends.

Skybreeze prodded the rabbit. "This ought to be big enough for a few cats. There are other hunting patrols who I'm sure caught more."

Crowfeather nodded in agreement. "Let's head back." He picked up the rabbit and led them back to camp. Hopeflame fell into step beside Skybreeze.

The blue-gray she-cat looked at her in curiosity. "What is TigerClan like, Hopeflame? If they take over, will they kill any of us?"

Hopeflame could tell that Crowfeather was listening in the way his ears were turned. She had to choose her words carefully. "When the other clans Merged, Tigerstar only killed cats that wouldn't submit. Do yourself a favor and if TigerClan does take over, just submit."

"Is that what you did?" Crowfeather asked her after setting down the rabbit. He turned around to face her with questions swirling in his blue irises. "If you're telling us to submit, then you're going against your own advice by being here."

Hopeflame flattened her ears, unsure of what to say. "I ran away because I'm hoping that WindClan could escape. TigerClan is strong, too strong for only one clan to handle. Even if you gathered all the loners you could find, you wouldn't be covering half of the TigerClan warriors. Tigerstar killed my father and he's threatened to kill everyone I love more than once."

"Then if TigerClan takes over, I'm not going to accept that." Crowfeather growled. "I'd rather go down fighting than live a life of oppression."

"Don't talk like that, Crowfeather," Skybreeze murmured. "We could always run away..."

Crowfeather stared at her for a moment before picking up the rabbit again and continued back to camp. Hopeflame walked alongside Skybreeze who seemed genuinely frightened. This is what Tigerstar's rampage has caused.

Hopeflame decided that tonight she would go speak with Ravenpaw and Free. She needed answers more than ever.