Warriors Deadly Echoes: Dimming Starlight

Chapter 22

Cedarpaw sighed as he lay curled up in the apprentices den.
"You okay?" Rookpaw asked him.
"Yeah, just bored." He replied.
"Is that so?" Meowed a teasing voice. Cedarpaw identified that as Blackpelt. "Well since your bored, you can do the usual apprentice duties. Get the elder's prey, change their bedding, take them to get a drink." The tom meowed.
"Then what? We groom them?" Rookpaw muttered.
"Apprentice duties aren't that bad. Quit making it sound like it's the worst thing in the world." Olivepaw meowed.
"You only say that because you and Rabbit get to help the kits gather pinecones to play with." Her sister grumbled whacking away an acorn. "It's to make sure that they're just as agile and stealthy as any AshClan cat. Emberkit and Sootkit recognized Foxstar's scent before he even entered camp with a hunting patrol." The tortoiseshell apprentice pointed out, giving her chest a lick.
"While this chat is interesting, I would appreciate if you'll do what I tell you or I'll tell your mother." Blackpelt meowed, his tone sounding slightly threatening.
Rookpaw bounded out of the den quickly and to the elder's den.

"All cats old enough to catch their own prey, join beneath for a Clan meeting!" Foxstar yowled.
The cats gathered around the camp. "Never had we had a victory such as this. StarClan has blessed us, but we're not at peace just yet." He meowed to the cats below.
Oatheart was whispering something to Echobreeze.
"Also, I need a patrol to accompany TimberClan once again." He added. Beetail nodded her head. "You can count on us Foxstar." She promised. "Excellent. Beetail, your apprentice, Smokeclaw, Tawnybrook, Mosspuddle, Copperwhisker, Rowanfoot, Songcloud, Olivepaw, Sharpfrost, Missingdust, and Blossomclaw will be the cats to go."
"Yes Foxstar." The fats he had named meowed at the same time.
"Leopardheart's waiting for you at her Clan's border." He told them as they padded towards the camp entrance.
"Thank you." Beetail meowed as she exited the camp.
As they walked, they saw the she-cat standing with two strange cats by her side just two treelengths away.
"Greetings Leopardheart." The AshClan deputy meowed.
"Nightdusk, Runningfall, get them some fresh-kill." She meowed to a black and white she-cat and a brown and gray tabby tom.
The two cats nodded and bounded away.
"They don't need to do that." Songcloud meowed.
Leopardheart raised her tail. "After how you help us, you could use a gift in the form of a meal." She meowed. The black and white TimberClan she-cat known as Nightdusk dropped a mouse at Beetail's feet.
Beetail admitted to her hunger and wolfed the mouse down.
"There's plenty more." Nightdusk meowed purring.
"No thanks, we ate already." Copperwhisker meowed.
"Alright. Bravestar wants us to keep to the woods where the wolves reside, farther away from TimberClan territory." She meowed as some of the cats of their Clan came out to greet them.
Beetail nodded her head. "Let's go." She meowed and kept beside Leopardheart.
"Once we smell wolf scent, that's how we know we're nearly there." Leopardheart murmured.
"Some WolfClan cats stayed with us, and came with on a border patrol last night to give them scratches. We succeeded." Meowed Pikestalk, one of her clanmates.
"Let's hope that we do again." Leopardheart meowed.
There in the distance was a wolf. It's eyes baring into theirs.
In a heartbeat, they all charged towards the creature. The wolf snarled. Leopardhert unsheathed her claws and clawed it across the face. The beast howled.
Beetail curled her lip with satisfaction. The wolf may just give up in a shorter time;unlike all of the other times, where they fought longer. Cedarpaw and Beetail attacked its flank. Pikestalk of TimberClan and Missingdust clung to it's back.
Blossomclaw and Tawnybrook ripped bits of fur off.
"For the Clans!" Leopardheart yowled raising her paw striking a hard blow to it's muzzle. The animal whimpered and ran off as the cats got from it. The cats of both Clans yowled in triumph. They would have excellent news to bring to both of their leaders.