Warrior Cats #1: The Battle of Thorns

Chapter Thirteen

Sky concentrated on the cat ahead of her, slinking forwards to get a glimpse of the black and white tom. This time, though, he wasn't alone. A silver she-cat was standing in front of him, glancing around uncertainly. "Don't you think this is all just a misunderstanding?" The she-cat asked, her tail swaying from side to side anxiously. "I don't think we have to go that far..." The tom cut her off with a brisk flick of his tail. "I should have known..." He muttered under his breath, turning away from the she-cat irritably. "Don't question me, Star. I've worked hard for this rank, I know what I'm doing!" The she-cat frowned. "But, surely we can find a way around it!" Sky's fur bristled uneasily. The tom obviously had authority, but over what? She leaned forwards instinctively and cocked her ears forwards. The cats had begun to speak in hushed tones. "Please, Bane, try to understand me!" The she-cat struggled to gain her composure. Sky tilted her head. Where did he get the name Bane? Her thoughts were interrupted as the she-cat turned and stormed off. The tom sat there, watching her wistfully as she disappeared behind the undergrowth.

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Lionpaw yipped as his paws landed heavily on the ground, lashing out a paw and striking the rabbit in its jaw. Hawkpelt watched his apprentice as he snapped the animal's neck, nodding slowly. "Maybe next time." He meowed curtly. Lionpaw set down the rabbit and growled. He had done great, what was bothering his mentor so much? Before he could ask, Dappledlion called out form his spot under a nearby birch, a plump thrush dangling form his jaws. "There's plenty of birds here!" He meowed. Hawkpelt laughed, but it was short and distasteful. "Snap up, or you'll wake the whole forest!" He growled. Lionpaw padded over and sighed. "It looks like we've got enough prey." He commented, dipping his head politely. Dappledlion was a young warrior, and made plenty of mistakes, but overall he was be a perfect cat. Lionpaw respected him a lot.

With a happy amount of prey, the cats headed back to camp. Hawkpelt in the lead, and Lionpaw in the rear. Before they made it to camp, he picked up a strange scent. Has another cat been on our territory? His fur fluffed up a bit and he dropped his prey. Dappledlion stopped as well. "Hawkpelt, do you smell something....different?" He asked. Lionpaw looked up with interest. Hawkpelt nodded. "The forest's running with foxes. I wouldn't be surprised." He sounded uncertain, but made no move to correct himself. Lionpaw shrugged and continued padding, but Dappledlion stayed behind. "I'll be right back." He meowed. "I'm going to check this out." Hawkpelt muttered something unhappily and continued padding.