Warriors: Hail In the Wind

Chapter 5

"You broke two rules before the sun rose," Stormpaw mewed. "That's an all-time high."

"Shush!" Hailpaw hissed, looking at Palecry from the other side of the tree they hid behind. Dustcloud was down by the stream filling moss with fresh water for Ashkit, Flowerkit, and Silverstrike. Stormpaw and his sister were supposed to be gathering fresh moss.

"What force from the Dark Forest even possessed you to go to the Moonpool, which is forbidden, while you were with a Windclan cat!"

"Come on, like you've never wanted to see our ancestors? Doepaw gets to almost every day. Why shouldn't I?"

"That's- that's just not something we can do."

"They still gave me that prophecy."

"Yes, but what does it mean?" It wasn't like the ones Stormpaw heard from Brokenpelt, of blood in the lake and kin of a leader's kin. They made sense, at least in Stormpaw's mind. This one didn't. Two halves of a storm? The hatred of others?

"How am I suppose to know? I'm no medicine cat."

"Speaking of which, should we tell Cherryheart?"

"I can just picture how that conversation would go. Hi Cherryheart, you know how normal cats aren't allowed to go to the Moonpool? And you know how we aren't supposed to be friends with cats from other clans? Well, I broke both rules but I got a prophecy I may have made up!"

"You can be friends with a cat from another clan, you just can't- Stormpaw mumbled.

"You know what I mean!" Hailpaw hissed. Stormpaw's fur went hot as he shrunk down into the ground. Yeah, duh, of course they couldn't talk to Cherryheart. Mouse brained idea.

"I just," Hailpaw sighed. "We can't tell her yet. Let's try to figure this out before that, ok?" Stormpaw gave a gentle nod, turning to the nearby tree and scraping off moss.

"Just don't hiss at me again," Stormpaw mumbled. "I already get enough of that."

"Here you go, Silverstrike," Stormpaw meowed, dropping the wet moss in front of the queen. The other residents of the nursery were outside, playing and resting in the sunlight. Flowerkit let out a mew, trying to crawl toward the new object in her nest.

"Thank you, Stormpaw," Silverstrike sighed. She lapped the water from the moss, then moved it toward her kits. "Wait, can kits drink water yet? Should they? Oh, they've only been alive for a few days and I'm already ruining things."

"It's ok," the apprentice stated, staring at the two kits. "This is your first litter. It's going to take time. You have Mousetail and Whiteface to help you."

"Yes, you're right. You're very wise for an apprentice." Stormpaw nodded, and padded out of the den. Doepaw laid out in front of the apprentice's den, Brackenkit crawling all over her. Spottedkit jumped onto her back, Stormpaw's sister letting out an oof.

"Spottedkit, get off her," Whiteface called. "You're too big for that." Spottedkit grumbled and padded toward her mother. She joined her siblings next to Sunpaw, who excitedly bounced around them, pretending to be a fearsome Shadowclan warrior. Heavypaw's green eyes stared at the kits play, a cunning smile on his face. His eyes turned their attention to Stormpaw. Menace replaced the tender heart they were showing. Stormpaw tucked his tail between his legs. Why couldn't he leave him alone?

"Stormpaw," Rainspring called. She sat net to the warrior's den, chewing on a mouse. "Come here." Stormpaw scurried toward the deputy, out of Heavypaw's glare.

"Yes, Rainspring?" Stormpaw asked. Rainspring pushed the half eaten mouse toward him. Stormpaw took the offer and began to eat.

"How has your training been?" Rainspring asked.

"It's been..." Stormpaw began, gulping the bite of mouse down. "Okay."

"How is Dustcloud?" The fur on the back of Stormpaw's spine ruffled. He remembered the day he became an apprentice, a day so happy and joyful. In all aspects but one. When Dustcloud padded through the crowd to touch noses with her new apprentice, her eyes were not filled with the same wisdom and kindness as Palecry or Sparrowfire. Her eyes were filled with menace. She would have been a good mentor to Heavypaw. Then they could both make fun of him.

"She's fine," the tom mumbled.

"I saw Rockfoot while patrolling near the Shadowclan border. He's still showing some nice wounds on his tail from that tug you gave him. It's difficult to get much force behind a tail tug. You did well." Stormpaw smiled, finishing the mouse. "Twigstar is planning to host a patrol to look for more fox traps like the one you and Braveheart found. Join the patrol, okay?" Stormpaw nodded. A purr rumbled in her throat, as the deputy padded toward Sunpaw. The golden apprentice wiggled out from under the kits and followed her mother up out of camp, joined by Heavypaw. Tough to think a wise cat like Rainspring and her mate Icefur could have a kit like Heavypaw.

The mentors were all gathered around Twigstar, meowing softly. Stormpaw recognized it. Twigstar always did a check in each moon with the mentors to see how their apprentices were doing. Bushtail was awkwardly sitting among them. With Doepaw stuck in camp, he hadn't even had the chance to go out and teach her anything. Mossheart let out a laugh as Palecry said something. Some joke about Hailpaw. Dustcloud sat next to Goldenblaze, her tail flicking with disinterest.

When the mentors padded away, Twigstar called out "Icefur, Bugpetal, Kestrelclaw, Braveheart, Stormpaw." The warriors plus apprentice padded from their dens and friend toward their leader. "A few days ago on patrol, Braveheart and Stormpaw found a fox trap. I want to make sure the Twolegs haven't put up any others in our territory. Otherwise, if some adventurous kit sneaks off, we might have a cat-tastrophe, right Kestrelclaw?" Braveheart let out a snort. Icefur purred softly as Stormpaw's mother flicked her ears, a grimace on her muzzle. Wow. That really came out of Twigstar's muzzle. Stormpaw glanced down to Kestrelclaw's short berry tail. So the story was true.

"In all seriousness," Twigstar stated. "Braveheart, Stormpaw, can you lead us to where you found the last fox trap?"

"Yes, Twigstar," Braveheart meowed. As the tom padded toward the exit with Stormpaw catching up to his pace and the rest of the group following him, he whispered "Stormpaw, you remember where we buried it, right?" Stormpaw nodded.

Sunhigh had just passed overhead, heat rolling down from the sun in waves stronger than the lake during a thunderstorm. Through the suffocating warmth trapped in Stormpaw's thick blue fur, the thoughts of what Hailpaw had seen at the Moonpool echoed in his mind. Brave hearts. Brave heart. Braveheart? Next to him, the warrior tried to climb a tree in a few leaps, falling back on his back with a reprimand from their word playing leader. Was he one of the brave hearts who held secrets? Him? What secret could be inside his thick mind?