Warriors; MoonClan: Fire [ 1 ]

Chapter Eight

The dark gray tom limped away from battle. He collapsed in the trees. "You fought like a warrior," mewed a white tom. He had gray paws. "Raventalon, you have one choice. Death, or rogue." The dark gray tom's sides heaved. "I'll die before I leave ShadowClan," he responded. The tom got up. The white tom slashed, narrowly missed the gray tom's throat. The dark gray tom hissed. He dashed off into the trees.

"I don't need a warrior name anymore," the dark tom mewed. "I will be called Raven." Raven pounded the dirt with his paws, not yet at full speed. Soon he could run no faster, and the trees barely seemed to be there. He found himself on the moor. "WindClan," he breathed.

Raven stepped onto the moor. "It's better than nothing." He flicked his tail as a patrol came. "What happened to you?" mewed a she-cat. "ThunderClan," Raven hissed. The WindClan cats let him stay. "You smell like a ThunderClan cat!" exclaimed the she-cat. "I've been spying since I was an apprentice," Raven began. "I was born in ShadowClan, but sent to ThunderClan to learn all of their moves and report to ShadowClan.

"ThunderClan carelessly took me in, thinking I was a rogue kit that was abandoned. ThunderClan will believe anything if you put it the right way. I'm Raven, by the way. If ShadowClan or ThunderClan brings up a cat, tell Grass-star not to mention me. They might say I've died, but I am very much alive."

The she-cat brushed up against Raven. She was a beautiful ginger color, with eye-locking bright blue eyes. "Firefrost..." she mewed. "That's a beautiful name," Raven purred. A brown tabby tom looked at Raven. "I'm Sparrowrunner," he meowed. A smaller gray tom bounced up. "I'm Lizardpaw!" he exclaimed. "Hello, Lizardpaw!" Raven greeted, smiling. There was a dip in the moor. It had bushes surrounding it. Raven confidently stepped into it. Faces turned in his direction.

"Raventalon?" asked a voice. It was Grass-star. "What brings you here?" "The betrayal of ThunderClan!" Raven hissed. Gasps rang about the clearing. "You must no longer call me Raventalon! I am Raven!" 

Blood dripped from a gash on Raven's side, but he had payed no attention to it until now. He winced from a minor sting as the WindClan medicine cat dabbed a piece of wet moss onto the wound. "Come," he mewed.

Raven followed the tom. "Hello, Featherdust." The WindClan medicine cat was a light ginger color with gray spots. Featherdust put a yellow pulp onto Raven's wounds. It stung. Featherdust dressed them with cobwebs. "There. Go in the apprentices' den. Our warriors wouldn't welcome your scent." Raven nodded and and sniffed. He watched Lizardpaw creep into a den, then there was a loud yowl. "Get out!" Lizardpaw stumbled backward and landed on his tail. 

He followed Lizardpaw into the true apprentices' den. "Hi, Raven! Why aren't you in the warriors' den?" he asked. "Featherdust told me to come here," Raven responded. "She said that the warriors wouldn't welcome my scent." Lizardpaw nodded. A dark tortoiseshell she-cat was sleeping beside them. "That's Maplepaw. She's my sister," Lizardpaw whispered. Raven nodded. The sun was setting. Lizardpaw padded out and soon returned with moss and bracken. He made a small nest for Raven. "Thank you, Lizardpaw." Raven settled down into the nest and fell asleep.

In the morning he was called out of the den by Featherdust to check his wounds. "I think they'll be fine by the half-moon," he mewed. Raven thanked Featherdust and padded out. The sun was high in the sky, but not yet sunhigh. Lizardpaw padded towards him with a plump rabbit. "Thanks!" Raven meowed as Lizardpaw dropped the rabbit in front of him. Raven started to claw most of the fur off. "Why are you doing that?" Lizardpaw asked. "I'm going to line my nest with it back in ShadowClan," Raven responded. "You're leaving?" Lizardpaw exclaimed.

Raven nodded. "When my wounds have healed." Lizardpaw's face turned to sadness. "Aw, you could tell us all of ThunderClan's battle moves!" "But then I'd have to spy on you!" Raven objected. A painted tom (siamese) called the Clan together and sorted out the patrols. "That's Milkfoot. He's the deputy," Lizardpaw whispered. Raven wasn't in any of the patrols. A hunting patrol of three left the camp along with a border patrol of four. Raven caught up with the hunting patrol. "Teach me to hunt rabbits," he mewed. Firefrost looked at him. "What?" "Well, I might as well make myself useful instead of using up all of your herbs," Raven responded.

"Well, the wind is loud in their ears, but their noses are sharp as ever," mewed a white tom. "Stay downwind from them, and make sure you're still quiet. Just because the wind is loud doesn't mean they can't hear you." Raven nodded. He dropped into a mouse hunting crouch. "Not so low," Frostfire advised. Raven lifted his belly up a bit. "Perfect!" the white tom mewed. Raven scented the air. "I smell it," he whispered, dropped into the hunting crouch. Suddenly, a huge gust of wind buffeted his pelt and almost sent him head-over-paws until he was flat on his back.

Raven struggled to stay upright, and soon he was used to it. The cobwebs holding his wounds together almost blew off. He slunk forward, pouncing onto the rabbit. He was slowed by the wind, but the rabbit was soon in his clutches. He killed the rabbit with a swift bite to its neck. 

"Wow! Great catch!" came a voice. It was Maplepaw. "Hello," Raven mewed. "Frostfire's my mentor!" Maplepaw exclaimed, barely heard over the wind. It was cold. Raven shivered. The WindClan cats seemed used to this. Raven buried his catch.

Raven, with two rabbits in his jaws, both of which he had caught, padded into the WindClan camp. He deposited in the fresh-kill pile, and sought refuge in the apprentices' den. It was still very windy and Raven still felt as if he was to be blown away to the middle of the freezing cold lake. Life was great in WindClan, but soon he would have to return to ShadowClan.