Burrfleck's Demise

Chapter 2

Burrpaw's green eyes widened as Cloudstorm approached him, his grey pelt rippling as he moved towards his new apprentice. Burrpaw attempted to straighten up and seem strong for his new mentor, but Cloudstorm only chuckled at him.

"Burrpaw." He greeted, fluffy tail waving in the air. Burrpaw puffed out his chest and nodded.

"Yes, Cloudstorm?" He asked, excitement bursting in his chest.

"No need to be so formal. I'm not Wrenstar, you know. Come, now. I'll go talk with Batsong and perhaps you and your sister could take your tour together." Cloudstorm chuckled, the large tom turning and bounding over to the smaller Batsong. Burrpaw nodded and leapt after him. Yes, a territory tour with his sister! Today would be a great day.

"And then, Burrkit leapt on me! And he ruffled up my fur, and made my whiskers crooked. I thought I'd look a mess for my apprentice ceremony! But you're my mentor, so I don't have to worry. Right?" Willowpaw's voice rang in Burrpaw's ears as he and Cloudstorm approached. He soon spotted his sister yapping in Batsong's ear, but the young warrior didn't seem to mind. When he and Willowpaw were only a moon old, Batsong was still an apprentice — he'd spent a lot of time by the nursery, checking in on Fernkit and Darkkit, who were his older sister's kits. During that time he'd managed to make friends with Willowpaw — perhaps that's why Wrenstar paired them together. Burrpaw waved his tail and Willowpaw quickly jerked around to look at her brother.

"Batsong said we're going on a territory tour!" She exclaimed, smiling widely. Burrpaw nodded and smiled back at his sister, her enthusiasm contagious.

"Cloudstorm said that he was gonna ask Batsong if we could go on our tour together," Burrpaw replied, his green eyes twinkling. "We'll get to experience the territory together — won't it be fun? I can't wait!"

"Oh! I hope Batsong says yes." Willowpaw agreed. "If he doesn't, I can just bother him until he says yes. He usually gives in after the first five times of me asking." She waved her long-furred tail and rose to her paws. Her sage green eyes flickered to Burrfleck and back at Batsong, who was speaking with Cloudstorm. The older, more experienced warrior seemed to be instructing the smaller Batsong, who was nodding every few heartbeats, seeming to be closely paying attention to everything Cloudstorm had to say. After all, he was more experienced. Batsong nodded one last time and turned his head, peering over at Willowpaw.

"Willowpaw!" He called, beckoning her closer. "Burrpaw, you too! Come here. Cloudstorm and I have a few rules to go over before we take you for your tour..."

Burrpaw didn't exactly remember what the two warriors told him and Willowpaw — something along the lines of don't wander off, don't talk back, and don't complain if the tour ended early — he was a bit too busy daydreaming to fully pay attention. Cloudstorm was in the lead, moving out of the camp entrance and into the open moors of WindClan territory. Burrpaw blinked and lifted his chin, enjoying the feeling of the wind whipping through his short pelt. The sky above was a bright blue, with only a few clouds floating across lazily. His tail lashed in excitement as Cloudstorm continued on, his paws carrying them to their first landmark.

"This is the Sky Stone." Cloudstorm told them, his blue gaze shifting from the apprentices and then back at the stone.

"This stone is to honor SkyClan. They once lived here by the Lake — like they lived back in the old forest, all the way before Firestar even lived. They travelled all the way out here and settled here for many Seasons... but a cat called Darktail, who had WindClan blood, who had also driven SkyClan out of their home before, came and took over. Many SkyClan cats fled into the other Clans when Darktail took over again. However, this was many, many seasons ago. SkyClan is long gone and Darktail is long dead." Batsong chipped in. Burrpaw tilted his head curiously at the stone.

"Why did /WindClan/ make the memorial?" He asked curiously.

"That's a good question," Cloudstorm replied. "My great grandmother was a part of SkyClan. Her name was Ripplesong, and she was a very brave cat. She fled to WindClan when Darktail took over." His blue eyes darkened. "WindClan made the memorial because one of our very old leaders, Onestar, was the father of Darktail. We thought it was only right to honor the ancient SkyClan in our own way, especially since Darktail carried our blood." He nodded and turned away. "No more questions, now! We must continue on. There is still very much territory left to be checked."

Burrpaw followed Cloudstorm and Batsong away from the stone, but something made him look back at it curiously, his green gaze scanning over the rock once. It carried some mysterious energy— he didn't know how it made him feel. Uneasy? Excited? Sad? He shrugged once and turned away, racing to catch up with his sister and the two warriors.

But behind him, a stone began to crumble.