Warriors: Finding Myself: Downcasted (Book Two)

Chapter Eighteen: I Deserve This

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

The round, yellow, sweet-smelling herb in her jaws made her mouth water as she padded away from the rogue border where Crowfrost's group roamed, but no one had ever seen a patrol. She heard a noise and instantly her ears pricked, her green eyes looked around carefully at her surroundings and she watched a bush move.

She crouched down and slowly padded forward, peaking her head through the bushes and seeing a black-and-white tom and a tortoiseshell she-cat talking quietly, they looked comfortable sitting in ShadowClan territory.

"Crowstar, I don't believe that we should bug ShadowClan right now," the she-cat mewed with her tail flicking in impatientness.

The black-and-white tom looked at her with a serious face. "Tawnypelt, you aren't listening! ShadowClan is weak! We are strong!"

Whisperpaw's eyes widened in shock. Tawnypelt was ShadowClan's old deputy before Sleekfeather! Her pelt prickled as she gazed at the tom. Crowfrost was a leader now? Did he get his name? she thought silently but was eager to learn more.

"Crowstar, you have just returned from the Moonpool and you're exhausted!" Tawnypelt rose to her paws, shaking her head. "Let's head back to StrikeClan, they need their leader." Her green eyes flickered to the bushes where Whisperpaw was hiding and her panic rose but she walked past her and Crowstar slowly followed.

Her head was spinning with worry and confusion. Would the others listen to her? Would they understand? She slowly rose to her paws and trotted back to camp, careful not to hurt the herbs in her jaws. She didn't know what to do and she wouldn't do anything until she figured it out.

When she entered camp she could see that Puddleheart had just used some herbs on the apprentices due to them laying around the camp with fresh cobwebs on fresh wounds. Wintersky was among them, her eyes shining as she was standing and speaking with Lionfur. She had grown very close to the yellow deputy since Wintersky destroyed their first training session. She was on every battle training patrol Puddleheart and Whisperpaw would let her on. It was disgusting.

She slipped into the medicine den and put away the tansy and turned to their stores every herb that was battle related was low because of Lionfur's bloody training sessions. The apprentices hunted when they weren't training so at least they had some prey. Sometimes Whisperpaw would try to catch something too. She hadn't caught anything yet.

"Whisperpaw!" Puddleheart's alarmed voice also made her jump out of her fur and she looked to the entrance where the skinny, white tom with some gray fur was standing, his green eyes glinting in worry. "Get cobwebs and dock! Birchwing, Springpaw, Spikefur, and Amberpaw started a border skirmish with ThunderClan!"

She turned to where they kept the dock and instantly felt panic. 'We're out of dock!'

"Then get horsetail or stinging nettle," he ordered, grabbing the cobwebs and sticking them to his fur "Apparently it's bloody down there!" He stuck some to her pelt too after she grabbed horsetail and then they raced out of the den where Lionfur, Wintersky, Slateleaf, Oakpaw, Ravenclaw, Sunpaw, and Mudstorm were racing out of the entrance and they quickly ran over to join them.

We raced through the forest, keeping beside Ravenclaw who had excitement in his eyes. They all looked battle hungry, even Mudstorm who didn't like fighting, but after Echobreeze, something in him snapped. A few times he'd requested something to make him sleep and Puddleheart just gave it to him. Puddleheart seemed to be giving up as well.

She could already hear the screeches of battle as Lionfur led her patrol right into the attack. From the rock she was standing on just before the clearing, she could see Spiderleg, Whitepaw, Breezewhisker, Sparkflower, Sorrelstripe, Ambermoon, Blossomfall, and Dewnose. Her heart skipped a beat when she spotted the familiar gray-and-white tom, now covered in blood and fearlessly fighting Oakpaw and Sunpaw who, according to Wintersky, were amazing partner fighters. It didn't look like he was winning, plus the ThunderClan cats were outnumbered.