Warriors - A New Tale

Chapter sixteen

Nuttree was in the middle of camp. She was nibbling on a squirrel next to Snowstorm. They had gotten very close within the past moons; while Nuttree had avoided Darkenedfur as much as possible. Suddenly, she saw Leopardkit bounding up to her. "Nuttree! Nuttree!" She mewed. Snowstorm looked at Leopardkit sadly smiling. "Hey there, Leopardkit! How are ya?" Nuttree asked with a purr. Leopardkit was hopping around in excitement. "I'm great! Sparrowwing says I'm gonna be an apprentice in a moon!" Nuttree chuckled. She hardly noticed how much time had passed. "Yep! Just... just another moon!"
"All cats old enough to catch their own prey gather under the rock for a clan meeting!" Stormstar's call surprised Nuttree. She got up and waited for Snowstorm to do so. "Go back to Sparrowwing, Leopardkit" she mewed when Snowstorm got up. "Awe! Why? I'm almost an apprentice, remember?" "Come on, Leopardkit! I don't make the rules!"
Leopardkit squinted her eyes, turned around and bounded to the nursery. Nuttree sighed and walked with Snowstorm towards the rock. Stormstar was sitting on the rock, tail neatly resting on her paws. "I gather you all today for a number of things." She meowed for all the clan to hear. "The first, naming two apprentices." Two kits looked very excited. Nuttree had never met them, but she had seen them in the nursery when she visited Sparrowwing and her kits. "Windkit, step forward." The pale she-cat scrambled up to Stormstar. "Your mentor, Whitestripe, will train you as his apprentice. You will now be known as Windpaw." Windpaw's eyes shined like the sun. She excitedly walked to Whitestripe and touched noses with him. "It makes me feel sad to see she is so excited" Snowstorm sighed. Nuttree turned to her. "What? Why?" She asked her friend. Snowstorm looked in Whitestripe's direction, and didn't say anything. "What did he do to make you hate him so much?" Nuttree asked. Snowstorm's eyes were slits as she turned to her. "He was so... so rude!" She exclaimed. "He scolds when you do something wrong, and doesn't say a word when you do something right!" Nuttree remembered how Mudspeed was when she first started training.

"You will now be known as Frostpaw." The white apprentice padded smoothly to Leaffall, her new mentor. They touched noses quickly.
"Yes, Windpaw and Frostpaw will be fine apprentices, but I have more to say" Stormstar called out as chattering sounded. It died down once she had said that. "I also have some warriors to name." Nuttree knee it must be Shadowpaw and Flamepaw. "Shadowpaw, come forward." The black-grey she-cat did so. "Do you promise to uphold the warrior code and defend your clanmates at the cost of your own life?" Shadowpaw nodded. "Always, Stormstar."
"Then I give you your warrior name. Shadowmist." Shadowmist looked proud. "Shadowmist. I like the sound of it" she mewed confidently.
"And of course, Flamepaw" said Stormstar. He quickly walked over to the rock. "Do you promise as well?" Flamepaw nodded. "I do" he meowed. "Then you're now known as Flameheart." Flameheart hopped over to Smallbolt. They nuzzled and Smallbolt mewed "See? Now we're even!"
Nuttree felt something heavy fall onto her shoulder. She shortly realized it was Snowstorm falling asleep. She licked her friend's muzzle and she woke up again. "I'm s...sorry. I'm just very tired" she muttered. Nuttree purred to let her know it was fine.
"But cats of GreenClan, this is the most important announcement of this clan meeting." All heads turned toward Stormstar. "Blackberry and I have been planning something for quite awhile" she meowed with a confident posture. "DawnClan is a very, very weak clan, as you all know." This intrigued Nuttree. Where was Stormstar going with this? "So this gives us a chance to take what we deserve. Would you like to explain, Blackberry?" The deputy seemed caught off guard. "Erm... s-sure, Stormstar."
"So, Stormstar tells me that they've killed quite a few of our cats." He started. "Rosethorn, Blueberry and the most recent murder, Longclaw." Nuttree felt sick of the reminder of her foster mother's death. "The old GreenClan leader, Gl... Gloomstar, was too scared to do anything" he mewed, stuttering while saying the cat he killed's name. Nuttree still remembered. She wanted to make him pay. That wasn't the way Gloomstar should've lost his final life. "But Stormstar and I have planned to make them pay for their crimes."
"We'll get warriors, apprentices and any queens or elders that are willing to stand up for their clan. "What?!" Snowstorm yelled, startling Nuttree. "Queens and elders? They can't fight!" She spat. "We aren't forcing them to fight, but if they're really devoted to this Clan, then they will!" Stormstar hissed back at Snowstorm.
"That's blackmail!"
"Are you questioning your leader's orders?!"
"Yes, if it's against the warrior code!"
"That's enough!" Blackberry got in between the two she-cats. "Snowstorm, listen to Stormstar. She is your leader, and you have to respect her. Stormstar-" she gave him a dirty look. "...um... you're in the right."
Snowstorm sighed. "Alright" was all she said as she sat down again. Nuttree licked Snowstorm trying to tell her that she would get her revenge eventually.
"Okay, so now that all the announcements are out of the way, Blackberry is going to choose patrols. This meeting is dismissed." Blackberry shivered a bit. "Of- of course, Stormstar!" He mewed as she slithered off the rock and headed to her den.
"So" he meowed. "I guess I'll take..." he scanned the crowd of warriors. "Flameheart and Shadowmist? How would you like to go on your first patrol?" He asked the two. Flameheart purred. "Well, duh, of course!" Shadowmist meowed. Snowstorm looked happily at Shadowmist. She looked back. "What are you looking at, mousebrain?" Shadowmist meowed playfully. Snowstorm sighed and rolled her eyes. "Nothing, sister!"
Nuttree couldn't help but chuckle a bit. After the patrol was sent out, Snowstorm got up. She groaned. "Nuttree, I need to go to the nursery. My kits will be born soon." Nuttree pressed against her friend's side. "Oh, Snowstorm..."
She didn't know what to say.
"I should have gone earlier, but I wanted to spend my time with you, Nuttree." She looked in her eyes. "You're my closest... my closest friend."
Nuttree licked Snowstorm's forehead. "You're my best friend too, Snowstorm. But come on, you should really get to the nursery."
So they walked to the medicine cat den. They were greeted by Treestump. She was treating Yellowpaw. Yellowpaw seemed very unhappy. "Oh, Yellowpaw! What happened to you?" Snowstorm asked in a concerned tone. Yellowpaw sighed. Treestump looked sympathetically at the senior apprentice. "She got hit by a monster..." she quietly stated to Nuttree and Snowstorm. Snowstorm gasped. "No! Yellowpaw, are you okay?" Yellowpaw said nothing but just shifted to show her back leg, all wrapped up in cobwebs. Nuttree never really knew Yellowpaw, but she felt really bad. Snowstorm's eyes started to tear up. "Yellowpaw, no..." she muttered while slowly shaking her head. Treestump sighed. "I think she should be left alone for now. Well anyways, Snowstorm. Are you finally coming to rest in the nursery?" Snowstorm nodded. Nuttree touched Snowstorm's cheek with her nose. Snowstorm smiled sadly at her. I'll see you later, Nuttree. I hope you'll visit me sometimes."
"Of course!" Nuttree meowed. "Every day."
Treestump watched them, and then cleared her throat. "Don't worry, Nuttree. I'll take care of her for you!" She mewed to her. Nuttree chuckled. "Of course. I'll see you guys soon" she meowed as she started padding out of the medicine cat den. She thought of Snowstorm. She wished she could stay at her friend's side, keeping her happy. But of course that wasn't possible. She had her own responsibilities.