Warriors: Shadows Of The Night

Chapter 24

Ravenpaw stretched her jaws in a yawn and sat up. The events of her dream were fresh in her mind, and she felt a wave of pride and joy wash over her.

I did something great, Ravenpaw thought, I managed to climb to the top of that tree and back down without falling or panicking!

She looked up to figure out what time of day it was, and saw through gaps in the den roof wall that there was sunlight outside. Sandpaw's nest was empty, it looked to Ravenpaw that the younger she-cat hadn't been in it for a while. Graypaw was still asleep in his nest, snoring softly.

Quietly so she wouldn't wake Graypaw, she stoop and slipped out of the den. When she reached the exit, she saw that it was already past sunhigh. Flicking her tail, she stepped out of the den and into the clearing.

Shallowstar, Palefoot, Thornwhisker, and Silverflight were talking together near the Leader's Rock. Mouseclaw was crouched nearby, eating the vole Ravenpaw had caught the day before. Berryflower was grooming herself beside the warrior's den, rasping her tongue across her pelt in swift, neat strokes. Iceclaw and Thistlefang were sharing the rest of the eagle together close to the camp entrance. Shadepelt was crouched in the sun washing himself.

"Hi Shadepelt," Ravenpaw meowed, hurrying across the clearing to stand by her brother.

"Hello Ravenpaw," Shadepelt sat up straight and waved his tail in greeting. He curled it over his paws and yawned. "I did the dawn patrol this morning with Thistlefang and Mouseclaw."

"Nice," Ravenpaw meowed. Suddenly she felt tired as she remembered that not only had she went on dusk patrol the night before, but she had also done a practice assessment in the morning.

But I shouldn't be tired, Ravenpaw thought, I slept all through the night, didn't I? She hadn't woken up once during the night, and she had been training with Nightshadow the entire time.

"Good morning, Ravenpaw," Thornwhisker's meow made her jump. She turned to see that her mentor had come over with Palefoot.

"Hello," Ravenpaw replied cheerfully. Palefoot meowed a greeting as well, and Ravenpaw purred a friendly response.

"Are you going to take Ravenpaw out to train?" Shadepelt asked, standing up. Ravenpaw's ears twitched curiously as her mentor and deputy exchanged a glance before shaking their heads.

"No," Thornwhisker replied, "We have something better in mind."

"Like what?" Ravenpaw asked, her pelt itching with curiosity. Despite her tiredness, Ravenpaw was quite ready for the day.

"We have decided that the two of you should go hunting together," Palefoot meowed, a sparkle in her eye as she looked from Shadepelt to Ravenpaw. "After all, it has been a while since the two of you have really gotten to spend time together." Beside her, Thornwhisker was nodding.

"Really?" Shadepelt's eyes shone. Ravenpaw stared gratefully at her mentor, a purr rumbling up inside of her throat. It warmed her to see that her mentor knew how important it was to her that she spent time with her brother.

"Yes," Palefoot purred. "Thornwhisker and I are going to stay here for a while. We figure you two can spend some time hunting together. You haven't been together much since Shadepelt's ceremony, and Thornwhisker and I agree that it would be healthy for you to catch up on missed time."

"Thank you!" Ravenpaw blurted. She dearly missed spending time with her brother. When they had both been apprentices, they had spent nearly every waking moment with each other.