The Weight of Living | warrior cats fanfic

𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐞𝐧 | 𝐚 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐫 𝐦𝐞𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠

thirteen
a proper meeting
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It had been several days since the border skirmish, and still a knot of worry worked at Cottonpaw. Night had set in, and the young tom continued to pace in a circled in the ZephyrClan camp. He cast a watchful eye over to the grassy apprentices den, which was quiet except for the soft snores and gentle breaths of the five apprentices. During the evening ritual of sharing tongues, Acaciapaw had brought up how she would claw up any CopseClan cat she crossed paths with, and that had started up Cottonpaw's worries and anxieties. What if the two clans went to war? There would be fighting, and more blood, and possibly even deaths. Acaciapaw could die, or severely injure another cat. But she is a warrior in training— she's practicing every day to be a fighter. I'm silly to wish her to never lay a claw on another. Especially with how protective and fiery she is in nature. ...Does protecting your clan have to be so violent and so hateful, though?

He continued to pace, his jaw clenching and unclenching. The easy breathing from the apprentice den suddenly had a whimper, and his froze. It was Acaciapaw; he could feel a twitch in his paws that was coming from her. Bounding through the woven grass den, Cottonpaw stumbled upon the brown and cream she-cat sleep next to her brother. Her moss and feather nest had been displaced from her kicking her paws, and her eyes closed tightly in her sleep. She was having a nightmare— and he knew very well that his anxieties were causing it.

The starry tom settled down next to her, forcing his own breathing to slow down and regulate. I caused her to have a bad dream! I can fix this— I just need to go into her dream, and then fix it. I need to calm down, first. Cottonpaw continued to breathe slowly, deliberately, and deeply. He closed his eyes, and then slipped into her dream.

The dream was drained of color. Tree branches laced overhead like layered claw scratches, blanketing out any scraps of moonlight. Acaciapaw was pelting through the woods, and Cottonpaw raced behind her. Pain stung at their sides, but it wasn't pointy bushes catching their fur. Rather, claw marks were leaving the cuts from invisible cats in the shadows. The cats hissed and yowled as they struck out at her, filling the night with cries of battle calls. Her breath came out in quick gasps, panicked and afraid. He could feel her heart hammering in his own chest along with the heat of fear on her pelt.

Cottonpaw continued to steady his breathing, and slowed his running to a stop. "Acaciapaw, it's a dream. It's okay, you're safe! This is just a dream!" His voice sounded off like a bell, the echo ringing off the trees and bringing the caterwaul of fighting to a silence. She skid to a stop at the sound of his voice, and in slow motion turned to face him. The moment her sapphire gaze met his grassy one, the darkness lifted. Dapples of light leaked down, brightening the forest and chasing the shadows away. The invisible claws melted into nothingness, leaving the two apprentices alone in a softly lit glade.

"Hey, I remember you. Cottonkit!" She pad closer to get a better look at the white StarClan apprentice. "Hey, how come you never came back to visit my dreams until now? Oh— are you going to give me some spooky omen or something?"

Cottonpaw felt a purr rumble in his chest. She was really here with him... seeing him, interacting with him! His starry aura was touched with a bit of golden, joyful light. "No, no, I'm not that kind of StarClan cat. I mean, I guess I could deliver a prophecy, but I don't know anything about that kind of thing.  And, actually, it's Cottonpaw now."

"Well, Cottonpaw, are you sure you don't have any prophecies or warnings? My Clan— our Clan— is probably going to be at war soon, so any information is important...!" She sniffed indignantly, and gave him an expectant look.