Diverging Paths (Warrior Cats Fanfiction)

Chapter 4

"That was an amazing catch, Highwings!" Moorpaw complimented her with a huge smile.

"You call that a catch?" the warrior chuckled as she dropped the squirrel on the pile. "Try yourself. Mine was practically begging to be caught."

"It's still impressive," the apprentice commented as she threw her couple of frogs down. "Frogs are slow and easy to catch."

"I don't think you've ever seen a frog leap, then." She sideglanced towards Sickbreath, hanging out under the shade of an overhang. Sliverslice was dragging Jumpstump out; apparently all three elders intended on hanging out there together. "All right, I'll go visit my father. It was nice hunting with you two."

"Don't mention it!" Mixedpaw's voice spouted fast, as he darted over to his sister Moorpaw and started herding her towards their future medicine cat brother, Offpaw, both of them giggling playfully.

Highwings watched the two apprentices run off for a few seconds before padding over to her father, a light gray, brown-spotted tom with brown eyes. His eyes were bright, vivid, and saturated, reminding her of fertile soil in the swamp when hit by yellow morning sunrays. It was awfully specific, but it was the image she had slowly built in her head after all those moons growing up and looking at those eyes.

She wondered what image her mother's eyes would have conjured in her head, had she stayed around longer.

"Highwings!" Sickbreath meowed in greeting, a large, fatherly smile on his face. Sliverslice was adjusting Jumpstump's position to be a tad more comfortable and natural, but still gave the warrior a polite grin. "Always nice to see my daughter."

"Always nice to see my father," she chuckled lightly. She then laid beside him to his right, tucking her paws under her body. Sliverslice lay to her right, and Jumpstump at the end of the line. "How has it been for you since retirement?"

"Oh, much better. I feel like the Clan is finally paying me back for how I've served," he sighed. "Though Jumpstump can tell you all about that. She's an expert on retirement. Right?"

Jumpstump let loose a laugh laced with sarcasm. "Yeah. Right. Well, it only feels good if you got to dedicate some time to the Clan first."

"Sickbreath, that was a low move," Sliverslice remarked. She swished her light gray tail around, silver stripes running along it and the rest of her body.

"If you say so," he huffed with a shrug. He then changed the subject. "I don't know about you, but I have several ticks in my fur that could do for a good removing. Where are those apprentices?"

"You mean the newer ones?" Highwings asked. "I can get them for you."

"That would be nice, yes."

Highwings got to her feet, leaving the elders momentarily. It didn't take her long to find Slicepaw, who was by Murmuringsoil's side as the deputy gave orders for another border patrol, which they had been having a lot of ever since the rogues were scented. She lightly tapped the apprentice's shoulder with a tail. The ginger tom with blond splotches whipped around, gazing up at her with a raised eyebrow.

"Murmuringsoil?" she voiced, drawing the tom's attention. "Mind I borrow Slicepaw?"

"For what?" he inquired.

"Elders need their ticks plucked," she mumbled with a shrug.

"Oh, no. Oh, stars, Murmuringsoil, send me on a border patrol instead," Slicepaw begged him.

Murmuringsoil gazed down at his apprentice with an amused smile, something rare from the deputy. "As a warrior, your main task will be to forfeit your own comfort for the more vulnerable members of the Clan. And an apprentice is supposed to learn what these tasks are and how to do them." He lifted a paw up in Highwings' direction. "Highwings here is just offering you a free lesson."