Diverging Paths (Warrior Cats Fanfiction)

Chapter 23

"So, if you think you can do better than me, how about you fight me right now?" Highwings challenged Moorpaw.

Moorpaw giggled. She laid on the ground with Sprintquick laying to her right, holding her paw. Highwings sat to Moorpaw's left, smirking down at the apprentice from above. "Well," Moorpaw retorted, "I'm just saying I could've fought more rogues than you. I'm not gonna fight you."

"Prove it, here and now!" Highwings teased, shoving Moorpaw's shoulder with a paw, making all three of them share in delightful laughter.

It felt good to share a moment with them. The reddish apprentice and brown warrior, while not close as family, were nice friends to her when she needed them. Now they just sat on the edge of camp, facing out to the rest of camp, talking among themselves in the shade, away from the hot humidity of the greenleaf sun.

"No! I'm not that mean," Moorpaw snorted up at the sitting warrior with a grin. She added in a muttered voice, "Just that you should take me along on more patrols..."

"Wow, on the contrary, I think that is mean," Highwings purred, making Moorpaw wheeze, barely able to contain laughter.

"Come on, Moorpaw, give her some slack. She's not built to be a fighter," Sprintquick told her with a soft voice and gentle smile.

Moorpaw blushed. "Hmph. Well, you ought to stop fighting me. We're supposed to be in love!"

"Maybe we can have a love-hate relationship," Sprintquick joked.

"That's not how that works!"

Sprintquick purred a bit and rested her head on Moorpaw's paws, making the younger she-cat bristle, before giggling and resting her head on Sprintquick's head. Moorpaw huffed with humor, "Stop doing that."

"Doing what?" Sprintquick chuckled.

"Controlling me! It's not fair!" Moorpaw puffed in mock anger, while Sprintquick laughed.

"You're so overdramatic, Moorpaw," Highwings sneered. Just seeing the two she-cats bicker lovingly together made her automatically smile.

"But she's controlling me with her powers!" Moorpaw complained jokingly. "She's evil!"

"Moorpaw?" Sprintquick spoke up.

"Huh?"

"It's me, Sprintquick. I command you to love me and to not think I'm controlling you. Ooooooh," she giggled.

"Oh, no! She's doing it again! Now I'm okay with it! Highwings, help!" Moorpaw bellowed, dramatically raising a paw to her head and holding it to her forehead in fake terror.

"What? That's not how it works," Sprintquick giggled. "You're supposed to be obedient now."

"Ah, stop it, Sprintquick," Highwings huffed with a smile and a roll of the eyes.

"You can't tell me what to do! I use my mind control on you!" Sprintquick did a ridiculous squinting face at Highwings.

"Haha. That doesn't work," Highwings snickered halfheartedly. She was not one for humor, or going along with jokes.

Though a bit off-set, Sprintquick and Moorpaw didn't seem to mind this about her. "Aw, darn. Highwings is immune," Sprintquick complained, pouting.

"Immune to what?" The conversation was interrupted by Hollowfortune, approaching them meekly.

"My mind control powers. She's so annoying," Sprintquick teased Highwings, making the warrior smile down at her with a raised eyebrow.

"Well, she can't resist mine. Right, Highwings?" Hollowfortune strung her along, sitting by her and curling his tail over her back with a humorous grin on his face. Though Highwings felt the automatic need to resist, as was her anti-joke part of her personality, she could not deny Hollowfortune any moments of happiness. He did not deserve that.