Diverging Paths (Warrior Cats Fanfiction)

Chapter 25

Highwings was relieved. For the first time in countless nights since her time in the medicine den, she was able to get a good night's sleep in her nest. Her eyebags had been growing more prominent, and while they had still gone verbally unnoticed, she noticed cats looking around her eyes with a confused or concerned expression. At least for one night, she would be able to force them to fade a bit. It wouldn't cure it entirely, but a single night without staying awake until midnight was absolute bliss to the she-cat.

It was so much bliss that she retreated into the warriors' den early, just as the sun was beginning to set, which was admittedly uncharacteristic of her. It might draw suspicion, she reminded herself, as usually she was the first one on any patrol, the cat most eager to do anything she could do for the Clan, even if it meant staying up late. Despite her code-breaking Tiltpaw meetings, she still stuck strong to the code at any other time of the day. Sleeping early would possibly draw some cats' attention.

But she couldn't care less. I'm just. So. Tired.

It was a little while before some cats finally began to join her in the warriors' den. The first ones were the notoriously lazy, such as Starefrown, Crywail, Deepeyes, and Stoppedflow. Around this time was when she began to lose consciousness quite fast, the realm of sleep encasing her like the soft moss beneath her body. More and more as the sun went to rest below the horizon and the stars began their migration across the sky, the warriors filed in one by one of their own accord. Some were not in their nests; Riftrim, Thicketburn, and Sleekmove were on the night border patrol. Beargrowl was out guarding the camp.

Highwings knew that Archpounce's nest would go empty and unused tonight, alongside all the other queens in their nests. She would be too busy keeping Tweetkit, Maykit, and Juniperkit warm. There was some anxiety in her chest about whether or not Archpounce would keep her honor and actually curl herself around Juniperkit, or if she would leave him out in the cold by himself simply because he was less than perfect. No. She would never do that, Highwings reminded herself. Archpounce is bratty, but not evil.

Highwings had a pleasant time getting in some nice rest at last, even if Hollowfortune beside her fidgeted in his adventures to the Place of No Stars. She purposefully neglected entertaining any thoughts of what could be happening to him there, what he was doing or what he was being told. After all, she had told him she would respect his decision, no matter how much she disagreed with it.

The gentle caress of sleep vacuumed her and her soul into a deep, dreamless void. She felt like she was being recharged, rejuvenated, revived. She floated and drifted through somewhere deep, somewhere under, far away from anything and anyone, where she could be alone. She felt weightless and worriless, as though by eradicating what was around her, she was eradicating her problems.

This escape came with a rude awakening.

"HELP! HELP!"

Highwings awoke instantly at the cries of someone in their camp. The rest of the warriors awakened easily, too. The first word to be spoken in response came from Murmuringsoil, yelling, "What is your problem?!", supposedly at the cats shouting.

Highwings was part of a flood of warriors who shot out of the den to see what was happening. As she came out into the camp, she saw Beargrowl wrestling with a couple of younger cats, attempting to pin them down. They appeared to be apprentices, from their lean builds and slightly short bodies. Both were toms; one was beige with a white underbelly and paws, accompanied with amber eyes that glowed like fire in the darkness of night. The other was a dark gray, beige, and brown tom who had red eyes that glowed too, yet far more menacingly than the other.

Beargrowl pinned both down on the ground with the help of his sister Thicketburn, who rushed in and slammed down the beige cat so Beargrowl could take care of the dark gray and brown cat.