A Life in RainClan

Well, this wiki used to be chock full of fanfic. Only three ever got completed, but, well, it's fun to try. So, I'm doing another warriors one. Just for fun...

I'm hoping that this fanfic would be a look into clan life, not necessarily about some major event, or anything. It follows four main characters: Swiftpaw and Wolfpaw, two apprentices, Sharp, a loner who, while observing he clan, finds he has a crush on Wolfpaw, and Goldeneye, the deputy... more on her later.

Also featured are Wolfpaw's mentor Stormbolt, the former rogues Petalfall and Thrush, the quirky leader Thunderstar, and Wolfpaw's brother Herringpaw, among other weird and sometimes emotional characters.

This fanfic will be really strange, because it is a look into the lives of our characters, and is constantly flipping through time and perspective. So, yeah. Please enjoy ^^

## Allegiances

Note: Toms are male cats. I just realized how weird that sounds.

Leader:

Thunderstar, pale ginger Tom

Deputy:

Goldeneye, brown and cream she-cat with one green eye and one gold

Medicine cat:

Smokeyes, blind ash-grey Tom

Warriors:

Fishtail, ginger Tom with sparkly blue eyes

Petalfall, small white she-cat

**Apprentice: Swiftpaw**

Thrush, patchy white and black tom, green-blue eyes

**Apprentice: Herringpaw**

Sageleaf, fluffy gray she-cat

Stormbolt, gray Tom with darker grays running across back

**Apprentice: Wolfpaw**

Oakleaf, pale beige Tom with light green eyes

Raincloud, agile she-cat, white-gray mottled fur

Ashcloud, gray-cream she-cat

Noblewind, white Tom with blue eyes

Flarefoot, red she-cat with a long scar above her nose

Shadowleap, pure black tom with startling blue eyes

Apprentices:

Herringpaw, gray-orange tabby

Wolfpaw, green-eyed tabby with orange stripes

Swiftpaw, dark brown Tom, brown eyes

## The Story Begins

### Swiftpaw

Hey there. Swiftpaw here. Swiftpaw the fast. Swiftpaw the brave. Swiftpaw the amazing.

The shrew is right ahead of you. You're gaining on it. It's right there. You leap...

The crowd is cheering you on. Soaring through the air... the shrew squeaks, but it's too late. Then there's a tree in front of you...

Then you remember. Your leg is broken, from a stunt a just like that. Was going too fast, jumped too high. Out of training for two moons.

So much for Swiftpaw the amazing.

And, Petalfall, his mentor, chooses that exact moment to walk in.

"Swiftpaw? You here?" Petalfall looked around the medicine den, until her eyes floated to the dark corner in which Swiftpaw was daydreaming.

Swiftpaw nodded.

"So, I have some good news. It's been a quarter moon. Smokeyes thinks that you can go for walks regularly, assuming you go slowly."

Smokeyes, the medicine cat, was out for the day, collecting herbs. The medicine den was even more empty than usual. Plus, his usual visitors, Wolfpaw and Herringpaw, were busy training with their mentors Stormbolt and Thrush. They were a moon older than Swiftpaw, so that meant their tests would he coming up soon. And Swiftpaw would be stuck in a den for another moon and three quarters, doing nothing, nothing at all, except watching. He clenched his jaw.

"Is that all?" He asked Petalfall.

"I thought you would be more excited. You can finally get out of the den. In fact, I've been trying to convince Smokeyes to let you go back to the apprentice' s den. You know, so you won't be so lonely."

Swiftpaw said nothing.

"Well, okay."

Petalfall padded out of the den, before muttering to herself, "Sheesh. Why do I even bother?"

On the way out, she bumped into Goldeneye.

## Earlier that day

### Goldeneye

Goldeneye scanned the prey pile. Two thin mice, a robin, and a shrew? That wouldn't do.

Goldeneye groaned inwardly. It may have been winter, of course, but that was just pathetic. *Mouse-d*ung.

Her best and most trusted friend, Oakleaf, was sitting by a log conversing with Sageleaf, another warrior. Goldeneye approached the two of them.

"Hey, Oakleaf. Care to go hunting with me? I gotta talk to you."

Oakleaf rose slowly, and yawned. "At this time of day?"

Goldeneye grunted. This was one of the problems with Oakleaf. He was... slightly lazy.

"It's *important!"*

Oakleaf's ears pricked. "Do you hear something?"

That was one of the many good things about Oakleaf. He had an excellent sense of hearing.

"What? What is it?"

Oakleaf didn't answer. He ran to the left of camp, beckoning for Goldeneye to follow him. She did, even though she started falling behind.

"Come on!" Oakleaf called.

They faced through the forest, into a clearing, whee they saw a very frightening sight.

Goldeneye gulped. A young cat, no older than ten moons or so, was facing against something huge. It had angry, glaring eyes, sharp teeth, and a lot of fur, which was bristling uncontrollably. The young cat was shaking. The huge *thing,* whatever it was, seemed ready to pounce.

It seemed to lunge, with all its might, before something got in the way of that.

"Oakleaf?"

The beast shook him off, sending Oakleaf flying. He hit the ground, hard. Goldeneye whimpered. Things were not looking good. She was torn between protecting Oakleaf, protecting the young, defenseless cat, or protecting herself. There was a jab of pain inside her belly. The cat yowled, and the thing kind of barked. It was a jarring, unpleasant sound. It almost knocked the little cat over. Goldeneye stood still.

A gray thing flew past her. Then more.

"For RainClan!"

### Wolfpaw

Wolfpaw grabbed the little rat, killing it as quickly as possible. She brought it over to her mentor, Stormbolt, who was still searching the bushes for other prey.

"I found something," Wolfpaw said rather half-heartedly. The rat was tiny, thin and bony. It would barely do for a kit, let alone one of the adults of the clan.

Stormbolt nodded. He sighed. "It's Leaf-bare. Almost all the prey is gone from the forest." Stormbolt inspected the rat carefully. "I'm surprised you even found that."

A scream rose from nearby. Then another.

### Goldeneye

Wolfpaw and Stormcloud surrounded the beast, then proceeded to try and run it away. Stormbolt clawed at it viciously, while Wolfpaw distracted it. Eventually, the beast turned and fled.

The young cat, still shaking, stared at his rescuers.

Wolfpaw approached him cautiously. "You all right?"

The cat blushed. He then darted for the trees.

Wolfpaw shrugged.

"Weird. A loner, on clan territory?"

Stormbolt padded over to Goldeneye.

"What happened back there?"

Goldeneye blinked, but didn't answer. She just stared. Stormbolt and Wolfpaw then noticed Oakleaf.

"Hey, Oakleaf?" Stormcloud tried, quietly.

"Oakleaf?!" That was Wolfpaw, not so quietly.

Goldeneye walked towards him. She rested a paw on his shoulder.

"How did I let this happen? I was too scared to do anything, and you got hurt because of me."

Stormbolt nudged her. "You had a good reason to. Tell me, are they Oakleaf's?"

"I... don't know what you're talking about."

"I think you do. You shouldn’t even be out here right now, at this stage. With kits coming, and all. So, who's the lucky father? Oakleaf?"

Oakleaf groaned softly.

"Oakleaf?" Goldeneye queried. "Are you okay?"

"You'll do a good job, I'm sure of that." Oakleaf managed a small smile. "I fear my time is up."

"No, it isn't, you big goofball. Stop it!"

"I can help," Stormcloud called. "I had a bit of medicine cat training... I..."

Oakleaf smiled. "Hey, Goldeneye? If you ever become leader, promise you'll lead the clan well for me. The kits, too."

His eyes drifted close. One last breath, then... silence. Goldeneye didn't scream, or cry. Just stood there.

## Later...

### Swiftpaw

Swiftpaw peered over at the new resident in the medicine den. She didn't seem hurt or anything. So you can imagine Swiftpaw was a little surprised when she walked in.

She seemed a little depressed, though. What had happened to her?

"You okay?" Swiftpaw queried after a few minutes of silence.

"I guess." Goldeneye's head dropped. "I just feel so... I don't know, useless. I was one of the best fighters in the clan. I fought off a fox, once. By myself. And I let my mate get killed... just because i'm expecting kits."

"Who got killed?"

Goldeneye ignored him. "I guess... Well, feeling helpless is not a good feeling. I think you can sympathise."

Swiftpaw nodded.

"Apparently my kits are due in a bit over a moon or so. Smokeyes is pretty mad that I didn't tell him. Or maybe that he didn't notice."

"Oof."

"Yep." Goldeneye stared up at Swiftpaw. She smiled a bit.

"Thanks for the talk, Swiftpaw. I guess we'd better get used to each other, now that we're gonna be denmates."

Swiftpaw nodded. "I think we'll get along alright."

## Two Days Later: After Midnight

### Wolfpaw

Oakleaf was her uncle, so Wolfpaw got invited to sit vigil for the night. Turns out it was kinda boring.

Of course Wolfpaw wanted to pay respect to her uncle. He had been quirky, and kind, and Wolfpaw missed him. However, having to stay awake for a whole night and not talking to anyone?

Wolfpaw was so tired she slept through most of Apprentice training the next day.

Then, she couldn’t get to sleep at night, so there she was, hunting at way past midnight.

Her brother was a heavy sleeper, he wouldn’t notice anything. And poor Swiftpaw was stuck in the medicine den with no company exept for grumpy Smokeyes. Wolfpaw remembered that she hadn’t seen him in a while. Apprentice training and all. She felt a little bad, too. But that could wait. Once she was satisfied with her catch, she began to scour the forest for something else.

She had something on her mind. That cat, the one who was attacked by the strange animal, who was it? And why was he or she on clan territory?

Wolflaw skidded to a halt. Ahead of her was a giant log, and on top of that log was a cat. But not the cat she was looking for.

The cat’s silouhette was outlines by the moon, giving it a sort of fantasy-ish feel. He looked startled for a second, but then saw who it was, and purred.

”Wolfpaw? Couldn’t sleep? Yeah, me neither.”

”Oh, hey, Stormbolt.”

”You know, you shouldn’t be out here all alone. What would your family do if you went missing? Plus, another one of those animals could be out there. You know, the one that—”

"Yeah." The first crack of sunlight was starting to show. "I guess I should be getting back to the clan. You too."

Stormbolt winced. "True. Come on, it's early."

The two of them trotted back to camp, but before they were there, they were greeted by a frantic Smokeyes.

"Stormbolt, I need help!"

"What? What is it?"

Smokeyes paused, before shuddering. "There's been a breakout of greencough in the clan overnight." Wolfpaw gasped at this. What if one if her family members was sick?

"Four cats have been infected so far. And one of them is Thunderstar!"

## Earlier

### Swiftpaw

Swiftpaw awoke to coughing. Smokeyes was urging him out of the den.

"Come on! There's been a breakout of greencough. We need you two to go to the elders den so that you don't catch it."

Swiftpaw did as he was told, but Goldeneye stood her ground.

"Who was infected?"

Smokeyes glared as well at where he thought Goldeneye was, which was a fox-lengths off. It was amazing he got that close. "I need you to go, know."

Goldeneye snarled, "I may be expecting kits, but I am still your deputy, and therefore your superior!"

Smokeyes mumbled, "Says who?" while Goldeneye continued, "You still take orders from me. So tell me, who was infected?"

Smokeyes sighed. It was no use. "Thrush, Herringpaw, Flarefoot... and Thunderstar."

The two of them dumbly wandered into the former elder's den. Swiftpaw was shaking. Thunderstar?

Goldeneye, his deputy, was expecting kits. So, what if he died...? Who would replace him.

"I need to talk to Thunderstar," Goldeneye declared. "But... how many lives does he have left?"

"We should sleep first," Swiftpaw yawned. Sleep he did, but Goldeneye was awake for the remainder of the night. Her kits were now keeping her from resuming her role as deputy, and it was really bugging her. She sighed, and lay down and thought about the kits. What would they be like? Would they look like Oakleaf, or more like her? She sighed as she thought about her mate. What would be have named them...?

All these questions let her slowly drift off into a very troubled sleep.

### Wolfpaw

Wolfpaw stood in horror as her mentor walked into the den. Smokeyes was long gone, looking for herbs that could help. What were the names of them again? Wolfpaw could never be a medicine cat.

Unsure of what to do, she followed Stormbolt into the brambles of the medicine den. Inside, she hard a cat coughing. She saw four cats in the den.

The first, Thrush. He seemed to be sleeping, but his fur was matted and torn, and even his expression in sleep was a grimace of pain. Wolfpaw shuddered. He was her brother's mentor. He was too kind for a fate like that.

The second, Flarefoot. She was a young warrior Wolfpaw didn't know all that well, but she seemed pretty fierce and energetic. Seeing her like that, any empty, desolate shell, made Wolfpaw want to scream. Or cry. Or a mix of both. *Poor cats...*

Wolfpaw had been expecting to see this, but she still gasped. Thunderstar lifted his head, and murmured a weak greeting, his normally pale fur even duller. Thunderstar... he was a good leader. One time, Wolfpaw and her brother were playing with medicine supplies in Smokeyes den. Thunderstar had been looking for a herb with Smokeyes, and he saw them. However, he didn't tell anyone. Wolfpaw always wondered why.

Her eyes strayed down to the end of the den, not wanting to look at her clanmates. There, was what she had been dreading.

Herringpaw was in a nest in the far corner, with Stormbolt next to him. Neither had noticed Wolfpaw yet, it seemed. Stormbolt seemed to be talking about treatment, and pushed something next to him. Wolfpaw recognised it as a poppy seed, for sleeping. Wanting to talk to her brother, Wolfpaw rushed forwards.

Both Toms uttered, "Wolfpaw?!" at the same time.

Wolfpaw padded up to Herringpaw. "Are... you okay?"

A floodtide of memories poured back on her.

*Herringpaw, so sweet and gentle. Wolfpaw, when she was a kit, got into a fight with another cat, who was much older and an apprentice at the time, Shadowpaw. It was a simple disagreement over a peice of prey, but both were really heated. They lunged at each other, and Wolfkit got knocked down, of course. But Herringkit stood up for her... and got beaten as a result.*

*Herringpaw*, *so innocent. Once, a couple days after being an apprentice, Herringpaw accidentally took a squirrel an elder wanted. Wolfpaw had done what she thought was right, yelling at the elder. Both had ended up on tick duty for a week.*

*Both times, he was hurt or punished because of something she did. She had to make things right.*

"Herringpaw... I'm sorry."

Stormbolt sighed. "Wolfpaw, you shouldn't be in here. You could catch greencough too. It's dangerous."

Wolfpaw retorted, "I could say the same for you."

"Wolfpaw," he growled, "don't you get snappy on me."

"Oh, yeah, snappy. Since when could you control what I do? Also, why are you helping Smokeyes, and how do you know so much about medicine? Oh wait, the answer is obvious. Why didn't you ever tell us?"

Stormbolt grimaced. "One, since I was made your mentor. Two, I don't want to talk about it. Now, the patients need rest."

Wolfpaw snarled at her mentor. "Yeah. The patients. Now, how would you feel if one of the dying patients was your one and only brother?"

Wolfpaw strutted away, determined. She had to do something about that. But then, a fuzzy thing right ahead of her cut off her thoughts. She looked up to see her father, Noblewind.

"Hey... dad?"

Noblewind was clearly thinking about something, so he hadn't noticed his young daughter. "Wolfpaw." It was more of an acknowledgement than a question.

The two of them had a slightly rocky relationship. Noblewind met a cat named Flametip, and together they had three kits, Wolfkit, Herringkit, and Jaykit. However, things got complicated when a badger attacked the camp, killing Flametip. Her daughter Jaykit was never seen again. Noblewind blamed himself for this, even though his mate attacked the badger to protect him. This lead to him grieving so much, he neglected the rest of his family. So, he grew distant to Wolfpaw, and she just never quite understood why.

Also, the was the mystery of why he looked nothing like his two kits. Both were gray with some orange splotches onto there, but his fur was white as fresh snow. No one could have guessed they were related. Wolfpaw speculated that most of her and Herringpaw's appearance came from their mother, but was still curious.

Noblewind was looking more disheveled than usual. His eyes were red. His fur was tangled. He regarded her with a look of sadness.

"Been to see your brother?"

Wolfpaw didn't answer.

Noblewind nudged her softly. ”You see, these things happen in life, things we can’t control. Sometimes good, sometimes bad. We all will leave this place sooner or later. If it’s Herringpaw’s time, it’s time. His life was short, but he had a good sibling, Wolfpaw.” He stared down at her, eyes wide with sincerity. “I need to talk to him for a minute. Remember, it isn’t our desicion what happens to him. We can’t change anything. I’m sorry.”

He shuffeled into the den. Wolfpaw, feeling a wave of emotion, hurried away. Sadness for her brother, fear for what would happen if she lost him, and a strange sensation at her father‘s words. Was it... anger?

Why wasn’t he there for them until now? Why did he have to be so distant until her brother was dying? And why didn’t he acknowledge the fact that there was a cure to greencough? What was it called? Waterleaf? Mintleaf? Watermint? She was definitely lacking memory skills.

Wolfpaw also realized she had no clue what they looked like. Or where they grew. Wolfpaw cursed. She would have to talk to Stormbolt again. She turned back to camp, but then shivered at what she saw. A cat was standing behind her. And she recognized him as... the one she and Stormbolt saved from the big animal?

### Sharp/Wolfpaw

Sharp stared at her. Wolfpaw stared at him. In unison they said, “It’s you?”

Sharp padded up to her. “It’s really you, then. You saved my life!”

Wolflaw flicked her ear, slightly annoyed. “Thanks, but I’ve got something important to do right now. Yes, me and my mentor and Oakleaf saved you. No, you do not need to pay a debt to me. Thanks, I got to go now. Bye.”

Sharp groaned as she padded away in the opposite direction. “Wait!” he called. “Are you looking for something?”

Wolfpaw smiled. Maybe this cat would be useful?

## A Day Later

### Goldeneye

The clan was in chaos.

Their leader was on the brink of death.

An Apprentice had been missing since the day before.

And Goldeneye’s kits were coming.

Stormbolt had taken a good look at her. Based off what she had told Smokeyes, he had estimated another month. Never let a blind cat tell you that.

Smokeyes estimated moon and a half was clearly wrong, according to Stormbolt. No. When she had woken up to quite a bit of pain, she had gotten Swiftpaw to tell Stormbolt. Long story short, her kits were due in a day or two. One of them kicked her, hard.

”Ouch!” Goldeneye groaned. These kits sure were feisty.

Swiftpaw looked over, concerned. "You alright?"

Goldeneye groaned again. Then, sharper pain, over and over. Smokeyes and Stormbolt (who somehow knew a lot about medicine and was now a temporary medicine cat) were preoccupied with finding herbs for the sick cats. Otherwise they would be right on hand. Still, this didn't feel right to Goldeneye. The kits were definitely coming.

Goldeneye called to Swiftpaw, "Get Stormbolt or Smokeyes."

The apprentice rushed off. He returned with somecat else.

"Sageleaf?" Goldeneye gasped. So,ething was happening, and she didn't like it.

Sageleaf nodded. "The med cats are both out looking for watermint. Turns out I'm the only cat whose had kits before."

Swiftpaw looked on curiously. Goldeneye nodded softly. "I'm sorry about what happened there."

Sageleaf shrugged. "I guess it's all in the past."

Goldeneye whimpered softly. She remembered something.

Swiftpaw winced. How had he gotten Sageleaf so fast? Goldeneye wasn't sure. He was in the medicine den for a leg injury, right?

Goldeneye whined again, louder this time. It had begun.

### Swiftpaw

It had begun.

Sageleaf had moved closer to Goldeneye, who was constantly flinching as if in pain. Swiftpaw backed up. He didn't need to see this.

Swiftpaw closed his eyes.

Swiftpaw opened his eyes.

One kit was being held by Sageleaf. Goldeneye seemed somewhat calm. Then, she stared shaking.

"More are coming," Sageleaf tisked. She had seen this before, of course. But who were her kits? Certainly no one he knew. Almost everyone in the clan was 6 moons older than him, at least. And Sageleaf was too young. So, who...?

Swiftpaw looked away again. He didn't want to see this.

Only after Sageleaf announced, "Its over now. Five kits. I've never seen anything like it."

Goldeneye smiled, then looked over her kits, all with their eyes closed. "Hey, Swiftpaw," she grinned. "You know, I've come up with names already."

Swiftpaw padded over, curious. She pointed to the first one. "This one, the black one, is Moonkit. And this one is Leafkit, after her father." Goldeneye winked. "And maybe, just maybe, after another cat too. Thanks, Sageleaf."

Sageleaf beamed. "What about the others?"

"Well, this one is Brackenkit. And this little one is Sprucekit."

All so little, all so cute, with their eyes closed and all. "What about the last one?" Swiftpaw asked, pointing to a little ginger kit.

"Oh," Goldeneye said. "I thought I would leave that one up to you."

They didn't have time, because then a cry ran out through the camp. Goldeneye rushed outside to see who it was, leaving a bewildered Swiftpaw with Sageleaf and the kits...

### Wolfpaw

"Almost there, now," the loner said. It had been a tough walk through the forest, and Wolfpaw was sure her legs would turn into crowfood if they walked any longer.

"You sure you saw watermint growing by the long river?"

"Yep."

"And you're sure you know the way back?"

"Yerp."

"And you are totally sure that no more weird monsters will come at us? 'Cause, you know, if we run into one of those, I'm not protecting you."

"I'm sure. That one was an... exception. I'm not sure where it came from."

Wolfpaw shrugged. She then queried, "Do you live alone? Have a family, or anything?"

The loner grimaced. "I don't like talking about it. You re lucky, you know. Living in a clan. Not left to fend for yourself. You have all that food. So many hunters. Must be like paradise."

Wolfpaw was horrified by this cat's lack of understanding. Who did he think he was, anyways? With her anger threatening to blow him over, she growled, "So your family abandoned you?" Struggling to keep her voice cool, she remarked, "That isn't my fault. Plus, you underestimate how hard it can be living in a clan."

"My family didn't leave me," the loner countered cooly. "I left them."

Wolfpaw and the loner, neither wanting to continue, trudged to the river, which was a far distance away from clan territory. After an unbreakable silence, the loner sighed. "Sorry, that was uncalled for. I guess living with others can have some challenges. Fights could break out, that sort of thing."

Wolfpaw nodded curtly.

"Plus, if one cat is sick, the rest of the clan has to help them, or leave them. I'm guessing that's why you need the watermint?"

Wolfpaw nodded again. "You're pretty sharp for a non-clan cat. I guess we never introduced ourselves. What's your name?"

The loner shrugged. "You just said it."

"What, name?"

"No, Sharp."

Wolfpas nodded. “That’s an interesting name. I’m Wolfpaw.”

”Oh yeah,” Sharp mused. ”You clan cats have that weird naming system. I totally forgot.”

Wolfpaw paused and looked at him suspiciously. “How do you know so much about clan habits?”

”Never mind,” Sharp said. “Hey, were at the river! Come on!”

Wolfpaw dashed up the forest path with Sharp on her heels, and stared at the roaring water. Directly in front of it was a patch of Watermint.

### Swiftpaw

Swiftpaw peered out after Goldeneye. In the camp was an unfamiliar cat. He was huge, even bigger than Goldeneye or Thunderstar. He had the look of a rogue: his fur was mangy and matted, he had many scars visible underneath, and his eyes... well, they had a look of pure hatred, something Swiftpaw had never, ever, seen before. He was crouched, fur bristling, staring at Petalfall. Petalfall was doing something similar, except she seemed to be limping. Swiftpaw saw something dropping from her leg... blood. She was hurt!

Swiftpaw rushed up to where Goldeneye was standing, a few fox-lengths away from the two cats. Paun was coming from his leg, in small but strong bursts. He tried to ignore it, but it was really getting to him. He struggled to watch as Petalfall and the strange cat continued staring, eyes full of malice. They both seemed ready to pounce. Goldeneye tensed, and Swiftpaw did the same.

“What’s going on?” Asked a voice from behind them. Sageleaf wandered out of the elder’s den, with a kit still clinging to her back. ”Um, who’s he?”

Swiftpaw gulped. The cat took a swipe at Petalfall, which she dodged. Barely. She kicked out at him, lashing across his face. He pinned her down with his claw, and they continued hacking at each other until they were both completely covered in blood. What in the world was happening?

”We’ve got to help her!” Swiftpaw hissed. Goldeneye turned to face him.

”No, I’ve got to help her, or him, or whatever’s going on! I’m the flipping deputy of this clan, and with Thunderstar down for the count I’m technically in charge! You and Sageleaf watch over the kits... I’m going to deal with this.”

”Hey!“ Swiftpaw called. “Come back!”

Goodeneye and a couple other Warriors: Shadowleap and Fishtail, were advancing on the two of them. Goldeneye appeared to be attempting conversation with the Tom. He snarled at her.

Others were peeking their heads out of their dens, or staring at the dreadful scene. Sageleaf shuddered from behind Swiftpaw, then mewed, “I think this is a problem...”

That was probably an understatement, especially when three more brawny, scary-looking cats lept out from the bushes from behind camp. The large Tom cleared his throat, then announced, in a loud voice, “My name is Prince. I am here to take back what is rightfully mine.“ He nodded towards Petalfall. “My daughter.”

### Sharp

Sharp and Wolfpaw has been trying for quite awhile to grab the watermint... with no sucess.

First, Wolfpaw had simply attempted to walk over and pluck some herbs. Bad idea.

The water was so strong, it had almost sucked her in. She would have been a goner if she hadn’t dug her claws into the fresh earth.

The second time, Wolfpaw had the genius idea to use a stick to poke up the earth under the herbs. Nice idea. The only stick big enough in the immediate area was too heavy; even Wolfpaw and Sharp’s skills combined couldn’t lift it.

Then, Sharp had an idea.

He firmly clenched his jaws around Wolfpaw’s tail, and then they moved forwards towards the raging stream. It actually almost worked, but something got in the way.

Neither had really been paying attention to what was happening behind them. A twig crunched. Then Sharp could hear breathing, ragged breathing. He turned around, Wolfpaw after him.

There were two cats behind them, both a simlar age to Sharp and Wolfpaw. Both had nasty smirks on their faces like masks, and one had even crouched menacingly for effect. Sharp inhaled quickly. He knew these two cats.

And, there was something strange. One of the cats looked exactly like him. It was his sister, of course, he was expecting that. But then, the real weird part... the other she-cat looked excactly like Wolfpaw!

Sharp' s vision between the two of them. There was something about Wolfpaw he had always found familiar, but this was insane.

All four cars seemed to be in shock when they saw the resemblance. This was not possible.

They were the same age. And so alike.

They could almost be sisters.

### Swiftpaw

Prince.

How could someone so scary have such a cute name?

Swiftpaw didn't know what it meant, of course. It was obviously something twolegs had come up with, or st least that was what he thought. Still, it sounded sweet, and had a nice ring to it.

The cat himself, however, was nothing like that.

"Petal, dearest." Prince had said in a silky, persuasive voice. "I see you have some explaining to do."

"Petalfall!" Swiftpaw called. He didn't mean to, but the thought of his mentor being abused by this cat was enough.

"On, so that's what their calling you these days." Prince flicked his tail dismissively. " No matter. Judging by what's happening here, you haven't told them about me--"

Prince would have continued, but he was interrupted by something. Swiftpaw, consumed by anger, rushed towards him at a surprising pace. He lunged at the cat.

However, Prince had seen it coming,

He stuck up his paw and knocked the apprentice down as if he were a bug.

"I have a better idea," he explained, that smooth grin never leaving his face, not for a second. "You tell them all the truth, or I kill the little one."