Warriors: A New Chapter- An Era of Unease

Chapter 6

Dashpaw narrowed his eyes as he watched Nightpaw and Shadowpaw slip cautiously out of their dens. When the two sat in front of Ashclaw, Dashpaw noticed Nightpaw sitting ever so slightly in front of her sister defensively. "Spitting images of ourselves wouldn't you agree, Phantomstar." Dashpaw may have been wrong but, he sounded almost proud. What cat wouldn't be with those two as their kits? He thought fondly. "Perhaps I could take one with me back to our home?" Ashclaw questioned with a purr as he circled his two daughters. Dashpaw forced down a raging screech as the tom's face became uncomfortably close to Nightpaw's stiff figure. "You may have them, however, may that only be over my rotting corpse," Phantomstar growled. Dashpaw noticed how Stormheart was eyeing the tabby intruder. More than likely feels offended. He practically raised them! Dashpaw eyed the deputy as his ears strained over his thoughts. "We can make arrangements but for now," with the flick of his tail, Ashclaw's followers trotted quickly out of the camp walls. "We have made our existence known properly. We'll speak more about this another day Phantomstar. Watch your backs, I'm not the cat I used to be." He spat before trailing after his companions. "After them, make sure they leave and wait at the border just in case," Phantomstar ordered before jumping down to her kits.

"I thought he was gone for good." Mothfur mewed quietly from behind Dashpaw. He had been told to crouch into a den upon the arrival of Nightpaw's patrol and didn't realize until now he was in the warrior's den. "What was Ashclaw exiled for?" He asked quietly to the dappled warrior. "He was suspected of murdering Dawnbreeze's kit who was also his own apprentice." She murmured staring at Dawnbreeze in the clearing. She looked shaken, weak and tired, something Dashpaw never suspected the fierce warrior could have ever felt. "You should go help her Mothfur," Adderfang suggested. "Of course." She replied mewing a soft goodbye before leaving to comfort the distressed queen. "You know Dawnbreeze, Ashtail, and Mothfur are all littermates right?" The dark gray tabby said while scratching at his nest. "I didn't know that," Dashpaw admitted. "They don't really act as Shadowpaw and Nightpaw do." Adderfang's brown eyes flashed with amusement. "Not all siblings act like those two." He purred. "They were so angry when they found out what happened to Finchpaw, they were going to chase him down and kill him just after the border. Instead, Phantomstar wanted to speak with her mate one last time." Adderfang said, his eyes began to darken as he recalled each event. "Why would she do that? Phantomstar doesn't seem like the cat to pity a murderer." Dashpaw asked quietly. "She was holding kits at the time. Stormheart told Cloudpelt and I, that Ashclaw wanted her to go with him and raise their kits together, but she was deputy, her clan needed her, especially since Sunstar was on his last life. Even if he didn't show it, a lot of cats knew Stormheart's feelings for Phantomstar ran deep, she saved him from drowning on their first patrol, he was hurt deeply by the news she was expecting Ashclaw's kits and when he was exiled,"

"He decided to raise them like his own." Dashpaw finished for him, Adderfang, though a reasonably young warrior, looked worn out. Dashpaw thanked him for the information and stepped out into the quiet camp. Dashpaw quickly noticed his mother talking with Phantomstar and her daughters. His brown gaze lingered on the two sisters. Nightpaw's cool demeanor was replaced with a small flicker of distrust as she eyed her mother through narrowed eyes. On the other paw, Shadowpaw's fur was bristling as she listened to Phantomstar's words. "Hey, Dashpaw." A quiet voice pulled him from his trance. With a shake of his head, Dashpaw turned to see the leaf green eyes of Skypaw. "Hello, Skypaw." He muttered, sitting beside her smooth white tabby pelt. "I bet those two are a bit shaken. Perhaps Willowstripe and Ashtail will allow them the day off." She whispered, curling her tail around her paws. "Want to go to the Great Oak?" Dashpaw asked, trying to avoid the two sisters as a topic. Skypaw nodded and stood silently.

Dashpaw flexed his claws into the ancient bark and pushed himself a final time up to the sturdy branch. The moon has risen just above the trees causing its beautiful light to shine down onto their forest home. Dashpaw thought back the gray tabby warrior who had strolled into camp as if he belonged there. He felt his pelt bristle when he recalled poor Dawnbreeze's fury at the mention of her lost kit, and the burning fear when the large black tom had pinned her down. The soft pelt of Skypaw, her sweet, lavender-like scent blew a wave of content over Dashpaw. "I hope MoonClan can take him and his rogues." She muttered bitterly, a rare sight from the normally bubbly apprentice. "We can, this is MoonClan. No rogue is going to drag us in the dirt." Dashpaw's voice was filled with determination, though he truly didn't know what these cats had planned for them, he didn't want to believe MoonClan couldn't take care of it. The stars twinkled idly in the dark sky. "On the bright side, when Dawnbreeze is in a better mood, she'll give me an assessment." Skypaw intertwined her fluffy tail with Dashpaw's slim one. He could tell she had picked up on his discomfort in thinking about the rogues. "That's wonderful. What do you think your warrior name will be?" Skypaw released a purr and shook her head. "I'm not sure but this isn't a warrior assessment. Apprentices go through two. This is my first one." Dashpaw nodded while looking down at his paws. A swift wind blew the chilly night air into the apprentices fur harshly. It's colder than normal, is StarClan concerned? Dashpaw tried to see the once twinkling stars above, only to be met with the chilling sight of them missing, the pure black sky consumed them. "Let's get back to camp." He mewed hastily and began to climb down.

The camp was mostly empty, the only faces Dashpaw could see were Leafshade, Mothfur, Bluemist, and Stormheart. "Are you coming Dashpaw?" Skypaw asked, beginning to turn off to the apprentices' den. "I'll be in there soon." He promised before padding up cautiously to the four warriors. "Hello, Dashpaw." The deep rumble of Leafshade's voice called over the wind. Dashpaw only dipped his head to him and faced Stormheart. "Did they leave easily?" He questioned wearily, thankfully answered by a quick nod from the deputy. "How dangerous do you think they are?" He asked once the wind calmed. The warriors exchanged darkened expressions before Stormheart faced Dashpaw. "The lack of stars tonight should tell you exactly what StarClan fears."
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I absolutely struggle with Dashpaw chapters! Also, I just realized we're almost at 100 reads!