~Land of Secrets~ All of Chapter 3.

[Shadowstar1922]

To people who didn't read Chapter 3, here it is. To the people who read the part that i have you, go to bottom. I gave most of it.


Chapter 3.

The paws of the hunting patrol crunched through the snow. Applestream flicked her tail furiously at time to time. Oakpaw looked around. He still wasn't used to all this snow.
How do you face this every year? Oakpaw thought.
“I still don't smell any TreeClan scents,” Deadfire muttered. “I know what I smelled. If I didn't, then I wouldn't have been made a warrior,” Applestream retorted.
Deadfire had muttered something, but Oakpaw couldn't hear it. From the looks of it, Applestream didn't notice it either. Good. I don't want to hear her bickering, Oakpaw thought.
Applestream ran up, and pushed Deadfire aside. She ran through some bushes. Deadfire quickened his pace to keep up, and Oakpaw did the same for his mentor.
“Right here. It's right here. It still smells fresh!” Applestream exclaimed. She stood proudly with her head held high, next to a half eaten squirrel, and the bones scattered around.
Deadfire snorted in disbelief, and sniffed the squirrel. He stood up, with an un-readable face expression. Applestream smiled. Then Oakpaw noticed it. He noticed the fresh smell of TreeClan scents.
“Well, this is new,” Deadfire meowed.
“Never thought that TreeClan would do this.”
“We'll have to tell Rockstar. See what he thinks” Oakpaw replied. Applestream nodded.
“Wait!!!” a voice yelled.
Instinct told Oakpaw to turn around and jump on the other cat. The two cats tussled, bodies crashing through the snow, and claws out, clawing and biting.
Oakpaw jumped off backwards as soon as he got the chance His blood flew in the sky, and landed on the snow, staining the bright snow, to dark red.
The black cat rolled on the ground, before getting up, making marks on the snow, and staining it red.
Oakpaw shook his face, and red droplets flew of his face. Both cats stood at each other, watching for a movement to happen to counter. The blood continued to bleed in the sparkly snow, making it dull, and full of sorrow.
The black cat spoke. “I mean no harm, young cat,” he began, “I wish to explain why you scent your er... Clan scents is it? On your side of your, um, border.”
Oakpaw came back to his senses and relaxed himself. He sat straight up. Deadfire and Applestream walked in behind him. Before Deadfire could say anything, Oakpaw stopped him.
“Please explain, stranger.”
The cat nodded. “first of all, My name is Shadow. I'm a rouge, that has been living in this forest for quite some time.”
“I was living in the TreeClan land for weeks, and I guess I kinda got their scents. I came over here, and ate the prey I caught over here.”
“Why should we believe you?” Deadfire questioned. Shadow walked up to Deadfire, stared him in the face. “I don't lie. And, i'm here, aren't I?” Deadfire glared back, but said nothing.
Shadow turned away from Deadfire, and smirked. “I knew you wouldn't say anything.” Shadow dashed on the other side of the border, and ran into the trees. Deadfire stood there, glaring with hatred eyes to the place where Shadow dashed off.
“Come on, Deadfire, let's go back to camp,” Oakpaw meowed. Deafire lashed his tail furiously, and turned around to a path that lead to camp. Applestream rolled her eyes, and Oakpaw giggled a bit.


The hunting patrol returned to camp, with their prey. Many cats were crowded around the medicine cat's den.

“Shoo! Go away! You are crowding me and my work!” a voice screamed. Creekwing! Most of the cats fled, some walked away, calmly.
Oakpaw and Applestream gave each other looks, while Deadfire walked over to Rockstar. The two cats talked. Deadfire walked back to Applestream and Oakpaw.
“What's happening?” Oakpaw asked. “Toadfur got whitecough. It's not serious though. Creekwing think he will heal up quickly, but Nighttail doubts it, considering Toadfur's old age.”
Sorrow filled inside of Oakpaw. He ran quickly to the den. He bumped into Creekwing. Creekwing turned around, tail twitching. “I said go away-” Creekwing paused at the sight of Oakpaw.
“Hello, there.” Creekwing stuttered. Oakpaw tried to peer in the den. “Is he alright?” Oakpaw asked. “Creekwing backed up, giving Oakpaw some room. As soon as he could, Oakpw squeezed through. He stop abruptly at the sight of Toadfur on the ground in a moss bed.
A tear ran down Oakpaw's face. Nighttail was getting some herbs, while Birchpaw was pawing Toadfur's body. “Birchpaw! What are you doing?” Creekwing hissed.
“It's a technique used in SilverClan. We learned that whitecough can cause lumped, or swells in the body. So i'm checking for them.”
“If he has them, then his lungs will get worse, and it will go to greencough,” Birchpaw replied sharply.
“What? I've never heard of such a thing!” Creekwing gasped. Birchpaw looked up. “You've heard it now!” The black and white apprentice looked back down, continued to paw. “Is Toadfur okay with it?” Oakpaw asked.
Birchpaw shook his head. “He didn't like it, so I fed his some poppy seeds. Only enough to give me time to check his body completely.”
Creekwing stepped forward, but Nighttail intercepted her. “He knows what he is doing.”
“No he doesn't!” Creekwing hissed. “Yes he does. I have faith in him. And you should too,” Nighttail replied rather calmly, trying to reassure his mentor.
“Besides. It's good to learn new techniques. This could help us in the future so less cats would die from this sickness.”
Creekwing sighed and walked out.
“She really doesn't like me, does she?” Birchpaw meowed sadly. “No. She just doesn't like cats from outside lands,” Nighttail replied.
“Which is me,” Birchpaw added sharply.
“But wasn't the clans built by cats from other lands?” Oakpaw asked. Nighttail nodded. “But she thinks that since we have organized our selves, that we can't be considered cats from far away.”
“But that sounds-”
“Ridiculous? Yes. It does.”
Nighttail closed his eyes, and looked up to the ceiling of the cave. Birchpaw continued to poke at Toadfur. “Well, seems like Toadfur doesn't have any lumps with is good,” Birchpaw meowed, trying to break the silence. Nighttail opened his eyes, and looked at Birchpaw.
“Good. If what you say is correct, we can cure his illness before it can spread and kill him.” Oakpaw walked out. He padded over to the Fresh-kill pile, and took a mouse. He walked over to Rockstar who was sitting by himself. When he spotted Oakpaw approaching him, he smiled. “Good afternoon, Oakpaw,” Rockstar greeted.
Oakpaw nodded to the old tom, and sat down next to him. “What? You didn't bring your own leader food? That is no way to greet someone like me!” Rockstar meowed in astonishment.
“You're not fooling me, old tom. I saw you eat a bird when I walked in,” Oakpaw replied. Rockstar blinked at Oakpaw. “You are building character, young one.”
Oakpaw finished his mouse. “You think Toadfur will pull through?”
Rockstar nodded. “That cat has been a brave warrior the minute he became an apprentice. He will fight till the day he dies.”
“And I hope these next few days won't be his last. No matter what, Oakpaw, Toadfur will continue to fight, because he knows what he is fighting for is right.” a moment passed by. Oakpaw looked at the ground, then looked up at Rockstar, and opened his jaw, but Rockstar cut him off.
“To answer your question that I have been trying so hard to dodge by yaping about things that you might not even care about, yes, I do think Toadfur will pull through. If he doesn't, it just wouldn't feel right without him.”
Oakpaw looked up in the sky to see two stars strangely shinning. It was the middle of the day. He looked to his side, to see Rockstar also looking in the sky. His eeys were fixed on the same stars that Oakpaw had glanced at.
Rockstar got up, and padded to his den without even saying good-bye to Oakpaw. Oakapw stared after him. “Good-bye, Rockstar,” Oakpaw added softly. Oakpaw rose to his feet after seeing Rockstar's tail disappear into the darkness of his den. He glanced back at the entrance before walking to the apprentice's den.
He, like his leader, disappeared into the darkness of the den. He moved to his den and curled up into a ball. He sloftly brought his tail to cover his nose and twitched his whiskers before closing his eyes to take a nap.