Birth of the Clans

Chapter 14

Rainyblaze splashed her paws through the blue water, a fish in her jaws. She paddled back to shore and dropped the wriggling fish on the ground, giving it a killing bite to the spine.

Two moons had passed and Rainyblaze felt better then ever. She looked at her apprentice, Bluepaw, and nodded carefully. He padded into the water and then silently swam through the waves. Rainyblaze watched as his head disappeared under as he dove. She turned and blinked at Sparrowfrost, who was teaching Hollowpaw to scoop a fish with your paw, or grab them with your teeth. She turned her head when she heard splashing, and saw Bluepaw surface with a small silver fish in his jaws, flapping wildly. He started swimming back to the shore, but his paws knocked the fish and it tumbled back into the water.

"Frog-Dung!" he cursed, and dove under again. Rainyblaze sighed. He sure did know how to hold his breath under for a long time. He reappeared again with a small fish, obviously not the same one. Her ears pricked as she saw a fin rise in the water off in the distance, though it was heading towards them. She jumped to her paws and started racing towards the apprentice.

"Shark!" she yowled, splashing into the water. "Let the fish go, Bluepaw! Swim! SWIM!" she yowled. Bluepaw, looking terrified, let the wriggling fish go and swam towards her as fast as he could. The shark gained speed and started moving towards them. 

Rainyblaze, shoulder-length deep in the water, grabbed onto Bluepaw just as the shark reached a couple fox lengths away from him. She could see it's nose as it thrust itself towards them. Rainyblaze yanked Bluepaw behind her and rose on her hind legs just in time, for the shark barely missed her legs. Freaking out, Rainyblaze hissed madly and flailed her claws at the sharks face, trying to get it to leave. The shark squirmed and started turning around to go back into the water.

"Bluepaw! Get on the shore now!" Rainyblaze called as the shark's massive tail came towards them. Rainyblaze jumped out of the water, her tail sending a spray of water back into the ocean, and safely scaled the shark.

Sparrowfrost and Hollowpaw came racing towards them. "Are you alright?" he asked, looking them over. 

"Were fine." Rainyblaze gasped, shuddering. That was a close call. She turned to look at the sodden white apprentice. He looked like he was in shock.

"Come on." she meowed, shaking herself. "Let's go and visit Falconbelly and Snowleopard to see if we can get you something. Shake yourself off, boy."

Bluepaw shook himself off, staring into the distance. Rainyblaze placed her tail over his shoulder and guided him back to camp, casting a sorrowful glance at Sparrowfrost. 

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Back at camp, Rainyblaze padded into the medicine cats den, passing Bluepaw who was padding out. She watched him go before looking up at Snowleopard.

"Will he be okay?" she asked the pretty spotted medicine cat.

"Yes, he should be." she mepwed. "I just gave him some stuff for shock." 

"Where's Falconbelly?"

"Out collecting herbs."

"Oh.. Thanks, Snowleopard."

"No problem, Rainyblaze."

Rainyblaze turned and padded off. 

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The usual duties had carried out for five moons. Nothing had happened, just training and eating and the usual. No clans attacked, nothing new. Nothing.

Frost brimmed on Rainyblaze's whiskers. Leaf-Bare was well on it's way. She had just come back from searching for Shortpelt. The she-cat had gone marching off for about a moon and hadn't come back. Everybody else had given up hope, but Rainyblaze refused to do so. Now she sat in the night, on guard while everybody slept. With no kits, no elders, and no apprentices or expecting/nursing queens, there wasn't much to protect.

A rustle in the bushes sounded, and Rainyblaze stiffened, turning around. A cream head popped out of the bushes.

"Wh-" Rainyblaze began, then she recognized the oddly familiar face. "Shortpelt!" she yowled, and rushed forwards. The cream she-cat's eyes widened with happiness, and rubbed up against Rainyblaze, half her body still behind a bush.

"I have something to tell you." she whispered as cats started to pad out of their dens to see what was going on. Shortpelt padded, or more rather, lumbered, out from behind the bush. Her belly was swollen and Rainyblaze didn't even know how she managed to carry around those kits with her feet so small.

"Your expecting kits!" she purred, then looked at her. "Who's the father?"

Shortpelt blinked. "He... he was a really nice kittypet. Please don't tell anybody he was a kittypet! Because I was a kittypet, that will make them really mad. Please just tell them it was a loner." she begged.

"I promise." Rainyblaze purred as Hollowheart bounded up, sqealing like a kit.

"Come on! We have to get you into the nursery, I'm like, not even joking! Seriously! Let's go, now! NOW NOW NOW!!"Hollowheart meowed, rushing her into the nursery. Rainyblaze couldn't stop purring. Shortpelt would be a young mother like herself, but she probably had enough adventure out there to make up for it. Rainyblaze padded back inside, stretching her back. All the she-cats were gathered around the nursery, pestering Shortpelt about her journey and what had happened Falconbelly and Snowleopard were weaving around all the she-cats, getting information as in if she had injured herself or how far she had walked to make sure she was 100% alright.

A strangled yowl cut through the frosty night, and everybody froze. Rainyblaze listened for the yowl again, sure that it was her enemies, Savannahdream. Even though she didn't like the she-cat, she was a clanmate and Rainyblaze would fight to the death for her if needed. After hearing nothing, the cats went back to muttered talking, less excited now that the mysterious yowl had rung out. Rainyblaze, just to be sure, padded around to where the toms were sitting. She was about to ask if they had seen Savannahdream when a yowl rung out. 

"HELP!" 

Rainyblaze, in an instant, turned around and skidded out of the hollow, kicking up sand as she went.  she followed the cries for help, until she came to the dreaded scene.

Leapingtail was stuck behind a boulder, and Savannahdream's spotted tail stuck out from underneath the boulder.