RainClan's Fate; The Apprentice's Destiny | Warrior Cats Fanfiction

~Chapter 6~

"What happened?" Flamepaw gasped. Amberpaw couldn't speak. Rippledawn couldn't be dead.

"Barkstripe's hunting patrol found her in the forest near Shadow Caves," Stormpaw explained as she padded over to stand beside Amberpaw and Flamepaw. Silkpaw joined them. "They found her in a pool of blood. Where's Toadfeather? That stupid old grump should be here by now!"

"He's not stupid," Amberpaw hissed, standing up for her mentor. "He's wise. And he's our medicine cat, so you should show more respect."

Stormpaw huffed. "Whatever."

"Amberpaw!"

Amberpaw turned to see Tigerpelt, Silkpaw and Mousepaw's father, padding towards her.

"Where's that mentor of yours?" he asked. "Shouldn't he be here by now? Doesn't he know that Rippledawn's dead?"

"I'll go fetch him, Tigerpelt," Amberpaw hurried away to the medicine den. She looked around but didn't find any cat there. She padded back to Tigerpelt and sat down beside her sister.

"Toadfeather's not there," she reported. "Maybe he's out in the forest?"

"I hope not," Silkpaw murmured as Tigerpelt hissed and padded away to mourn Rippledawn's death along with Dawnlily and Birdwing. "He might go near Shadow Caves, and that's the last place I want to be right now."

Amberpaw nodded in agreement. "Maybe I should go find him."

"It's too dangerous," Stormpaw pointed out. "You don't know what could be lurking out there in the forest. How long ago did the patrol return?"

"A few heartbeats before Amberpaw and Flamepaw got back," Silkpaw replied. "Praise StarClan, I hope Toadfeather doesn't get killed too."

"Then we'd get stuck with an inexperienced medicine cat," Flamepaw muttered. Amberpaw was about to snap a response when she realised he was right. She'd only been an apprentice for moon. She hadn't even traveled to the Star Cave yet. She hadn't healed a cat before, and she hadn't helped a nursing queen give birth. She was inexperienced. She found it difficult to even manage remembering herbs. How was she supposed to help her Clan without Toadfeather?

"I'm going to ask Burntstar," Amberpaw decided. She glanced at Flamepaw. "Want to come?"

Flamepaw blinked in surpirse. "Why me?"

"Because if he says I can go look for Toadfeather then I'll have help," Amberpaw pointed out.

"I'll come too," Silkpaw offered. "Stormpaw?"

"Sure," Stormpaw agreed. "I wonder where the rest of the apprentices are."

"Training, I bet," Flamepaw meowed. "Like I was before I ran into Amberpaw."

"Before you started stalking me," Amberpaw corrected him.

Flamepaw narrowed his eyes playfully. "I was not stalking you. I was just — "

"We're waisting time!" Stormpaw hissed. "Just shut up and come on."

The four apprentices followed Stormpaw over to Burntstar.

"Burntstar?" Silkpaw meowed gently. "We need to talk to you."

"Toadfeather's missing," Amberpaw blurted before her father had a chance to reply. "We think he's in the forest, and we want to go find him."

"And hope he's not at Shadow Caves," Silkpaw added, sounding worried. Burntstar looked at Wolfstrike. Wolfstrike shrugged.

"I don't think it's wise to let them go," she advised. "After all, they're only apprentices."