Eclipsestar's Beginning [Warriors Fanfic] [Sadly, On Hold]

Eclipsestar's Beginning [Warriors Fanfic]: Chapter 2

Pine got in front of Pearl, who looked like she was about ready to kill Pepper. "Now now, Pearl. Calm down. Let them tell us what happened." he said to her calmly. He looked at Pepper with a look that made him feel guilty. He just had to let it all out! "Okay okay fine!" he burst.

"So Lightning and I were play fighting, right? So after a while, he just decided to pin me down, and since he's so fat, he almost crushed me to death!" Pepper made a deep breath then continued, hoping they'd understand. "So I rolled over, and he collided himself with the ground! It's not entirely my fault, I swear!" Pearl looked at Pine who looked at Rosie, then back at Pearl. "Please don't let this get in the way of me and my to-be ceremony! I've waited for this my whole life!"

The large, well-built orange tabby tom suppressed a large sigh. "No, this won't get in the way of your ceremony. But it will get you in trouble. You are going to watch the elders for ticks, change their bedding, and make sure they have enough prey to eat. Am I clear?" Pine asked.

Pepper dipped his head. He, personally, hated watching over the elders! They are older than him, can't they just do it themselves? Pearl picked up Lightning and headed towards the medicine cat's den. Lightning looked at Pepper in sorrow as if to say I'm okay, don't worry!

He prodded alongside Rosie, and he could obviously tell that she wasn't okay with him. "Rosie?" he nudged her. "I'm sorry for getting into trouble, we just intended to have fun!" Rosie looked down and stared at him, and after a couple of heartbeats she bent down and licked his head softly. For a moment he felt like he was just a newborn in the nursery beside his mother, the comfort making him happy. "It's okay, Pepper, I know."

Once they got back to camp, he heard everyone gossiping of how Lightning's shoulder might be broken for good. He pushed the dark thought away and dragged himself towards the medicine cat den. He peeked in and saw Talon treating Lightning's shoulder. Pepper slowly walked in, hoping not to get lectured by Talon of how thoughtless their actions were. But instead, Talon just looked at him, hesitating. As he was about to speak, Pepper interrupted and spoke for him.

"I know, I know. 'My actions were thoughtless'. There, happy?" Talon let out a small mew of amusement and nodded. "Yes, that, and you're lucky I was able to fix his shoulder. He'll recover soon, but until then, he'll have to stay in here for a few days." Lightning's head popped up and gave a weak hiss of protest. "I said I'm fine! I don't want to stay in here! It's boring and there's nothing to do!"

Talon turned to him, frustrated. "Okay. I'll let you go and let you break your shoulder permanently. Just don't come crying to me when just that happens!" Pepper chuckled a bit, seeing Lightning not able to reply to that. He said his goodbyes to the both of them and noticed he was really hungry.

Pepper tipped his head, I haven't eaten in a while! He ran across the clearing to the fresh-kill pile, and to his luck, there was no more than scraps and bones. "Oh, I'm sorry, did you want some?" Honey burped. He narrowed his eyes at her. Why is she being so to him? "I'm so tired of you bullying me! What have I done to you?" Pepper curled his lips in a snarl and lunged at her.

Honey screeched as she rolled over to the ground. She unsheathed her claws, ready for a fight. As she was about to attack him, Pine jumped into the clearing between them. "What is going on here?" He demanded. Honey pounced on Pepper one last time and got up, licking her chest defensively. "I was only trying to eat," she grunted.

"But, you--" Pine glanced at Pepper. "Pepper, let Honey speak first."

Honey dipped her head and began circling the two. "I came back from patrol and was going to pick a piece of fresh-kill, until he came along. It was the last prey, and he decided to attack me!" Pepper could not believe what she was saying! He opened his jaw to protest, but everyone already began believing her. Pine turned to him.

"Pepper, is this true?"

"No, it's not true!" he squeaked. "She actually attacked me! Honey ate the last couple of prey on purpose because she knew I was coming! You have to believe me." Pine lashed his tail from side to side and sighed. "I can't decide on which story is true," he began. "This is a warning for the both of you, now go back to your dens." Everyone in the clearing scattered off to their own dens and Honey just stared at him, her eyes narrowed. Fine, he thought. You want a fight? I'll give you a fight.