River (Book 1) A Warriors Fanfiction

Chapter 9

•Riverstorm•

     Riverstorm ran. He ran all the way back to the place he swore he would never go again: The Drowning Brook. He and Pantherfur had called it that after Lucky's accident and Chance's disappearance. Rain began to fall. Riverstorm slowed down. He trudged along in the newly churned mud. Thunder cracked in the distance. Lightning flashed. The rain was falling heavily now. He shook out his now drenched fur.
     Suddenly he found himself outside somewhere very familiar. This was the holly bush that his mother had sheltered him and his littermates in growing up. He sniffed but he couldn't smell anything with the pouring rain. He ducked inside the leafy bush. He pricked his ears for movement. Nothing. He lay down to rest. Surely Cranestar wouldn't follow him here. A rustling behind made him jump up.
Riverstorm whirled around and growled. "Who's there?" He demanded. He sniffed again, but there wasn't a trace of anything. Eventually he settled down again. He was almost asleep, lulled by the falling rain, when thunder crashed again. He jumped, his fur pricking. The silhouette of a cat was outlined in the next flash of lightning. Riverstorm's fur was on end now. When the bright flash struck again, the shape was gone. Riverstorm felt as though eyes were watching him. He couldn't shake the feeling as he attempted to get some rest.
     He felt restless. He got up and stretched, padded around the den a bit, and yawned. He lay back down, the comforting pitter-patter of the rain around him. He watched the fat drops of rain fall in the darkening sky. Night was here. In fact, it was almost moonhigh before Riverstorm fell asleep.
                                                                                                                 ***
Riverstorm woke up to thunder crashing yet again. The rain hadn't stopped all through the night. It was almost sunhigh, from what he could tell. He got up and padded to the entrance to the bush. The air was thick and hot. Riverstorm could barely breathe. The rain wasn't cool and refreshing, but warm and it simply made him feel hotter as it fell on him. Lightning flashed and thunder boomed overhead. His fur was stuck in clumps from the rain the night before.
     He yawned and set out to trek even further from RiverClan. He found himself traveling around the lake, far out of Clan territory. Suddenly he heard a yowl, as if someone was in pain. He ran toward the source of the noise. The yowl turned to a shriek, again and again. He hurried to a clearing in the woods. A she-cat was lying there. She seemed to be perfectly fine despite her shrieks.
     She stopped when she saw Riverstorm. Then she smirked and stood up. "You fell for it," she drawled. He stared at her. There was something familiar about her.
     "For what?" He asked warily. "What did I fall for?" He took a step away from the stranger. She laughed as he bumped into something furry behind him. He whipped around to see another she-cat standing there. More spread out behind her. She smiled a crooked, snaggle-toothed grin that made Riverstorm suspicious of her.
     "She's right. I can't believe you fell for it." She snorted. "Good work, Ember." The dark gray she-cat simply grunted.
"It's not that hard to lay on the ground an yowl your head off. Thanks anyway, Light Feather." Her dusty brown companion snarled. She lashed her tail.
"It's Light to you, Ember. Don't you ever add 'Feather' on the end again. Do you hear me? Never again!" Light Feather had her face against Ember's. She snarled. Ember cowered under her as she cuffed her around the ears. "Do you hear me?" Light Feather thundered. Ember nodded, her whole body trembling. Riverstorm was watching the scene before him in horror. How could anyone be so cruel about what another cat called them?
"Light." A yellow tom rested his tail on Light Feather's shoulder. "The Ancients were peaceful." This phrase seemed to mean something to Light Feather, because she growled at him.
"I'm not one of the Ancients. I may be a descendant, but I'm not an Ancient!" She whipped her tail in his face before turning back to Holly. "Fetch the Growler. Now, Jag." She added when he hesistated. Jag scurried off. A black-and-white she-cat approached her.
"Are you sure, Light? Are sure it's necessary to bring the Growler?" She asked tentatively. Light Feather rolled her eyes. Then she slashed at the she-cat's eyes with razor sharp claws. Fury lit up her eyes and she clawed until the she-cat's eyes ran with blood, slowly dripping down her now bloodied cheeks.
"I think that will teach you not to question me, Holly." She stalked away, Ember trailing behind her. Riverstorm stared after them in shock. What kind of place was this? A pale gray she-cat appeared by his side.
"Hello. My name is Fury. It's really Furious Eagle, but Light Feather doesn't like us to use our full name. Light, I should say. Let me show you around." Furious Eagle didn't wait for a response before dashing off among the trees. It was all Riverstorm could do to keep up with her. He gulped.
"What kind of place is this? I've only seen one tom, Light Feather treats you all badly, and Holly just got blinded. Who even are you all?" He asked. He stopped as she turned around to look at him.
"We are the Descendants. We are descended from the Ancients, a group of cats who lived before the dawn of the Clans. There are two toms here. Light is only taking care of us and Holly- well, Holly Berry got blinded. I'm sure Light meant no harm." She glanced down. "Won't you stay here, tonight?" She asked suddenly. He took a step back.
     "I-I'm not sure. Let me think about it. As for your names, why doesn't Light Feather like you to use your full name? That seems silly to me." He concluded. Furious Eagle glanced away.
     "That's our custom, I suppose. I'm not the leader, so I don't know why she makes the decision she does. She prefers to be called Light, so I'm Fury same as Holly Berry is Holly and Ember Sparks is Ember. I don't question our ways, and you shouldn't either." She huffed as though she was annoyed. Then she turned around and kept walking.
     "How do you know about the Clans?" Riverstorm asked.
     She didn't turn around as she answered, "The Ancients are your ancestors too, you know. Every kit here is taught the ways of the Clans as well as the Descendants. You're a warrior from RiverClan. What's your name?" She glanced over her shoulder shyly.
     "Riverstorm," he replied. The rain was letting up now. Sunlight shone through the leafy foliage. Scarce raindrops splashed on his back. He shook his fur out. Furious Eagle didn't stop walking. She broke into a run at the top of a hill. Riverstorm raced behind her, the wind streaming through his fur. Suddenly she came to a halt.
"Stormy!" She called. A silvery gray she-cat appeared next to her.
"Light Feather isn't around right now. Call me Stormy Sky." Her voice was smooth and soft. She dipped her head to Riverstorm. "And you are?"
"Riverstorm." He dipped his head in return to her gesture. Furious Eagle cleared her throat.
"Let's go. I want to show you around before nightfall, Riverstorm." She set off down the slope, with Riverstorm close behind her. Stormy Sky followed him. Furious Eagle stopped outside a small bush. "This is Holly Berry's den." She announced. "The one next to it is Ember Sparks'. Next to hers is Dewy Grass', and then Snowy Frost's. Come on, I'll show you your den for the night. It's too late to travel now." Stormy Sky nodded eagerly.
"That's true. There's no sense in getting stuck in the dark. The sun is going down now." Riverstorm nodded his agreement. He liked the gentle she-cat. She was kind and friendly. Several other she-cats appeared near them to go to their dens for the night.
     "Falling Rain. New Moon. Sandy Rocks. Good to see you. I was just showing our guest to his den." Furious Eagle nodded to each of the three she-cats. "He will be guarded by Calm Brook, of course." She added, seeing a suspicious glance on New Moon's face. She turned around and kept leading Riverstorm and Stormy Sky. Riverstorm hadn't realized he was tired till just now; his paws felt like they were about to fall off. Stormy Sky ran ahead of him to catch up with Furious Eagle. He caught snatches of what she said.
"Are you taking him to-" and "the Growler-" and "But Ember Sparks-" Finally Furious Eagle and Stormy Sky stopped outside a dark cave that looked as though it hadn't been touched in many, many moons. Cobwebs hung from the ceiling; leaves and small bones of some sort of prey littered the ground. Riverstorm stared around at this desolate excuse for a den. He was almost lost for words.
     "Is this where I'm going to stay?" He managed. Stormy Sky laughed softly. Her soft blue eyes shone in the dim light.
     "This den is for visitors." She answered in that smooth, sweet voice of hers. Riverstorm looked around again, unimpressed.
     "I take it you don't have visitors very often, then?" He asked drily. She shook her head. Her beautiful, silver fur seemed to be glowing just then. Riverstorm glanced away, not wanting to be sucked in by her beauty. He wondered if she had a mate. Surely such a pretty she-cat would by now. She had to be close to his age. His fur pricked. He was embarrassed, as if he had voiced his thoughts out loud.
"Good night." Furious Eagle cut in rather coldly. Riverstorm dipped his head.
"Thank you for letting me stay here." He replied. Then she and Stormy Sky left him to sleep. He happened to overhear their conversation as they left.
"I saw how you were staring into each other's eyes!" That was Furious Eagle. She sounded mad. Stormy Sky huffed.
"It's not like that." She protested.
"You purposefully are drawing him in with your beauty." Furious Eagle emphasized the last word, her voice dripping with sarcasm.
"Let me explain-" Stormy Sky began.
"He's mine! I found him, I set it all up, I escorted him here. Not you, but me. You did nothing except steal him away from me. I should have never introduced you to him. He's mine, all mine!" Riverstorm stared after their fading shapes in the distance in shock. Another she-cat padding after him? His mind was whirling with thoughts of Sorrelstream and RiverClan as he finally fell asleep for night. Or so he thought.

A/N: Just to stop any confusion, the next chapter is going to start just after Sunpaw tried to drown himself in the stream.
-Fawn