Lillyheart's Secret

Chapter Six

Lillypaw yawned, squinting her eyes at the herb in front of her. "Uh... Chevril? I... I don't know." She rubbed her paws across her face, and stared at the plant. "Maybe coltsfoot?"

Reedfoot sighed. "You used to be so good at identifying herbs. It's chickweed, used for greencough." He studied Lillypaw, taking in her tired expression. "You should go rest, if Creekstar doesn't have anything for you to do. Go, sleep."

"Ok." Lillypaw dragged herself to the apprentice den, and flopped down into her nest. Goodness, Creekstar always works me so hard! I know I need to keep up with my duties, but I'm stuck doing stuff until night! I just need some sleep. Lillypaw was drifting off when she heard a voice.

"Lillypaw, we need to go hunting. Come on." Creekstar's fur was ragged, and her eyes were worn and tired. "The fresh-kill pile is low, and other cats are busy." Lillypaw sighed. It seems every day Creekstar pushes both of us harder. She needs to rest.

"Creekstar, why don't you rest? I can go hunting, but you've been on your paws all day!" It would be nice to go hunting with Wavecloud, or maybe she could join Nettlesmoke and Murkpaw and go to the river.

"Absolutely not! It's almost leaf-bare, and the creek will freeze over soon, forcing us to fish from the lake! I must provide for my clan, and make sure that Riverclan is not viewed as weak!" Creekstar's eyes glittered coldly, and surely it was the wind that made Lillypaw shiver, not the leader's words.

"You won't help anybody in this state!" Lillypaw was practically screaming, but at this point she didn't care. "You're no use to anybody if you collapse from exhaustion! And who cares about the other clans? You need to forget that stupid pride that you have, and think logically!" Lillypaw was panting, and she knew she was going to get in trouble, but this felt necessary.

Creekstar opened her mouth to speak, then slumped to the ground. "Maybe..." She croaked, "Maybe you're right. I don't recall the last time I rested." Her eyes narrowed. "But that's not an excuse to talk back to you leader!" Creekstar sighed, and padded out of the apprentice den.

Lillypaw watched as the leader slipped into her den, and sighed with relief. Well, I guess I'm free for the day. Her thoughts wandered over to the twoleg place, and her upwalker. Maybe I can sneak over, and see the kit! She stole over to the tunnel of reeds, and was about to slip out when she heard a voice.

"Lillypaw? Where are you going?"

Not now! She groaned inwardly. She spun around to face Softpaw, and plastered a grin on her face. "I'm..... Going hunting! Yeah! I'm gonna see if I can catch a sparrow over by the willows."

Softpaw's ears tilted back, and she nibbled on her lip. " Where's Creekstar? "

"Resting!" Lillypaw blurted. "She isn't feeling well, so I thought I could catch her some prey. Sparrows are her favorite."

"Ok." Softpaw shrugged. "Have fun." Then she wandered over to her mentor, Mossfang.

"Phew." Lillypaw perked up, and trotted out of the camp.
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The creek burbled nearby, and Lillypaw resisted the urge to splash in the water. Up ahead, she could see the edge of the twoleg place, and the brown house with the rickety yellow fence stood up ahead. My nest! Lillypaw halted, and looked at the house with apprehension. Who knows what's going on in there. She gingerly squeezed through the old hole, wincing as the wood scraped her skin. I was a lot tinier last time I was here.

Her upwalker was sitting in the middle of the grass, holding a flat, shining thing. Tears glistened in her eyes, and Lillypaw's heart constricted. "Don't cry!" She mewed, jumping out from behind the hawthorn bush. The twoleg gasped, and scooped up the apprentice. It made a chirping sound, and stroked Lillypaw gently, making her purr.

The kit sat with Lillypaw for several minutes, before standing up, with Lillypaw still in her arms. The kit made her way to the door, and Lillypaw hissed, writhing in the twoleg's arms until she plummeted to the ground. There is no way I'm going back in there! She scrambled to the center of the yard, her tail puffed up and large. The upwalker sighed, and reached out to pet Lillypaw. The apprentice skittered away, and glanced anxiously at the sky. I'll need to leave soon. And I still need to go hunting! Lillypaw gave a gentle mew, and scraped through the hole in the fence. Goodbye little kit.

Lillypaw weaved her her way through the twoleg place, constantly feeling like she was being watched. When she ran over to the willow trees, the scent of cat filled her nose. Huh? She turned to the creek, and saw Murkpaw staring at her, eyes narrowed. His voice was hoarse, and sadness made it soft. "You... You were a kittypet."

So... Yeah. Murkstar found out her secret, wonder where that's gonna lead? Oh! Also, please vote, and comments are REALLY appreciated. I'm sorry if I haven't been updating much... School takes up a lot of time. Bye!