sage | a warrior cats fanfiction

chapter thirty

As soon as they got back from camp, Adderheart knew everyone was going to be worried.

It was only reasonable for a fairly populated Clan, right? If snow had practically covered every little part of camp and the territory of any Clan, they'd likely be upset, or at least concerned. Though, bigger Clans would have it worse, for the bigger it was, the more cats they had to feed. And only two cats knew that there was a specific way to hunt in the snow.

Now, one likely wouldn't tell a single cat about it, though perhaps he'd tell Pantherleap if the time was right. However, besides that, it was unlikely that anyone would figure out how to hunt from him, and really, he knew this already. He was hoping that the cats of SageClan could figure it out themselves.

And the other, well, Adderheart wasn't exactly sure. He didn't know if Finchpaw would tell someone, and if she did, who would she tell? Maybe she'd spill it to the other apprentices, though the warrior wasn't sure if she would speak to them that much today. Cougarstar probably would send most cats out on hunting patrols, and hopefully soon. If he waited much longer, everything would be dead.

He shook his head to stop himself from continuing to think, as the camp's entrance was finally appearing. The pale tom glanced to Finchpaw, who picked her way carefully over the snow.

When they arrived, Finchpaw headed in first, and he realized with a surprised jolt to his figure that his pathways around camp had been covered with a thicker layer of snow, but the later itself had been compressed down by pawsteps. The walls that surrounded the pathways had been cut down a little, though they were still tall, and although Adderheart could see over them, Finchpaw was having trouble.

Quickly, he made his way to the fresh-kill pile, and he found that near to it, the snow had been mostly cleared. He spotted the highrock too, and the snow around it was essentially nonexistent. The rest of the dens still had snow piling outside of them, and the clouds only growled from above.

"Adderheart? Finchpaw? Where were you?" Marigoldcry's voice split the air, and Adderheart couldn't help but detect a slight edge to her tone. His ears flicked sharply as he turned around to find the she-cat approaching.

You didn't help with a single thing in Finchpaw's training. I did. You did the mid-assessment, and that's it, so get away.

Finchpaw turned around and waved her tail to the warrior, expression simple though tinged by anticipation. "Hunting," she answered, and she turned and pointed at the pile. "We found some stuff."

"Really?" She pushed past Adderheart, and he swiftly steadied himself after momentarily losing his balance. The thick-furred warrior spotted the pile and her maw dropped, though she was quick to resolve her expression. "How'd you get this?"

"We hunted," Adderheart cut in before Finchpaw could speak, and he picked up the vole. "Tell Cougarstar that the prey are in the burrows. Anything aboveground will be dead, and if he doesn't send out patrols soon, there won't be anything left."

Marigoldcry cast him a look yet he simply turned away, headed for the nursery.

"Where are you going?" She called, her voice sharp.

Wait. If the rumor has spread that I'm the... no, wait—

Before he could do anything else, she strolled up to him and pressed against him. He wanted to vomit all over her, but she simply pressed tighter, her eyes digging holes into his heart and his mind. He swallowed through a tight throat and he tipped his head.

"Where are you going?" She demanded once more, now leaning over him.

"I'm going to give this to Bearpatch," he lied, realizing that the place where Bearpatch was likely wasn't in the nursery. Panic quickly leapt up his throat, but he shoved it down. The more I show my fear, the more she's going to be suspicious. He was aware of Finchpaw's gaze on him and the she-cat.