Jaggedtail crossed LichenClan camp towards the apprentice den, he had an long and early day of hunting and training planned for Foxpaw and they needed to start right away. He poked his head into the den all four occupants were sleeping soundly in their nests including Foxpaw. Careful not to wake the others, Jaggedtail lightly poked Foxpaw in the side.
The apprentice shifted in his nest, letting out a quiet grumble. Jaggedtail repeated his pokes and Foxpaw finally opened his groggy eyes. "Wha?" He muttered, clearly not fully awake yet. "Jaggedtail?"
"It's time for us to go out and train." Jaggedtail explained. The idea of training seemed to awaken Foxpaw more, he stood up and stretched out in his nest. "I'll let you wake up, come meet me by the High Stump when you're ready." Jaggedtail turned out of the apprentice den and moved to the High Stump where he sat down to wait for his apprentice.
It had been a moon since Foxpaw and Flamepaw were made apprentices and it had been one of the best moons of Jaggedtail's life. He loved training Foxpaw, the apprentice was excitable and eager to learn. He wasn't the fastest learner but he listened to every word that Jaggedtail said and if he practiced enough, he would learn the skill swiftly. He also loved training alongside Maplepool, though he wished Elmheart was a mentor with them. He knew that Daisyfern's kits wouldn't be apprenticed for another four moons, Jaggedtail hoped that one of them would be given to Elmheart, though Foxpaw would have been an apprentice for five. Still. Elmheart deserves an apprentice.
It didn't take long for Foxpaw to appear from the apprentice den, his fluffy tail high and his pawsteps confident. Jaggedtail stood up and faced his apprentice. "Are you ready?" Jaggedtail questioned.
"Of course." Foxpaw boasted.
"Then let's head out." Taking the lead, Jaggedtail led Foxpaw out of the back of camp, behind the apprentice den.
"Where are we going?" Foxpaw questioned, looking around the forest with curious amber eyes.
"Towards the twolegplace. We don't hunt around this area a lot because prey doesn't usually come this way." Jaggedtail explained. "Hunting in a place with scarce prey is good practice for when the entire forest becomes like this in leaf-bare. You need to be prepared to hunt in a season like that."
"Leaf-bare just ended though." Foxpaw retorted. "It's so far away now."
"It will come quicker than you think." Jaggedtail explained. "And you need to be prepared, it is a very hard season. Warriors must hunt to keep their Clanmates fed while the medicine cats take care of the sick."
Foxpaw didn't respond, but he seemed to be understanding why it was so important. Jaggedtail led him near the border of the twolegplace, separated by a sharp, wall of unknown tendrils. They were stronger than any brambles and incredibly sharp. Jaggedtail remember hearing nursery stories of a former LichenClan leader named Sweetstar who lost her leg by getting trapped in the mesh. Jaggedtail made sure to keep his and Foxpaw's distance from the thing.
"When hunting in leaf-bare you need to be extra careful, because one piece of prey could be the difference between life and death for some cats. There may even be days that you go hungry because kits and elders need to eat before we do." Foxpaw nodded. "You need to be extra careful, and you will soon learn that having dark ginger pelts makes hunting against white snow even harder. There's not much we can do about it except perfect our hunting techniques."
"Do you remember how I taught you to hunt mice?" Jaggedtail quizzed.
"Stay light on your paws, because a mouse can feel vibrations in the ground before they ever see or even smell you." Foxpaw recited the information with ease.
"What about squirrels?"
"Speed is everything, you have to be fast because the squirrel can quickly get into a tree and get away." Foxpaw was clearly confident in his answers.
"Good." Jaggedtail praised with a purr. "You've retained the information, but let's see if you can follow it. Go out and hunt and when you come back I want you to have at least one mouse and one squirrel, I'll be hunting myself so you'll have to find me." Foxpaw have a quick nod and ran off into the trees, tail held high.
Jaggedtail felt a rush of pride, Foxpaw was so eager all the time. He had lost a little bit of his hyperactive attitude during his training but he had so much energy to spare, Jaggedtail hoped he never lost that energy, it would serve him well. Jaggedtail ventured forth on his own hunt, nearing the twolegplace confidently.
He was about to catch a mouse when he heard movement, and a strange scent filled his nose. There's a stranger on our territory. Jaggedtail crept forward, making out a large figure in the distance, he hid himself behind some brush.
Jaggedtail narrowed his eyes, peering through the brush at the figure. It was a plump, dark brown tom. A kittypet? Jaggedtail wondered, kittypets hardly ever strayed this far beyond their homes. Jaggedtail watched the kittypet for a few moments, waiting to see what it would do. How brave could a kittypet be? Would he stray further into LichenClan territory or would he turn back to his twolegs.
The kittypet turned his head in Jaggedtail's direction, making Jaggedtail's blood turn to ice. The dark amber eyes were hauntingly familiar, but the kittypet had two deep nicks in one of its ears, a scar that Jaggedtail had only seen in one other cat. Rowanfang.
Unable to take anymore, Jaggedtail stood up and stepped into Rowanfang's view. "What are you doing here?" He demanded, causing Rowanfang to freeze up. This wasn't the Rowanfang that Jaggedtail remembered. Rowanfang had been a strong, muscular warrior with the fire of battle in his eyes.
This Rowanfang was plump with soft, glossy fur and dimmed amber eyes. Around his neck was a strange, black tendril that had a tiny, shiny ball on the end that jingled when he moved. He turned his back on LichenClan to become a kittypet. Jaggedtail bared his teeth. "Get off my territory, Rowanfang." He spat. "You don't belong here anymore."
Rowanfang narrowed his eyes, as if he was having trouble recognizing Jaggedtail. When he left I was just an apprentice. Then Rowanfang rested his eyes on Jaggedtail's broken tail. "Jaggedpaw?"
"It's Jaggedtail." He growled. "You need to leave, now."
Rowanfang snorted. "Give me a break." He swayed his tail. "I was one of LichenClan's best fighters, I'd like to see you make me."
So be it. Jaggedtail let out a yowl and charged forward, Rowanfang clearly hadn't been expecting him to actually attack because he was knocked over easily. Jaggedtail clawed at Rowanfang's shoulders and flanks, and the kittypet hadn't landed a single blow on Jaggedtail yet.
When Rowanfang finally got his claws out, his attacks were sloppy and clumsy. He was quickly getting out a breath. I doubt this cat has fought since he left! Jaggedtail thought. He pinned Rowanfang's dominate leg and sank his teeth into his scruff, Rowanfang weighed a lot more than an average warrior but Jaggedtail managed to toss him to the side. "You're out of practice, Rowanfang."
Rowanfang bared his teeth, but didn't say anything, Jaggedtail slowly shook his head. "You're a pathetic waste of a warrior." Jaggedtail's claws dug into the earth beneath his paws. He was never this hostile, but all he could picture was the sight of hurt and betrayal in Elmheart's eyes when they were just apprentices and Rowanfang turned his back on his only living kit.
"What do you know about being a real warrior?" Rowanfang demanded with a lash of his tail.
"I know that being a warrior requires loyalty to your Clan, to the cats around you. Dedicating yourself to your entire Clan, no matter what. It means supporting your Clan through all the hard times, holding them up with they're injured and hunting for them when they're sick. You did none of those things, you turned your back on the Clan when things got tough and hid as a kittypet.
"You turned your back on the cats who loved you and left them behind. You never really cared that Elmheart killed Blacksky did you?" Rowanfang flattened his ears. "You were searching for, desperate for any reason to hate him, any reason to run away and you found it. But it cost you everything, didn't it?"
"I don't need to listen to the ramblings of a kit." Rowanfang spat. "You don't think anything, Jaggedtail. Stop acting all high and mighty." Rowanfang turned away.
"Don't ever step foot into this territory again." Jaggedtail threatened. "You gave up your life, leave it behind and let Elmheart live without you."
Rowanfang hissed one last time before sprinting back towards the twolegplace. Jaggedtail let out a low sigh, praying that this would be the last time he ever saw Rowanfang.
"Jaggedtail?" A small, scared voice spoke from the shadows. Jaggedtail looked over his shoulder to see Foxpaw, the apprentice looked slightly shaken and very confused. "Who was that?"
Jaggedtail sighed again. "Don't worry about it, Foxpaw. It was just a kittypet. We should get home, I need to report this."
Jaggedtail and Foxpaw returned home, but Jaggedtail wasn't reporting what he saw to Birdstar straight away, there were two cats who needed to know more. The entire walk home, Jaggedtail debated telling Elmheart, but he knew that his friend needed to know. I don't know what he will do. Jaggedtail thought. But I will be there to support him. Jaggedtail spotted Elmheart sharing prey with Maplepool and he approahced them slowly.
Maplepool noticed Jaggedtail first, as well as his ruffled fur from the fight. "What happened to you?"
"A small fight." Jaggedtail explained briefly. "Elmheart, I need to talk to you. It's very important." Elmheart's gaze turned serious and he stood up. "Have you seen Mosswing around?"
"Pretty sure she's near the warrior's den with Fawnsky." Elmheart replied. "What's this about?"
"Just follow me." With Maplepool and Elmheart in tow, Jaggedtail padded over to the warrior's den where sure enough, he found Fawnsky and Maplepool. Fawnsky can know too. Jaggedtail thought. We're all like a family.
"Hey there you three." Mosswing greeted with a purr. "What are you up to?"
"And Jaggedtail," Fawnsky spoke up. "I thought you grew out of your messy fur days." She scoffed playfully.
"Mosswing, I need to tell you and Elmheart something." Jaggedtail explained, ignoring his mother's comment.
Mosswing looked at Elmheart who was clearly just as confused as she was. "Alright then. Spit it out." Elmheart and Maplepool sat down beside their mothers and Jaggedtail took a deep breath.
"I took Foxpaw out training by the twolegplace and I saw a kittypet. I thought it was just a random kittypet but then I got a closer look. It was Rowanfang."
Elmheart's ears flattened and Mosswing's eyes widened slightly. "Rowanfang?" In the twolegplace? What was he doing there?"
"He's a kittypet now, I don't know what he was doing on our territory but I attacked him. He has almost none of his skills as a warrior left so he didn't really hurt me at all." Jaggedtail continued. "I told him to never come back, but I thought the two of you should know."
Mosswing stared at her paws. "When we were younger, Rowanfang was such a fierce warrior. I never even imagined him living as a kittypet of all things. A rogue or loner, sure, but a kittypet?" She shook her head. "I guess I never really knew him at all."
"He's a coward." Elmheart growled, his claws tearing at the dirt. "He ran away to live a safe, sheltered life. The Clan is better off without him."
"I'm sorry, Elmheart." Jaggedtail lowered his head.
"It's not your fault, Jaggedtail." Elmheart stood up. "I'm glad you told me." He casted his amber eyes up towards the clear sky. "Rowanfang is nothing to me, he's not my father and he's not my Clanmates. He's a nameless, weak kittypet. He ruined everything but I won't. I'm going to be loyal, strong and brave, everything he wasn't and when I have my own kits, I'll be the father he couldn't even dream of being."
There was a fierce burn of pride and passion in Elmheart's eyes, Jaggedtail couldn't help but feel it spread to his own mind. Elmheart is nothing like Rowanfang. He will be so much better.
Mosswing stood up as well, resting her tail across Elmheart's shoulders. "We never needed him." She purred, Elmheart closed his eyes and touched his muzzle to his mother's head. He was no longer a small, helpless kit. He was big, bold and brave.
"You have us." Fawnsky stepped forward. "You always will."
Jaggedtail felt warmth spreading throughout his entire body as he looked at his family. Nothing can tear us apart.