CHAPTER 3 | THE EXILE
1521 Words
Whitepaw gazed around. First he was told that he was going to become a warrior without Rainpaw, now this? The clan started to turn into a clump of noise again. Whitepaw looked at his friend then at his clan. He stood for a moment, thinking. What’s going to happen? He knew. He would have to decide.
Whitepaw stepped forward and yowled out, “stop!” The clan died down into a cluster of concerned and confused faces. What did this apprentice have to say? “Rainpaw is leaving the clan.” Rainpaw stared at him in horror. Was Whitepaw really this mad at her that not even he wanted her in the clan anymore? Her eyes started to tear up. “And I’m going with her.” Suddenly Rainpaw understood. He wasn’t leaving her, he was coming with. He did care about her after all. Her handsome tom. Together they will fight in unknown territory. Whitepaw stifled a purr and Rainpaw joined him. Rainpaw entwined her tail with Whitepaw’s and the two raced out of camp, some of the cats who wanted them out chasing them in pursuit. The last face Rainpaw saw was Foxpaw’s who was angry but smiling in approval. The only cats who was sad to see Whitepaw go, although not Rainpaw was Whitepaw’s parents, Ferncloud and Ashfur. Come to think of it it was strange to see and hear how many cats believed Foxpaw was telling the truth. Did they all feel the same way Firestar felt? That she would turn out like he father and try to kill her own leader to become the leader herself? She didn’t even know her father or mother.
By the time Rainpaw and Whitepaw were half way through their territory and almost at the top the cats who chased them had gone back and the two cats were left to escort themselves out. Where would they go?
“Where are we going to go, Whitepaw?”
“ I don’t know.”
“What about the cats in the mountains?” Rainpaw suggested, pointing at the peaks of the mountains with her nose that stuck out from behind the hills of Windclan territory.
“You mean the tribe cats?. . . The Tribe Of Rushing Water?” Whitepaw asked. They swerved around a fallen oak tree.
“Yes. It can’t be that hard to get there. How many stories have we heard about the great journey when the old forest was destroyed by twolegs and all four clans were allies until they found the new lake territories. And just before we were born Lionblaze, Hollyleaf, Jayfeather and all the cats that found the sundrown place went there again to help the tribe cats. Also don’t forget that Jayfeather is blind so if he can make it, so can we.”
“I suppose they could give us shelter.” Whitepaw didn’t sound so convinced but Rainpaw could see he started to think a little more about it. “Who knows maybe we will even become part of the tribe,” he joked.
“What would my tribe name be?” asked Rainpaw. “Maybe it could be Rain from where the darkest clouds lay? Or-”
“Or Rain the most beautiful she-cat who ever lived!” Whitepaw smiled.
Rainpaw stopped and looked into his eyes. She spoke calmly, “this way we can be together with nothing or anyone to stop us.” She purred. “But I know that you’ll leave me the day you see a better looking cat when we get there!” She laughed.
“No way! Anyway, what would my name be?” They continued to walk.
“White like the snow on mountains?” She suggested. “I think that sounds pretty good.”
“Whatever you chose I’m happy with.”
They got to the edge of their territory where they were at the top right hand corner which was the edge of WindClan’s border. Rainpaw halted. She was about to step over the border into unknown land. From here on they would have to fend for themselves. Whitepaw licked her shoulder, encouraging her. He stepped over first.
“Here we go,” meowed Rainpaw, letting out a deep breath.
They walked on, both tasting the air a lot of the time so they were sure they were safe from any danger. The ground felt hard under-paw and they started to feel more exposed as the trees thinned out, and they went far around the outside of Windclan territory. Rainpaw wondered how WindClan could bare to live on open moorland without the cover of the trees. At least ThunderClan didn’t have to chase after rabbits but instead they caught plump mice and birds that was easier to stalk in the forest. Thinking of food Rainpaw noticed how hungry she was for the first time since they left the camp.
Whitepaw must have heard Rainpaw’s belly growl. “Let’s stop and find a place to hunt.”
“But where?” They both looked around. There was nothing but moorland with tall, dry grass and heather. Rainpaw spotted an abandoned twoleg nest in the distance where there were overgrown hedges. “There!”
She bounded towards it but Whitepaw called her name. “Rainpaw! Wait. We must stick together. I don’t want to lose you.” She spun around and when she did she saw the most beautiful view she had ever seen. This was the first time she had seen the lake and all four territories together.
It was getting dark and they had to find a place to stay. “We should have hunted and gotten a drink first,” meowed Whitepaw.
“Nah, we should be fine. This twoleg nest should have some mice and the river that flows to the moon pool should be just ahead, coming from the mountains.” The moon pool was where the medicine cats from every clan went every half moon to share tongues with StarClan and they would be sent dreams that would help the clan.
The two cats trotted over to the abandoned twoleg nest and when they got there it was a little darker so they caught some mice that they found scuttling among tome hay that was in a massive pile in the corner of the nest. Lucky for them the river was just at the far end of the pasture where Rainpaw imagined the twolegs used to keep their horses, that was now just a field of over grown grass was the river so they went there and had a drink.
“I told you the river was close. Now we just need a place to sleep.” It was already past dusk and the tired apprentices had made small, slow progress.
“This is going to take forever to get to the mountains. I think we should find a place to sleep and then we start early tomorrow morning. How about that tall hay stack in the twoleg nest for a place to sleep?” Whitepaw suggested.
“Sounds good.” It started to rain so they quickly made for the nest.
Once they had made it back to the twoleg nest the two apprentices climbed the stack of hay. Rainpaw found it hard to get to the top as for every step she just sunk into it. It smelled of hay inside and gave a comforting feeling like the feeling of being in the nursery as a kit with nothing to worry about. The roof of the nest was high and made of dark wood and on top was a tin cover, protecting the wood from going mouldy when it rained like is was now. Rainpaw lay down in the nest, the hay pricking her and making her itchy. She expected it to be soft like the moss they had as nests back at camp. The sound of rain slamming down on the tin roof was quiet but loud enough to keep Rainpaw awake. At leat the sound of tiny feet of mice moving around and their little squeaks comforted her.
Rainpaw lay awake thinking for quite some time. Her heart was broken. “Whitepaw?”
To her relief the tom was awake and answered with a soft, “yeah?”
“I feel like I have no one left. Our clan kicked us out and we are all alone out here,” she whispered.
“Don’t think like that. You have me and we are very soon gonna be in the mountains with the Tribe Of Rushing Water. I know you don’t support it but I feel that StarClan will always look out for us even when they can’t see us out here. When we get to the tribe the Tribe Of Endless Hunting will be looking over us. After all that’s the tribe’s ancestors. Try and get some sleep and we will be on our way as soon as we awake.”
Whitepaw believed in Starclan. Why didn’t Rainpaw? It was a question she had to ask herself over and over but never found the answer.
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