"Featherpaw. Featherpaw! Wake up!" Featherpaw opened her eyes. Ashpaw was standing over her, amber eyes concerned. "You were thrashing around in your sleep. Are you ok?"
"I'm fine." Featherpaw mumbled, getting to her paws and giving herself a quick wash.
"I think Flamestripe is looking for you." Ashpaw meowed.
"Kay, thanks." Featherpaw left the den, and Ashpaw looking worriedly after her.
Once outside in the snow dusted camp, Featherpaw spotted Flamestripe's vibrantly orange pelt from a distance. She passed Blackthorn and Snowpelt who were sharing a mouse and Cherrypaw who was practicing some hunting crouch with Redpaw. Flamestripe looked up as she approached him. "Featherpaw! Ready for a training session?"
"Yep." Meowed Featherpaw in a falsely bright voice.
"Follow me." Flamestripe instructed. Training with RockClan had clearly been an advantage, she kept up with Flamestripe easily as he pelted through the woods. However there was alot of undergrowth, which made it lots harder. Swerving around a bush Featherpaw was sure she had lost Flamestripe, before spotting his bright orange fur ahead of her and breathing in relief. They arrived in the mossy hollow where battle training would take place. Rainpaw and his mentor, Mousenose. Flamestripe touched noses with Mousenose and Featherpaw remembered that they were siblings. "Ok Featherpaw. Show us what you got."
Featherpaw turned to Rainpaw. He sneered at her, clearly remembering all the times he beat her in play fights. But RockClan trained their cats hard and strong. Featherpaw darted forward, ducking as Rainpaw aimed a blow at her ear. Keeping low she darted forward and jabbed him sharply under the belly. Moving swiftly away again, she reared back, and when he darted forward leaped over him, twisted round and landed perfectly, paws planted firmly on his back. Flushed with pleasure Featherpaw relized that she had finally managed the move they had been working so hard on flawlessly. Eyes as cold as the north wind she turned to Flamestripe. "Can I fight something thats a challenge this time?" Looking at them she relized that both Mousenose and Flamestripe were staring at her as though she had grown wings.
"Very well." Flamestripe meowed, dipping his head. "We will hunt for now, then we can join Cherrypaw in her training."
Featherpaw managed to catch a shrew, but a mouse managed to scamper away. Wishing bitterly she was on soft, silent pine needles instead of being surrounded by rustling undergrowth, she padded after Flamestripe back to camp. "Go help Wolfpaw with the elders." He ordered shortly. Featherpaw obliged, and relized that she had missed Wolfpaw's company. Padding up to join him, she picked up a mouse-bile soaked moss to help rid them of tick. "Hello, Featherpaw." Wolfpaw mewed, his kind eyes upon heras he checked Bearnoses dark brown fur for ticks. "How are you?"
"Fine." She mewed, pressing the moss to Ivytail's side.
"I've missed you." He whispered.
"Me too." She sighed softly, breathing in his scent. "Remember that day in the snow?"
"How could I forget?" Wolfpaw smiled. "Redpaw sprayed snow in Ivytail's face." He meowed so quietly that Ivytail couldn't hear.
"Oh yeah! And he got stuck so we had to pull him out." Featherpaw giggled.
Wolfpaw grinned at her, and Featherpaw finally felt at home again.
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"Dodge." Flamestripe ordered. Featherpaw slipped sideways, stagered on a branch and fell. Cherrypaw was on her in a split second. Featherpaw bunched up her hind legs and, with great effort, threw her off. Scrambling back to her paws, she faced Cherrypaw again. "Look for her weaknesses." Flamestripe meowed. I don't need your instructions thanks. Featherpaw thought aggressively. She paid dearly for her lapse in attention. Cherrypaw pinned her to the ground with a triumphant mew. Featherpaw went dully limp, disappointment burning in her. "Nicely fought!" Flamestripe congratulated them both as Cherrypaw got off Featherpaw and helped her up. Featherpaw mewed "Well done." At Cherrypaw before leaving the mossy hollow. Her paws carried her towards the RockClan border without Featherpaw even relizing where she was going. "Featherpaw?" called a voice from the border.
"Ravenpaw!" Featherpaw exclaimed, hurrying over the border to greet her old friend.
"Oh Featherpaw, I've missed you! When you didn't come back, Poppypaw and I were so worried."
Featherpaw flinched, remembering the harsh words Dewdrop had spat at her before leaving.
"Why did you leave? How come you never told us where you were from?"
"I was scared. Besides, I didn't want to go back." Featherpaw confessed.
"So why did you?"
"What?"
"Leave."
"Because this is my birth clan. The one I will always be loyal to." Featherpaw mewed firmly, trying to convince herself just as much as Ravenpaw.