Dawn of a Warrior Chapter 8

Warrior Cats FanFic
Dawn of a Warrior
Chapter 8

Dawnpaw padded behind her mentor through the tunnel and back into their camp. Her sister, and the other cats behind her. It was almost sunset as they padded into the clearing. Ashstar padded past all the cats and disappeared into the warriors den. He came back out with Jaytail and they stood a little ways away and talked. Duskpaw padded over to where Thornpaw and Sandpaw were play fighting, and Eaglepaw padded to the fresh-kill pile.

Skycloud padded up behind Dawnpaw and sat beside her. "You should go see Robinflight about those scratches and then go and get something to eat. You did well today." Then he padded away to get himself something to eat.

Dawnpaw did as he said and padded toward the medicine cat's den. She padded through the entrance and looked around. She hadn't been in this den yet, and was curious. She sniffed around and tried to take in all the smells a once. The herbs all mixed together, some sweet, others bitter. Then a voice broke into her concentration. "Do you need anything?"

Finchpaw was standing in the doorway, blocking the sunlight. "Skycloud told me to come and see Robinflight about my scratches," Dawnpaw mewed. "Do you know where she is?"

"I'm right here." A soft mew came from behind the medicine cat apprentice and then a dark orange cat pushed her way into the den. She set down the leaves she was carrying and padded over to Dawnpaw. She started sniffing her up and down. "Finchpaw, take the borage leaves and put them out to dry, then put them in the store. After that, go check on Blossomtail and her kits." The apprentice took the leaves and padded back out into the sunlight.

"Now, what happened?" Robinflight asked. "These scratches aren't deep, but they are long. How did you manage to get scratches like these on your first day out of camp?"

Dawnpaw thought back to the fight. "We went past a twoleg nest and two kittypets attacked us. The shecat, Ivory, jumped on me first, and gave me these."

Robinflight gave a small growl. "Those kittypets have sent half the clan in here with scratches and bites! Ashstar needs to take a patrol and teach them a lesson they wont forget!" She padded away into a small den off to the side and came back out with some leaves in her mouth. She started to chew them up, one by one as she kept talking.

"Ashstar shouldn't have taken inexperienced apprentices near that nest anyway. You and your sister could have gotten hurt worse if he and Skycloud hadn't been there."

"Actually, Eaglepaw saved me," Dawnpaw ventured. She liked talking to the medicine cat. She seemed calm around her.

Robinflight finished chewing the leaves and started rubbing the pulp onto Dawnpaw's scratches, making the fur sticky. "Eaglepaw? He barely has any more experience than you! Well, you were lucky anyway." She finished with her job and looked Dawnpaw over. "Well, your finished. If you feel the scratches getting infected, come and see me. You can go now."

Dawnpaw thanked her and padded out, taking in the warm sunshine on her pelt and padding over to the fresh-kill pile. She picked up a lizard and went over to sit beside Duskpaw. As she ate, she watched Eaglepaw and Sandpaw play fighting. They were purring, and Dawnpaw suddenly wished she could be playing with Eaglepaw instead of Sandpaw. She shook the thought away and concentrated on her lizard.

Duskpaw yawned and looked at her sister. "I'm going to sleep. Skycloud said we have hunting practice tomorrow and I want to be fresh for that." Dawnpaw watched her go into the den and sat up. She sat and watched the sun go down. After a while, she looked around. Thornpaw was padding into the apprentice's den, and Dawnpaw decided to follow. When she came in, she saw Eaglepaw and Sandpaw asleep. When did they come in here? She didn't notice how long she was sitting outside.

Dawnpaw padded over to her sister's sleeping form and curled up beside her. She fell asleep quickly and drifted off into a dream. She opened her eyes and found herself in the middle of a strange clearing. There were trees all around her, and the air smelled of fish and water. The ground was dirt, mixed with some sand and the clearing smelled of many cats, all stale.

"Were am I?" Dawnpaw thought aloud.

"You are on the Island." A strange cat's voice sounded and seemed to fill the clearing. Dawnpaw turned and saw a black and white shecat sitting alone by a tall oak tree. "Hello Dawnpaw. I am Patchstar, a former leader of Shadowclan."