Time to Let Go [Closed]

"Flamepaw come on!" The mostly ginger apprentice shouted at her sibling who was trailing slightly behind her. Ever since their parents disappeared things didn't go well for the siblings.. Foxpaw.. poor Foxpaw... Firepaw thought they had earned a place in Thunderclan. She thought that their clan mates were their friends.. but that didn't seem to be true.. They didn't have time.. She should have checked but she couldn't go back. The mouse brain of a warrior blocked her way back to the camp.. So she couldn't check on Fawnpaw.. But her being a medicine cat apprentice... she would be safe right? Dreamleaf would protect her right?

Firepaw shook her head clear of the thoughts that were not needed in this time.. But Foxpaw.. murdered right in front of their eyes.. by one they considered a friend.. How could she have been so blind? Once she determined they were far enough from Thunderclan territory. Firepaw stopped unaware they were in Windclan territory. She just picked a direction and ran, glad that Flamepaw followed her. She was glad her sister was safe... but she wouldn't be.. happy until she knew Fawnpaw was safe too.. The ginger cat sat down, her chest heaving as she tried to catch her breathe she looked at her sister, not knowing what to say to the black and ginger she cat. She just hoped that she was doing alright.. She hoped.. that maybe they could find their parents.. or at least someone willing to take them in. They needed shelter.. They couldn't take care of themselves just yet.. They didn't even finish their training! How were they supposed to survive on their own?

Flamepaw stumbled behind her sister to a stop, her whole body shaking from her harsh pants. The journey here had almost killed her, her each step slowed by the agonised wail that was caught in her throat and screaming to be let out. Her head felt numb as she recalled what happened to Foxpaw, he didn't stand a chance against the warrior. Her poor, foolish, precious brother... She could still feel where her brother's arterial spray had left her fur damp, ginger and black stained with drying, cloying brown.

Usually the brains, Flamepaw wasn't thinking at all in the moment. She didn't even realise where they were until a blade of grass brushed against her tail, spooking her badly as she was brittle, on edge.

WindClan. This was WindClan. That explained why her legs felt so wobbly and sore. They'd run this far away from ThunderClan, from that warrior and from their sister, Fawnpaw. "Where... Where do we go from here...?" She spoke softly, unusually subdued in this moment. Flamepaw was scared, tired and just wanted home. She didn't know where in the Dark Forest home was, but she wanted it badly. To snuggle in the fur of her mother, to hear her father's soothing rumbles. That was all gone though, the warrior had taken that from them. They should have left with their parents, after all, they were rogues now too.

Patrolling the WindClan territory, Smokepelt let out a sigh. Taking a break from all his adopted kits and life in the crowded camp was nice and he wished that he was able to stay out on the moor forever. His mother had been feeling more like herself lately and he was definitely thankful for that, although he genuinely believed that the passing of his father would never leave him and his mother. Picking up the pace, the deputy trotted through the tall grass, looking to some birds that flew overhead. I wonder what it's like to fly, Smokepelt wondered to himself. Probably terrifying.

Sniffing the air for possible prey, an unknown scent suddenly caught his nose and he skidded to an adbrupt halt. Perking his ears, the grey looked around trying to see through the tall grass that surrounded him. Someone or something was watching him, he could feel it under his fur. "Hello?" the soft voiced tom meowed aloud.

Firepaw opened her mouth to answer Flamepaw, but soon a new voice spoke up above the wind of the territory. She didn't want to get into trouble for being on another clan's territory because now she realized that this was Windclan. But they weren't Thunderclan anymore.. They could be killed for being rogues on clan territory! This wasn't good.. The ginger apprentice crouched lower into the brown grass hoping to hide herself but she knew she was doomed since her fur stuck out a like crazy against the grays and browns of windclan territory. Her sister probably had better luck hiding than she did.

It was their worst case scenario. There was a tom just beyond them, a WindClan warrior. He didn't sound aggressive, but who knew how they'd react to two ThunderClan apprentices that were trespassing. What if he tried to drag them back to ThunderClan, put them near him. Flamepaw tried to duck into the grass, hoping her pelt would hide her but Firepaw, she would stick out like a sore thumb. She couldn't just watch as another sibling was taken from her, so she decided to take initiative to prevent it.

"Run when you can." She whispered to her sister. Then with a pounce, she jumped over her sister to run and tackle the tom, claws sheathed but still she was using all her strength. "Get back, WindClanner!"

Looking around, the murmurs of someone talking told him there was definitely someone close, and when a small cat jumped out of the tall grass, he was prepared. Easily stepping to the side, Smokepelt raised a non-existent brow at who ever was trying to attack him. Twisting his body around, the deputy reared up on his hind legs and came down upon the smaller cat with his front paws, pinning her down to the ground and barely breaking a sweat.

"To be fair, I don't think you should be trying to attack me," the tall grey tom meowed in his usual soft voice. Looking around, he assumed that there was someone else hiding in the brush. "I suggest you come out from hiding, unless you want your friend to be crowfood," he added a bit more sternly, looking around for any movement. He hated using a bribe, but if it was the only way to find out who else was hiding, then so be it.

Firepaw was ready to run once her sister distracted her but she hesitated too long because she didn't want to leave her sister behind. The ginger apprentice sat with fear in her heart as she assessed the situation of the warrior pinning her sister down. Was she going to watch her sister be slaughtered too?

Once the warrior told her to come out of hiding the small ginger she cat stepped out of the tall grass and out into the open where her sister and the smokey warrior was. "Please don't kill her... I don't want to see another one of my siblings killed for no reason.." Firepaw said in a soft tone. She couldn't even look the windclan warrior in the eye.. She just wanted to be safe, but she just lead Flamepaw to more trouble.

Pinned to the ground with one paw from the warrior, Flamepaw switched tactics and went all out. She unsheathed her claws, digging them into the warrior's leg as she bit his toes hard. In between bites, she yowled at her sister. "Don't be dumb, run! I'll be fine!" There was a good part of her that was afraid for her own life, but the chance of seeing Firepaw cut down like Foxpaw overrode that fear. She wouldn't be able to live if she saw something so horrific ever again. Her loyalty to her sister was absolute. They were the only ones in the world that would look out for each other.

Turning his head to the other cat that appeared from the brush, he relaxed a bit. They only wanted to protect eachother, he would never dream of hurting them! Before he was able to reply, a sharp pain overwhelmed him. Suddenly without warning, the small cat dug her claws into his flesh and bit down on his toes. The tom let out a yowl of surprise and pain, ripping his leg from under the stranger's grip. Taking a few steps back and holding his paw in the air, Smokepelt assessed his wounds and let out a small hiss. "Ouch!" Looking to the she-cat, he didn't know whether to be angry or not. She was only apprenticed aged and by the looks of it, all the two of them wanted was to stay together, which meant that they were most likely siblings.

"Did you really think I was going to kill you?" the grey and white tom meowed with a hint of emotion, tilting his head to the side. "Do you know how dishonorable it'd be for a deputy to kill two apprentices?" Smokepelt asked, looking down to his bleeding paw and wincing at the pain.

"I'm not going to leave you Flamepaw." The ginger apprentice said. She stood firm on her ground she didn't care what happened to her, she wanted her sister safe. She would rather accept punishment from the windclan warrior and hope to get out of here with her sister by her side.

When the deputy spoke up again, Firepaw looked at him for a moment. No wonder he seemed familiar... but her green gaze soon moved back to the ground when he mentioned the dishonorable part. Thunderclan didn't seem to think so. "Well Thunderclan doesn't think it's dishonorable to kill an apprentice.." Firepaw said angrily. "We were apart of their clan but then they turn around and kill our brother right in front of us..." She hissed, but it faded off as it was replaced with sadness.. The mostly ginger she cat sat down with her head hanging. Maybe sympathy could let them get off scott-free..

Flamepaw's struggling died down as she realised exactly who the tom was. He was Smokepelt, deputy of WindClan, and she wasn't stupid enough to think that she'd survive a scrap with him. She was in luck that he wasn't taking her seriously, or she'd have more than a paw pinning her in place. Fear flashed through her, before she remembered that he'd just told her than he wouldn't kill them.

Then Firepaw reminded her why the two of them were here. Pain lanced through her at the mere memory, her heart and head ached from a mix of pain and grief. "Kits of rogues have no place in the Clans, he said. We're no better than loners... Please, just let us go. We won't bother you. Or at least my sister, just don't drag us back to ThunderClan. He'll kill us." She knew her sister was just as stubborn as she was, and much to self-sacrificing, but she had to try. Neither of them could bear another loss. Maybe, this clan cat would be honourable. Like the cats from the stories that Sorrel used to tell them.

Listening to the two of them and forgetting the pain in his paw, a different pain overwhelmed him. They were kicked out of ThunderClan? How could a clan do that? Hearing that their brother was killed, sadness was taken over by anger. Digging his claws into the ground, the grey tom let out a soft growl. How dare they! Those fox-hearts! Baring his teeth, all he wanted to go teach those mangy ThunderClan cats a lesson, but looking up, he remembered that there was already a task at hand. Calming down, he hoped that they didn't see his anger, or he'd look like a bad example for a warrior, but knowing him, his anger was as obvious as a black cat in the snow.

Letting out a sigh, he looked from one apprentice to the other. "That's... unfortunate," Smokepelt meowed in his usual soft voice. "Shame on them for being such fox-hearts. I'll have you know that WindClan would never dream of hurting our young, and don't worry, I'd never dream of making you go back to that horrible place." The tom had never liked ThunderClan and their cocky ways, but hearing this, if these two cats were telling the truth, made him hate them more than ever. Looking from one she-cat to the other, he noticed that they both looked hungry, tired, and he didn't really have a choice. He couldn't just turn them down, could he? "If you'd like, I can take you to our camp where you can get some rest," the grey and white tom finished, wondering if they'd trust him enough to come to the camp. Smokepelt knew he was taking a big risk by bringing strange cats into camp, but he'd always had a soft spot for those in need and just thinking of the pain they might be in, it made him hurt too.

Firepaw watched the deputy unsure of what to say or do. She didn't like his anger. She thought it was going to turn to them any second, but soon it disappeared. She blinked her words still failing her. Once he spoke again her ears perked just a bit. He wasn't going to make them go back. They didn't have to face that fox heart. They were free. Though she wasn't sure about his offer. They needed to rest. They needed to get their thoughts together so they could determine what to do, what they wanted to do, but how would Windclan react?

The ginger apprentice looked towards her sister. "I'll go if Flamepaw wants to go too." She said looked back to the deputy giving him her answer. If Flamepaw didn't want to go this is where they would part ways, but if she did, well they would be following the deputy back to camp.

With the decision on her shoulders, the tortoiseshell weighed their options. They were both struggling after the shock of witnessing their brother's mauling and also, they'd run all the way from the forest to the moors. Her legs felt akin to lead now, and her head began to feel muzzy as the adrenaline wore off, leaving only grief and pain. But she knew that there was a Twolegplace nearby, some barn that they could make their home in temporarily. They'd go hungry as neither of them were proficient hunters yet, but to her, it seemed a better idea than trusting another clan. WindClan were the traditional allies of ThunderClan, what if they tried to take them back in the night? Or sent a runner to Darkstar?

Flamepaw opened her mouth to refuse, but she saw the sincerity in the deputy's eyes. It was silly considering how she'd misjudged her own clan members, but she felt as though she could trust him. Hesitantly, she nodded, meowing quietly. "Okay. We'll follow you to your camp."

Relieved that the apprentice were willing to go with him, Smokepelt turned around and flicked his tail towards the direction that the camp was. "I promise you that WindClan is far better than you may think," the tom meowed to the apprentices, starting to make his way home. He knew that every clan has different opinions on other other clans, even if they allies. And yes, WindClan and ThunderClan may have been allies, but that didn't mean he had to like them, and after what he'd just heard, his feelings of distrust and hate grew even more and the deputy would never be able to be true allies with them, even if it cost him his life.