Fateful Meeting [closed]

Honey colored light drifted down from the swaying gaps in the canopy high above, painting the slumbering stones of the Sunningrocks in various shades of enticing golds. The sweet, lush grasses and foliage that protectively encircled the frequently disputed border hardly made a sound under Lichenpaw's careful steps. Although the reason was unknown, the disorienting glimpses of conversations yet to be had and events yet to unfold had called him forth. Curiously scaling a particularly high stone that lingered just a bit too close to the overwhelming stench of ThunderClan's border, the simmering warmth pricked at his still damp paws in an irksome manner.

"You'll find what you need at the edges of the river, where the storms meet the water."

The confusing words that had been exhaled in Lichenpaw's ears during the midst of his dreams, where Sparrowleaf often resided, had baffled him. What did he need- and how was he supposed to find it? Ears falling flat against his skull, the young tom's features were twisted into a shadow of a disgruntled grimace. This had to be the place, right? There were only two Clans in the entire forest who had names pertaining to storms and water! However, as he settled down to gaze out at the bustling forest, something seemed to click together. The pieces were much too hazy and unfocused for him to find the immediate truth within them, but the wary curiosity that had been bubbling up from within the darkest parts of his being felt sated.

Brilliant gaze gleaming sharply from within the dark mask of fur upon his face, Lichenpaw settled down atop the smooth stone, clearly content to wait for whatever he was fated to find.

Thornpaw released a long, exhausted sigh, panting as she leaned again a tree, her long fur all tangled up. She looked up, at the dark-green web of leaves above her head, the turned around, waiting expectantly for her Clanmate, Alderpaw. "Sorry for running off like that. I was chasing a mouse." the ginger tabby mewed apologetically, yet retaining her usual surly manner. Going out hunting with her kithood friend was fun, seeing how they'd all grown up and how they'd been training. She circled back to walk by the other's side, lightly brushing her fur against his. "So, how's your training been-..." Thornpaw began, before pausing ominously, tasting the air through open jaws. She recoiled at the familiar scent of RiverClan, so unnatural in this side of the forest. 'What in StarClan's name is a RiverClan cat doing here?!' the she-cat thought, casting a glance filled with worry and fury in Alderpaw's direction. "RiverClan stench." the cat commented brashly, "And it's coming from Sunningrocks."

On high alert, she motioned the tomcat to follow her quietly.

The warm sun's rays filtered through a canopy of trees and speckled onto Alderpaw, who was slowly pursuing a familiar ginger apprentice he had known since kithood. He slightly quickened his pace as he caught up to the tabby she-cat, meowing a response. "It's fine, Thornpaw." The young brown tom smiled at Thornpaw, excusing her from her small fault. 

As Alderpaw flicked his ears to the side to hear Thornpaw more clearly as she spoke, he was startled by the sudden halt but stopped too. When the she-cat started to taste the air, he also let more scents fill his nose, his whiskers twitching with anticipation as he caught a familiar scent. The ginger tabby beat him to name the odor. Alderpaw looked at Thornpaw with rested features, but his amber eyes blazed with ferocity. He nodded as the she-cat motioned to him with his tail, making sure to stay light on his feet and his senses alert as the two apprentices made their way to Sunningrocks.

Appearing as though he was carved from stone, Lichenpaw only displayed a subtle amount of movement at the faintest sounds of approaching pawsteps. It was proving difficult to resist the doubt that welled up within him- how was he supposed to find what he was looking for if he got mauled by overeager ThunderClanners? The urge to flee back into the safety of the river resonated within him, pulsating sharply within his tense limbs. Why had he come here? He was just an untrained apprentice, following some voice into the fathoms of oblivion! This couldn't be the right place!

"Stay!"

The soft voice urged sharply, violently freezing him up from where he sat atop the stone. Even if he wanted to flee, it appeared as though he couldn't. Tried as he might, he couldn't regain a sense of control. Even though he sat by his lonesome, without a single RiverClanner within sight, he could feel the faintest brush of fur against his own. The sharp scent of ancient stone, frigid water, and dusty herbs wreathed its way around Lichenpaw, subtly announcing Sparrowleaf's presence. The sense of apprehensive fear, once nearly overwhelming, seemed to bleed away into something akin to confidence. Muscles gradually relenting on the frantic, drumming need for his fight or flight reaction, Lichenpaw's chin lifted slightly as he searched the thick undergrowth before him. Although he couldn't see whoever was out there, he knew they were there.

"My name is Lichenpaw," The words were carefully relayed from memory, flowing comfortably with the newfound sense of ease, "There's no reason to hide in the forest, there's nobody else around."

Thornpaw hesitated as the scent lead them further and further away from the cover of the ThunderClan forest, and closer to uncharted territory. Whoever had come all the way from SkyClan to this particular border had to have something wrong in their head. She communicated her worry with mere glances in Alderpaw's direction, but the fierce anger didn't disappear from her yellow-green eyes. They were going to put that mouse-brain in his place.

Suddenly, she grit her teeth and jerked her head upwards, from where the voice came. He sounded oddly calm, almost insanely calm in what situation he was, which only made the ginger apprentice want to tear at his ears more. Fluffing up her fur, he emerged from the underbrush, hissing. "What are you doing here?" Thornpaw mewed, words brimming with aggression.

Alderpaw was on high alert as he and Thornpaw silently crept through warm undergrowth and shrubs, shifting his head to the side often to check his surroundings, occasionally behind if he heard a small rustle that was usually caused by a straying mouse or squirrel. He returned Thornpaw's worried looks with reassuring ones and would motion with his tail that they should keep going. There was no way that whatever threat laid in the forest was not mild. It had to be a cat- there was RiverClan stench, and no one, not even the most foolish cat in the forest would come all this way just to ambush some two new, unimportant apprentices.

The young coffee-colored apprentice's head shot up as he heard an unfamiliar, unusually serene voice. Alderpaw wondered why the cat sounded so relaxed, especially if they knew they were so close to the borders, but appeared from the leaves simultaneously with Thornpaw. He looked far less aggressive than Thornpaw, but his eyes narrowed protectively and he shifted to a slightly defensive state. "Yes, state your case or leave."

"There's no need for such formalities, I'm simply enjoying myself in a section of territory that happens to be close to yours. You couldn't get me to cross over the border even if I wanted to." Tail winding its way across his paws, Lichenpaw metaphorically shrugged off the slight aggression exuded by the two other Apprentices. It was always a little strange to encounter cats from different Clans in a setting other than the Gathering, at least that's what he presumed. Gaze resting upon the golden she-cat, who looked marginally more irritated, and then drifting on to her more richly colored companion, he let the silence yawn after his somewhat friendly words.

Ears pricking as though he heard strained whispering, Lichenpaw's features were weighed down with a thoughtful expression. His bright amber eyes returned to Thornpaw once more, the liquid fire of their depths sparking with an unreadable emotion. "You're Thornpaw," He began once more, twisting his head slightly to look over Alderpaw, "And you're Alderpaw, correct?"

The long-furred she-cat bit back an irritable retort, frowning. A desire to attack the apprentice was bubbling inside her, but she held it in, teeth barren.

"H-how do you... What in StarClan's name are you up to? You still haven't told us!" Thornpaw was visibly taken aback by the mention of her name. The apprentice looked small, just as young as both her and Alderpaw, perhaps, and definitely not old enough to have been at a Gathering and heard a mention of both of them. Explanation which would have been unbelievable on its own. She didn't dare take her eyes of Lichenpaw, and slowly but surely, slid forward, closing in the cautionary distance between the stranger and her.

Alderpaw let his fur and aggression relax, but he stood stall and kept his guard up. Tail-tip twitching slightly with irritation, he replied, "We have full right to challenge you, regardless of whether or not you intend to cross the border." The brown tom lowered his head slightly, shifting his proportions so that his and the RiverClan apprentice's eyes were straight across from each other. Alderpaw's eyelids raised quite a bit upon hearing Lichenpaw state his name, but he kept his posture. "That is... correct. I suppose there's no need to try and hide our names when we already know yours." He let Thornpaw speak, then nodded his head in agreement. "We asked you a question. Answer it."

Tail tip giving an occasional, sporadic twitch, Lichenpaw's resolve hardly quavered at the constant aggression portrayed by the pair. However, the part of him that had been coaxed forth by Silverfang's presence in his life wanted to chuckle at their words. It had gone so well for ThunderClan the last time they had challenged RiverClan at the Sunningrocks! But instead, he merely met the pair's questioning stares with an unusual fire behind his eyes. "I'm here because StarClan told me to come." He relented, puncuating the strange statement with a soft shrug, "I don't exactly know why they sent me here, but they said I needed to find something here." He still didn't know whether or not he had accidentally slipped from the clutches of sanity or not- perhaps this was all just some sort of cosmic jape on his behalf and the dreams were nothing more than foolish, wrongful interpretations. "I've been sitting here for quite some time now, but you two are the only thing I've come across."

The surly cat thought little of the stranger's words. To her, he was nothing more than a poor, insane soul, who had managed to escape his Clanmates for long enough to proclaim his insanity to others. Even so, Lichenpaw appeared peaceful, enough so that she wasn't afraid to come closer, scramble up on the rocks until she was face to face with him, having left Alderpaw behind.

"Yeah, we're the only ones you've met, 'cause every other cat would've driven you away by now, and we intend to do the same. If there's something odd in that noggin' of yours that makes you think all of this has a greater purpose, it's not our issue." Thornpaw hissed, puffing her chest and showing off her truly massive physique in an attempt to subdue and intimidate the SkyClanner.

Alderpaw angrily furrowed his whiskers, closing his eyes, thinking deeply about what Lichenpaw had said. He contemplated what he could choose and not choose to do, and what would result in that decision. When Thornpaw challenged the tom, his brain seemed to finally snap and come to a conclusion. "Thornpaw! Stop!" The brown tom called, interrupting her developing aggression. He leaped onto the rocks and made his way towards the pair until he was between the two cats with opposite personalities. "There's no need to get into a fight with this RiverClan cat. If what he's saying is true, then we could be making a great fool of ourselves to StarClan. If he is lying," Alderpaw turned his gaze to Lichenpaw, "Then we'll know. We must at least try to understand him. Lichenpaw, when did you get this message? Are you sure you aren't late to try and find what you're supposed to be looking for?"

"I thought it was odd at first as well, but then I realized something. StarClan communicates with the living all of the time- whether it's by sending signs to Leaders and Medicine Cats or by sharing dreams with apprentices whenever they go to the Moonstone, they speak all of the time. Sometimes they even speak without us even realizing they're doing such." Although Thornpaw's attempts to try and coerce a sign of submission from him hardly riled him, Lichenpaw indulged her nonetheless. Blinking back at the golden she-cat with eerily unperturbed amber eyes that burned with the fierce light of the sun, any internal feelings of doubt flamed away. In a moment of weakness he had caved to the fear that this was really just some cosmic jape, a humiliating mishap, but speaking the words aloud only assured him. It was real. "Is it really so strange for them to send a sign of some sort, when they do such on a regular basis?"

However, before he could continue to refute Thornpaw's challenge with his own persistence, Alderpaw finally spoke up once more. Diverting his attention away from the larger she-cat felt odd- something deep down within him reassured the fact that she wouldn't actually attack him, but it still felt strange to turn his attention away from a cat that had been reared in ThunderClan of all Clans. Mouth twisting slightly as he thought over the other tom's words, his mind raced as he struggled to fully recall the dream. "I received it last night. I've been sitting here since dawn looking for...anything that would possibly make sense. But like I said, only you two have showed up." Lichenpaw mewed, a faint note of frustration seeping through his usually serene voice. It felt as though he had failed Sparrowleaf, a feeling which made his mouth taste bitter.

Thornpaw bristled, giving Alderpaw a terrifying glare. The silence persisted for a couple of heartbeats, but then, smoothing her back fur, the large she-cat drew back a couple of pawsteps, averting her irritated gaze from the stranger. He was unmoved by her threats to an extent that was borderline unsettling, and somehow, she was glad that her kithood friend was there to mediate the conflict. Even if she hated it at the same time.

"Ar' ye try'na suggest us two might've somthin' to do with yer prophecy?" she questioned, finally looking up to stare at Lichenpaw, disbelieving.

ooc;; short and finally doing thorn's proper accent

Alderpaw, at first, was startled by Thornpaw's petrifying scowl but held her gaze, unmoving. It was only until she paused to calm her bristling pelt that he turned away from her, looking back at Lichenpaw. "I understand what you're saying. I still find it hard to believe that StarClan would just choose two... well, three random apprentices to be of importance. Especially when it's not on their Moonstone journey." 

The brown tom sighed heavily, not sure what to believe. If they were truly the only things that Lichenpaw had come by, why was it them? Or was Lichenpaw just lying? Alderpaw decided he would hide his retorts until more information appeared.