Trees and Mud [c]

Stoatpaw padded along the Shadowclan border. He wanted to know what had happened after they returned, especially with the death of Froststar hanging over them. With their territory in such disarray, he assumed that there would be frequent patrols on their borders. He needed to know how they were doing, especially Leopardsun. He realized that seeing a cat on their border might have caused alarm, so Stoatpaw did what Skyclan did best. Approaching the tall pine tree that marked the border, Stoatpaw began to climb. He made it to a branch a few fox-lengths off the ground before settling himself. Keeping his eyes locked on Shadowclan's side, he waited for any familiar faces to appear.

Lightpaw had to clear her head. The last few days had been a whirlwind of sparring, rebuilding, and keeping and eye out for her little brothers. The silver apprentice wandered mindlessly, her paws eventually carrying her to the SkyClan border. A fly landed on her nose and she sneezed. The sudden jolt of the sneeze was enough to make her dizzy and sick to her stomach. “Stupid concussion…” she growled.

It did not take long for Stoatpaw to lose focus, the gentle flapping of wings had drawn his gaze from the border. A magpie had landed one tree away from him, practically taunting the apprentice. It wasn't too far away. Not for him. Turning on his branch, he readied himself for the leap. Before he could launch himself at his prey however, a sharp noise cut through the air, sending the bird off in another direction. Stoatpaw stared after the bird as it went, slightly frustrated with losing out on the catch. A cat's voice below him pulled his attention from the fleeing magpie. "Concussion?" He echoed back. Turning to see who had started speaking, he spotted a cat on Shadowclan's side of the border. Finally! Leaping down to meet the cat, Stoatpaw realized with a start that he knew her. "Lightpaw?" Excitement quickly turned to worry as he registered what she had said. "You have a concussion? What happened, are you okay?" His paws moved before he could think, carrying him across the border and up to the Shadowclan apprentice.

“Huh? Oh, hey Stoatpaw! It’s fine, I actually hit my head when I got swept away in the flood. Sudden quick movements still make me sick and dizzy. I probably should be taking it easy but there’s just so much to do, rebuilding camp and all,” Lightpaw explained.

So they were rebuilding their camp? That seemed like a good sign. "I don't think you should be doing anything with a concussion. You should be resting." Though he tried to sound stern, concern laced his words. "One cat taking a day off won't change anything."

Lightpaw was proud to be helping her clan, but a part of her knee Stoatpaw was right. “I know, I just… I was away from the clan for so long that I feel like they need to see I’m still loyal, y’know? And I’m healing, I really am. Just… slowly. Oh wait, I never told you. Not all of us stayed with SkyClan and ThunderClan. Some of us got swept away beyond Clan territory. Like me. And my mentor, Dappledlight! She’s also my aunt, and she’s the coolest! We got lost together, and we helped each other get back home. What’s your mentor like?”

Stoatpaw couldn't see the logic in her clan seeing her as disloyal, especially with how hard she seemed to be working herself. The flood had happened so long ago, was she really healing? "Beyond clan territory?" The thought excited him. What kinds of animals lived past the clan's territories? Were there other clans out there? The land that he called home began to feel small. "Frostbite is incredible, she knows so much. The only problem is she doesn't stick around too long. I haven't really had many training sessions, but Leopardsun helped me out while she was staying with us." Curiosity got the better of him, he just had to ask. "What was it like out there? Beyond the territories."

“Yeah, we were pretty far,” Lightpaw mewed. She could tell Stoatpaw was thinking of adventure, but the journey had in actuality been grueling and not something she’d wish on anybody. Traveling seemingly endlessly, desperately hoping they were going in the right direction… And not a cat in sight. She smiled a bit at the mention of Leopardsun. Nightstalker had certainly made the right choice in naming her deputy. “Well, Dappledlight and I managed to find more or less enough prey, even though we were both pretty badly hurt. Actually, the territory out there isn’t that different from the forest here, just without any cats. I mean, there might be some loners or something, but we didn’t see any. And we certainly didn’t scent any big groups like the clans. I’d have to say crossing Highstones was the hardest part, though. I’m glad the Moonstone is on our side, I definitely don’t want to cross again.”

Stoatpaw listened to her in a stunned silence, staring at her in amazement. "So you got caught in a flood, got injured and made your way back without a medicine cat?" The whole situation sounded like an impossible ordeal. She found her way back through all of that, and with a concussion at the same time, and she crossed the Highstones! Stoatpaw pulled back slightly, admiring her. "That's impressive!" If the Shadowclanners that stayed with Thunderclan were anything like the ones that had stayed with his clan, then Lightpaw would have been constantly working to support her hosts. Even now she was still tirelessly rebuilding her camp. She reminded him of Leopardsun, both cats were restless as long as there was work to be done. "You're incredible." he mewed a bit breathlessly.

Lightpaw blushed beneath her fur. “We did what we had to do,” she said quietly. “But like I said, it’s definitely not something I want to repeat. Enough about me, though. What’s your life in SkyClan like?”

Stoatpaw took a moment to think, raising his head slightly. A smile split his face as he started, "Like I said, my mentor doesn't really train me. I know how to hunt, so as long as I bring back prey no one bats an eye. It's actually pretty great, I usually spend my time climbing trees and exploring the territory." It may have sounded mundane, but the world changed drastically when he was high up in the trees. "I'm sure that sounds boring though," he admitted.

“Honestly,” Lightpaw mewed, “I’m more than ready for life to get back to being boring. Tree climbing sounds really fun, though! ShadowClan cats don’t do that much. I probably shouldn’t be trying that with a head injury, but maybe you could teach me sometime?”

The skin beneath his fur began to heat. Did that mean she wanted to meet him again, or was she just being nice? Stoatpaw hoped it was the former, the thought of it sending his mind swirling. "Y-yeah! I could try to teach you." How long would it take for her head injury to disappear? For all he knew it could last until the next gathering with how tirelessly she worked herself. Could he even wait that long?

“That sounds awesome! I probably better head back now before Mom sends the whole clan after me. She’s been kinda clingy since I was missing for a while. Maybe we could meet here again? We could both come out here sometimes in hopes we’re both free at once. If that doesn’t work, I’ll see you at the next Gathering!” Lightpaw was sure she’d be doing better by then at the latest.

Hope filled the young Skyclan apprentice. He seriously doubted they would meet before the gathering, but maybe that was for the best. The sun was beginning to dip in the sky, nightfall would be close. How long had he been away from camp? He had been gone all day and had nothing to show for it, how would Birdchaser react? "That works." He said quickly. "I've gotta catch something before I get back to camp." As an afterthought, he added, "May Starclan light your path." before fleeing in the direction of Skyclan's camp.