Consequence [closed]

Slowly, subtly, Asterpaw stirred. The smell of herbs... the softness of moss beneath him... the sound hushed voices, whether in the distance or nearby. Was this Starclan?

Eyes fluttering open, Asterpaw was... staring at the medicine den ceiling. Sitting upright, he immediately doubled over in pain. After quickly looking over himself he realized that he was covered in herb dressings. His whole body ached. What had happened?

Located in a nest nearby was Stoatpaw. They were both back at camp? And alive? And what about Willowpaw? "Psst... Stoatpaw... What happened?" He whispered, hoping the tom was awake.

Stoatpaw lay on the bedding, staring silently at the wall of ferns in front of him. Coming back to camp had been an ordeal, each step only aiding the pain that coursed through his body. Arriving at the medicine den had been a relief, though the pains and aching had remained for the most part. Stoatpaw's head whipped around as he heard Asterpaw's question, the action sending a spike of pain through him. "Asterpaw, you're awake!" Relief colored his voice as he stared at the other apprentice. "Crimsonflame came soon after you passed out and killed the porcupine, with Willowpaw's help. I tried to help, but..." He shuddered at the memory of his last attack. His hind paws slamming into the porcupines spines had been excruciatingly painful. "I couldn't do much."

So Crimsonflame had come and rescued them... That's why they were back in camp. That's why he was still alive. A heavy sigh left Asterpaw. At least they were both okay, despite the rough shape they were in. This would postpone his training, though...

The entrance of Crimsonflame took Asterpaw by surprise. It was almost as if he were listening the whole time, entering only when his name was mentioned. He smiled at his father as he entered, but the smile quickly faded when he began to speak. Although he didn't appreciate Crimsonflame's criticism in the slightest, he had a point. Of course he did, he's known the rules much longer than them.

"Stoatpaw and I just wanted to go hunting... so we did. We didn't know the monster would show up!" He started, trying to explain their side. It wasn't as if they would predict that they'd be attacked or anything. "We were trying to help the clan... We were gonna fight it..." He averted his gaze, staring at the floor of the den.

Crimsonflame brought up a good point. Stoatpaw's plan had originally been to send the porcupine running, but his lack of battle experience had almost lead to both of their deaths. If Crimsonflame hadn't arrived, they might have even dragged Willowpaw down with them. The thought sickened him. Still, he didn't like the effect the warrior's words had on Asterpaw. He had been so lively when they were out of camp, so full of light. This wasn't right, Stoatpaw had been the one to lead them out of camp, it was his fault that they had been attacked in the first place. "It wasn't Asterpaw's fault, it was mine. My mentor never told me apprentices couldn't go out on their own, so I left to go hunting. Asterpaw only followed me so I wouldn't get hurt." It was only a small lie, but he hoped it would be convincing. He didn't want to be the reason Asterpaw's father was upset with him.

Asterpaw quickly looked over to Stoatpaw, eyes wide with urgency, trying to communicate the thought, 'what are you doing?' The apprentice had no idea what was going through his friends head, why he was trying to take the blame when this was obviously not just his fault? "Actu-" To listen to what Crimsonflame had to say, he cut himself off. To his relief, Crimsonflame didn't hold just Stoatpaw accountable, recognizing that it wasn't just him... even though it didn't feel good to disappoint his father.

At the mention of elder duties Asterpaw let out a groan. Surely Crimsonflame wouldn't make him do elder duties while he was still injured, right? That was a question to ask later, because Crimsonflame wasn't done yet. He also requested for them to ask him if they wanted to go out. After this experience Asterpaw wasn't quite sure he was even comfortable leaving camp without a warrior accompanying him from now on anyways. Going out on his own wasn't something that Crimsonflame would have to worry about.

Waiting silently for a large enough gap in Crimsonflame's speech, Asterpaw waited until then to speak. "I'm sorry." He really hadn't meant to distress his father, it did make him feel bad. He looked at his paws.