Into the wild: SCE

Exhilaration coursed through Webpaw, propelling the small silver tabby tom through the familiar ups and downs of ShadowClan's territory. Rosestar had been so busy lately with the Gathering and the new deputy that she hadn't had time to hunt with Webpaw much but not today. Early this morning before the moon rose, Rosestar had snuck into the apprentice den and nudged him awake from where he'd been curled up beside Blossompaw. With the utmost care they had left the den to keep his excitable friend and her suspicious sister from waking. Webpaw had expected a dawn patrol with a few other warriors or something like that but just as they'd gotten to the camp entrance, he could see the tails of the dawn patrol disappearing into the gloom. No dawn patrol with Rosestar in it would have left without her.

'You're going hunting today,' Rosestar had said, 'I'll be following and watching. Ok?'

That had been his task, to hunt and track his way across the territory so he could show Rosestar what he had been learning. So now Webpaw was winding his way across the territory, through the dense gloomy pine trees and gnarled cedars toward the marshes where she'd taught him to hunt water birds and frogs. Webpaw had been able to catch a mouse and starling in the few hours since they had left camp. Dawn was starting to make the horizon blush pink but the moon was still hanging near the treeline, in no hurry to set. Silver moonlight slithered over Webpaw's silver and black fur, occasionally making him glow as he passed through the shadows of his clan's namesake. Their territory was still drowsy at this hour, most of the prey skittering off to underground dens to sleep during the day or not yet awake but the small tom kept reminding himself to not be in a hurry. He needed to listen to the territory, listen to the prey. StarClan provided what each clan needed and already Webpaw's claws had met success this morning so there was no need to be greedy. This expedition wasn't about catching the most prey possible, it was about skill. So, he kept his pawsteps light and tried to ignore the occasional sensation of Rosestar's gaze on his back.

Sliding out of the pines and out onto the overgrown marshes, Webpaw made sure to keep his steps light. Even though he was a small cat and didn't weigh nearly as much as his clanmates, it had rained recently so the marsh grounds were soft and liable to suck a cat's paws into the mud. He tried to walk on some of the bent over reeds but did so sparingly to avoid tangling his paws in the grasses. Sparrowpelt had warned him that the grasses could be just as bad as the mud at breaking a cat's paws or at least causing sprains. Webpaw wanted to return to camp victorious, able to share his success with Blossompaw, not be carried back by Rosestar because he broke his paw.

A breeze blew over the marshes making the reeds rattle and frogs croak. At first Webpaw just breathed in to find the scents of prey, maybe a bullfrog to take back to camp or maybe even a magpie. And those scents were there, familiar and welcome to Webpaw until...His ears perked up but his body dropped low to the ground, claws unsheathing. Cat scent, and not ShadowClan. The fur along his shoulders rose and his tail flicked nervously. Was Rosestar nearby? He hadn't seen her since they left camp...Surely she smelled it? But what if she was downwind? Webpaw flexed his claws nervously, amber gaze skipping around him. Nothing but reeds and the approaching sunrise, nighttime gloom still clinging to the marsh proper. With each breath the unfamiliar cat scent was stronger and still no sign of Rosestar. He had to do something. If it was a loner or a rogue the camp could be in danger. Setting his jaw and steeling his resolve, Webpaw began to slink forward through the foliage as quietly as he could manage. He tried to keep his legs from shaking with nerves. If he was in real danger he was sure Rosestar would see and come to help. She couldn't be that far away.

Keeping his body low, Webpaw peered through the reeds and at last found the stranger. A large grey and white cat with long fur. Webpaw stiffened at the sight. He was a small cat...even though this cat looked young he was already bigger than Webpaw but...Webpaw's claws flexed. The cat looked...confused and a little scared...A kittypet? Well...what to do. Scare the cat away and it might run in the wrong direction, farther into the territory. Lead it back to the border? Attack and think about it later? What would Rosestar do? The cat looked scared...Webpaw's hackles laid down again and, taking a deep breath, he slid out of the foliage and into plain sight.

"You shouldn't be here Kittypet." He didn't growl but Webpaw made himself hold his head high and speak confidently, stepping forward enough to be seen but not close enough to be swiped at. "This is ShadowClan territory."

Webpaw had never in his life felt powerful. He had felt many things, contentment, excitement, happiness, sadness. Never power or the sense that he was the stronger cat in a fight. Born small and built in a petite fashion that was reminiscent of WindClan, Webpaw was used to losing every play fight or training bout. Well, okay, not every single one. There were times when his wits let him get the slip on his opponents but those moments made him feel clever, not powerful. Now, looking across the open space to the soaked grey kittypet, Webpaw felt a glimmer of power course through him. He was aware of his muscles, lean but strong, and his fur glossy with good feeding but not softened by kittypet laziness. His claws, kept sharp on the cedars growing on the horizon, were a comfort now when Webpaw seldom relied on them. His heart beat steady despite his nerves at first meeting the stranger. It was just a kittypet. Sure it claimed to have lived as a 'stray' but what did that really account to? It couldn't be any older than Blossompaw or Spottedpaw and Webpaw could still beat them in training fights because of his experience being Rosestar's shadow. Confidence bubbled up on the silver tabby, allowing him to keep his head high and gaze steady. This was just a housecat, softened by twolegs and thinking it could survive in the wild. What did it know of bitterly cold winters where prey ran scarce and illness plagued its loved ones?

Under his pelt, Webpaw's muscles bunched as he prepared to pounce. A few good swipes in the right places would have this cat running for the border in no time.

However...Before he could leap the small tom paused, hesitated. What was this? This wasn't him...claws and fangs first wasn't his style. Shape bubbled up in his belly for such rash thinking. Loosening his muscles a bit, the small apprentice looked closer at the kittypet-stray. The cat looked terrified, eyes wide and bright, pelt soaked to its sides making it look half drowned. Its paws were caked with mud and it looked a bit scrawny. It...he...was afraid. This was no place for a cat like that, Webpaw knew that. Kittypets weren't allowed in ShadowClan, they never had been. But that didn't mean Webpaw had to draw blood.

Flexing his claws, Webpaw sighed softly, decision made.

"You can't stay here," Webpaw said at last, silver and black tail waving lazily over his back. He spoke calmly, kept his voice low in case anyone got suspicious of the weird cat smell and came to investigate. And maybe he didn't want to antagonize the other cat into drawing out his claws but that was no one's business. "Our leader wouldn't ever allow it. You should go home to your twolegs, or something. Now come on, I need to get you out of here before someone bigger mistakes you for a drowned mouse." With a wave of his tail, Webpaw gestured toward the south. "We'll follow this tree line and get you back to the border."

'I really hope Rosestar isn't watching this,' Webpaw thought, amber eyes flicking behind the grey cat to the tree line and surrounding marsh grasses. She would have his hide when he got back to camp if she saw him being this lenient but something in Webpaw's core simply wouldn't let him blindly take a swipe at another cat. He hoped his leader would understand if she was watching. 'What if I get thrown out for not attacking?' The panicked thought flitted through Webpaw's mind but he tried to stomp it out. Rosestar wouldn't do that...she liked him well enough or so he thought. She might scold him, give him extra training or chores to make up for his transgression but surely not throw him out. Still, Webpaw hoped the grey cat would go quietly and quickly so this whole business could be done. If he could find some wild garlic Webpaw could pollute the scent trail this kittypet left...No one would ever have to know.

"Come on," Webpaw urged, glancing nervously at the marsh. He thought he caught a whiff of Rosestar's scent. "It's time to go." He tried to make his voice firm and leave no room for argument when he looked back at the other cat, prayed to StarClan that his gaze was steady and brokered no more discussion about this whole 'joining the clan' business.