Ch.13

                                    

                                          
Patchpaw squinted as she pushed through the clan entrance behind Silvercloud. The approaching sunset left turned the sky into a beautiful smear of orange and pink, but it cast a blinding ray of sunlight over the camp.'
	The calico she-cat spotted Elmstar in his usual position in front of the hollowed oak. The spot where Rednose would've accompanied him was left vacant, however Geyserwing was sitting only a few tail-lengths away from the leader.
	The clan's medicine cat, Mintpaws, was sitting near him, too. She had a feigned look of confidence on her face; Patchpaw could tell that the loss of Rednose was still haunting her mind.
	Despite her observation, Patchpaw was happy to see the medicine cat interacting with her clanmates. Grief and loss was something that medicine cats had to learn to deal with, and in Patchpaw's mind, Mintpaws was handling it quite well- better than Snakepaw, atleast.
	Her brother had not made much of an effort to engage with the clan since Rednose's passing last sunhigh. He had tucked himself away inside the apprentice's den, only leaving when Crowwatcher ordered him out of camp.
	Now, atleast, he was sitting next to his new mentor in the clearing. He had a disgruntled expression on his face, as if he'd much rather be surrounded by the comfort of his moss bedding.
	Elmstar's voice boomed over the clearing. The sound startled Patchpaw, who had been lost in her thoughts.
	"It's time to leave for the gathering," the tom rasped, sitting up to be heard better. "Geyserwing, Twigrush, Laurelheart, Gingersnap, Silvercloud, Adderthorn, Tawnyflower and Patchpaw will represent ShadowClan for this full moon. We leave now."
	Patchpaw blinked. Snakepaw hadn't been named in Elmstar's announcement, meaning she'd have to go to the gathering without him to keep her company. Elmstar likely wanted Snakepaw to be able to rest and not have to deal with the stress of a gathering so soon after his mentor's death, but Patchpaw couldn't help but long for him to be at her side when they crossed the tree-bridge to the island.
	Silvercloud must've noticed her distress. "I'll keep you company," he offered, flicking her tail across her back in a reassuring gesture. He spoke in a whisper, and the feeling of his breath hitting Patchpaw's ears gave her a chill.
	She found comfort in both Silvercloud and the fact that Geyserwing and Tawnyflower were also chosen to go to the gathering. Patchpaw stood and shook out her fur, pushing her anxiety down and out of her mind.
	A looming scent unsettled Patchpaw as the large group of warriors approached the far end of their territory. The reek of twolegs had spread from the Greenleaf Twolegplace and was creeping over the border.
	"The twolegs must've moved in early," Geyeserwing grumbled from the front of the line. It was only newleaf, and yet, Geyserwing seemed to be right. There were traces of Twolegs all around the brown structure.
	Long sticks laced with metal were propped up on poles near the lake's edge. Patchpaw hesitantly eyed them as she passed. She'd never met a Twoleg, but from what she'd heard, they were clumsy and sloppy. There was no mistaking their tracks, as they always left a trail of Twoleg rubbish in any area they made their camp.
	The Twolegs were noisy, too, and prey was usually scarce around the edge of the territory where they lurked. It wasn't much of an issue during Greenleaf, but now, it may pose more of a threat to ShadowClan than it ever had before.	Patchpaw continued to dwell on what the Twoleg's early arrival meant to ShadowClan until she found herself in front of the fallen tree bridge.
Silvercloud hopped up onto the log elegantly, looking down at Patchpaw in waiting. She followed quickly, scraping her claws against the wood beneath her until she hopped down safely on the other side.