Summer Contest Voting - Category #1

[wolfie]

https://i.imgur.com/1FKyzVZ.gif

Come one, come all! With the Summer Contest's submissions deadline coming to a close, it is now time to vote for who you would like to win!

፧፧ ❀❀ -ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ- ❀❀ ፧፧

Information

All entries in this thread were made for the first category set in the Warriors universe. The theme(s) given was one or more of the following:

Beach, Popsicles, Heat, and Bugs

Voting will end on June 30th at 11:59pm Eastern Time. Results will be revealed on July 1st. All entries are to stay anonymous until the voting has come to an official end. If it is found you break this rule or vote for your own entry, you will be disqualified. If it is revealed you have won, please submit a support ticket to claim your purrks (if applicable) and character art.

፧፧ ❀❀ -ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ- ❀❀ ፧፧

Please take your time reading through each and every entry. :heartbounce: They all have so much heart put into them and deserve all the compliments!

[wolfie]

Greenleaf Bounties - #1

The heat brings in the summer bugs
Hopefully you don’t get a sweaty hug
Riverclan cats will enjoy a nice day in the beach
To Shadowclan, it’s just out of reach

Windclan it’s sunny and fun
Thunderclan they play and run
Green leaf brings heat and herbs
It also brings more birds

Prey will be plentiful
Joy will be bountiful
The clans shall not weep
Greenleaf is always a treat

Greenleaf’s heat will melt away the ice
From leaf-bare spice.
Nothing shall be dead or dull.
For life will be bountiful.

[wolfie]

Drought - #2

Rainpelt let out a groan. "Starclan, why?" she said. This drought had already lasted for five days. What did the clans do wrong for Starclan to punish them like this? Even worse, during the drought, there was blazing heat. It felt as if the sun was raining fire down upon the suffering cats. They were all very thin, because prey was very scarce during greenleaf this time. Not even a rabbit would come out of its burrow, where it was protected from the extreme heat the sun released. Kits were malnourished, queens were running out of milk, and leaders were using up lives left and right. Rainpelt groaned again. She went to the warriors den and layed down. Soon she fell asleep.
A few minutes passed and she opened her eyes. Stars surrounded her. "Am I dead? Is this Starclan?" she exmlaimed, running around frantically. All of a sudden, she was stopped dead in her tracks by a portly tom who just put his paw on her shoulder. "D-dad?" Rainpelt said, looking up at the tom, confused. "Am I -"
"No, my daughter, you're not dead."
"What's going on? Why am I in Starcl-"
Rainpelt started to ask, but couldn't finish. She was awoken by a feeling of something wet on her muzzle.
Drip drop, drip drop
Could it be? Was it... raining? What was that dream all about?
Rainpelt looked to her side. She jumped in surprise. Her father was there... well, was. He disappeared after he winked. Maybe it wasn't a dream..

[wolfie]

The Kings & Queens of WCO - #3

The river lord, king of the beaches,
The queen of storms, loves a good popsicle,
The shadow queen, her temper hot as summer,
And the marchioness of winds, her bugs scattered across the windswept moors.

The River Lord, his grey fur wet, smiles as he and his beloved worm bury each other in the sand,
The queen of storms, her patience melting like popsicles in the sun,
The shadow queen, her claws as fierce as the summer sun,
And the marchioness of winds, the queen of her hive.

The River Lord, returns with sand in his paws,
The Shadow Queen, her passion and rage lights the sky,
The Queen of Storms buries her fallen allies, her spine chills like ice,
And the Marchioness of Winds, bringing food back for her warriors.

Coming home, the four leaders greet each other before returning to their clans.
The oceans welcome the River Lord,
The icicles welcome the Queen of Storms,
The Shadow Queen is welcomed by the embers of her temper,
And the Marchioness is welcomed by her windblown ants.

The Shadows have been led by their Queen for a long while, trusting her bloody judgement,
The Thunder has only recently received their Queen, who helped them brave storms,
The Lord has guided the Rivers for only a short while, though they trust him completely,
And the Marchioness, her hive filled with beetles and butterflies who’d gladly die for her.

The icy Queen of Storms, comes home to see blood in the ground,
The fiery Shadow Queen, watches as her cats betray and harm their clanmates, enraged,
The River Lord worries about the one in his heart, though his clanmates are first,
And the Marchioness of Winds finds her colony a new hive.

The beach king of the waters guides his kin to the sandy ocean tides,
The hot-headed shadow lets her clan burn in the sun,
The storm queen gets her clan ice cream, without chocolate, else they’d die
And the Windy Marchioness, her wasps sting the toxic jerks trying to ruin their fun.

[wolfie]

Heatwave - #4

Content Warning : Death, Emotional Distress, Lava/Fire

Clamstar looked at the clearing. Chuckling to himself as two kits, Briarkit and Dawnkit dashed in. “Father! Father!” Yelped Briarkit as she hobbled in. “Yes dear?” Replied Clamstar, stretching for a moment as he sat up. “Look what I found!” Briarpaw had a shiny Yellow shell in her mouth, holding it carefully like it was a diamond. “Thats amazing Briarkit,” Clamstar chuckled as Dawnkit nodded her head. “It’s amazing! Mom says it’s super rare and were VERY lucky for finding it!” Clamstar looked behind Briarkit and Dawnkit to find Silvertail prancing behind them. With a teary Oceanpaw behind her. “Dearies, lets get out Your fathers den. First kit who makes it back to the Nursery gets to go pick berries with mommy!” Silvertail quickly said, pushing both the kits out of the den. At the sound of berries, Briarkit and Dawnkit hobbled out as quick as you could ever see a kit run.

Clamstar looked confused towards Stressed-out Oceanpaw and Concerned Silvertail. “Whats up? Whats wrong?” Clamstar asked. Before Silvertail could say something, Oceanpaw interrupted in a bundle of tears. “SUNDUST, SEASTRIKE AND BADGERLEAF ARE ALL DEAD! SOMETHING… HOT…. KILLED THEM ALL! THEY TURNED TO NOTHING BUT BONE AND I- LEAFCLAN IS ALL GONE! ITS JUST MOLTEN HOT LAVA AND DEAD CAT SKELETONS!!!! SOMETHING SO… IT WAS JUST MOVING SO FAST I COULDN’T DO ANYTHING!!”

Clamstar got up quickly. “What?!” Clamstar couldn’t believe it. He both sent Sundust, Seastrike, and Badgerleaf out on a patrol with Oceanpaw. So Oceanpaw had one thing right. But Clamstar refused to believe this. “Show me.” He mumbled, Silvertail had tears in her eyes also. “There is no time! We have to evacuate the clan into the water! The Heatwave didn’t touch the water.” Clamstar blinked in surprise. “It probably already reached the rest of the island! We have NO TIME!” Clamstar thought of this. If this was true, his entire clan would be nothing but what Leafclan was now by the time he got back. “Me and Oceanpaw would go. Silvertail gather the clan and get them on the logs. Don’t start moving until me and Oceanpaw are back. If we arn’t back and you see the molten in the camp, then move.” Clamstar said quickly, as he followed Oceanpaw out the den.

By the time Clamstar and Oceanpaw made it back to camp, almost haft the clan were on the logs. The blazing fire was right behind them. “MOVE MOVE MOVE!”

All the cats started moving faster. As they all got on the logs, Clamstars tail was already burning and turning into bone. But he kept going. When he was about to jump on the logs, he realized he left someone behind.. Briarkit! Clamstar turned around and grabbed Briarkit. Her legs were already burning off. His face started burning also. He snatched her up, and threw her onto the logs.

But it was too late. The Heatwave reached the entire island. Clamstar was still on it.

Silvertail, Briarkit, and Dawnkit looked in shock as Clamstar started burning. “Take care of them for me,” He mumbled. “NO! NO! NO!” Dawnkit started crying. Silvertail stood there. In shook. The rest of the clan bowed their heads.

[wolfie]

Tails of Summer - #5

CHAPTER 1
The Hottest Greenleaf

Owlstar awoke, his pelt burning. He padded out the den to find Daisywish, The ThunderClan Medicine Cat, to see if he was sick. But he soon realized that he wasn’t.
When he got out of his den, he was hit with burning air. A heat wave.
He quickly leaped up to the meeting spot. “Let all cats old enough to hunt gather around for a Clan meeting!” Owlstar called. Soon, the Clearing was filled with cats.
“Why must you call us when it is so hot?” A cat called out.
“Yeah! It’s like fire is filling up camp!” Another cat called. Soon, the clan was filled with complaints.
“Quiet!” Owlstar yowled. “The Clan is hot, yes, but it was like this before. We survived then, we’ll survive now.” He said.

CHAPTER 2
THE NIGHT GATHERING

At the Gathering, It was not on a full moon, and it was in the dead of night. The leaders were on their spots.
“Calm down everycat” Said Shellstar, Leader of WindClan.
“As we all know, This greenleaf is hotter than normal.” Said Greenstar, leader of ShadowClan.
“So, to distract everycat, we decided to take a small trip to someplace. Cats will stay behind if they wish to not go, and to defend, but other than that, the clan will go,” Said Bearstar, leader of RiverClan.
“Where are we going?” Asked one of the cats. The leaders looked at each other with amusement.
All together, they said, “The Sun-Drown Place.”

CHAPTER 3
A BEACH DAY FOR THE CLANS

The Clans made it to the Sun-drown place at noon. The kits were playing in the waves, elders relaxing on beaches, and warriors training their apprentices
“Come on and play, Grandpa!” One of the kits called to an elder.
“Grandpa? I’m not grandpa, I’m a badger!” The elder growled playfully, starting to walk to the kits like a badger. The kits squealed happily, running into the water to escape. Everycat was having fun

CHAPTER 4
THE NIGHT LIGHT BUGS

The day passed quickly, and every cat was happy. When night fell, the beach was lit up by lights flying around.
“What’s That?” A kit squeaked. The leaders chuckled
“That is called a Firefly. They light up, making light at night,” Owlstar told the kit.
When fireflies started lighting up the beach, kits gathered around in a circle, jumping to try and get the Fireflies. The elders gathered around and told stories about their clans, and it stayed like that until the sun came up.
“It is time to head back,'' the leaders announced. The kits groaned, but didn’t complain. When they got back, It was all anycat could talk about, and would be for seasons to come.

[wolfie]

Battling Bugs Beneath The Sun - #6

“I’m the leader!”

“No, me!”

“Poppa said that I’d be leader material, not you!”

Goodness gracious, Honeypie thought to herself from where she sat, up on the fencepost with her tail carefully curled around her paws. Down in the backyard of her home, her three rambunctious kittens bickered back and forth. No different than any other day, though.

The fluffy, golden-furred molly rolled her forest green eyes, instead shifting her attention to the land beyond her owner’s fences. She often found herself waiting here, big green eyes peering out into the vast unknown, waiting for the brown tabby that had stolen her heart. Her love, and the father of her kits–Ambersand.

“Bug! Ew, bugbugbug–!” The shrill, high-pitched shriek of her daughter–Sunflower– interrupted her thoughts. “Flick, get it! Please! Ewie!”

Sunflower was the spitting image of her mother. She was a small, talkative little she-cat who had a love for the outdoors, but a strong hatred and disgust for bugs. Despite constantly insisting on venturing out into the nearly unbearable heat outside, she always ended up being the first to beg and plead to go back inside because of… Creepy crawlies.

From this distance, Honeypie couldn’t tell what type of bug it was, but it sure did frighten her daughter. Sunflower had sprung up, her tail flared out with the fur on her back standing on end, and as soon as her paws hit the ground once more, she was scampering behind her brother.

Flick, Honeypie’s middle child, was a brown tabby tom who was shaping up to be quite similar to his father. He was quick to defend his sister, pouncing on the horrid bug and flinging it elsewhere into a nearby bush using one of his claws.

“Atta boy,” Honeypie laughed, watching as her son stood up tall, chest puffed out pridefully.

An irritated scoff came from her last kitten, her sweet eldest child, Skip. He was a small, shrimpy little ginger tabby with brown eyes and a mean vocabulary fit for an old, grumpy siamese. “It was just some bug! Anyone could’a done that, even mumma!”

Okay, maybe he wasn’t the sweetest all of the time–he definitely had his mother’s attitude. It was cute, though, even when he was being a little brat.

“Well, I didn’t see you coming to rescue Sunny.”

“Well, she’s hiding behind me, so I’m protectin’er!”

The boys began to bicker, again, and Honeypie scoffed good-naturedly. She was just about to turn to look back to the forest once again, but a sudden scrabbling against the wooden fence caused her to stiffen. It was a familiar sound, but she hadn’t been expecting it– she was distracted!

A blur of brown fur leapt up and onto the fence before he was on the grass within her owner’s garden.

“You two aren’t arguin’, are ya?” The tom questioned, which immediately shut down the argument as a whole.

A series of excited ‘poppa!’s erupted from the garden, cheerful meows causing a purr of delight to rumble within Honeypie’s chest. Although the family couldn’t always be together, the moments that they were, were the highlights in Honeypie’s life. Seeing her kittens bombarding their father with questions and excited squeaks– yeah, this was it.

It made waiting underneath the scorching sun and battling bugs worth it.

[wolfie]

Split Asunder - #7

It was funny. How the pitter-patter of rainfall was constantly taken for granted. No one seemed to recognize what rain did for the economy. It gave life to plants, supplied water to the thirsty. Sometimes the rain was even drastically overlooked. Sometimes it was the cause for a kitten’s pensive sighs. The cause for a picnicking family to pack up all they’d brought out and head back to their home.

But on rarer occasions, it was a cause for jubilation.

When the sky split asunder and let loose its downpour, weeping for the world to see, the sight brought joy. As now, watching thunder reverberate across the grey-blue landscape of sky and rain pour in heaps, a small charcoal bengal’s expression shifted. Shifted from withdrawn and introspective to undiluted, expressive joy.

For a youngster who was constantly bickering and hissing and spitting and moody, this was a different side of coin. One not meant to be seen by the unwelcome. Hazel-coloured eyes sparkled in their own right, and with a carefree laugh that was meant for the ears of no soul but herself, the tall-for-her-age molly spirited across the sand and down the beach, scattering seagulls in her wake.

Oh, how she loved it all. The sea, with its swell of waves rising higher and growing choppier by the moment. The sand, growing dense and squishy beneath her paws as the rain battered against the ground. The beach, with its salty air and whipping wind. The sky, with its dark coloring and angry lighting.

She belonged here,

besides the rough, uncontrollable sea.

She belonged here,

beneath the thunderous open sky.

She belonged here,

upon the welcoming sand.

There was no other home than the beach she was born on.

Home, with her large, loving, rough-tumble, rowdy lot of a family.

Home, with the days spent exploring and the nights lain awake charting stars.

Home, where she belonged like no place other.

[wolfie]

WhisperClan - #8

The greenleaf heat was unbearable. Even the tunnels of their camp couldn’t cool WhisperClans’ pelts.

Smallpelt woke with a groan, his long fur making the temperature even more unbearable. Ryefoot had already organized a dawn patrol, judging by the empty nests. He stretched and padded out into the main area.

“Smallpelt, just who I was looking for!” The tom heard a call. It was Luckbreeze, one of the clan’s medicine cats. “I’m going out to look for horsetail. Come with me, Glass is already waiting for us.”

The patrol moved towards the river separating WhisperClan from GorseClan. Although the two clans were at war there was an agreement that the river was neutral territory.

Glass broke off from the patrol the moment they reached the river, carefully stepping into the stream and sighing contentedly. “Is the water nice?” Luckbreeze asked with a small smirk.

Smallpelt chuckled, “You weren’t going out for horsetail at all, were you?”

Luckbreeze spluttered for a second. “I was! I just thought this could be a nice break from the heat!”

“It is, thank you.” Glass swiftly stopped the other two from bickering further. The tom hesitated, pawing at the water beneath himself, before asking, “Will it be alright? I mean- you’re the medicine cat, what if someone gets hurt while we’re out here relaxing?”

Smallpelt looks curiously at Luckbreeze. Glass’s question was certainly an important one, and Smallpelt would hate if yet another cat got hurt in their already small clan.

Luckbreeze gently smiled at the two toms as she explained her reasoning, “We have Brownfoot now. Sure, he’s old, but he is a medicine cat. He can deal with the mess for a while.” Then the she-cat cackled as she leaped into the river.

Smallpelt laughed as Glass started complaining about the splashing. It was nice to take a break from the hustle and bustle of clan life. It seemed as if cats came and went as quickly as the moons did. Some moons ago Luckbreeze’s kin had been killed, yet here she was, enjoying the refreshing river. Meanwhile Smallpelt was still caught up on who they’d lost. He didn’t want to bring down the mood, so he settled into the shade of a tree, contentedly watching as the young she-cat teased the older tom about his potential relationship with some WishClan cat.

Smallpelt felt his eyes slip shut as the temperature felt just right. “Ack!” He jolted awake from a mosquito bite. He desperately scratched at it before running to join his clanmates as the swarm of mosquitos descended on him.

The tom was greeted with laughter. He sighed miserably as he swished his tail to chase away the bugs, the other two having to do the same now that Smallpelt had brought the things over. Between murrows of laughter Luckbreeze managed to excitedly share, “Smallpelt, Smallpelt, I think that was a prophecy!”

The two warriors looked at her with surprise. “Really? What does it mean?” Smallpelt asked.

“That- That you’re going to jump into the river!” The she-cat descended into laughter once more as Glass joined her again. Smallpelt shook his head fondly, before joining in on the laughter.

They didn’t get much done that day. Maybe the real horsetails they’d been looking for was the break from their work all along.

[wolfie]

Bugs & Dragonflies - #9

Striding down the heavily trodden path, Flashflame let her keen gaze travel her surroundings. It was no surprise that, only moments later, she focused on a flash of brown fur scuttling along the dirt. Immediately upon spotting the prey, the warrior flicked her fluffy tail to the side where her apprentice—

—was not. She breathed a frustrated sigh through her nose, already turning on her paws to begin the grueling task of regaining her absent-minded apprentice.

Her apprentice was actually incredibly loud, so finding him along the sandy beach of their territory was easier than anticipated. What she found upon locating him made her want to tumble her way to the elders' den. She was way too tired for this.

Bugs. Of course, the bugs that he just adored to no end. While Flashflame would admit that dragonflies were pretty colors, she wouldn't chase them around like a kit out of the nursery for the first time, nor would she be giggling and running after them like there was no tomorrow. If only he spent that energy on hunting.

"Pricklepaw!"

It was not her intent to shout, and it certainly wasn't to startle the young tom, unfortunately for her, however, she failed on both accounts. It was also not her intent for the apprentice to fall face-first into the sand from his shock, and she made sure to clear any trace of amusement from her mind before ambling toward him.

Flashflame was an incredibly responsible warrior, and this was not acceptable behavior. She cared deeply for the young apprentice already, quickly taking a liking to his energy, even if it contrasted with hers on every level and at times annoyed her; it was refreshing. The fact that she cared was the exact reason that she was already formulating an entire lecture for him. It was her job to teach him, after all, no matter his displeasure with the speeches.

Proving his discontent with talks, or perhaps just allowing his mind to slip once more, he spoke before she could, his gaze nervously traveling over the beach. "Sorry, Flashflame! I know that I get distracted really easily, but—" He cut himself off, his attention shifting and focusing on something to their right. "You can lecture me all you want, just —what is that?" Clambering to his paws, he motioned over to the area he had previously eyed with his tail.

She suspected it was another bug. What she didn't expect, however, was a distinct, vibrant color atop the sand. Her mind immediately went to the idea that whatever it was most likely broke some sort of unspoken warrior rule and that Starclan help her if they took another detour, she was going to—

Steeling herself and preparing to put down the metaphorical paw, she looked into his hopeful golden eyes, a simple no already falling from her maw. But he was already gone, investigating.

And that, simply put, is how she ended up crouched by strange melting green ice, trying to stop herself from licking the sugar-like substance, which she found she loved and Pricklepaw hated. Starclan save her.

[wolfie]

Walk to The Beach - #10

In the world of warrior cats, the heat of summer could be brutal. The cats of Thunderclan were no exception. As the sun beat down on the forest, the cats sought relief from the heat in any way they could. Some found refuge in the shade of the trees, while others went to the nearby river to cool off. But one young warrior named Goldenpaw had a different idea. Goldenpaw had always been fond of the beach. Even though it was a bit of a journey to get there, he loved the feel of the sand between his paws and the sound of the waves crashing against the shore. One particularly hot day, Goldenpaw decided to take a walk to the beach. As he walked along the sandy shore, he noticed a group of young kits playing in the sand. . As he sat with the kits, Goldenpaw noticed a swarm of bugs buzzing around them. The kits were getting bitten and were getting uncomfortable. Goldenpaw knew he had to do something, so he quickly dug a hole in the sand and filled it with water. The bugs were attracted to the water, and the kits were able to play without any further distractions. Goldenpaw had saved the day and had made some new friends in the process. From that day forward, the beach became a regular destination for Goldenpaw and his new kit friends. They would spend their days playing in the sand, and cooling off in the water. Goldenpaw had found a new way to beat the heat and had created some wonderful memories in the process.

[wolfie]

Confession - #11

Beegrub ran towards the beach, stopping once he saw that Eagleslash hadn’t followed.

“C’mon, we’re gonna be late!” he mewed indignantly.

“I’m coming, I’m coming” his companion replied.

“Good, because I did a lot of work to sneak you in and I don’t want it going to waste. Now move your tail!” Everything had to be perfect tonight. Beegrub was going to ask Eagleslash to be his mate. He was most certainly not nervous. Beegrub was a catch! Everyone wanted him. He was the strongest and handsomest and fastest cat in Riverclan. There was almost no chance Eagleslash would say no! But his mind kept wandering to the teeny-tiny, almost non-existent chance Eagleslash would say no. Maybe an inter-clan romance would be too much for him. Or maybe Beegrub wouldn’t be enough.

Shaking the thought from his head, Beegrub stopped at a rock. “Aha, here it is.”

“I still don’t know why we couldn’t have watched it from somewhere else. The sunset is the same from everywhere in the forest.” Eagleslash complained.

“No it isn’t! It’s more special from the beach. You Windclan cats wouldn’t know.” Beegrub looked around the rock. He had hidden a nice shell, shiny and off white, nearby. He wasn’t sure how cats courted in Windclan but a nice gift couldn’t hurt his chances. Now if he could only find it.

“You Riverclan cats are only jealous we don’t have to worry about getting wet!” Eagleslash mewed with a smile.

“Hmph! I’ll have you know we love the water!”

“Really?”

“Of course! It’s in our blood!” Beegrub replied. He bristled as cold water hit his fur. Eagleslash had splashed him!

“It’s on!” Beegrub shrieked, splashing Eagleslash back. They splashed around in the water for a bit, sunsets and shells completely forgotten.

“Whoa” Eagleslash said, stopping his attack. “You weren’t kidding about the beach.” He turned to watch as the sun dipped low in the sky, turning it a deep reddish orange. Beegrub sat next to him, watching the awed look on Eagleslashs face. He looked away, fur growing hot as he thought of what to say.

“You and I are…friends, right?”

“Yeah, why?”

“Well, I was thinking…what if we were…something else?”

“What, like enemies?”

“What? No! I-” Beegrub turned to assure Eagleslash of his loyalty and saw the smirk on his beloved’s face.

“Do you want to be mates, Beegrub?” Eagleslash said, revealing the shell Beegrub had been unable to find under his paw.

“Yes!”

[wolfie]

Popsicle - #12

Mallowray stretched and yawned as she ventured out of her den in CoveClan, batting at a gnat as she walked. As she made her way towards the center of the camp, Sealionstar summoned her with a flick of her tail, along with Sharkstalker and Tinyrunner.
"Beach patrol today," Sealionstar announced, her tone stern. "Stay alert, and keep your eyes peeled for any danger." She was referring mostly to Sandwalkers. Tall creatures who walked on two legs and could sometimes be found on the beach.
The trio nodded, and together they left the cave and were off in the direction of the beach. The sun was high in the sky as they padded through the warm sand.
Sharkstalker's nose twitched as they neared a patch of shallow water. "Jellyfish," he snorted.
Tinyrunner's ears flattened against his head, his eyes wide with fear. "We should stay away," he squeaked.
But Mallowray was curious. Carefully edging closer to the water, she nudged one of the jellyfish with her paw. It quivered before pulsating away from her touch. She brought her paw quickly out of the water, shaking it off.
"He’s right," Sharkstalker growled to Mallowray. "Stay away from these things. They could give you a nasty sting."
Continuing on their patrol, Sharkstalker spied a seagull pecking at a crab nearby. Swiftly towering over it, they subdued it before bounding back towards their cave.
Upon returning to camp, Sharkstalker put the seagull in the prey pile and sat down.
Tinyrunner reported something to Sealionstar: "I smelled a fresh Sandwalker near the beach earlier."
Mallowray shook her head dismissively; there was no interest among them in a Sandwalker’s presence.
They left again, however, at Sealionstar’s command. Although Mallowray and Sharkstalker weren’t interested in the scent, their leader had sent them all back out to find the source. They walked along the beach. Just before the sun began to set, Mallowray perked up at a strange scent emanating from what appeared to be some kind of colorful icicle on the sand nearby.
"What is this?" Sharkstalker wondered aloud as he sniffed at it.
Tinyrunner trembled beside him. "It's something the Sandwalkers call a popsicle! But be careful, it doesn’t seem safe!"
Intrigued, Mallowray took a small lick of the ice treat and pondered its sweet taste. Next to her, Tinyrunner made a noise, irritated that Mallowray had directly gone against his advice.
Suddenly, they were startled by the sound of a Sandwalker’s cries. A young female Sandwalker shouted after spotting them eating her lost popsicle and her mother gave chase.
The three cats hurtled back towards their cave in alarm and Sealionstar questioned them sharply upon their panicked return.
"We caught a seagull our first time out," Sharkstalker reported proudly.
"We also came across some jellyfish our first time out," Mallowray noted between nervous breaths. She tried to avoid the subject of the patrol being chased by a Sandwalker. After hesitating for a moment, she admitted, "And then we ate something the Sandwalkers called a ‘popsicle.’" The word sounded strange and unfamiliar on Mallowray‘s tongue.
All Sealionstar could do was sigh at their naivety. The three padded off to the warrior den. They curled up to rest for the night, all silently deciding that next time a Sandwalker left some food behind, they’d simply ignore it.