B) Reply with "Why not? They won't even notice we're gone," and investigate

"Why not? They won't even notice we're gone," you say.

Together, you and Eveningpaw sneak off, dropping back behind the patrol and hurrying away. As the patrol drops out of sight behind you, you wonder how long it will be before they notice you are gone.

Tasting the air, you and your littermate race off towards the odd scent. As the scent grows stronger, you wonder what it could possibly be. (What do you think it is? Comment here before reading on —>)

You backtrack through the forest until you reach what appears to be the source of the unfamiliar scent. There is a thick line of bushes surrounding where the scent originates from. You search the perimeter until you find a gap just large enough for each of you to enter  single file. "Here!" you whisper to Eveningpaw.

Eveningpaw begins crawling through the gap in front of you, and you follow close behind. As you pad through the tunnel, you are amazed to see that its walls seemed to be shaped expertly by what looks like someone's paws. You also notice a few clumps of snagged orange fur caught on stray twigs.

You are startled out of your admiration by a short, strangled cry coming from up ahead. You recognize it as Eveningpaw. You dart forward, fear surging through your veins.

You burst out into a small clearing. You see piles of rotting berries and herbs dotted throughout the clearing, but what startles you most is Eveningpaw. You gasp in shock upon seeing him, unsure if he is alive or dead. You cant tell if the bright red liquid coating his fur is blood or berry juice.

You glimpse movement out of the corner of your eye and see a shadow leap forward, tackling you to the ground. The last thing you feel is long, thick fur wrapping around you before everything goes black.

***

You awaken to find yourself the medicine den. You look around to see Goldenheart sorting herbs and Dawnpaw sitting by your side. You jolt upright, still unsure what is going on, but Dawnpaw pushes you back down into the soft nest. "You need rest," she said with the practiced patience of a medicine cat. She was always the calmest of your littermates. "You've been through quite a lot."

Settling back into your nest, you are relieved when she doesn't leave your side. "What happened? How did we get back?" you prod, hoping for answers.

"Morningstar found you. Sounds like you ran off on the dawn patrol. She tracked your scent to some clearing. You seem to have gotten attacked," she replied.

You nod, satisfied with the answer. You look around and see that the nest beside you is empty. "Where is Eveningpaw?" you ask, panic rising in your voice.

Dawnpaw replied humorously, "You know our brother, never able to keep still. He woke up a while ago."

You nod again, and the two of you fall into a comfortable silence. Before long, however, you hear a loud commotion coming from outside. Goldenheart and Dawnpaw leave the den to go see what was happening, and you limp after them.

Outside, you see Morningstar sitting atop Highrock, trying to calm down the clan, which was in a frenzy. Pinethorn, the deputy, sat at the base of the rock, attempting the same. Everyone seems to be shouting over one another, so you are unable to determine what the problem was.

"Silence!" Morningstar suddenly yowls, and the clan obeys. "Eveningpaw, tell us exactly what you saw."

Eveningpaw somehow looks both nervous and confident at the same time. "Well," he begins, "I saw several piles of weird berries everywhere, and I think they were rotting. There might have been some bushes or vines in the clearing, but I'm not sure. Then, suddenly, a shadowy cat with long fur jumps out of nowhere and attacks me!"

"Just a young apprentice looking for attention," Hazelspark calls out, and once again, a furious discussion ensues.

"No! You have to believe me! Tell them, Kestrelpaw! Tell them what you saw!" Eveningpaw yowls indignantly.

The clan falls silent once more, and you feel all eyes turn to you. You shuffle forward a few steps nervously. Slowly, you mew, "I saw the berries, too, and they were definitely rotten. I don't know about the vines. Mostly I was just distracted by Eveningpaw being unconscious. By the time the shadowy cat got to me, they were just a blur. They had long fur, though. I know that. I... I also remember in the tunnel I saw a few clumps of long orange fur that had gotten snagged on the twigs, but... That's all I remember."

Again, the clan begins to discuss over one another, but a few voices stand out over the others. "Darkheart has long dark fur! It must have been her!" Sunleap called out.

"It wasn't me!" Darkheart cried indignantly. "Turtleblaze has black and orange fur!"

Breezeblaze whispered nervously in defense of her sister, "Turtleblaze would never."

"Morningstar has long orange fur! Besides, she knew where to look for the apprentices!" Feathersnap mewed, angry as ever at Morningstar.

"But Goldenheart has long fur, too! She knows so much about herbs that it must be her!" Breezeblaze exclaimed.

"Yeah, and her apprentice Dawnpaw has long orange fur!" Snowpaw agreed.

Dewpetal looked shocked as she mewed, "Our medicine cat would never do anything to harm our clan or our young."

"What if it's a cat from another clan? They were near the RiverClan border! What if we're under attack?" Fluttersky exclaimed, startled. She glanced back, terrified, towards her kit who was safe by the nursery.

Pinethorn stepped forward, and the clan fell silent. He turned to you and said, "Kestrelpaw, you were there. Who do you think attacked you?"

Hehehe you must now accuse a cat of attacking you. I also discovered how hard it is to write an argument when about 2/3 of the cats have the "quiet" description. Ah, well. You gave me a challenge.
It would be very helpful for anyone who submitted a cat to tell me whether you want your cat to be on Morningstar's side or not. It's fine if you want me to decide, too. Why don't you do that here ———>
Also, do not expect such quick updates in the future. I wrote this before the previous part came out, but I don't have anything else written yet.

Who attacked you?
A) Darkheart fits the glimpsed description of your attacker and is an excellent fighter but has no knowledge of herbs.
B) Turtleblaze has both black and orange fur but has short fur.
C) Morningstar has rumors about her already. She has long orange fur and was able to find you, but she was on the dawn patrol at the time and is your mentor.
D) Goldenheart has long fur and extensive knowledge of herbs but almost no fighting experience. Dawnpaw could be involved and could provide the long orange fur clumps you saw in the tunnel, but she was asleep at the time, and she is your sister.
E) It could be a cat from another clan. You were near the RiverClan border, and their strange, fishy scent could have been covered up by the rotten berries. However, it is unlikely that they could have slipped past the border so easily undetected.
Voting chain ———>

Consequences of your previous choice:
Health -10
Loyalty -5