At Dawnstar's Request
 

After dropping the kit back off in the Shadowclan nursery, Elmshadow padded through the clearing. The dawn light was still weak and the air held a refreshing crispness. He was on a mission this time around but he could still use this as the relaxing walk he'd attempted to get last night before he was interrupted by the fiasco of catching Silentwhisper with Pigeonkit and then the chase through the forest, ultimately ending in Elmshadow being forced to kill his own clanmate. He had no qualms about killing but he never wanted to have to kill a fellow Shadowclan warrior. He let the night's events replay through his mind once more. Again, he could find no other way to have handled the situation and Silentwhisper's actions still made no logical sense to him. He shrugged and focused on the forest around him.

By the time he crossed the border and found Silentwhisper's body, the sun was rising higher and warmer. He looked around, thinking through his plan. He could find a spot far enough outside of clan boundaries to try to avoid drawing the attention of any other clan cats or tempting predators to come close. He grabbed the warrior's cold, stiffening scruff and hoisted him unceremoniously onto his back. He walked quickly, heading straight out away from the border until he found a spot beside a small creek with soft, moist dirt. He dropped the body onto the ground and quickly dug a rough, shallow hole. He threw Silentwhisper's body into the hole and kicked dirt over it.

He panted lightly as he looked down at his work. It was good enough. It was only a very shallow grave so there'd likely be a predator that dug it up but hopefully that would keep the scent down enough to avoid drawing any more predators into the area. He turned and ran back to the familiarity of Shadowclan territory. Inside the borders, he slowed his pace to enjoy his time out in the open. He stopped in a sunny clearing to groom the scent of death and dirt from his pelt before heading directly back to camp. If he was lucky, the camp would be quiet enough that he could sneak in a short nap.