Chapter 1: There must always be love
Sandfeather trotted through the territory looking for some prey. So far, no avail. New-leaf isn't always kind to the clan cats. Suddenly she heard a noise. Louder then a mouse's feet and softer then a vole's. She sniffed quietly. Riverclan? How could Riverclan get all the way up to Thunderclan? Did they sneak by the Windclan border? Never the less Sandfeather had to kick him out. She sneaked up to the tom. He was all black except for the the white back paw, it was the RiverClan warrior Darkstream. She hopped out in front of him. "What are you doing on ThunderClan territory?" Sandfeather spat.
"I've come to talk to Smokestar." Darkstream said solemnly.
"Then i shall take you too him." Sandfeather said, still not trusting him.
As they were walking she sensed something from him. It was familiar and yet very unknown to her. It was a sense of comfort? Probably not. Was it calm? Definettly not. Was it happy? Why would that be? All of a sudden his sense went from happy,comfort, and calm to fear and hostility.
"What's wrong?" Sandfeather pressed.
But Darkstream had stopped dead in his paw tracks. Sandfeather could tell he wanted her to shut up. She smelled the air, fox! Five of them, new. They were heading towards the camp. The two ran off and into the camp.
Sandfeather saw Smokestar in the middle of the camp tackling three foxes. Rainfeather was guarding the queens den. The medicine cat, Ashwind, tried to get the three foxes off her leader with Graytail at her side shouting "Brother!". The other five warriors were either guarding the elders den or fighting the other two foxes. Sandfeather lunged at the three foxes crowding Smokestar. She jumped on one foxes red back and dug her claws in deep. It got distracted by her and snapped at her face but it recoiled, Sandfeather saw Darkstream slashing the foxes face. He dove for the fox's neck but the fox leaned in to bite HIS neck. Sandfeather reached out and slashed the foxes eyes. She bit down into the fox's scruff and pulled back very hard. Darkstream slashed it's throat and the fox quivered and fell dead to the ground. As Sandfeather dove for another fox off in the distance another fox that was crowding Smokestar bit her back and threw her into the air. She limply fell to the ground and didn't move.
Darkstream hissed bitterly and jumped on the attacking fox. He bit the fox's tail and jumped onto his back. He scoured it's pelt viciously. Nobody was helping. Sandfeather hardly could stand but she was just under the fox...she rolled on her back and scarred the fox's stomach and it retched as it fell down and Darkstream pierced it's throat. The other foxes could smell the blood and their dead pack memebers. Two foxes came out and grabbed the fox pelts as the other one ran off with the other two foxes trailing behind. Darkstream and Sandfeather ran over to Smokestar. "Smokestar!"
"Ashwind? Is he going to be fine? Did he loose a life?"
Ashwind knelt down to her brother and felt nothing. "I'm guessing t..." she stopped as she noticed Darkstream. "Darkstream? A riverclan cat on our territory huh? Sandfeather, why'd you let him in the camp!" Ashwind snapped.
"I came to talk with Smokestar!" Darkstream argued. A cat jumped on his pelt, Thornheart. Sandfeather gripped onto Thornheart. She clawed him as Darkstream squirmed. Finally Thornheart popped off. "What's your problem Sandfeather, he's an intruder!" "No he's no he needed to talk to Smokestar. Not his fault Silverstar sent him!"
Smokestar rose. He had heard everything. "Darkstream follow me." Smokestar said walking up to his den. Thornheart and Ashwind glared at Sandfeather as they walked away. "Sandfeather? What has happened? Why would you defend a Riverclan cat?" Thornheart spat. "He had no reason for scars that weren't from a fox."
"Why would he get fox scars?" Ashwind questioned.
"He fought a fox that was trying to kill Smokestar. He saved my life twice in one battle of foxes."
"How?"
"The foxes tried to kill me twice!"
"Well there were two other foxes trying to kill Smokestar."
"Thornheart, you had one of them and Ashwind was tearing one apart into pieces."
Ashwind looked sympathizing. But Thornheart swore under his breath and walked away with fury, you could smell it on his pelt. Ashwind licked Sandfeathers wounds and walked off, not revealing her feelings. Sandfeather darted over to the Queen's den. Her mother was in there! She saw Rainfeather gasping for breath. "ASHWIND!" Ashwind darted over as fast as possible many herbs trailed in her mouth. Rainwhisker had been badly scared. Sandfeather made her way farther into the den, her mother breathing heavily. "Daisyfoot?"
Daisyfoot gasped again and looked up. "Sandfeather?"
"mom..." Sandfeather said quietly. She licked her mother's head. She had a scar on her stomach but it looked very minor. "Daisyfoot, what happened?" He tried to get the kits. I clawed him on the muzzle but he bit my shoulder, that's how Rainfeather was hurt. She took him on to protect me." Daisyfoot said.
"What about the kits."
Daisyfoot swished her tail over her paws and Sandfeathers baby siblings whined on the floor of the den. Sandfeater licked briskly at her sister, Lillykit. Daisyfoot licked at her son Briarkit and her daughter Tanglekit. "Where's your father?" Daisyfoot asked when she had put the kits to her belly. "First, where's Misycloud?"
"NO!!" It was Mistycloud's exasperated cry. Sandfeather went to where Mistycloud was hovering over Rainfeather, her sister. The wail brought out Smokestar and Darkstream, especially Cloudysky, the Mistycloud and Rainfeather's mother, from the elders den. Whitetree, Mistycloud's mate, ran over to her. Ashwind was soothing Mistycloud.
"What in Starclan happened?" Smokestar demanded. Daisyfoot came closer to the incident, her three kits following feebly. "Rainfeather died saving my kits." Daisyfoot hissed angrily at herself. All the cats looked at her. Tanglekit gasped and whined, but Daisyfoot comfortingly licked the kit's head. "Is that true?" Smokestar asked.
"Yes." She said showing her bite mark on her shoulder. Suddenly Mistycloud gasped loudly. Whitetree nosed her saying "what's happening?"
"the kits..." she said wearily falling down. Ashwind started rushing about having the warriors fetching her supplies. Mistycloud was in pain, she just HAD to live. Sandfeather knelt next to Whitetree licking her face to calm her and cool her down. Soon four kits suckled on Mistycloud's milk. One looked familiar. Rainfeather's gray pelt with it's white paws and silver tail glowed in the light of the sun and the sun touched one kits pelt. The kit was identical to Rainfeather. "That is Rainkit. She looks exactly like Rainfeather."
Smokestar looked at his paws. "Sandfeather come to my den." Smokestar said walking away, he nodded at Ashwind to follow him too. They both followed him into his den.
"Ashwind you know as well as i do that this only has happened once. In almost the exact same way."
Ashwind starred at the floor of the den. "Why do we need to tell Sandfeather though?"
"Because she is part of it."
"what do you mean? What are you talking about?"
"Your part of it because your Ashwind's half-sister."
Ashwind looked at Sandfeather, "Same father."
"But I don't even know who my father is."
"The tabby rogue your mother fell in love with thrice. Scared. He just died before the kits birth."
Sandfeather looked at Ashwind. "Who was your mother."
Ashwind and Smokestar exchanged glances. "Grayflight. My grandmother was Silentstorm. Silentstorm's mother was...Cinderfur. Otherwise known as Cinderpelt. A past Medicine Cat of Thunderclan. The medicine cat who survived the travel to the new territory." Ashwind said. Sandfeather's eyes widened. Every clan cat had been told of Cinderpelt. Apparently only Smokestar and Ashwind knew about Cinderfur being Cinderpelt's reincarnation.
"The same thing happened to Cinderpelt. Starclan told her she would die. It's very hard to understand so many years later, but the day she died a she-cat's kits, Sorreltail's kits, were born. One was gray just like Cinderpelt. They named her Cinderpelt. Starclan gave Cinderpelt a new life, because, as you know, Cinderpelt had never been a warrior. We are trying to figure out why Rainfeather would be reincarnated."
"She did loose the ability to hear."
"Yes, but so have many cat's in the past, they never were reincarnated."
"But think," Sandfeather said "She lost hearing saving her brother all those moons ago. She lost hearing as an apprentice. Halfway through her life. I remember, i was there. Whitestar had her become an elder early, with an early warrior name she never could hear."
The leader and medicine cat gazed at her. "Starclan's letting her live her life as warrior again."
"Exactly" Sandfeather concluded.
...
Sandfeather escorted Darkstream out of the camp. "Why did Silverstar bring you here anyway?"
"I shouldn't tell you... but she brought me here to see if Smokestar would help her attack Windclan."
"WINDCLAN?"
"Yes, because they've been stealing prey and trying to steal territory ever since the last gathering."
"Right." Sandfeather said quietly. She remembered the day she had to ward off Windclan only seven suns ago. They had tried to steal the territory over the stream.
The two walked quitely and suddenly Darkstream stopped near the border. "Sandfeather..."
"What?"
"Meet me at the Moonpool tonight."
"Why?!"
"Just meet me there. I would tell you more but i need to get back to camp!" Darkstream didn't wait for an answer as he ran over the Windclan border and ran along the lake and down to Riverclan. Sandfeather had a feeling in her gut what was this strange and foreign feeling?