By: Skylar H. (Sunray)
And Jenny S. (Slasheye)
Chapter 1: From Blood to Shadow
Oh, it was a hard life, living in twolegplace; but Slasheye was strong. She was one of the best hunters. Well, not exactly a hunter. Live prey was scarce, and Bloodclan was in disarray after Scourge was killed. The battle with the forest clans took many lives, but it was still tough for cats to search through twoleg rubbish to find something to eat. Who cares if it tastes bad? "If only WE had won that battle, we would have the forest full of rich, live prey!" She thought, throwing aside a HERSHEYS wrapper. "I can't even remember the last time I had a mouse." Her stomach grumbled.
Her ears suddenly perked up. There was a new scent in the air. Bone! "Oh, Bone, you came back!" She rushed up to him, purring loudly.
"I'm sorry I couldn't come sooner, those stupid kits (the apprentices) chased me off in the battle towards the soft kittypet nests. I felt like a lost kit." He hissed.
"Thorn, come here Thorn!" Slasheye called softly. A little black and white kit ran up on short legs.
"Bone!" Thorn yelled gleefully.
"Is it just me, or did she get bigger?" Bone asked Slasheye, while dangling the tip of his tail temptingly in Thorn's face.
"Yes, but remember, you haven't seen her for 2 moons." meowed Slaheye.
"Of course," he winced as Thorn bit down hard on his tail.
"Yuck," said Thorn as she spat out her father's tail. "Bone, you taste like mouse bile."
"Of course I taste like mouse bile, I was living in a twoleg dump until I cornered a kittypet and made it tell me how to get back here."
"Oh. Hey, Slasheye? Can I take a nap? I'm getting kinda sleepy, and you said you'd take me on a night hunt. I wanna get some sleep so I can stay up late," Thorn said, yawning.
"All right."
"Bone, are you hungry?" meowed Slaheye inquisitively.
"I could eat a twoleg."
"All right, do you want to go hunting?"
"Sure."
"Thorn will be fine, we'll surprise her when she wakes up."
"Why do we have to hunt so close to their border?" Bone asked.
"Because there's more live prey here."
Bone's ears shot up. "What was that?"
"I heard it too." Slasheye hissed. "Shush."
Six cats shot out of a nearby bush. "Intruders!"
"I know you!" Slasheye stammered, "You're from Bloodclan!"
"Bloodclan is gone;" said one of them, who looked like the leader, "we've stared to make a new life here, and you're in our territory." All of a sudden the loners jumped on them, screeching and spitting.
"Bone!" Slasheye screeched; Bone was lying on the ground, his throat torn. Slasheye rushed over to him.
"Slasheye, take care of our kit," Bone said hoarsely.
"Bone, don't leave me!" Slasheye screeched. The other cats stood, waiting for Slasheye to turn.
"I love you, Slasheye," Bone's eyes clouded over.
"NO!" Slasheye crumpled to the ground. Three of the cats quickly leapt on her. Then it was all over.
"Russetfur, why are we here?" Littlecloud asked. Russetfur had been escorting Littlecloud while Littlecloud was gathering herbs.
"I heard someone screech. Can't you smell blood?"
Littlecloud's fur bristled. "And there's the smell of death."
When they reached the clearing, it was a sad sight to see; fur and blood was splattered all over, and three cats lay there, dead.
"Look! One's still breathing!" Russetfur ran towards the cat and sniffed it. Its fur was bloody and torn, but the chest was heaving up and down. "It's a she-cat."
"Let's take her back to camp so I can treat her wounds."
"Are you mad? Blackstar would have our pelts!"
"Would you leave her to die?" Littlecloud's eyes bored into her.
"Oh, all right. I'll get her scruff." The two cats then carried her back to camp, where Russetfur took off to find Blackstar.
"What? You brought a complete stranger to our camp?" Blackstar hissed.
"Blackstar," Russetfur meowed, "Littlecloud wouldn't leave her, and she was in our territory."
"I don't care, you're becoming as soft as Firestar, Russetfur." Blackstar spat.
"Littlecloud's the one who brought her in; go hiss at him."
"You don't think I won't? Just wait." With this, Blackstar stepped out of the den and headed towards the medicine den. He tasted the air, "Why is Boulder's scent here?" He entered the den to find Boulder and Littlecloud standing over a bloody mass of brown and black fur. "Boulder, why are you here?"
When Boulder turned around, Blackstar could see unending pain and suffering.
"She's my sister."
Blackstar stood stiff, though Russetfur and Littlecloud just stared.
"I know we don't look alike, but she is my sister."
"Boulder, was she in Bloodclan with you?" Blackstar asked.
"Yes. She jumped on Scourge when she was just old enough to be an apprentice, and he clawed her eye, but before that she was just Slash. When he exiled us from Bloodclan, he said MY name must be changed, as well. My name was Hare, but my mother re-named me Boulder. I guess it worked, because Hare- is a Windclan cat's name."
"Why did she jump on him?" Russetfur cocked her head.
"Scourge said he was going to...to..."
"What?"
"To think of us as if we weren't his kits, even though he was our father. When I heard Firestar had killed him, I envied Firestar. To kill Scourge was my lifelong goal. "
"Scourge was your father, and he exiled you!"
"Yes."
Slasheye stirred. "Thorn...Thorn..." she mewed.
"What is she saying, Littlecloud?" Blackstar asked.
""Thorn", but I checked her pelt. There aren't any thorns."
"Wait, she's saying it like a name. Boulder, do you know of anyone named Thorn?" meowed Blackstar.
"Wait...Yes! She named her kit Thorn. She must have left Thorn behind. Littlecloud, can you show me where you found Slasheye?"
"I can; Littlecloud shouldn't leave her." Russetfur meowed.
"Thank you Russetfur."
"So, lemme get this straight, Slasheye is Boulder's sister, daughter of Scourge, AND a nursing queen?" Blackstar said.
"No, Thorn should be about six moons old by now." Boulder guessed.
"Boulder, are you ready?"
"Yeah, let's go."
Russetfur followed her scent trail back to the blood-stained clearing. Bone and one of the loners' bodies lay in the clearing. It was a gruesome sight.
"Isn't that Scourge's deputy, Bone?" Russetfur meowed.
"He was Slasheye's mate."
"Wow."
" Here, I've found their trail."
Boulder led Russetfur along the trail until they reached an old shed.
"That's Thorn, she must be asleep. I'll go wake her up." Boulder silently crept towards the sleeping lump of fur until his breath stirred her ear fur. "Thorn, Thorn, wake up."
"Uhh..what? Who,..who are you?"
"Your mother's littermate."
"Where is my mother? Is she with you?"
"No, she's at the Shadowclan camp. Come with us and we'll take you to her."
"All right, I guess."
Russetfur ran ahead, looking back only once in a while to make sure Thorn could keep up.
"Whoa; this is your camp!" Thorn squeaked.
"Yes, little one." Blackstar padded up to them and gestured with his tail. "Come. Let's take you to your mother."
Once they reached the medicine den, Thorn darted in, excited. "Slasheye!" She froze once she saw her mother, lying limp in a nest. "S-Slasheye?"
"She's asleep right now, but you can lie down with her, if you like."
Blackstar padded out of his den and leaped onto the Highrock. He yowled out the familiar calling, "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath Highrock for a clan meeting."
As cats padded out, Blackstar noticed Slasheye sitting outside the medicine den beneath him, and Thorn next to her. Boulder sat beside Slasheye and used his tail to smooth down her fur. "She must not be as hurt as she looked." He thought to himself.
"All of you have noticed the loners we have recently taken in. I have decided to welcome them into the clan."
"What?"
"Are you serious?"
"Yes. Isn't half of Shadowclan part rogue?" Blackstar replied. "Thorn, come here. Cedarheart, you too."
Thorn nervously walked over and stood next to Cedarheart. "Thorn, from this day forth, you will be known as Thornpaw. Cedarheart, you are ready for an apprentice. You will mentor her and I hope you will pass down your skills to this young apprentice."
Cedarheart's eyes softened as he looked at Thornpaw, and as they touched noses, Cedarheart saw she was eager to learn.
"I also have one more ceremony to do. Slasheye, come here." Blackstar suddenly leaped at her with a snarl. Slasheye leapt back just as Blackstar's sharp teeth ripped through her collar and freed her. "From now on, you will known as Rowanheart. We welcome you as a full member of Shadowclan.
"Thornpaw! Rowanheart! Thornpaw! Rowanheart!"