"Fire, fire."
The whispers were starting to drive Bluestar mad. She had barely left the moonstone when the voices started. Featherwhisker didn't know how to help her, he had never heard of a leader being plagued with constant murmurings. When she described them, he had said it sounded like Starclan were trying to give her some sort of message, but since the voices didn't seem to be that harsh, that it mustn't be to dire. The newly-made leader wondered if they were reminding her of the destiny Goosefeather had spoken of many moons ago.
"If I am fire, why are they whispering it to me? Haven't I completed my destiny?" She asked Featherwhisker as they journeyed home.
"Perhaps they are speaking of another fire. They repeated it twice, correct?"
Bluestar nodded thoughtfully. Starclan said she would blaze at the head of her clan, so did that mean her deputy would blaze alongside her? After all, the deputy played an important role in leading the clan as well.
"Do you think they are trying to help me choose my deputy?" She pondered aloud.
"If that is how you interpret it, then maybe."
The blue-gray she-cat remained quiet for the rest of her journey, and luckily enough the voices dimmed and then disappeared altogether. She took this as a sign that she was correct in assuming what they were trying to tell her. When they padded back through the gorse tunnel they were greeted by most of the clan.
"They've returned!"
"Welcome back, Bluestar!"
Bluestar greeted her clan quietly, still more fixed on what she had heard from her warrior ancestors. Thrushpelt and Whitestorm fixed her with worried looks, immediately realizing something was off. Even Thisteclaw narrowed his eyes when he made eye contact with her. When this happened, she forced herself to take a deep breath and put a strong look on her face. She wasn't about to have Thistleclaw call her out on something like this so soon after becoming leader.
"If any of you need me, I'll be in my den. I need some time to think before Moonhigh." At least that was true.
She retired to her den below the Highrock and curled up in her nest, suddenly exhausted. The moon crept higher and higher as she sat alone with her thoughts, trying to figure out who Starclan could possibly mean when they spoke of fire. Thrushpelt didn't have the fire of ambition one would expect in a deputy, so she doubted it was him, and Lionheart's pelt was more golden than fiery-ginger. Tigerclaw had a fire-like ambition, but she was reluctant to believe it was him, due to his closeness to Thistleclaw, and she refused to even consider appointing Thistleclaw as her deputy.
"Bluestar?"
A quiet voice interrupted her confused thoughts, and she tasted the air. The voice belonged to Redtail, and she meowed a response. He entered quickly, holding a fat mouse in his jaws.
"Feathertail said you'd need something to eat after your journey." He explained, dropping the prey at her paws.
"Thank you, Redtail." She responded without really looking at him, she was nosing the mouse now.
Before she could take a bite, he turned and left, but a flash of bright fur caught her eye. Bluestar gaped at his retreating figure, shocked blue eyes fixed on his fluffy ginger tail. Fire, fire. The voices started again, more fiercely this time.
"It's him." She murmured softly to herself and she knew from the contented way the voices whispered now that she was correct.
Redtail would be her deputy.
AN: I had always thought it was odd that Bluestar picked Redtail to be her deputy, rather than someone like Lionheart or Whitestorm. They were older, more experienced and just overall seemed like they had better traits for leading, but then again, we never saw much of Redtail. I was really hoping we'd see something about him that would show why he was chosen towards the end of Bluestar's Prophecy, but they just skipped over that part. So I wrote this as a little theory on why she chose him over Lionheart or someone else.