ALLEGIANCES
THUNDERCLAN
LEADER: Bramblestar, thick-furred brown tom
DEPUTY: Beechfoot, ginger-and-brown mottled she-cat
MEDICINE CAT: Rainfluff, silver-gray she-cat
WARRIORS: Dustflight, reddish-brown tom with dark eyes
APPRENTICE, RUNNINGPAW
Fernreed, white and golden tabby she-cat
APPRENTICE, BIRCHPAW
Jewelclaw, white she-cat with gold feet
APPRENTICE, TALLPAW
Eaglestep, cloudy tom with big ears and blue eyes
Stonebird, gray she-cat
Flickerpoppy, dark red tom
Russetstripe, brown and red tabby tom
Starclaw, purplish-black she-cat
Thornfur, golden brown tabby tom
APPRENTICE, CHERRYPAW
Bearfall, huge brown tom
APPRENTICE, JAGGEDPAW
Deerspring, yellow-brown she-cat
Vixentail, yellow-brown she-cat
APPRENTICE, BERRYPAW
QUEENS: Brightbank, light brown she-cat, mother of Bearfall's kits: Tawnykit, Tigerkit, and Vinekit
Sorreldrop, reddish-brown she-cat, mother of Eaglestep's kits: Cedarkit and Hawkkit
Bluemist, gray-blue she-cat, mother of Dustflight's kit: Thicketkit
APPRENTICES:
Birchpaw, white and brown tabby tom
Tallpaw, golden tom
Cherrypaw, red she-cat
Runningpaw, gray she-cat
Berrypaw, cream she-cat
Jaggedpaw, gray tom
ELDERS:
Burningwhisker, fiery tom
Highflower, orange she-cat
Sunfoot, white she-cat with gold feet
SHADOWCLAN
LEADER: Sweetstar, white she-cat
DEPUTY:Hillflower, yellow and red tabby she-cat
APPRENTICE, FURZEPAW
MEDICINE CAT: Cloudfeather, gray she-cat
APPRENTICE, OWLPAW
WARRIORS: Leafbank, brown tabby she-cat
APPRENTICE, WINGPAW
Poppyheart, dark red she-cat
APPRENTICE, BARKPAW
Dawndrop, fiery she-cat with blue eyes
Ashwater, dark gray tom like dark eyes
APPRENTICE, CINDERPAW
Squirrelstorm, dappled brown tom with blue eyes
Nightpool, black she-cat with dark eyes
APPRENTICE, MOSSPAW
Blackface, white tom with a burnt face
APPRENTICE, CEDARPAW
Rocktail, dark gray tom
APPRENTICE, MINTPAW
Leopardleg, light brown tom with black spots on his leg
Adderfur, wiry gray tom
Rowancloud, orange tom
Ivyflower, light gray she-cat
Quartztooth, gray tom
QUEENS: Hollysong, blight yellow she-cat, mother of Ashwater's kits: Shrewkit, Featherkit and Whitekit
Jaysun, golden she-cat with blue eyes, mother of Rocktail's kits: Volekit and Maplekit
APPRENTICES: Wingpaw, golden she-cat
Cinderpaw, red she-cat
Mosspaw, brown she-cat
Cedarpaw, brown tom
Barkpaw, brown tom
Owlpaw, brown tom
Furzepaw, gray tom with green eyes
Mintpaw, gray she-cat with green-blue eyes
ELDERS: Emberdust, black tom
Wolftail, gray tom
Grassleap, light brown she-cat
WINDCLAN
LEADER: Kestrelstar, white and black tabby tom
DEPUTY: Honeyfeather, golden brown she-cat with blue eyes
MEDICINE CAT: Willowstripe, white she-cat with light brown stripes
APPRENTICE, LIGHTPAW
WARRIORS: Harefur, brown tom with green eyes
APPRENTiCE, TOPAZPAW
Crowfluff, fluffy black tom with dark eyes
APPRENTICE, HAZELPAW
Heatherdew, glossy purplish-black she-cat with green eyes
Swallowfall, brown she-cat with unusual white dots
APPRENTICE, MOUSEPAW
Weaselnose, lithe brown she-cat
Morningbranch, whitish-gold she-cat
Webstorm, white-and-gray tabby tom
Oakflight, light brown tom
APPRENTICE, ONEPAW
Goldwing, golden she-cat
APPRENTICE, POUNCEPAW
Smoke-ear, brown tom with gray ears
APPRENTICE, BRAVEPAW
Mothfeather, white and brown dappled she-cat
Weedwhisker, light brown she-cat
QUEENS: Mudreed, brown she-cat, mother of Webstorm's kits: Lionkit, Amberkit, and Gorsekit
Patchdust, tortoiseshell she-cat
APPRENTICES: Hazelpaw, glossy brown she-cat
Bravepaw, fiery tom
Topazpaw, light brown she-cat
Mousepaw, gray tom
Onepaw, white tom with black paws and a black tail tip
Pouncepaw, white tom
Lightpaw, bright yellow she-cat
ELDERS: Wavedew, gray she-cat, formerly of RiverClan
Shorecloud, white she-cat
Boltfur, bright yellow tom
RIVERCLAN
LEADER: Pebblestar, whitish-gray tom with gray eyes
DEPUTY: Tidepool, sand-colored tom
APPRENTICE, MOONPAW
MEDICINE CAT: Brackendew, golden brown tom
APPRENTICE, SNOWPAW
WARRIORS: Stormspirit, gray tom
Rippledust, orangish-brown she-cat with unusual gray patterns on her fur
Lowstep, thick-furred gray tom with gray eyes
Whitenose, white tom
Breezeleg, long-limbed light gray tom
APPRENTICE, WETPAW
Clearwing, ghostlike white she-cat with gray eyes
APPRENTICE, BUZZARDPAW
Graytooth, glossy gray tom
APPRENTICE, MINNOWPAW
Spicestream, orangish-brown she-cat
Bluesun, bright yellow tom
APPRENTICE, REEDPAW
Littletail, gray-black tom
Mistyflight, gray-blue she-cat
Sandfoot, white tom with gold feet
APPRENTICE, SEDGEPAW
Dapplebird, dappled gray she-cat
QUEENS: Pinebranch, dark brown she-cat, mother of Littletail's kits: Spiderkit, Foxkit, and Walnutkit
Spottedbark, white and brown tabby she-cat, mother of Breezeleg's kits: Darkkit and Icekit
APPRENTICES: Buzzardpaw, bright yellow tom
Wetpaw, gray-white tom with black feet
Moonpaw, white she-cat
Minnowpaw, silver she-cat
Sedgepaw, gray tom
Reedpaw, light brown tom with darker brown stripes
Snowpaw, white she-cat
ELDERS: Rattooth, gray and brown tabby tom
Applestripe, brown tom with red stripe and three paws
Rubyreed, very old reddish-brown she-cat
CATS OUTSIDE THE CLANS
Deathbringer, black tom with green eyes
Antkit, red and black rogue, brother of Pebblestar and Tidepool
Chapter One
"Rowancloud." Hillflower's voice jolted Rowancloud out of his dream. "Get up."
"What?" asked Rowancloud, still half asleep.
"Get up!" she commanded.
Rowancloud padded out of the den beside Hillflower. "And why did I have to get up?" he asked.
"You're on dawn patrol," Hillflower snapped.
Rowancloud turned to look at her, his eyes blazing like his orange pelt in the early sunlight. "If I'm on dawn patrol, then why did you barge in to the warrior's den shouting to wake all the others up at the crack of dawn?" Hillflower looked suitably chastened.
Hillflower and Rowancloud walked toward the knot of warriors waiting to be assigned to a patrol. "Leopardleg, Ashwater, Adderfur, you're patrol 1," she mewed. "Nightpool, Mosspaw, Rowancloud and I will be patrol 2."
"I'll go with Ashwater, right?" Cinderpaw, Ashwater's apprentice, meowed.
"Yes."
Great. My patrol is Miss Bossy, Hillflower, Miss Icy, Nightpool, and Mosspaw. Thank StarClan for Mosspaw, Rowancloud thought.
Mosspaw was energetic and happy, the kind of cat that could lift your spirits in the worst of moods. As Hillflower loudly bossed the three cats around, Rowancloud had time to wish for a better deputy. But when Hillflower wasn't looking, Mosspaw made a face at her, her whiskers twitching. Rowancloud suppressed a smile. Nightpool, as ever, was unemotional. But somehow Rowancloud knew she, too, was smiling inside at her apprentice.
They had just sighted the other patrol when Hillflower stopped and sniffed the air. Rowancloud got a whiff of Twoleg and a horrible stench…
"Dog attack!" Nightpool yowled as the first of the dogs burst from the marshes. "Mosspaw, warn the others!"
Her movement quick and jerky with panic, Mosspaw obeyed. Her brown-and-white form streaked back toward the ShadowClan camp. A moment later, the other warriors had arrived. Quartztooth, one of Rowancloud's many siblings, launched himself into battle beside his brother.
As he slashed at dogs, working as a superb duo with Quartztooth, his entire mind focused on the battle. Protecting ShadowClan. Protecting Quartztooth.
In the midst of it, Rowancloud saw Cedarpaw, Blackface's apprentice, dart away. Coward!
ShadowClan was fighting as hard as it could, but for each successful bite or slash, the cats were driven father back into their territory, a pawstep at a time. Rowancloud leapt and raked a dog with his hind claws. The dog yelped in pain and twisted to claw Rowancloud's face. Quartztooth hissed and bit the dog's muzzle, sending it staggering back. But Dawndrop, next to Rowancloud and Quartztooth, gasped as a dog injured her shoulder. She was forced to retreat several steps nearer to the camp.
But then Rowancloud heard angry, energetic yowling, deeper and more resonant than the usual ShadowClan voice. A thick-furred brown tabby, flanked by an orange-and-brown she-cat and a small brown blur, Rowancloud couldn't tell who it was, burst out of the trees. The fresh ThunderClan scent hit him as did understanding of the current events. ThunderClan is here!