This is a story written for the forum group Ivypool's Courage. I highly reccomend that you join it, or at least consider! Notice that I'm a big BumblexIvy fan. R&R!

Sisterly Love

The moon shone down on the stone hollow, illuminating it with a soft glow. Ivypool sat just outside the warriors' den, staring up at Silverpelt. She didn't want to sleep, for if she did, Ivypool knew that she would go straight to the Dark Forest, and she did not want to go there.

There was a slight rustle behind her, and Ivypool looked back to see Dovewing's gray pelt slipping out of the warriors' den.

"Couldn't sleep?" Ivypool shook her head. "Me either." Dovewing meowed, sitting down beside her sister. Together they looked up at the stars, each pondering her own thoughts.

"Why aren't you in the Dark Forest?" Dovewing broke the silence after a while. Her tone wasn't angry, simply wondering. Something in the way Dovewing said it made Ivypool's resolve to be strong about going to the Dark Forest crumble.

"I don't want to go there anymore, Dovewing!" Ivypool nearly wailed, flattening her ears. "You don't know how horrible it is! All the cats there are so vicious and bloodthirsty! Sometimes, I feel like I might be found out, the way that some of them watch me. And what's worse, a few weeks ago, Tigerstar had me train a Riverclan apprentice. I could barely keep myself from telling him to leave and never come back! He was only there because he was being bullied, and wanted to learn some moves! He had no idea what he was getting himself into! I felt so terrible..." She trailed off, realizing that she was babbling.

"You know you don't have to go there if you don't want to. Lionblaze would never make you if you thought your life was in danger, and I certainly want you to be safe." Dovewing meowed gently.

"But I can't stop myself from going! I just arrive there when I fall asleep!" Ivypool replied, then adding quietly, "I wish I'd never fallen for Hawkfrost's stupid flattery and tricks."

"Well..." Dovewing seemed to be looking for something positive about Ivypool's nighttime escapades. "You're helping us out a lot, Ivypool, by spying on the Dark Forest. And you've learned some useful stuff there. Ways to fight and stalk that aren't known to others.

"I know, I know. It's just so hard." Her voice dropped to a whisper. "Blossomfall joined a few weeks ago, because Millie pays no attention to her anymore. I'm afraid they'll get Bumblestripe too!"

Dovewing's eyes widened. "How many other Thunderclan warriors are there?" she asked anxiously.

"I don't know," Ivypool replied. "We don't all train together. But Millie really needs to remember her other kits, or else they might come for Bumblestripe. I can't let that happen, Dovewing, I just can't!"

"You really like him, don't you," Dovewing meowed with a sly look in Ivypool's direction. Ivypool flushed beneath her fur.

"Maybe. And anyway, I care for all my clanmates' well being!" she replied, holding her head high.

"Hey, chill. I'll be happy for you if you decide to be... more than friends with Bumblestripe, or any other cat." Dovewing smiled.

Ivypool sighed. "I wish that this whole thing could be over. I wish we could all be safe. I wish..."

"If wishes were fresh-kill, we'd be fatter than Riverclan, and judging by what all of yours, I don't think Thunderclan would ever have to hunt again!" Dovewing tried a joke, bringing out a small purr from her sister's muzzle.

They sat for a while in companionable silence, before Dovewing got up, shaking the scraps of dirt off her pelt.

"Let's go for a walk," she meowed.

Ivypool sighed and stood up, stretching before saying, "Ok, sure."

The two sisters trotted over to the thorn tunnel, moonlight shining off of their fur.

"Just going for a walk," Dovewing told Cloudtail, who was guarding the entrance to camp. He nodded curtly.

"Be careful out there. Squirrelflight scented a fox on the Windclan border just yeserday," he reminded them.

"Don't worry, we'll be fine," Ivypool meowed.

"Alright, but give a yowl if you get into trouble."

"We will," Dovewing promised, before bounding out into the forest.

Ivypool followed her, marvelling at how similar the Dark Forest and their home looked at night. It wasn't exactly the same, though. The wood they were trotting through was filled with sounds. The hoots of owls echoing through the trees, leaves rustling as nocturnal creatures scurried over them in their haste to get somewhere, quiet forest sounds. In the Dark Forest, it was silent but for the sound of cats and the wind. Also, the moonlight. There was no moon in the Place of No Stars. Here, the moonlight shone through the leaves above Ivypool's head, creating beams of glowing luminescence that covered the forest with a beautiful sheen of light.

"You coming?" Dovewing's voice snapped Ivypool out of her thoughts. She looked up to see that her gray sister was far ahead, and Ivypool hurried to catch up.

Falling into step beside Dovewing, Ivypool purred. She hadn't felt this happy in a while. The forest was so beautiful at night, and Ivypool wondered if this was what it was like in Starclan. Shaking her head clear, Ivypool turned to Dovewing.

"Race you to the lake!" by the time Ivypool had finished the sentence, she was already running.

"Hey! No fair!" Dovewing called, but Ivypool paid no attention.

The moonlight lit a clear path. Wind whistled in Ivypool's ears and ruffled her fur. Dodging trees and bushes, Ivypool pushed herself to run as fast as she could. She cleared a rotten, mossy log in one bound, and charged through a patch of ferns, bursting out on the other side. The trees cleared and tufty green grass led down to the rocky shore of the lake. Ivypool tried to stop, but her momentum sent her slipping down the slope. Skidding on a patch of mud, Ivypool landed on the pebbly shore. Behind her, Ivypool heard a laugh, quickly replaced by a screech of surprise. A moment later, Dovewing landed next to her, and on Dovewing's back leg there was a smear of mud.

"See? It's slippery!" Ivypool purred, but Dovewing was paying no attention, instead staring out at the lake in wonder. Ivypool turned to look and realized why.

The entire night sky was reflected in the lake, stars shining in the water. There was no ripple, save for the quiet lapping of the lake against the shore.

"Wow... It's beautiful," Dovewing managed.

"Yeah..." Ivypool breathed. She took a step forward, the waves just brushing her front paws. Then another step, and a few more. Ivypool winced as the chilly water seeped through her fur, but did not stop until she was standing up to her belly fur in the lake. She was surrounded by the reflections of the stars, giving the impression that she was standing in Silverpelt. For a moment, she had a feeling of utter peace. Then, it was over. The chilly water forced her back on land, where she immediately began to shiver. Dovewing pressed her pelt against Ivypool's, and Ivypool smiled, thankful for the warmth of her sister's body heat.

"Let's get you to camp before you turn into an icicle!" Dovewing meowed, and they began heading back. The forest still glowed in the moonlight, but Ivypool was too cold to notice it much.

Ivypool's shivers had mostly subsided by the time they got to camp. Cloudtail glanced over at them as they trotted in, then did a double take.

"What happened to you?" He wondered.

Ivypool purred at the look of surprise on his face. "I just went for a swim."

"You thinking of joining RiverClan or something?" He asked dryly, before shaking his head and going back to guard duty. Ivypool and Dovewing walked back to the warriors' den, purring.

"Well, I'm going to sleep now. You should too," Dovewing meowed. "The Dark Forest will be wondering where you are by now."

"Yeah, I know," Ivypool replied softly. The two sisters slowly walked into the warriors' den, stepping around their clanmates to get to their nests. They curled up, side by side.

"Dovewing?" Ivypool murmured.

"Hm?" Dovewing grunted sleepily.

"Thanks," Ivypool told her.

Dovewing lifted her head and tipped it to one side. "What for?" she asked.

"For being my sister."