"Whitestorm!"
The large white-furred tom swirled around from where he was standing, giving orders to the Apprentices. Bluestar was walking towards him quickly, her eyes burning in the soft moonlight. He had to blink the rainwater from his eyes as he ducked beneath the low hanging branch of a tree to greet her.
"Bluestar?"
His grey leader wasted no time. "I have a mission for you." Ordinarily Whitestorm, as any other cat, would have straightened up but the storm's rain made his thick pelt heavy. A crash of thunder boomed in his ears and Whitestorm had to strain them to hear her next words.
"Take a patrol of cats and head into ShadowClan territory," the she-cat ordered her nephew. "I want you to find and retrieve those kits."
ShadowClan had stolen a litter of kits from the nursery – Frostfur's litter. The whole Clan was in an uproar, and especially now that in the maelstrom of turmoil, their beloved Medicine Cat had been murdered in cold blood. Whitestorm had known the she-cat for countless seasons and she was always up for a conversation, so her death had shaken him as well.
But there's no time for this!
Shaking away his grief, Whitestorm nodded. "This storm will make the journey difficult," he said carefully, "But I will do my best. I will take Runningwind, Willowpelt, Darkstripe and Tiger-"
"No," Bluestar interrupted firmly, her blue eyes blazing. "Tigerclaw must stay in camp. I don't want any more thefts from our nursery this night."
"Very well," the tom agreed. Tigerclaw was a strong warrior. "I will take Mousefur then."
Bluestar flicked her tail in agreement and turned to look back towards the bushes. Whitestorm followed her gaze.
With Spottedleaf dead they were without a Medicine Cat, and she had held no Apprentice. Without a healer, ThunderClan would be in trouble.
He understood what ailed the noble leader and craned his stiff neck to press his nose against her shoulder. There wasn't much he could do to comfort her, but he could offer something at least. "We will succeed, Bluestar. ShadowClan has wronged us – StarClan is on our side."
Bluestar gave a shake of her sleek grey fur and nodded slowly. "Gather your patrol. You set off now. And Whitestorm..." The tom stopped in midstride, looking back at his leader. "You may meet a friend on your mission."
A friend? Whitestorm blinked in confusion. Bluestar flicked her tail in dismissal and the white warrior raced off. As he headed to a gathering of warriors, Sandpaw rushed up to meet him.
"Whitestorm, where are you going?"
"On a mission," replied her mentor. There's no time!
Sandpaw's ears twitched. "Can I come?"
"No." Whitestorm said sternly. "I'm sorry Sandpaw but this is a Warrior's mission. There are no places for Apprentices. But you can do something for me," he added, seeing Sandpaw's dejected gaze. "Fetch Mousefur and Willowpelt for me. Tell them they're needed."
"Yes, Whitestorm!" Sandpaw nodded and headed for the Warrior's den.
Approaching the gathering of Warriors by the thorn barrier, Whitestorm recognised the dark tabby toms speaking in hushed voices with Tigerclaw. He called out to Darkstripe and Runningwind.
"Come here – both of you!"
They sent him startled glances. Darkstripe dipped his head to Tigerclaw and followed Runningwind to meet him.
A wave of unease flowed over Whitestorm. For some reason he had never truly trusted Darkstripe – or Tigerclaw. Though he publicly showed support, there seemed something odd about the two of them that sent his belly churning.
"You two are to come with me," he ordered in a no-nonsense tone. "Quickly now."
Moments later Mousefur padded out of the Warrior's den and Willowpelt shouldered her way out of the nursery. The silvery-white she-cat glanced at Whitestorm in confusion, but said nothing.
"You four are to come with me. Bluestar has given us a mission – find the kits and bring them home."
"In this weather?" Darkstripe scoffed in protest. "We won't be able to see our tails if they were right in front of our noses!"
"The scents will have been washed away," Willowpelt agreed. "How will we be able to find them if we cannot track them?"
Whitestorm forced himself to stay calm. "We will cross that path when we come to it. Now hurry!"
He could feel eyes burning onto his pelt as he led his patrol towards the bushes. Bluestar was watching him from atop the Highrock and Tigerclaw had paused to watch them leave, his amber eyes alight with anger.
"Stay close," Whitestorm called over the clap of thunder. "Darkstripe, Willowpelt, watch our backs."
Whitestorm's paws pricked with impatience. What had Bluestar meant when she'd told him that they might find a friend out here? Who would possibly be out in the marsh in this weather? Surely she hadn't sent any other cat out! Speaking of cats, I haven't seen young Firepaw, Greypaw or Ravenpaw since we found Spottedleaf's body.
They travelled swiftly and in silence as they headed deeper into ShadowClan territory. They couldn't find the kits, sure enough, but Whitestorm knew they could find the camp. He hadn't been there before, however the scents of ShadowClan wreathed around him, growing stronger with each step despite the rain. If the kits were in ShadowClan's camp, they wouldn't need to scent the kits. They could just search the dens.
Hopefully without being spotted.
Something caught his ear and the great white warrior halted, whirling around. Mousefur spun and spat at a ginger ball of flame that skidded into the narrow path behind them. Whitestorm immediately recognised it as Firepaw. Had he followed them?
"Firepaw," growled Whitestorm, "What are you doing here?"
His eyes were latched onto the fiery apprentice as he gasped for breath. "Bluestar sent me!" Firepaw responded. "She wanted me to find Yellowfang before-"
Suddenly he understood. "Ah!" He interrupted. "Bluestar told me I might find a friend out here. Now I understand what she meant." He gazed thoughtfully at Firepaw.
Firepaw looked anxious. "Is Tigerclaw nearby?"
Blinking the rain from his eyes, Whitestorm replied curiously, "Bluestar insisted she needed him to remain at camp, to protect the remaining kits."
Firepaw nodded quickly, relieved. Whitestorm caught the urgency in his voice as he added, "Whitestorm, I need your help. I can lead you to the kits. Greypaw is waiting for me. We plan to rescue them tonight. Can you come?"
Whitestorm's tail tip twitched in surprise. How had they found the kits? More importantly, he wondered why Bluestar had sent Firepaw out, deep into the heart of ShadowClan territory, when he was but an apprentice. With Yellowfang around, believed to have betrayed the Clan that had sheltered her, surely she would have ordered the apprentices to be kept safe...
To find Yellowfang, he reminded himself. However that doesn't explain how he found out about the kits.
"Of course we'll come," he said coolly, nodding to Runningwind and Mousefur.
"It will mean raiding the ShadowClan camp," warned Firepaw.
Runningwind's eyes glowed with excitement. "Can you lead us there?"
Firepaw shook his head. "No, but Yellowfang can." Whitestorm's ears perked and his eyes narrowed. "And she has promised to bring help from her old allies in the camp."
Whitestorm remained silent for a moment. Mousefur's hackles rose with anger and her tail thumped against his haunch. "You have found Yellowfang?" She hissed.
But Whitestorm was confused. "I don't understand," he meowed. "The traitor is going to help rescue the kits she stole?"
He was even more surprised when Firepaw calmed himself, then locked eyes with him. Whitestorm held his gaze steadily. "Yellowfang didn't take them," he meowed. "Nor did she murder Spottedleaf. She wants to help us rescue our kits."
How can he be sure? But then again, how can we? We did not see Yellowfang commit the crimes that we accuse her of. For all we know she could have seen Spottedleaf die and the kits being stolen and run off to try and get them back. Whitestorm stared back at Firepaw. Anger is making us rash. We are so eager to place blame that we have forgotten that truth. Now we are hunting a cat that could very well be innocent.
Or guilty. Whitestorm blinked slowly, inhaled a breath and ordered, "Lead the way."