The full moon sent white beams of light down into the dark island, which was crowded with cats. Not just any cats - clan cats. The cats of the wild. The ones who hunt in the forest, lake, and moorland. The light scattered and dispersed as rain poured down, drenching the grumbling cats below and darkening the mood that radiated from the island. The trees surrounding the vast island clearing seemed like shadows as their leaves shrank away from the icy, howling wind and the cold raindrops.
There was a large oak tree in the center of the clearing - the Great Oak. And four cats were perched on this oak, each on a separate branch. Every cat on the ground had a pair of eyes fixed on the cats on this oak, as they took turns to speak.
Among the cats on the ground was a small, light gray she-cat with a white chest, pale underbelly, white paws, a white tail-tip, and clear blue eyes. And these were the only eyes that were not fixed on the cats on the Great Oak. This was Ashpaw, and she normally was one to pay attention to those four cats, the clan leaders.
She was looking for something. Her blue gaze scanned the cats in the clearing from left to right, then right to left, then from left to right again. But Ashpaw didn't find what, or rather, who, she had been looking for.
Where in the name of StarClan is she? Ashpaw thought, frustration etching its way into the depths of her mind. Her ears were pulled back against her head to avoid getting rain inside them, and her fur was already darker and sodden with water.
For a moment, she looked up. She blinked, swiping a paw over her eyes. There seemed to be only three leaders up there... no, now there were four. It was almost as if the last one had just appeared from the shadows.
Sighing, Ashpaw tore her gaze away, and looked around again.
"...and we are pleased to announce that Sootshade has become a warrior," RiverClan's silver-furred leader, Featherstar, announced, as Ashpaw turned her head away, trying not to distract herself.
She just couldn't find the familiar bright ginger pelt anywhere in the crowd. Ashpaw didn't even join in as the cats below called out Sootshade's name.
"Then, the Gathering is over," Ashpaw's leader, the ThunderClan cat Blackstar, called out, seeming completely oblivious to the rain that drenched his thick pelt.
Barely heartbeats after Blackstar finished those words, lightning blazed above, and thunder crashed, as the cats in the clearing let out shocked, scared whimpers. Well, all except for Mottledspring, a ShadowClan elder, who paced at the back of the crowd, muttering something about StarClan that Ashpaw didn't quite catch. Not that she cared, anyway.
Where are you, Firepaw? Ashpaw's heart raced as she realized that her best friend was nowhere to be seen.
"Keep calm, everyone!" The speaker was Jaystar, WindClan's leader. He was a massive gray tom with dark blue eyes that now stared down at the cats below him. "This storm was most likely just an accident. The gathering was peaceful, so what should StarClan say?" However, his eyes betrayed his confusion, countering those words.
Ashpaw bounded over to a fluffy, dark gray she-cat. Cinderblaze. This was her mentor, a kind-hearted she-cat who only wanted the best for Ashpaw, and nothing else. She was almost like a mother to the young apprentice.
"Cinderblaze!" Ashpaw gasped, blinking rain from her eyes. Her mentor looked down, confused. "I can't find Firepaw anywhere! Do you know where she is?" Her words came out in rushed gasps.
Cinderblaze's dark blue eyes widened as she shook her head. "Find Blackstar, and tell him." With a nod, Ashpaw turned and bounded over to where a huge black tom walked, green eyes calm as he stalked to the head of the ThunderClan cats. Ashpaw skidded to a halt in front of him.
"Blackstar!"
He looked down in suprise. "Ashpaw? What is it?"
"I can't find Firepaw anywhere!" Ashpaw wailed. The frustration she had earlier felt came apart, and anxiety and worry for her best friend stabbed into her like the sharpest of thorns. "You can't leave without her!"
Blackstar's eyes widened, but he didn't say anything. The black ThunderClan leader simply nodded, and padded away. The rest of ThunderClan stared after him in shock. Ashpaw heard Poppystar, ShadowClan's leader, call her clan together and lead ShadowClan away from the island. We have to find Firepaw!
She bounded across the gradually dispersing clearing, and spotted Cinderblaze poke her head out from a bush. "Ashpaw!" she called, though her voice didn't have the usual cheer. "Come on; let's search together. If Firepaw went away, she couldn't have gone far."
Was it just Ashpaw's imagination, or did Cinderblaze put more emphasis on the went away? Ashpaw widened her eyes. No... Cinderblaze couldn't have been insinuating that... could she? Oh, StarClan, you couldn't be so cruel!
Ashpaw sniffed the air. "I think the scent goes that way," she mewed, lifting a paw in the direction she was referring to.
"Mouse-dung!" Cinderblaze lashed her tail, after padding a few pawsteps ahead. "The scent disappears here. It's mingled in with the other clan cats." She took a few more paces forward. "No. Wait. I can still smell her scent here. So... she's somewhat nearby."
"Come on." Ashpaw raced through a thorn thicket, ignoring the stabbing pain as thorns jabbed into her flank, tearing off clumps of gray fur. Pawsteps told Ashpaw that Cinderblaze was just behind her.
"I smell Firepaw," Cinderblaze mewed quietly, signaling for Ashpaw to slow down, "but also, something else. It's familiar, but I can't recall what it is."
"Well... the best we can do now is to keep looking," Ashpaw mewed determinedly, pushing ahead of her. Her heart now knew only one thing: that she had to find Firepaw before she was too late. Firepaw was her best friend; the two shared some sort of undescribable connection that very was very rare. But somehow, the two had bonded, and Ashpaw knew that if she had to, she would give her life to protect Firepaw.
The rain had eased off, now, and Ashpaw shook out her fur in relief. The wind, however, remained, chilling the young apprentice to go. RiverClan left along with WindClan, leaving only ThunderClan on the island.
Ashpaw turned away, sniffing. "She's not here," she reported. She was standing on the edge of the island, looking out into the lake. Well, she realized suddenly, this explains the thunder and lightning at the end of the gathering.
Cinderblaze sighed, laying a tail on her shoulder. "Do you have any idea where she could be? She is your best friend, after all."
Ashpaw whirled around and glared at her, blue eyes blazing as she stared at her dark gray mentor. "If I knew that, Cinderblaze, I wouldn't be looking for her. I'm not mouse-brained, you know!" She couldn't keep the anger out of her voice, which was mostly driven by worry. Her voice softened, and she lowered her gaze to stare back at her paws. "Sorry, Cinderblaze. I... I don't know where she is."
Cinderblaze, however, was far from angry. She gave Ashpaw a sad smile. "Don't worry, Ashpaw. I'm sure she'll be fine. Firepaw can take care of herself. You know that."
"But what if she isn't?" Ashpaw didn't bother to hide the concern in her mew.
Cinderblaze licked Ashpaw affectionately. "I remember what it was like when I lost Dawnheart," she mewed, a faraway look on her face. "I don't know if you remember her, but she died in a battle against ShadowClan. I missed her so much, the days that were right after her death, but after that, I learned to move on. And so should you, Ashpaw. If Firepaw cannot be found, then you can cope. She'd want the best for you, Ashpaw, I know it."
"But... I can't, Cinderblaze. My life is nothing without Firepaw."
Cinderblaze smiled. "No, it's not, Ashpaw. You are an apprentice of ThunderClan, not just a loner with a friend. You have your whole life ahead of you. Don't worry. And, Ashpaw, Firepaw will be fine. You'll see."
"Okay." Ashpaw still wasn't convinced.
StarClan, keep her safe! she begged silently, staring upwards into the night sky. The only response to her plea was the cold glittering of small lights amongst the black, and not even a small whisper of the wind to reassure her. Ashpaw shivered, then padded after Cinderblaze.
"Ashpaw." Ashpaw yowled in shock at the sound of the voice, and her hackles raised as she faced the speaker. Her fur flattened when she realized that it was only Blackstar. But the ThunderClan leader had a grave look in his eyes.
"Sorry," Ashpaw muttered sheepishly.
Blackstar didn't seem to hear her. He seemed to be completely avoiding her gaze, but when Ashpaw stared at him pleadingly, he looked at her in the eye. "Follow me, Ashpaw." His voice shook slightly, with an undeterminable emotion.
"W-what is it?" Ashpaw asked, her voice shaking as she feared the worst. "Have you found Firepaw?"
Blackstar lowered his head and padded ahead of her, not saying anything. Ashpaw followed, stifling a long sigh. Oh, Firepaw... please, be okay! She sent the plea to StarClan, to Firepaw, to anyone who had reached into her mind to hear her words.
"I... I'm sorry, Ashpaw." Blackstar's tail was low as he lifted a paw and pointed into the shadowy area just beyond a large clump of bushes. "Look."
Without wasting a heartbeat, Ashpaw tore her way through the bushes, bursting into the clearing. Her eyes seemed to have darkened a shade as she stared down, heart racing. A limp, flame-colored, ginger shape lay at her paws.
On first glance, she knew who it was.
She had already known something was wrong. The ginger she-cat usually stayed beside her during gatherings. Ashpaw knew something had been off the second she had realized Firepaw was missing. She'd known something bad was about to happen.
But she'd never willed herself to believe the truth.
Why, StarClan? Ashpaw asked. Firepaw was around her age, and almost like her sister. Ashpaw flinched, closing her eyes for a long moment in the hopes of willing this all to be a bad dream. But when she looked down, again, the ginger shape was still there.
Ashpaw was frozen. Around her, she thought she heard screams. The area surrounding her became a flash of bright white light as Ashpaw simply stood there, the expression on her face being on of pure horror. Shock flared in the depths of her blue eyes, as, with a jolt, she came back to earth.
Ashpaw threw her head back and yowled, her voice ringing as far as any cat could hear. No! Firepaw! No!
Her best friend... was dead.