The Adventures of Icestorm and Fernwind!
Iceear and Fernpaw are back in this all new adventure as ThunderClan warriors, Icestorm and Fernwind.
"Icestorm!" Fernwind called across the camp to her best friend. "Hey, Icestorm!"
Icestorm looked towards the voice of her best friend and now fellow youngest warrior in ThunderClan history, Fernwind.
"Fernwind! Sleep well?" Icestorm asked good naturedly, but she meant it to be a joke. Fernwind had slept later than she should have an no one had been able to get her up, not even Fireheart and Graystripe together with Ravenfeather!
"Ha ha, very funny." Fernwind said. She padded over to Icestorm and gave her ear a good natured lick. Then two little kits bound up to them.
"Are you really the youngest warriors to ever join ThunderClan?" Waterkit asked. Icestorm nodded and so did Fernwind.
"That's neat!" Hollykit said. "Me and Waterkit will be apprentices soon!"
"Very nice!" Fernwind said and she and Icestorm talked to the young kits until their mother, Gingertail, motioned for them to come back into the nursery.
"Fernwind!" Bluestar called and Fernwind turned to find the ThunderClan leader padding towards her with the new ThunderClan deputy, Fireheart, beside her.
"Yes, Bluestar?" Fernwind asked, dipping her head.
"Hollykit and Waterkit will be apprenticed soon. I want you to mentor Waterkit. Ravenfeather will mentor Hollykit. And I want Icestorm to mentor Pebblekit." Bluestar said.
"Yes, Bluestar." Fernwind said and she bound away to tell Icestorm.
"Icestorm! Icestorm! Guess what?" Fernwind asked.
"What?" Icestorm asked.
"We're going to be mentors!" Fernwind said happily.
"What? We are? That's great!" Icestorm said and Fernwind couldn't wait to tell the rest.
"I'm mentoring Waterkit, you're mentoring Pebblekit and Ravenfeather is mentoring Hollykit!"
"Pebblekit? I'm mentoring Pebblekit? That's great!" She said, mentioning Juniperpool's kit. Pebblekit was actually Icestorm's little sister. Juniperpool was Icestorm's mother, too.
"I know!" Fernwind said. Just then, three of their apprentice friends padded towards them, Mouseear, Sunpaw, and her identical twin sister, Moonpaw.
"We have a naming ceremony tonight, don't forget!" Moonpaw said and the warriors laughed.
"How could we forget? You and Sunpaw won't let us forget!" Icestorm said happily. They padded away with the apprentices, who were a bit, about a moon or two, older than them.
"All cats old enough to catch their own prey please gather beneath the Highrock!" Bluestar called and everyone padded towards her.
"We have a naming ceremony tonight for three young apprentices." Bluestar announced. "Sunpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and protect your Clan, even at the cost of your life?"
"I do." Sunpaw said.
"Then by the power of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Sunpaw, from now on you will be known as Suntail. StarClan honors your bravery and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan." Bluestar said and she rested her muzzle on top of Suntail's head and Suntail gave her a respectful lick.
"Moonpaw, Mouseear, do you both promise to follow the warrior code and protect it with your lives?"
"I do." They said.
"Then by the power of StarClan, I give you your warrior names. Moonpaw, from this moment forth you will be known as Moonpelt. StarClan honors your bravery and we welcome you as a warrior of ThunderClan." Bluestar rested her muzzle on Moonpelt's head and then said to Mouseear,
"Mouseear, from this moment forth you shall be know as Mousefrost. StarClan honors your bravery as well and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan." After Bluestar was done naming Mousefrost, she leapt back up on the Highrock next to Fireheart.
"We also have an apprentice naming ceremony." Bluestar said and Pebblekit and Juniperpool appeared as well as Gingertail, Hollykit, and Waterkit.
"Pebblekit, from this moment, until you have earned your warrior name, you will be known as Pebblepaw. Your mentor will be Icestorm. Icestorm, your mentor, Foxtail, was killed by Twolegs. He would be very proud to know that you are now mentoring an apprentice. Pebblepaw is also your sister, and I expect you to pass on all that you know to Pebblepaw."
"I will Bluestar." Icestorm said as she placed her head on top of Pebblepaw's.
"Humph. She doesn't know anything. I would be a better mentor to Pebblepaw." Fernwind heard Windcry, a fellow warrior, say to Sandstorm. Sandstorm have him a clout on the ear with a sheathed paw.
"You'll get an apprentice. In the meantime, stop complaining." She said.
"Hollykit, from now on until you have received your warrior name, you will be known as Hollypaw. Ravenfeather will be your mentor." Ravenfeather rested his muzzle on Hollypaw's head.
"Waterkit, until you have earned your warrior name, you will be known as Waterpaw. Your mentor will be Fernwind." She said and Fernwind padded forward to Waterpaw and rested her muzzle on his head.
"Moonpelt, Suntail, and Mousefrost will keep vigil tonight while everyone sleeps." Bluestar said and everyone went to their nests except Fernwind, Icestorm, and their apprentices.
"Moonpelt, Suntail, Mousefrost! Good luck!" Waterpaw said and Fernwind whispered the same greeting.
Icestorm looked at Pebblepaw.
"Go with them to the apprentice den. Follow Nightpaw and Silverpaw." She said and her sister gave her a quick nod and bound off towards the den. Fernwind watched her best friend give Pebblepaw an affectionate lick on the head and she couldn't help but feel a pang of envy. Pebblepaw was Icestorm's real sister; Fernwind wasn't. She wondered vaguely if this would affect her and Icestorm's friendship.
...oOo...
"Fernwind! Fernwind! Wake up!" Waterpaw said excitedly. Fernwind blinked awake.
"Waterpaw! Be quiet! Do you want to wake up the whole camp?" Fernwind asked. Waterpaw shut his mouth.
"Sorry, Fernwind." He whispered. Fernwind glanced over to where Icestorm normally still slept. She was gone.
"Hollypaw wanted to begin training and I thought I might as well get Nightpaw, Silverpaw, and Pebblepaw up as well! Pebblepaw beat me here. Darn!" Waterpaw said. He continued to talk. "Silverpaw and Nightpaw didn't get up so I just made Hollypaw get up and she's already out with Ravenfeather." He said.
"Waterpaw, quiet! Who are you trying to awaken? I'm awake! Don't wake up the entire camp! StarClan could hear you, you're so loud!" Fernwind said and Waterpaw dipped his head.
"I understand." He said and he bound out of the den after Fernwind.
"Come on, first is the tour of the territory. Icestorm is probably already taking Pebblepaw out. Maybe Ravenfeather will meet us along the way, along with Nightpaw and his mentor, Longtail, and Silverpaw with her mentor Willowpelt." Fernwind said and Waterpaw shrugged. Fernwind wondered why Icestorm hadn't waited for her. She thought that last night, they had agreed to train together today! Was Pebblepaw going to break the two friends apart?
...oOo...
"No, Pebblepaw!" Icestorm called after her. "Don't!" She said as she raced to block Pebblepaw's path. "Snakerocks is very dangerous! Adders live here! Ravenfeather, according to Fireheart, almost go bit once!" Pebblepaw instantly dipped her head to her sister.
"Sorry, Icestorm." She said. Icestorm licked her ear.
"Just be a little more careful next time." She said and Pebblepaw nodded.
"I will, Icestorm, I will! You'll see!"
...oOo...
Three weeks passed and Fernwind saw very little of Icestorm. She was always with her sister. When the gathering arrived, Pebblepaw went along with the other apprentices. Icestorm didn't come over to sit with Fernwind at all.
"Hi, Fernpaw!" Said a voice. It was her friend Leafstripe, a WindClan warrior. "Where's Iceear?"
"Oh, hi, Leafstripe. We're not Iceear and Fernpaw anymore. We're now Icestorm and Fernwind." Fernwind said. "She's with her wonderful apprentice and sister, Pebblepaw."
"Icestorm is mentoring her sister? Pebblepaw?" Leafstripe asked and Fernwind nodded.
"I can't decide if I like Pebblepaw or not, Leafstripe. I mean, she's never around and she doesn't even share fresh-kill anymore! Only with Pebblepaw!"
"I know how you feel. When my best friend Whitetail mentored her first apprentice, Darkpaw, she was never around either, until Darkpaw was given his name, Darkstep." Leafstripe said. Fernwind shrugged.
"I'm mentoring Waterpaw. He's over there with Silverpaw and Cloudpaw." She said and pointed with her tail.
"Silverpaw and Nightpaw get their warrior names tonight. Yellowfang and Cinderpelt have a meeting, too. Something to do with medicine cats."
"That's neat. Well, the meeting is almost over. I'll see you next moon!" Leafstripe said and she bound off with WindClan.
...oOo...
"Silverpaw," Bluestar asked when they had gotten back, "Do you promise to uphold the warrior code and protect your Clan, even at the cost of your own life?"
"I do." Silverpaw said proudly.
"Then by the power of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Silverpaw, from this moment forth you shall be known as Silverfur. StarClan honors your bravery and we welcome you as a warrior of ThunderClan." Fernwind looked at Icestorm, who was sitting beside Pebblepaw, a few tails away. Fernwind and Icestorm had always sat together. What had changed that?
Stupid Pebblepaw, mouse-brain! Fernwind thought. She didn't like Pebblepaw at all.
"Nightpaw, do you promise to follow the warrior code and protect your Clan, even at the cost of your own life?" Nightpaw nodded his head.
"I do." He said.
"Then by the power of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Nightpaw, you shall be known as Nightclaw. StarClan honors your bravery and we welcome you as a warrior of ThunderClan."
The sooner Pebblepaw is a warrior, the better. Fernwind thought. Waterpaw came and sat beside her.
"Fernwind! Fireheart said that Bluestar wants to talk to you!" He said and Fernwind wondered why. What had she done? She had been training Waterpaw! She had been bringing back fresh-kill! Had she done something wrong?
"Waterpaw said that you wanted to see me, Bluestar?" Fernwind said and dipped her head.
"Yes, Fernwind. I did. Fireheart said that you have been doing really well with Waterpaw. I'm very proud of you." Bluestar said and Fernwind was surprised by her praise.
"Er, thank you." Fernwind said.
"But I'm worried about you, Fernwind. You've seemed depressed lately in the morning and in the evenings. Has something happened between you and Icestorm?" Bluestar asked. Fernwind looked at her leader and deputy. Fireheart nodded, encouraging her to go on and tell Bluestar.
"No, Bluestar, nothing is wrong." Fernwind said and Bluestar looked at her as if she knew something was indeed wrong.
"Alright. You may go." Bluestar mewed and Fernwind dipped her head. She ran back to the place where Waterpaw was waiting.
"What did she want, Fernwind?" He asked eagerly.
"Nothing." She said and she pushed her way into the warrior's den.
...oOo...
THREE WEEKS LATER
"Pebblepaw." Icestorm said. Pebblepaw looked towards her mentor and sister.
"Hi, Icestorm!" She said. Icestorm nodded. Pebblepaw eyed her sister.
"Something's bothering you." She commented and Icestorm knew she was right.
"It's Fernwind. She won't talk to me or anything. It's like she's too busy with Waterpaw to be my best friend anymore!" Icestorm said and Pebblepaw shrugged.
"I don't know what to tell you, Icestorm." She said. Icestorm hadn't expected her apprentice to know the answer to her problem anyway.
"Well, look, I'm going to talk to Fernwind. See you later, Pebblepaw." She said and was off to find her best friend. She ran to the fresh-kill pile, where she found Windcry.
"Windcry!" She said and Windcry looked up. "Have you seen Fernwind?" She asked.
"Yeah, she went out with the afternoon patrol with Ravenfeather, Hollypaw, Graystripe, and Fireheart." Windcry said and Icestorm thanked him. She sighed. She might as well take Pebblepaw out now.
"Pebblepaw! Let's go and train for a while!"
Suddenly, Hollypaw burst from the bushes. "Icestorm! Icestorm!" She called desperately.
"Hollypaw! What is it?" Icestorm asked.
"Fernwind sent me! It's Tigerclaw! He's back! He's joined ShadowClan and they're about to attack!" Icestorm froze.
"Hollypaw, go and tell Bluestar. Where's Waterpaw? Get him, too!" Hollypaw bound off to find her brother. Pebblepaw came up behind Icestorm.
"Icestorm! What's happening?" She asked.
"Tigerclaw! He's joined ShadowClan and it going to attack! Go to the nursery to be with Vineleap! Help her get Pawkit, Snowkit, Starkit, and Smokekit out! And go with find Waterpaw and Hollypaw to help you!" She instructed and Pebblepaw bound off to help Vineleap get her kits to safety. Icestorm turned and ran through the bush where Hollypaw had come.
...oOo...
"Tigerclaw!" Fireheart hissed to Ravenfeather and Fernwind. Fernwind flattened her ears at the sound of his name. He had cost ThunderClan Foxtail, and almost Graystripe, Willowpelt, Sandstorm, Dustpelt, Brightpaw, Longtail, and herself!
"Fireheart, what do we do?" Ravenfeather asked.
"We go and warn Bluestar! Hollypaw might have done that, but ThunderClan will need as many warriors as it can get if ShadowClan does attack!" He said.
"We'd better hurry then, unless we're mouse-brains!" Graystripe said and Fernwind agreed. They ran through the trees and bushes. When they reached the ThunderClan camp, they found the camp abuzz.
"Cinderpelt! Gather all the herbs you can!" Yellowfang, the medicine cat, called to her apprentice, Cinderpelt. Cinderpelt limped towards the cave.
"Fireheart! Thank StarClan!" It was Sandstorm.
"What's going on?" Fernwind asked.
"ShadowClan is already attacking!" Fernwind glanced around Sandstorm to see a few ShadowClan cats already fighting.
"I hate to tell you, but more are on their way!" Graystripe said and Sandstorm looked worried. Suddenly, a yowl made them all jumped. Tigerclaw raced through the camp with the rest of ShadowClan behind him. Fernwind wondered where Icestorm was. She couldn't help but hope that she was with Pebblepaw for once.
...oOo...
Icestorm heard her Clan's yowls as far as the Thunderpath. ShadowClan! Icestorm tore through the gorse tunnel and ran right into the skirmish. She scanned the fight for Fernwind, seeing her fighting with a large ShadowClan she-cat named Firefrost. A Clanmate, Thornwhisker, raked at Firefrost's side, but then another ShadowClan tom barreled her over.
Icestorm glanced around to see Pebblepaw, Hollypaw, and Waterpaw carrying Vineleap's four kits out of the camp. Cloudpaw and Brightpaw's jaws were jammed with herbs to help Cinderpelt and Yellowfang. Suddenly, she felt a cat jump on her back and she saw Tigerclaw.
"Fernwind! Fernwind, help!" She called. Fernwind turned to find her best friend being raked and clawed by Tigerclaw.
"Let her go!" Fernwind said furiously as she raked her claws over Tigerclaw's left eye. Tigerclaw looked back at her in confusion.
"Fernpaw!" He said. "You're a warrior?"
"Yes, and unless you want to never see again, you'd better not show your tail here again!" Fernwind spat. Tigerclaw narrowed his eyes and turned and headed for Fireheart.
"Fernwind! Fernwind!" Fernwind turned to find Waterpaw.
"Waterpaw! Get back with Hollypaw and Pebblepaw!" Fernwind yowled to her apprentice. Before Waterpaw could say anything, a large ShadowClan tom Fernwind recognized as Jaggedtooth sank his teeth into Waterpaw's side.
"Let him go!" Fernwind yowled as she rushed to the aid of her apprentice. She slammed her head into Jaggedtooth's side, sending him backwards. Jaggedtooth dropped Waterpaw, who lay unmoving and still on the ground. Jaggedtooth shook himself and leapt at Fernwind, who was determined to protect Waterpaw from any more damage. But before he could reach her, Icestorm tore at the large-toothed warrior and clawed at his eyes, spitting and hissing, her ears flat.
"Get back!" She spat and Jaggedtooth decided to leave this battle. Icestorm looked back at Fernwind, who was hunched over Waterpaw, who was battered, bleeding and still. As she got closer, she saw that Waterpaw was barely breathing.
"Quick! Take him to Yellowfang!" Icestorm said and she helped Fernwind gently lift the small tabby apprentice and drag him to the den.
"What happened?" Cinderpelt asked, stepping forward to sniff Waterpaw.
"Jaggedtooth attacked him." Fernwind said and Icestorm of all people could detect the distress in her voice.
"Icestorm, find Cloudpaw and Brightpaw. They took some of the elders and kits out of the camp with a lot of the herbs. Make them give you poppy seed for the pain and find me some cobweb, too." Cinderpelt instructed. Icestorm nodded and ran off.
"They're running!" She said as she came back in, her paw swathed in soft cobweb, her jaws crammed with herbs and poppy seeds.
"Thank you, Icestorm." Cinderpelt mewed. She went to work on Waterpaw.
"He's going to be okay, right, Cinderpelt?" Fernwind asked.
"Fernwind, I can't answer that." Cinderpelt said and Fernwind's ears flattened. Icestorm pressed her pelt to hers and Fernwind felt a little better.
"Get some rest, Fernwind. Come back in the morning. Maybe Waterpaw will be up then." She added. Fernwind reluctantly left her apprentice in the paws of the ThunderClan medicine cats.
...oOo...
Fernwind awoke from a restless sleep and shook bits and pieces of moss from her pelt. Icestorm lay a few inches from her. Fernwind then remembered what had happened. She raced to Yellowfang's den.
Waterpaw wasn't there.
He's better then! He's okay! Fernwind thought happily. Then she saw Cinderpelt.
"Cinderpelt!" She said and the medicine cat apprentice looked up.
"Cinderpelt, where's Waterpaw?" Fernwind asked. Cinderpelt looked at the ground. Fernwind's heart skipped a beat and a sinking feeling crept into the pit of her stomach.
"Cinderpelt? Where's Waterpaw?"
"Fernwind, I'm sorry. We tried everything. Waterpaw is in StarClan now." Cinderpelt mewed quietly. Fernwind stared at her in disbelief. Waterpaw couldn't be dead!
"Waterpaw." Fernwind whispered to herself. Cinderpelt pressed her pelt against Fernwind's.
"Fernwind, Waterpaw is in StarClan. He's not in pain anymore. Hollypaw, Pebblepaw, Cloudpaw, and Brightpaw buried him. I didn't think you should." Cinderpelt said and Fernwind was grateful. She wouldn't have been able to bury Waterpaw.
"Before he died, Bluestar came to see him. She explained that in circumstances such as these, a dying apprentice could be made a warrior and go to StarClan a warrior." Cinderpelt said and Fernwind nodded. That was true.
"Waterpaw was very brave. He died brave. Bluestar named him Braveheart." Fernwind smiled. That was perfect. Waterpaw had died a warrior and had received his warrior name.
"Bluestar also made Pebblepaw and Hollypaw warriors. They're Hollyear and Pebblepelt now." Fernwind knew how proud Icestorm must have felt.
"Thank you, Cinderpelt." Fernwind ducked her head and went back to her nest. She was glad that Braveheart wasn't in any pain and was now a warrior forever.
...oOo...
"Icestorm." Icestorm turned to the sound of her name to find Waterpaw and Spottedleaf, the former ThunderClan medicine cat.
"Waterpaw!" Icestorm said and she touched noses with the young cat.
"I'm called Braveheart here." Braveheart mewed. "Bluestar gave me my warrior name before I died." Icestorm realized she was having a dream from StarClan, something that only happened to medicine cats.
"Spottedleaf, this is Fernwind's best friend, Icestorm." Spottedleaf touched noses with Icestorm.
"I died long before you were born, but I have been watching you, dear Icestorm. You and Fernwind. Yellowfang was correct when she said that StarClan gave you the power and strength those three moons ago when you were first made into warriors at the ages of six moons. I knew that it would be the two of you that would lead ThunderClan to victory and defend your Clan no matter what." Spottedleaf said and Icestorm could hardly believe what she was hearing. Were she and Fernwind chosen cats by StarClan?
"Thank you, Spottedleaf." Icestorm meowed, dipping her head.
"We have come to you with a prophecy." Braveheart said and Icestorm wondered what he meant.
"Icestorm, a star has been born. Fern and Star will unite and Wind and Step will fall into place." Spottedleaf said and Icestorm looked confused. What did she mean?
"Fern and Star will unite and Wind and Step will fall into place? Spottedleaf, what do you mean?"
"Icestorm, you and Fernwind must figure this one out on your own." Braveheart said and then he and Spottedleaf began to fade.
Icestorm awoke with a start. She looked around. Moonlight poured from between the fern leaves of the warrior den. Fernwind was curled up asleep next to her, Moonpelt and Suntail the same way, Fireheart, Graystripe, and Ravenfeather also the same way. Sandstorm and Dustpelt, who had always been great friends, were curled up together, too. Icestorm shivered. It was a bit cold. Hollyear and Pebblepelt were both curled into tight balls, their tails over their noses to keep them warm. The other warriors – Whitestorm, Longtail, Skytail, Lightheart, Mousefrost, Mousefur, Brackenfur, Frostfur, Thornwhisker, Icepelt, Windcry, and Stepstone – all slept peacefully. Icestorm smiled, thinking that ThunderClan must be the strongest and biggest Clan in all the forest. She stepped out of the den into the moonlit clearing. Fresh snow blanketed the ground. Icestorm knew she would never get back to sleep. She was just about to go out and hunt when a quiet voice stopped her.
"Icestorm?" Icestorm turned to find Cinderpelt.
"Cinderpelt! What are you doing awake?" Icestorm asked.
"I was about to ask you the same thing." Cinderpelt said back and yawned.
"I can't sleep. I had a dream." Icestorm said and Cinderpelt flicked her tail, signaling Icestorm to continue. "I dreamed of Spottedleaf." She said, knowing that only medicine cats were supposed to have prophetic dreams. Why had StarClan chosen her? She was not a medicine cat!
"Spottedleaf? Really? Neat!" Cinderpelt said and Icestorm nodded.
"Cinderpelt, she told me a prophecy."
"Wow! Lucky!" Cinderpelt said. "What was it?"
"Fern and Star will unite and Wind and Step will fall into place." Icestorm said.
"Maybe Spottedleaf meant stars will shine on a fern leaf and show you the way. As for Wind and Step, maybe she meant Windcry and Stepstone?"
"I highly doubt it would be Windcry. No cat wants to have anything to do with that cat anyway, much less StarClan." Icestorm said. Cinderpelt shrugged.
"I can't help you, Icestorm. But I'd go back to sleep. That's where I'm headed." Cinderpelt said and Icestorm nodded.
"Thanks for your help." She said.
"Oh! And tomorrow, go see Vineleap's kits! They opened their eyes! Starkit was the first." Cinderpelt advised and Icestorm suddenly thought of something.
Fern and Star will unite…
Maybe StarClan meant that Starkit was to be Fernwind's new apprentice! Icestorm decided to see Vineleap first thing in the morning about it.
But what if she was wrong? What if it meant that Fernwind would join StarClan? And Windcry and Stepstone would fall into place and help the Clan? What if her best friend was doomed?
...oOo...
"Vineleap." Icestorm said. Vineleap looked up from her four kits.
"Icestorm." She said and nodded towards her.
"I came to speak with you about something." Icestorm said and Vineleap nodded.
"Go on." She said and Icestorm took a deep breath.
"Last night, Spottedleaf and Waterpaw – I mean Braveheart – and they told me of a prophecy." Icestorm started. She expected Vineleap to ask her what in the name of StarClan she was talking about, but she didn't. She continued to look at Icestorm, waiting for her to continue.
"She said, Fern and Star will unite, and Wind and Step will fall into place."
"And this has something to do with me?" Vineleap asked.
"I think that StarClan has told me that Starkit will be Fernwind's new apprentice." Icestorm said and Vineleap nodded slowly.
"Fern and Star will unite. I believe you're right, Icestorm." She said. "As for Wind and Step will fall into place, I can only think of Windcry and Stepstone." She said.
"Cinderpelt said the same thing." Icestorm said and Vineleap shrugged.
"I will tell Bluestar today that I want Starkit to be mentored by Fernwind. Thank you for telling me, Icestorm." Vineleap mewed and Icestorm dipped her head and backed out of the nursery.
...oOo...
FOUR MOONS LATER
Fernwind yawned wide as she stepped out into the early late Leaf-bare day. She ruffled her thick fur and stretched.
"Morning, Fernwind!" Fernwind turned to find Icestorm. "Want to share a vole before you go out with Starpaw?" Icestorm asked, mentioning Fernwind's new apprentice, Starpaw.
"Sure!" Fernwind agreed.
"Hey, Fernwind, is it true that Starpaw was named for the indent in her right paw that's shaped like a star?" It was Windcry. Fernwind looked towards him. He had gotten his first apprentice, Smokepaw, and no longer held a grudge against Fernwind and Icestorm for getting apprentices before him. Fernwind shook her head.
"No, Starpaw's pad is shaped like a star." She said and Windcry shrugged.
"Odd. You'd never know unless she stepped in dust or mud or something to leave an imprint." He said. "The snow!"
"Anyway, she's really no different." Fernwind said, but Icestorm barely heard her. Was Windcry the Wind in the prophecy from StarClan? And was Stepstone the Step? She stared at him as he walked off.
"Icestorm? You who, Icestorm?" Fernwind asked, waving a paw in front of Icestorm's face. "Do you like Windcry or something?" She asked. Icestorm snapped around.
"No! I was just thinking, that's all." She said.
"Uh huh. Well, if you're all done 'thinking' now, I'm going out to teach Starpaw to catch a squirrel. Fast little guys, let me tell you!" Fernwind said and was off to find the oddly-shaped-pawed apprentice. Icestorm was more than happy to see her best friend happy and back to her old self again. Ever since Braveheart's death, she had been over come with grief. But since Starpaw had been made her apprentice, she had been her old self.
"Icestorm!" Icestorm turned to find Pebblepelt.
"Pebblepelt!" She said.
"Where did Fernwind go?" Pebblepelt asked.
"She went out with Starpaw."
"Well, Bluestar wants her and Starpaw and you to come to the Gathering tonight." Pebblepelt said.
"Is Hollyear going?" Icestorm asked.
"I think so. She's out with Snowpaw." Snowpaw was Hollyear's apprentice.
"Oh. Well, I guess I'm going off to find Fernwind and Starpaw." She said. She suddenly realized she hadn't seen where Fernwind and Starpaw had headed. She looked down at the snow. She saw the paw prints of every cat in ThunderClan – Bluestar, Hollyear, Cinderpelt, Yellowfang, Brackenfur, Fireheart – but one stood out above the others. It was a star.
"Starpaw!" Icestorm mewed joyously. She had found Starpaw's trail, and wherever Starpaw was, her mentor was there, too.
"Fernwind!" Icestorm meowed as she ran into a small clearing where she had often gone with her mentor, Foxtail, to train back when she was an apprentice by the name of Iceear. Suddenly, she stopped.
"Icestorm!" It was Starpaw.
"Starpaw! What's the matter?" She asked.
"It's Fernwind! Icestorm, Tigerclaw is deputy of ShadowClan! He sent a patrol over here and they captured her! Oh, Icestorm, what'll we do?" Starpaw mewed urgently. Icestorm tried to calm the apprentice.
"It's OK, Starpaw, calm down! We go tell Fireheart, that's what we do!"
"Fireheart's on a patrol!" Starpaw said.
"Then we tell Bluestar!" The two cats ran back to the ThunderClan camp and found Bluestar in her den.
"Bluestar!" Icestorm cried as she ran into the den. Bluestar looked up.
"Icestorm! Starpaw! What is the matter?" She asked.
"It's Tigerclaw! He's been made ShadowClan deputy!" Starpaw mewed urgently between puffs of breath.
"What?!" Bluestar spat, causing Starpaw to take a step back as though Bluestar was the Thunderpath on a hot green-leaf day.
"And he catnapped Fernwind!" Icestorm added.
"Where's Fireheart?" Bluestar asked.
"On a patrol!" Starpaw answered.
"Find Graystripe and send him to get him!" Bluestar ordered. Starpaw dipped her head and hurried out of the den, leaving her star-print in the soft sand.
"I know we'll have to fight Tigerclaw and Nightstar to get Fernwind back, Icestorm. I only hope that Fernwind does not have to go through the pain of losing yet another apprentice." Bluestar meowed to Icestorm. "Send for Cinderpelt and Yellowfang. We'll need them." Icestorm bound off towards the medicine cats' den.
"Cinderpelt!" She called for the medicine cat she knew better. Cinderpelt was just a mere month older than Icestorm and Fernwind, making her more energetic and understanding, despite her twisted leg, caused by a Thunderpath accident.
"Icestorm!" Cinderpelt said as she stepped out. Icestorm quickly explained what had happened to Cinderpelt.
"Those mouse-brains! And the day of the Gathering!" Cinderpelt said and Icestorm agreed.
"Starpaw!" Icestorm called to her best friend's apprentice. Starpaw turned to her.
"I got Graystripe to go after Fireheart and Ravenfeather!" She said.
"Good! Come on, Bluestar is gathering the best warriors. She wants you, Smokepaw, and Pawpaw to come."
"Great! Maybe I'll be made into a warrior!"
"Maybe." Icestorm said. It was true.
"Fireheart!" Bluestar said and she explained everything to them.
"Then let's go!" Bluestar said.
...oOo...
"Who is this?" A ShadowClan she-cat asked Tigerclaw.
"She's a ThunderClan cat and she's to be treated as a prisoner." Tigerclaw growled to the she-cat, named Mossytail.
"Don't worry, I won't let him hurt you." Mossytail hissed under her breath to Fernwind as Tigerclaw walked off. Fernwind looked at Mossytail. Why was an enemy cat helping her?
"Why are you helping me?" Fernwind voiced her last question.
"Because when I was a very young kit, I was taken from RiverClan." Mossytail said.
"Taken?!" Fernwind asked, shocked.
"Yes. Apparently, one of the warriors found my RiverClan mother dead and he took me to Brokenstar. He said that I would be raised as a ShadowClan warrior and my name was to be Mossykit, then eventually Mossypaw." Mossytail said and Fernwind could hear the bitterness in her voice. "I recently found out that my mother's best friend, Ivyleap, had tried to rescue me."
"That's horrible!" Fernwind said.
"So I'm helping you. I plan to leave ShadowClan the next chance I get." Mossytail said.
"Thank you, Mossytail. My name is Fernwind."
"Mossytail! Tigerclaw says to take her to the small cave over there to be held!" Jaggedtooth called. Fernwind hissed in the back of her throat, realizing that this was the cat that had sent Waterpaw to StarClan.
"Jaggedtooth." She spat under her breath. Mossytail looked at her.
"What about him?" She asked.
"He killed my apprentice, Waterpaw." Fernwind said bitterly. "Bluestar named him Braveheart before he went to StarClan. I have an apprentice named Starpaw now." Fernwind explained.
"That's awful!" Mossytail said and Fernwind nodded.
"If I wasn't bound by the warrior code and if I didn't honor it as much as I do, Jaggedtooth would be crowfood." Fernwind said. "But I can't do that. I'm not sure I could even without the warrior code."
"That would only make you like Jaggedtooth." Mossytail pointed out. Fernwind agreed. A sudden yowl made her stop. She spun around to see Bluestar and Fireheart leading a patrol through the ShadowClan camp. She also saw Icestorm and Starpaw behind them.
"Attack!" Bluestar spat and the ThunderClan cats jumped at the ShadowClan warriors closest to them.
"Fernwind! Look out! There's a ShadowClan cat behind you!" Starpaw called.
"She's a friend!" Fernwind said and Starpaw leapt at a ShadowClan cat twice her size. Fernwind suddenly saw not Starpaw, but Waterpaw, before he was Braveheart, thrashing at the cat. She realized with a jolt that the cat Starpaw had jumped on was Jaggedtooth.
"No! Starpaw!" Fernwind cried as she saw Jaggedtooth roll Starpaw off of his back. She stared at Starpaw's motionless body. Images of Waterpaw kept filling her mind. But then, Starpaw stood up and furiously shook herself. She sprang at Jaggedtooth.
"I know you! You're the one that killed Braveheart!" She said and she sank her teeth into Jaggedtooth's shoulder. Fernwind sighed a sigh of relief. Starpaw would never need looking after, and she was proving that. Fernwind suddenly heard Icestorm's howl of alarm and she spun around to see Tigerclaw on top of Fireheart.
"Let him go!" Fernwind heard Sandstorm yowl and she hit Tigerclaw off of Fireheart, who staggered to his feet. Then Tigerclaw saw Fernwind, the cat who had told the camp of his betrayal about leading the Twolegs to the camp. He ran at Fernwind. She pounced and knocked Fernwind from her paws. He sank his teeth into her neck.
"Fernwind!" It was Icestorm. She furiously fought at Tigerclaw to let her go. Suddenly, a flash of smoky colored fur caused Tigerclaw to yowl in pain and jump back. It was Starpaw.
"Got off of her you piece of fox dung!" She spat and Tigerclaw glared at her. His eye was now white and cloudy. Starpaw had blinded him in his left eye.
"Stupid kit." Tigerclaw mewed with evil amusement in his voice. He leapt at Starpaw when Fernwind and Icestorm leapt in front of Tigerclaw.
"Help Hollyear and Dustpelt!" Icestorm yowled to Starpaw and Starpaw bound away.
Tigerclaw watched the apprentice run back to the warriors of his former clanmates. He looked down at the ground. Fernwind saw his good eye grow in amazement. He had seen Starpaw's star-shaped padprint.
"Starpaw. I'll remember that name, Fernpaw! And don't you forget it!" He spat to Fernwind. He had not been at Fernwind's naming ceremony. "I'll get her one day! You can't protect her forever! I'll get her!" He said. Bluestar gave a yowl and the ThunderClan cats gave their enemies one last bite or scratch and ran off.
...oOo...
"Starpaw! Oh, Starpaw!" Fernwind said as she licked her apprentice on the head.
"Fernwind! I'm okay!" She said.
"That was very brave, Starpaw. You were as brave as Braveheart was." Braveheart had been Starpaw's older brother and she had been just been a tiny kit in the nursery when he was killed. Mossytail padded over to her.
"Would you show me the way to the RiverClan camp?" She asked.
"I can't right now, Mossytail. Starpaw, Smokepaw, Snowpaw, and Pawpaw are being made warriors! Cloudpaw, and Brightpaw aren't being made warriors yet again." Fernwind said.
"Can I stay?" Mossytail asked.
"Of course!" Fernwind said.
"Come on, Fernwind! It's about to begin!" Starpaw said as she led her mentor to the circle of cats. "We have to do this before we go to the Gathering!"
"Smokepaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code, even at the cost of your own life?" Bluestar asked.
"I do." Smokepaw said.
"Then by the power of StarClan, you shall now be called Smoketail. StarClan honors your bravery and we welcome you as a warrior of ThunderClan."
"Pawpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code, even at the cost of your own life?"
"I do." Pawpaw said.
"Then by the power of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Pawpaw, you will forever be known as Pawfoot. We welcome you as a warrior of ThunderClan." Bluestar said.
"Snowpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code, even at the cost of your own life?"
"I do."
"Then by the power of StarClan, you shall be called Snowface. We welcome you as a warrior of ThunderClan."
"I'm next!" Starpaw whispered excitedly to Fernwind. Fernwind looked on proudly as Bluestar called her apprentice's name.
"Starpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code, even at the cost of your own life?"
"I promise." Starpaw said.
"Then by the power of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Starpaw, you will now be called Starstep. We welcome you as a warrior of ThunderClan."
Something in Icestorm snapped.
Fernwind…Starstep…
She remembered Spottedleaf and Braveheart's prophecy. Fern and Star will unite, and Wind and Step will fall into place.
Icestorm realized that Fernwind was the Fern and the Wind, and that Starstep was the Star and the Step. They had defeated Tigerclaw by blinding him in one eye. Maybe that would teach him to leave the Clans alone. But more than anything, it meant something else. StarClan's prophecy had been fulfilled.
...oOo...
"Icestorm! Come on!" Fernwind said and Icestorm blinked sleepily.
"It's time for the Gathering! You fell asleep!" Fernwind said and Icestorm jumped to her paws.
"The others have already left! Hurry!" Fernwind said and the best friends ran through the forest.
As she ran, Fernwind could feel Braveheart running beside her. She knew that her beloved first apprentice was still with her and that his spirit would live forever, as previously demonstrated, in his sister, in Starstep.
"Braveheart." She whispered as she ran beside Icestorm. She knew that she and Icestorm would have many future adventures and apprentices and she couldn't wait!