A/N: Thanks to those who gave me feedback! Someone mentioned that I had two identical Whitepaws so I fixed that. Thank you for pointing that out to me. Sometimes it's hard to remember if I have that cat description already. The allegiances will be updated as the story progresses, so don't worry too much about remembering every single cat.

And of course, thank you to purastella for listening to me go on and on about this story.

Without further ado, here is the first chapter! I would like to point out that the prologue takes place many, many moons before this.

~Chapter 1~

A yowl of pain woke Wildflower up at the crack of sunrise. She let out an enormous yawn as she heaved herself to her paws. She murmured to the sleeping warriors around her to start waking up before heading out of the warriors den. The pretty flecked white she-cat looked around the clearing for a moment, unable to spot anything out of the ordinary. The apprentices were beginning to creep outside of their den, one of the largest shrubs in the clan's territory. It was still small, but it was larger than the horde of shrubs that lined the entrance to the camp. Beside the apprentices den was the second tallest of the boulders that made up the rest of Fireclan's camp. It was smooth and flat on the top with a hollowed inside, making it the perfect place for the leader. Wildflower perked her ears up when she saw him walk out of his den. She padded over to him, catching his attention easily.

The white and black tom greeted his deputy with a concerned tone. "What was that noise?"

The deputy settled beside him, following his gaze as it traveled around the camp for any signs of distress. "I do not know, Blackstar, but it sounded like a cat in pain-" Both cats stiffened when the yowl of pain sounded again. This time, it was much louder and was on the verge of a wail, causing the rest of the clan to stir and wake up. But the heightened volume of the yell revealed its location. Wildflower pointed with her nose to the medicine cat den. It was one of the few covered dens in the camp, made from a hollowed out rock. It was nestled between one smaller boulder and a larger boulder. The rocks formed alcoves on either side of the den, one for sick cats and the other for Drywhisker's herb supply. "Perhaps Bramblemask injured himself on his way down from the Guard Rock," Wildflower suggested, naming the warrior who stood guard over the camp during the night.

Blackstar looked up at the Guard Rock, which was the smallest yet tallest rock in the camp. It gave the clan cats an easy view to watch the movement in the tall grass that made up their territory. It was difficult to climb, requiring claws to aide in jumping onto the small ledges that made a makeshift path to the top. "It has happened before," the leader commented, his concern replaced with amusement. He turned his attention to his deputy. "I will lead the patrol along the Waterclan border." At Wildflower's nod in agreement, the tom continued. "I will take Shadowbreeze and Squirrelpaw. Shadowbreeze mentioned that the apprentice is ready for an assessment. I will decide so after the patrol."

Wildflower murmured her agreement. Squirrelpaw was the eldest of the apprentices, yet she often acted or spoke before she thought. A patrol with Blackstar could help the dark ginger she-cat calm down and start acting like a warrior. The deputy looked up as she watched the warriors emerge from the den, which was a large alcove behind the rock by the shrub entrance. The shrubs helped keep the warriors dry in the small amount of rains during newleaf and leaffall. "Tonight's Gathering will be a peaceful one, I hope," the pretty she-cat meowed.

Blackstar nodded, watching as the apprentices scurried around to feed the elders and queens as well as feed themselves afterwards. The warriors talked animatedly once Bramblemask made his way out of the medicine cat den, showing them all that there was no need for alarm. "There has been peace for many moons," the leader meowed, watching his clan with a glint of pride in his green eyes. "No clan has a reason to disrupt that."

"Earthclan might," Wildflower countered, the tip of her tail twitching. "Their new leader is a mousebrained fool who cares only for his personal goals."

Blackstar's whiskers twitched in amusement at the she-cat's words. The leader of Earthclan had been made leader by Skyclan not one moon ago when its previous leader and deputy died from greencough during the end of leafbare. Wildflower and Blackstar had never met the tom, since he was appointed deputy not moments before the previous deputy, Sorreltail, joined Skyclan. Blackstar was eager to meet the tom, while Wildflower disliked the idea. She was convinced that it had not been a proper ceremony and that it was a scheme of his to become leader. His deputy was easily suspicious of others and stubborn, which at times made it difficult for Blackstar to help her see things differently.

Wildflower shook her pelt and stood up, her eyes focusing on the group of cats that had begun to finish eating. "I'll have Harepelt and Mousetail lead the border and hunting patrols. The mentors could use some time training their apprentices." She started walking before pausing and looking back at him. "Birchkit and Hollykit are six moons," she reminded him. "Perhaps before the Gathering…"

Blackstar heaved himself to his paws, making Wildflower trail off. "Before the Gathering, we can discuss which warriors could be their mentors. They'll have their ceremonies tomorrow." He flicked her shoulder with his long black tail. "Perhaps you should go check on them. It would do you good to lighten up before the Gathering." With a swish of his tail, he led the way to the group of warriors. "Shadowbreeze," the tom greeted the senior warrior. "You and Squirrelpaw will join me on the Waterclan border patrol."

The black she-cat nodded and stood up, looking over and spotting Squirrelpaw trotting out of the elders den. "Squirrelpaw!" The dark ginger apprentice looked over in excitement. "We are going on border patrol with Blackstar." At the mention of the clan leader, the apprentice's eyes widened. She scurried over to the camp entrance bouncing in place as she waiting for them.

Shadowbreeze let out a deep sigh and padded over to her. Blackstar turned to Wildflower and meowed, "See if Drywhisker has any need for the apprentices before they train." With that, he led Shadowbreeze and Squirrelpaw out of the camp.

Wildflower resisted the urge to curl her lips at the idea of seeing Drywhisker. The clan's medicine cat was a stubborn and temperamental old tom, who rarely enjoyed visits. She shook her head and focused on the cats before her. "Harepelt," the light gray tom's ears flicked in acknowledgment, "you will lead the hunting patrol. Mousetail, take a patrol along the Earthclan border." The brown she-cat nodded before finishing off her meal.

Wildflower was ready to leave and go deal with Drywhisker when a large dark ginger tom asked coldly, "And who will join these patrols, Wildflower? They can't be a one cat patrol." The pale ginger tom beside him curled his lips in disgusted agreement.

Wildflower turned to face the two squarely, her eyes narrowed as she looked at them. "Foxclaw," she addressed the first tom with a clipped voice. "They will choose the other cats. You are warriors, not kits. I do not need to take care of every little detail." At the anger in the tom's eyes, she added, "Blackstar wants mentors to focus on training today, so you and Liontooth will not be on the sunrise patrols anyway." She turned sharply and walked to the medicine den, eager to leave the two toms behind. Since she had been appointed deputy six moons ago, the two warriors had questioned and argued against her every action.

Wildflower let out a deep sigh as she paused before the medicine cat den. Foxclaw and Liontooth had been her littermates, and all three had become apprentices around the same time. Wildflower was given her warrior name first, and she knew that the competitive Foxclaw was angry about it. It made matters worse when she was appointed deputy.

"Are you going to stand outside all day or are you going to come in and waste my time?"

Wildflower let out a low growl of annoyance before walking inside, her eyes immediately falling on the big burly dust-colored tom. His long hair was barely neat, though Wildflower did always notice that it was never fully tangled. The deputy immediately stiffened when the tom looked at her with his yellow eyes. They were unnerving, filled with contempt and disdain. Wildflower never understood how such an unpleasant cat became a medicine cat. She held her tongue from speaking her mind and meowed calmly, "Do you need any assistance? The apprentices will be training today, so they won't be around unless you say so."

The tom scoffed and turned his attention back to some poultice he was making. "I have no need for those mousebrains. They could not tell the difference between nightshade and juniper berries."

Wildflower rolled her eyes. "That was one time, and Snakepaw was a new apprentice."

"I do not need help," Drywhisker snapped.

"What you need is some chamomile." Wildflower relaxed when she heard the soothing comment from behind her. The deputy stepped to the side to let the brown tabby she-cat inside. "Did you take some this morning like I suggested?"

"I would rather be eaten by a badger," Drywhisker retorted. "I am perfectly fine."

"Leafsong," the brown tabby turned to Wildflower as the deputy addressed her, "do you need any help?"

Ignoring her old mentor's scoff, the young medicine cat shook her head softly. "We have plenty of herbs. The herbs in the twoleg nest by the Earthclan border were well protected during leafbare." The brown tabby glanced over at her mentor, who had gone back to grumbling and mixing herbs, before getting closer to Wildflower to speak urgently. "Will you check on Echowhisper for me? I checked on her before I left, but she seems to be down lately."

Wildflower's eyes glistened with worry. The queen was due any day, which only made Leafsong much more worried about her health. "I will," the deputy promised. "I have to check on Birchkit and Hollykit anyways. Their apprentice ceremony is tomorrow."

Drywhisker let out a low rumble in his throat that bordered on a disgruntled growl. "They turned six moons days ago. It's about time."

"Blackstar wants to wait until after the Gathering," Wildflower continued addressing Leafsong as if the old tom had not spoken.

Leafsong purred in amused understanding. "He has always waited until apprentices had been trained a little before letting them go to a Gathering. I am sure they will be excited to hear the news."

"Will you be accompanying Drywhisker to the Gathering?" Wildflower asked. The young medicine cat had stayed behind for the last two moons to look after sick cats. The deputy found no reason for her to stay now that leafbare was over and all the cats had recovered.

"She will," Drywhisker snapped, now facing the two she-cats. His yellow eyes were dark and unreadable.

Leafsong flicked her tail over the tom's muzzle in an attempt to calm him. "I will. I am excited to meet the new Earthclan leader." At the deputy's narrowed eyes, the medicine cat looked at her closely. "You are not then?"

Wildflower lashed her tail. "How can I be excited to meet a cat who was not appointed leader according to the warrior code?"

"Wildflower," Leafsong meowed gently, "he was granted his nine lives by Skyclan. There is no reason for you to distrust him. This Gathering will be a peaceful one; the clans finally have more prey and are no longer facing sickness. There is nothing to fear."

Drywhisker shook his head roughly, making the two she-cats shuffle in surprise. The medicine cat was known for his sharp tongue, not for his actions. "This Gathering will be different." He looked out of the cave to the sky, watching as the sun rose. "The air is shaking."

Leafsong's earlier carefree expression disappeared completely at the news. She was unlike her mentor in many ways, one of which is being good at reading signs. It was the one thing she tried her hardest at. Wildflower flicked her tail to rest on the young she-cat's shoulder in a comforting manner. No matter how good of a medicine cat he was, Drywhisker had a knack for being too serious. "There is no reason for the clans to disrupt the peace," the deputy countered calmly. "Even the new leader must know this."

Drywhisker's whiskers twitched in annoyance at the deputy's naivety. "The air does not lie and neither do I. Something will happen tonight and it will disrupt more than just the peace."

"Drywhisker, are you sure about this?" Leafsong questioned in a hushed meow. At the medicine cat's hard nod, the she-cat's shoulders drooped. "Perhaps I should stay, in case the herbs are needed..."

Drywhisker scoffed, heaving himself to his paws so he could go visit the elders. "You will come. It is important you see the signs so the medicine cats can work things out."

Wildflower had never seen the medicine cat so serious before. As his dark yellow gaze turned on her, she meowed, "I should go check on the queens." Wildflower could tell the two needed to have a private conversation. She still did not fully believe Drywhisker; it was difficult too after the last time he had been so serious.

"Perhaps we will need help," Leafsong looked up at Wildflower. "Can you have one of the apprentices check on the elders? Unless Drywhisker wants to..." she looks over at her mentor with an amused gleam in her eyes.

The older tom scoffed. "I'd rather be eaten by a badger."

Wildflower shook her head before backing out of the den, scanning the camp with a keen eye. She didn't believe that Drywhisker was entirely wrong; the new leader could try something. Regardless of what it is, the she-cat thought to herself, we can handle it. Wildflower shivered as the breeze picked up, chilling her to her bones. Perhaps she should heed the medicine cat's warning more seriously and tell Blackstar when he came back.

The sudden sound of a loud howl of pain caused Wildflower to race across the camp to the nursery, her pelt prickling in fear. Please Skyclan, let everything be alright. We've had so many moons of peace. Why should that be taken away?

~End Chapter 1~