PROLUGUE
The cats of StarClan gathered around the crystal clear pool. The stars were glinting across the surface of the slightly wind ruffled water. The cats ringing the pool had glimmering stars in their fur and lightness to their paws. There were dark trees shaking around the edge with the wind. A white cat stepped forward, "I see danger ahead for the Clans." The cat meowed looking into the pool. Another cat, light brown, padded up beside him, "I too have seen this danger from the feather in the thorns, Snowstar." She said as she addressed the leader. The cats around the edge murmured at the clear picture in the water of a gray feather caught in a thorn bush. All was peaceful before the feather had caught on the thorns but afterward the bush was shaken by and unseen wind. A lithe, black tom objected from the circle or cats, "It does not say whether the feather and thorn will cause the danger, only that they are associated with it." A confused sound came from the surrounding cats, but Snowstar shook his great white head impatiently, "It is safe to assume that they will; this is the only potential danger that I see." The light brown she-cat was silent but her eyes betrayed her uncertainty. The white cat continued, "Shadowpelt, go to DarkClan; Littledeer, go to BreezeClan; Cloudtail, go to StreamClan and I will go to StormClan. We must warn the clans."
Mistyfur padded back and forth in StormClan camp, restless. She walked back into her den but backed quickly out again as to not wake her sleeping apprentice. She walked over to Greatrock and meowed a soft greeting to her leader. Flamestar instantly was at her side, "Mistyfur! Is there something wrong?"
"No, well… I don't know really. Have you spoken with StarClan lately?" Her green eyes were troubled, and tired.
Flamestar meowed thoughtfully, "No, should I have?"
Mistyfur shook her head and quickly said, "Not necessarily, it just feels like they are trying to tell me something." Her leaf colored eyes seemed to look past him. "I need to dream." She said, almost to herself.
"Sleep here, don't wake Spinningpaw. I am taking the next watch anyway."
Mistyfur stared at him, surprised. "But this is your den!"
Flamestar looked at the she-cat dryly, "Thank you for that enlightening statement. Yes, you are correct, this is my den." His tone changed to a soft, caring one, "however I just offered it to the honored medicine cat."
Mistyfur looked at him gratefully: "Thanks."
No problem he thought as he padded out of the den: "Don't hesitate to call me if you need to."
Mistyfur called after him softly and said again, "Thanks." She then curled up and almost immediately drifted to sleep.
Mistyfur padded silently in the starlit forest where she had walked so many times before. There were trees that seemed to touch the stars they were so tall and endless prey. This was StarClan's territory. She approached a pure white cat standing alone. Recognizing the cat she called out, "Snowstar!" He turned and padded slowly up to her, his eyes troubled.
"Mistyfur, there is danger coming, for all of the clans. Beware of the feather in thorns. They will cause destruction to the clans." Snowstar turned and slowly padded away from the gray she-cat, but looked back and meowed, "I'm sorry I cannot do more to help." He continued on and slowly disappeared into the dark forest.
Mistyfur struggled to keep thinking. This isn't fair! she wailed in her mind. She tried impossibly to control herself in the ever darkening forest. Finally getting enough control after several minutes, she turned and raced away trying to force herself to wake up. I have to tell Flamestar, I warned him that we had had too many moons in peace. Now he has to listen to me! she thought to herself as she raced blindly through the forest. Mistyfur stumbled on a root and flipped over, sliding on the sandy ground. Her head flicked up from her uncomfortable position and she was immediately awake.
A soft glow was coming from the entrance to Flamestar's den, and Mistyfur leapt up, guiltily realizing that she had slept for a good part of the night in the leader's den. She padded out of the cave, and pushed through the lichen hanging over the den like a curtain. She stopped, looking for Flamestar. The sharpclaws were beginning to wake, she noticed as a tired moonhigh patrol trotted in. The dawn patrol, Falconwing, Snowstorm, and Duskpaw, immediately left without speaking to Redfur, Leaftail, Sunblaze, and Hollypaw. Suddenly she noticed a movement at her side and she looked up to see Flamestar padding up from the nursery.
The sandy colored Sharpclaw sat down beside Mistyfur and meowed cheerfully, "Well? Have a good sleep?" Flamestar purred in amusement at the she-cat's embarrassed expression though it changed to seriousness quite quickly.
"Actually, I have to talk to you about that. I was right, StarClan visited me last night, and they gave me a disturbing warning." The gray she-cat waited to see Flamestar's reaction.
Flamestar's good mood, however, could not be quenched: "What, is the clan going to be destroyed by a touch of a feather?" He purred again at the thought.
Mistyfur shot him a look, surprised: "Believe it or not, that's close. They gave me the prophecy to beware of the feather in thorns. They will be the cause of destruction of the clans."
He snorted and began to walk away: "Yeah, right, so a feather that couldn't even get past a thorn bush is going to destroy the clans? Somehow, that doesn't seem right to me. I have to go hunt, see you later.
Mistyfur stared after the sandy colored cat bounding away from her in frustration. Why would he refuse to believe her? She was the medicine cat, she was supposed to be respected and listened to. Why would her leader, of all cats, deny a prophecy sent by StarClan? Even as she thought, the answer came to her. There had been too much peace, and Flamestar along with the rest of the clan cats in the forest, had been lulled into a sense of security, a false sense of security. It is the halfmoon in two nights, I will ask the other medicine cats then. she decided. This will be not be dismissed, even if I have to do it myself! She then asked herself what "it" was and found she had no answer. She padded away to the medicine cat's den to wake Spinningpaw.
"Spinningpaw, Greentail has a bellyache, what should we give her?" Mistyfur tested her apprentice. She glanced at the sun; it was nearing sunhigh.
The silver tom answered promptly, "Water mint or junip-"
"Mistyfur!" The apprentice was cut off by a panicked cry.
Mistyfur bounded out of the den and almost crashed into Snowstorm, the cat who had been calling her. "What's wrong?" she asked as she followed the scent of blood. There wasn't much by the smell of it, but there were still cats crowded around something. "Will everyone please back off?!" She screeched. The cats were jumping over themselves in their haste to give her room. To her surprise, there were two kits, one golden brown and the other light gray next to each other. The golden brown one was bleeding from a cut on his head, and the gray had a few scratches on her body, but nothing serious.
"Spinningpaw, get horsetail and cobwebs. Oh, and also some thyme." The apprentice nodded and raced to their den. She checked the two kits more thoroughly while waiting for herbs. They smelled funny, but she couldn't place it. The silver tom bounded back out again with stems and a mat of spider webs clutched in his jaws. "Thank you," Mistyfur said absently as she broke the horsetail stems and allowed the juice to drip onto the cobwebs. She pressed the wet cobwebs to the cut on the golden brown kit's forehead. She turned to Spinningpaw but retained her pressure to the wound on the kit's head. "Spinningpaw, do the same to the gray one." He nodded determinedly and pressed the rest of the cobwebs on the gray kit's cuts. The bleeding stopped almost immediately. "Okay Spinningpaw, did it stop?" she asked the silver tom.
"Yes," he meowed, taking the sticky cobweb off of the gray kit's shoulder. He chewed up some marigold and pressed that to the kit's shoulder, letting the juice run into the cut.
Mistyfur nodded at him, "Good thinking, but don't forget to give her the thyme." She purred as his eyes widened when he remembered.
"Sorry," he muttered, embarrassed.
"It's fine, relax, you're doing so well," she looked at the silver apprentice. "Now, why are we giving them thyme?" she decided to test him.
He answered immediately, "For shock. And the marigold is to stop infections. Why don't we mix it with honey, and then smear it on catch burrs so it will hold itself? Then the honey can also soothe the wound but they can't lick it."
Mistyfur nodded at her apprentice in approval, "Great idea, can you get it?" She sniffed the two kits again, trying to figure out they're scent. Her eyes widened when she recognized it. "Kittypets!" she mewed to herself. She twitched her whiskers, and decided to treat them anyway. It isn't their fault as to where they come from. she thought to herself.
Spinningpaw looked at her curiously, but she shook her head. He nodded and put the rest of the marigold on a leaf. He then disappeared into the medicine cat's den. A minute later, he trotted back out again with a bundle grasped in his jaws.
"Perfect, Spinningpaw, why don't you apply it so I can talk to Flamestar?" The apprentice nodded slowly, deep in concentration. Mistyfur flicked her tail in thanks, and ran to Flamestar's den. She pushed by the lichen and stepped into the cool, damp darkness. "Flamestar? What are you going to do about the kits? You can't just put them out in the forest, they'll die, but they're kittypets!" she meowed the last word in disgust to the sandy colored cat.
"Of course they can stay. I won't let two innocent kits die, kittypet, clanborn, or rogue." He stepped out of the shadows and padded through the curtain of lichen. "Come!" he called from outside, "I will go and see them now."
Mistyfur accepted and agreed with his decision. She followed him out to the clearing. The blue-gray she-cat padded over to see how her apprentice was doing. He had finished with the golden brown and was almost done with the gray. She nodded in satisfaction; the silver tom was coming along well. "Good job, Spinningpaw. I think we can move them to the medicine cat den. Wait for me; I have to clear something up."
Mistyfur continued following Flamestar, who was now speaking with one of the kit-mothers – Dawnmist.
"Of course, Flamestar." The she-cat meowed as Mistyfur drew closer.
Flamestar turned and meowed, "Dawnmist has said that she will look after the kits, and that Icefur will help her."
Mistyfur dipped her head to the kit-mother and mewed, "Thank you." The she-cat simply nodded and turned back to her kits, reassuring them softly as she went.
Mistyfur turned back to her apprentice, "Alright, you get the gray one. Carefully now." She mewed to the silver tom as he picked up the she-cat. "Hollypaw? Can you make two nests in our den?" She asked the black she-cat. Hollypaw nodded and ran ahead of them to their den. Mistyfur leaned down to pick up the golden brown tom and gently carried him to the medicine cat den. She stepped through the fern tunnel and into the rocky cave.
"Here," Hollypaw said quietly.
Mistyfur placed the tom in the left nest and Spinningpaw put the she-cat in the other. "Thank you Hollypaw." She mewed to the apprentice. Hollypaw dipped her head and padded out of the den.
Suddenly, the gray she-cat began to wake and started mewling. Mistyfur swiftly stepped beside her and meowed, "Hush, you are safe now. What is your name?"
The she-cat looked up and said softly, "I am Feather, and this is my brother, Thorn. You won't hurt us?"
Mistyfur's eyes widened, "beware of the feather in the thorns…."Snowstar had said. She took a second to control her expression and mewed back, "Don't worry, of course not. But stay here, I have to – to do something." With that she turned and raced out of the den.