Sorry it took so long for me to update. My first partner in writing bailed on me and didn't notify me for the longest time, and then there was testing and other school stuff. I have college level classes, so don't judge... Anyway, my new partner in writing and crime is Briarstorm: The Thirteenth Storm. She is my Sister, and the most epic person on here. Join her forum, Ivyclan. We have a new system for challenges, so be sure and try it out. *NOTICE* I do not own Warriors. If I did, a lot of things would be different...

Blood ran freely out of the wounds on Max Crosss' face. It made his fur hot and stcky, clumping together over his wounds. The throaty laugh of the younger shadowy cat raked his ears. The older cat sat back on his haunches, instructing and correcting the younger cat. The wounds on his flank were bleeding sluggishly. The younger cat had just tried to scratch out his eyes, Max pulling back just enough so the cat had left deep trenches on his face, where blood pooled and fell, running into his eyes.
The cat laughed again as he stalked closer,ax cringing at the hatred laced in the voice. The cat crouched low, stalking foreword slowly, obviously injoying himself at the paIn in Maxs' unfocused gaze. The cat readied himself to pounce,ax unable to move, bloodloss and fear sapping the strength from his limbs.
"I thought you would have Put up more of a fight than this." The shadowy cat chuckled. "Still, it's been fun, but I'm told that you have to die now." The cat grinned evilly, then he leaped foreword.
Just to be intercepted midair by a streak of gold. The new cat landed neatly with his back to Max.
The gold Tom spoke nonchalantly, his voice easy. "All three of us know that neither of you can beat me."
The shadowy cats eyes widened at the newcomer. Then they hardened their expressions, rage and hatred twisting their faces. "We won't forget this." said the older cat. Then they turned and ran.
The gold Tom glared after the two cats for a few seconds before he turned to face Max. Max swayed, his wounds screaming, blood pooling at his feet.
"Hey? Are you all right?" the gold tom asked.
Then Maxs' eyes rolled back in his head, and he passed out.
3/2

Maxs' eyelids fluttered slightly, the bitter scent of herbs touching his nose. The whispers of cats in a heated argument reached his ears, making them twitch.
"You mousebrain! What were you thinking, bringing a strange cat into camp?"
"I was thinking that someone was about to die, and that my brother could try to save him!"
"Lionblaze, he's a stranger. He's not even a clan cat."
The voice of Maxs' savior now had a name. Lionblaze.
"Jayfeather..."
"What do you expect me to tell Bramblestar!?" yelled the other cat. The soft sounds of another cat shifting in it's nest drew Maxs' attention.
"Wha's goin' o.." Her voice was cut off by a big yawn. Max sensed the she-cat suddenly stiffen. "Who's he?"
"This mousebrained idiot decided to play hero and bring a complete stranger into the Thunderclan camp."
"What would you have me do?" Lionblaze retorted. "I couldn't very well let him bleed to death, now could I?"
The she-cat glanced at the heavily cobwebbed russet tom.
"What's his name?"
Lionblaze scuffed a forepaw and glared sheepishly at the ground.
"Great. That's just fantastic." said the other tom, his voice thick with sarcasm. "We don't know where he's from and we don't even know his name!"
"I know he was going to die!" Lionblaze spat out bitterly. "So if you want, I could finish the job that the Dark Forest cats started."
Max bolted upright, his legs screaming in protest. He let out a choked cry of agony as two of his wounds on his flank reopened. Lionblaze and Jayfeather whirled around, and the misty-eyed tabby hissed, "Are you out of mind?!" while the golden cat bristled in mortification.
"I'm sorry, I didn't... I mean, I'm not going to..."
"Not going to what, exactly? Help me or kill me?" Max heaved himself backwards, the fur along his spine stiff with aggression and fear. His swollen violet eyes glowed with a pain-filled challenge.
The first rays of sunlight shyly peered through the entrance of the den, catching Max's red-brown pelt.
"I didn't mean..."
Max lashed his tail, his eyes showing the amount of pain he was in, his body pumping adrenalin. The she-cat, still in her bed looked imploringly at the three tomcats, before irritably hauling herself out of her nest.
Max watched the cat drag her useless legs across the ground, confusion tweaking us eyes. His muscles stiffened without the strain of holding his tired, bedraggled body up. Then his legs wobbled, and gave out. He tumbled into his bedding, panting.
The misty-eyed cat glared at Max with his strange blue eyes. "Stop moving, or you'll reopen more of your wounds. I already have to send out the apprentices for more cobwebs."
Max sighed, defeated. He attempted to make himself comfortable in his bedding as he listened to Lionblazw and Jayfeather bicker.
"You sound like brothers." Max said, mostly to himself. Jayfeather and Lionblaze looked at Max, Lionblaze with a curious expression, Jayfeather with an annoyed one.
"I'm going to get Bramblestar." said the gray tom. Then he huffed out of the den.
Lionblaze watched Jayfeather leave, then he turned to Max. "How did you know?" he asked curiously.
"I... I just know." answered Max.
"Hm."
They studied each other for a minute. Then Lionblaze broke the silence. "I still don't know your name. What is it?"
"Max. It's Max Cross."
"We are glad to have you as our guest, Max."
The deep voice rumbled from the entrance of the den. Max shifted so he could look at the large dark tom. Authority rolled off of this cat in waves, making Max feel small. The new cat, followed by Jayfeather, walked into the den.
"My name is Bramblestar, leader of Thunderclan. I have spoken with Jayfeather, and he agrees that you should stay with us, at least until you are well. Then we shall talk."
Max nodded tiredly at Bramblestars words, but he didn't really understand them. Bramblestar left the den, followed by Lionblaze.
Jayfeather watched the two toms leave, then he turned to Max. "You need to sleep. You'll heal faster, and your already exhausted."
Max nodded slowly, his eyes drifting shut. He looked up at Jayfeather one last time before he fell asleep. "Thanks" Max mumbled through heavy lips. Then his eyes slammed shut.

A cold chill filled the air as Max slowly opened his eyes. He woke up in what seemed like a dream, although it was all too familiar. Max remembered the deadly battle in which had just occurred only a short while ago. 'At least there is no scent of that cat… what was his name?' Max pondered over that question to be interrupted by bickering from nearby. Max bolted under a bramble bush in hope that maybe, just maybe, the bramble bush could save his life. 'I never thought that would pop into my head.' Max almost laughed at the thought of a bramble bush saving his life.

"But Bluestar! Please!" A tom cried. Though, it sounded more like a queen's whining. Max wondered if he had ever sounded like that…
"No Firestar, I shall not allow a… a two-leg into my clan!" A she-cat spat. He guessed it was Bluestar.
"Please!" Firestar whined again.
"No." Bluestar replied dryly.
"Pleeeaaasseee!" The tom yowled. 'Wow' Max thought. 'I might be stuck under this bramble bush for the rest of my life.' Max felt sad at the thought. 'What would… um… what was his name? Oh, yeah, what would Lionblaze think if I disappeared off the face of the earth? I mean, does that mean he saved me for nothing?'
The bickering continued for what seemed like months; wait. Don't cats call them moons? That was until suddenly the she-cat stopped. Firestar looked startled at the sudden silence from Bluestar and stuttered until he was quiet.
"Why do you even want him in the clan? He's a two-leg! We shouldn't have changed him into a cat in the first place!"
Max was shocked. 'So they were the ones who turned me into this!' He almost stormed out to confront the cats when a thought took over his mind. 'If they could turn me into a cat, they could do much worse…' Max decided that the shelter and safety of the bramble bush would be enough.
Firestar snapped Max out of his thoughts as he yowled at Bluestar, "I've already told you! The prophecy! Do you really have the memory of a mouse? Oh, that's why they call you mouse-brain."
Bluestar was outraged at that statement. Even Max thought it was a bit overboard. "You think I'm mouse-brained!? Was it mouse-brained of me to bring you into the clan? You were a weak little kittypet when I brought you in. Look how great that turned out to be! You saved the clans!"
Firestar just sat there, grooming his fur. Max could hear the quiet and gentle rasp of tongue over fur. "You just proved my point. I was a kittypet and I saved the clans. Now let a two-leg have the chance."
Bluestar hesitated, trying to think of another excuse, but she couldn't. Max could tell from the length of the pause in her speech to realize she didn't have anything else to say. 'Wow. English class really payed off in the end.'
"You know, he reminds me much of you. His first time as a wild cat and he is already into a fight. Like you and Longtail." Bluestar chuckled.
"What's funny?" Firestar asked, he truly was confused.
"Oh, it's just that before you came into the clan, you always leapt up onto that fence to look at the forest. I used to watch you. How many times did you fall down?" Firestar looked ashamed and embarrassed. "You got up… and fell down. You got up… and fell down again! It was so funny to watch!"
"Shhh! Redtail might be listening!" Firestar quickly told her, trying to keep his secret concealed.
"What's the problem with that?" Bluestar said in a mock voice. "Afraid he might tell Sandstorm? Ooooh, that would be funny! Hey Redtail!"
Firestar silenced her with a slap of his tail. "Don't you dare! Anyways, we are here for a reason."
Bluestar nodded solemnly, though she still had the occasional outburst of giggles. Firestar went on about some prophecy, though Max wasn't sure what he was actually talking about. It was all in a wise voice and about important stuff. Max almost dozed off. He wasn't exactly the biggest fan of 'important' things. That was until he heard a particular sentence that caught his attention.
"We need to talk to him. We need to talk to Max Cross, and soon." Firestar whispered so quietly it almost escaped Max's sensitive ears. He was worried then. They were after… they were after him! He turned around to bolt away when the worst possible thing happened. His pelt got caught on a bramble bush.
"Great! Perfect timing! Max meowed in a sarcastic tone. A sarcastic tone that echoed through the forest, reaching Firestar's and Bluestar's ears.
"Shhh! Here that?" Bluestar asked.
"Yeah, I think it's Max. I mean, we are in his dream after all." Firestar meowed in a now-it-all voice.
"Please, oh dear lord! No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, n-"
Max was cut short of his useless prayers as Firestar interrupted. "You know, there really is no point of saying 'no' a million times. It's not going to change anything."
Max was chilled to the bone. "No!" Max yowled, trying to make a run for it. His attempt just ended in pain. Stupid bramble bushes.
Firestar sighed. "Well, I suppose old habits… what's the saying? Well, old habits should die hard, though I'm not sure that's how it works here." Firestar muttered more to himself than anyone else. "Well, I guess it's time to introduce myself. I'm Firestar, previous leader of ThunderClan." Firestar said to Max in a voice that usually means it should be the end of the conversation.
"I'm Bluestar!" the she-cat managed to get in before she was chased away by an infuriated Firestar.
"Sorry for that! She can get quite annoying though." Firestar managed to say through gritted teeth. His pelt was torn, though it started to regenerate in a way, smoothing out by itself.
"Remind me not to get on your bad side…" I said to himself before he dis-thatched my pelt from the Bramble bush.

"So, let me get this straight." Max started. His fur was ruffled from the bramble bush and he had lost count how many times he stood on thorns. "You turned me into a cat, because of a prophecy of yours?"
Firestar nodded, his green eyes glistening like emeralds in the moonlight. "Yes, that's exactly what happened. You see, cats of StarClan are fading away into nothingness." Max could tell there was someone who had already left the ranks of StarClan.
"What happens to them when they fade away?" He asked in hope that he could still talk to the friendly tom in his dreams. Right now, Firestar seemed the only cat who listens to Max.
"We're not sure. But, if it's anything like the Dark Forest battle, then what would happen is you never come back." The flaming tom was quickening his step. Max struggled to keep up with him after a few seconds.
"Slow down!" he yelled. Firestar just looked back with irritated and worried eyes.
"No! We need to get to the moonpool before your dream ends!" he yowled back.
Max was just confused. He was lost in thought about the Moonpool and Lionblaze and that weird she-cat called Bluestar… that was until he stepped on a thorn.
His step faltered as he felt the sharp object. Max looked at his pad and cried out in pain at the sight of the thorn. Firestar just rolled his eyes at him.
"Why are dreams so hurtful?" he muttered under his breath before catching up to Firestar again.
The two cats followed a small, dry river.
I wonder what's stopping the water… He thought as he looked at the stream. He stopped for a moment, wondering. Where does it lead to? It was just an endless stream.
At one end was the Moonpool, but for the other end, who knows what was there. No lakes for the stream to connect to, no houses for humans to get their water to.
The forest around the dry stream was beautiful though. Ivy crawled up the trees, moss along the banks. Tall trees that seemed to reach up to the sky seemed to entrance Max. The most beautiful thing though, was the sky.
The sky was black, with many stars glittering in them. The moon, three times the size it usually was, shone down over the whole forest, leaving small patterns on the ground where the light got through the leaves.
Even though the sky was dark, the place had a light feeling about it. It almost felt like they were walking on clouds.
Max shrugged it off and followed the flame-coloured tom up the never-ending stream.

Eventually, Firestar and Max made it to a small, round stone hollow. The forest trees dangled over it, and a small opening through a bramble bush led to the most amazing sight either had seen.
Max stared in awe as he padded down the rock path. It seemed ancient, with many paw prints engraved into the stone.
A steep cliff jutted over the top of the hollow, with water running off it, cascading into a small pool.
Max reached the bottom of the rock path and stepped onto a dry, sandy bank next to the pool.
"This is where living cats can communicate with StarClan. Medicine Cats come here every half-moon to talk to us." Firestar told him.
Max pondered over that for a second. "Well, if this pool is for living cats to come to, then why is it in my dream?" He asked.
Firestar seemed to be waiting for him to say that. "Well, we aren't in your dream any more. We crossed that border long ago. You are in StarClan at this moment." He meowed.
Max didn't understand what Firestar meant by 'border'. Then he realized that this most definitely wasn't his dream. He realized the cats hunting mice outside the Moonpool. Some cats were battling with each other for fun. Some cats were actually looking after kits.
They died so young… He thought as a small gray she-kit bounded up to a snowy white cat.
"Well, then how is it in StarClan?" Max asked Firestar.
"How do you think we get to see our clans? We can always watch them from up here, in StarClan, though if we need to communicate to them or help them, we need to come into their world." He told him.
Max sat down at the edge of the pool and winced. He hadn't realized his wounds were still there.
"Just drink from the pool. Your wounds will be healed and you will wake up back in your den." Firestar meowed.
Max took one deep breath and bent down to lap up some icy droplets from the pool. His body stiffened, the water sending jolts down his spine. His mouth, though he had just drank, was dry, like sand. Max's eyelids drooped, pain filling his every cell. His blood coursed with ice, while his pelt felt like it was on fire. The world spun and went black before he woke up once more, in a den. Jayfeather was asleep in his moss nest and Max could here cats padding in and out of the stone hollow.
"This is going to be an adventure I'll never forget." He muttered to himself before he padded out to ThunderClan. His clan.

So there it is. Chapter 2 of my first fanfiction. More will be coming, including something on this chapter. Summer Break will be here soon, and I am in my last 5 weeks of school, so I should be posting more often. Until next time... Peace Bros.