Oh em gee, I am sooo sorry everyone! My computer crashed, so I didn't get a chance to write Chapter 3 for a while. And all the other DiY files on my compy were gone when it crashed, but luckily I had already uploaded them to the site, so I could just copy and paste them into Microsoft Word when we got our new computer. ;) Btw, like my new name? Maplecloud. It's my new warrior name. Heehee. Anyway, here's Chappie 3.

Chapter 3

The full moon cast pale light upon the forest. Inside the LeafClan camp, cats were getting ready for the Gathering. Mudstar had chosen Moonfur, Brackenstream, Iceclaw, Pantherfoot, and Ravenpaw to accompany him, Falcontooth, and Shadepool to the truce-held meeting.

Shadepool, finished with all a medicine cat's chores for now, was now lying in her mossy nest. As she waited for Mudstar's call to leave, she thought about the past couple of days—and of her acceptance to meet Redclaw after the Gathering. She would be going behind her Clan's back, and would most likely end up having to lie to them. Didn't that mean she was doing something wrong? But another part of herself said it wasn't wrong at all; she was simply meeting with a cat. What was so bad about that? Just because her Clanmates wouldn't know about it, didn't make it wrong.

"Shadepool, it's time to go!"

Shadepool looked up as she heard Ravenpaw's voice from the den entrance. The black apprentice was peering inside, yellow eyes gleaming in the darkness.

"Oh...um, all right. Thank you, Ravenpaw." She rose and stretched, following the young tom as he jogged back to the group of cats ready to leave. Falcontooth was looking as irritated as ever, while Mudstar was nodding at her in greeting. With a wave of his tail, the small party began to slip out through the leafy tunnel. Shadepool ran after them, quickly becoming shoulder-to-shoulder with the LeafClan deputy.

Falcontooth kept glancing at her out of the corner of his eye; she could feel his gaze burning into her like white-hot fire. Shadepool inwardly snorted at how watchful he was being of her, when he was not her father or her brother—he wasn't her kin of any sort! He had no reason to keep an eye on her, or to be suspicious at all. Did he really think that doing nothing more than just talking with the NightClan tom made her disloyal?

But I'm not just talking with him, she reminded herself with a wave of guilt. But Shadepool refused to feel guilty over what Falcontooth thought of her. Though worry clawed at her stomach like a giant paw, she wasn't going to back out of meeting with Redclaw; that would just validate that she let Falcontooth have power over her, and she wouldn't let him feel any satisfaction. He didn't deserve to feel like he'd come out on top.

With so many apprehensive thoughts swimming inside her head, Shadepool had failed to realize that her paws were aching from running across the ground longer than her crowded mind had let her notice. But now, as the large clearing the Gathering was held in came within sight, she could feel exhaustion inching nearer. She blinked in relief when Mudstar stopped, and the rest of the group halted behind their leader.

Mudstar quickly examined the moonlit clearing, then led the group inside. Shadepool exhaled half in stress and half in relaxation to be feeling the cool grass beneath her paws.

There were cats sitting around in small groups talking, apprentices playing, and two warriors teasingly fighting over a mouse. Shadepool always felt claustrophobic at the Gathering, closed in by the many felines. It, in a way, represented her view on life; like she was trapped within her loyalty to her Clan and her duty as a medicine cat, always feeling guilty about things and trying but not succeeding to come up for air. She tried to tell herself she was being silly, and forming something as simple and normal as the Gathering into something much more dramatic. She couldn't really be that self-surrounded, could she? Shadepool sighed again and gratefully sat down.

"Shadepool!" someone called.

Shadepool jumped and jerked her head to the side. Her heart began to pound nervously at the thought that it might be Redclaw—but it turned out to just be Spottedstream from RainClan. She and the she-cat had sort of been friends, you could say, since half-way into their apprenticehood.

Spottedstream began to bound toward her, tail swaying in the air. Shadepool got up and walked to meet her.

"Hello, Spottedstream," she greeted, touching noses with her friend. "How's the prey running?"

Spottedstream purred and sat down in front of the medicine cat. Shadepool too eased into a sitting position.

"RainClan has been fine, thank you," the tortoiseshell replied. "Our river is a bit higher than usual, from that time about a moon ago when it rained a lot."

Shadepool remembered that vividly. The rain hadn't stopped for three days straight, and in response to the weather the river RainClan was known for rose so much that there was a small flood. Luckily, the rain had stopped in the evening of the third day, and the flood had only caused the ground to become muddy, and for some fresh-kill to be ruined. It must not have been sunny enough in the moon to follow, since Spottedstream was now saying it still hadn't gone back to normal level.

"And you?" Spottedstream interrupted Shadepool's thinking. "Do you have a good store of herbs?"

Shadepool nodded. "Yes, I'd like to think I've been doing quite well herb-wise, and there haven't been any serious injuries in the Clan since...Sparrowpelt." She frowned.

The tortoiseshell's eyes widened in concern. "Sparrowpelt?" she inquired. "What happened; is he all right?" She began to look around, returning her gaze to Shadepool with a confused expression. "Where exactly is Sparrowpelt?"

Shadepool stared down at her paws. She didn't want to answer that question...

Looking up again, she forced a weak smile. "Um, he's...his wounds haven't healed yet," she lied. "I had to come in his place." She couldn't bear to tell her friend that Sparrowpelt was dead. He had been like family to the she-cat, for when she was an apprentice, he saved her from drowning in the river when he and Shadepool had been gathering roots from the border. After that, he would assist her in her training every chance he got even though he didn't know much about being a warrior, and would always be looking out for her. They were very close—after the river incident, Sparrowpelt treated her like kin—and that was how she and Shadepool came to be friends.

"Oh, that's too bad," Spottedstream mewed. "I hope he'll be okay."

Shadepool looked away. "Yes...I'm sure he's fine." She looked back at the RainClan cat nervously. "I-I mean, I'm sure he'll be fine," she corrected herself. Deep down, Shadepool knew that in the end the truth would come out and Spottedstream would know the tom was dead. But for now, she wanted the she-cat to believe he was still alive. She didn't want to be the one to break Spottedstream's kind heart.

"May all cats in the clearing join beneath the Great Birch, and this Gathering shall begin."

Shadepool and Spottedstream turned their heads to the large, thick birch tree in the center of the clearing; the leaders spoke from its branches, and the deputies sat at the base of the white-and-black tree.

The two she-cats followed the rest of the cats to the Great Birch and sat down. It had been Goldenstar, the GrassClan leader, who had called from her seat, so she stepped forward to speak first.

"Welcome, everyone, to the Gathering," the golden tabby began. Her light blue eyes were soft and kind; Shadepool had always liked the gentle she-cat. "GrassClan has been doing well," she reported happily. "The prey has been running fine, no more but no less, and I think we're finally rid of that herd of horses."

Shadepool remembered one Gathering she had attended with Sparrowpelt a few moons ago, when the GrassClan leader had reported that a group of wild horses had invaded their territory and trampled two cats that had tried to chase them away.

"Our whole Clan worked together to drive them out this time," Goldenstar continued, "and we prevailed—however, we did lose one cat..."

The GrassClan cats bowed their heads sorrowfully.

"We will miss Cloudfur terribly. He was a great warrior, and very loyal to GrassClan."

All the other cats crouched and hung their heads respectfully, as tradition asked them to whenever a death was reported at the Gathering. They rose back up to sit when Goldenstar took a step back, finishing.

It was Mudstar who decided to speak next. He looked down at the crowd of cats.

"LeafClan has very similar news," he meowed. "Our prey has been running well, and our Clan is perfectly healthy"—he jerked his olive gaze toward Graystar and narrowed his eyes, then returned to speaking to the cats below—"but we have a fox somewhere on our territory, and...we have a death to speak of as well."

Shadepool froze. She hadn't thought about the fact that Mudstar would report Sparrowpelt's death, and she had told Spottedstream he was alive! She would feel terrible after the RainClan she-cat found out.

Spottedstream looked at her with sad eyes. "Oh no, who died?" she asked worriedly.

Shadepool decided to tell her now, before her leader got the chance. "Um...I'm very sorry, Spottedstream, but—"

"Sparrowpelt has joined StarClan," Mudstar cut her off.

Spottedstream's green gaze was horrified. She whipped her head back to Shadepool. "But you told me that his wounds just haven't healed!" she mewed in a loud whisper.

"I'm so sorry I lied to you," Shadepool gushed, trying to maintain a whisper at the same level of Spottedstream's. "I know how close you and Sparrowpelt were, and I'm sorry, I really am. But I didn't want to be the one to tell you, and...and I'm sorry!"

Spottedstream still didn't look angry—more like hurt. "I believe that you're sorry," she replied, "but that still doesn't change the fact that you..." She hesitated; Shadepool knew that the tortoiseshell didn't like conflict, especially when she was taking part in it.

"If you're about done, Shadepool and Spottedstream."

They gasped quietly and looked up at the Great Birch again, where Mudstar was staring down at them in amusement.

"You can continue gossiping soon," he purred.

Shadepool felt her fur become hot with embarrassment, and Spottedstream was studying her paws. At least Mudstar had broken up their argument, but now she felt like she was too afraid to even have an awkward conversation with one of her friends. She was brave...wasn't she?

"A fox took Sparrowpelt's life," Mudstar continued sullenly. "We will honor him forever, even more now that he is one of our warrior ancestors."

All the cats shifted into the same crouching position, their heads low to the ground, as they briefly mourned the lost life.

Mudstar mewed, signaling for them to raise their heads again. The movement into a sit went through the crowd like wind through grass.

"As you know, Sparrowpelt was our medicine cat. His death means that Shadepool is LeafClan's new healer."

All eyes turned to the black she-cat. Shadepool felt her neck fur rise, and saw nothing but her paws. But the uncomfortable moment was over quickly, and Mudstar sat back down. Nodding at him curtly, the RainClan leader, Snowstar, came forward next.

"Well, there isn't much to report in RainClan," she meowed. "Our prey is running well; better than ever, actually. The rain from one moon ago made our river quite high, if you can remember. It's lower now, though not by much, and I think fresh rainwater coming and going filtered our river, so now much more fish is coming to the water." She stepped back and sat down, a smile on her maw; it did sound like RainClan was doing well.

Lastly, it was Graystar's turn to speak. The large tom took one step forward, amber eyes glinting.

"NightClan is doing fine," he reported. "Our prey source is normal and our warriors are stronger than ever." He shot a challenging glare at Mudstar. "We're doing quite fine."

Mudstar stared back at him levelly. "Well, that's good to hear, Graystar," he replied calmly.

Shadepool's blue eyes shone with respect for her leader. She knew that he was just dying to leap at the NightClan tom and tear him to shreds, but he was keeping in mind the truce that bound every Gathering, and knew that it was best for everyone if he kept war as far away as he could.

"Then I guess the Gathering's over," Goldenstar mewed. She leaped off the Great Birch and summoned the GrassClan cats.

One by one, the three other leaders did the same. After Snowstar padded away, Mudstar and Graystar took a moment to glare at each other with burning eyes. But without a word, the LeafClan and NightClan leaders turned and went their separate ways.

"All right, LeafClan, let's head out!" Mudstar called above the noise in the crowd. It was usually right as cats were being called to head home that a lot of talking occurred between the Clans.

Shadepool gasped quietly as she caught sight of Redclaw weaving his way through the throng of cats. Inwardly, she was telling herself over and over to follow her Clan's group and be out of the ginger tom's sight, but she felt like she was rooted to the ground. After a moment that seemed to last for a moon, she made to leave—but too little too late.

"Shadepool!" Redclaw's voice called.

Shadepool turned back around to see him running eagerly toward her. She half-expected him to bowl her over to the ground, but the tom skidded to a stop before that happened.

"Oh. Hello, Redclaw," she mewed in a voice as calm as she could force.

"Hey, kitten," he greeted back. "Sorry about Sparrowpelt. The past three times I've seen you, I didn't even think to wonder where he was. But congratulations on being the new medicine cat." He smiled briefly.

Shadepool nodded in return. "Thank you," she mumbled. "Yes...I'll miss him a lot, but now it's my responsibility to look after the Clan like he did." She made herself look up at Redclaw's face. His green eyes were sparkling, containing the same fire she always saw in him.

"So, I guess I'll see you whenever," he purred knowingly, blinking.

Shadepool jumped as Falcontooth suddenly thrust his way past her and glared into Redclaw's eyes.

"You won't see her tomorrow or the day after or ever!" he hissed. "You'll leave her alone if you know what's good for you."

Redclaw bared his teeth and took a step back. "I think that's for her to decide. Catch ya later, Shadepool."

Without giving her—or Falcontooth—a chance to say anything, he turned and bounded away to join his departing group.

Almost as soon as he was gone, Falcontooth rounded on Shadepool.

"You said you two weren't up to anything," he growled. "So what was that?"

When she looked into the tabby's eyes and saw only hatred and rage, Shadepool wasn't set on winning a dispute; she was afraid.

"T-that wasn't anything!" she promised. "We were just talking. You saw!"

Falcontooth curled his lip back. "Yeah, I saw all I needed to see. Now let's get out of here."

"Why do you always overreact like this?" Shadepool dared to ask.

Falcontooth took a heavy step toward her, making the she-cat gasp. "I'm not overreacting," he replied angrily. "You're just understating. I find it hard to believe all that's between you and Redclaw is a few conversations."

As he walked away, Shadepool found herself quivering. Never before had she been truly scared of Falcontooth, but right then she realized she had reason to be.

Spottedstream must've noticed her shaking, for she rushed over to the medicine cat with wide eyes.

"Great StarClan, Shadepool. Are you all right?" she mewed worriedly.

Shadepool nodded. "Yes, I-I'm fine. I just...I just need to get back to camp."

Spottedstream maintained her concerned expression. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yes, I'm sure. Goodbye, Spottedstream."

Though the tortoiseshell didn't look convinced, she let Shadepool walk away.

As she and the cats from her Clan walked back to camp, Shadepool had told them she needed to search for burdock root—which she truly did need. That prevented Falcontooth from being suspicious, and Mudstar let her go.

Shadepool's eyes were wide with nervousness every step of the way. She couldn't shake the feeling that she and Redclaw would be caught together, and both of them would be marked off as traitors. Would StarClan believe it too? What would Sparrowpelt think of her? She would let him down...He'd lose all faith in her.

No, Shadepool! she inwardly spat at herself. Why do you put these things into your head? Nothing bad will happen.

But it was too late for her to believe that; her heart was beating a hundred times a second, and she felt like she would be sick with anxiety. I'm sorry, Redclaw. I just can't take it!

Guilt was now mixed with the worry she was already feeling, but Shadepool ignored it as she turned back around and raced home.

Okay, I hope you enjoyed the third edition to Drowning in You. :) I'm gonna upload a list of the allegiances, too. At first I thought I wouldn't need to, but the idea's been nagging at me for quite some time. Haha. Also, I made a video dedicated to the story and put it on YouTube. Go to the site and search xxWarriorCatFreakxx. It'll be called "Drowning in You Preview." But if you can't find the vid, just go to my channel (YouTube profile) by clicking on my username and watch it there. All righty then. See ya!

Maplecloud