Disclaimer: I do not own the Warriors books or their main characters. Copyright is Erin Hunter.
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Many moons had passed. The cold season was long over and the grass was green again. Sedgewhisker had her kits at the end of leaf-bare and Onestar had apprenticed Stonepaw and Windpaw when they were six moons old. It was a good time for the Clan. Prey was running plentiful and the cats were well fed. Birdpaw, Nightpaw and Graypaw had been training very hard and Onestar would have loved to give the littermates their warrior names. But in early green-leaf, when the twolegs and their dogs returned to the moor land, Graypaw had been killed by one of the dogs. The gray she-cat had been chased by the vicious animal and fallen into an old fox den that had collapsed on her. Birdfeather and Nightwhisker had sat their silent vigil, which was part of the warrior ceremony, in memory of their dead sister. Yesterday, Nightcloud had announced that she expected kits again. Her mate Gorseclaw was happy to hear the news and had nuzzled the black she-cat affectionately.
Onestar had been thinking about Crowfeather's kits very often since their little chat beside the stream last leaf-bare. But they didn't have a chance to talk alone since then. Firepaw had been given her warrior name moons ago; now she was Firestorm. Onestar thought it was a good name that suited the young ginger she-cat well. She raged like a storm of fire and warmed up the hearts of every cat she met. Featherpaw had been given his full name more recently. Medicine cat apprentices are named in a ceremony at the Moonpool that only the other medicine cats witness. Jayfeather had given the small gray tabby the name Feathercloud. Onestar had watched the two gray tabby toms during Gatherings and noticed that Jayfeather really did have a soft spot for his little brother.
xxx
It was a warm and dry day. The whole of green-leaf had been rather dry. The grass had turned brown and the sheep, wholly animals that the twolegs brought to their territory, had been taken somewhere else. Onestar was glad they were gone, much earlier than in previous green-leafs. The brown tabby was walking towards the stream to get a drink. He had arranged a solid agreement with Bramblestar over the hunting grounds at the border between their territories. Except for a few small disputes it was peaceful along the border. Onestar had finished lapping at the cool water when he glimpsed ginger fur in the undergrowth. He lifted his head and watched more closely, there were a few ginger cats in ThunderClan. Onestar tasted the air and recognized Firestorm. The ginger she-cat stepped out of the forest and came closer to the stream. Her head hang low. Did something happen?
"Hello Firestorm. How is the prey running in ThunderClan?"
"Oh, hello Onestar. I didn't see you over there.", the she-cat mewed. Her spirit was unusually damped. "The prey is running well."
"Did something happen? You seem sad?" Firestorm was about to leave, but something made her change her mind. She walked closer to the stream and sat down opposite the WindClan leader.
"Squirrelflight died."
Onestar gasped. Squirrelflight was Firestar's daughter and deputy of ThunderClan. She was a brave and fierce warrior.
"I am sorry to hear this. She was your mentor, wasn't she?", the brown tabby mewed.
"Yes, she was my mentor. I owe her so much. I will miss her so much. Leafpool is badly wounded, too, but Feathercloud said that she will recover."
"Are there many wounded cats in ThunderClan?"
Firestorm eyed the WindClan leader suspiciously. "I shouldn't be talking to you." She stood up and turned around.
"I will not use this information against you, Firestorm. I promise. I am truly sorry to hear about Squirrelflight. She was a remarkable cat. Do you want to talk about what happened?"
The young warrior stared at Onestar for several moments and then sat down again. She must trust him, the WindClan leader thought. Maybe Crowfeather had talked with his kits about his old leader.
"We were attacked by ShadowClan. I didn't fight in the battle, but Crowfeather did. He told me what happened. It was a heated battle, many cats died on both sides."
Onestar was shocked by what he heard. Dead cats on both sides?
"Squirrelflight was fighting against Rowanclaw; she was wounded badly and died later. We lost two more warriors and several are wounded. Jayfeather and Feathercloud are busy tending to them." She paused. "Blackstar died."
"Blackstar fought in the battle?", Onestar exclaimed surprised. "He was too old. What was he thinking?", the tom mewed more to himself.
"Leafpool is depressed. She blames herself for Squirrelflight's dead. And Crowfeather is torn between his duty as a warrior to serve the Clan and helping Leafpool. I don't know what to do.", the ginger she-cat confessed.
"Loosing cats that are close to one is always difficult. It helps to keep your friends close to you. You have your brothers and your parents to help you. With time, Leafpool will recover. She has Crowfeather and her kits to console her. Spend as much time with her as you can and she will be fine.", Onestar advised. "I remember Firestar once telling me how unusually close his daughters were. He told me how glad he was that they loved and respected each other so much even though they have chosen to follow different paths. That was when Leafpool was a medicine cat."
"Did you know Firestar well? Can you tell me something about him?", Firestorm asked.
"I met Firestar, well back then he was called Fireheart, when he was a young warrior. We became close friends and had stayed close friends for many moons. Even after he became Clan leader. He was a determined cat, a great leader, who always put the safety of the Clans before his own. Without him, WindClan wouldn't exist anymore. After Brokenstar had driven us out from out territory in the old forest. Did you hear about this story?"
"Yes, Graystripe told me how he and Firestar brought WindClan home." The ginger warrior turned around and saw a white tom approach her.
"I have to go back, Onestar. Thank you for listening to me and for your advice." She rose to her paws and bowed her head to the brown tabby. The white tom stood beside her and pressed his muzzle into her shoulder.
"I have been wondering where you went. Let's go hunt."
Firestorm pressed her pelt against the tom and nodded and the two cats vanished into the forest. Onestar wondered whether they were mates. They behaved like mates. He turned around and went back to his camp. He had enjoyed talking to the ginger she-cat, but what she told him disturbed him. Blackstar had died. Rowanclaw would be the new leader of ShadowClan, he thought. Unless, the ginger tom had been killed, too; but Firestorm hadn't mentioned it. Onestar wondered who the new ThunderClan deputy was. He would find out at the next Gathering.
xxx
The cold season had come and gone again. It was a hard season for WindClan. They had greencough in camp for almost a whole moon. Whitetail and Stonepaw were to first cats who had died. Rabbitleap and Owlwhisker had been sick for a long time, and in the end Kestrelflight couldn't help them. Onestar had lost one of his lives to the sickness as well. Nightcloud had had her kits, two black she-kits at the beginning of leaf-bare. But one of her kits was claimed by the deadly sickness. Blackkit, her surviving daughter, would be apprenticed soon. The little kit had told her mother that she wanted to train as a medicine cat apprentice. Nightcloud was outraged. She told her kit, that she had to become a warrior. But Blackkit was determined to become Kestrelflight's apprentice. The mottled gray tom had already given his consent to be the black kit's mentor. He was happy to have found an apprentice. When the snow was still high, Jayfeather and Feathercloud, the ThunderClan medicine cats, had visited the camp to exchange some herbs. Blackkit had asked Feathercloud all about what it was like to be a medicine cat apprentice. It was time the she-kit was apprenticed. Swallowtail had moved to the nursery again, expecting her second litter. The Clan's nursery was small and the dark gray she-cat preferred to have it to herself.
At the end of leaf-bare, Onestar had to appoint a new deputy. Ashfoot had gotten very sick during the cold season and had asked to retire. The gray she-cat had served her Clan and Onestar for countless moons. He had appointed Heathertail as new deputy. Onestar trusted the brown tabby she-cat with his life and she was popular in the Clan.
Continues soon...
