Chapter 7
Sunlight filtered through the trees, bathing Coppershine's pelt. A warm breeze ruffled her fur as she followed Spiderleg through the thick-wooded forest.
Newleaf had arrived and was now in full swing. Coppershine enjoyed listening to the prey as it emerged from burrows after a long sleep. Watching squirrels as they chased each other around the trunks of trees often made her feel strangely happy.
She had gone on a patrol earlier with Spiderleg, Blossomfall and Foxleap. Blossomfall and Foxleap had gone ahead, while she remained by Spiderleg's side.
The long-limbed warrior was silent as he padded along an invisible trail.
Coppershine was just fine with the silence. She didn't find Spiderleg as appealing as Daisy did when he first met her. She still wondered how the two had ended up having kits in the first place.
It must have been an accident, she thought with a flick of her ears.
"I think the area is clear," Spiderleg meowed when Blossomfall had padded forward to meet him.
"Everything is quiet," she murmured with a dip of her head.
"Don't get used to it," Foxwhisker grumbled when he joined them. "I'm sure WindClan will be back to their old tricks soon enough."
"It's been awfully quiet," Coppershine admitted. She glanced towards the stream that ran through the forest. It was what made up WindClan's border.
She wondered if Rockfall would tell her what was happening. There had been no ambushes or scents along the border for several days now. Perhaps something had happened to Onestar. A prickle of worry coursed through her when she followed Spiderleg's patrol back towards camp.
The Clan itself had been fairing well since newleaf arrived.
With prey running so well the Clan was well fed. Even the elders weren't complaining as much as they normally did. Dustpelt had been quiet since he retired to the elders' den, and for once, Coppershine was grateful for his silence.
Shrewpaw and Timberpaw were busy practicing their fighting moves when Coppershine emerged from the thorn tunnel.
The two apprentices looked as though they were arguing over something. Shrewpaw was slightly smaller than his brother, but he was rough to fight with. Timberpaw on the other hand was more words than action.
"You're not going to be leader while I'm around," Shrewpaw snapped when Timberpaw dropped to a crouch in front of him.
Timberpaw bared his fangs irritably at his brother. "I'm going to be the next leader and that's final!" he snarled.
A look of amusement spread across Bramblestar's face as he watched from the Highledge. "It appears as though Graystripe has some competition," he purred when Coppershine came into ear-shot.
She stared at him in surprise. Bramblestar rarely came out of his den nowadays. When he did it was usually to address the Clan.
"They'll be apprentices for quite some time," Graystripe murmured from beside the fresh-kill pile.
His muzzle had changed from gray to silvery white over the past couple of moons. Coppershine had never thought of Graystripe as an old cat. But now as she looked at him her mind was swiftly changing.
It wouldn't be long before he joined Dustpelt and Sandstorm. The three of them had been denmates for the longest time back in the old forest, according to Lionblaze.
Coppershine blinked as her Clanmates milled about the clearing. Hazeltail purred and rubbed Lionblaze's muzzle with hers. Ashkit's mewling could be heard from the nursery as he sucked from Ferncloud's belly.
She let out a sigh of boredom. Normally a day like this wouldn't have bored her. But she wanted to meet with the other cats who were Marked.
They had agreed to meet every half moon like the medicine cats did. It was a risky move, because the medicine cats could see them. Rockfall had found a good spot near a dip in the land where they were hidden by shrouds of ferns and brambles. Most cats wouldn't have been able to see them unless they had a keen nose.
"I can't wait for the next Gathering," Batwing mewed. He sat beside his sister, Silverstripe. The two of them were close for siblings, and now they appeared closer than ever.
"You just want to see Streamfur again," Silverstripe purred. She nudged him playfully, causing him to grunt in surprise.
"No I don't!" he protested.
Coppershine purred along with Silverstripe as he flattened his ears in embarrassment.
By the time she had chosen a vole from the fresh-kill pile, the sun was beginning to set. Dark orange rays began to spread across the sky.
She stared up at the sky longingly when she saw a kestrel flying through the air. Times like these made her wish she could travel like a bird. True she could change into any animal she wanted, but she could easily lose herself.
The thought was a terrifying one. She wanted to remain as a cat and that was final.
The dark ginger warrior rose to her paws and padded towards the camp entrance. It was time to leave before another cat noticed her. Most of the Clan was busy working on dens or sorting prey in the fresh-kill pile.
"Where are you going?" Thornclaw's questioning mew made her wince inwardly.
I should have thought about the guards, she thought. He would never let her leave unless she had a good excuse. Obviously telling him that she was on a patrol would seem a bit too unreal.
"I...I was asked to go hunting," she murmured in a lowered voice.
Thornclaw looked at her steadily. At first she wasn't sure he would buy her lie. Than he shifted from one paw to another.
"Very well," he replied eventually.
Coppershine's fur prickled in relief when she he stepped to the side, allowing her to pass. She dipped her head respectfully to the senior warrior.
Thornclaw may have always acted a bit stoic, but he knew what he was doing. Coppershine had a feeling that he would soon know what was going on.
Her paws moved across the undergrowth carefully as she followed the path Rockfall had shown her. His fondness towards ThunderClan cats was nothing but a hoax, according to her brother. All he wanted was revenge on what had happened to his sister, Goldenpaw. She'd never met Rockfall's sister, but she knew that he didn't blame her for Goldenpaw's death. He only blamed Leafpool, who had been banished from ThunderClan by Bramblestar. Now she and Squirrelflight traveled across the land in search of territories for themselves.
Soon night fell upon the forest. Pale moonlight glimmered through the pines that were beginning to take over. Rockfall's meeting place was in the middle of ShadowClan territory. The fact that it did unnerved Coppershine a little.
Stories had been passed down of ShadowClan warriors who were the most vicious of all cats. She knew that most of them weren't true. But there were a few that had happened once.
She squinted her eyes when muffled sounds began to spread through the trees. Coppershine blinked. Those were the sounds of Rockfall and Flowertail.
"...Tales are becoming reality," Flowertail murmured when Coppershine approached.
"What happens if they do become reality?" Rockfall asked.
Coppershine ducked her head and padded forward, nearly bumping into the WindClan warrior. He hissed in surprise until he realized who it was. Rockfall blinked and nodded to the dark ginger warrior.
"Greetings Coppershine," he meowed.
"Hello Rockfall," she replied with a dip of her head.
She was slightly annoyed by the arrogant tone in his voice, but she chose to ignore it. Flowertail only flicked her tail in greetings.
Coppershine looked down at her paws in disappointment by the medicine cat's exchange. She wished that Flowertail would forgive her. The ShadowClan cat had yet to speak to her since their last exchange on the border.
An awkward silence fell upon them as the moon began to rise. The air was still cold, despite the fact that newleaf was around.
Suddenly the snap of a twig caused every cat to look up warily. Coppershine narrowed her eyes when she saw a dark shadow moving through the trees. It looked muscular and well built. The rich scent of RiverClan told her that it was Stormstrike.
Each time she saw him her heart beat a little faster. Coppershine wasn't sure what this feeling was. Something told her that she was too young to understand.
"Stormstrike, it's good to see you," Flowertail purred when he became more visible.
"I had a hard time getting out of camp. Mistystar wanted me to join her on a patrol," he told them as he entered the small den.
"Thornclaw was guarding the entrance when I left," Coppershine murmured.
Stormstrike blinked sympathetically towards her. Flowertail let out a sigh and met his gaze.
"We need to talk," she meowed. "When I was speaking with Hawkflash, she told me about cats who were similar to us. Cats who had the power to save or destroy the Clans. I wasn't sure if what she said was true. We have to save the Clans, no matter what."
