Disclaimer: I don't own Warriors, but I do own the characters/plot for this story. Please don't steal them.
Author's Note: Ugh. For some reason, this chapter was really hard to write. Please send me a review! I'm so happy when I get them that it really makes me want to write.
Chapter 8
"I forgot this was here," Renegade said. "I think this is called the tangle of Thunderpaths. Haven't been over this way in moons."
"You forgot this was here?!" Tigerflame spat. "How could you forget something like this was here?!"
Ghostwind sat back to look at the land before them. There was a Thunderpath ahead of them that grew up and up, high into the air. It was supported by thick, stone legs that were as big as trees. Beneath it, another Thunderpath led off into the distance. The stench coming from the tangle of Thunderpaths was remarkably foul. As they stood there, staring, monsters flew by on fast paws.
"If I remember correctly, Highstones is just on the other side," Renegade meowed.
Tigerflame snorted. "I doubt that. Your memory might not be as good as you think it is, especially if you forgot something like this existed!"
Nice to see Tigerflame is back to his old self, Ghostwind thought. "If Highstones is just on the other side, we should look for somewhere to rest. The sun is beginning to set. We can find our way through these Thunderpaths tomorrow morning. That, and we haven't eaten since early this morning."
Nobody needed reminding as to why they hadn't eaten since that morning. Russetfrost and Eaglefeather volunteered to hunt.
"Don't split up," Ghostwind warned under his breath. He glanced over at Moonmist, who had curled up in a patch of dried grass.
Eaglefeather's silvery blue eyes filled with worry again. "Don't worry, Ghostwind."
Ghostwind stretched out in the dirt. Ravenheart padded over to him as the others all found spots to lie down.
"Let me check your neck again, Ghostwind," Ravenheart said.
The two of them were quiet as Ravenheart once again checked his neck. "It's closed up nicely. I'd go look for some more marigold to put on it, but I doubt any grows around these Thunderpaths," Ravenheart said. "You'll be able to take off the cobwebs in the morning."
"Thank StarClan," Ghostwind said.
"Yes. You were very lucky. The fox didn't get a chance to bite down hard enough to do any really serious damage," Ravenheart meowed.
Eaglefeather and Russetfrost returned just as the sun was completely disappearing in the distance. Eaglefeather had three mice dangling from his mouth, while Russetfrost dragged along a thrush and two mice. Ghostwind's stomach rumbled at the smell of the fresh-kill.
"Two of us are going to have to share that thrush," Ghostwind said.
Eaglefeather dropped his mice. "Russetfrost caught it, so he and Tigerflame can share it."
Tigerflame and Russetfrost padded away to share the bird. Ghostwind snagged one of the mice with his claws and pulled it toward him. Ravenheart settled next to him to eat her own mouse. Eaglefeather dropped a mouse in front of Moonmist, who thanked him quietly. Having no one else to sit beside, Eaglefeather curled up next to Moonmist and began to eat. Ghostwind noticed Tigerflame glaring at Eaglefeather. Quietly, Renegade picked up his own mouse and went over beneath a leafless bush to eat by himself.
Tonight, there was no giggling from Moonmist. She really didn't have anything to giggle about. Not tonight. Not after losing Fernstripe during the sheep stampede. Everyone was silent as the stars came out in the dark sky and the moon rose. Ghostwind looked up at the stars twinkling overhead and wondered about Ashflower and Swanpool. Had they found Fernstripe? Were they able to follow their trail? If they didn't find them by the time they left tomorrow, would they be able to follow them through the tangle of Thunderpaths?
StarClan, I really hope that you're watching over them, Ghostwind thought. If Fernstripe was chosen to represent LightClan, you wouldn't let anything happen to her...would you?
He really hoped the answer was no. No, they wouldn't.
Ghostwind found himself sitting near the tangle of Thunderpaths, alone. Where were the others? Had they left without him? They couldn't have! He stood up and began to sniff the air, trying to find the scents of Eaglefeather...Renegade...Tigerflame...
"Calm down, Ghostwind," a voice he did not recognize said.
From the shadows stepped a black cat with a white tail-tip. Ghostwind realized he was only dreaming because the cat's dark pelt shimmered with starlight.
"Who are you?" Ghostwind asked, sitting back down.
The cat walked over and sat down beside him. The starlight disappeared from his coat. "My name is Ravenpaw. You may have heard about me?"
Ghostwind bowed his head. "Yes. Stories are still told about you in ThunderClan. You were friends with Firestar."
The black cat laughed. "Yes. I owe so much to Firestar. But I'm not here to tell you stories about my past, or the past of your ancestor. I'm here because Firestar requested that I tell you which way to go from here. You know that you are supposed to find a river?"
Ghostwind nodded.
"When you find the river, follow it. It will take you to SkyClan," Ravenpaw said. "You may also want to stop by my old home. You'll find it across the Thunderpath on the other side of Highstones. There are a few cats there who are kind to strangers passing through."
"Thank you, Ravenpaw," Ghostwind meowed.
The black tom nodded his head. "I'm only doing a favor for an old friend. Good luck, Ghostwind. You and your friends are going to need it."
Without another word, Ravenpaw stood and began to walk away.
"Ravenpaw, wait! Do you...can you tell me if Fernstripe is okay?" Ghostwind called.
Ravenpaw called over his shoulder. "You will find out for yourself!" He disappeared into the shadows. Ghostwind squinted into the darkness and saw the cat disappear with a shimmer.
His eyes opened slowly. Ghostwind sat up and looked around. The others were all fast asleep. Tigerflame was snoring softly. He looked up at the stars, still twinkling the same as they had been before he'd fallen asleep. A twig suddenly snapped in the distance.
Ghostwind stood up. The fur along his back bristled as he heard rustling. Something was coming closer to them! Should he wake the others? But what if it was only a bird? Then again, he didn't know any birds big enough to crack sticks when they stepped on them.
His decision to wake the others was chosen for him when a gray she-cat came bounding out of the shadows, shouting, "Did you miss us?"
Eaglefeather and the others shot to their paws in their terror.
"Ashflower!" Ghostwind growled.
"Great StarClan!" Eaglefeather said, panting. "What were you thinking, sneaking up on us like that? It's the middle of the night!"
"Lucky I'm not a badger or a fox, or I'd have eaten you by now," Ashflower said with a laugh, just as Fernstripe and Swanpool came padding up out of the shadows.
"Fernstripe! You're okay!" Moonmist cried, running over to the LightClan she-cat to touch noses with her. "What happened? Did you get hurt? I wanted to stay behind and wait for you, but Renegade and Ghostwind thought it was best if we went on ahead!"
Fernstripe twitched her tail through the air. "I'm fine. I just got turned around after the sheep stampeded. I found an old badger set and hid inside until the ground stopped rumbling. When I tried heading back to find you, I realized I was lost."
"We found her along one of the fences," Ashflower said.
"Yeah. I'd been wandering around for a while, but I stayed put after I found a fence," Fernstripe said.
Tigerflame interrupted the happy reunion. "Okay, now that we're all back together again, can we all go to sleep?"
They laughed at Tigerflame's usual grumpiness before settling down to sleep. Ghostwind felt much better with Ashflower curled up beside him. She gave his ear a quick lick before putting her head down on her paws. He gave a happy sigh before tucking his nose under his tail and drifting off to sleep.
Cottonclaw stretched as he stepped out of the warriors' den. It was early morning, and very few of his Clanmates were awake. He noticed Cedarspirit sitting in the shadows beneath the Highledge. His brother's old mentor was staring up at the sky. Coldfur and Sootpelt were whispering to one another by the fresh-kill pile. Coldfur kept glancing at Cedarspirit, as if he might be wondering what the ginger warrior was doing.
"Good morning, Cottonclaw," Forestclaw said as he padded over. "What are you doing awake this early in the morning?"
"I woke up and couldn't fall back asleep," Cottonclaw replied to his uncle.
Forestclaw's light silver eyes filled with sorrow. "Hmm. Worrying about Ghostwind and Ashflower? They're strong cats, Cottonclaw. I'm sure they're both fine."
Cottonclaw nodded. "Do you know what Cedarspirit is doing?"
Forestclaw's whiskers twitched in surprise. He turned to look at the warrior sitting in the shadows. "Actually, he's been sitting like that since before I got up. I'm not even sure if he came into the den last night to sleep."
"Oh," Cottonclaw murmured. How strange. What possible reason could Cedarspirit have to stare up at the sky like that? Unless...he's trying to speak to StarClan?
Cottonclaw stood and walked over to the older ginger tom. Cedarspirit barely twitched when he sat down beside him. Cottonclaw noticed Coldfur and Sootpelt looking at him curiously now, as well.
"Good morning, Cottonclaw," Cedarspirit meowed.
Cottonclaw jumped. "Hello, Cedarspirit. Um...what are you doing?"
Cedarspirit's eyes glided over the sky, but he did not turn to look at Cottonclaw. "I'm not quite sure, Cottonclaw. It might sound strange, but I feel as if I'm being...called."
That did sound strange, and it didn't make any sense to Cottonclaw, either. He shook his head in confusion. "Do you think you could maybe explain what you mean by that?"
The ginger tom was quiet for a little while before he spoke again. "I need to talk about it, Cottonclaw. I thought, perhaps, that I should speak to Rowanstar about this. But I can see now that Rowanstar must lead ThunderClan without any distractions."
"And you think that whatever is calling you is going to be a distraction to Rowanstar?" Cottonclaw asked.
Cedarspirit chuckled. "Yes, I can see you are just the cat I need to confide in. What I want to talk to you about, Cottonclaw, is something you must not tell to anyone else. Especially not to Rowanstar."
"A secret? I can keep secrets," Cottonclaw muttered.
Cedarspirit finally took his eyes from the sky, but instead of looking at Cottonclaw, he instead looked up at Rowanstar's den above them. "We'll take a walk, then. Follow me."
What in the world is going on here? Cottonclaw wondered as he followed Cedarspirit out of the camp. StarClan, help me be trustworthy enough for Cedarspirit to confide in! It seems like he really needs someone right now.
They didn't get too far from the camp before Cedarspirit stopped beneath a small oak tree. He sat down between a few of the roots sticking up out of the ground and wrapped his tail around his white paws. His amber eyes glowed a little in the morning sunlight.
"Cottonclaw, you are a very special cat. It's not very hard to see that," Cedarspirit said. He gave a purr as he said, "Especially when one can't see you at all."
Cottonclaw sat back on his haunches. "Cedarspirit, I don't think we came out here to talk about how special I am. Why were you staring at the sky? And what did you mean when you said you felt like you were being called?"
Cedarspirit closed his eyes and sighed. "For some time now, I have been having very strange dreams. There are voices that call out to me. They request my help. Some of them I can't understand...because they speak in the tongues of badgers...foxes...birds and bears..."
"What? I don't understand, Cedarspirit."
"I'm not quite sure I understand my dreams either, Cottonclaw. But I believe that my dreams are pointing me toward my destiny," Cedarspirit went on. "The animals that are calling out for my help are trying to show me that I'm the one who is supposed to help them. I have to travel the world to find them..."
"But that means you'll have to leave ThunderClan!" Cottonclaw said. "You can't leave us, especially not now!"
Cedarspirit lowered his head. "Leaving ThunderClan will be my greatest regret. But you must understand, Cottonclaw. I will be helping other creatures that need me. I must travel so that I can learn to speak the languages of those animals calling out to me...I must travel so that I can go and save them. I'll always be loyal to ThunderClan. And I won't be leaving now. I believe that my chance to learn to speak fox has walked right into our home."
"You mean Lightning," Cottonclaw said. "You've been thinking about leaving us because a strange fox came to warn us about a possible attack?"
"My leaving would have eventually happened, even if Lightning had not come here," Cedarspirit answered. "I will have to speak to the fox about this. If he agrees to teach me to speak his native language and travel with him, my journey will have begun. There has been nothing so important to me then this, Cottonbrave."
"I can see why you don't want me to talk to anyone else about this," Cottonclaw said. "Nobody would believe you. Is StarClan telling you to do this?"
Cedarspirit looked back up at the sky. "That is what I was doing, staring at the sky. I'd hoped that StarClan would send me some sign to show me that it is them giving me these dreams. But I saw no sign."
Cottonclaw flattened his ears against his head. "I won't tell anyone about this, Cedarspirit. I promise. And if you need help with putting your plan into motion, I'll help you."
"I knew it was you that I needed to talk to," Cedarspirit said with a purr. "Thank you for listening to me, Cottonclaw. You truly are a special cat."
Cottonclaw glancd back toward the camp. "We should probably go out and hunt. The others will probably get curious if we head back now with nothing."
"Good idea," Cedarspirit said.
Together, the two toms headed into the bare trees to find some fresh-kill to bring back to their Clanmates.
Later that day, Cottonclaw stumbled into the camp with a scrawny squirrel dangling from his jaws. He'd been out hunting on and off since after his talk with Cedarspirit. As he hunted, his mind refused to stop stop going over and over the conversation he and Cedarspirit had that morning. Cedarspirit was really going to leave the camp because of these voices that kept bothering him in his dreams! And the tom was so convinced he was the only one who could help all of those animals calling out to him.
Don't those animals know that we need Cedarspirit, as well? Cottonclaw thought as he dropped the squirrel on one of the fullest fresh-kill piles he'd seen in nearly a half moon.
"Cottonclaw? Cottonclaw!"
He jumped and turned to see Rowanstar padding over to him. The fox, Lightning, was cautiously walking along behind ThunderClan's leader. Cottonclaw glanced around and realized that many of his Clanmates were staring at Lightning.
"Are you okay?" Rowanstar asked worriedly. "You aren't sick, are you?"
Cottonclaw shook his head. "I woke very early this morning, and I've been hunting all day today. I'm just tired, Rowanstar."
His father was still looking worriedly at him. "I was going to have you come with me to speak with Lightning again, but you need to go and sleep."
"I'm fine, Rowanstar. Really!" Cottonclaw said before giving a large yawn.
Lightning came closer. "You should rest, young kit. You will need to be strong, for when the rogues bring war to your home."
Rowanstar's ears flicked backward. "He's right, Cottonclaw. As your father, I implore you to get some rest. As your leader, I'm ordering you to. I'll go and find Thunderstripe, and we can fill you in later."
Cottonclaw said, "Okay, Rowanstar."
He watched Rowanstar and Lightning walk away to find Thunderstripe and discuss the rogues, who were bringing war to their home. Cottonclaw's fur bristled on his neck. Was this the war Ghostwind had been told not to tell Rowanstar about?
Something rustled behind him. He spun around and squinted into the darkness, trying to see what had made the noise. It was so dark around him, but the colors of the trees and the grass were so rich. He'd never seen such green. If he wasn't so scared, he could probably sit here and admire the beauty of the rich colors.
"Calm yourself, Cottonclaw," a voice said behind him.
He spun around again, just in time to see a long-furred tom with silver and gray fur and a dark gray tail step out into the patch of moonlight. His pelt shimmered like the stars that blazed in the dark sky above them.
"I know you!" Cottonclaw said. "You're Cottonbrave!"
The tom nodded, his yellow eyes glinting in the light of the moon. "You have grown into a handsome young cat, Cottonclaw. Your father and mother must be so proud of you."
Cottonclaw sat back on his haunches. "Why am I here? Have you come to tell me something?" He twitched his ears. "Has something happened to Ghostwind or Ashflower?"
"I have come to tell you something, but it has nothing to do with your siblings," Cottonbrave replied. He walked forward and sat down right in front of Cottonclaw. "You had a talk with Cedarspirit this morning...about his dreams."
Cottonclaw fidgeted. "Yes, I did."
"He was searching for a sign that his dreams were coming from StarClan," Cottonbrave whispered. He sounded sad. "But Cedarspirit is wrong. StarClan are not the ones sending him his visions of animals in need of his help. We have nothing to do with them."
"Then...who is sending him the dreams?" Cottonclaw asked.
Cottonbrave shook his head. "You see, Cedarspirit is going to have to figure that out for himself. We cats in StarClan have other important matters to watch over."
Cottonclaw hissed. "So you aren't going to do anything to stop Cedarspirit from leaving us? ThunderClan can't lose another cat! It's leaf-fall...there's so little fresh-kill...and Lightning says that those rogues we chased from ShadowClan are coming back for a war!"
The dead tom's eyes were glistening with tears. "It's so much worse than that, Cottonclaw. So much worse. I wish I could tell you, but Firestar..."
"Forget Firestar! Tell me, Cottonbrave! What's worse? I know you're the one who told Ghostwind about the war that's coming! The one he couldn't tell Rowanstar about!" Cottonclaw shouted.
Cottonbrave began to disappear. "I'm sorry! I'm so sorry..."
With a shout, Cottonclaw pounced on the StarClan cat. He dug his claws into the tom's fur and refused to let go. Cottonbrave gave a loud caterwaul as he continued to disappear. Cottonclaw squeezed his eyes shut. When he opened them again, they were in a sunlit clearing with a bunch of other cats.
"Cottonbrave! What's the meaning of this?" a blue-gray she-cat shouted. She leaped down from the log she'd been sitting on with a ginger tom.
Cottonbrave kicked Cottonclaw off of him. "I don't know, Bluestar! He...he dug his claws into me...I couldn't get away..."
The blue-gray she-cat strode forward and stuck her face in Cottonclaw's. "I recognize you. You're Cottonclaw, Ghostwind and Ashflower's brother! What are you doing here?"
"I want to know what's going on!" Cottonclaw hissed. "Cottonbrave said that the war is going to be much worse than we think it is! I want to know what that means! And I want to know why you aren't going to do anything to stop Cedarspirit from leaving ThunderClan! We need him! You can't just let him go!"
"Nice going, Cottonbrave!" a ginger tabby tom with amber eyes hissed. "You and your big mouth! Seriously, can you not follow orders?"
"That's enough, Goldenstar!" a large, dark gray tom said. His light green eyes were blazing in the sunlight. Beside him walked a silver she-cat with dark gray stripes. She had the same light green eyes as the tom who had spoken.
"Oh, of course you side with your daughter on this one, Clawstar!" Goldenstar spat.
"He wouldn't have had to say anything if you hadn't snapped at Cottonbrave," a blue-gray tom with yellow eyes sneered from behind the dark tom and striped silver she-cat.
"You have no right to talk, Icefur. You shouldn't even be here with us, you traitor!" Goldenstar shouted. "You're more suited for the dark forest, with Tigerstar!"
Icefur's entire pelt stood on end.
"That's enough!" the ginger tom still seated on the log screamed.
Cottonclaw's neck fur bristled as Firestar jumped down from the log and walked over to stand before him.
"Cottonclaw, you should not have attacked Cottonbrave. You should not be here," Firestar said. His voice was soft, but full of reprimand. "You are not the only cat who has had questions for StarClan that are not going to be answered. There are reasons we reveal only certain things to you and your Clanmates."
"Can you at least answer me one question?" Cottonclaw whispered.
Firestar's whiskers twitched. "That depends on the question you ask," Firestar said. He glanced sideways at Bluestar, whose shoulders with tense.
"If it isn't StarClan, then who is sending Cedarspirit his dreams and why?"
Shock went through many of the cats gathered around Cottonclaw. Cottonbrave, Clawstar, and the silver striped she-cat gave little chuckles of amusement.
Firestar closed his eyes for a moment and sighed. When he opened them again, his green eyes were sparkling. "Out of all of the questions you could have asked, you ask the one that will gain you the least bit of information. The ones who send Cedarspirit his dreams are the spirits of foxes. Under normal circumstances, the fox spirits do not gather together like we do. However, their legends have foretold of a cat, ginger like them, who would be chosen for greatness. Now, the fox spirits gather together for one purpose."
Cottonclaw waited for him to go on, but Firestar had gone silent. "What's the purpose?"
Firestar shook his head. "You asked if I could answer one question. I've answered it. Now, it's time that you returned to the world of awareness. Cedarspirit will want to know what you've found out. This is the sign he was waiting for."
Cottonclaw felt himself waking up. "Wait! You can't think that I'll be content with so little information!"
The scenery and cats were beginning to fade to black.
"You should have asked a different question, then!" Firestar called.
His eyes opened on the empty den. From the angle of the sunlight coming in through the opening of the den, it was almost sunset.
StarClan, why do you have to be so frustrating? Cottonclaw thought, putting his paws over his nose with distress. And why did I have to ask such a useless question?
End of Chapter Eight