"Dappledpaw? Is something wrong?"

I was bent down on the ground, as if I had started to fall and managed to steady myself halfway through. Hawkflight's eyes were shining with worry as he looked over me.

Make up a lie, and fast, Dappledpaw. "Um... I just... I heard something. Didn't you?"

I had heard the thoughts of another cat- an EmberClan cat, on his way to invade IceClan camp with the rest of his Clan- but Hawkflight didn't know I had powers, and now was not the right time to reveal it.

Hawkflight shook his head in response to my question. "What'd you hear?"

Quickly I connected myself to as many of the EmberClan cats' minds, in order to follow what was happening. "Uh, it just kind of sounded like, I don't know... cats? Lots of cats. Moving, talking, trying to be quiet, all muffled by the tall grass.

Hawkflight sniffed the air. "I can't smell any cats, but that might just be the wind. I don't think there are any IceClan cats out besides the other half of the dawn patrol. Is it EmberClan cats?"

"I think so," I said slowly.

"We need to warn Lionstar, then," Hawkflight said, "and fast, if they're in our territory. Do you know anything else?'

I shook my head. "Let's see if we can get closer," I suggested. "We might hear more."

"That's brave of you." His voice was calm and steady, but his thoughts were dripping with pride and emotion. "Let's go, then."

I crouched to the ground, trying to place where the cats' auras were coming from. After a few moments, I stalked off in the right direction, trying to keep as quiet as I could. Suddenly there was a ruffle, and Hawkflight gave a little snort.

"Well, I definitely heard that," he said. "And we must be close, because I can smell them and the wind hasn't changed."

The thoughts are really clear now. Now I could see that Heatherleaf was among them, as well as that gray cat she seemed to like a lot. There were more cats than in the last battle, and from a wider age range- some looked to be young apprentices. Still keeping part of my mind on Hawkflight, I tried to track them as best as I could.

We've got to be quieter. An EmberClan cat will hear us.

I can't believe all the invasions Rainstar's planning. This is just one of many!

We should hurry; the sun is already rising.

Will those idiots in the front stop talking? They act like we're the bosses around here. We don't own the place, and we've lost more battles than we've won.

Does Rainstar know what she's doing?

I hope Flamesky doesn't get hurt.

Am I going to see Grayfeather? Do I have to look at her in the face when she realizes that I'm fighting for EmberClan, not for the kits?

Ugh. It's too early for this.

I really hope this'll be the last one. We'll wipe out IceClan for good. All the future invasions will be called off, and I won't have to drag myself out of my nest before the sun's even up again tomorrow.

"If this doesn't work, they're invading tomorrow, too," I said thoughtfully. "And again after that. It sounds like Rainstar's planning a lot of invasions.

"That's bad," Hawkflight said.

I stiffened. I had been so focused on EmberClan that I forgot to be worried.

He added quietly, "You can really hear them talking? I can hear words, but muffled."

"Y-yes," I lied. My hearing was no better than Hawkflight's. Heart starting to race, I forced myself to focus back on the minds of the EmberClan cats.

I'm so scared. What if I die? What if my friends die?

I've heard that Lionstar and Palefang are huge. I don't want to have to fight those two, I'd bet.

Rainstar really wants to break up the Gathering, does she? This is a bad idea. StarClan will punish us for ruining the truce.

"And also, they're, well, uh, they want to attack during the Gathering," I said.

Hawkflight's eyes widened. "We have to tell Lionstar."

I quickly tore away from the EmberClan cat's thoughts. "Let's hurry then. I, um, just, I don't think, well, I bet that we won't find anything else here."

Stupid Dappledpaw! I chided myself. You sound like an idiot, always repeating yourself and using too many fillers. But Hawkflight didn't seem to care. He started back to camp quietly.

So, I said to myself, trying to get my mind off of Hawkflight, what all information have I gotten? They were planning lots of invasions, early in the morning and one at the Gathering. One of the EmberClan cats seemed to be the father of Grayfeather's kits- I was unsure what to dow tih that information. And none of them seemed very happy about this war.

Pressure seemed to gather on my shoulders, pressure to end the war and finally create peace for EmberClan and IceClan, all by myself. I shook my head slightly.

"Hmm?" Hawkflight said, glancing at me.

"Nothing." I always felt like things were awkward between me and Hawkflight, and I could tell neither of us liked it. We wanted to be able to talk easily, but he didn't know me that well and although I could read his mind, I was too afraid to bring up anything even if I knew he'd react positively. If I ever wanted to be able to talk to Hawkflight, I had to be braver.

I spent a few moments bracing myself. Finally, "What do you think about that new kind of bird Lionstar wants us to hunt?"

"That weird eagle thing?" Hawkflight asked. "I think it's a waste of time. Those things are so hard to hunt."

"Still, I mean, uh, they're pretty big," I said. "One of those is going to feed a lot of cats."

He smiled. "One time, I got one off the fresh-kill pile to eat. It was so big, I had to get my siblings to help me finish it! It took all four of us, and we were stuffed by the end. Still, in the middle of a war as big as this one, we can't spare than much energy hunting them."

"Fair enough," I said. "And they're dangerous, really, even for cats who aren't weak from wounds." A warm feeling blossomed up in my chest. I had started a conversation! With Hawkflight!

We continued to talk for a while, until finally Hawkflight said, "Look, there's the camp. We got here before the EmberClan cats did."

"Oh, yeah," I said. Mentally, I checked in with the EmberClan patrol. It was hard to tell anything from the distance, but I managed to get from a dark green aura that they were almost there, but an apprentice had been injured on the way and they had to stop for a moment to recollect. I shuddered as I thought of what might've happened if the apprentice wasn't injured, and EmberClan had beaten us to camp.

"Dappledpaw? Hawkflight? Why are you back so early, and without the rest of the patrol?" Snowflame asked. I glanced up at her. She was playing with Grayfeather's kits.

Those aren't IceClan kits, I thought to myself. Their father is EmberClan. Looking at them, I could tell that their pelts weren't filling in like a longhaired EmberClan cat's should.

"-heard them trespassing. They're coming to attack EmberClan camp!" Hawkflight explained.

Dappledpaw! I scolded myself. I was much too spacey, always getting lost in my thoughts.

"Did they see you?" Snowflame said.

Hawkflight shook his head and gave me a warm look. "We were lucky. The wind was blowing south, so even though we couldn't smell them, they couldn't smell us, either. And Dappledpaw's super stealthy! She was as silent as a mouse out there!"

Snowflame turned and searched the camp with her gaze. "Palefang and Junipercloud are hunting. Lionstar took a patrol into the mountains with Frozenwhisker and Tawnyfur."

"And Duststorm, Spiderfur, and Silverheart are still on the border patrol," Hawkflight said. "That leaves Nightclaw, Hailclaw, Sparrowpelt, Grayfeather, and Poppytail...?"

"Nightclaw's sorting herbs in his den, Hailclaw and Sparrowpelt are fortifying the camp, and Grayfeather and Poppytail are napping," Snowflame said.

"Would Grayfeather be up for fetching the patrols out of camp?" Hawkflight asked.

"Probably," Snowflame said. "I'll fetch her. What about the other cats?"

"Nightclaw should prepare to heal the injured. Hailclaw and Sparrowpelt should start planning to ambush the EmberClan patrol. And Poppytail should probably guard the nursery." Hawkflight turned to me. "You should try to track down the EmberClan patrol, since you're so good at being quiet. I'll go with Grayfeather."

A few moments later, Snowflame came back to us, Grayfeather close behind. Despite the fact that her fur was messy with sleep, there was no drowsiness to her eyes. She was fully awake and alert.

"What's going on?" Hailclaw called. "What are you doing back so early?" He and Sparrowpelt padded towards us.

"EmberClan's attacking!" Hawkflight exclaimed.

Hawkflight and Snowflame quickly explained. "You two should get ready to ambush them, then," Hawkflight finished. "We'll be back soon."

Hailclaw nodded. "Good job, Hawkflight. I'm sure Lionstar will give you an apprentice once he hears of this."

"Let's get going," Hawkflight said. "Dappledpaw... Good luck. Please be safe."

I smiled weakly. "C'mon, Hawkflight, have I ever t-taken a risk in my life?"

He didn't laugh. "I don't care if you're the best spy in all the four Clans. I want you to be safe."

I skimmed the surface of his mind. His thoughts mirrored his words; he was afraid of what might happen to me. Sudden fear sparked my chest.

Was this enough? Would reporting back to IceClan stop something awful from happening? ...Or was IceClan about to see tragedy?