A black blur raced in front of Storm's face. He thought it was Shadepaw, the young SkyClan she-cat whose father Storm had killed. She hunched over Leafstar. The SkyClan leader's eyes opened. Storm gasped; he could have sworn she had been killed.

"Shadepool?" Leafstar asked faintly. Shadepaw, no, Shadepool, nodded.

Shadepool turned around to look at Falcon, who had an expression of disbelief on his face. Without hesitating, she charged at him and pinned him to the ground. Falcon growled and tried to get loose, but Shadepool refused to let that happen. She calmly lifted her paw and placed it on his neck. Falcon let out a startled cry. Shadepool unsheathed her claws. She felt Falcon's blood well up around them as his face contorted in pain. His dark green eyes glazed over, and his body slumped underneath her.

She got off and licked the blood off her paw disdainfully.

The BloodClan cats gasped, and a few shrieked in horror. They couldn't believe that their mighty, ferocious leader had been killed by such a young she-cat. Leafstar got to her feet and stood face to face with Storm. Shadepool snarled at the dark gray tabby who had killed Bounceheart.

"You are BloodClan's deputy, correct?" Leafstar asked.

"Yes," Storm replied. He looked at his Clanmates. "Well, I guess I'm leader now," he added.

Shadepool couldn't help but feel bad for Storm. He was now responsible for the lives of all these cats.

"In that case," Leafstar continued, "Take your Clan back to wherever you are staying. I will give you two moons of peace. Then you must either set up a territory outside of our borders, or leave."

Storm dipped his head, "That is fair. Thank you for your kindness. BloodClan, let's go."

The BloodClan cats followed their new leader out, carrying the bodies of their dead with them.

"SkyClan, we shall leave as well," Leafstar announced.

From SkyClan, Mintsong, Clovertail, and Patchfoot had died.

When they got back to camp, Leafstar immediately called a Clan meeting.

"Normally, we would take this night to honor our fallen. Unfortunately, tonight all of SkyClan is injured."

The SkyClan cats agreed half-heartedly.

"Also, I would like to give a special thanks to our newest warrior, Shadepool. She killed the BloodClan leader, Falcon. If she had not done so, we would probably still be fighting this very moment."

Shadepool was warm with joy and pride.

"Shadepool, being a new warrior, however, you will sit silent vigil tonight," Leafstar finished. Shadepool nodded in understanding.

Shadepool settled into a spot at the camp entrance. She had to stay wide awake. Knowing BloodClan, they might ambush the camp while the SkyClan warriors slept.

The bushes rustled, and Shadepool stood up, neck fur bristling. A brown tabby shape stepped out of the bushes. Shadepool let out a sigh of relief; it was just Hazelfur!

"Hi Shadepool," he meowed, "Can I sit with you?"

Shadepool smiled; she couldn't talk during her vigil, and Hazelfur knew that. She nodded to him. He looked up at the sky.

"The stars sure are pretty," Hazelfur commented, "Great night for a vigil, huh?"

He turned to face Shadepool, stars shining in his light green eyes. His neatly groomed tabby fur lit up in the moonlight. Shadepool blinked. She had never noticed that Hazelfur was so handsome.

Hazelfur padded closer, and he laid down next to Shadepool. Their fur touched. Shadepool purred and rasped her tongue over his ear.

"Shadepool, I have a confession," Hazelfur meowed, "I love you."

Shadepool's eyes widened in surprise. She wasn't embarassed; instead she was overtaken by joy and contentment. She realized that she felt the same way. She remembered all the fun times she had with Hazelfur. They had been friends since they were kits. He has always been able to make her laugh. His smile was contagious. Whenever he smiled, she couldn't help but smile right back, no matter how she was feeling. All of these were things she had come to love about Hazelfur, without ever realizing that she was actually in love. However, now she did.

Shadepool felt that she could stay like this forever. Her and Hazelfur laying together, warmed by each other's pelts, gazing at the stars.