Author's Note: So soooo sorry about the long wait. The holidays were really busy, and I had writer's block, but I tried my hardest to make this Gathering Chapter worthwhile. Did you know writing Gatherings is really hard? Anyways, I tried adding all the cats I was given to put in the story, but it turns out that it was also harder than I thought. Sooo, here is Chapter 10 of Clueless Love!

Same Day:

As soon as the cheering had died down, every cat went up to the newly appointed deputy, Bear fur, and congratulated him. Bear fur was popular was popular among the cats and had been a good choice for the spot of deputy. Spottedfeather looked around the entire camp, in search of a spot of black fur. Nothing was seen. She groaned. Riverstrike had wanted very badly to be deputy, and now that that spot was taken… he must have been devastated.

A cat exited the throng of cats surrounding Bearfur, and she was surprised that the cat she had seen was Riverstrike. She merely purred to herself, and headed towards the tom. But, she was interrupted by Darktongue. Spottedfeather narrowed her eyes. He was notorious for being a charmer, and she was afraid of catching his "charm" if she could call it that.

He was a good fighter, especially for a she-cat, and she knew that, but her being one of the pretty she-cats in the Clan, she was a target; merely a plaything, until either another prettier she-cat was to his liking or when he got tired of the current she-cat he had currently charmed. "Move it," she growled coldly, trying to push past him.

"No way, gorgeous."

"I said, move it." She repeated, pushing his side even harder if possible. Riverstrike noticed, and gesturing to Orangeheart, they both stepped in between the angry she-cat and the tom that most she-cats would go after. "Leave." Riverstrike snarled coldly. It was a good thing both Orangeheart and Riverstrike were larger than Darktongue, and he immediately backed away.

"Thanks," Spottedfeather smiled at both of them once they turned around to face her.

"No problem," they both replied. Orangeheart politely excused himself, and immediately headed towards Brindlepelt.

"So in love…" Spottedfeather murmured to nobody in particular as she watched Orangeheart give her best friend a lick on the ear. The black tom beside her happened to catch the wistfulness of her tone, and said nothing. He merely smiled.

"Brindlepelt!"

The brindle she-cat turned around to find Riverstrike bounding towards her. "Oh, hello Riverstrike."

"Brindlepelt, can you please talk to Spottedfeather?"

"Why?"

"Because…. Oh, I don't know! She's acting really weird!"

"You didn't have to be so sarcastic! But I will talk to her."

"Thank you." Riverstrike turned around, not heading for the silent she-cat across the clearing, but the soon-to-be father, his own best friend.

"Hello, Orangeheart."

"Oh, hi Riverstrike. Soo… what's up with you and Spottedfeather?"

"She's not talking to me and I don't know why. I asked your mate to try and talk to her."

"Oh, well, if there's any cat who understands Spottedfeather, it's Brindlepelt."

"Exactly! How's being a soon-to-be-father coming along?"

"Brindlepelt is so moody, and bossy! But don't let her hear that. She is, after all, the mother of my kits."

Riverstrike chuckled. "I see. But… well… I-I think I might be in love with Spottedfeather." He said it in a rush, and it took a while for Orangeheart to decipher what he had said.

As soon as he had deciphered the hidden meaning, Orangeheart turned to his friend, and said, "Finally! Brindlepelt and I have been waiting for this moment!"

"What?" Riverstrike gasped, very surprised.

"I think everyone knows Riverstrike; everyone except Spottedfeather."

"So tell me something. Does Spottedfeather love me back?"

"Oh, well, I can't… I-I can't tell you that. You have to find out yourself."

"But, you're my best friend!" Riverstrike was aiming for a guilt trip but Orangeheart was not to be fazed.

"I know, but I just can't tell you. I'm sorry. And, anyways, it ispretty obvious." Orangeheart shook his orange head, very much like his great, great grandfather's, disbelievingly.

Suddenly, Riverstrike pelted away when he heard Bearfur's call. He needed to go on patrol. "Bye, Orangeheart!" he called over his shoulder.

"All cats going to the Gathering are as follows: Bearfur, Nightspot, Rosepetal, Fernleaf, Windrush, Goldenstorm, Silverbranch, Spottedfeather, Riverstrike, Orangeheart, Hazelheart, Flowerstem, and Cloudwing. Please come when finished with your duties at moon-high." Silverstar's voice rang through the clearing, and the cats she had called poured out of their respective dens. Spottedfeather, hearing the amount of names being called out, knew her clan was big, but she had never known her clan was that huge. She searched the crowds for Riverstrike and was filled with a delightfully happy feeling when he, himself, came, and licked her ear gently.

She turned around, and asked, "What was that for?" He merely smiled, and replied, "Because I wanted to." Spottedfeather smiled softly, giving him a gentle lick on the tips of his ears.

"What did you do that for?" Riverstrike mocked playfully. The light brown she-cat narrowed her eyes. "Oh, I just wantedto," she retorted.

"Touché," Riverstrike meowed, amused with their playful banter.

"Hmph!" Spottedfeather, still in a humorous mood, stuck her nose up in the air, and walked away. Riverstrike stared after her, his eyes full of longing, and he called out to her, "Spottedfeather! Come back!" Spottedfeather looked over at him from her shoulder and she let a small smile play across her muzzle. "Hmph!" she repeated, maybe even louder than before. She was heading towards the exit of ThunderClan camp. The ebony colored tom waited awhile for her to fully disappear into the forest before following after her. Silently, he tracked her scent through the forest, and before he knew it, had reached her. Stealthily, without her knowing, he sneaked up behind her, waited a few seconds, and pounced.

Spottedfeather had rolled onto her back, anticipating his moves, and she merely grinned cheekily at him. "Knew you'd come," she laughed. "Well, I guess I am very predictable. Know what I'm going to do now?" Spottedfeather pretended to ponder the thought for a moment. "Maybe… fly to the other side?" And with a tremendous effort, the petite light brown she-cat kicked her paws lightly, but firmly into this stomach and pushed him off, sending him flying a considerable amount away.

She laughed delightedly for a second, but when he lifted himself to his paws, an amused, yet dangerous glint in his golden eyes, she gulped, turned around, and sped further into the forest. Riverstrike sprinted after her, his tail streaming out for balance, and he caught sight of Spottedfeather's own light brown, feathery tail whipping out from behind her. He smiled to himself; she was the only one he could ever be himself without fear of someone contradicting him, other than Orangeheart, and Brindlepelt.

Deciding to catch her breath, Spottedfeather stopped, under the impression that Riverstrike was behind her. He wasn't. Where is he? Spottedfeather wondered, he had been following me before… Deciding to search for him, she wandered back into the forest, surrounded by trees, above, and around her. Breathing in the cool air of the forest, she opened her mouth to let the scents of the forest wash over her.

Finally noticing Riverstrike's scent, she doubled back to go look for thevery hard-to-find jet black coat of fur that was Riverstrike's. Spottedfeather found him staring into space, and she sat next to him, barely making a noise. He need some time, and she merely looked in the general area of where he was staring mindlessly at.

Finally, when he had jolted back to real life, she smiled gently at him, "Hey," she stated simply. "Hey. Spottedfeather, what- what are you doing here?" The she-cat purred softly, "Can I not wait here?" she asked, jokingly. Spottedfeather loved making him laugh. Inching closer, she whispered, "Actually, I was here because Iwanted to," She was bringing up their playful banter earlier in the morning. Riverstrike stared down at her, only to find her staring back at him.

He was overcome with an extremely incredible urge to say something, and he picked the only thing he could say, "I love you, Spottedfeather." The light brown she-cat seemed surprised, but she smiled, licked him softly on the nose, and answered him with a whisper, "I love you too, Riverstrike. But, I think we shouldn't be awkward with each other, you know." Riverstrike purred, "Agreed." Both sat in comfortable silence until Riverstrike spoke, "I think the Gathering's going to start soon. Think we should go back?"

Spottedfeather's gaze landed on the black tom, he stood up, and allowed the she-cat to exit the clearing before him. Heading back to camp they fooled around, both playfully teasing each other. The journey home passed by quicker than usual.

When both felines had arrived back at camp, they were surprised to see Brindlepelt and Orangeheart, paws in mid-step near the entrance. "Hello…? What are you doing here?" Spottedfeather addressed them first, looking curiously between the felines. Orangeheart spoke, "Just going to get you two, but I guess we don't have to now! After all, you are back."

Brindlepelt was behind him, looking positively delighted, as if she knew something was going on between the two. She was showing obvious observations, moving her head from Riverstrike to Spottedfeather and back again. Spottedfeather politely excused herself from the toms' conversation and both she-cats departed to the privacy behind the nursery.

"Soo….?" Brindlepelt swiveled around to stare at her best friend. "So, what?" Spottedfeather asked, smiling mischievously on the inside. "Ugh! You and Riverstrike, of course! Do not lie to me!" Brindlepelt sighed in frustration, and Spottedfeather, taking pity on her friend, meowed softly, "He loves me." And, standing up, Spottedfeather peered around the nursery to look at her new mate. He caught her looking at him, and he grinned. Turning back to look at her best friend, she spoke again, "And I love him too."

Brindlepelt stared at her for a moment, and then uttered a triumphant cry, "Finally!" Spottedfeather didn't look surprised at all.

Luckily, Riverstrike had explained their friends' strange behavior before they had arrived at camp.

"All cats going to the Gathering, please gather underneath the High Ledge!" Silverstar's voice interrupted both she-cats, and they merely emerged from behind the Nursery, and joined their respective mates. Reaching the High Ledge, both sets of cats waited two heartbeats for the other felines going to the Gathering to arrive. As soon as they had, the cats stood up, each setting their own pace, and followed their leader through the bramble-covered entrance.

Up front, Silverstar was speaking to Bearfur, and he seemed to be totally into it, determined to uphold the deputy's role. The foursome were near the middle, the perfect place to either scoot to the front, or sneak to the back, without any cat complaining. As they passed WindClan's territory, Brindlepelt, Orangeheart, Riverstrike, and Spottedfeather discussed kit names, for Brindlepelt was due in about a month and a half, and both soon-to-parents liked to be prepared.

When Silverstar had deliberately left Brindlepelt's name off of the verbal list she had given Spottedfeather and Riverstrike, the pregnant brindle she-cat had protested greatly, demanding to be able to come to the Gathering, at least once before the birth of her offspring.

Silverstar had agreed, knowing that when in the way of an overly emotional female cat, it would be better to say okay, and move on with life. As the ThunderClan cats stopped to cross the fallen oak tree, WindClan, and RiverClan scents still fresh, the remaining cats watched with apprehension as the first 7 felines crossed the slippery tree.

Luckily, the 7 warriors were experienced, and crossed safely. As Orangeheart's turn came up, he took a deep breath, and crossed carefully to the other side. Brindlepelt went next, and even with her kit-filled belly managed to cross to the island with no trouble whatsoever. All remaining cats, including Riverstrike and Spottedfeather managed to not cause any fishes to dart fearfully away, and landed safely on the grass of the island.

Riverstrike nudged the she-cat beside him, and, when she had looked at him, almost annoyed, he pointed silently with his tail to the two cats walking around the shadows of the island together, a bit of moonlight dancing lightly on their backs. "Oh, Silverbranch, and Goldenstorm, Silverbranch is expecting kits, too, and is probably telling Goldenstorm right now."

Riverstrike looked at her, his eyes questioning, "How do you know?" His voice was so soft; the light brown she-cat had to move closer to his body to hear it. "Silverbranch told me today, since I was visiting Brindlepelt in the Nursery."

As they headed towards the clearing at the edge of the trees, both cats scanned the area for any signs of Brindlepelt and Orangeheart, catching sight of old acquaintances from past Gatherings, like, Secretflower, a slim black she-cat with menacing green eyes that could get any tom, in her Clan, ShadowClan, to do her bidding. And, many more: Juniperclaw, a dark ginger she-cat, with dyed red claws and Rabbitnose, a dark brown tabby with large ears, both of WindClan, Moonshadow, of RiverClan, with a silver tabby pelt, and blue eyes, Cloudwing, a RiverClan she-cat with a white pelt, and silver tips on her paws, and tail, with ice blue eyes, Crescentstreak, a light silver WindClan she-cat, with a strange white crescent moon marking on her left flank, with blue eyes, and so many more cats that Spottedfeather was surprised that she didn't suddenly lose sight of Riverstrike and get lost in the mob of felines.

Locating the two on the right, and near the edge of the trees, they headed for their friends, each making idle chit-chat as they waited for the Gathering to begin.

When all of the Clan leaders had climbed, scrambled, or leaped onto their branches, the Clan cats, mingling in with other cats in different groups had already congregated around the tall Oak, each eagerly awaiting for news of each of the different Clans.

As ShadowClan's leader, Treestar, a muscular, brown tom with green eyes, initiated the Gathering, all conversations the Clan cats had started ceased, and they all looked up at the leaders expectantly. The deputies padded to their respective stumps at the bottom of the tree, and, as did all the other Clan cats, waited patiently for the leaders to speak.

"I'll go first," Treestar declared, "in ShadowClan we are met with nothing worth fighting for, and are able to sleep with full bellies from abundant hunting patrols. Deerstar, if you may."

Deerstar, a small, brown she-cat, leader of WindClan raised her head up high on the middle branch, and spoke, "In WindClan, there are many rabbits to feast on, and, we also, are able to sleep with full bellies. Oceanstar?" She turned to the tom on the branch beside her, in which crouched, leisurely, a sleek, gray blue pelt with soul-searching blue eyes.

As he stretched, all the felines on the lush green grass of the island waited patiently for his clear, cool-as-water, voice to speak, "In RiverClan, we are met with a galore of fish from the lake, and are met with no threats, except the Twolegs who come to play in the lake, but they do not disturb us. Silverstar, you may speak now, if you wish."

As the ThunderClan leader spoke of nothing but the plentiful prey in their territory, all the other ThunderClan felines spoke quietly of other news, having heard of this news before, in their very own camp, as did all the respective Clan cats had done when their leaders were speaking.

As Silverstar ended the Gathering, ThunderClan waited patiently for their leader, who had taken the fourth branch from the bottom, as her perch.

She jumped gracefully down from Treestar's branch, and headed towards the front of the ThunderClan mass, Spottedfeather, Riverstrike, Orangeheart, and Brindlepelt followed, all four of them in the back, and not in the middle, like before.

Passing WindClan territory, they entered the darkened forest, specially trained eyes able to see in the dark, and they headed for home.

Author's Note: Hope you liked it! I'll try to get working on te next chapter as soon as possible.. hopefully not as long as this update! But, you never know, school might come in the way. Oi. I have a pretty good idea for the next chapter, but, I still need help - I haven't been cured of the entire Writer's Block yet, sadly enough. So, just review or send me a PM for ideas. If you can R&R! Even better: add "Reviewing" to you New Year's Resolutions.