Thanks for all the reviews, and here is the next chapter. This one is from Ivypaw's point of view :D You'll just have to wait and see how Dovepaw reacts. Anyway, thanks for reading, and here is the chapter!
"Jump, now!"
The sharp voice echoed in my ears, and I steadied myself. I leapt myself high into the air, and I tried to repeat the battle move he had shown me. I twisted my body, evening out my weight and managing to preserve a perfect balance. I landed on his shoulders with my hind-paws, then dug my claws into them. He crumpled down, and I used my fore-paws to slam his head into the dirt.
I heard a muffled grunt of approval, and then I was being thrown off his back. I toppled to the side, unbalanced, my dark blue eyes round as I stared at him, waiting nervously for praise.
"Good job." He grunted, nodding at me, his tail twitching with approval. "I think you're ready."
"Ready for what, Hawkfrost?" I meowed, tilting my head, my ears twitching with bewilderment. I wasn't sure what he was talking about.
I glanced at the meadow we trained in everyday, the beautiful flowers, the soft dirt, the sharp rocks. The sky was a light blue, the clouds white and fluffy as they floated peacefully amongst the pale sky. The flowers were each different, some of them with soft pink petals, other with vibrant purple petals, other with a peaceful, gentle blue.
But the whole meadow seemed to darken as Hawkfrost opened his jaws to continue speaking.
"I'm going to take you to meet some of my friends." He flicked his tail at my flank, and I bounced to my paws, immediately excited. Then I suddenly hung back; even some of the cats at my own clan didn't like me, what if the cats from his group of friends didn't like me either? Without even voicing my concerns, he reassured me. "It's alright." He grinned. "I'm sure they'll love you."
"Really?" I meowed nervously, fidgeting.
His icy blue eyes met my own dark blue ones, and he nodded firmly. He stroked my pelt with his tail reassuringly, and I pulled on a brave face; although I really wasn't sure.
I followed him, and I felt a frown appear on my face as the meadow got darker and darker. Soon the lush grass and beautiful flowers started fading, melting into tall, dark trees and cracked, barren, dead plants. The leafless branches casted dark shadows on the ground; looking like claws ready to rip at my pelt. It felt forlorn and wrong, and I shuddered, my paws trembling. I forced myself to step forward, deeper and deeper into the darkness of this shadowed forest.
The sun slowly began to disappear, and so did the blue skies and the light of the meadow. It was hidden by the eery blackness of the sky, the gloom and the murkiness of this strange place. This odd, barren place. Hawkfrost however, seemed unbothered by it, as he shouldered his way past some spiky plants.
I winced as I tripped over something and sprawled forward. I saw something flash in Hawkfrost's eyes. Was it… impatience? It was gone in a flash, so quickly I thought I must have imagined it.
"Tidy yourself up, don't want to make a bad impression, do we?" He purred lightly.
Embarrassed, I nodded quickly. I rasped my tongue over my shoulders and over my paw, drawing it over my ears. After I gave myself a swift but thorough cleaning, Hawkfrost lead me along. I padded warily after him, careful not to slip and mess up my fur again.
"Hawkfrost." A voice rumbled from ahead.
I blinked, startled by the sudden appearance. In the darkness of the forest, a tabby tom padded out. He had broad-shoulders, and his muscle bulged and rippled beneath his pelt. Multiple battle-scars marked his dark brown tabby pelt, and his amber eyes lingered on me. What stuck to me most were his claws. They were unusually long, digging gouges in the earth as he stood, surveying me.
"Tigerstar." Hawkfrost meowed.
My heart twisted in my chest. Tigerstar? Wasn't he the evil tom with dark ambitions that planned to lead ThunderClan, but for all the wrong reasons? Didn't my kin and leader, Firestar, stop him?
"Relax." His voice meowed, softer than I thought was possible for him. "I'm not going to hurt you."
He reached out with a paw, his sharp claws brushing my cheek. I flinched away from him, almost against my own will. He frowned at me, blinking at me innocently. "Are you afraid of me?"
"No." He blinked once. "Yes." I shook my head wildly, terrified of saying the wrong thing. "N-no! I mean no."
Tigerstar sighed heavily. "So the nursery tales are still the same? The big bad Tigerstar puts everybody at risk with his evil ambitions? He slaughters cats mercilessly, and the glowing star Firestar defeats him!"
I shuffled my paws awkwardly.
"Ivypaw, the tales aren't true." Hawkfrost growled, his icy blue eyes darkening. "They are all lies, to make Firestar look more desirable. "All Tigerstar wanted was a bit of attention, because ever since Firestar came, he was the one in the spotlight."
His words stung me. A flash of familiarity hit me.
Me and Dovepaw. I had done something rash and foolish, and if they learned about it, they probably would have made scary nursery stories about me as well. I just wanted a bit of the spotlight, nothing more. I hadn't meant to inflict any harm… Maybe Tigerstar was the same.
"But what about the cats you killed?" I meowed nervously, gazing up at him with wide, scared eyes.
Tigerstar sighed. "I was blinded by my hatred for Firestar… I regret all those murders, even now. I think of it, and I pray their poor souls have found a good place to rest. I'm so sorry… If I could go apologize, I would." His voice sounded so genuine, so remorseful, that I blinked.
"You're really sorry?" I meowed quietly.
Hawkfrost and Tigerstar nodded simultaneously. Then I noted that their large, muscular frames began to fade, their paws becoming transparent. "I'm really sorry." Tigerstar meowed.
I drew myself up. "I believe you." I nodded. "I did something I regret also."
"So you'll be back?" Hawkfrost smiled at me, showing his teeth.
"Of course." I purred.
Then I awoke.
"Hey, Ivypaw." A dark brown she-cat was sitting in front of me, her amber eyes wide.
"Hi." I meowed gruffly, turning away from her.
Those few days ago she hadn't stood up for me, and she decided to follow Blossompaw like a mindless servant. She knew it was an equal match, and it wasn't fair for me, but she still went along with it. I scowled fiercely down at my mossy nest. It was her fault, and Blossompaw's, that Bumblepaw wasn't my friend anymore. Now I had no friends.
"You're on patrol with me and Bumblepaw." She meowed, her tone light.
She knew of the tension between me and the gray tom. I didn't want to go. I didn't want to be near Bumblepaw at all. I was embarrassed at my outburst towards him, but also more ashamed of how cruel, how mean I was to him. I knew he didn't forgive me; and I didn't expect him to, but I still felt bad every time I saw him.
I faked a cough, and curled my tail around my stomach. "You know what?" I meowed, then coughed deliberately again. "I'm not feeling so well. I think I'm going to have to see Jayfeather."
Briarpaw blinked, clearly not buying my act. "I guess I owe you one." She muttered. "Go to Jayfeather, I'll tell your mentor and the other cats on patrol that you aren't feeling well."
I blinked gratefully to her. "Thanks." I meowed, then coughed loudly again. She rolled her eyes and padded back out of the den. I dragged myself out of my nest, making it look as if I really wasn't feeling well. I coughed loudly as I walked, and then padded slowly, making sure I looked weak, as I entered Jayfeather's den. Before I even sat down, the gray tabby tom's sharp voice cut into my thoughts and actions.
"You're not sick." He meowed sharply. "What are you doing here?"
"I'm not feeling well." I persisted. He sighed in exasperation, and then shuffled to the edge of the den. While waiting, I did what I always did. I thought of my sister, and my best friend. I pictured Dovepaw, her fluffy smoky gray pelt, her pretty eyes. I wondered what she could possibly be doing right now. I wondered if she was okay, if she was healthy, if she was feeling okay.
I hope she'll come back to fulfill the prophecy. I sighed sadly, my ear flicking as I hoped for the best.
I heard a clatter from beside me, and whirled around. Jayfeather had knocked over some sticks, and they fell to the ground with a large clatter. I blinked, astonished, at him. Sure he was blind, but I had always thought he was never really blind. He was more attentive than us all, and it wasn't really like him to do that.
"Are you okay?" I meowed tentatively, hesitantly padding towards him.
"I'm fine." He muttered, before grasping the rushes between his teeth and gently setting them down on where they were before.
I frowned; that was weird.
"You're not sick." Jayfeather snapped at me. "So you can leave now."
"W-wait!" I stammered, trying to distract him. "Why did you knock over those things?"
"First of all, those aren't things." He growled at me, his jay-blue eyes darkening. "Those are rushes, and they are used for binding broken bones."
"Thanks for the herb lesson?" I meowed, tilting my head to the side.
"Secondly, how do you know about the prophecy?"
His words hit me like a blow to the head. It was as if he had read my mind and thoughts, and that was what made him lose his concentration and dropped the sticks- no, the rushes.
"W-what prophecy?" I lied through my teeth, stammering a bit.
Jayfeather neared me, his eyes blazing a challenge. His gray pelt was bristling, and he loomed over me. My heart pounded against my chest, my whole body beginning to tremble. "You know what I'm talking about." He growled, eyes dark with an emotion I couldn't really read.
"I heard you guys talking about it." I confessed, my blue eyes round.
"Who are you referring to when you say 'you guys'?" He snapped, his voice piercing.
"You know who I'm talking about." I quoted him, annoyed. It wasn't fair that he was acting as if he was blaming me for knowing about the prophecy. It was a prophecy my sister was in, I technically should have been told about it. And it wasn't my fault that I just wandered around and overheard.
"Just because your sister is in it, doesn't mean you should be told about it!" Jayfeather growled, his tail flicking from side to side with annoyance.
Shock seared my pelt. "How did you?" I meowed, appalled.
"We need to talk." He growled through gritted teeth.
"We aren't talking right now?" I frowned at him, confused. "What do you mean, we need to talk?"
"Shut up and follow me." He ordered.
Bewildered, but also curious, I snapped my jaws shut and followed the gray tabby tom as he padded into the clearing. He twitched his ears, and opened his jaws to taste the air. Relief flooded from him as he noticed him. I could've guessed. Lionblaze picked himself up as he saw his brother next to me, and padded over, eyes narrowed in suspicion.
"What's going on?" He inquired.
"We need to talk." Jayfeather lead me and Lionblaze away from the clearing of camp, and we padded out from the exit.
"Talk about the prophecy?" I meowed.
"Why not just yowl it out to everyone in camp?" Jayfeather meowed, his voice a sarcastic drawl. "Speak quieter!"
"Wait, what?" Lionblaze was still confused. "How does she even know?"
"Never mind how I know!" I growled. "I want to know how important this thing is!"
Jayfeather and Lionblaze lead me to a small place, hidden behind some bramble bushes. Nobody was around, I agreed, because when I tasted the air it was just stale cat scents, nothing fresh. Nobody had been around here, and nobody was here right now. I surveyed my surroundings, seeing the familiar oak trees and hearing the familiar chirping of birds and chittering of squirrels. I shrugged loosely, settling myself comfortably on the ground.
"Ivypaw…" Lionblaze sighed, sounding dead serious.
"Yes?" I answered.
"The prophecy," Jayfeather began, his voice sharp with concern but also fear. "can't be completed without your sister, as she is the third cat, and an important member of the prophecy."
"And if the prophecy isn't completed…" The golden tabby tom shook his head, sun-colored amber eyes looking distressed. "Then we are all going to be destroyed by the darkness."
And then all of the guilt, all of the sadness and bewilderment crashed down on me.
And like I had done so many times in my life, I let out a pained wail, and I ran.