Chapter 8

Flowerheart sat bristling, not bothering to tear her eyes away from the two cats sitting below Jetstar on Speakrock. Beside her, Tanclaw was sitting on his paws with his fur bristled. On his other side, Twitchstep and Darkclaw stood together, muttering darkly and casting glares at the two newcomers.

She thought she ought to recognize them. Some part of her, however small, was screaming from the back of her mind that she knew them. But that was impossible. They were completely unfamiliar to her, by scent and sight.

One was a small tortoiseshell she-cat. She was very small, young and beautiful. Her spotted fur gleamed in the growing sunlight, and her slanted eyes glowed amber as she looked around, confidence oozing from her sitting stance. Her companion was more of an enigma. Just by looking, he was nothing more than a wisp of smoke, or moonlight. He was a black long-fur with blue pricks for eyes. Maybe because of his long fluff, his stance was hard to gain. All she could tell was that compared to the girl, he was not as comfortable around strangers.

"MoonClan," Jetstar began from his place on the Speakrock. "As you can see, we have two newcomers." There were mutterings around the Clan.

"Again?" Cometflight hissed. "I understand that in the past, MoonClan needed to add new members to grow. But now we're big enough to survive on our own. Why do we have to accept these cats?"

"Because," Sharpfang responded. "Where would MoonClan be without the addition of newcomers? When Thornstar wrongly banished me from FireClan, I had no home. I was just a wanderer, stealing food and shelter from other Clan's territories. Jetstar changed all that when he took me in. I was no longer a no-man's land cat, I was a somebody. Perhaps that's what these cats need too."

"Yeah," Blueheart added. "Where would you be, Cometflight, if Jetstar hadn't taken you in?"

"Still," Greenshade spoke up. "He had a point. MoonClan shouldn't have to take in every straggler that comes by, just because we all once were. We're a Clan now, following the warrior code, and the warrior code rejects lonors like these."

Jetstar sat listening the entire time, his head up and his odd red eyes focused on his mate. Finally, he bowed his head. "MoonClan doesn't have to take in two strangers. But does that mean we can't? Every one of us felt out of place at some point in our lives, and can empathize with these strangers. It is possible that they need a home, and if they can prove themselves worthy, then we should allow them the chance to prove themselves."

"Why not ask them?" Flowerheart said, just loudly enough to be heard.

A couple of people turned to look at her, Darkclaw even sniggering on the other side of Tanclaw. Jetstar twitched his ears, indicating that the two new cats should speak.

The girl rose to her feet. "My name is Clover, and this is Rough Seasons. We used to live in CityClan, long ago. When we left CityClan, we were taken in by a group known only as The Clique."

There were gasps around the Clan, although Flowerheart wasn't one of them. She was not so young she had never heard of The Clique. They were a violent cult whose sole purpose had been to drive away the Clans. It had almost worked when StormClan had been taken into the City itself. After Sunstar had fetched the return of his old Clan, The Clique had been driven out for good, most of its members leaving the forest and the remainder either disbanding or returning to CityClan. She had never met any Clique members though. Everyone thought they were officially dead.

Looking at Clover closely, she could see the signs of hard life on her. Living alone with Rough Seasons must not have been easy, and it was clear that not once had she returned to her Citylegs after the death of her Clique. Life in the wild was not an easy one, every cat knew that. Flowerheart more than any. After all, her mother had died out there, and her littermates Daisypetal and Rufflepelt almost with her.

Clover indicated the Clan. "We wanderers aren't exactly deaf. We know about the goings-on in the Clans we once vowed to destroy. After hearing of this development, we decided to give this Clan thing a try."

Sharpfang narrowed his eyes. "So you admit the Clique wanted to destroy the Clans? When Blizzardfoot returned to StormClan, he spoke of hospitality. Flarepelt, Curlyleaf, and Breezedapple spoke of life in the Clique as warm and welcome."

Clover's eyes glinted. "Yet you saw what we did to StormClan when they were driven out. And to FireClan when they're kits traveled beyond their own borders."

Blizzardfoot himself bared his teeth. "You dare come here and remind us of that, then demand a home?" He turned to Jetstar, appealing directly to their leader himself. "I beg you send these fiends away. After all that they have done, how could we ever trust them?"

At his words, the Clan began to yowl approval. And with their backstory, Flowerheart couldn't help but agree that the newcomers would only bring trouble. Leaning into Tanclaw, she knew that she could trust him, and that if ever a battle came, he'd stand beside her to the end. But these two strangers were just that: strange. Clover had a look about her that Flowerheart simply didn't trust.

Somehow, she was surprised when Jetstar finally answered, "Everyone deserves a second chance. I'm not too young to forget what you did to FireClan in your days, Sharpfang, and yet you are here as my deputy. These two will be allowed to stay. You will make them welcome. From this moment on, they shall be known as Cloverpaw and Roughpaw. Blizzardfoot and Blacktail will be your mentors."

And with that Jetstar turned his back on his own Clan and disappeared into his den.