A/N: This is why I love writing from Cinderpaw's POV. It's just so fun to write from her point of view. She's such a great character. :

Also, one more thing, I know it's Friday and I usually have daily uploads (or try to, anyway) and with school and stuff I can't upload mornings anymore, but on weekends I should be able to. It would help me remember if I did it in the evenings on weekdays and in the mornings on weekends. So that'll hopefully be my general schedule for the next little bit.

Anyway, on with the story!

Cinderpaw's POV

I couldn't believe I'd torn my claw. Seriously, why did it have to be my claw? Why did it have to be my claw? We were heading into probably the most dangerous place we'd ever been in and the best fighter was down one claw? It was a positive tragedy, whatever my brothers said.

I stalked down the hill, my tail twitching with annoyance, my steps feeling suddenly lopsided even though my claws were sheathed. It was as if I'd lost a toe.

"Cinderpaw? You okay?"

Sootpaw's voice drifted through the misty air to me, his voice concerned but his mind highly amused. I sighed in exasperation. Sootpaw didn't understand – couldn't understand – how terrible my loss was. And now he was laughing at me.

"Yes, I'm fine," I snapped, barely turning my head to the side to send the words over my shoulder.

I heard Rainpaw whisper something too quietly for me to hear but I didn't ask him to repeat himself. I didn't even look through our mental connection to see what he'd said. I could just tell he was also laughing at me.

Rainpaw bounded forward to walk by my side. "Cinderpaw, what's wrong?" he asked, sounding genuinely worried.

I couldn't help myself this time. I reached out to his mind and, to my surprise, found anxiety there, too. The ice in my heart melted a little. How could I have suspected Rainpaw? Rainpaw, of all cats, would never want to hurt me. He cared about both Sootpaw and I more than even himself. He always put others before himself; put himself in their position; tried to understand.

"Yeah, I'm okay," I said in a much gentler voice than the one I'd used with Sootpaw. Rainpaw deserved that, at least.

"You feel like you've lost a toe, don't you?" he asked.

I shot him a sharp glare. I had to live up to my reputation, after all. I couldn't go soft on him all the time. "Stop looking in my head."

Rainpaw smiled, but it didn't feel like he was laughing at me, but more with me. "Okay, fine."

He dropped back for a moment before reappearing at my side, only this time Sootpaw trotted up on my other side. Rainpaw must have told Sootpaw I'd calmed down. Well, calmed down a little. I still sorely missed my claw.

We came to a halt at a row of straight, thin half-tree sort of things without bark, embedded into the ground right beside each other with no room to squeeze between.

"What is this?" I asked, scratching at one with my good forepaw. I wanted to leave a full set of claw-marks in case some rogue came along and thought we were a bunch of helpless, injured kits. Though I could easily take on any cat who threatened me, I couldn't say the same for Sootpaw and Rainpaw.

"I saw these yesterday," Rainpaw meowed, looking up at the tops of the half-trees. "I think they're meant to mark a border between the Twolegplace and the forest. Sort of like Twoleg scent markers, like the warriors use."

Sootpaw nodded. "That makes sense. So do we just climb over?"

Rainpaw leaped up the side. I almost stopped him – I was supposed to be the protector – but he was the best at climbing trees and these half-tree things were most like trees. It was probably best he go first.

"All clear."

At Rainpaw's meow, I jumped as high as I could into the air, sinking my claws into the wood and pulling myself up the rest of the way. Sootpaw followed right on my tail. Together, the three of us stared down at the scene beyond.

It was a perfectly square plot of grass, completely surrounded by the half-trees. What seemed to be a hole led into a huge, square thing a Treelength high with a strange, pointed roof. Around the edges was a row of bushes with bright flowers, growing in weird, circular shapes. The whole thing was just plain unnatural.

A sudden, loud noise startled me so badly I nearly toppled off the half-tree I was perched on. I looked at the square den and saw an animal twice my size with pointed ears and a long muzzle, white fangs visible as it opened its mouth and made the noise again.

Bark!

I dove for the bushes directly beneath me within the half-trees, sensing mentally that Sootpaw and Rainpaw were following on my heels. Together, we huddled together in the bush, peering out at the terrifying monster. Rainpaw was shaking so badly I wrapped my tail around him to comfort him.

Strangely enough, I saw the creature hadn't moved from the hole. It was just standing there, staring at us, its ears standing straight up. It pushed itself onto its hind legs and rested its forepaws against something invisible, letting out its noise again.

Bark!

I wondered briefly if it was one of the rats Lightwing had warned us about, but then caught sight of a fluffy tail waving back and forth behind it. So it wasn't a rat. But then what was it?

Bark!

Another creature had appeared in the hole. It seemed to be looking out at the grassy area. Then, it turned to the animal and made sounds that sounded like growls. It immediately folded its ears back and tucked its tail between its legs, backing away out of sight. The larger creature looked back out one more time, pressing one pale forepaw to the invisible barrier in the hole before turning and walking out of sight. But it didn't use its forepaws.

"That must be a Twoleg!" Sootpaw whispered. "It only walks on two of its legs!"

I nodded, too freaked to make a sarcastic comment on how obvious that was.

After waiting for several long moments while our heartbeats slowed, making sure the creatures really were gone, we slunk out from under the bush one by one. I was first, of course.

We were getting particularly hungry by now. Though I wouldn't dream of complaining about it to Sootpaw and Rainpaw for fear of looking weak, it was getting harder and harder to ignore the stabbing pains in my middle signaling my need of food. I was even prepared to eat something someone else had chewed on if it meant the pain would stop.

So that was Priority Number One: getting food. I led the way out of the square of grass and around the side of the Twoleg Den, keeping my ears pricked, my eyes peeled, and my nose always on alert for any strange sounds, sights, or scents. This, I'd pretended, was the only reason I'd come with my brothers. I had to protect them, whatever the cost. It was up to me to lead them through this danger zone.

We emerged next to a wide stretch of black rock that emitted a putrid stench, even worse than crowfood. Gagging, my eyes watering, I surveyed the area.

This must be a Thunderpath. It exactly fit Lightwing's description of one, though without one key feature. I crept closer to the wide Thunderpath at the end of the smaller one connecting to the Twoleg Den. Sure, it was gray and sure, it smelled terrible, but where were the Monsters?

As if in answer to my thought, I suddenly realized that I was hearing a low rumble in the distance. I froze, ears swiveling, trying to focus on the sound. The problem was that it kept echoing around so that it sounded as if it was coming from all directions.

I growled to myself, looking up and down the Thunderpath. It was completely deserted. So where was the rumbling coming from?

Suddenly, with a blast of noise, a shiny, bright blue thing swerved around a hidden corner and began roaring along right at me. I leaped backward, in front of Sootpaw and Rainpaw, shielding them with my body, I narrowed my eyes against the sunlight reflecting off the shiny sides and watched it careen past, leaving nothing behind but a cloud of grayish, acrid smoke and three apprentices with quaking knees.

I waited for the roar to fade into a rumble and then, slowly, into silence. It was gone. Only then did I dare to move.

Beckoning Sootpaw and Rainpaw forward with my tail, I began creeping forward again. I crouched by the edge of the Thunderpath, looking from side to side, my ears pricked for any sound of approaching Monsters. Hearing none, I turned to my brothers.

"We need to cross this Thunderpath. So we'll do it quickly, when we can't hear any Monsters, okay?"

Rainpaw looked terrified at the prospect, but Sootpaw merely swallowed and nodded, fear and determination glinting in his eyes.

"Ready?" I didn't wait for an answer. "One… two… three… Now!"

I leaped forward and felt Sootpaw do the same beside me. After a heartbeat, when he saw both his littermates going without him, Rainpaw raced after us. We pounded together across the Thunderpath, our breaths coming in sharp gasps from the adrenaline rushing through our veins. Then, sooner than I'd expected, we were crossing the opposite edge and had dived into a perfectly clipped bush.

"Thank StarClan we're all safe!" Rainpaw gasped as a Monster's growl grew louder again behind us.

I nodded in agreement, panting too hard to speak. Exhausted as I was what with all the straining tasks coupled with a lack of food, I knew we had to move on. I stood as the Monster roared by behind us and beckoned to my brothers. "We have to keep going," I said, my head and tail drooping.

Sootpaw and Rainpaw were both the same. Heads down, tails dragging through the dust, we made our way around another two rows of Twoleg Dens, winding our way along narrow alleyways, crossing a second Thunderpath, and eventually ending up in a dark alley.

I looked hopelessly around at the black bags, shining in the yellow light of a sort of fake sun on top of a tall pole, reeking of crowfood long gone bad. This was no place to sleep. But I knew we couldn't possibly continue tonight. It was just too much for one day, especially after Sootpaw and I had fallen into the river yesterday.

I found a few sheets of white and black stuff that crunched when I put pressure on it and dragged them into a corner. Then, wondering if there was possibly something more I could do to help keep us all safe, I curled up with my back facing the alley, Sootpaw and Rainpaw curled up in front of me, protected and safe.