A hush fell over the camp

A hush fell over the camp. All eyes were on Windstar and the intruder. The cat could not be seen, but that just made it all the more terrible.

"Oh boy…" Blackheart breathed, slipping into her spot beneath the rock. The two queens stayed where they were.

"The intruder was found just past our boarder with EchoClan."

Eveningpelt stiffened.

"There was blood mixed with his scent…."

The pale queen could only hear parts of what her former leader was saying. Images of Racoontail standing over her daughters, ready to attack, filled her head. The only thing that brought her back was SteppeClan's angry voices and Spottedflower's hiss next to her.

"You brought a killer into our Clan!?" a brown tom hissed

"First the apprentice and now a killer?" another cat chimed in.

The circle of warriors around the intruder shifted and Eveningpelt caught a glimpse of the cat. It was defiantly a tom, Eveningpelt decided. He had broad shoulders and a mixture of brown and black in his pelt. Suddenly the pale queen let out a gasp.

"What?" Spottedflower asked.

"It's Blackwater!" she hissed.

Eveningpelt turned to her kits, who were watching the Clan cats with curiosity.

"Stay here!" she demanded. Which they did.

She patted towards the highrock. "Wait!" she called.

Every glare turned to her. "Eveningpelt?" asked Windstar. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to seek help, and a home. EchoClan has turned evil! One of their warriors killed three of my kits, and then tried killing my two daughters! And your intruder is NOT a killer!" the words spilled out.

The glares turned into surprise. After a long pause she said, "That's Blackwater. My mate."

The fleet of warriors loosened to reviled the molted tom. His pelt clung to his body and his normally amber eyes were dull. His mate raced toward him. "I though he killed you!" she mewed in his ear. Blackwater was slow to respond, and when he did his words were jumbled. Windstar had jumped off his place on the highrock and was now sitting next to Eveningpelt. "We found him laying on the border." He breathed.

Eveningpelt's fur tingled. She looked at her mate compassionately. His eyes fought to stay open, but they could no longer look at her. He collapsed on the ground.

"Silentwhisper!" Windstar called urgently.

A sleek white she-cat appeared through the cats, a brown tom followed her.

"Can you help him?" Eveningpelt asked quickly.

The medicine cat sniffed him, and then looked at the pale queen. "I don't know." She admitted. "I'll have to look at him more."

One of the warriors that had brought Blackwater in appeared next to Silentwhisper.

"I'll help take him into your den." The warrior said.

"Thank you Silverwind." The white medicine cat mewed.

And with that, Silverwind and Marbleface carried Eveningpelt's beloved to the den.

Her kits raced up, followed by Spottedflower.

"Blackheart. Where is my son?" the tabby queen asked.

"Oh right. Follow me." She replied.

"After your done Blackheart, please get these queen's settled in the nursery. It seems we have some new warriors." Windstar purred.