Chapter Fourteen
"My kits! My kits! Someone has taken my kits!" Frostfur's yowl woke Russetflame from her sleep.
Springing to her paws along with the other warriors of ThunderClan, she sped out of the den.
It had been a few suns since she had spoken to Bluestar and so far the ThunderClan leader had not done anything about Tigerclaw.
"Quick, search the camp! Warriors, patrol the camp boundary. Apprentices, search every den!" Tigerclaw yowled as he bounded over to Frostfur.
Russetflame searched the border of camp, not finding anything. She suddenly spotted Yellowfang pushing her way through the opening in the camp wall.
What is she doing? The ginger she-cat wondered as she sniffed the air, only smelling Yellowfang's fear.
Tigerclaw's yowl caught her attention. Turning, she saw Spottedleaf's motionless body.
No! Russetflame thought as she stared at the medicine cat's body. Though she didn't like the creepy medicine cat, she still felt grief over losing another of her Clanmates.
"She has been killed by a warrior blow," Bluestar mewed softly after she examined the body.
What are we going to do without a medicine cat?
"Yellowfang is gone!" someone yowled in the crowd.
"Yellowfang has killed Spottedleaf and taken my kits!" Frostfur accused. The other queens gathered around her to comfort the wailing queen.
"I always knew she was a traitor," Tigerclaw growled.
Lightening flashed across the sky and thunder rolled, signaling a storm had arrived.
Yellowfang wouldn't have killed Spottedleaf, Russetflame thought as she padded away from the commotion. Someone else must have done it.
She could still hear Bluestar as she ordered a patrol to go out after the storm. Of course Tigerclaw protested but Bluestar remained firm.
Russetflame wandered over to the hole in the camp wall, sniffing around. If she went now, alone, would she have a greater chance of getting the kits back?
But what about Yellowfang? What if she really did kill Spottedleaf and stole the kits?
She was suddenly disturbed when Firepaw, Graypaw, and Ravenpaw came toward her direction.
"You'll be safer there," she could hear Firepaw telling Ravenpaw.
"But what about Russetflame?" Ravenpaw asked, looking unsure.
What about me? She thought.
"She can look after herself, she's a warrior now," Graypaw mewed.
"But she saw it too," Ravenpaw protested.
"I thought we agreed not to talk about that," Russetflame spoke up, alerting the three to her being there.
The three apprentices froze in shock of being caught, staring up at her with wide eyes.
"Russetflame!" Ravenpaw was the first to speak.
"What are you doing here?" Firepaw asked, eyes narrowing. He had not forgotten how she rejected his paw of friendship.
"Going to look for Frostfur's kits. What about you three?" she meowed.
"We're going to bring Yellowfang back," Firepaw meowed.
"But what was that about Ravenpaw being safer somewhere?" Russetflame asked.
"I'm taking him to Barley, so he can be safe from Tigerclaw," Firepaw said boldly.
"Does Ravenpaw want that?" she asked.
Firepaw didn't say anything, instead he turned toward the black apprentice.
Ravenpaw looked between the two ginger cats and slowly shook his head. "I want to stay in ThunderClan," he mewed.
Despite the cold wind that blew, Russetflame felt warm inside from her friend's answer.
"Come on, lets get going. My whiskers are freezing," Grayppaw complained.
Together the four ThunderClan cats tracked Yellowfang all the way to the Thunderpath. By then the clouds had opened up and rain poured down through the trees, drenching the cats.
Russetflame looked left then right along the Thunderpath, but saw no movement. "We cross at the same time," she told the three apprentices. "Now!"
The four cats crossed together and looked around wide-eyed at the unfamiliar territory.
"I can't smell Yellowfang anymore," Graypaw mewed.
"I do and I smell that," Ravenpaw meowed.
"What?" Firepaw asked.
"Kit blood," Russetflame mewed darkly. She suddenly stiffened and pointed her ears toward a blackened ash tree. "She's over there. Stay behind me," she hissed to the apprentices.
With the three following her, Russetflame lead the way around the ash tree, through the sparse undergrowth. Peering through a bush, she spotted Yellowfang resting at the base of the tree.
Suddenly Graypaw and Firepaw leaped.
"No!" Russetflame shouted, but it was too late.
The two apprentices landed on Yellowfang. The old she-cat twisted under them, trying to throw them off. She managed to struggle free, but Graypaw and Firepaw trapped her against the ash tree.
"I knew ThunderClan would blame me!" Yellowfang hissed, her orange eyes flashing with hostility.
"Mouse-brains! When I told you to stay behind me, I meant follow my lead too!" Russetflame hissed at the two apprentices as she stepped out with Ravenpaw.
"Is all of ThunderClan here?" grumbled Yellowfang.
"No, it's just us," the ginger she-cat meowed. She barely noticed the rain was beginning to lessen.
"Where are the kits?" Firepaw demanded.
"I don't have them," Yellowfang snapped. "I've come to find them and take them back. I only stopped because I smelledblood. But they aren't here."
Firepaw and Graypaw looked at each other, uncertain.
"She doesn't have them," Russetflame meowed.
"Why did you run? Why did – why did you kill Spottedleaf?" Ravenpaw barely managed to ask.
"Kill? Spottedleaf is dead?" Yellowfang ased shocked, but she quickly composed herself. "I left camp as soon as I heard the kits were missing." She paused before continuing. "I know who took the kits."
"Who?" Russetflame asked.
"Clawface – one of Brokenstar's warriors. As long as they are in ShadowClan, they're in great danger."
Yellowfang proceeded to tell them about how Brokenstar made kits apprentices at three moons and then warriors at five moons. She then went on to tell about how Brokenstar framed her for the death of kits he killed. After telling the truth of the story, Yellowfang told them she might find help in the elders, who were kicked out of the inner camp and forced to fend for themselves.
"Some of them might help us," Yellowfang meowed.
"And I could persuade a ThunderClan patrol to help us too!" Firepaw exclaimed. "Graypaw, Ravenpaw, Russetflame, you wait here till one of us returns."
Russetflame's ears flattened and her eyes narrowed, glaring at the ginger apprentice. You don't order me around. But she stayed as Yellowfang and Firepaw dashed away.
Letting out a huff of air, she turned to Ravenpaw and saw him shaking like a leaf.
"Are you okay?" she asked her friend.
Ravenpaw looked up at her with wide amber eyes. "Are we doing the right thing?" he asked.
"I don't know," Russetflame admitted.
It wasn't long before Firepaw returned with the patrol, which was made up of Whitestorm, Mousefur, Darkstripe, Runningwind, and Willowpelt.
"Any sign of Yellowfang?" Firepaw asked.
"Not yet," Graypaw mewed.
"She'll be here," Russetflame mewed.
"Well said, Russetflame," Yellowfang said as she stalked out from the undergrowth, three elders following after her. "Let me introduce my old friends. This is Ashfur, one of the Clan elders," Yellowfang mewed, flucking her tail toward an old gray tom. "And this is Nightpelt, a senior warrior before Raggedstart was killed," she pointed to a black tom. "And this is Dawncloud. Two of her kits died driving WindClan out."
Dawncloud, the small tabby she-cat, meowed, "I do not wish to lose any more of my kits."
Whitestorm nodded. "Please lead the way to ShadowClan's camp."
. . . Page Break . . .
Yellowfang lead the way into the bracken. She stopped before a small hollow surrounded by thick undergrowth and pointed to an entrance to ShadowClan's camp.
"ThunderClan, hide in that clump of bracken over there. Wait there until you hear me call," Yellowfang meowed.
ThunderClan settled themselves in the bracken and watched as Yellowfang and the elders enter ShadowClan's camp. It wasn't long before yowling began to be heard from the camp. Without hesitating, the ThunderClan cats sprang into the camp, joining in the battle fray.
Russetflame leapt at a huge ginger tom. They rolled on the ground before the ginger tom pinned her down. A frightening light gleamed in the warrior's eyes and his head shot down to make the death blow. But Whitestorm was suddenly there, knocking the ShadowClan warrior off Russetflame.
She blinked her thanks to the white warrior before diving back into battle. She was helping Ravenpaw fight off a silver tabby warrior when she noticed Yellowfang battling with Brokenstar and losing.
"You killed Raggedstar?" she managed to hear Yellowfang wail.
Russetflame turned to Ravenpaw. "Do you got this?" she asked, flicking her gaze to the warrior they were fighting.
"Yes, go!" Ravenpaw mewed, racking his claws across the ShadowClan warrior's face.
Russetflame nodded her thanks to her friend before jumping over the warrior and running to Yellowfang's aid.
Brokenstar was leaning down to deliver the death blow, but Russetflame was quicker. She rammed into the leader's side, pulling him off of Yellowfang. The two cats broke away to glare at each other.
"You! You're that rogue that joined ThunderClan. You should have joined ShadowClan; ShadowClan could have given you more power than you can imagine," Brokenstar meowed, staring into her eyes with gleaming ambers.
"Never!" Russetflame spat.
Suddenly, Brokenstar noticed that his loyal warriors had left and the remaining cats of ShadowClan were turning on him. "This isn't over," he hissed to Russetflame before vanishing into the forest after his followers.
Russetflame stared after the just exiled leader and couldn't help but wonder, When will be the next time?"
. . . Page Break . . .
"Yellowfang, I wish you to replace Spottedleaf as medicine cat of ThunderClan," bluestar mewed. "Now there are some apprentices due to be made warriors."
"I, Bluestar, leader of ThunderClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on these three apprentices. They have trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend them to you as warriors in their turn. Firepaw, Graypaw, Ravenpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend this Clan, even at the cost of your lives?"
"I do," Graypaw and Firepaw mewed together.
"I – I do," Ravenpaw managed to get out.
"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior names: Graypaw, from this moment on you will be called Graystripe. StarClan honors your bravery and strength, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan."
"Firepaw, from this moment you will be called Fireheart, StarClan honors your bravery and strength, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan."
"Ravenpaw, from this moment on, you be known as Ravenfeather. StarClan honors your bravery and strength, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan."
"Graystripe! Fireheart! Ravenfeather! Graystripe! Fireheart! Ravenfeather!" the Clan cheered and Russetflame joined in.
She was truly happy for her friend. Now that they were both warriors, they could spend more time together.
Russetflame padded over to the newly named Ravenfeather. "Congratulations, Ravenfeather," she mewed. "I'm proud of you and I'm sure Robinwing is too."
Ravenfeather's amber eyes glowed with pride. He didn't speak though as it was forbidden to speak during your warrior's vigil.
The two parted ways and Russetflame headed toward the warrior's den. She lay down in her nest and closed her eyes.
All was well in the Clan, well almost. Tigerclaw was still deputy and not paying for the crime of murdering Redtail and Brokenstar was lurking the forest.
But Russetflame did not have any nightmares that night; instead she dreamed sweet dreams of Stonefur.
Finally! The last chapter of Into the Wild, now I can dive into Fire and Ice. I've got big plans for Fire and Ice, big plans!