Chapter 19:
Mcreed1000: Well wouldn't that put a damper on things? Having Fallenflame die before the end of the story… so for that, I too hope that I don't kill Fallenflame before the end of the story! :D
Stuffed Watermelon: Sweet! You've got like psychic powers or something like that! And maybe that'll happen for Fallenflame, since it's her dream and all :D
Moonbeam141: Yup, and trust me, it won't end there! :D
EmberskyofShadowClan: What?! You don't like Darkstar?! Haha just kidding ;) And yeah, that won't be the last of cute little Wolfkit.
One Twinkle in a Million: YOU ARE THE BEST! Thanks for taking time out to point that dumb stuff out! *Rips hair out* BUT WHY CAN'T I EVER GET MY PUNCTUATION RIGHT?! Seriously, in Elementary School, I was called the Comma Queen because I used too many commas, but now I'm not using enough! Arg! I'll never get this right! (But I'll still work on it) By the way, I know this is a little random, but is that your bird in your profile picture? Cuz I think it's really cute :D
Forestclaw: Thanks! And I can't wait to write the rest! :D
DarkAngle643: Don't worry, I'll get to that reason soon! ;)
The hail pelts you when you come to realize…
Fallenflame awoke to the soft pitter-patter of rain. She immidately felt sore and the stinging on her throat made her want to kill the ThunderClan mange-pelt who sunk her teeth into her.
The she-cat had been in this den for at least two days, as she'd woken up once before in the heat of the afternoon sun. Out of desperation, Fallenflame had gone back to sleep to try to get more information out of Wolfkit. However, her streak of bad luck didn't let up; her sleep was dreamless.
She was tempted to just fall asleep again, as she wasn't quite ready to face reality. Fallenflame wanted to think more, try to see if she recalled any cats in her clan talking about Wolfkit. Surely if Darkstar had murdered a kit some cat would've said something around her, especially if this kit apparently knew her somehow. Of course, Fallenflame knew if she slept any longer that some cat would wake her up. She hoped it would be Foxtail telling her that it was time to go home.
One pale iris opened halfway to scan her surroundings. A small stream was a few tail-lengths away from her, pooling into a small depression in the rock and the scent of herbs was strong. It nearly overpowered the stench of ThunderClan.
Fallenflame opened both eyes and looked at the other parts of the cramped den, ignoring the sharp pain in her neck. Herbs were stuffed into little cracks and crevasses in the back of the den and two empty nests sat in the den. One was right next to her while the other was closer to the stream. She assumed that one was Bluefang's, ThunderClan's medicine cat. Other than that, the den was empty and rather dark, which upset the pale she-cat.
"Fallenflame." A voice greeted, the cat's figure blocking the small beam of light that filtered through the entrance as it entered the den.
She knew exactly who it was right away. "Adderstar." She responded coldly, narrowing her eyes at her.
Adderstar flicked her ears at the comment, warning her to drop the attitude. This time, Fallenflame listened. She was in no shape to insult the ThunderClan leader in her own camp.
"We need to talk." Adderstar said after a moment, pale blue eyes flashing in the dim light.
"That's what we came here to do." Fallenflame replied.
Adderstar stiffened for a second, but loosened up quickly. "Yes. First question, what happened to Cloverkit and Thrushkit?"
Fallenflame paused, thinking her future words through. She knew if she didn't go about that particular subject in the right way that she could be punished by Darkstar, who apparently murdered kittens. "They're safe."
Adderstar breathed a relieved sigh, but regained her seriousness. "Alright, now where are they and when are they coming home?"
"That's not up to me." She said curtly, making sure to keep her responses short and non-threatening.
A low growl rumbled in Adderstar's throat. "Then who's it up to?" She asked darkly.
"Darkstar." Fallenflame responded.
Her eyes widened in mild alarm, "I have to get them back before it's too late."
"Adderstar, what do you mean? Of course it would be up to Darkstar," She said, trying to get a reaction out of the gray and white cat by saying his name as frequently as possible.
She drew her gums back, revealing a set of yellowish fangs. "You should know why-"
"Adderstar, I know absolutely nothing."
"No you-" She stopped herself, staring at her paws, clearly conflicted.
"Do you mind if I ask a question?" Fallenflame asked quietly.
She didn't respond, so Fallenflame took her silence as a yes. "Did Darkstar ever… kill any kits?"
Adderstar's head snapped up, staring directly at the pale she-cat. "Yes."
Fallenflame's heart beat sped up as she vouched for Wolfkit's claim. "Is that why you picked a fight with ShadowClan?"
Her gaze shifted back to her paws, "it's part of the reason."
"What's the other part?" Fallenflame asked, taking Adderstar's place of interrogation.
"I… I'm angry at my sister, I'm angry at Blacksoot, I'm angry at StarClan for letting this all happen." She looked pathetically at Fallenflame, her orbs glazed over and defeated-looking. "I'm just really angry."
"Would you mind telling me who Blacksoot is?" She asked gently, shifting around in her nest as she was unused to all the moss that lined it.
Her gaze darkened, "Blacksoot… that foul excuse for a cat stole my sister away from her clan, away from me. Then he got my sister in a whole mess of trouble." She glanced up at Fallenflame only to see confusion in the ShadowClan cat's eyes. "I blame him for the murder of that little ShadowClan kit."
"How would he-"
"How would he lead to the kit's death?" Adderstar said, finishing Fallenflame's question. "Blacksoot, he brought that kit into the world, and he was the reason he was kicked right out of it before he was more than a moon old-"
"Adderstar," Fallenflame began, "you're obviously ThunderClan, how would you know about Wolfkit?"
A spark of recognition flared in her eyes, "yes, that was his name, Wolfkit."
"Yes, yes his name was Wolfkit, now how do you know about all this?" She muttered impatiently.
"Every cat knows at least a little bit about it, Fallenflame." Adderstar said, her gaze never wavering as she stared at her. "I'm just surprised you're just finding this out know."
"Cats like to keep things from me." Fallenflame said simply.
Adderstar violently shook her head, "we've gone off topic. I told you what you want to know, now you tell me what I want to know. How are Cloverkit and Thrushkit being treated, and why where they taken?"
Fallenflame blinked, slightly shocked at how easily Adderstar took control. She slowly nodded, "yes, I agree that that's fair. First off, they were renamed. Ro- urm, I mean the clan decided to rename Cloverkit as Duskkit, and Thrushkit was renamed Darkkit in Darkstar's honor."
Adderstar leapt to her paws, her ears flat and her lips peeled back into a snarl. "How dare he! That rotten cat has no honor, I vow that I'll make sure he goes to the Dark Forest when he goes!" She snarled, her tail whipping about behind her.
She shifted around in her nest at her sudden outburst, "and I believe that Darkstar had them taken out of spite. He wanted to hit ThunderClan hard where it hurt the most."
Adderstar shook her head again, "no, you have to be lying! Cloverkit and Thrushkit know their names, they wouldn't just start responding to new names!"
"Adderstar, they were lied to. I was sent with a few other cats to um… take the kits, and one of the cats I was with, she said she had a plan to get the kits to come with us without hesitation. So the patrol agreed. Then, when we got into the nursery, she told the kits that she was their mother and that ThunderClan had stolen them. She also told the kits that their names were originally Duskkit and Darkkit. That's why they respond to those names."
The ThunderClan leader fell silent, regaining her composure. "Well then it looks like ShadowClan isn't getting their missing warrior back until ThunderClan gets their kits back." She glanced at Fallenflame. "This isn't anything against you, Fallenflame. You're decent for a ShadowClan cat." The gray and white she-cat turned, ready to leave when Fallenflame stopped her.
"Wait," she started, looking around the den again, "where's Foxtail? I haven't seen him yet. Is he outside or something?"
Adderstar stiffened. She looked over her shoulder, "Petalstorm killed him, Fallenflame. I'm so sorry."
Wholly cow! Another chapter already?! This one just sort of flowed out naturally, so… yeah hope a surprise update isn't too annoying… Well, that's all I've got to say today.