So, thanks Willowpool and xxSnowfirexx for reviewing, you guys are great! Unfortunetely, I only got three reviews out of the last chapter, and I was really hoping to reach seventy before the day ended. But, what can you do?
Something was stirring in the undergrowth. It's silver tabby pelt seemed to glow like starlight, and the unusual markings made it stand out among the grass, ferns and weeds that covered the ground. Its amber eyes gleamed coldly in the darkness as it stared a pool that stood in the center of a clearing.
More cats had come tonight, more then she could ever count. And one of them was Hollystar, the great leader, or, perhaps she wasn't as great as everyone believed. The three former leaders of ShadowClan, WindClan, and ThunderClan were staring around them in shock.
"Moonpaw, what are you doing?" Beekit's voice made the silver cat jump. She turned to see her brother staring at her through narrowed eyes. "You know it's forbidden," he added.
She shook her head, suddenly feeling angry with herself. Why was it forbidden to see new cats come? Why could only warriors, elders and leaders see it? She wanted to be different, to change the rules.
Moonpaw turned to him and stared at him intensely. "Beekit, you've always wanted to see what goes on haven't you?" she asked.
She watched as his eyes grew round in thought. Then he shook his head, suddenly looking serious. "Yes, but we're still not supposed to get there," he replied. "Come on, Sweetpaw's found a great place to play!"
Sadness swelled in Moonpaw's heart at the thought of Sweetpaw. The young apprentice had died so many seasons ago when Bluestar was still a warrior. Sweetpaw was sitting in a corpse of grass alongside Shrewpaw, Lightningpaw and Mosskit.
"No," she whispered suddenly. The silver tabby turned and rushed forward, towards where the warriors, elders and leaders were gathered. She heard Beekit's hiss of annoyance, but she chose to ignore it rather then comfort him.
She hid herself in a frond of bracken, and watched as the former leaders rose steadily to their paws. They were all staring at each other as though they had lost the most important thing in their lives.
Suddenly a dark brown tabby cat padded forward. Moonpaw recognized him as Bramblestar, the former leader of ThunderClan. He had only spoken to her once, when she was gazing down at the Gathering Pool. It was there that she learned of the prophecy, and there that she kept it a secret from the rest of StarClan. If they found out what she did, she might be severely punished, maybe even sent to the Place of No Stars.
"Hollystar, Breezestar, Mistystar and Russetstar." The ThunderClan leader looked grave. "It is unusual for four leaders to die at once, but we had little choice over the lake. Someone has kept a secret prophecy from us."
He swung over his tabby head to where Moonpaw was hiding, and she felt herself shaking. Bramblestar knew! How could he? Especially considering the only cat she had told was Runningmoon, who had made full use of the prophecy.
Hollystar's fur was standing on end as Moonpaw stepped out of the bush. I can't believe we're kin, she thought bitterly when she saw the fear that sparked in the former leader's eyes.
"Moonpaw, you have created some, unusual problems," Bramblestar meowed with a flick of his tail. "Things would not have ended as badly if you'd let us know about this prophecy." His amber eyes were dark as he stared at her, and she held his stare.
Bramblestar looked away and glared at what looked like something in the mist. Moonpaw knew what was coming next, and she almost regretted holding his stare.
She spotted the dark gray shape first, until the broad head formed. Yellow eyes peered through the darkness, and for a moment, Moonpaw thought she could see flees bouncing about in her pelt, and she wrinkled her nose at the disdainful thought.
"Well," Yellowfang chuckled as she looked down at Moonpaw. "It appears we have a spy."
Moonpaw ducked her head at the she-cats comment and felt slightly embarrassed. She didn't know exactly where Yellowfang was going with this. The old she-cat was always angry, but this time her eyes were gleaming with curiosity.
"She wasn't spying on us, she was keeping a secret!" Bramblestar hissed. His fur started to stand on end.
"Calm down," Yellowfang spat. Her eyes were gleaming as she glared at him. "You're just as bad as a kit!"
Now it was Bramblestar's turn to be embarrassed. But he shot Moonpaw a glare just the same, and she held his glare, suddenly feeling confident around these cats.
"Why have you called me here?" Yellowfang asked.
"We know that you can unravel prophecies, and we want you to find out more about this one," Bramblestar replied.
Yellowfang chuckled again, and her eerie laugh made all cats shiver. All except Moonpaw. Her eyes glowed with curiosity.
"Moonpaw has been told the prophecy, but not all of it," she meowed. Moonpaw's eyes widened in shock, but she said nothing as Yellowfang continued. The air seemed to stir as she spoke the words Moonpaw spoke to Runningmoon. "Wind will strike and Shadow will burn. Rivers will flood, and only the moon will run. Sacrifice will be their name, and then peace will come, but never again the Clans will be."
Shocked gasps echoed around the clearing, most of which came from the former leaders. Moonpaw's ears pricked when she heard 'sacrifice'. She knew what it meant, and who it meant.
Her brother was going to die, and so was Mouseflight, the cat he seemed to have fallen for.
Lol so what did you think? I thought this was one of the best chapters yet; and you finally got to see Moonpaw again!
