Sorry for the long wait, I recently had a surgery and a lot is changing in my life because of it.

Seaman109 From what Sol's behavior in the past suggests, I think he wanted to ruin everyone's life.

"Watch the sky for eagles. I don't want anyone getting caught and dragged off the side of the mountain to their deaths."

At Jayfeather's words, Briarlight's gaze shot upwards. She had heard stories of the tremendous strength of the great birds and how they could carry cats high into the sky. She didn't fancy being just another cat in the stories to lose their life to a bird.

The group's pace had slowed as the terrain got steeper and less forgiving. The dirt beneath her paws was loose and crumbled away with every step and each time she slipped, her heart seemed to freeze with fear. If I don't get eaten by an eagle, I might still fall to my death because I'm not looking where I'm going. Both fates sound awful.

They had been traveling upwards for most of the day now and the temperature had dropped significantly. There were even a few soggy mounds of gray and brown snow nearby which hadn't fully melted away. But even though the chilly air pounded against her face and neck, her heart was filled with a fiery determination. She was going to meet the Tribe of Rushing Water! She felt like a fresh apprentice getting to meet the other Clans for the first time at a Gathering.

Briarlight sped up her pace to catch up with Jayfeather who was leading the way. "How will we know if we passed the waterfall?" she panted, too excited to mind the ache in her paws. "The mountain is very large so couldn't we go right past it without noticing?"

"You hear that river nearby?" Jayfeather mewed flatly. "The Tribe's cave is guarded by a waterfall. If we follow the water, we'll find the Tribe."

"Oh, that makes sense," she meowed. "Unless there is more than one river on the entire mountain."

Jayfeather had hardly said anything all day and his tone suggested he wasn't in the mood to say much more. He's probably just anxious about seeing the Tribe again. The last time he visited, one of the Tribe cats was killed by a hawk. She glanced over at the blind cat's steely expression. Or is he worried about something else?

"Are we there yet?" moaned Jayjay's voice. The young tabby was dragging his paws as he padded alongside his companion, Cash. "I thought you said we would get there some time today."

Briarlight expected Jayfeather to snap an angry or impatient response, but instead his words were blank and emotionless. "It's been a long time since I last visited the Tribe and I wasn't the one leading the way then."

It wasn't a great answer, even Briarlight knew that. Now that she thought about it, Jayfeather had been acting distant towards everyone since dawn's first light. If he had received an omen in his dreams, he was keeping it to himself. She let out a tired whisk of breath and kept her gaze fixed on the uneven path before her. She envied his power to peer into other cats' minds whenever he felt like it; she hated not knowing.

A screech above her head made her stop and stare upwards again. Far in the sky she could see a black smudge lazily gliding through the air. She couldn't imagine what it felt like to be so high above the ground. She had climbed plenty of trees when she was an apprentice, but even if three of the tallest trees in the forest were stacked on top of each other, it wouldn't be nearly as high as that hawk was.

"I've heard that some eagles can dive all the way from the clouds to prey on the ground faster than you can walk across a street in the houseplace," Cash mewed, staring wonderingly up at the hawk. "What chance do slow fluffy creatures like us have against speed like that?"

"If you grab one of their wings they can't fly at all," Jayjay pointed out. "And I bet their skinny necks wouldn't be hard to bite through if one attacked."

"And you're an expert on fighting hawks and eagles all of a sudden?" Cash laughed.

"I know more than you do," Jayjay retorted, lifting his muzzle smugly into the air.

Briarlight glanced over at Jayfeather beside her as he scraped his way up the stones. It was impossible to guess what was going on in his head, but she hoped he would tell her about whatever was bothering him before long. If they were going to be mates they needed to be able to trust each other.

"Everyone stop!" the blind cat hissed abruptly, his tail shooting straight up in the air.

Briarlight wasn't the only cat to be startled by his sudden command. The two young tabbies jumped and even Sol let out a grunt of surprise. "What is it, Jay-"

Her sentence was interrupted as a large brown tabby cat slid down the crumbling stones to land with a snarl in front of them. A heartbeat later, several more spitting creatures joined, quickly circling the tired traveling cats until they were surrounded.

Briarlight bared her teeth in a hiss, her pelt rising with fear. When she had heard descriptions of cats of the Tribe of Rushing Water, this wasn't what had come to mind. These cats were thin with patches of fur gone to reveal scars that ran along their shoulders and flanks. The angry eyes that glared at her were gaunt with hunger but filled with fierce pride. The Clan cats weren't welcome here.

"Who are you and why have you crossed into our lands," growled the big cat that faced Jayfeather. His voice was coarse but younger than she had expected it to be. His tone was hostile but Jayfeather didn't flinch.

"Are you one of the rogues that are camped near the Tribe of Rushing Water?" he asked calmly, his twitching tail the only indicator that he was uneasy. "If you take us to your leader, we'll soon be out of your fur."

The bristling rogue seemed caught off guard for a moment at Jayfeather's request; as if it was the first time he had been asked it. He turned to one of his companions, a pale brown-furred she-cat with a horribly scarred muzzle. She stepped forward until she was face to face with Jayfeather.

"Are you the leader?" Jayfeather asked, his blank gaze switching to the new cat.

"I am the leader's daughter," the skinny cat growled coldly. "If you are friends with the Tribe of Rushing Water then you are no friends of ours. Give me a reason why we shouldn't kill you or chase you back the way you came."

Jayfeather was noticeably rattled by her comment. His jaw seemed to clench up with surprise. Briarlight was worried he didn't have an answer and they might have to fight their way out. She didn't like the odds since there were almost two furious rogues for every one of her group.

"If you don't want to talk, we'll explain the message in a language every cat understands," growled the muscular tom who had met them first. He stepped forward, raising his tail for the others to follow. "We can speak with our claws!"

Briarlight hissed in fear, arching her back as claws unsheathed and the hostile rogues closed in. This is not at all how I imagined my first trip to the mountains would end!

"Wait!" Jayfeather announced and every cat froze. He stared straight at the she-cat, his piercing gaze confident again. "Your Flora's daughter, right? She would be happy to see us," he mewed kindly, as if speaking to a good friend. "Please take us to her."

The rogue's expression turned to confusion and her green eyes grew wide. "How did you know Flora was my mother?"

Briarlight realized Jayfeather must have been using his power on the rogue while they were talking.

Jayfeather lifted his head higher. "One of the cats from my Clan saved her from an eagle when we last visited," he meowed, ignoring the question. "She would have certainly been taken away to some nest to be eaten or dropped to her death against the rocks if Foxleap hadn't come to her rescue. She will remember us."

The hostility in the she-cat's eyes dissipated and she took an awkward step back. In a wordless motion, she gestured for the larger tom to follow and the two of them darted off behind a boulder as if to discuss Jayfeather's request.

Briarlight spent those heartbeats staring around at the gathered cats. A lot of them looked as young as apprentices while even the cats who could have been her age were laced with more battle-scars than the average senior Clan warrior. They were no strangers to fighting. And considering she had a blind cat, two apprentices, and Sol as her only traveling companions, she knew she wouldn't stand a chance if it came down to a battle. Fleeing would be impossible too since Jayfeather would probably fall off the mountain in his haste.

Jayjay and Cash stood still as stones as they eyed the rogues nervously while Sol's expression remained calm as if he already knew what was going to happen. But Briarlight knew he had to be nervous even if he wasn't showing it. He was a cat like anyone else no matter how hard he tried to act like he was smarter and more important than them.

The she-cat and the larger tom returned from behind the boulder and stopped in front of Jayfeather.

"If what you say is true, then we will escort you to our cave," the she-cat muttered coldly.

"But don't expect to stay long," growled the tom, still as hostile as when he first addressed them. "There is barely enough food now to feed our own, let alone five strangers."

"We're only passing through," Jayfeather assured them, bowing his head courteously. "What are your names?" he asked. "I am Jayfeather and this is my mate, Briarlight. Our friends are Jayjay, Cash, and Sol."

"Nettle," the she-cat mewed without interest. "And this is Boulder," she gestured to the big tom. "Come along now. The faster you see Flora the faster we won't have to see you."

The other rogues took positions around the smaller band of cats and Briarlight flinched as Boulder nudged her onward with his head.

"Move," he grunted, clearly unfamiliar to having guests in his land.

Briarlight didn't have much choice so she let herself be shuffled along. She trusted Jayfeather knew what he was doing. That's the first time he has called me his mate in front of others!

The rogues kept them moving at a brisk pace as they escorted the tired travelers up the rocks. These cats are clearly starving and scared, Briarlight observed, noticing how their skin clung tightly to their ribs. Leafbare in the mountains must be even harsher than by the lake.

"Have you ever fought an eagle?" whispered Jayjay to one of the young rogues nearby. He was too excited about being among so many battle-hardened cats that he forgot to be afraid. "Are they as strong as the stories say they are?"

The rogue, a lithe black she-cat was so surprised by the housecat's question that she answered before thinking about it. "I haven't fought one yet, but I've seen an eagle sweep a cat off his paws." She then realized how foolish she must have seemed in front of her companions and she sped up to pad beside Nettle and Boulder near the front.

The stones around them were beginning to get tinged with red and purple as the sun sank behind the mountain. Briarlight spotted a dark mass up ahead among the large boulders and realized a cave was dug into the side of the mountain. As they approached, she noticed a skinny tom standing watch in front of it. As soon as the guard spotted them, he turned and disappeared into the gloom.

"Should I be scared?" whispered Cash nervously into Briarlight's ear as they drew closer to the cave entrance. "These cats won't actually kill us, right? That doesn't sound like what a Tribe or Clan cat would do."

Briarlight didn't know the answer but looking around at their prickly captors, she didn't doubt they were capable of killing. "I'm sure Jayfeather knows what he's doing," she whispered back.

As Briarlight and the other cats neared the cave opening, she saw a few more cats sticking their heads up above the rocks as they watched the group approach. Most of them were also young; some even with pelts still fuzzy with kit-fur.

"Get Flora," Nettle growled to one of the young cats once they were within earshot. The rogue obeyed and disappeared into the darkness again.

Briarlight waited beside Jayfeather as the rogues guarded them. Even in the dim light, she could see the looks of distrust etched across their faces. The air was cold now that the sun had set and she pressed closer to her mate to feel his warmth. Behind her Jayjay, Cash, and Sol stared at the skinny mountain cats with uncertainty. Jayfeather knows what he's doing, she reassured herself again. We didn't come all this way just to be killed for no reason by some strangers.

Briarlight's ears pricked at the sound of pawsteps and moments later a brown and white she-cat appeared from the cave entrance. More cats filed out after her, their eyes glowing in the darkness as they glared at Jayfeather and Briarlight. The she-cat stopped in front of Jayfeather who sat calmly with his eyes fixed on the sky.

"My daughter wasn't lying," mewed the new cat. Her voice was sharp and ragged with tiredness but her eyes shone with respect as she gazed at the blind cat. "You're one of the forest cats that lives at the bottom of the mountain somewhere. It was one of your young cats that saved my life after I was attacked by an eagle. I'll never forget it."

"Greetings, Flora," Jayfeather meowed, dipping his head to her with respect. Briarlight could almost see the relief wash off his pelt. "His name is Foxleap. He's not with us but he was talking about it long after we left the mountains the last time."

"These cats are friends to the Tribe," growled Nettle, stepping to her mother's side. "That makes them our enemy."

Flora blinked at the comment and slowly turned to her ruffled daughter. "These cats are friends to the Tribe, but that does not make them our enemies. The Clan cats aren't a part of our war so they will be our guests until they want to leave."

Briarlight breathed a sigh of relief that Flora wasn't intent on killing them all. But some of the other rogues didn't seem so pleased with their leader's decision and glared furiously at Jayfeather and his companions.

"Come inside," Flora meowed, turning back towards the mouth if the cave. "We don't have any food to offer you since my cats have fallen upon hard times in the past season, but you are welcome to find a sheltered place to sleep for the night."

"Thank you, Flora," meowed Jayfeather graciously, following her. "We don't plan on staying in the mountains for long."

Briarlight padded into the den after the others and into the darkness. It was much larger on the inside than what she had expected, opening up until there was enough room for her to stand on her hindlegs and still not reach the cave ceiling. Through the gloom she could see shadowy outlines of dozens of skinny cats all staring at her with fear and distrust glowing in their eyes. Flora said something about a war with the Tribe, and by the state of these cats, I'd guess the Tribe is winning.

Flora led them to a corner of the gave where small divots speckled the ground. "You can sleep here. It's not much, but it should be enough until you decide to leave. I'm sure we'll have much to talk about in the morning, but until then, get comfortable." She turned away and padded back to join her cats at the cave entrance.

"Briarlight, come lay with me," Jayfeather whispered to her, finding a nook in the dirt for himself. "There's a comfortable spot here."

She obliged and padded gingerly across the cold stone. She could barely see more than just his thin outline in the darkness and nestled down beside him to keep warm. To her surprise, Jayjay and Cash hurried over too and squirmed between them. They had been silent since entering the cave and Briarlight guessed they were just as scared as she was.

Flora might be fine with us, but the other rogues are not our friends, Briarlight thought, resting her head on Jayfeather's chest and closing her eyes. I hope we don't stay here long and the Tribe is more welcoming when we find them.