Chapter Twenty-Eight: Little Talks

After Hazelstar had sent Swiftfoot away, he lay down and tried to sleep, but he was too restless. Finally, he stood up and made his way to the medicine den, where he found Fivefur nibbling halfheartedly on a mouse.

"Are you all right?" he asked.

"Yes, Hazelstar. Poppywing brought me this freshkill, but I'm not very hungry."

"Oh, all right. Um...speaking of Poppywing..."

"It was nothing, Hazelstar," Fivefur said quickly, "Just...a slip of the mind."

"One that you apparently can't forget," Hazelstar noted.

Fivefur did not reply, merely stared silently at Hazelstar through his solemn blue-grey eyes. Hazelstar sighed and turned away to sit by the entrance to the den. Soon, exhaustion overcame him after the chaotic events of the past few days, and he fell into a deep sleep.

In his dreams, he was running through the mist, and he could not find his way out...never...never get out...

"Hazelstar."

His ears pricked up.

"I know that voice!"

Violetleaf stood next to him in the mist, her tabby pelt shining with starlight.

"Violetleaf! So it wasn't a dream...when I saw you with Fivefur after I was shot?"

"No. I will always watch over you, Hazelstar. But listen to me. The fearless hazel and the unfaltering storm are FlameClan's only hope, but the path of a troubled and lonely warrior must save or forfeit your freedom in the end."

"A troubled and lonely warrior?" Hazelstar echoed, "Who is he? Where can I find him?"

"You will know who he is, only at the end, when his path and the path of one of your warriors will become undeniably entwined."

"What? Violetleaf...I don't understand."

"That is all I can tell you," Violetleaf said softly, as her image dissolved before him.


Meanwhile, Swiftfoot lay awake in his nest in the warriors' den. The grey warrior still couldn't believe the injustice of how his life was going. Even though the current developments were his own fault, there would have been no point in telling him so in his current state of mind.

"All I ever wanted was one friend, one person who...who loved me. Who cared about me, and didn't want me to change."

He had thought maybe Clover would be that for him, but the she-cat seemed to want to make him perfect, always trying to get him to clean up his fur when it was barely even messed up. And Blueflash had grown so close to Leopardpaw that he barely even paid attention to him anymore.

Swiftfoot sighed.

"Why did I come to this Clan?" he said aloud, "It isn't worth it."

"Not worth it?" a gruff voice whispered in disbelief, "How can you say that?"

It was Blackblaze. The chocolate-furred warrior was sitting bolt upright in his nest, his sapphire eyes glittering angrily.

"How can you say that?" he repeated, "You would be dead if it was not for this Clan!"

"Bluepaw and Hollythorn didn't come with us," Swiftfoot growled, "And they still escaped."

"Barely, from what I'm told," Blackblaze replied, "There's no point in blaming everyone else for what you have done yourself."

"I did nothing," Swiftfoot said hoarsely, "Fivefur did. I had to watch my best friend die without even receiving a warrior name, because of that stupid medicine cat!"

"If you feel Fivefur is to blame, you know nothing of the StarClan you claim to have believed in since your birth."

"Shut up, Blackblaze! What do you know anyways? You're just a worn-out slave, aren't you?"

Blackblaze looked as if he had been clawed in the face. The chocolate-furred warrior made no reply, but turned away and lay down in his nest, facing away from Swiftfoot.

Swiftfoot shook his head and laid back down. He had wanted to upset Blackblaze, who was upsetting him, but it seemed to have worked a bit too well.


The next morning, Fivefur awoke to see Hazelstar still asleep at his side, blocking anyone from entering the den without stepping on him. Fivefur stretched leisurely. He was feeling much better already. At his movement, Hazelstar sat up.

"How are you feeling, Fivefur?" he asked.

"Much better," the brown tom assured him, "Just a bit hungry."

"I'll go get you something," Hazelstar said, hurrying off.

He was back in a few moments with a freshly killed squirrel in his jaws.

"Here you go," he said, "Clover and Broomtail have already eaten, so I got this from Littlepaw as he was coming in."

"Thank you," Fivefur smiled.

"Fivefur? Did you...did you dream last night?"

"No," Fivefur said, "Did you?"

"Yes. I dreamed about Violetleaf. She told me that 'the fearless hazel and the unfaltering storm are FlameClan's only hope, but the path of a troubled and lonely warrior must save or forfeit your freedom in the end.' What do you think it means?"

"I have no idea," Fivefur said, "I think we should meditate on it, and I can talk to Poppywing. Maybe she can help."

"All right," Hazelstar agreed, "Will you be all right in here alone for a while? I have some things to do, but I shouldn't be gone long."

"I'll be fine. Where are Silverjay and Poppywing, by the way?"

"Poppywing went to gather herbs. Silverjay's talking to Mousetail over by the freshkill pile. There are plenty of cats within earshot if you need them."

"All right, then. See you later."

After Hazelstar had left, Fivefur stood up a bit shakily, and went over to look at his herbs. They were getting a bit low, but he began sorting them out into their proper places anyways. That way, when Poppywing got back, she would know right where everything...Fivefur cut off that thought, as he realized that Poppywing didn't know. She couldn't see, something he had quite forgotten.

Suddenly, a heavy paw clamped down on Fivefur's shoulder. The brown tom let out a squeak of surprise.

"Quiet!" the voice of Swiftfoot snarled, "Fivefur! Why did you tell Hazelstar about your scar now? Why, after all this time?"

"I didn't tell him..." Fivefur squeaked.

"Well, I surely didn't. Who did you tell, Fivefur?"

The medicine cat did not reply.

Swiftfoot's eyes glowed with anger. He pinned Fivefur to the ground, his strong front paws around the medicine cat's throat.

"Tell me..."

"Swiftfoot! What in StarClan's name are you doing?"

It was Blackblaze. The chocolate-furred warrior leaped at Swiftfoot, realizing that his Clanmate had nearly strangled Fivefur.

Shocked, the grey tom leaped back.

"What do you think you're doing? Do you want to be a murderer, Swiftfoot, is that it? I can promise you this, being a killer is no joke."

Swiftfoot made no reply, only struggled furiously against Blackblaze's strong grip.

A strangled sob from the entrance of the den made all three glance over. It was Blueflash. The new warrior, having been awake all night for his vigil, was already tired, but seeing his friend acting like an apparent psychopath was too much for him.

"How could you?" he whispered sadly, then turned and raced away.


OK, guys, I'm going to spam you with updates for the next week...since I'm on BREAK! I love break! Anyways, next time, we will most likely return to the plot of the series, and see what lies in store for the Clan next. :)