Frozenheart whirled to see Nightfire smirking broadly at them, her orange eyes full of sadistic amusement as well as a strange combination of anger and disgust.

Frozenheart felt Snowpaw shrink away behind him, trembling.

"What could you possibly want now?" He spat, lengthening his claws, narrowing his eyes.

She circled slowly, her voice smooth as honey. "Nothing," she meowed leisurely, "Just… things. Should I not warn my own son of the dangerous line he insists to walk?"

"Get out of here," he snarled. "Get out of here, Nightfire, before I make you."

"Try it," she invited daringly.

He lunged at her, his anger taking hold, along with the fact that she was eyeing Snowpaw with a strange amusement.

But his paw passed right through her, only making her form shiver like a heat wave.

"See, my son," she laughed, "You cannot hurt me."

He stopped, his paw still raised, every muscle tense. "I may not be able to hurt you," he growled quietly, "But I know ones that can." He slit his eyes. "Leave this place."

She sneered at him again, and then echoed Wolfstar's words with eerie similarity: "This will end soon."

Then with a flash and a shimmer, she was gone.

He stood there, breathing heavily, fury heating his blood, roaring in his ears, tensing his muscles.

A remarkable sense of hatred was smoldering his heart.
"Who… who was that?" Snowpaw's shaking voice sounded behind him.

"No one important," he replied, turning around.

"No, she was. You sounded like you were about to tear her throat out. And she's dead." Snowpaw took a deep, shaking breath. "Who is it?"

Frozenheart swallowed. "She's… she's my mother."

Snowpaw didn't reel away, or gasp, or anything. Her eyes looked shocked, admittedly, but she only said quietly, "I did think she looked rather familiar."

"I hope not," he said, and then, he muttered, "I hate her so much. How did I ever follow her?"

(***********)

"She what?"

"Is gathering a pack of Dark Forest warriors to lay siege to RiverClan… or rather, to murder Falconheart, Frozenheart, and possibly, though not likely, Snowpaw."

Goldleaf stared at Wolfstar with wide, shocked eyes. "She… she's in StarClan…! She can't do that!"

A gruesome, grim smile twisted Wolfstar's face. "But she can. She's sour, bitter, and StarClan has not made her forgive or forget. If anything, she's building a flame of murderous resentment, day by day, night by night, soon to explode."

Goldleaf said nothing to this news, only turned to where a shimmering pool was. Willow branches trailed over the sapphiric water, and it was crystal clear.

She dabbed her paw on the water. Ripples began to spread, strong and fast, and then they died.

But when they stopped, it was not reflecting clear anymore. It was displaying a large river.

Two shapes entered the puddle frame. One was brown, the other gray. It was two kittens.

The grey kitten fell into the river. It was swept away, and the brown kit bounded after it.

Then it flashed to another scene. The brown kitten was bigger now—with jutting ribs and hollow yellow eyes. It traveled with two other cats, entering a forest. The scene changed to where the brown cat was staring with disbelief at a black, smaller tom with ice eyes.

The scene changed yet again. The brown cat was fuller pelted now, and stronger looking. He walked with a silvery gray feminine cat, with amber eyes. Behind him was the black cat with blue eyes, and another white she-cat with storm coloured eyes.

Then the puddle flashed bright red, as though the water was full of blood. The smooth glassy surface shattered into shards of red light.

"What does it mean?" cried Goldleaf. "Every time we try and view his future the puddle shatters."

"Too much bloodshed in one's path can do that," replied Wolfstar grimly.

Goldleaf closed her eyes. "I want to kill her," she said calmly, rage igniting her words. "She deserves to… to…"

"To burn?" mewed Wolfstar, his voice delicately inflected to suggest anger. "Because this means that something big is coming…"

(********)

Falconheart padded down the marshy riverbank, his paws slightly sinking into the mud. His belly fur brushed the reedy grass as he sat down to think.

Willow branches trailed the silver-brown river. The water was lower in the greenleaf heat, but it still churned and foamed, tossing debris around the white-crested waves.

A silvery flash of a trout flipped above the surface.

It would be nice to catch something for Waterblaze, he thought musingly.

Soon he had caught a meager haul of a bony carp and two minnows. Nothing much. Discouraged, he turned to the river again, wind blowing toward his face.

He heard a crackle and whipped around to see a wet spot where his fish had been.

"Hey!" he cried angrily, seeing a ginger tail whipping into the reeds. "Come back here!"

He charged forward, but the cat was gone, along with his prey.

"Fish-dung!" he spat angrily. "Who did that?"

He thought he heard a raspy laugh on the breeze, and this infuriated him. "I'll catch you!" he shouted, and then turned away, swearing under his breath.

"Language, young 'un."

Falconheart turned to see Lightstar limping out next to him.

"Did you see that?" he spat angrily.

"I did, looks as though we got a mangy thieving rogue on our territory. I'll tell patrols to look out."

He noticed her gait was labored and her eyes unfocused.

"Are you all right?" he meowed, concerned.

She coughed. "I'm getting older, Falconheart. Sickness is more liable to be caught on me. I've got a bout of mild whitecough—nothing to worry about, not contagious yet, says Cricketsong."

"Shouldn't you be resting?"

"I thought fresh air would do me well." She sighed. "The Gathering is coming soon and I need to appear strong for it."

She looked toward the horizon and murmured softly, "We all must be strong."

The wind is blowing toward him, so he wouldn't have been able to sniff anyone out… Specifically, he couldn't have smelled Cin. –cackle-