AN: *purrs* Lots of reviews and theories, eh? Don't you love a good mystery?

*pats Cinderpaw11* I'm sorry I'm so unhelpful, darling, but it really wouldn't be as much fun if I spoiled if for you, eh? I can't tell you which group it was in, that'd spoil the fun. It wasn't Tigerstar though, certainly; he can only affect the Dark Forest. For the moment. ;) And you feel that something is wrong with White and Fox? In what way?

Allygirl: I can tell you for certain that Lionpaw didn't love Cinderfur; the fight he got into with her was because of pure anger, nothing more and nothing less. Cinderfur's pretty old for him, too. And I certainly don't blame you for trying!

Warriors06: Maybe, maybe not.

star: You could interpret it to mean that.

everyone: With the theories flying around like the wind, there are a few things you should know: Remember that Tigerpaw isn't an all-seeing god. There may be details that he doesn't notice that you do, and that could hint to the killer. Keep your eyes peeled, because you can't hope that he knows the answer all of the time; he's still a young thing, remember. This includes his thoughts and conclusions; it is a little bit like the first three Harry Potter stories, when they were trying to figure out who the villain was. Sometimes the evidence fit perfectly, but their villain was still not who they expected. Think of Tigerpaw the same way; for all we know, no one might have been trying to kill Whitepaw on purpose, she might have heard a rumor about the berries making her sick and wanted to get out of training, or something like that. Just because Tigerpaw makes a conclusion doesn't mean it is always right.

And this is a really long author's note, so back to the story! xD

34

Batpaw eventually did find the herbs that he needed, as well as the berries, and he returned to camp obviously rather pleased, although that might not have just been because of his findings. Tigerpaw kept a careful eye on Whitepaw, wanting to make sure she wasn't in any danger, self-inflicted or not. He was worried about her now. Maybe I can get her to confess who told her the berries would make her sick, or why, he thought.

"Whitepaw," he said before they entered camp, "can I speak with you?"

Whitepaw blinked, and nodded, following Tigerpaw to the foot of a large oak.

"Who told you the berries would make you sick?" Tigerpaw asked. Whitepaw glanced away from him.

"I wish you'd stop worrying, Tigerpaw. I'm obviously fine. The berries weren't intended for me to eat anyway."

"Then why did you?" Tigerpaw pressed. "Why did you eat them?"

"It was supposed to be a prank!" Whitepaw growled. "I was supposed to feed them to…someone, and then say someone else had told me they were yummy. It was just supposed to be a little prank, nothing more. I just wasn't sure though, and I wanted to test them out for myself to make sure we didn't really hurt anyone. Honest, the cat who helped me think of the prank probably misheard, or was thinking of a different berry, or something."

Tigerpaw blinked slowly. A prank? He wondered. Maybe it was just a little prank…something harmless. Maybe whoever told her about it was just intending for it to be something silly….But if Whitepaw hadn't tried them with Batpaw around, someone could have been killed! Somehow, with all that has happened, I don't think this was just a little prank. Someone was either trying to get rid of someone else, or they were planning on pinning the blame on someone….Maybe it wasn't Whitepaw that witnessed the crime, it was someone else, and they've kept quiet….Should I tell Brightstar? No, I can't. I still don't have evidence, just a bunch of guesses. He sighed quietly. "Thanks anyway, Whitepaw," he said quietly, and then nuzzled her side. "I'm glad you're okay."

Whitepaw smiled at him, and nodded, before padding away to the fresh-kill pile. She ignored her brother as he and Viperfang passed her, heading for the camp entrance. Gingerpaw and Foxpaw were sharing tongues near the apprentice den, although Foxpaw stood up and padded towards Tigerpaw once he appeared. Gingerpaw waited for a moment, before padding towards her white friend.

"Hey," Foxpaw purred, swiping her tongue over Tigerpaw's ear. "How are you?"

"A little shaken," Tigerpaw replied, and quickly explained all that had happened. Foxpaw's eyes were wide.

"Whitepaw nearly died?" she whispered. "Shouldn't we tell someone?"

Tigerpaw shrugged. "No harm came from it in the end, thanks to Batpaw, and we really don't have any evidence."

Foxpaw's eyes followed the black apprentice as he appeared for a moment to grab a mouse, before stalking back into his den. "So he's doing more than just eating our prey, then?" she asked, her voice ripe with amusement. "Good for him, I suppose. He needs a few friends to settle into the Clan, and I don't think we helped any." Her whiskers twitched with amusement; she was clearly remembering her little water fight with Tigerpaw. Tigerpaw smiled at the memory, and felt himself relax slighty; nothing bad had ever happened with Foxpaw.

"Tigerpaw, have you eaten?" Duskclaw asked. Tigerpaw shook his head. "Well, make sure you do and then start a patrol, around RiverClan's territory. Whitepaw is are going to catch up with Viperfang and Lionpaw to patrol near ShadowClan and WindClan, so pick a cat or two to take with you." He nodded to them before padding away.

"Want to come with me?" Tigerpaw asked. Foxpaw purred with delight.

"Can I come too?" Gingerpaw asked. Foxpaw laughed.

"You never want to go on patrols, you lazy furball!" Foxpaw exclaimed, swatting at her sister's ear. Gingerpaw frowned.

"I'm not lazy," she growled.

"Could have fooled me," Foxpaw said cheerily. "Sure, you can come. We'll have to take a warrior though, I guess. Hmm….Hey, Birchpelt, want to come with us on a patrol?"

The pale warrior looked up from his vole. He gulped the last bit down, and nodded. "Sure, I'll go." Ever since Cinderfur's death, her kits had worked hard for the Clan, determined to keep the Clan strong and find the killer.

"Awesome!" Foxpaw chirped. "Let's go, then!" She dashed out of camp, leaving the rest to hurry and catch up to her before her ginger pelt disappeared into the forest.

* * *

Birchpelt sniffed one of the rocks suspiciously. "I smell RiverClan," he growled, and glanced around nervously, as if Nightpool might leap out at him at any minute.

"It's stale, though," Tigerpaw observed. "They haven't been here at Sunningrocks today, at least."

"Today, yes, but they were here a few days ago," Foxpaw said, sniffing another rock. "Planning another attack or something, probably."

"We'll be ready," Birchpelt spat. Obviously the gray warrior was convinced that RiverClan had killed his mother, not someone in ThunderClan, despite the evidence. Perhaps it is easier for him this way, Tigerpaw reflected. How would it feel to know you could be sleeping beside your mother's killer? He shivered at the very thought. If anyone ever hurt Dapplefur….

Birchpelt re-marked the Sunningrocks, showing RiverClan that ThunderClan knew they were around, before the patrol continued. They drew close to the falls, and even though they were out of sight, Tigerpaw could feel the vibrations from them in his paws. Such raw power, he marveled, before a sudden scream cut through the air. Tigerpaw's eyes widened and he glanced around at the group quickly; Birchpelt had been distracted by a strange scent moments before, but he had snapped to attention at the sound of the scream, Foxpaw was already running towards the sound and Gingerpaw was…missing? Tigerpaw frowned, but they didn't have long to wonder as they charged forward towards the scream. There were rustled in the undergrowth, and Tigerpaw's patrol nearly ran smack-into Lionpaw and Gingerpaw, coming the opposite direction.

"Whitepaw fell into the river!" Lionpaw said, his sides heaving. "Viperfang went after her but they were both swept downstream. Hurry, towards Sunningrocks, they might wash up there!"

AN: Oh dear, look at this! A cliff-hanger! How strange. Has Whitepaw met her fate?

Well, you may not know for awhile. You see my profile? See that nifty little bar announcing that I've made a poll? I need you to vote on it, my dears. It only has two votes at the minute, and I need at least five until I can update with the next chapter. I need to know what I'm doing next, you see.

Hurry!