I just realized it's been a little over ten chapters since Darktail has talked. Not that he's gonna say anything in this chapter, but I thought that was an interesting fact. The last time he talked was during Gorsekit's chapter.

Also, we'll be seeing a character from one of the much earlier chapters. If you can guess which on correctly you'll... Well, you'll have the pride of knowing that you guessed correctly... Not very good at prizes here, sorry... (Maybe I can give you my eternal platonic love and support? No? Okay then...)

This chapter idea is from Zion The Cookie Empress! Thanks you and I hope everyone enjoys this chapter!


Sunnose took in a deep breath, forcing herself to get ready to face the day. As she stepped out of the warriors den and into camp, she looked around at her Clanmates. The four queens in the nursery noticed her and quickly became nervous. Though they wouldn't say it, she knew they didn't trust her. Biting back any anger or resentment, she pictured her father, who had died the moon after she became an apprentice.

Flametalon, why did you do it? She didn't want to hate her father, but it was so hard to when she knew the ginger tom was responsible for the deaths of four ShadowClan cats, his own Clanmates, and the death of an estimated 7 from both ThunderClan and RiverClan. All without giving closure to any of the grieving families that he had disrupted. Looking towards the deputy, she noticed Shadeheart was giving her a dark glare. When their eyes met, the dark gray tom turned away from the pale orange she-cat and he continued to look over the Clan as if trying to plan patrols. If there was any cat who hated her the most, she knew it would be him. She had heard of how Flametalon's last kill before he was exiled to the mountains was Shadeheart's only kit, Buzzardpaw. The dark gray tabby apprentice had been Flametalon's own apprentice and he had looked up to the ginger tom... From what Sunnose had heard.

"You're thinking a lot." A she-cat's voice sounded. Looking, Sunnose noticed the recently accepted loner, Foxclaw. The russet she-cat always looked like she had something on her mind or troubling her, but today she looked more concerned about Sunnose.

"Yeah, I guess I am..."

"What's on your mind?" The she-cat sat next to her offering a friendly purr and there was a motherly kindness in her amber eyes. Sunnose purred back slightly. She was glad that Foxclaw was so understanding compared to those of her Clanmates who only saw her as her father.

"I'm just still bothered that they don't see me, they see Flametalon..."

"They mention him when they talk to you," Foxclaw said, looking towards a group of senior warriors that were hanging around Shadeheart. "They said they're afraid you'll go down the same path and want to be ready when you do."

"I'm nothing like him!" Sunnose bristled.

"I know, but I do understand where they're coming from. It's not easy to be betrayed, because you won't know who you can trust and being his kin..."

"Being his kin, what? Means I'm going to be evil?"

"No, no! Not exactly, anyway. My mother and father use to tell me 'the pebble didn't roll far from its rock'. It's a weird expression I never completely understood, but they told me that it means kits can seem a lot like their parents. If Flametalon was bad, they're afraid you'll end up bad like him."

"How can I prove I'm not?" Foxclaw gave a shrugged.

"That's up to you to decide, not me."

I'll get rid of the heart of the problem.

"Alright, thanks."

"Don't mention it." With that, the dark ginger she-cat stood up and left, her white paws slightly darkened due to the ShadowClan marshes. Sunnose turned her attention to Shadeheart. She had to get him alone to stop the problem once and for all, but how? Narrowing her dark amber eyes on the dark gray tom, she finally thought of something.

He's had no mate since Buzzardpaw died... Maybe... Maybe I can try to seem interested in him... But what next? I can't just kill him then! She closed her eyes. Maybe... Maybe I can RiverClan's border and make it seem like one of those fish-breathed cats killed him. She opened her eyes and purred at the thought. It would be the perfect way to get revenge. She knew she couldn't start right away, however. She had to take steps. Drop small hints first. As the day passed, she kept a close eye on Shadeheart behind his back. As she returned from a hunting patrol, she grabbed a magpie and walked towards him. She knew that there was plenty of prey for the queens and elder and that the apprentices have probably already hunted for them. She was well aware that the tom preferred birds, but she wasn't aware which bird he liked.

"For you." She stated, dropping the small bird at the tom's paws. Confusion filled his green eyes as he looked from the magpie to Sunnose.

"Thank you..."

"No problem." She purred before leaving. She went to grab a frog from the fresh-kill pile, preferring those to the awful taste of feathers in her mouth. She took the frog next to the warriors den, hidden in shadows from the rest of her Clan, where she usually ate. As she started to eat, she noticed that Shadeheart was still looking at the magpie. Carefully, he removed some feather and took a bite. He then proceeded to eating the bird.

Hah, I guess it's working. She thought, turning her attention back to her fresh-kill. She knew it would still be a while, but she was willing to wait for the perfect time.


A moon and a half passed and Sunnose's plan was going exactly as expected. She even noticed the dark gray tom watching her from time to time, but not with the malice she was use to seeing in his eyes. After returning from a border patrol, she went to her corner where she wouldn't face the looks of her Clanmates. However, when she got there, she noticed a freshly caught frog. Looking around, she didn't spot anyone.

Could Shadeheart have done this? She pondered, looking down at the frog.

"Mind if I join you?" Turning around, she spotted the dark gray tom with a sparrow in his jaws.

This is working better than I expected.

"Sure," She grabbed the frog and moved over so that the deputy had some room in the small space. "I wouldn't mind at all."

Maybe I could kill him sooner than I had planned. She thought as he sat next to her. In silence, the two ate. To test if she was right, she 'accidentally' brushed her pelt against his. The tom's pelt warmed up as pulled away awkwardly.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to do that." He muttered, avoiding eye contact.

"No, I'm sorry. It was my fault." She insisted. The two looked at each other for a brief moment and he turned away quickly. A dark joy flashed through her mind. Her plan was working. She would finally get the senior warriors to stop having her own Clanmates think she was going to end up like her father. She was going to act like a hero. As she finished up the last bit of her frog, she glanced over at Shadeheart, who was almost done with his sparrow.

"Say, how about we go hunt? Most of the kits are old enough to have fresh-kill and we need to make sure there's going to be enough for them, the queens, and the elders." She suggested.

"Sounds like a good idea," She could hear the slightest purr in his voice. After he finished the sparrow, the two tossed away the remains and headed out into the piney forests of ShadowClan. "Where should we head?"

"It's a warm day out, so maybe around RiverClan? I'm sure there's plenty of cool water around there for them." He nodded and the two moved towards the RiverClan border. Once it was in sight, the duo started to keep an eye out for prey. While he was near the lake with her back turned to her, Sunnose leaped at him. before he could react, she delivered the killing blow. She grabbed his limp body by the scruff and dropped him into the water. Taking a bit of time to wash the blood off of her muzzle and place false pawprints to make it seem like there was a struggle, she ran towards ShadowClan camp. When she barged into camp, she was more panting from exhaustion than fear, but she knew he Clanmates wouldn't tell the difference.

"Help! RiverClan ambushed us while we were hunting! Shadeheart sent me to get help!" Foxclaw was the first to rush over. Next was the group of senior warriors that Shadeheart had spent most of his time with. Together they set off before Mudstar, ShadowClan's leader, could even get a patrol ready. Instead the dark brown tom joined them right as they started to leave. When they arrived she gasped with her terrified Clanmates as they spotted the body laying limply in the water. Mudstar stepped forward, his amber eyes glowing dimly in grief.

"He was a brave and loyal deputy and I would have trusted this tom with all nine of my lives," He muttered. The large tom grabbed the tom by the scruff carefully. "Let's head back to camp."

The patrol followed their leader without speaking a single word. The senior warriors were grieving, none more so than Icetail. The silver and white tabby tom had been with the deputy through so much, seeing as Icetail was only a moon older than the dark gray tom. When they returned to camp, the senior warrior turned to speak to Sunnose.

"D-did you see what happened?" With forced sadness, Sunnose shook her head.

"He wanted me to get help... He... He told me to run to camp to get help and to not look back."

"Yeah, that's Shadeheart alright," The silver and white tom let out a heart-broken sigh. "Thinks he can handle everything..."

As cats gathered, shocked at the deputy's death, Mudstar spoke up.

"Cats of ShadowClan, today we lost one of our greatest warriors and my most trusted deputy. He was struck down by a fox-heart in RiverClan who delivered the killing bite to him," The moment the dark brown leader mentioned the killing bite yowls of anger filled the air. "I will talk to Vixenstar myself and if she doesn't give us the warriors who killed his brave tom, we will fight to bring justice!"

But what about the new deputy? Sunnose found herself wondering, though she could barely hear herself think over the yowls and cries of agreement from her Clanmates. As things settled down, Mudstar spoke again.

"And, in front of Shadeheart's body, I will pick a new deputy. I hope he approves of my choice. Icetail shall be ShadowClan's new deputy!"

"Icetail! Icetail! Icetail!" The Clan cheered. At first the tom looked shock, but he than dipped his head respectfully towards Mudstar.

"I won't let you down." He promised as the cheers died down. The dark brown leader nodded.

"I know you won't."


Tension filled the air only half a moon later. WindClan had sided with RiverClan when the war was declared at the Gathering and though ThunderClan hadn't chosen their side yet, it was obvious that their leader, Leafstar, had something against Mudstar. Why the golden brown tabby tom hated the ShadowClan leader so much was unknown, but it was obvious that he was most likely going to side with RiverClan. Sunnose hadn't planned for things to spiral this out of control. All she wanted was to not be feared by her Clanmates. She didn't want a war. With half of her Clanamtes injured or dead and with guilt eating away at her, she knew she had to tell Mudstar the truth of what happened. Carefully, she approached the tired-looking leader as he sat inside his den.

"M-Mudstar?"

"What is it, Sunnose?" His amber eyes looked dull with stress.

"I have something that I want to confess..."

"What?" She had his full attention now.

"A RiverClan cat didn't kill Shadeheart... I-I did."

"What?!" The tom bristled with anger, his eyes suddenly alight with anger.

"I'm sorr-"

"Get out of this Clan!" He snapped, cutting her off. "And if I ever hear about you being seen on ShadowClan territory, I will make sure my warriors know to kill you on sight."

Fear pounded through her heart as she backed out of the leader's den. Without thinking she took off, away from ShadowClan, like he said. Shoving past Foxclaw, she didn't stop to apologize to the she-cat or say anything to her of what was going on. She only ran and she made a silent promise to never return to ShadowClan, even if she wanted to return to her Clan. They had been right about her all along. She was her father's kit after all...


Well, I hope you all enjoyed!

If you ever get bored of waiting for updates for whatever reason, I have two other stories I update at least once a week: Forest Of The Fallen and Another. If you want you can check them out in your free time. I'd love for those stories to get some attention as well.

As always, feel free to review and/or leave a request and I hope you all have a wonderful day.