Chapter 48: The Plans

The Tenderfoots were on their way back from training. Shade lingered behind, mulling over her performance. Arctic didn't seemed pleased when Shade refused to decide she wasn't going to team up with Night against Sorrel.

Arctic found a suitable punishment though: running her claws across Shade's now-tender flanks until Shade did not flinch. It seemed to take an entire moon, but finally she did it.

Shade decided that was it too. She was tired of her mother pushing her to be cruel and unjust. Shade had heard of Thunderclan, and how every warrior, even ones with injuries that would be a dead sentence here, could be whatever they choose to be. It sounded wonderful.

It actually sounded like home. But who could she trust?

She gathered with the other Tenderfoots in Box Lane. Cleaning the gravel and dirt out of her wounds, she snuck glances at the potential confidents.

Sorrel and Red shared a fat rat. No. Sorrel would give it up in a heart-beat, and I'm pretty sure Red…I just don't trust her either.

Her eyes flicked to the left of them. Night, Bat, Lotus, and Toes were all chatting by their dens. Bat's a natural story teller, so he'd tell. Lotus doesn't like me, with her big ego and all, and Toes is too timid and overly critical. He'll shoot my plan down before I say a word. Maybe Night? He's pretty quiet…

Her mind began to wander briefly, and her decision was made. She would tell Night she was leaving Bloodclan and joining Thunderclan. He wouldn't breathe a word.

Darkshard waited patiently for the clan to gather under the Bloodrock. A few finished up their morning prey, licking bits of prey off of their whiskers. Others shared tongues; gossip flitted through the camp like butterflies.

When everyone was done, she called a meeting. "Today, we will meet up with Bloodclan while Windclan executes its first attack on Riverclan. I'll take my Elites with me."

The Elites filed behind Darkshard as they left the camp. The run seemed to shake off any sleepiness that lingered. Soon, they crossed into the swampy pine marsh that marked Shadowclan territory. When they trickled into the abandoned Shadowclan camp, a chill seemed to swallow her whole. She was afraid the surroundings would trigger her sight, whether it be of the deceased Shadowclan cats or of Eclipse, but it did not. Instead, she looked at a camp with crowfood cast off and picked at by some carrion-eating bird. Dead grasses and dried up nests. Flecks of blood peppered the leader's rock and den. Claw marks across the nursery walls.

The sound of paw steps broke the dismal trance. Shatter looked up to see a group of skinny cats that stunk of Twolegs. Her nose wrinkled in unmasked disgust. This is the fierce some Bloodclan?

The leader, obvious with his authoritative disposition and aura, spoke in a harsh, raspy voice. "I am Snipe, leader of Bloodclan. Where is the one who claims to be the daughter of Scourge, the one named Shard?"

"That's Darkshard, thank you very much." Darkshard slinked from the shadows, her green eyes narrowing.

Snipe's eyes widened. "Ah. So this is the infamous heir. Pleased to meet your acquaintance. Are you going to uphold your end of the bargain?"

Darkshard hissed. "Of course! Only if you uphold yours." Snipe opened his jaws to speak when she cut him off. "Not here. These words are not meant for my clan's ears yet."

"Oh, that's a shame." Snipe smiled. "Because those would be the last you ever say." A skinny grey-she with long claws snarled beside him, tail raised and ready to signal. Shatter's mind went blank. A trap. We're going to fight!

Suddenly, Snipe fell, twitching and writhing. White foam with swirls of red bubbled at his mouth. His clan gathered around, yelping and yelling in shock and surprise. Suddenly, he stopped, and a long shadow slipped out of the foam. Snipe blinked, coughing and getting to his paws as the shadow materialized in front of him next to Darkshard.

"I do not appreciate one of my former Guard members to plan to attack my only and beloved kin." The blue eyes that floated in the shadow narrowed as words were spoken from an unseen muzzle.

Snipe's eyes widened until they were the size of the moon. "Sc-Sc-Scrouge?!"

Sorry for the really bad chapter. :( Life has been so hectic this month. I still have a ton of viruses we're trying to get off my laptop, and I figured a lot of you were tired of waiting, so I wrote this up really quickly. Sorry for the long wait.

I think there might be...10 chapters left! Ahh! :D