Fireheart awoke to the feeling of a paw prodding into her side. Yawning, she blinked sleep from her eyes and looked up at Bluefur, who was standing over her nest.

"Wake up," her friend whispered. "Sunstar just called a meeting."

"Alright," Fireheart meowed, still struggling to wake up. "I'll be there."

Careful not to disturb Stormkit, who was still dozing peacefully, she climbed out of her nest and followed Bluefur into the clearing. Scanning the cats seated beneath the Highrock, she spotted Tigerclaw sitting near the center of the group with Whitestorm and Rosetail. The three cats waved her over and Fireheart walked over to join them, taking a seat beside her mate.

"What's going on?" she asked.

"Tawnyspots is retiring," Tigerclaw told her.

Fireheart nodded, not particularly surprised by the news. It was no secret to the Clan that Tawnyspots' health had been declining for at least a few seasons now. Even Featherwhisker's best efforts could do nothing to ease his pain. She was amazed that he had even lasted as long as he had.

I wonder who the new deputy will be, the flame-colored molly thought, glancing around at the warriors surrounding her. Privately, she thought that if Sunstar had any common sense, he would choose Bluefur for the position. Of course, she was biased, but nobody could deny that the blue-gray warrior deserved it. She was fierce in battle but still kind and compassionate when the situation called for it.

"Cats of ThunderClan, today is a day of great sorrow but also of great hope for our Clan's future," Sunstar began. "Tawnyspots, is it your wish to give up the title of a warrior and retire to the elders' den?"

Fireheart craned her neck and saw Tawnyspots nod briefly at the foot of the Highrock. A twinge of sympathy stabbed at her belly as she saw pain flash in his eyes. She couldn't imagine being in so much agony that even speaking was impossible.

"Tawnyspots! Tawnyspots!" The Clan began cheering the light gray elder's name. Rosetail's voice rang out above the rest as she cheered for her former mentor.

"Now, I can turn to a happier duty," Sunstar meowed as soon as the cheers died down. "First of all, let me say that choosing a new deputy wasn't an easy decision at all. There are many cats in ThunderClan who possess the skills necessary to succeed Tawnyspots and, when the time comes, take on the position of ThunderClan's leader. However, one candidate stood out above the rest. This warrior has suffered greatly but remains dedicated solely to the well-being of her Clanmates. No matter what, I know that I can rely on her to give her best, whether it's in hunting, fighting, or training our apprentices."

He paused for another moment, surveying the cats below him, and Fireheart found herself holding her breath. The cat her leader was describing certainly sounded like Bluefur–after all, losing her mother, sister, and friend as well as her mate (although nobody else knew that) was the epitome of suffering–but she couldn't be too sure yet. After all, her other Clanmates had suffered losses as well, and everyone could be counted on to give their best efforts in contributing to the Clan. That was the whole point of being a warrior.

"Bluefur, you will be the new deputy of ThunderClan," the ThunderClan leader meowed finally. "May StarClan guide your paws, and when the time comes for you to replace me at the head of our Clan, I pray that you will lead with as much wisdom and strength as I know you are capable of."

"Bluefur! Bluefur!" Fireheart could barely contain her glee as she cheered her friend and former mentor's name.

"Bluefur!" Whitestorm's voice sang with pride.

Bluefur's eyes were shining with pleasure and surprise as she rose to her paws. As the cheers began to die down, she turned to Sunstar and dipped her head respectfully.

"I am honored, Sunstar," she meowed. "I swear to StarClan that I will give every breath in my body to serve you and ThunderClan."

A murmur of approval sounded throughout the clearing as the cats began to crowd around Bluefur to congratulate her. Fireheart gave the blue-furred warrior a friendly lick on the shoulder, purring with delight. Whitestorm, Tigerclaw, and Rosetail padded over to join them, their eyes gleaming with happiness for their friend.

"Congratulations!" Fireheart purred.

"Thank you, Fireheart," Bluefur meowed, touching her nose to her ear. She stepped back, her eyes glimmering with amusement. "Now, don't go teaching my kits any more curse words or I might have to make you clean the elders' den."

"Oh come on, you know what they say. Knowing curse words builds character," Fireheart joked.

Bluefur tipped her head to the side. "Who said that?"

"You know," the flame-colored queen replied, waving her tail. "Sunstar, me, the elders, the last omen from StarClan that Featherwhisker received..."

"Is that so?" the newly named deputy asked, her eyes gleaming. "I must have missed the "Teaching kits how to swear builds their character," omen."

"Actually, I think it was more like, "The foulest curses from a rash and impressionable youth forge strength great enough to shake the earth."

Bluefur shook her head. "Maybe you should have been named Clan deputy, Fireheart. You would give a good speech."

"Maybe I can be your deputy when the time comes," Fireheart replied jokingly. "Just as long as I'm allowed to incorporate a bit of kittypet language into my speeches. That way I can make fun of the other Clans and they won't have any idea what I'm saying."

Her former mentor rolled her eyes playfully and Fireheart stepped back to allow Whitestorm to speak to his aunt. She turned around and headed back to the nursery, calling one last farewell to her friends over her shoulder. As she drew closer to the nursery, she chuckled to herself when she saw Stormkit, Mistykit, Stonekit, and Mosskit all seated outside, their eyes wide with excitement.

"Fireheart, isn't that so cool? Bluefur gets to be the new deputy!" Mistykit meowed gleefully.

"Yes, I know. It's wonderful," Fireheart purred, touching the young kit's shoulder gently with her tail in greeting.

Stormkit burrowed herself underneath her mother's chest fur. "When I become a warrior, I want to be Clan deputy too," she insisted. "And then I'll become Clan leader and make Mosskit my deputy."

"What about us?" Mistykit asked, gesturing towards herself and Stonekit.

The tortoiseshell kit paused for a moment, then nodded. "Okay. You can all be my deputies."

Bluefur and Tigerclaw padded over to join them, and Stormkit immediately bounded up to the blue-gray queen. "Bluefur, when you become our leader, will you make me your deputy?" she asked.

"She's already got her entire life planned out," Fireheart told her, chuckling. "According to her, she's going to become Clan leader and all three of your kits are going to be her deputies."

"I see," Bluefur replied, laughing. She gave Stormkit a gentle lick between her ears. "Well, I don't know when or if I'll become ThunderClan's leader, but we'll see what happens. If you're well-behaved and always listen to your mother, there's a very good chance."

"Yay!" Stormkit meowed happily, chasing her tail in excitement. A moment later, Mosskit pounced on her and the two kits began play-fighting, squealing with joy as they kicked up snow.

As she watched her daughter playing happily with Mosskit, Fireheart couldn't help wondering what the ceremony would have been like if Thistleclaw had been there to witness it. Bluefur had told her when she was still an apprentice that the gray and white warrior had wanted the deputy's position for a long time. She felt a shudder pass through her body as she imagined the fury he would have felt at not being chosen. Not for the first time, she found herself thanking StarClan that he was dead.

"Fireheart, look at me!" Stormkit's gleeful call snapped her out of her thoughts. Glancing up, she saw that her daughter had pinned Mosskit down in the snow.

"Very good," she purred. "But be gentle, Stormkit. You're bigger than Mosskit; you don't want to hurt her on accident."

"Oh, sorry," Stormkit apologized, quickly climbing off the younger kit. Once Mosskit had gotten up and shaken the snow out of her fur, she meowed, "Come on, Mosskit! Let's battle Tigerclaw next. I'll bet he can't take on both of us!"

Tigerclaw's eyes widened with exaggerated fear. "Fireheart! Come quick! I'm being attacked by two powerful warriors!"

"Won't work!" Stormkit meowed triumphantly, leaping onto her father's back and clinging to him with her tiny claws. "She's on our side, right Fireheart?"

"That's right," Fireheart purred.

"Betrayal! Such vicious betrayal!" Tigerclaw exclaimed in an overly dramatic voice. "Mark my words, Fireheart. I will emerge victorious from this battle, hard-fought though it may be, and I will take vengeance for the wrongs you have committed upon my helpless soul."

"I mean, if you're so helpless, I think I'll be okay."

"You cannot run from your fate, Fireheart."

"Perhaps not, Tigerclaw, but we all know you can't take me."

"Is that a challenge I hear?"

"It's a fact."

Tigerclaw pretended to sigh and looked hopefully at Bluefur. "What about you? Will you aid me in my mission to seek justice?"

"Sorry, Tigerclaw," Bluefur replied, her eyes gleaming with laughter. "But I've got to take Fireheart's side on this one. She is my new little sister, after all."

"Isn't anyone on my side?"

"No, Tigerclaw, no they are not."

"Have no fear, young warrior," Fireheart meowed in a deep, exaggeratedly mysterious voice that elicited a giggle from Stormkit. "I am a warrior of StarClan and I am here to deliver a message to you. Lonely though your path may be, your valiant efforts shall be rewarded and you will triumph in all your endeavors."

"Thank you, wise and noble ancestor of mine," Tigerclaw replied, bowing his head to her. "I shall not falter in my quest."

"Oh, wait." Fireheart pretended to be suddenly puzzled. "My mistake. That message was actually meant for Crookedstar."

Of course, she knew that Clan cats were strong, but Fireheart was quite amazed that all of her friends and family managed to avoid injuring their stomachs from laughter.

Bluefur is the new deputy! We're finally at the part of Bluestar's Prophecy that I was looking forward to changing the most. Honestly, the rule about deputies not being allowed to have kits is utter bullshit. If you think about it, the deputy only really has to organize patrols and speak to the leader once in a while–nothing that having children would be too much of a problem to work around.

Responses to a few reviews:

wildtrance: SkyClan probably won't be a thing purely because I have no need for them. In canon, until the A Vision of Shadows arc, they aren't really relevant in any of the main series books. The only times they're ever mentioned before that are in books specifically centered around SkyClan, such as Firestar's Quest, and I don't plan for this story to reach the time of Firestar's Quest, much less all the way into the AVoS arc.

Kitty-Guardian Hootryd: Tigerclaw would give her the forest if he could, but since he can't, he settles for bringing her small gifts.

KrazyKube: Don't worry, lol! The kits are all staying in ThunderClan. As far as they know, they're pure ThunderClan cats with ThunderClan parents and there's no reason to change that.

Emeraldshard: Slight spoiler alert, but no, Tigerclaw will not be evil.

Riley-Cooper123: You hit the nail right on the head, actually. When StarClan sent Pinestar the warning about Tigerclaw, they didn't anticipate Fireheart joining ThunderClan. And even after she joined, Tigerclaw was still destined to destroy the Clans at first. It wasn't until he started developing feelings for her and finally made a conscious choice to disown Thistleclaw's ruthless training in favor of becoming a better cat so Fireheart would at least be willing to call him a friend even if she never returned his feelings that he was able to change his fate.

So...I guess you could say that fire did save the Clan in a way.

Thanks for reading!

-TheShadowedWarrior