Thanks to reviewers: Leafshadow, Mikaceous, & Stacy Rockfall

Leafshadow: So you have a favorite cat, huh? Well. . . now I am not sure I can protect her. Muahahaha :)

Sorry about posting this so late. I was busy the first week and then was just lazy the next. This weekend I wasted with Pixelmon. Nearly didn't get this chapter done this time, but I knew I had to give you something. I am not too happy with out this one turned out, but it gets the job done.

Chapter 8: A Shared Vision

Halfshine hardly found the energy to care about the latest issue the medicine cats discussed. It was the halfmoon, and as they sometimes did, the medicine cats remained in the cavern to share tongues after speaking with the ancestors. Halfshine could remember those nights with Twistedbriar, how it made them even later to return to camp. But how she'd enjoyed visiting!

Too bad she was gone. Like Redfur. He could speak to neither spirit, and he was in desperate need to talk to someone in StarClan.

The other medicine cats spoke now about the newest ShadowClan apprentice, a scruffy white tom with the black splotches cross his face, flank, and back. Halfshine couldn't even recall the apprentice's name.

Hollowbird had presented the tom before the starry warriors for his first time that night. It probably was a lovely moment. Halfshine thought longingly of his first time meeting the ancestors. How wonderful it had all seemed. How simple.

The apprentice seemed invigorated by the experience. He explored while the older cats spoke. His nose was thrust into the dark shadows and he seemed to rush about the cavern like a hummingbird, making Halfshine all the more exhausted by watching him.

He returned from his latest excursion with what looked like a crushed bird egg in his mouth.

"I swear, it's like I'm a queen with kits," Hollowbird grumbled. "I think we better leave before Gracklepaw scares away what spirits he hasn't. Would you put that down!"

The black queen went to gather her apprentice. The others looked prepared to depart as well. Only Halfshine didn't move from beside the stone. It was dark now that the moon had long ago slid from the opening, but as always there was enough light once their eyes adjusted.

"Halfshine?" Rainleaf meowed.

He lifted his head, forcing himself to look at the green-eyed RiverClan she-cat. She was getting up in age. She was older than Twistedbriar had been, and Halfshine had seen her as a sort of second mentor when his own had passed. Yet there were some things he couldn't share with her. She, like the others, had become puzzled by his silence this past season, but their prying had done little to open him back up. He'd only pulled further away from them until even Rainleaf didn't try to engage him anymore.

"Yes, Rainleaf?" Halfshine meowed, trying to pay attention to the gray she-cat with the black stripes. He expected them to say farewell and leave. Instead, Rainleaf seemed to sense Halfshine's newest turmoil.

"I take it something is on your mind?" Rainleaf meowed. "Bad news from StarClan this evening?"

Halfshine felt his insides twist. If only. He hadn't had any news from them for a season. Not since Redfur's demise.

"Not so much," he murmured. "I just. . . I have a question they didn't really answer."

"Did they now?" Rainleaf meowed her ears twitching. She was a notorious gossip in her Clan according to other cats at the Gathering, and Halfshine had seen evidence of it at their own private meetings. She didn't mean any harm, but she did have a tendency to speak about other cats. Informatio no one really cared about: who was mates with who, who had a belly ache, and which warrior was an absolute layabout. And not just from her own Clan. He didn't really want what he had to say to get around, but he needed help.

"Ask away," Boleclaw meowed. The former ThuderClan warrior turned his attention to Halfshine. Although he seemed like he'd wanted to join Hollowbird's departure, he settled quickly back, giving his full attention to the WindClan medicine cat.

Hollowbird suddenly seemed reluctant to leave, but must have decided her roving apprentice was best kept out of the conversation for she insisted the apprentice go up the tunnel in front of her.

Halfshine wondered where to start. There was only one question on his mind, but he couldn't get to it without explanation. He was too tired to think of ways to pretend the Clan's weakness was important enough to hide from the others. "Gustystar is. . . getting weaker. He is older and on his last life."

The drought last greenleaf had been particularly hard on WindClan. With the fires and the drought, the heather-covered hills were only becoming more barren of prey and water. Gustystar had started to skipping meals to make sure his Clan was fed first, and it was catching up to him. WindClan wasn't the only Clan affected, but Halfshine was starting to see the other cats' ribs as plump compared to the flesh and fur stretched across his Clanmate's bodies. Even then it was hard to care one way or the other if any of them made it through the coming leafbare. There was only one bright light in the Clan: Harepelt.

The deputy always had an encouraging word for the warriors. He made sure the tunnellers were alert and gave them praise when they returned with prey. Harepelt was holding the Clan together when Gustystar decided not to move the Clan closer to the RiverClan border for water. He and the moor-runners started making sure water got to the Clan no matter what. The moor-runners found less prey above ground, so when they weren't fetching water, one or two reluctantly started venturing below ground.

"Gustystar will die soon, and I don't know how to do the leadership ceremony for Harepelt," Halfshine confessed.

He looked at the two older medicine cats. His father deserved the best. He'd lost his mate, his brother, and even his daughter. He'd had a hard life. He deserved to be leader and be able to guide the Clan to a better life without any further compication. The only cat in the way was Halfshine.

Harepelt would soon realize StarClan didn't walk with WindClan. Halfshine would be unable to take his father into StarClan. He couldn't even tell his father what to expect or how to behave. On the night Gustystar died, Harepelt would find out his medicine cat was not worthy of the title. Harepelt didn't deserve to discovery that disapointment.

"Twistedbriar didn't have the opportunity to show you, did she?" Rainleaf meowed. Her tail twitched. "She was too young to experience it for Gustystar. Hmm."

"Doesn't mean Lichenfur couldn't explain," Boleclaw meowed. "No rule says Halfshine can't speak to another medicine cat."

"They didn't tell me one way or the other," Halfshine meowed briskly. "What do I do? What does Harepelt do?"

"It isn't much," Rainleaf meowed. "You visit StarClan and the spirits speak to your leader. They give him his nine lives. They may offer advice or well-wishes. Kind of like our own experiences." Her whiskers jumped with pleasure.

"The only difference is, the leader isn't allowed to speak to StarClan," Boleclaw meowed.

"Why not?" Halfshine meowed.

The former warrior made a gesture of uncertainy. "The ceremony is sacred. I suspect if they saw all their dead relatives again and were allowed to speak, the ceremony would never get done with all the sharing of tongues. Anyway, they are also not allowed to tell any other cat about what they experience either."

"I don't imagine we all want every possible warrior trying to be a leader, now do we?" Rainleaf meowed, amused. "StarClan has their reasons."

"Then I don't do anything?"

"Just present the future leader to StarClan and they do the rest," Rainleaf meowed. "Make sure Harepelt doesn't eat before the ceremony, and let him know the rules about not talking and keeping the ceremony private. It will be fine. WindClan will get better, you'll see."

She brushed her tail against his chin and rose to her feet.

Boleclaw, too, started for the tunnel. Then he turned back, "If WindClan is starving, I can ask Firststar to spare prey for your queens and elders. We aren't in the best of shape, but we can still find something to share."

"RiverClan's fish haven't been affected by the drought," Rainleaf added. "We are closer and we have more to offer. I will bring it up with my leader as well. You can always ask for help, Halfshine. The rains will come again."

"Thank you." Halfshine meowed. "I will mention it to Gustystar." If he listened. In his older age he was more difficult to reason with as Harepelt was learning. Harepelt might appreciate the gesture even if he couldn't accept on behalf of the Clan.

The other two left. Halfshine made to stir himself to his aching limbs. Another halfmoon over. Who knew how many more to go. Probably not long once Harepelt learned the truth of the matter.

Halfshine slumped back to his side. He found he didn't have the energy to get up. It wasn't so much a weakness in his body, but that he couldn't find the desire to leave the cavern. Why go back to WindClan when he had nothing to offer them? He was lying to them. He was no medicine cat. He was a sham.

"Oh, StarClan," Halfshine moaned. He looked at the Moonstone. It was dark as the night sky he saw when he pressed his nose against its cold side. Did they even hear him now? "This is my punishment, isn't it? A Clan in disarray. Your silence. Please, don't punish WindClan or Harepelt for my mistake. Please. Don't force Harepelt to inherit a Clan that won't survive. If you can do anything, help WindClan to live, in body and spirit. He must feel you still guide WindClan. Let there be a ceremony. Give him lives. And if it were possible, let me be there too. I don't have to speak with you if that's what you want, but don't send a leader back to WindClan demoralized. How can my Clan ever be mended if we don't have a chance?"

Halfshine didn't know if any spirits heard him. He hoped they did. Because when Gustystar died, the Clan's trust in their medicine cat might go with it.

-Line-

As Bravepaw returned to camp, she spotted Hunterpaw and Flickpaw on the rise above the hollow. The rest of the Clan was heading down the slope into camp. She bounded forward to meet them.

"Where were you?" she called to her brothers. They paused and waited for her.

"Us, or the Clan?" Flickpaw meowed.

"Both."

"Turtle Pond," Hunterpaw meowed. "Did you know it is the only pond in WindClan that will only dry up in the hardest of droughts? Pheasant-tail told me the only time it ever did was two greenleafs ago during the seasons of fires."

"It was the worst drought anyone can remember," Flickpaw agreed. "That leaf-fall Harestar became leader."

"Is Hedgepaw okay?" Hunterpaw demanded abruptly.

She could see now that her brothers were worried. As distracted as their mentors had kept them with tales of olden days, they were anxious about their sister.

"She made it through," Bravepaw meowed. That was all the information she could truly give. "Is Cedarberry with her?"

"She went down ages ago when Purplethistle got her."

"Then let's go meet them."

They quickly headed down the slope. As Bravepaw went with them, she watched her Clan settle into their heather-lined nests for the night. Near the Rockpile she spotted Halfshine and Harestar. She let her brothers journey to the medicine den as she joined her mentor. She wondered if he needed any help before they to went to sleep. She slowly approached, not wanting to inturrupt their conversation. She only started to hear it when she passed her Clanmates settling down for the evening.

". . because she is young," Harestar meowed. "She deserves your respect and in this case that means you train her. You don't hold her at paws length like eggshells."

"I know that," Halfshine meowed.

"Do you? From what I've seen, and what Cedarberry tells me, you are treating her like a kit, not an apprentice. When she was a kit I feel you gave her more respect for her age! Now that she is willing to learn, you've been holding back. She can handle harder things, Halfshine. Do you think there is anything more traumatizing in her life than having to bury her sister's tail she just helped remove? She can handle anything else you give her. If she can't, she'll let you know. She's not a bird-brain. Believe in her, and let her know that you trust her, and she'll walk across the river and back for you."

"She doesn't need to be in danger."

"I am not saying put her into danger," Harestar meowed. He brushed his tail across Halfshine's flank. "But let her grow. She doesn't need to be sheltered all the time. One day, you won't be there. Remember you are training your equal, not a helper."

Harestar lifted his eyes to meet Bravepaw's. She realized that the leader had probably heard her approach. She lowered her ears at having been caught eavesdropping, even unintentionally.

Halfshine looked over his shoulder to see his apprentice. He gave a sigh and turned to Harestar once more. "Bravepaw and I have already had this conversation. I will be training her fully now."

"Good," Harestar meowed. "Bravepaw, this doesn't give you the excuse to not listen to your mentor. Listen to him, and make sure you say if there is something you can't handle. I don't want either of you hurt."

Harestar waited until he heard an assent from both before sending them away. He told them to get rest and then he left them. Halfshine guestured her to the fresh-kill pile. He looked at the pile as if deciding what he wanted to eat. There wasn't much to select from tonight. Bravepaw eyed the sparrow, but waited for her mentor to select first. The sky was dark purple now. Most of the Clan was still awake and paid little attention to the pair as they stood silently by the Rockpile.

"What did you do with her tail?" Halfshine meowed. The question vanquished any hunger Bravepaw felt.

"I buried it in the garden," Bravepaw meowed.

He stared at her. "As an apprentice, you aren't supposed to wander off on your own!"

"Apprentices do it all the time for assessments and hunts," she protested. She had a feeling they might be repeating their argument they'd had before the amputation. So much for Halfshine's promise to Harestar.

"You hardly know the territory enough to wander on your own," Halfshine meowed. She could hear the exasperation in his voice.

"Well I wasn't putting it in the dirtplace," Bravepaw meowed.

The garden, she felt, was the perfect place for her sister's missing limb. It would be a place Bravepaw could remember to take Hedgepaw. She had gotten it into her head that was the place for her sister's tail and she'd been determined to travel there. She had remembered the way the sun had been setting the night of the tunnel collapse and they'd first heard the news. She'd traveled the opposite direction. From there, although difficult, it wasn't impossible to find their scent trail and follow it back to the garden. Bravepaw wasn't about to voice her uncertainties now. Not when Harestar had just defended her ability to know her limits. She wasn't about to let Halfshine scold her for something she shouldn't have done. She admitted to herself she probably shouldn't have ventured that far, but nothing had happened to her in either direction.

To her surprise, Halfshine made no response. He quietly nosed a vole from the pile and straightened.

"Halfshine?"

"I think, if you insist on going off on your own, you need to learn how to protect yourself."

-Line-

The next morning, after they made sure Hedgepaw was doing well and that she and Cedarberry had food, Halfshine took Bravepaw to the training hollow. Much like the WindClan camp, this was a dip between two hills. A cat outside of WindClan might think the moorland was one flat expanse, but in reality, it was a series of rolling hills and thickets of gorse and heather. You had to be fast on the moor, but you also had to watch your step or risk injury from falling into a sudden hole or slope, or crashing into the thick tangles of gorse.

"Why do I need to know battle moves?" Bravepaw asked they padded into the dip. Much like at camp, the ground was sandy from frequent use, but wasn't as deep and it wasn't as wide as the gully. Her brothers weren't here today, and their scents weren't fresh. They were probably patrolling with their mentors today.

"You said we don't fight other cats," Bravepaw continued. "Why do I need to know how to fight?"

"As you said, I can't protect you forever."

She wondered if she was hearing the sullen tone correctly, but when he shook his fur and turned to face her, the dour expression she expected to see on his bi-colored face wasn't there.

"Battle moves aren't just for other cats," Halfshine meowed. "There are foxes, badgers, hawks, rogues who don't follow the code. The territory is full of dangers, Bravepaw. We can't be at their mercy and if you insist that you can travel the territory alone, then you need training. Of course, I'd rather you run than try to fight a fox, but if it comes down to it, make your mark. Fight back. Now, take your stance."

He crouched in front of her, keeping his tail low and ears back. It looked very much like when she and her brothers used to play fight. Though he was trying to look threatening, he lacked the muscular strength she'd come to associate with the warriors. He was thin and lithe, as were all WindClan cats, but he wasn't constantly training and she could see the difference. He did look more like her brothers than a true warrior.

"Bravepaw?" His expression didn't waver and she realized she had been staring at him without reaction to his order. She hoped she hadn't seen her amusement.

She crouched down and pulled her ears back. Her brothers had told her those would be the first to get shredded if she didn't protect them.

"Stay light on your feet," Halfshine meowed. "When I attack, you need to make sure my strike doesn't land on you, got it?"

She acknowledged she did, and he began to circle her. His face remained turned toward her as if he might leap at any moment. Bravepaw tried to keep him from getting behind her, but as she turned, her paws twisted on themselves. She was too slow and he was behind her before she knew it, swiping her back legs from under her. She felt her spine twist as her hip hit the sand.

"Pay attention to your paws!" Halfshine snapped, taking a step back.

"No fair," she meowed, untangling her back legs. "I don't know how I am supposed to block that when you're behind me!"

"Dodge, don't block. We are medicine cats, not warriors. You won't ever be strong enough against a larger opponent, be that fox, badger, or warrior who's trained every day to fight. Use what you do have: your head and your speed. Avoid the attack. Today, the best thing you can learn is a proper stance. Where and how you stand will be the most important feat you'll manage in battle if you aren't fleeing. Keep your balance, keep your head."

"You talk as though you were actually in a battle," Bravepaw meowed. She stood up, shaking the sand from her pelt.

"I did train as a warrior when I was younger," Halfshine meowed. "I was to be a moor runner. I wasn't an apprentice long enough to remember what I was taught. After Twistedbriar was killed, I asked to be taught to fight again. Just in case."

"How did Twistedbriar die?"

He did not reply right away. Instead, the tom began circling again. This time, Bravepaw tried to keep on her toes. If she didn't keep her paws flat, she was able to move them quicker and avoid getting tangled. She had to arch her back and her tail naturally wanted to make a similar hill, but she held it low beside her legs as Halfshine snaked around her.

When it looked as if she wasn't going to expose her back to him again, Halfshine swiped at his apprentice's forelegs. His claws were sheathed, but the movement was fierce. She backed away, trying to dodge, but her back legs didn't seem to want to move faster than her front and she fell down once more.

This time instead of letting her get back up, Halfshine launched toward her. He sprang into the air, arching toward her. Bravepaw saw the way his eyes locked onto where she'd fallen. She quickly rolled away, letting him hit the ground where she'd been. Back to him, she wasn't quick enough to dodge a second time when he easily pinned her shoulders down with a paw. He remained there for a moment and she looked up at him. He was staring at the undulating horizon where the heather and newly blossoming flowers bobbed in the breeze.

"She was torn apart by dogs," Halfshine meowed.

He lifted his paw and Bravepaw sat up. She listened as he told her about Twistedbriar's last living day.

"Some twoleg didn't have his pack on their vines," Halfshine meowed "She was out collecting herbs near the Thunderpath. I should have been the one to go, it was my duty to go places far from camp she couldn't make it on her paws, but she was stubborn. She hated it when I tried to keep her in camp, even though it would be easier for her. She said she wasn't going to let her disability stop her from doing what she wanted. She said she was venturing outside of camp before I was kitted and to mind my own business. That even Lichenfur didn't restrict her. That just because I was a full medicine cat for three moons didn't mean I could order her around."

He chuckled and then grew silent. "I was ill that day. Greencough or something I ate, I don't remember, but I wasn't up for travel. I suppose she thought I couldn't stop her. It wasn't like we even needed the herbs anyway. That was the greenleaf previous to the drought. When Twistedbriar was still alive, everything was still plentiful. She didn't need to go, but she did.

"She took Pheasant-tail with her. It was what she would do as an apprentice. Lichenfur always required Twistedbriar take a warrior with her when she left camp, to protect her from predators, but she was allowed to go where and when she wanted. Twistedbriar must have felt safe. But even Pheasant-tail couldn't defend them against three dogs. When he saw the dogs coming after them, he was taken by terror. He didn't have any thought in his head other than to run, he said. By the time he got back, the twoleg was gone, so was the dogs. There was barely anything left of Twistedbriar."

Bravepaw's throat grew tight as she stared at her mentor. She didn't like the images conjured by his words. It reminded her of prey she and her brothers played with when they were first learning to eat meat. Often the fur and meet were torn asunder and Cedarberry would be cleaning blood from the nest and their pelts sometime after.

"I am sorry," she meowed. She almost wished she hadn't asked. She hadn't wanted to case him distress. Twistedbriar hadn't been an old cat, that she knew. Everyone spoke of her demise and how sudden and unexpected it was. But Bravepaw had wondered what would motivate Halfshine to resume battle training.

"There was nothing anyone could have done," Halfshine meowed. "Even had I been there with Pheasant-tail, we couldn't have stopped it. I don't blame him. For a while I blamed her for not listening to me. If she'd stayed, maybe she would have lived. I don't know." He sighed. "When I yelled at her the next half-moon about it—this was in StarClan, you see—she told me to stop yowling and get back to work. That eventually something would have gotten her. I had better stop lamenting for what was lost and focus on taking care of WindClan in her absence."

"You saw her in StarClan?" Bravepaw's ears lifted.

"Yes." The joy on his face was genuine and it washed away the crinkles near his eyes and nose. "She didn't resent Pheasant-tail or her choice to leave camp that day. She was happy. She could run, Bravepaw. Twistedbriar was always beautiful, but she was never truly herself until she got to StarClan. In StarClan, cats can finally be free from pain."

"That sounds different than what you were saying before my ceremony," Bravepaw meowed. She tried not to remember two nights ago. Had it really been so recently? She wondered now if it would be a good time to bring up the vision. Tonight was the half-moon. The urgency of the vision hadn't yet faded, but the moorland seemed so peaceful. The troubles were in camp, not here.

Tonight either the vision of cats choking on their blood came true tonight, or she saw StarClan with the other medicine cats. She wasn't sure which would be worse. Halfshine made StarClan seem like a wonderful place filled with memories of cats he loved, and yet thoughts of disaster swirled in her head.

Halfshine's eyes shifted around the hollow as he made sure they were truly alone. "As much as I might discredit the belief cats have in StarClan's power, StarClan is not undesirable. There aren't any predators in their territory. It is a place for us to go after we're done with the hardships of our lives. Our belief in StarClan is the very core of our Clans. Without them, we wouldn't be. Cats have simply built them up to something more than they are. StarClan is death, but not all death is terrible. Now then, we are supposed to be training, not chattering. I want you to practice getting to your feet after you've been knocked down. Remember to be swift, you're a WindClan cat, not a RiverClan cat."

-Line-

It was said WindClan was closest to StarClan because of their nearness to the Moonstone. That was the tale Bravepaw had often heard in the nursery. She supposed that was true. For only in a matter of three days had Bravepaw traveled twice to the Moonstone. She couldn't imagine how long it took the other Clans. At this moment she wished the Moonstone was even farther away. She wished she didn't have to go back.

"Then there is Boleclaw," Halfshine meowed as they walked. "He used to be a warrior for ThunderClan. It was a surprise when he decided to become an apprentice, but there is no rule against it. He's been medicine cat of ThunderClan as far as I remember, but Twistedbriar said that Owlbark had been getting up in age and no young kit was interested in the position. Someone had to be medicine cat and Boleclaw volunteered in his retirement. He's been looking for his own apprentice since."

"What happens if a Clan doesn't have a medicine cat?" Bravepaw meowed.

"There has always been somecat," Halfshine meowed. "Eventually. The position is important, because without a medicine cat, the Clan cannot function. There is even a story about how WindClan once had two apprentices! When the medicine cat of, hmm, I think it was RiverClan, died suddenly one of them had to become their medicine cat."

"How did they decide who would go?" Bravepaw glanced at him with wide eyes.

"A series of competitions," Halfshine meowed. "The cat who lost had to switch Clans."

"That sounds horrible!" Bravepaw meowed. She couldn't imagine leaving behind her family to join a strange Clan.

"That is beside the point," Halfshine waved his tail. "Just know Boleclaw first instinct isn't always to apply herbs, rather who to fight. He can be rather blunt. Let's see, I already told you about Rainleaf and her new apprentice. She's a shy little thing, so don't frighten her."

They reached the verge Bravepaw remembered resting in the last time. As she finished crossing the Thunderpath and panted in the copse of trees, she wondered if Halfshine remembered his words about StarClan here. She wanted to ask him again. How powerful was StarClan? Why couldn't they just tell her what the vision meant so she could stop it if they themselves couldn't physically intervene?

She never got the chance, for while she recovered her breath, a cat shoved himself through the ferns, standing in front of them. He was a like a shadow that grew from the ground. Bravepaw hadn't scented him because the wind was blowing toward him. He'd picked a precise spot to be hidden from any cat that crossed the Thunderpath.

She squeaked in surprise and leapt to her feet. The ginger tom with gray spots gazed at her. "What has WindClan come to?" he drawled. "Choosing only cripples as medicine cats?"

"Excuse me?" Halfshine thrust himself between the tom and Bravepaw.

"First Twistedbriar and now this little kit?" the other tom insisted, peering over Halfshine's shoulder. His gaze was disdainful as he looked at Bravepaw. "Does WindClan want to lose their warriors to battle?"

"Bravepaw is not a cripple," Halfshine snarled.

Bravepaw watched as his fur bristled on end and his claw slid out. She slid her own claws out as she stared at the other tom. Where they actually going to fight? Who was this?

"Is this not the kit who fell?" the ginger and gray tom meowed. "Did she not break all her bones? Now I see her limping here on the halfmoon. How else am I to interrupt this?"

"My claw caught on the Thunderpath!" Bravepaw protested. It hurt now, a stinging pain. Just one claw, but she was limping the rest of the way. Now this other cat had seen that and saw her as weak!

"Don't defend yourself to him," Halfshine meowed over his shoulder. "I don't see where it is any of your business," Halfshine growled. "Where is Hollowbird, or Gracklemask?"

"Right here."

A black and white tom thrust through the bushes near the ginger. The warrior flicked his ears but did not otherwise acknowledge the new cat. This tom was mostly white, but splotches of black covered his eyes and dripped down his flank from a patch on his back. He wasn't as muscular as the first tom and Bravepaw had a feeling he was a medicine cat. He was young, but not as young as she was.

"Fungusnose," the new tom meowed. "I told you to keep watch, not threaten the others!"

"I wasn't threatening," the ginger and gray tom meowed. He turned his head to look over Halfshine and Bravepaw as if they weren't there. He didn't look ashamed.

"Your words aren't worthy of ShadowClan," the black-and-white tom meowed. "You show disrespect for WindClan and Twistedbriar. For that, Halfshine, I am sorry."

"Accepted, Gracklemask," Halfshine meowed. He slid in his claws, but Bravepaw could still see the bristling of his spine. "Why did you bring this warrior tonight, and where is Hollowbird?"

"She went on ahead," Gracklemask twitched his ears in the direction of the mountains. "I had to make dirt."

"She went ahead?" Fungusnose meowed. He looked shocked. "I am supposed to keep an eye on you!"

Gracklemask snorted. "We'll be fine here, Fungusnose. The foxes aren't living this far out of our territory."

"Foxes?" Halfshine meowed.

Gracklemask nodded. "Got a family of them on our territory between ShadowClan and WindClan. Slantstar wanted a warrior to keep an eye on us to make sure we didn't run into trouble."

"Don't go sharing our weaknesses," Fungusnose growled.

"It isn't a weakness to pass on a warning," the medicine cat snorted. "WindClan probably already knows, but since it isn't between them and the Moonstone, they don't need warriors to keep an eye on their medicine cats."

He was exasperated and Bravepaw couldn't blame him. She didn't like the ShadowClan warrior either. She couldn't imagine what it would be like to be escorted everywhere by one.

"I hope he will be outside the Mothermouth while we go inside," Halfshine meowed, staring balefully at the warrior.

The warrior crinkled his nose back but made no response.

"He will," Gracklemask agreed.

"Good, we don't need warriors on a night like this," a new voice meowed. "They have all the other days of the moon to visit the Moonstone. Tonight is our night."

Bravepaw turned to see a silvery-gray she-cat with black markings cross the silent Thunderpath. Beside her was a white she-cat with ginger paws. It had to be Rainleaf and her apprentice Divepaw. Bravepaw tried to remember what Halfshine had said about them, but the meeting with Fungusnose made her forget most of his words.

The final cat trailed behind the RiverClan medicine cat: Boleclaw. The dark-gray nearly black tom with the long fur was covered in scars from his ears, tail, and across his limbs. He was the biggest of the gathered cats. He was like LionClan had come to visit them.

For some reason she felt like hiding behind Halfshine's legs like a kit. There were so many other strange cats here. Their scents intermingled, all unfamiliar.

"We've been following your scent-trail for a while now," Rainleaf meowed. Her voice was shaky with age and her joints stood out like that of an elder. She seemed of an age with Boleclaw, but much smaller.

"What is the hold up?" Boleclaw rumbled.

"A little misunderstanding with Fungusnose," Halfshine meowed, staring at the ShadowClan warrior.

"I hope it is over with," Boleclaw meowed. His words were crisp and quick. His words cut to the quick of the matter. He was evidently uninterested in their drama. "We need to get to the Moonstone before midnight."

"Let's go," Gracklemask meowed eagerly. "Hollowbird is already ahead."

"Good," Rainleaf meowed. "Now, tell me about these foxes, I thought I overheard you speak of?"

As she thrust herself forward to stand beside Gracklemask, Halfshine took the rear with Boleclaw. Behind them trailed Bravepaw and Divepaw. The other apprentice watched her mentor before ducking back and padding beside Bravepaw.

"Hi," the she-cat meowed. Her voice was barely above a whisper and her eyes lowered nervously when Bravepaw turned her way.

"Hello."

"You're Bravepaw, right?"

"How did you know?" Bravepaw meowed. Had the others overheard that too? She felt a flush of heat roll through her. Her paw still twinged but she kept herself from limping. She was not about to show weakness in front of the others. She found herself mentally thanking Halfshine for taking her sooner to the Moonstone, despite all the troubles she'd experienced sine that night.

"Everybody was talking about you," Divepaw meowed. Her ears lifted and for a moment the shy demeanor left her face for an expression of awe. "I mean, it is not every day a kit is returned by a predator!"

"Some stories pass through the Clans during Gatherings," Halfshine meowed, twitching an ear back. "Yours was one of them."

"Not to mention Halfshine asked us for help in your recovery," Boleclaw meowed. "To see you walking and has healthy as you are is a blessing from StarClan. I didn't expect you to snag her as your apprentice, Halfshine."

"It was her choice," Halfshine meowed.

"So, if everyone knows who I am, then why was is that bug-eater so vile?" Bravepaw demanded, staring at Fungusnose's back.

"Lost his own kits to a snake," Boleclaw meowed quietly. "Don't be too harsh on him."

Halfshine's steps faltered for a moment. "I didn't know."

"Met him at the border once," Boleclaw meowed in his quick and blunt way. "Talked to him about it then. No doubt he wishes his own kits could have been saved like Bravepaw. Still, it is the way of warriors to see all other cats as their enemies."

"I am glad medicine cats don't," Bravepaw sighed. Already she was feeling at ease with these other cats. Boleclaw gave her an amused looked.

"Not enemies," Halfshine meowed. "We are friendly with each other. Still, we will protect our Clans against the others if it comes to the choice."

"True," Boleclaw meowed. "But medicine cats are more inclined to help each other, despite Clan borders. That, I have grown to appreciate."

"Speaking of helping each other out," Halfshine meowed. "I need advice about infection. You see a recent patient of mine. . ."

The toms' conversation shifted to Hedgepaw. Bravepaw found herself listening to Halfshine ask advice on how to keep the stump from becoming reinfected. She was amazed at how impartial Halfshine was able to be about Hedgepaw and not sound worried for her life.

"How long have you been an apprentice?" Divepaw meowed, interrupting Bravepaw's eavesdropping.

"Uh, four days? You?

"Two moons. This is your first visit to the Moonstone?"

"I've um, been here before," Bravepaw confessed. "It was fine."

Divepaw's ears lifted and for a moment she didn't seem to know what to say. As if "fine" was the biggest understatement she'd ever heard about the Moonstone.

"Did you press your nose to the stone?" Divepaw suggested gently. "Because nothing happens unless you do."

"I did. It was. . . was different." There was no way she was burdening gentle Divepaw with the vision.

Divepaw seemed to sense the other apprentice's disinterest in talking. She took a few steps back and let Bravepaw walk in silence. Bravepaw couldn't help but feel dishonest about the whole thing. Poor Divepaw had been trying to talk with her, but Bravepaw hadn't the heart to keep up the conversation.

When they reached the Moonstone, Fungusnose was left behind outside as promised. He took a position on a flat rock and gazed at the slope as if daring anything to attack the group of cats. The rest of them filed in. Divepaw was right behind Rainleaf, leaving Halfshine and Bravepaw the last to enter the tunnel. Inside, another cat awaited them. A fully black she-cat lay pressed with her nose against the stone. She was already sharing visions with StarClan.

"What was so urgent?" Rainleaf meowed. "It isn't Slantstar is it? I heard he was on his last life since last leafbare."

"No," Gracklemask meowed. "Not him. Loamypelt wants to retire. Slantstar is thinking of picking another deputy, but his choice is rather, hmm, unusual."

"Unusual?" Rainleaf's whiskers twitched. "How so? Hasn't had an apprentice yet?"

Gracklemask shifted his eyes and lowered his voice. "She wouldn't want me saying, but. . . You should know. Slantstar wants to pick a cat from another Clan!"

"You are a bad of gossip as Rainleaf," Boleclaw meowed. He settled by the rock beside the still-sleeping Hollowbird.

"Is that possible?" Divepaw meowed.

"I don't see why not," Rainleaf meowed. "The code only says the deputy needs to have trained an apprentice, not that they need to be from the same Clan as the leader that picks them."

"If we go by the words rather than the spirit, then even you could a deputy," Boleclaw shook his head. "Do you really think the Clan would trust an outsider?"

"What cat is it?" Rainleaf meowed, looking back at Gracklemask.

"I would rather not say," he meowed quietly. "Hollowbird wouldn't want me saying. She might still be able to get Slantstar to change his mind. She wanted StarClan's support. I mean if they accept Slantstar's choice then who are we to protest? I've wondered if they are mates and it's his way to get her into the Clan."

There was a shushing noise from Rainleaf. "Don't say that, Gracklemask! That would be against the code. You all call me a gossip, but I don't say things that aren't true."

"And hedgehogs fly," Halfshine muttered.

Boleclaw chuckled. "Well, I wouldn't want to be either cat. Just as long as one of ThunderClan's best isn't stolen, this is a matter between Hollowbird, you, StarClan, and Slantstar."

"Very true," Rainleaf nodded. "Now then, let's visit StarClan. Halfshine, you were going to present your apprentice?"

"I already have," Halfshine meowed.

"Now that is unfair," Rainleaf meowed. "I wanted to be a part of it! I forgot to tell you how happy I am that you found an apprentice. I know Twistedbriar would be too!"

"I know she was," Halfshine meowed as though having heard it from his former mentor himself.

He was lying. Bravepaw knew it because neither of them had seen Twistedbriar the other night. His tone didn't change and his gestures didn't betray the falsehood and none of the other medicine cats realized his lie that neither he nor Bravepaw knew how StarClan felt about the newest apprentice. All they had received was the vision. Which Bravepaw noticed her mentor didn't bring up. Not once.

She decided to follow his direction and said nothing as well. Still she felt uneasy as she peered up at the halfmoon above them in the cavern roof. It was not covered in blood and that was the only good sign.

The other cats lay around the Moonstone. They circled around the brilliant stone. Bravepaw took her position beside Halfshine. He was to her left and Divepaw to her right. The other apprentice gave her a reassuring look before pressing her nose into the stone. One by one, each cat pressed their nose to the stone and fell asleep. Even Halfshine. Reluctantly Bravepaw copied them and pressed her nose to the stone, but she did not wish to sleep. She fought against the tug, for she did feel it, but she refused to give in. She did not want to see more pain.

To distract herself, Bravepaw squinted open one eye. Divepaw twitched. She opened the other eye to see Halfshine staring at her. She flinched and then breathed out to calm her racing heart.

"Why aren't you sleeping?" Bravepaw demanded in a whisper.

"Why aren't you?" he meowed back.

She looked away. "I don't want to see StarClan."

"What?" His voice echoed in the cavern. When she looked back at him, his eyes were wide. "Why not? Now is our chance to learn about the vision."

"Why don't you?" she challenged back. "I notice you were pretending to sleep when everyone was watching, why can't I?"

"I. . ." His whiskers twitched as he seemed to struggle for the words. The whites of his ears were turning red. "I will. Soon. Now, go talk to StarClan."

She nodded toward the stone. "You first."

"I promise you this won't be like last time," Halfshine meowed. He stretched one paw toward hers.

"Can you really?" she peered at him. Her heart was beating fast. She looked at his eyes. Was he lying like before?

His eyes slid from hers. "No, I can't. But. . . StarClan doesn't normally do that. Visiting the Moonstone and StarClan has always been reassuring for medicine cats. Go, visit them. I am sure they want to talk to you about what happened last time."

Why didn't they want to talk to him about it? Bravepaw wondered. Was it because she was the one who'd seen the vision? She shook her head. That didn't matter. He, like her, had chosen not to visit StarClan tonight. She wanted to know why. Hadn't something similar happened last time? She remembered him reluctantly showing her how to touch her nose to the stone. He'd been awake to shake her from the vision as if he'd never fallen asleep to begin with.

"I want to know why you were pretending first," Bravepaw meowed.

"This isn't about me," Halfshine protested. "Now isn't the time to discuss this."

His eyes darted to the other cats around the stone. Bravepaw could see they were twitching and squirming. They didn't look very comfortable.

"Is this what it looks like when we visit StarClan?" Bravepaw meowed as Divepaw began to thrash. It seemed rather painful.

"No," Halfshine's voice was a whisper. He got to his feet and shook Boleclaw roughly. "Boleclaw?"

Divepaw gave a cry and lurched to her feet. Her shout seemed to waken the rest. Bravepaw watched as the others' eyes opened. They stared about. Their eyes were wide and their fur bristled.

"The blood," Divepaw whimpered.

In that moment Bravepaw knew exactly what the other cats had seen. She looked at Halfshine. He met her gaze and closed his eyes. He had been lying again, but this time he hadn't meant to.

Voting for Bravepaw's name is still allowed! If you don't have an account, but really want to make a name choice, then write it in the comments (but only if you haven't voted before, please). And please leave a comment with that vote if you could. I would appreciate it.