The journey was already feeling long, an egregious stain on Bramblepaw's paws as he padded along with his clanmates. They were already starting to look half starved, the days quiet amongst the clans other than pausing in the mountains to find prey. Bramblepaw even found the prey itself was lacking in most areas, the trails were long and it felt as if he was personally being preyed upon by even the skies. Large birds circled overhead, a few of Windclan's cats repeating the word "hawk" and warning others that they were dangerous and that the clans should at least try and seek shelter amidst the growing waves of danger.

Every trail the clans took was narrow and long, and some cats did their best to stick to the cliff face when faced with the long fall on the opposite side of the trail. Bramblepaw felt the same way, the height was dizzying and he was afraid of the long fall.

If anyone dies, will they meet with Starclan? Bramblepaw wondered to himself, not knowing if Starclan occupied these skies or not. Silverpelt was shining above now, the clans resting in the crevice nearby that seemed to lead into a larger cavern, but none dared go deeper inside. What few kits there were, the queens were keeping huddled close, and the apprentices had become terrified since the battle of practically every little movement.

Their fears compared little to Bramblepaw's, who could practically see Tigerstar in his own shadow every day. When his mind wasn't on the long drops below or the towering peaks that rose way above, Bramblepaw's mind constantly thought of Tigerstar's dark amber eyes and the bloodlust behind every heartbeat, every reason the tom had to live. If Tigerstar was in Silverpelt somewhere, he was afraid of the future. How could Starclan let such an evil tom into their ranks? A father who was never around, one who tried to make his kits into something they weren't…

With his mind on Tawnypaw, Bramblepaw glanced to the sleeping she-cat, feeling a surge of anger as his claws unsheathed and scraped the rock beneath him. His ears remained perked, listening to the sounds of the howling wind outside the crevice, and glancing up to his clanmates. Amber eyes glistened in the soft moonlight, Bramblepaw watching each of his sleeping clanmates.

He had volunteered to stay up, fear of nightmares keeping him on his paws. It wouldn't be long until he became a night-cat at this rate, unable to sleep over the terrors that haunted his dreams. The daylight would probably bring a deep-seeded tiredness that wouldn't go away, and if he stayed up further, the night may keep him awake again.

Firestar had reluctantly agreed to let the apprentice warn the clans of any potential danger, but Bramblepaw was determined to keep the clans safe from the clutches of those like Tigerstar… or the more likely, hawks.

Shuffling his paws, he slipped back closer to the entrance of the crevice, ears perked. All he could hear was the howling wind, and what sounded like the distant echo of snores behind him. Along the opposite wall outside the crevice, between the trail and the cliff face, was another of the long drops into an abyss. The darkness encompassing the outside world felt evil and dark, the air thick for how fast it could move and weave between rocks.

In the darkness, however, Bramblepaw thought he could hear the sounds of paw steps. Leaning forward, the dark tabby narrowed his eyes and tried to peer into the dark world outside, feeling as if his clans had disappeared from behind him. The tom glanced back to double check if the clans were still safe, noticing all had fallen asleep, each one curled up. Seeing how thin they were made Bramblepaw's heart skip a beat, but he slipped out into the howling winds.

His fur immediately blew back, Bramblepaw needing to keep his eyes narrowed in order to see more than a few feet ahead of himself. With his amber gaze looking upwards, he took note of the winding trails that lay above him like a maze. Shadows cast everywhere as the waning moon remained above a half moon in the sky. Bramblepaw slipped forward, following the weird sounds that captivated his attention. Each paw step he made was one more step closer to the sound, it almost sounded as if it was the speaking of cats. Meows with dialects that Bramblepaw wasn't quite sure of. The accents were somewhat thicker, stronger, and Bramblepaw could feel the power behind the words.

Yet he couldn't hear specifically what the voices were saying. They were distant echoes, similar to how his clanmates sounded, though Bramblepaw continued to push against the howling winds.

Ears perked, Bramblepaw paused and heard the sound of more paw steps from behind him. Turning around, the tom noticed the familiar calico pelt of Tawnypaw. Her green eyes remained soft, her head tilted and her tail ever so slightly raised in greeting.

From her stance, she hadn't been trying to sneak up on him.

"I… hope I didn't wake you," Bramblepaw mumbled, glancing back up the trail. The voices of the cats had since stopped, so he quickly turned his attention to Tawnypaw.

"No, sleep has been… difficult, but from the way you've been treating sleep, I can tell you feel the same," Tawnypaw replied, glancing up the trail. "Do you really think it is safe out here with those hawks Windclan keeps mentioning?" Tawnypaw questioned after a heartbeat silence. Her gaze betrayed her fear, but at the same time, Bramblepaw could see his own curiosity in her gaze. She wanted to know what was further up the trail, and what exactly was around these mountains.

Bramblepaw shrugged. "No, I am quite unsure, but I… thought I heard something," he admitted, left ear flicking once as he awaited a response from Tawnypaw. Instead of seeing any recoil or any ideas of him getting crazy, he continued to speak. "I thought I heard other cats, but I couldn't make out what they were saying."

Tawnypaw watched him momentarily before glancing back up the trail. "Well, you are supposed to be warning the clans of danger… We should make sure there is danger in the first place, and two of us is better than one anyways. Come on." Tawnypaw slipped past Bramblepaw, closer to the abyss than he was, and moved up ahead on the trail. "If there are two of us, then one can run and let our clans know of the danger. Hopefully before the other one is seriously hurt."

Not seeing much flaw in the logic, and not particularly interested in going back to the crevice, Bramblepaw followed after his sister.

There wasn't any resistance as they reached the top, hopping up onto the rocks. Bramblepaw's paw pads felt raw, the three days in the mountains had felt like an extra moon, and his curiosity hadn't gotten the best of him until now. The mountains felt more like a death trap than a place for cats to stay, but Bramblepaw digressed as his eyes gazed around the flat rock sprawled out ahead of them. It was long, for certain, but his eyes spotted no cats amidst the surfaces of the rock. The kin padded along the rocky surface, feeling little in the way of other dirt and grass beneath their paws while the smell of rain was quickly moving upon them.

"We will need to find shelter soon," Bramblepaw commented negatively, his ears flicking as they continued to trek along the rocks. "Rain is coming, and from the smell of it, a storm." It would explain the heaviness from earlier, the air was already thick with the deep scent of the rocks.

"You're right," Tawnypaw replied as she stopped after a couple more paw steps. "Do you want to keep searching for these cats you heard or make our way back?"

Bramblepaw glanced over the rocky flat surfaces, the moon casting just enough glow for him to make out silhouettes of large rocks. In the distance, a pair of two light blue orbs caught his attention, glowing in the moonlight. "What's that?" he asked, indicating with his paw to the two orbs. The wind made it difficult to quite make out what it was at first.

"What?" Tawnypaw questioned as she turned back around, following where Bramblepaw had indicated. "I don't see anything," Tawnypaw replied as she tried to search for whatever mysterious thing Bramblepaw had motioned to.

"It looks like…" Bramblepaw paused, leaning forward and trying to make out the shape. He could see the orbs a bit more clearly, they had been cat eyes! Bramblepaw's heart stopped, noticing the eyes were staring straight at him. The cat was unrecognizable, Bramblepaw couldn't even really see the pelt until the silhouette moved and stood up, revealing the lithe body of a she-cat. Her ears were perked and her whiskers glowed a deep silver color that was shining almost as much as any star in the night sky. "It looks like a cat," Bramblepaw mumbled.

Tawnypaw shook her head. "I don't see it…" she mumbled back, her meow remaining quiet just in case.

As Tawnypaw spoke, the silver she-cat bounded off, disappearing behind a large gray rock. As she did, Bramblepaw stood up and started to follow.

"What do you think you're doing?" Tawnypaw hissed quietly, but unwilling to let Bramblepaw go alone, began to follow after him.

"I want to follow her," Bramblepaw replied in a hushed tone, feeling a droplet of water dab his nose. They didn't have that much time if they wanted to be back before the storm started. "She moved behind that rock, I don't want to lose her." Bramblepaw didn't wait for Tawnypaw to speak, his fur ruffling from the wind as he swiftly moved forward. While he didn't take a sneaking crouch, he was certain to at least try and be somewhat light on his paws.

When he travelled the lengthy distance, Bramblepaw moved up to the rock and heard the sounds of rushing water nearby. The icy wind buffeted his fur, yet Bramblepaw continued forward without thinking about the weather. Nearby, he could hear the sounds of paw steps not his or Tawnypaw's, and he quickly turned towards them and started to follow.

"Careful, would you?" Tawnypaw whispered from behind Bramblepaw.

The tom ignored her completely and didn't even acknowledge her words, the mysterious she-cat he had seen was just ahead, he knew it. He had questions, and he wanted to know where this cat had come from. If there was one up here, there was bound to be far more. Unless it was a rogue, but Bramblepaw couldn't see a rogue wanting to live this far up in the mountains. The idea – to Bramblepaw – wasn't tangible. This place just wasn't suited for cats.

As his paws continued to carry him forward, a sweet and soft scent blew into his nose, the wind carrying the scent from further up. "This way," Bramblepaw told Tawnypaw as he hopped over an old and long decayed log. Tawnypaw made no comment…

Bramblepaw almost moved too far, his paws sliding on the surface of the rock as he glanced down, a river moving between him and the far bank. The rock below him was raised slightly, not getting very wet from the river, but there was a lower set of rocks acting like a riverbank like back home. There was no mud here, just slippery rock that couldn't – or shouldn't – be walked upon.

"We should turn back," Tawnypaw suggested, her own gaze landing on the glossy black river. "There isn't anything here for us. We will only get lost if we go farther ahead, and the rain has already started."

Tawnypaw was right, Bramblepaw could already feel his pelt beginning to cling to his body and his fur starting to weigh on his body. But stubbornness kept him from turning back. "I have to find that cat," Bramblepaw meowed, taking a few paw steps back and crouching. "And I'm not stopping until I do." The energy Bramblepaw had was new, and even Tawnypaw seemed to notice, her tail flicking repeatedly as she stood in front of him, blocking Bramblepaw from trying to leap over the river.

"Mouse brain! Both of us are going to come down with whitecough if we remain out here for too long," Tawnypaw argued. "We have to go back, the storm is going to catch us now no matter what so we need to go back." The calico glared towards Bramblepaw, who only shook his head.

"Then go back, I'll be fine," Bramblepaw replied as he gently nudged his sister away from the ledge of the river. Tawnypaw bared her teeth.

"Bramblepaw! We can check it out after the storm but we need to go back to the clan, make sure they're safe!" Tawnypaw continued to argue, her ears pinning back. "I don't want to find you dead at sunrise because a hawk found you for its midnight snack."

"I'm not stupid, Tawnypaw, I'm fine," Bramblepaw snapped, standing at full with amber eyes glowing in irritation. "I'm going to follow that cat."

When bramble entwines with silver… Bramblepaw couldn't help but repeat the words of the prophecy Starclan had spoken of, and if that she-cat had such a silver coat… Would she be someone Bramblepaw needed to meet? The she-cat was more important in Bramblepaw's mind than the clans at the moment, he had to follow her.

Tawnypaw didn't seem to be having any of it. "Fine! Catch whitecough for all I care, Bramblepaw," she hissed, backing away from the ledge with her tail lowered and her ears plastered to the sides of her head. "Don't drown…" she mumbled as she began to pad away, her head remaining low as she gave Bramblepaw a last glance.

"I won't," Bramblepaw replied as he got back into his crouch, taking another few paw steps backwards. He could hear Tawnypaw's paw steps for only a few moments more before the calico disappeared and Bramblepaw was left alone on his quest.

Taking a long breath, he could still smell the sweet and soft scent of the silver she-cat, and Bramblepaw darted forward, gaining as much momentum as he could possibly manage. At the last second, Bramblepaw launched himself off the edge, pushing his body upwards and as high into the air as he could manage. A harsh wind pushed from behind him, as if boosting the apprentice towards the other side. By the time he was actually falling, he was well over trajectory and he landed on his paws. Wet stone made Bramblepaw slip, the tom crying out as he smacked his face against the rock along with his chest and side.

Bramblepaw didn't get up for several heartbeats, his body already sore from the journey and doubly so after the fall. When he did get up, he heard his bones creak and pop, and the sound of rain was harsher than the wind itself. Shaking his head to get the blood flowing, Bramblepaw glanced around, the rain creating an almost fog like effect as Bramblepaw's vision only went so far.

With the only trail being to follow the she-cat's scent, Bramblepaw began to move forward. A sore body wasn't going to stop him as he pushed his way past rocks, bushes, weeds and long decayed trees. There was no sound of other cats, or even prey, as the rain began to pour down much more harshly. While the weather might be harsh, Bramblepaw wasn't giving up, his heart set out for finding this she-cat as he continued to push forward…

Until his front paws met with nothing.

I-I walked off the ledge! Bramblepaw's eyes widened in despair as his body careened downwards, his paws desperately trying to grab something as his amber eyes brightened in fear. "No!" he cried out, scrabbling to try and get a paw hold on something, ears pinned back as his back paws flipped above his head. His jaw gaped open in a cry of shrill terror, before his body hit something hard and he immediately blacked out…

Bramblepaw slowly opened his eyes at the plop of a droplet of water hitting his nose. The young apprentice groaned, his body screeching at him to stop moving, and he could barely see anything in the darkness surrounding him. His paws moved beneath his chest, his head having been resting on a lightly raised rock as he awkwardly and gradually lifted himself up and off the ground. Below him, Bramblepaw realized he had landed in a rather large puddle of water. His body was drenched, fur clinging to his sides and making him look exceptionally thin in comparison to what a cat should have been.

Dragging himself out of the little pool of water, Bramblepaw turned around and looked up. The storm had passed, and the moon was shining down through a hole in the roof of the cavern. The water that Bramblepaw had spent a lot of time soaking into his own fur seemed to reflect the moonlight almost perfectly. The moon reflected back, entering Bramblepaw's view as he glanced at it.

Almost immediately, he felt like eyes were watching him. The stars seemed to surround the moon in a perfect circle, even moving around the dark portion of the moon that was missing. Another droplet of water splashed into the pool, ripples slipping through the water as the moon seemed to shift and wax until full. Bramblepaw blinked, pausing for a heartbeat before tentatively stepping forward to get a better view of the small pool as it morphed and changed.

The moon continued to shift and morph in the rippling waters, Bramblepaw watching and feeling mesmerized by the waters as the stars shifting across the black water.

It wasn't long until the moon's shape took that of a cat's face, a silver glow to her pelt with a black patch of fur over her right eye. Bramblepaw tilted his head in confusion, wondering who this cat was as he tilted his head slowly.

"Welcome to the Cave of Pointed Stones, young one."

The voice made Bramblepaw jump, his body instantly whirling around and seeing nothing in the darkness beyond the light of the reflected pool of water. His amber gaze tried to search for something, anything, but there was no other light.

"I'm right here."

Bramblepaw turned back around, seeing the she-cat from the surface as she had appeared from nearby a rock formation. Pointed rocks aimed both down and up, many of them with sharp tips that Bramblepaw hadn't realized. If the hole above had been any further in any direction, well… Bramblepaw would be crow food, to say the least.

The silver she-cat's lithe figure moved forward, towards Bramblepaw before sitting beside him at the edge of the pool of water.

"This is a rather beautiful sight, is it not?" she asked, tail raised as her smile seemed to light up the cavern all on its own with a warm glow of white and sharp fangs. "This place used to be filled with cats happily eating and learning to love one another and connect with the stars," the cat continued, sitting beside the pool and stretching her front paws. Bramblepaw had no idea who this cat was, but her accent was similar to that of the ones he had heard before. A bit thicker, and while her body was lithe and agile, her muscle tone was much more than that of a normal warrior. She stood almost twice as tall as Bramblepaw…

"Who are you?" Bramblepaw asked.

"A good question," the she-cat replied, her eyes not leaving the puddle of water. "The name I was given was Moon Above the Horizon, but you can just call me Moon."

Odd name, Bramblepaw thought without commenting on it aloud. Offending the she-cat was the last thing on his mind. "My name is-."

"I know what your name is," Moon purred softly, her tail swaying from side to side as she leaned down and continuously watched the moon in the water. "Bramblepaw, an apprentice of the long-running clans. Many moons have passed since the clans were formed," the she-cat commented, making Bramblepaw shiver. Who was this cat? How could she possibly know such things? Bramblepaw felt nothing but bewilderment and curiosity. "I will not ask what you have seen in the pool," Moon continued as she finally moved her blue gaze away from the water and having her eyes land on Bramblepaw's amber. "That vision is for you and you alone. The skies are a mysterious place, Bramblepaw, they contain many secrets if one knows how to look for them."

"The skies?" Bramblepaw repeated, tail flicking. This cat's mysterious words made little sense to Bramblepaw, and he looked back down to the pool.

Moon giggled very lightly. "This place was once home to cats like your own, but unlike the clans, we were known as the Tribe of Rushing Water," Moon replied as she remained patient. "When the Tribe first arrived here, they found these caves, and one cat was appointed as the Teller of the Pointed Stones. Stoneteller, as he would be called by the Tribe as a short name, would read signs in this very cave. Few cats know how to read the signs, and some stumble upon signs and never see them again. The Tribe's ancestors – like your Starclan – have been mysterious for many, many seasons."

"What does… this have to do with me?" Bramblepaw queried.

"For you? Nothing," Moon meowed. "But this history is important to the clans themselves, for they wouldn't exist without the Tribe."
"What do you mean?" Bramblepaw pondered further, feeling his curiosity slowly being settled as he realized this cat had many answers to questions he had plenty of.

Moon didn't response at first, as if in thought, before smiling. "The Tribe had a lot of troubles up here, so they sent cats away to find a new place to live. They never returned, but those cats would go on to form the five clans. Thunderclan, a clan of bravery and strength. Riverclan, a clan of sleekness and defense. Shadowclan, the clan of subtlety and stealth. Windclan, the clan of speed and grace. And Skyclan, the clan of climbing and agility."

"Skyclan?" Bramblepaw shook his head. "Wouldn't the fifth clan be Starclan?"

"No, they are the sixth clan, and they walked the skies so that the clans could survive their first heated battles. That time was so long ago, the stories were changed many times over." Moon settled down, her paws tucked beneath her chest. "The Tribe never heard from the five clans again, they didn't even know the clans were formed as the travelling cats had grown apart from each other."

Bramblepaw had a sleuth of new questions. "What… What happened to Skyclan?" he asked, wondering how and where the fifth clan could even exist.

"Another good question, for it pertains to an uncertain and unsteadily changing future for the clans," the she-cat replied, her voice losing the lighthearted tone from before as she watched the pool with a frown. Bramblepaw began to watch the pool now too, seeing it morph again into the silhouette of many cats against the outline of the moon. "Skyclan's destiny was unfair," Moon stated. "They were warriors of a different caliber, living in tall trees beyond Riverclan and Thunderclan territory. When twolegs built new nests in their territory, the other clans forced them out, even when they begged for a small piece of each of the other territories." Moon shook her head in disappointment. "News quickly spread of their leaving, but the clans only assumed they disbanded, Skyclan brought some of Starclan with them instead. They moved far away, to a gorge following the river between Riverclan and Thunderclan territory. Last I heard, they were struggling to survive." Moon flexed her claws, jaw briefly clenching momentarily before she continued. "Skyclan was driven out, and in the moons to come, you will need to train as hard as ever, Bramblepaw. The twolegs are planning to one day move into that territory, into the territory where the clans once stayed. Scourge's Bloodclan will follow the trail of the clans when that happens, and try and take your new territory. I cannot tell you how many seasons you have left, but you will become the warrior your clans need you to be."

"That's… a lot of pressure," Bramblepaw thought stupidly, trying to wrap his head around the ideas he was just presented with. "But why would Scourge follow us? We want nothing to do with him, he got what he wanted."

"Like I said, the twolegs will destroy everything. There will be no prey, there will be no territory, and Scourge and his clan will have learned and gotten used to hunting well for once, rather than digging up twoleg leftovers. They know the clans left, after all, and when they return, you will need to beat them again. Scourge will remain the nemesis of the clans for a long ways to come…"

"Why are you telling me this?" Bramblepaw replied as the pool image morphed into the familiar black cat with white paws and the dark violet collar of teeth and claws around his neck.

A silence hung in the air as Moon didn't speak, the she-cat shaking her head. "Because I don't want to see the clans fall due to another stupid mistake. Firestar was supposed to be the cat to save the clans, he was supposed to be a part of a huge prophecy foretelling moons of other prophecies, intertwined and interconnected until everything was wrapped neatly and tightly in the final battle. That future is long gone, and the stars are scared of what is to come."

"They're scared…" Bramblepaw echoed before shaking his head. "What… Whatever happened to the Tribe, then, if they lived here?"

"Prey got too scarce one leaf-bare, the prey stopped running and the clan passed from sickness. The few who survived were the ones who left the mountains, the Stoneteller of the time too stubborn to leave their home, along with many others. You'll meet a descendent of theirs when you arrive by the lake."

"Is she important?"

"I cannot say."
"You can't or you won't?"

"I can't," Moon confirmed. "I have no idea if this cat will be of any help to you, I just know their history, like I know a lot of history. I have walked the skies for a rather long time, Bramblepaw, and I know many things about the clans, the tribe, and plenty of other groups of cats with ancestors. There are many more than just Starclan, and maybe one day, you'll get to meet them… But it is important that the clans do not fall, failure in the clans might be a failure for many more cats, and the future generations who have potential to love and be loved."

"And you want me to know so that I can stop it," Bramblepaw realized as his gaze landed on the water, seeing the she-cat with the black patch of fur over her eye. "Then am I the only one who can save these clans?"

"I don't even know that, many other prophecies were foretold well before the events," Moon explained quietly. "You were supposed to see Midnight and talk to her, you were supposed to kill a cat to protect your clan, your mate was supposed to have a litter of three kits whom she would lie to you about to protect her sister, and those three kits would go on to become the strongest of the clan in order to protect them in the final battle. Many things were supposed to happen, but they didn't. Everything is skewed, and the future is very uncertain. Starclan saw a new future, but I don't even think they are certain of that future, and what you may become."

Bramblepaw took a deep breath, his ears flicking as he looked up through the hole in the cavernous roof. The moon was slipping out of view now, much time had passed since he first arrived here and he knew he had to be going back to the clans soon. Someone probably took over his shift already, or maybe they were looking for him… Bramblepaw didn't know.

Turning his gaze back down, Bramblepaw blinked as he realized Moon wasn't beside him anymore, the cavern plunging into darkness…

"But… I still had more questions…" Bramblepaw thought as he glanced around, his eyes adjusting to the darkness.

Moon wasn't there anymore, and Bramblepaw was left to sit alone in front of the pool that continued to reflect the stars overhead, which had glowed brightly… The image of the she-cat was gone, and only Bramblepaw's reflection looked him back, his amber eyes dim with uncertainty.

~~Author's Note

Yeah it has been a hot minute, I've been trying to decide what to do with this point of the rewrite of my story. In the original, the Tribe was here but they weren't important at all to the main plot, they were just kind of... There. I decided it might be best just to use this way, the Tribe being long gone at this point and a mysterious cat who is able to explain that things weren't meant to be the way that they were. And thus... Moon was born. Maybe she will come back! Anyways, I hope this was enjoyable, I've had a lot to go over these past couple weeks. My laptop internet isn't doing so hot with games so I was spending a lot of time researching PC parts and such, and I dropped a lot of money on a new desktop (which I've never had before and I never built a PC before so I'm doing that now!) and just the day before releasing this chapter after finishing it, I just got the crown of my root canal done. So yay! No more dentist appointments until January! I'm totally not terrified of people rooting around my mouth for hours doing shit in there I can't see... Bleh.

Anyways, I hope everyone enjoys their day! I'll try to get the next chapter out soon, I have all day so I might do a lot more writing than usual to catch up a bit after the two week hiatus!