Fireheart licked a scratch on his side. He closed his eyes as he tried to ignore the ribs he felt as he ran his tongue through his fur. He did his best to ignore the pain in his stomach, whether the turning spasms he felt there were presently from lack of food or how rotten the last thing he had eaten was could be debated. Either way, those pains were things that had become common and he had to put up with them.

A moon had passed since Bluestar's death and Fireheart was stuck. Stuck in ThunderClan, surrounded by cats that he had once shared prey with – once shared dens with – that now hated him. He was stuck in this den as well, it seemed Tigerclaw – now Tigerstar, had a different stance than Bluestar on how prisoners should be treated.

Hunger had become a familiar to Fireheart, he was given food, that much was true, but the last piece of prey that had been decent was the one Cinderpaw had given him the sunrise after Bluestar's death. What he was given seemed mostly to be the previous days leftovers. The prey that had been left on the fresh-kill pile overnight for one reason or another. Even the few times the prey seemed perfectly fine, almost as though it had just been killed, had something wrong with it. It was always like eating crowfood and it always made Fireheart sick to his stomach. It did not take long for his ribs to start showing through his pelt.

The way his Clanmates treated him was the worst of it, however. He was treated with one of two things: anger or distrust. Every time a new warrior would be stationed outside his den to guard him, Fireheart did not know what to expect. They were cold towards him, he learned quickly to stay in his nest and do his best not to interact with the guard. Whether it was Longtail's apparent fury or Whitestorm's cold disgust, it all made his chest tighten. All he wanted was for his Clanmates to believe him, for them to see the wickedness that Tigerstar had done but they had been fooled. He was the cat that had been blamed and was the cat that would be punished for it. That much was clear.

It was the cats that weren't clearly angry that hurt the most, Cinderpaw – newly Cinderpelt, still had her air of sadness in their interactions. She did not want to talk with her former mentor much, not that he blamed her but it was disheartening. They had been close and now this had happened, now the young she-cat thought Fireheart was a murderer and there was nothing he seemed to be able to do to reverse that idea. Another cat like this was Sandstorm.

Sandstorm had been his friend; they had not gotten along when they were apprentices but things had changed and she and Fireheart had become friends over time. She had been the one to stop Tigerstar and wanted to hear his side. She had given Fireheart the opportunity to speak and tell the Clan the truth. However, they had not believed it. Sandstorm had not believed it and the betrayal she felt was obvious in their interactions.

When the pale warrior had first come to guard him, any sort of conversation he had tried to make was immediately shut down. This had happened with others as well, but Sandstorm had stopped it all even before it had started. She had spat at him, her eyes averted. It hurt to think – to know that this cat who had been such a close friend to believe this of him. That she thought he would betray her and the whole of ThunderClan in this way. Still, all Sandstorm did was ignoring any sense of conversation with him. She was better than others.

All of Fireheart's wounds from his fight with Tigerstar after Bluestar's death had been mostly healed, all that remained was his eye. It stung and Yellowfang came by regularly enough where she was making sure nothing bad came of it but in the past moon, none of his vision had returned. It seemed the medicine cats' assumptions had been correct.

What he learned of what was going on outside of ThunderClan was from Yellowfang, Tigerstar had not stopped her from telling him these things. The leader had to have known about this, but he had not stopped the medicine cat. It was strange to Fireheart, but Yellowfang's visits were welcomed. They were the one good thing he had.

Through her, Fireheart had learned Tigerstar had started visiting ShadowClan and RiverClan. There seemed to be some sort of illness spreading through ShadowClan presently. In some sort of kindness, as far as it could be called that, Tigerstar had offered Cinderpelt up to ShadowClan. That was where she was now. The generosity surprised Fireheart, although there had to be some sort of motivation behind it. Tigerstar was gaining ShadowClan's trust through this and there had to be a reason the ThunderClan leader wanted it.

In RiverClan, it seemed as though rather than visiting Crookedstar, Tigerstar had taken to seeing Leopardfur. The golden warrior was not quite yet leader, but Crookedstar was old. Fireheart would not be surprised to find out that the RiverClan leader had passed away soon. Tigerstar seemed to be spending so much time talking to both Clans respectfully and yet there was no interest in WindClan. As far as he had heard, Tigerstar had not spoken to Tallstar as he had with Nightstar and Leopardfur. Perhaps Tigerstar just wanted to be friendly with the two Clans which ThunderClan bordered.

Fireheart was restless, he was trying to wait until he got strong again to leave camp but things always seemed to get in the way of it. Whether it was another illness that afflicted him or something else, there was always something that blocked him from even thinking about escaping.

Fireheart had a good idea of where he would like to go, Graystripe had probably headed up to Ravenpaw and Barley's barn. Once Fireheart was well enough to get out, he would have to start his search there. However, there was still the actual problem of getting out he had to deal with.

Fireheart was too far from the entrance to try and slip out through there, there was no way he could make it out of there without alerting the entire Clan. In addition, he was kept under constant watch. Fireheart's gaze went to the back of the den, where the bush above him created a roof that connected with the bramble barrier around camp. He flexed his paw, an ache in it reminding him of the pain it had been in when he had been caught trying to dig enough down to squeeze out from under the barrier. That had been his only escape attempt and it was early on.

Fireheart closed his eyes as he tried to block out what had happened, it was over and done. The barrier there had been reinforced and the den was searched regularly.

A growl caught Fireheart's attention; he turned his head towards the entrance of his den, straining his ears as he tried to make out what was being said. There were some more growls and hissing and what sounded to be a commotion. He leaned forward in his nest, trying to see outside of the den but Longtail's back was blocking it. Fireheart's tail lashed in annoyance, what was going on?

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather here, beneath the Highrock for a Clan meeting," Tigerstar yowled. Fireheart pushed himself up on his forelegs, lifting his paw as it hurt to put pressure on it. He ignored the aches and pains that came across his body at these movements as he pricked his ears.

A few moments passed of silence from Tigerstar, Fireheart could picture the Clan gathering beneath the stone where the dark warrior stood as they had done for many a meeting before. As they had always done. It did not take long for Tigerstar to start speaking again, "It would seem we have a traitor in our midst." His voice grew louder as he snarled, "Cloudpaw has been seen accepting kittypet slop from a Twoleg."

Fireheart held his breath as a few yowls of outrage sounded from the Clan. Oh, Cloudpaw. Why you? Out of all the apprentices, out of any cat there was in the Clan, it had to be Cloudpaw. It just had to be! Doubt began creeping into Fireheart's mind again, doubt about that day he had brought the young white tom to ThunderClan. Had it been the right move? After everything Fireheart had taught him, the Clan had taught him, Cloudpaw had done this? Should Fireheart have left his kin with his sister all those moons ago?

Cloudpaw had to have understood the scrutiny he was already under, being not only born a kittypet but kin to Fireheart. Those two were presently condoning alone, especially in Tigerstar's eyes.

"Once a kittypet, always a kittypet!" Darkstripe's jeer sounded as well as a few angry voices that rose from the gathered cats, joining in on the deputy's jeer. Fireheart's ears went back, Cloudpaw was just an apprentice. He had not even completed a moon of training when this all started, he was barely more than a kit. He was a young apprentice that had been through a lot in the last moon, some of them had to understand, right?

"Cloudpaw, do you have anything to say in your defense?" Tigerstar's voice rose above the other warriors that had spoken. Their leader speaking seemed to hush the crowd as they waited to hear what the cat in question had to say.

"I am loyal to ThunderClan!" Cloudpaw's voice rang out, filled with boisterous confidence. "Who cares if I was eating good from Twolegs? I am still hunting, and with this, I have not needed to take prey from the fresh-kill pile. My share can be given to some other cat!"

Fireheart cringed at the confidence in Cloudpaw's voice, how could the foolish young cat think this was ever a good idea? Cloudpaw knew that taking kittypet food was against the warrior code. He knew what Tigerstar thought of his kittypet blood. Without even adding Fireheart into the equation, this idea was a terrible one for Cloudpaw to do.

"You stopped being loyal to your Clan as soon as you accepted the Twoleg's slop!" Fireheart could practically picture Tigerstar as he spat, lip curled back into a furious snarl. The dark tabby growled, "You are no better than Fireheart. No better than any other useless kittypet!" Fireheart's fur rose as Tigerstar hissed, anger filled him, heating up his pelt. His tail lashed wildly behind him. If it was not for the pain he was already in, and his own self-control, he might have gone out there to challenge Tigerstar himself.

"I am not like Fireheart! I am a loyal warrior!"

"I will be the judge of that. Do you want to prove your loyalty, Cloudpaw?" Fireheart was surprised by Tigerstar's words. He had expected the apprentice to be punished in some way – whether it be exile or another. Tigerstar was giving Cloudpaw an opportunity to prove his loyalty? What was it?

"I do!" Cloudpaw's voice was still so full of confidence, "I will do what it takes to prove my loyalty!"

"Very well. Bring the prisoner out." Fireheart sat up straighter, surprised by the proclamation. A feeling of fear and dread formed in the warrior's chest, what was Tigerstar going to force Cloudpaw to do? What did it have to do with Fireheart?

He watched Longtail rise to his paws, turning towards the den before he moved in, eyes locked onto Fireheart. He meowed, "Tigerstar wants you."

Fireheart forced himself to his paws, padding stiffly towards the pale warrior. His belly was still aching, movement making it feel as though he was going to vomit again. In addition, he had not truly stood up in quite some time. His muscles groaned in protest at the movement, each movement reminding him of the injuries and illness he already had.

When Fireheart got to Longtail, the other tom bit into his scruff. Fireheart let out a snarl as he was dragged out of his prison and across the clearing towards the Highrock. His stomach and head were spinning as he tried to fight back against the other warrior's hold. Longtail strength over him showed as the warrior did not respond to Fireheart's struggles. Fear filled Fireheart; he knew he was weakened but had not realized just how much. He felt tired from this struggle alone.

Longtail's teeth released from Fireheart's scruff and he was dropped at the base of the Highrock. Fireheart groaned as he hit the ground, his paw going to his belly. He swallowed a few times, willing himself not to vomit in front of the entire Clan.

Fireheart rose shakily into a crouch, wrapping his tail around himself as he looked blearily around the camp. Longtail had moved away from him, there was a space between the prisoner and most of his Clan. A few warriors were looking at him and there was a murmur from the Clan. Fireheart's gaze landed on Cloudpaw; the apprentice was staring at him, blue eyes wide. He was the only cat that broke his circle, standing closer to the Highrock and Fireheart. He had grown since Fireheart had seen him last and his belly did seem rounder than it had been when Fireheart had seen him last. Rounder than his Clanmates bellies.

At last, Fireheart looked above him to where Tigerstar was standing. The dark tabby was looking back down at him, there was a delighted light glowing in his amber eyes. The two warriors' eyes met and he held Fireheart's stare.

The leader's gaze remained on Fireheart as he meowed, "Cloudpaw if you are still loyal to your Clan, you must prove it to us." His rumble grew louder, "You must prove to us that you are more than just a kittypet and are worthy of being a warrior of ThunderClan. To do this, you must beat the traitorous kittypet before us."

Fireheart tore his gaze away from Tigerstar, looking at Cloudpaw again. The young tom was fit. Well-muscled and well-fed. In turn, Fireheart had not had a decent meal in a moon. His belly hurt as it was – his entire body hurt, and he was weak. If they fought, Cloudpaw would easily beat Fireheart. Jumbled thoughts raced through the warrior's head. What did Tigerstar have to gain from this fight? Was it truly to prove Cloudpaw's loyalty or was it something else? He was turning kin against kin and for what? Was the leader expecting Cloudpaw to kill Fireheart?

Sorrow gripped Fireheart as he stared at sister's son, there was no way Cloudpaw could even deny this order. If he did, he would further be accused of being a traitor. This was a fight for Cloudpaw's place in the Clan and it might be a fight for his life. If it came down to it, Fireheart was not going to let Cloudpaw get killed for this.

Cloudpaw was motionless, seemingly shocked by Tigerstar's order. He had expected this as much as Fireheart had.

"Will you fight your treacherous kin or are you no better than he is, Cloudpaw?" Tigerstar's growl seemed to break through to the apprentice.

"I – yes I will fight him." Cloudpaw sounded less confident than he had before. Even so, he raised his head high, looking up at his leader on the Highrock as he spoke. Feigning a sense of confidence over the predicament. There was another murmur from the crowd behind the apprentice. Tigerstar ignored it, twitching his ear.

"Get on with it then."

With that, Cloudpaw's claws unsheathed. His fur rose as he began to approach Fireheart. Fireheart forced himself to his paws, his mind was racing. There was no way he would allow for anything to happen to Cloudpaw, he needed to let the young cat win but he also needed it to look like a fight.

As the apprentice came closer to Fireheart, his movement became quicker. Cloudpaw leaped at Fireheart, knocking the weaker cat onto his side. Fireheart groaned as he hit the ground, his sensitive belly threatening to release the bile that was forming at the back of his throat.

Fireheart could feel the apprentice's claws dug into his side; one paw was torn away as the warrior turned himself over. Fireheart dug his claws into Cloudpaw's long white pelt. He bit at his opponents' neck, careful only to grab fur, as he forced Cloudpaw over onto this back.

Fireheart pulled away from the younger tom, his head was spinning. He stumbled away from Cloudpaw, doing the best to ignore the pain in his paw as he forced himself to swallow. The bile at the back of his throat was building.

Cloudpaw sprang to his paws, he let out a hiss as he ran at Fireheart again. Cloudpaw's paw rose, disappearing from Fireheart's sight as it came for his blind side. Fear overcame the warrior as the apprentice slashed at him. He needed to keep fighting back against his sister's son.

Fireheart spat at him, lashing his claws out at his opponent as he jumped at Cloudpaw. His belly groaned and his lungs screamed at the effort this attack took. Fireheart latched his claws into Cloudpaw's fur, rolling them both over and across the clearing.

As they rolled, cats moved out of their way. Fireheart felt Cloudpaw's claws dig into one of his shoulders, he let out a hiss at the pain as it ripped through his skin. His head was spinning and Fireheart kicked at Cloudpaw, sending the apprentice back.

Fireheart forced himself to his paws, he hissed as the pain in his belly got worse. His mind was whirling and every movement took effort. The warrior forced himself to stagger back from Cloudpaw, backing towards the Highrock.

The bile at the back of his throat was getting to be too much, Fireheart paused as he let the bile out of his mouth. It left a burning feeling in his throat as Fireheart gasped, his sides were heaving. He slowly turned his head towards Tigerstar.

The brown tabby had settled down on the Highrock, watching the fight before him. He seemed to be completely unphased by what he was seeing. The light was still in his eyes. His tail was visible, the tip twitching. Tigerstar was enjoying this, Fireheart realized. He felt anger light up his ginger pelt. How dare he think this was the right thing to do. How dare he force Cloudpaw to do this.

Suddenly, Fireheart heard Cloudpaw's yowl and the sound of pawsteps as he charged towards him. The weakened cat had little time to react as he was barreled into. He flew back, slamming his head and back against the Highrock. Everything went dark as Fireheart fell limp.