Fireheart turned his attention to Barkface as the brown tom walked up to him, through the darkness he could see a large bundle of herbs in Barkface's jaws. The deputy asked, "Are they all ready?"
The brown medicine cat nodded, as he set the large bundle down. "The last of his patrol was just rolling in the heather patch. They'll be breaking a hole through the barrier shortly." Fireheart nodded, meowing his thanks. From there, Fireheart's patrol would follow after and then Onewhisker's would leave last.
This was the plan they had come up with to get out of WindClan's new territory and across the Thunderpath to the river. Tallstar's patrol would take the lead, making sure that they dealt with any TigerClan patrol they could happen upon. It was made up with cats able to fight as was Onewhisker's and his would make sure none would come from behind. Fireheart was put in charge of the third patrol, making up of the cats that were incapable of fighting for one reason or another or needed extra protection. If it came down to it, they could fight but that would be only if it was necessary.
None of them had truly said it, but Fireheart understood why he was put in this patrol. He was still limping and he was the main target of TigerClan, even so, it felt so wrong to be stuck here and need to be defended by the others. He should have been leading Onewhisker's patrol, but he was not.
Bramblepaw had been stuck into this patrol as well, much to the apprentice's frustration. It was too much of a risk of losing him to have him be in one of the other patrols. While Bramblepaw had made it clear that he would not go to TigerClan willingly, there was a chance he could be snatched and forced to go. This was the safest place for him.
Fireheart moved over to Bramblepaw, touching his nose to the apprentice's shoulder. Bramblepaw turned towards him. He raised his muzzle to the apprentices' ear, whispering, "I want you to stick with Thistlekit until we regroup."
The deputy's gaze was on the kit as he spoke, the small black and white tom was meowing excitedly to Sandstorm. Thistlekit was big enough where Whitetail was able to leave him to join one of the other patrols, big enough where when they got to the Thunderpath he would be able to cross it without being carried. The last thing they needed was the adventurous young tom-kit disappearing through all of this. He and Bramblepaw had also been assigned to help Barkface carry what herbs they could bring along and keeping an eye on the kit would also give the apprentice something else to be in charge of. Something for him to do that would not leave him feeling as left out or as though he was doing nothing.
Fireheart's tail twitched, a realization making his pelt heat up with annoyance. That was probably why he was put in charge of this patrol rather than another warrior or Barkface.
"Why can't I join -" Fireheart silenced the apprentice with a look.
"We've been over this, remember what Cloudtail said." Bramblepaw ears went back at Fireheart's words there was a moment's hesitation before he padded over to where Sandstorm and Thistlekit were.
Fireheart turned his attention to Tallstar's patrol next, every cat had their scent covered and Graystripe and Tawnyfur had begun the process of breaking a hole into the barrier. Fireheart heard Barkface mutter just next to him, "Bit of a shame to see it destroyed after we put so much work into making it."
"It is," Fireheart meowed as he watched the warriors work. A feeling of guilt sunk like a stone in his belly, he should have prevented this all. He should have done something more to keep WindClan from having to leave. He could, too! He had considered telling Barkface and Tallstar about his dream with Bluestar and what she had told him, but as he found out the true situation they were in, he decided against it.
WindClan needed a place to go after slipping out from under TigerClan. This was a lead that they had as to where they could go, staying here would only cause more bloodshed. Anxiety pooled in Fireheart's belly. Hopefully, they could avoid detection.
Fireheart glanced to the side as Sandstorm came up next to him, she curled her tail around his comfortingly as she watched the barrier get destroyed. The anxiety in his belly lessened slightly at her touch. Sandstorm meowed, "we'll be able to slip around. There's no way Tigerstar would leave his own territory too undefended. He made a show of it earlier, but there shouldn't be too many warriors now."
"How can you be certain?" TigerClan had nearly four times the number of warriors than WindClan. They had warriors to spare and WindClan did not.
"I lived with them until a few sunrises ago," Sandstorm reminded him. "He may have all four territories, but it takes so many cats to defend it. So many warriors to make sure everything is well. There's a reason why there is still a camp in each territory."
There are five camps now, Fireheart recalled. Sandstorm had told him about this one night at Fourtrees when he questioned about the clearing he, Graystripe, and Ravenpaw had seen the Bonehill in all those moons ago. Apparently, for the most part, the Clans were still separated and Tigerstar had made a camp there as a go-between. It was meant to be a more centralized force than ThunderClan camp would have been. It was where ceremonies and meetings took place as well as where Tigerstar and Leopardstar had moved to and where the medicine cats were stationed. It was almost eerie how much the forest had changed since Tigerstar's rise to power. The place Fireheart knew so well – his home, all of these warriors' homes – had changed so rapidly in this time.
The barrier was destroyed, a hole big enough for any warrior to get through showed the grass just beyond the barrier. Tawnyfur and Graystripe turned away from it, stepping aside as Tallstar moved in front of the hole. After he inspected it, the black and white tom kinked his tail over his back as he stepped towards the thorny barrier.
His patrol quickly moved after him, following the black and white warrior through the hole in the barrier and into the darkness beyond it. They had been lucky enough where it was a darker night, the only light was that of the stars and a slight claw-moon hung overhead.
As the last cat of Tallstar's patrol disappeared from sight, Fireheart rose to his paws, limping steadily over to the barrier. He kinked his tail over his back as he drew closer, one ear pointed back as he listened to the cats following after him. He heard Bramblepaw hush Thistlekit once more before there was quiet. They were ready to go.
Fireheart took a deep breath, steadying himself before he continued forward. He pushed himself through the hole, resisting the urge to move back as the thorns dug into his sides. He paused a few tail lengths away from the barrier, trying to push away the pressure that was forming in his chest as he turned to face the rest of his patrol.
As soon as the last of his patrol had squeezed out of the hole, Fireheart turned in the direction they were supposed to be headed. The direction Tallstar had led his patrol to and where Onewhisker would be leading his to. They would be heading away from camp towards the border with Twolegplace. There were some stepping stones where they would cross the stream, from there they would round back towards Clan territory and move along the side of the Twolegplace that side of the Thunderpath to the river.
From there, it was to travel upriver until they got to where this dream had sent Barkface. Fireheart only hoped they would know it when they saw it. He hoped that moving and leaving behind Clan territory would be well worth it all.
Fireheart raised his tail over his back again before continuing forward, his ears pricked for any sound of enemy warriors. He led the way towards the stream, moving as quickly as they could manage through the grass.
He ignored the pain in his shoulder as they started moving up a hill. Fireheart could picture the territory up ahead, thankful that they had been on this territory long enough for him to memorize it. They would go over this incline and from there they could be able to see the stream. The stepping stones would be easy to find. They might even see the dark shapes of Tallstar's patrol moving towards the stream.
A hiss sounded from just over the incline that made Fireheart's heart stop. The pressure on his chest grew. He raised his tail, stopping the patrol in their track. He jerked his head around to look at them all as he hissed, "Get down and be still!"
Fireheart turned to face forward again, straining his ears. There was the sound of some scuffling and a few more hisses before silence. After a long moment of silence, he could hear some quiet voices ahead of him. Too quiet to make out what was being said. He needed to make sure everything was safe before they continued.
Fireheart twitched his ear at Barkface, a moment passed before he heard the brown medicine cat coming up on his side. Fireheart whispered, "I'm going to check on what that was, I'll be back shortly."
There was a moment of hesitation from the other tom before Barkface murmured his agreement. Fireheart glanced back at the rest of his patrol before slowly rising to his paws and moving up the incline. When he got to the top, he could see shapes moving not too far from him. Further down the hill but not as far as the stream, he spotted Tallstar's white marking and heaved a sigh of relief. It did not look like there had been too serious of a fight where the patrol had been stopped.
But what had occurred? Fireheart needed to know why the patrol was stopped. He continued down the slope towards the other cats. Fireheart heard a hiss; his fur rose as a few cats turned their attention to him. He hissed, "Hey, it's me! I just wanted to see what was making the delay!"
"Fireheart!" Fireheart heard Graystripe's voice not far from him, he recognized the gleam of the gray tom's yellow eyes in the low light a moment later. "Sorry, it's just hard to recognize anyone without scent." He turned away from the ginger warrior, "We ran into two TigerClan warriors. Come on." Fireheart followed Graystripe past a few other cats to where Tallstar was standing, the scent of TigerClan was strong and he quickly recognized the scent of the TigerClan warriors – Russetfur and Mousefur.
They were being held down by Tornear and Smokefang. Their silence made Fireheart figure that the WindClan warriors must have had their paws on the other warriors' muzzles. Fireheart mewed a greeting as he came to Tallstar's side, dipping his head.
Yellow glints told him that Tallstar had looked in his direction. Fireheart asked, "are they the entire patrol?"
"As far as we can tell," Tallstar replied. "We could not find any other cats' scent." Sandstorm's words came back to Fireheart, Tigerstar only had so many warriors to spare with the Clan territories, not to mention the territory past Highstones. Even so, such a small patrol was strange.
"What are we going to do with them?" They certainly could not let them go as it was, they would immediately alert the rest of TigerClan of what was happening. Fireheart twitched his tail, what else could they do? Take them prisoner and take them along? A heaviness formed on his chest at the thought. That would achieve very little and it would cause more trouble.
Russetfur let out a low growl at his words, forcing her head up. "I'd like to see you try anything!" She sneered, the glint of the dark ginger she-cats' green eyes glowing with fury shown through the darkness. She jerked against Tornear's hold, the gray tom letting out a warning hiss in response, forcing the warrior's muzzle back down.
Fireheart felt the movement of Tallstar's long tail next to him. A moment of thought passed before the black and white warrior spoke, "Tornear, Smokefang I want you two to hold them until we get a safe distance away then let them go. You know where to go." Both warriors spoke their agreements. Tallstar shifted his attention to Fireheart next.
"Head back to your patrol, follow after us in a few moments," He ordered. Fireheart dipped his head before turning away from Tallstar. He heard the WindClan leader call the patrol back together as he made his way back up the slope to his own patrol. He recognized Sandstorm's pale eyes as he came over, a pair of amber eyes startling him for a moment before he realized it was Onewhisker. The other patrol had made their way to Fireheart's.
"What happened?" Onewhisker asked.
Fireheart flicked his tail, "There's no need for concern. We can keep going, they caught Russetfur and Mousefur but they've been dealt with."
"Dealt with?" Sandstorm echoed; a look of concern came to her eyes. Fireheart's eye widened as he realized the implications.
"Not like that," He assured quickly. "Tornear and Smokefang have them pinned; they're going to hold them until we've all passed." Fireheart's gaze shifted to Onewhisker. "Why don't you and your patrol wait a moment as we head down," he suggested. The light brown tabby nodded, he disappeared from Fireheart's sight as he turned away, going to rejoin his patrol.
"Let's keep going." Fireheart lifted his tail over his back again as he turned away, leading the way down the slope and towards the stream. They moved by where Tornear and Smokefang had Russetfur and Mousefur pinned quickly, Fireheart could practically feel the two TigerClan warriors' glares boring into him.
Sandstorm came up at his shoulder, she murmured, "It feels wrong." He shook his head, not knowing how to answer. It did feel wrong. Mousefur used to be his and Sandstorm's Clanmate. To an extent, Russetfur had been Sandstorm's. To treat them like that, to have to flee again felt wrong. The entire situation was wrong.
Fireheart felt anger heat up his pelt, why had StarClan allowed for it to get to this point? Why had he failed so much for it to get to this point? Whatever the TigerClan cats had thought of him prior to this day must have been amplified after he took one of Tigerstar's lives. How would he ever gain their trust again to the point of being able to defeat Tigerstar? Why did he keep messing up?
When they got to the stream, Fireheart paused, turning to face the other cats. Not wanting to slow down the others as they crossed the stream, Fireheart ordered, "Go on ahead."
Bramblepaw stepped up first, Thistlekit at his side as he explained quietly to the kit what to do. After a few moments of conversation between the two young toms, the apprentice led the way across. He jumped from stone to stone, pausing for Thistlekit to join him at each one.
Barkface moved forward next, his eyes on Fireheart and Sandstorm. He warned, "Both of you need to be careful." Both warriors agreed as the medicine cat moved forward, jumping onto the first stone.
Sandstorm moved forward next, she twitched her tail at Fireheart, beckoning him forward. When the tom came to her side, Sandstorm meowed, "Stay by me. I want to make sure you don't fall in."
Fireheart snorted, "I think out of either of us, it'd be better if I fell in. I can swim." Sandstorm turned her head towards him, surprise lit up her eyes.
"What?" Oh, he had never mentioned this to Sandstorm before, had he? She stared at him, "Can you actually?"
"Yeah."
The pale queen was silent for a moment. She meowed, "and I've been calling you WindClan."
Despite the danger they were in, Fireheart's whisker's twitched. "Well I am WindClan's deputy now," He pointed out. "We're all WindClan now." He could see the outline of Sandstorm's ears going back in the dim light.
"You know what I mean, now quiet fish-face. We need to cross." Sandstorm moved ahead of him, to the edge of the stream and where the stepping stones began. Fireheart suppressed a purr; he would have to mention this conversation to Mistyfoot and Graystripe later. Fireheart moved over to his mates' side as she steadied herself. A moment later, Sandstorm jumped onto the stone. His eye rounded as she let out a small gasp at the landing.
Fear took hold of Fireheart and he quickly followed Sandstorm, wincing as the landing hurt his shoulder. He ignored it, moving over to her quickly as anxiety pooled in his belly. He pressed his muzzle against her flank. "You okay?"
"Yes, I'm fine." Sandstorm twitched her ear dismissively, "let's go." She padded to the edge of the rock, Fireheart moving after her. The next landing was better, but it did nothing to quell his anxiety as they continued across the stream.
When they made it over, Barkface approached them. He looked them both over as best he could as he asked, "How do you both feel?"
Sandstorm let out an annoyed hiss, her tail lashing in agitation. "I feel fine."
Fireheart meowed his agreement, taking a few steps forward as he ignored the ache on his side and shoulder. They needed to keep going, even if Barkface wanted to make them stop he could not. Barkface's eyes narrowed as he looked at Fireheart. The warrior turned away, flicking his tail. "We need to go."
The patrol continued along the decided route, they had slowed down slightly, Fireheart realized. Whether it was because of him or Sandstorm was a mystery to him. He just hoped they could cross the Thunderpath at a decent speed.
As the Thunderpath's stench hit their noses, Fireheart could see the distant glow of Twoleg nests. Judging by how he knew the area, it was probably from the Twoleg nest on the farm where Ravenpaw and Barley lived. A bolt of realization hit him. Ravenpaw and Barley.