The third dawn came with a feeling of heavy dread for every cat. Fireheart had hardly slept that night, still seeing images of the violent 'performance' playing through his mind. His attempt to talk sense into Scourge and Princess had failed—what now?

It would have to come to war if the Clans meant to stay. There was only one night left, and still Leopardstar had not shown her face to her Clan.

Fireheart rose from his den, feeling stiff. The Warriors' Den was mostly empty. He washed his face quickly with a paw before he padded out, blinking tiredness from his eyes.

Fireheart stopped in the mouth of the den, frowning deeply at the sight before him.

The Clan seemed listless. Cats sat in small clusters, eyes nervous and uncertain. They whispered to one another, fretting quietly among themselves. No kits were out playing in the sun. Skyheart crouched nervously in front of the nursery, as though on guard.

And every few heartbeats, their gazes would turn to Leopardstar's den, hope and anger flashing in their eyes all at once.

Fireheart's chest clenched. No one knows what to do. He sought out his friends and found Silverthorn sitting beside Shadefang and Grasspelt at one edge of camp. He padded towards them, unsettled by the mood of the Clan.

Silverthorn nodded briefly to him. "Morning."

"What's going on?" Fireheart meowed. "Everyone's… so on edge."

"Aren't you?" Grasspelt meowed, her eyes narrowed. "This is our last day to make up our minds, and Leopardstar is still burrowed in her nest."

Fireheart frowned deeply at the confirmation. "No one's seen her?"

Shadefang shook her head. "StarClan knows what she's thinking," she growled. "She was useless when Tigerstar was leading, too. Now she might as well be dead, the way she's been acting. It's like we don't have a leader at all."

"Who is the deputy?" Fireheart asked. He hesitated, recalling all that Sandstorm had said at the Gathering. "Sandstorm said Blackclaw was dead, and…"

Silverthorn shook his head. "Apparently still no deputy, either," he muttered. "RiverClan really fell apart while we were away, huh?"

"Even if TigerClan was a mess, at least we had some direction," Grasspelt sighed. "There's no one to sort patrols, no one to make decisions… some cats have tried, but then others just start bickering…" She glanced meaningfully at the fresh-kill pile, which was nearly empty. "I went out hunting last night, and I guess I'll go again, but…"

Fireheart felt a wave of frustration. He had half a mind to go rake Leopardstar's whiskers for letting RiverClan get this way—but what good would that do? Part of him hoped it would spark some life in her, but another wondered if she'd just stare bleakly at him.

"Forget this," Fireheart growled. "What about the other Clans?"

"I ran into a ThunderClan patrol yesterday," Shadefang meowed. "They're planning to fight, but they seem nervous." She sighed, lashing her tail in annoyance. "I tried to go see Leopardstar about it, but she wouldn't even speak to me."

"Fox-dung," Fireheart cursed. What happened to her? She used to want to do anything for RiverClan, and now she's as much use as a log. He was briefly struck with irony—it was not long ago that he, too, had been stricken with grief enough to retreat to his nest. I wasn't a Clan leader, though, he thought. The least she could do is make someone deputy so something can happen.

"Russetstar might've changed her mind," Silverthorn thought aloud. "Who knows? Seeing Tigerstar get gutted like that would make any cat wary of fighting BloodClan."

Fireheart swallowed thickly. Silverthorn had been left alone by BloodClan, and none had stopped them as they hurriedly left. He had done his best to explain what he had seen and heard—but the chill stuck with him. He hardly wanted to fight BloodClan, either, not after watching the glee they derived from battle… but he would do it to save the Clans.

He shook his head. "Well!" he suddenly growled. "Fox-dung to that. I'm going to go make sure she doesn't."

Grasspelt blinked. "You're what?"

Fireheart lashed his tail. "I'm not going to just sit around waiting for Leopardstar to grace us with her presence," he meowed. "Who knows if she even knows what day it is? Ferretstar told me he intends to fight, and ThunderClan won't be enough to save them from getting destroyed." He felt a rush of fear at the thought of Sandstorm getting cut down by BloodClanners. "And if ShadowClan is going, then RiverClan will, too. Whether Leopardstar has any sense left to order it or not."

Grasspelt looked nervous, but Shadefang's eyes gleamed with interest. "Alright," she meowed. "I'll talk to cats in camp, see what they think." Her tail twitched. "If we all get on board, Leopardstar will have to listen."

Fireheart nodded gratefully. He glanced at Silverthorn. "Will you come with me?" he asked. The question felt natural by now.

Silverthorn rolled his eyes again as he had the day before, but he stood up. "Of course I will," he meowed. "Minnow-brain."

Fireheart lashed him with his tail, but gave him a fond look. "We should go now," he meowed.

"I'll help Shadefang," Grasspelt meowed. She straightened up, beginning to look more determined. "I don't want to be driven from the territory, either."

Fireheart nodded gratefully to his friends. "Thank you," he meowed. "We'll try to be back as soon as we can." With that, he turned and hurried towards the reed barrier.

The journey to ShadowClan was quick. The two toms had grown accustomed to long runs during their time in WindClan, and while they still couldn't hold up against any WindClan moor runner, they were more ready to race than any other RiverClanner. They headed over the stone bridge and towards ShadowClan, going as quickly as they could manage. Fireheart feared that BloodClan warriors could be about—but it seemed they had temporarily retreated from the forest in preparation for the battle to come.

They crossed the Thunderpath without much difficulty. It was a slow day on the road, and there was ample time for them to dart to the other side. Fireheart was fine with sitting and waiting out a patrol—he recalled that Russetstar had planned to watch the borders closely.

It wasn't long before he spotted movement up ahead. He felt relieved as he recognized Snowflight leading the way, Ratscar and an apprentice behind them. The warriors spotted them quickly. Ratscar bristled suspiciously, but Snowflight hurried towards them, tail lifted.

"Fireheart!" She called. "What are you doing here?"

"Snowflight," he meowed, dipping his head in greeting. "I came to speak to Russetstar."

"Again?" Ratscar growled. His eyes narrowed. "What do you want?"

Snowflight shot him a look, but Fireheart stared back at him evenly. "I want to see if ShadowClan is going to fight in the battle."

He expected Ratscar to snarl, but instead, the young warrior had an eager gleam in his eyes. "I hope so," the tom huffed. "Russetstar hasn't made up her mind. RiverClan is going, aren't they?"

Snowflight looked worried. "Russetstar doesn't want to fight unless she knows all other Clans will," she meowed. "Otherwise, we might try and flee."

Well, why hasn't she come to talk to us? Fireheart bit back the sharp question. Is ShadowClan just too proud to ask for help? He lashed his tail. "Can you take us to her?"

"Sure," Snowflight meowed. "Come on."

The patrol led them back quickly, as though they too were desperate to get answers from their leader. Fireheart wondered what it was like to have Russetstar as a leader—she seemed reasonable, but like all of ShadowClan, she was a mystery to Fireheart. Deadfoot said they were suspicious and proud, he recalled.

When they arrived, the mood seemed just as tense as it had been in RiverClan. However, Russetstar was out in the open, sitting in a small circle with a cluster of senior warriors. They appeared deep in conversation and debate. Other Clanmates looked on, straining their ears as they tried to keep up.

"Russetstar!" Snowflight called. "Cats here to see you!"

Russetstar lifted her gaze, and the warriors fell quiet. Her eyes flickered with recognition, and she beckoned the patrol towards her with a curl of her tail. "You again?" Russetstar meowed. "Why have you come?"

Fireheart dipped his head low to her. He wasn't sure how keen on respect ShadowClan was—but if they were a proud Clan, it couldn't hurt. "Russetstar," he meowed. "I've come on behalf of RiverClan to ask if ShadowClan will join the battle tomorrow."

Russetstar's whiskers twitched. "I see. Well, is RiverClan going to fight? I have heard from WindClan and ThunderClan already." Her eyes narrowed. "In fact, I heard it directly from their deputies. Are you RiverClan's deputy, now?"

Fireheart blinked. Her gaze was piercing and ever-suspicious. "No," he meowed. He nearly added that there was still no deputy—but he had the feeling that now was not the time to betray RiverClan's weakness. "I mean, I'm not the deputy."

Russetstar's eyes narrowed. "You didn't answer my first question."

Fireheart swallowed. She gets right to the point. He glanced at the other senior warriors. They stared at him through narrowed eyes. He felt a stab of uncertainty. If I say that we haven't decided, she might not choose to fight, he thought. And if ShadowClan won't fight… what chance do we have?

Fireheart steeled himself and met Russetstar in the eye. "Yes," he meowed. "We're going to fight."

Silverthorn blinked, but to his credit, he said nothing to give away Fireheart's lie.

Russetstar glanced towards her senior warriors. "Well?" she meowed. "I believe that settles it."

Poppyfoot, the deputy, nodded. "If the other Clans will fight, ShadowClan should as well."

One of the senior warriors curled his lip. Fireheart recognized him as Flintfang. "This is madness," he growled. "How many lives will it cost?"

"You've said your piece, Flintfang," argued another warrior. Her eyes flashed with annoyance. "ShadowClan can't be cowards now."

"It's not cowardice!" Flintfang snarled. His tail lashed. "Russetstar, you know how I feel about war. It was one thing to fight TigerClan. We know nothing about BloodClan."

Russetstar glanced at her warrior. Her gaze briefly looked sympathetic. "No cat will be forced to fight if they object so much," she meowed. "But any cat, apprentice or not, will be welcomed into battle if they wish."

Flintfang curled his lip and turned away. Poppyfoot frowned, but said nothing.

Russetstar glanced at Fireheart. "We will join you on the battlefield," she meowed. "Be sure you keep your word."

Her voice was edged with a threat, and Fireheart gulped. Did she know he wasn't entirely truthful? He took a step back, hurriedly bowing his head to her. "Thank you," he meowed, as evenly as he could manage. "I should be back, then. We need to prepare for the battle."

"See that you do," Russetstar meowed, flicking her tail dismissively.

Fireheart and Silverthorn left the camp quickly. As soon as they were away from the camp, Silverthorn shouldered him. "You old snake-tongue!" he hissed, but his eyes gleamed in amusement. "I can't believe that worked."

Fireheart shook his head. "They needed to hear it," he meowed. "And RiverClan needs them to fight."

"I don't understand why they wouldn't just come to RiverClan if they were waiting on our decision," Silverthorn grumbled. "Bunch of stuck-up weasels, if you ask me."

Fireheart snorted softly. He heard a rustle from behind them, and he glanced over his shoulder, bristling nervously. He thought for a heartbeat that he saw the gleam of eyes in the shadows—but after a heartbeat, he was gone. He stiffened. Feels like bad luck to insult them on their own territory, he thought. Dawnwhisker always said ShadowClan was the stealthiest Clan… did Russetstar send someone to watch us? Fireheart flicked Silverthorn with his tail. "Let's get out of here."