Chapter Twenty - A Reenaction and a Horrible Revelation
The four she cats came stumbling into the long den shrieking and dripping with rain, Daisypaw shook out her fur, spraying water everywhere. As Hazelpaw tried to duck the flying droplets, she noticed that the den wasn't empty.
On the other side of the den, by the stairs, was Whitefur speaking to Mudpaw. Her posture was tall and intimidating and her green eyes were fixed on the white and brown tom in an intense manner.
Hazelpaw just managed to catch some of what she was saying, "If you saw anything…."
Mudpaw shrank away from the white warrior, looking absolutely terrified. His ears were angled back to his head, his amber eyes were wide and his tail twitched back and forth rapidly.
Hazelpaw felt her fur begin to bristle along her spine in alarm.
What is Whitefur doing? What have I just overheard? It almost sounds to me as if she is threatening Mudpaw, but why? Does she think he has seen something crucial to the mystery? Is she trying to get him to reveal what he knew? Or...does she want to make sure he keeps silent?
Hazelpaw glanced at Daisypaw out the corner of her eye and saw the cream she cat frowning in their direction as well.
Whitefur suddenly spun around to face the she cats and Hazelpaw stepped back in surprise.
"What's all the noise?" Asked the white warrior. "Apprentices, what were you doing outside in the rain? You'll catch your deaths!"
Daisypaw froze. Beanpaw shrieked. Lilypaw roughly nudged her to be quiet and Hazelpaw couldn't help gasping as well.
Whitefur narrowed her vibrant green eyes at the apprentices. Hazelpaw tried her best to breathe normally.
"Hmmmm," she said at last. "Dry yourselves off now, apprentices, and then training. Daisypaw, your mother doesn't want you mopping about."
"We're not mopping, we're busy." Said Daisypaw quickly. "Can't we have a bit longer? It is now raining outside after all."
Whitefur puffed out a breath, fluffy tail swishing contemplatively. "Oh, very well," she said at last, "but I want you downstairs by the entrance at exactly dusk for training, otherwise I shall come and find you."
All four she cats took a step backwards.
Whitefur frowned. She stared at the apprentices a heart beat longer before turning on her heel and padding up stairs.
"Remember, dusk exactly!" She called over her shoulder.
Then she was gone. Hazelpaw couldn't help breathing a huge sigh of relief.
Mudpaw was turning to leave too. "Mudpaw!" Hazelpaw called after the tom as quietly as she could.
"Are you…." the grey she cat paused for half a heart beat.
I can't just ask him if Whitefur was threatening him.
"Are you...are you alright?" Hazelpaw said eventually, scolding herself for how strange and weak it sounded.
"Oh, yes." Said Mudpaw, padding over to her. "Rather looking forward to going back to PineClan and apprentice training after all this, though."
Hazelpaw nodded. I know exactly how he feels.
"Funny," the white and brown tom went on, cracking a slight grin, "I never thought I'd say that. I already told you how I was found as a kit. The beginning of my apprentice training wasn't exactly easy, not being clan born and all. If Eaglepaw hadn't taken up with me, I would have run away season's ago."
"Yeah," Hazelpaw whispered softly, "I know how that feels."
Mudpaw blinked his amber eyes kindly at the grey she cat, before turning away sheepishly.
"Yeah, I know. You've probably had it worse than me. " He said just as softly. "I'm sorry. I didn't want to sound complaining or anything…"
"No!" Said Hazelpaw quickly, before cringing at the loudness of her voice. "No," she said again more softly. "You weren't complaining. Does it still happen much? I heard about the incident with Thunderboom."
Mudpaw made a face, a thunderous look crossing his features, and amber eyes flashing like fiery sparks. Hazelpaw's heart skipped a beat.
Will Daisypaw's theory turn out to be true?
But then the tom grinned and broke into a purr. "Oh that, no…." The tom shook his head, slight amusement now in his amber eyes. "That was just a bit of a misunderstanding more than anything else. I think Thunderboom, like a lot of warriors, has just been feeling a bit tense with everything going on, you know. It was soon all sorted and smoothed out once I had talked to Dovestar. And the other guys don't hassle me anymore, Eaglepaw would certainly have something to say to them if they did."
The tom broke into a chuckle and Hazelpaw joined in, feeling very relieved.
"I'm disgustingly lucky really," continued Mudpaw making another funny face - half ashamed, half happy. "I got abandoned as a kit but now I live in a group where I'm safe and have friends who look out for me like Eaglepaw..and ...and you.."
The tom broke off, giving his chest fur a few awkward licks. Hazelpaw felt herself blush under her fur.
"A couple of days before we came here, Dovestar even came and spoke to me." Said Mudpaw, looking up again with a shy grin. "Told me PineClan was lucky to have me and asked if I wanted to be lead apprentice this season. I..I..said yes, but I was as embarrassed as anything - wanted the ground to open up and swallow me whole!"
The white and brown tom purred, "If that isn't proof enough of my acceptance then I don't know what is."
"Of course! You're every bit PineClan as everyone else!" Exclaimed Hazelpaw, gently head butting Mudpaw's shoulder. "I'm glad you're okay."
Mudpaw smiled at Hazelpaw, amber eyes sparkling, before touching his nose to her ear.
"Thank you," he whispered, before turning and hurrying back upstairs to Eaglepaw.
Relief flooded Hazelpaw as she watched him go.
Mudpaw doesn't have any trouble fitting into PineClan anymore. That incident with Thunderboom seemed work itself out in the end, and he even had Dovestar ask him to be lead apprentice. There was no reason for him to steal the feather - and therefore, no reason for him to have murdered Spiderstreak.
The grey she cat's ear tip tingled from the touch and a purr rose in her throat.
I can't wait to tell Daisypaw.
"Quick!" Hissed the cream she cat herself, making Hazelpaw jump. "To the warrior's den. This is the perfect opportunity!
Beanpaw's green eyes widened. "What if some cat's in there though?"
"We'll just have to risk it!" Said Daisypaw. "Whitefur's up stairs. We need to look in her and Jupinerbush's nests. "Come on!"
Carefully and quietly, the four she cats crept towards the den. Hazelpaw fell in step with Daisypaw and gently tapped her on the shoulder with her tail as they walked.
"Daisypaw!" She whispered. "Did you hear what Mudpaw just said to me? He doesn't have trouble with other apprentices and warriors anymore, apparently the incident with Thunderboom got sorted out alright in the end and Dovestar even asked if he wanted to be lead apprentice. He doesn't need the feather! I think we can rule him out."
Daisypaw turned to face her, and Hazelpaw noticed her nose screw up and her tail give a slightly annoyed flick.
"You ought to be pleased," Hazelpaw huffed crossly, but at that moment, the reason dawned on her.
It's only me who's pleased about Mudpaw, and me alone. If it wasn't him, then there is more of a chance of it being one of Daisypaw's family.
The grey she cat felt her face flush beneath her pelt and she dropped back from her friend.
The four she cats crept cautiously inside the warriors den. Thankfully it was currently unoccupied. Gazing around, Hazelpaw saw six moss nests of various sizes scattered throughout the den.
"All right detectives," said Daisypaw. "Let's hunt. Remember, we're looking for the white swan feather and any other evidence."
With that, the cream she cat, divided straight for the closest nest to the entrance way, which also happened to be the largest and messiest.
Hazelpaw padded up to her and recognised the strong scent of Jupinerbush. The grey she cat wrinkled her nose.
"Hurry up Hazelpaw and help me!" Said Daisypaw as she dug thoroughly through the nest. "Nope...nothing here..or is there..no..nothing."
There cream she cat gave a grunt of annoyance, before turning towards another nest in the corner of the den, smaller and neatly woven.
"Come on! We need to look-"
The cream she cat froze. Hazelpaw's ears pricked at the sound of creaking above the den - some cat was coming down the stairs.
"Hazelpaw, Daisypaw! Hurry!" Hissed Lilypaw, blue eyes wide. Beanpaw squeaked in alarm.
Hazelpaw started back for the entrance, but the cream she cat remained where she was: looking at Whitefur's nest longingly.
"Daisypaw!" Hazelpaw hissed urgently.
The cream she cat blinked before following her friend. "Up the Secret Stairs!" She gasped.
Together, the four she cats raced out of the den and up the secret stairs without stopping to see who it was. Once on the top floor, they all collapsed on one another, gasping in relief. Hazelpaw could feel her heart pumping with adrenaline beneath her fur.
"We didn't find Spiderstreak's feather." Beanpaw spoke up after a while, her voice quivering slightly. "Does that mean your great uncle's no longer a suspect?"
Daisypaw frowned. "Not necessarily," said the she cat slowly. "He might have just hidden it somewhere else, but it does make things look slightly better for him. We need more concrete evidence to confirm it wasn't him, but in the meantime, is there any other reasons he could have been behaving suspiciously without having done it?"
Hazelpaw let out a thoughtful hum. "Maybe he saw something...witnessed some other cat do something..."
"Yes!" Said Daisypaw with a nod. "Excellent thought Hazelpaw. Why, he could even be protecting some cat like…." But then the cream she cat paused.
Hazelpaw knew she had just realised who Jupinerbush was most likely to shield, and that was likely not just someone in Daisypaw's family, but some cat who was actually close kin - Sparrowfeather.
Hazelpaw glanced at Daisypaw and noticed her tail tip flicking nervously.
Lilypaw opened her mouth, head tilted curiously. "Who-?"
"What do we do now though?" Hazelpaw blurted out quickly. "We aren't any closer to crossing off our suspects."
The grey she cat noticed Daisypaw give her a grateful look.
Lilypaw sat up straight on her haunches and puffed out her chest, her previous question thankfully forgotten. "Well I think it's time we did that reenactment of the crime you were talking about. It seems far more productive than searching cat's nests."
"Oh, yes." Said Beanpaw, nodding her head in agreement. "Can we stop sneaking around for a while? It gives me the funnies. I'm sure we'll be caught!"
Daisypaw narrowed her eyes at her denmates. "Assistant members of the Detective Society," she began, her tone slightly cross.
Hazelpaw gave her friend a look.
"Can sometimes come up with ideas which aren't entirely terrible." The cream she cat finished with a flick of her ear. "In fact, Lilypaw, that was what I was about to suggest myself."
"But how are we going to do it?" Hazelpaw remembered their recreation from the beginning of this season at the old training hollows. "If we go to the meal den, we might be seen."
"We don't need the meal den," said Daisypaw. "Instead we'll do a reenactment in our den using props to stand in for our suspects. If we make them interact the way they did on the night, then we should be fine. Now, follow me!"
…
The four she cats crouched in their den around a small scene from the other night, recreated with small pebbles, rocks, twigs and leaves. Hazelpaw briefly thought about how strange it must look - like a rather mouse brained, kittish game, but at the same time deadly serious.
A small leaf was laid out as the fresh pile kill and around it, two different sized twigs as Eaglepaw and Mudpaw, different coloured pebbles as Falconflight and Whitefur, two different sized rocks as Sparrowfeather and Jupinerbush, a small red cardinal feather as Rosethorn and an old, ugly piece of bark for Spiderstreak which was laid a mouse tail away from the leaf. Beeflight was also added another mouse tail away, represented by a small yellow leaf.
"Chatter, chatter, chatter." Began Daisypaw, placing her paw on the Eaglepaw twig and making it move. "Scuffle, scuffle, scuffle - Jupinerbush goes for the mice." She made the large rock dive forward dramatically - Hazelpaw nearly laughed. "Rosethorn tells Beeflight to go away. More chatter and scuffle. Then she says 'Oh at least let me get something for Spiderstreak'" Daisypaw imitated in her mother's shrill voice. "And then-"
Hazelpaw sat up with a jolt, rushes of memories of the meal over taking her.
Sparrowfeather holding out a shrew to Spiderstreak - his expression, usually jolly in real life, sly and odd; as if he had done something wrong, and he knew it. The grey she cat briefly closed her eyes.
I don't want it to be true, but I have to be honest on what I've seen.
Hazelpaw took a deep breath and opened her eyes.
"Then Sparrowfeather gives Spiderstreak a shrew, and he eats it." She said.
The paw prodding the Eaglepaw twig froze. Daisypaw had gone very still.
"Urgh!" Said Beanpaw, moving the Spiderstreak bark and saying in a high pitched voice, "This shrew tastes foul!"
The other three she cats looked at her. Hazelpaw felt quite heart sick.
"He did say that!" Said Beanpaw, narrowing her eyes defensively. "I was only remembering."
"I know..he did." Said Daisypaw, unfreezing back to life. "I - excellent memory. And Hazelpaw. Yes. You too. What…..what I mean is.."
Hazelpaw looked at her friend in dismay. It was one of the few times she had ever heard her stumbling.
"Maybe the poison was already in the shrew by then!" the cream she cat blurted out at last, blue eyes wide. "Some other cat at the fresh-kill pile could have put it in or even have done it previously, then they gave it to Sparrowfeather to give to Spiderstreak."
"Sparrowfeather did look funny, though." Beanpaw pointed out. "All shifty, like he had done something naughty."
Hazelpaw looked sharply at the black she cat. She knew that her friend was telling the truth - Hazelpaw had seen the look on Sparrowfeather's face herself after all - but at that moment, the grey she cat wanted to shake her.
Can't you see what this means for Daisypaw?
A heavy feeling settled in Hazelpaw's chest.
I really, truly do like Sparrowfeather, even if he does some of the most dreadful jokes sometimes. He's nice and he's kind to me and he's Daisypaw's father. I don't want him to have killed horrible Spiderstreak. But there it is. We have discovered that Sparrowfeather gave him the shrew which killed him.
"Well," began Daisypaw again. Her voice was very tight and Hazelpaw noticed her sheath and unsheathe her claws rapidly.
"Well….it...I tell you, it simply must have been someone else who passed it on. Sparrowfeather knows perfectly well not to murder, he wouldn't break the warrior code like that, no matter how rude and spiteful the cat was. He's a loyal warrior." The cream she cats voice wobbled and she looked to Hazelpaw, a desperate glimmer in her blue eyes.
"Look Hazelpaw. I know we haven't completely discounted Jupinerbush, but maybe he's acting weird because he did see something…...something else. We must go ask him. I'm sure if Sparrowfeather was looking shifting, it was for another reason altogether."
Hazelpaw blinked her brown eyes back at her friend, unsure what to say. The grey she cat could hear the relief in Daisypaw's voice as she figured out her own logical explanation for what they'd discovered.
Hazelpaw, however, just felt terribly afraid. Her pelt prickled with anticipation and her mouth felt dry.
I have a bad feeling that if Daisypaw talks to Jupinerbush, she's not going to like what she hears at all.
And that's exactly what I'm afraid of…...
…..
The bad feeling remained with Hazelpaw like a dark shadow as Daisypaw went popping in and out of dens looking for Jupinerbush - the brown tom was proving unusually difficult to find. Eventually the she cats found him lounging on his nest in the warrior's den, blue eyes staring at nothing. He looked unusually subdued.
"Hello, Jupinerbush!" Greeted Daisypaw, skipping up to him. "How are you?"
The brown tom's gaze snapped abruptly to Daisypaw. "Aye, I'm alright young'un. What can I do for me favourite niece, eh?" Jupinerbush asked, sitting up in his nest with a grunt.
"We have a question for you." Said Daisypaw. "It's about Spiderstreak."
Jupinerbush's face creased up as if he'd been stuck with unsheathed claws - he looked as terrified as he had previously in the prey store den.
"Who else has been talking to you?" The brown tom said sharply, blue eyes wide. "What have they said?"
Daisypaw took a step back. "Why no one!" she said, head tilted; puzzled. "It's only that Sparrowfeather has been in such a funny mood since….you know - and I'm terribly worried he's some mouse brained idea in his head that he had something to do with what happened. Of course I know he didn't! You must have seen, can't you reassure him?"
Jupinerbush's spine began to bristle and his tail tip flicked frantically. He stared passed Daisypaw with dull, blue eyes and began to speak in quick stutters. "Eh..I..I..didn't see nothin'...nothin' at all. I didn't look. Couldn't have seen it."
"But, Jupinerbush, don't be flea brained, you must have!" Protested Daisypaw.
"I….I...I ain't seen nothin' I said!" Spluttered Jupinerbush urgently. "Even if I did, eh. That tom was horrible. Wicked fool. Don't deserve the PineClan name. Can rot in the Place of No Stars for all I care. Now run along young'uns. Go. Leave me in peace!" He finished sharply, blue eyes glaring.
"Jupinerbush!"
"I ain't saying no more. Leave. Now!" The brown tabby tom boomed, before turning around in his nest and pointedly facing the other way.
Daisypaw stared at him for a moment, tail flicking with annoyance, before turning and rushing out of the den. Hazelpaw hurried after her, Beanpaw and Lilypaw at her heels. They had barely made it across the long den when Hazelpaw noticed Sparrowfeather himself coming down the stairs. He gave the she cats a distracted wave with his tail, before darting inside the warrior's den.
"Ah Jupinerbush, just the cat I wanted to see." Hazelpaw heard him say from inside.
"Come on!" said Daisypaw, creeping forward towards the den entrance. "Let's listen in."
"Should we really?" Asked Beanpaw, concern apparent in her green eyes. Hazelpaw quite agreed with her.
Are we going to like what we overhear?
"Yes! Come on, this is part of detecting." Said Daisypaw.
The cream she cat crept even closer to the entrance, pulling Hazlepaw with her with her tail. The grey she cat's paws itched to move away, but she knew she had to stay with Daisypaw.
"...wanted to clear up any...er….misconceptions..that you may have..….Jupinerbush...uncle, what I mean to say is...if you saw anything at evening meal which might have given you cause for concern...I...
"Sparrowfeather." Spoke up Jupinerbush suddenly, his voice sharp. There was a pause and Hazelpaw imagined the large, brown tom looking Sparrowfeather up and down with piercing blue eyes.
"Nephew…" he murmured. Another pause.
"Aye, it never happened. There was nothin' to see." Jupinerbush's voice was stern with a somewhat determined note to it.
"Yes!" Exclaimed Sparrowfeather, his voice warm with relief. "That's it exactly. Nothing happened! And that's what you'll say if someone were to ask?"
Hazelpaw winced at the pleading note in his voice.
"Yes. I ain't seen nothin." Replied Jupinerbush gruffly.
"Thank you so much, uncle...truly above and beyond. This shan't be forgotten-"
"Well, if you'd 'scuse me," Jupinerbush cut off Sparrowfeather, curtly. "I'm going to have a nap and would 'preciate some peace and quiet."
"Ah...ah..of course. I'll be leaving now."
The apprentices all jumped back automatically; except for Daisypaw. The cream she cat simply stood there, eyes blank.
"Hide." Hissed Hazelpaw urgently.
All four she cats divided in different directions behind twoleg objects; Hazelpaw dragging Daisypaw along. Hazelpaw ended up behind a faded twoleg sofa and held her breath as Sparrowfeather's paw steps padded past and back up the stairs. The grey she cat breathed a sigh of relief. They were alone.
But then Hazelpaw sat up with a jolt as she remembered what they had just overheard; Sparrowfeather asking for Jupinerbush's help, making sure that he didn't tell anyone what he'd seen.
It fits horribly well with our recreation. Had Jupinerbush noticed Sparrowfeather slipping something into the shrew before handing it to Spiderstreak? I don't want it to be true, but what else can I think?
"Daisypaw," began Hazelpaw, mouth dry, "your father-"
The cream she cat twitched an ear "Oh, I know." She said quietly, voice falsely bright. "The old flea brain's done something, and he doesn't want to be found out. Isn't Jupinerbush such a good uncle?"
"But-"
"Oh StarClan," interrupted Daisypaw, "It won't be about the murder, Hazelpaw. Don't be a mouse brain! I've said before, Sparrowfeather wouldn't do it!"
Just then, something occurred to Hazelpaw. She realized that Daisypaw's incredible calm throughout this case, was really just a front.
She can pretend to suspect her mother, her brother and uncle - I'm not sure she even minded that much about suspecting Jupinerbush. But she's only playing when it came to Rosethorn, Eaglepaw and Falconflight; she won't even play with her father. There are some thoughts which she simply refuses to let in and - and even though I feel achingly sorry for as a friend, as a detective I know that she has no choice but to face up to them.
Hazelpaw took a sharp breath.
I can't let Daisypaw ruin the case just because she doesn't like where it's going.
Just as she was thinking this, something sprung loose inside the she cat; all the tensions and worries of the last few sun-ups breaking through, like a river bursting its banks. She turned sharply to face Daisypaw, placing a paw on her shoulder.
"Yes he would Daisypaw!" Hazelpaw cried. "Just as much as anyone! We know he didn't like Spiderstreak, he knew about him and your mother - we saw him arguing with Spiderstreak yesterday. And I saw him Daisypaw give the shrew to Spiderstreak! He's the most likely of anyone to be the murderer! I didn't want to believe it - but after what we heard now, we have to!"
Daisypaw open her mouth, blue eyes wide. Her ears had turned a furious shade of red.
"How dare you, Hazelpaw!" She hissed. "I'm the leader of the Detective Society in case you've forgotten!"
"And I'm your deputy!" Hazelpaw replied, eyes wide and desperate. "I have to say it - no one else will!" The grey she cat flicked her tail with frustration. "If you don't listen to me then you're not being a proper Detective Society leader!"
Hazelpaw froze, regretting those words as soon as they were out of her mouth. She looked to Daisypaw and for a quarter of a heart beat, saw her face unmoving, completely shocked, before it changed into a look of pure outrage. Her fur spiked and her blue eyes glared fiercely.
"Get out of my way." She snarled. "Get your paws off me!"
"But don't you know-"
"OF COURSE I KNOW YOU FOXHEARTED MOUSE BRAIN!" Daisypaw shrieked. "WHY COULDN'T YOU HAVE LET ME PRETEND?!"
The cream she cat threw herself at Hazelpaw, knocking her off balance. The grey she cat fell heavily on her back, Daisypaw half on top of her. She felt the cream she cats paws digging into her shoulders.
"I'm going to my den." She said angrily. "Don't bother to follow me."
Daisypaw scrambled to her feet and dashed away upstairs, cream tail bouncing behind her.
Oh, Daisypaw…...
Hazelpaw noticed that Lilypaw and Beanpaw were out of their hiding places, and staring at her with identical expressions of horror.
"What happened?" Whispered Beanpaw, green eyes wide. "Is Daisypaw alright?"
"I told her that Sparrowfeather might be the murderer." Hazelpaw muttered.
"Cruel," said Lilypaw. "But true."
"Don't." Warned Hazelpaw with a hint of growl, in no mood for Lilypaw's nasty side.
"Oooh, alright Hazelpaw of PineClan." Said Lilypaw, stepping back a pace. "What do you propose your precious Detective Society does, now that Daisypaw's gone off in a sulk?"
Hazelpaw took a wobbly breath. "We - we're going.."
What are we going to do?
Then came the most terrible shriek.
Oh dear, it looks like Sparrowfeather is in hot water and Daisypaw isn't taking it well at all. And she and Hazelpaw are fighting again! Hello everyone and I hope you enjoyed this chapter…..even if it didn't go the best. Oh well there is still time for them to make up. Tune in next Friday to see if they do and what in StarClan is going on!
Fastbreeze37 (Seven)
Reviews:
Hissing Mist – Nice guess with what the warning means! Perhaps you're on to something about the trouble Spiderstreak brought to Cardinal Nest. Maybe the rogue tie ins or something more…..? Yeah, it intends to have a bit of a clue but it really is quite vague and frustrating..soz. Thank you so much! And lol definitely have your number one suspect at the ready. And yay I'm so glad you're a Gorsestep fan! He really is awesome though, isn't he? Much better than a certain Falcon ;.) And Eaglepaw has a slight tendency to wind up his mother a bit. Side effect of his teen angst. Yes annoying that Whitefur is hanging out with the likes of Falcon. It sadly isn't helping her reputation at all…perhaps there's an innocent reason? (Or maybe not, who even is innocent in this murder mystery?) I'm glad you liked the Daisy, Hazel best friends heart to heart. I wanted to make it meaningful without it being cheesy and keep Daisy in character so super happy I got that down :.) And their cute lil secret paw-shake! Glad you noticed and liked as well. And Daisy getting Hazel to sus out lil Muddy was just pure Daisypaw as well as her sometimes kinda abrupt practicality. Ah well. We haven't really seen too much yet, but Daisypaw is quite fond of her uncle but not as much as her father as you see above, and the situation is positively awful for her (Says I whom sympathizes and yet still makes it happen, all for twoleg entertainment ;.) Anyway so, so glad you liked Haze and his second return! Those are basically his classic trademark lines now and you pretty much summed up the whole scene with him and Daisypaw :.) Very pleased you like his character and find it hilarious how much you dislike Falcon ;.) Thanks! Even though I've written a small list of hypothetical characters for Haze's group, they unfortunately won't be making an appearance in this book. (Possible oneshots maybe, like, after the other 10 I'm supposed to be doing…?) So far I've imagined Galaxy is nice to cats she likes, but very, very fierce and quite hostile to strangers or cats she doesn't like. OHHHH! Nice catch there with Haze's story being quite similar to the prologue, I will tell you you're on the right track! And Mudpaw as the missing kit is quite a good theory and seems logical….but what does it all mean? Well there is certainly time for another Haze appearance, we'll see if we can get him to meet the adults and perhaps teach Falcon a thing about being nice and a decent character. Um not quite sure how long the chapters will continue to be, probably about this and the last chap's length…there is certainly alot of action coming up and still a few more chapters to the climatic reveal! Ha, ha yes! I wanted to show that Beans wasn't always so trusting especially when it came to her bestie lol. I think Hazelpaw is mostly worried about the consequences for Daisypaw, but I'm sure they'll get through. Thank you so much and hope you've enjoyed!
Always-Snowy – Thank you! Ha, ha, that's okay. It is extremely vague and kinda annoying but….that is quite canon isn't it and much the same for most StarClan prophecies. But yeee not important because we have Daisy and Hazel talk and very glad you liked it! And still sus about Haze lol, but with good reason. I guess the question is why is he so forth coming with info and whether it's a complicated or straight forward reason, like simply protecting his group, and hopefully not something sinister. We'll have to see if he comes through. And interesting noting Daisy and Hazel slightly conflicting views and good thing to point out that it does have potential to make trouble for their future sleuthing careers. I'm feeling heaps better from my cold now and I'll try not get too busy with writing :.) Thank you so much!