Meow meow meeeooooow mew mew moooooo?... I have nothing to say here. :3

Shatteredsky of Riverclan Jayjay and Cash are pretty cute. I've designed them slightly differently from what they were in the original JC.

MistLion Don't worry, the story is only just beginning. Plenty of time to make everything go horribly wrong. And who do you think would win between Jay and Briar? Briar does have wickedly strong forepaws from dragging herself around for so long.

The sun was going down and so was the temperature. It felt good to finally be somewhere cooler after traveling for so many days under the hot sun. Jayfeather's pads ached from the rough and rocky earth and the tendons in his legs were taught and stiff. He knew Briarlight had been struggling the most on the journey but he was proud of how much determination she carried with her. Once they reached the Tribe's cave, they could all rest for a long while until he decided where they would go next.

Jayfeather meowed, lifting his tail for the others to stop but he wasn't sure if there was even enough light for them to see it. "We can find a place to shelter for the night. Jayjay and Cash, search for someplace around here where we can sleep."

"We're on it!"

He lowered his head to catch his breath as the two young housecats raced away. "Tomorrow, we will reach the Tribe of Rushing Water. Do either of you have any questions to ask me before we arrive? I know you, Briarlight have never been there before."

Sol's disinterest was evident in his steely silence but Briarlight meowed, "Did you plan on living with the Tribe forever or are we just passing through? I'm still going to follow you either way- I'm just curious. Bramblestar didn't seem to have an idea when he told the Clan you were heading for the mountains."

Jayfeather mulled the words over in his head. Her question brought up a point he should have tackled a long time ago; where did he want to be in the end after he was done traveling? He could probably enjoy living the rest of his life in the mountains with Stormfur, Brook and the rest of the Tribe, but something didn't feel right about that. The reason he had left the Clans was partly to get away from all the rules. He fancied the life of a rogue now. "I'm still not sure," he meowed flatly.

"Your wise words have moved me," Sol drawled.

Jayfeather spun around and barred his teeth at the rogue's sarcastic tone. "You have contributed nothing!"

Sol's jaws snapped shut.

Jayfeather closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "I haven't decided if I want to stay n the mountains or if I want to keep moving but I'm not in any hurry either way. The Clans are good friends with the Tribe so I'm confident they will accept us no matter what we choose to do."

Briarlight grunted in understanding. It was obvious she could care less where they ended up as long as she was with him.

Jayfeather glared in Sol's direction, daring him to open his mouth and say something else obnoxious. It wasn't a physical attack Jayfeather was prepared for but a mental one. Sol was well known for tricking other cats into doing what he wanted through speech alone, but Jayfeather knew his dirty tricks. Tonight, I'm going to find out more about Sol's intentions whether he likes it or not.

Sol ignored the former medicine-cat's hostile look and it wasn't too long before the patter of small paws signaled that Jayjay and Cash had returned.

"We found a good place to sleep!" came Cash's joyous cry.

"Good," Jayfeather growled, still ticked off by Sol's snarky remark. He couldn't explain why, but the rogue seemed to know exactly what to say to get under every cat's fur. "We'll need a good night's rest for the journey up the steepest part of the mountain tomorrow."

Cash and Jayjay lead the way to a dip in the earth with a large boulder looming over it protectively. Jayfeather and Briarlight slipped beneath eagerly but Sol found a soft patch of ground outside and lay down.

Jayfeather could care less if the rogue didn't want to sleep with the rest of the group. As long as he was nearby, Jayfeather would have no trouble getting into his dreams. No more secrets. I will find the truth.

Jayfeather found a flat patch of earth for himself and curled up with his tail over his ears. His paws were sore and it felt great to relax after a long day. He was about to close his eyes when something heavy pressed up against his chest. "Briarlight, what-"

But she silenced him with a gentle paw to his lips and lay her head against him. "We don't need to hide anything anymore," she whispered in his ear, so softly even the house cats a tail-length away wouldn't hear. "We are mates now so your nest is my nest as well."

He closed his mouth and purred, letting her squirm closer so her warm body was like a second pelt. This was what real, unrestricted love felt like; something he had only imagined before. Even when he was sent back in time by Rock to see Half Moon, he had known it would never be possible for him to stay there forever. This was real love and he never wanted to lose it for as long as he lived. He was tempted to join the she-cat in her dreams but there were more important things he needed to check on first.

If he could discover Sol's true intentions it would be a weight off his shoulders. He waited until the breathing of the cats around him slowed to the gentle rhythm of sleep before closing his own eyes. He concentrated on the skinny rogue sleeping by himself outside the shelter of the boulder and willed himself into his dream.

The bright light made him flinch away and Jayfeather squinted his eyes. It took a moment to adjust to the colors and shapes but the world around him slowly came into focus. The ground beneath him was rocky and before him towered a wall of stone higher than the stockiest of oak trees. At first he thought Sol was dreaming of the mountains but the land here wasn't sloped. Apart from the wall of rock, the earth beneath his paws was level and flat.

He was in some sort of gorge similar to the one ThunderClan called home; but this one was vastly larger. Nearby, a small river weaved between boulders and an assembly of trees gathered on the opposite side. It wasn't ThunderClan, it wasn't the mountains, and it wasn't StarClan's hunting grounds. Where am I?

After a moment he noticed cats climbing among the rocky ledges and outcrops. They hopped nimbly and fearlessly from stone to stone and a few scurried into caves and crevasses that formed in the rocky face. The more he watched them, the less he understood. They looked almost like a Clan. Some were grouped together carrying fresh-kill while others seemed to have their own tasks and duties around the cave entrances. I've never heard of a Clan that matches this description. Maybe they are like the Tribe of Rushing Water?

"Do I even want to know what you are doing here?"

Jayfeather leaped into the air with surprise at Sol's voice behind him. The tortoiseshell tom was perched on a boulder just a few tail-lengths away looking down at him with cold yellow eyes.

Jayfeather was caught off-guard by Sol's sudden appearance. Normally it was he who did the sneaking in other cats' dreams. He pointed with his tail across the river at the strange cats. "Who are they? Where are we?"

Sol slithered down from his rock and landed in the sandy dirt with the agility of a much younger cat. He straightened up from his landing and Jayfeather took a cautious step back as the larger cat approached. "You have nothing to fear here, little medicine cat. You are in SkyClan's territory. The fifth Clan that few cats by the lake even know exist."

"SkyClan?" Jayfeather turned his head to watch the foreign cats scurry among the stones. The name didn't stir any memories. "Why have I never heard of them?"

"You should ask Firestar the next time you see him." Sol spat the name out like a maggot-ridden piece of fresh-kill. "I often dream of SkyClan. I used to live among them."

Jayfeather turned to face the rogue. "Why didn't you stay with them," he asked curiously. "And why did you try to hurt me and the Clans by the lake when we did nothing to hurt you."

Sol began to pad away, his tail lashing from side to side. "Ughh, the you in my dreams is just as dull as the you in real life."

Jayfeather quickly padded after him. He doesn't know it's actually me walking in his dream. I don't think I should tell him.

Sol's pace picked up until he was bounding across the ground with long strides, leaving Jayfeather behind. A couple of nearby SkyClan cats spotted him and rushed over to greet him.

"Welcome back, Harry!"

"Leafstar will be happy to see you again!"

Sol met the gathering cats warmly and together, they padded off in the direction of the caves.

Jayfeather stopped his pursuit and watch them all disappear behind the rocks. In his dreams, Sol seemed to miss these cats. Whoever and wherever they were, Jayfeather wanted to know more. There is no way I'm not going all the way back to ThunderClan just to ask Firestar about SkyClan. If Sol won't explain himself, I'll have to find these cats and perhaps this Leafstar will give me answers.

Jayfeather opened his eyes and found himself back in a dark world. He could feel Briarlight still draped over him where she had fallen asleep. He didn't want to move and wake her so he lay there and listened to her heart steadily beating against his chest. He couldn't tell how early it was in the morning but the air was still cool so the sun must have only just risen. Jayjay and Cash were snoring a short distance away so it seemed like he was the only one awake.

A rustling sound outside the den made him prick his ears. It sounded like Sol must have just woken up as well. I should talk with him before the others wake up. We'll reach the Tribe's territory today and I might not be able to get him alone for a while. He carefully squirmed trying to free himself from Briarlight's clutches.

"Wha- Jayfeather?"

"Go back to sleep," he whispered gently, pressing his muzzle into her cheek and giving her a lick. "I'm just going to take a quick walk around outside."

The she-cat didn't need to be told twice and rolled over to let him get up. "If you catch any mice while you're out, bring one back for me," she mumbled sleepily.

"Will do," Jayfeather purred and ducked out from beneath the boulder den. As he embraced the crisp mountain air, he realized he had almost forgotten what it felt like to be so high up. The trees were shorter and fewer, the air was thinner, and when he stood still the land went completely silent; very different from the constantly changing and vibrant forest he was used to.

Tiny pebbles crackled beneath Jayfeather's paws as he followed Sol's scent away from the nesting area. He suddenly wondered if the rogue was simply leaving; abandoning the small traveling group to be on his own again. If he wanted to go, Jayfeather had no interest in trying to stop him. Jayfeather was about to give up and pad back to his nest when he heard a small cough nearby. Sol was sitting a little ways away and his suspicious gaze bore into Jayfeather's pelt.

"What does the little medicine cat of ThunderClan want with me?" the rogue growled. "Did you think I was trying to escape? You would have enjoyed the housecats we met- they enjoyed keeping prisoners just as much as you Clan cats do."

"You aren't a prisoner," Jayfeather snapped back. "And you were only a prisoner in ThunderClan because you were suspected of murdering one of our Clanmates."

"An accusation I clearly wasn't guilty of," Sol muttered.

"We didn't know that then," Jayfeather growled. Sol had the right to be mad at being falsely imprisoned, but that didn't exempt him from his crimes in corrupting ShadowClan and then leading WindClan in an attack on ThunderClan. If I upset him now, I might not get the information I need.

"Of course you know now, don't you? You know who actually killed Ashfur?" Sol words suddenly became sleek and slippery like a fish. He was reverting back to his old strategy of getting cats to chase after the information he always seemed to have.

Jayfeather narrowed his eyes with distrust. He wasn't about to get sucked into another one of Sol's tricks. "That's not important now. Whoever is responsible for Ashfur's death isn't my concern."

"Why not?" Sol mewed simply. "Or is that topic too close to home?"

Jayfeather grit his teeth. How much did Sol actually know and how much of it was just him prodding for a reaction? Could he have possibly found out that it was Hollyleaf who had murdered Ashfur? "I didn't stutter when I said I'm not concerned about that," he retorted. "I came to speak with you about other things."

Sol padded closer until he was face to face with Jayfeather. "Then ask away. Neither of us has anything to gain with lies out here."

Jayfeather held up his chin, aware of how much taller the rogue was than himself, but he wasn't afraid. "What is SkyClan?"

Sol stiffened and his mind suddenly shut tight as a fox's jaws. "You really were in my dream, weren't you," he snarled like a cat who had found maggots in their fresh-kill. "That's the power from your prophecy you cared so much about."

"The same prophecy you wanted to use against the Clans," Jayfeather pointed out.

A faint growl rumbled from Sol's lips but his next words were smooth and empty of emotion. "You want to know about SkyClan? Go ask them yourself. Cross over the mountain and find the large river on then other side. Follow that upstream until you find the gorge."

Jayfeather picked his words carefully. "Did you want to come with us? Those cats seemed to be happy to see you in your dream."

But the rogue just snorted with irritation and began to pad back in the direction of the their boulder shelter. He was clearly still hiding valuable information.

"I have one more question!" Jayfeather meowed hastily before Sol could leave. If the rogue didn't want to talk about SkyClan, that was fine; Jayfeather would find them on his own. "I was told that you have something important you wanted to tell me. Now would be a great time to share it- unless you were just making stuff up so my Clanmates would free you."

Sol didn't stop walking so Jayfeather raced over to his side. "I thought you would have already known by now, but I guess StarClan really is just a gaggle of clueless dead cats. When I heard that you abandoned your Clan, I found it interesting that you would leave them so undefended."

"Undefended?" A chill of dread ran up Jayfeather's spine. "What does that mean? Are they about to be attacked?"

"Your precious StarClan really hasn't told you anything?" Sol let out an uncharacteristically sharp crack of laughter that gave Jayfeather shivers. "A terrible calamity is coming for us all. Whatever your precious stars may have told you in the past, it pales in comparison to this."