Yay, this is the chapter that breaks 100k words for this story! Also I thought that I would soon be referring to the old Jayfeather's Conclusion while writing new chapters but it turns out we still have a long while until that happens. EVERYTHING that happens in the mountains is completely new.

Inkie's on vaca Thanks, I really do try to get the character interactions right. For example, most of Brook's interactions with Briarlight in the last chapter I had to return to after finishing the rest of the chapter because I needed to spend a day getting just that part right.

MistLion It's not really a cliffhanger. The reader already knows what happened to Sol- assuming you read the SkyClan books. I just didn't want to tell the reader what they already knew... but if you don't know, look it up on wikipedia.

The Venom Symbiote Long time no see! Chapter 12 really was a fantastic chapter for me. Not only was it my only chapter to breach 5k words for a long time, but it is simply my favorite chapter so far that I've written. I too despise the newest series. Book 1 was terrible, book 2 was alright, and book 3 was godawful and I'm never picking up another from that series. I'm glad you read my story as a substitute to that "frog flop." :P

Espiritduchat Welcome back! I really like Hollyleaf and I love having her interact with her brother. In the cannon books, she never seemed to act like a real sister to Jayfeather. In fact, if it wasn't blatantly written down that she was, she could have just been a random Clanmate.

The warm sun on his back was a welcome change. Jayfeather carefully laid out the single nettle stalk on the wide flat boulder on which he was perched just outside of the Pack's cave. Each part of the plant could serve a different purpose. With his claws, he carefully cut out the seeds and separated the stem from the leaves. He remembered the trick Leafpool had taught him when he was an apprentice to avoid the stinging barbs.

It was sun-high and Jayfeather had spent that morning searching around the Pack's cave for any herb that could help his cause. The small bundle Stoneteller had given him was laying on the ground nearby undisturbed. No cat had offered to help him that didn't surprise him. The Pack needed food more than anything else so he expected most of them would be out hunting. Perhaps if he finished his work quickly he'd have time to join them.

Once the nettle plant was cut into pieces, he bisected the stem and picked one half up in his jaws. He hopped down from his work-boulder leaving the rest of the plant to dry out. His paws worked methodically, going through the motions as if he were still the ThunderClan medicine cat. Nettle stem and chervil to protect against infection and a small trace of thyme for the pain. If only I could find some nectar or honey to make it taste better. He put those herbs in a leaf packet before hooking a wintergreen leaf in his claws and chewing it into a pulp. And this is applied directly onto the wound.

Satisfied with his work, he spat out the wintergreen, gathered up his poultices, and padded towards the cave entrance which was only a few strides away. His paws were already familiar with the small dip before the cave entrance so he easily adjusted to the small slope at the mouth of the cave. He would never admit that he had stumbled down it the first time he had gone through.

"Who goes there!" called a startled voice, but the cat on guard quickly realized who he was. "Oh, it's you. You may enter."

Jayfeather nodded to the Pack cat, a young tom named Haze, before carrying his precious herbs deeper into the cave where his patient was waiting. The den was almost entirely empty apart from the small group huddled near the back.

Jayfeather dropped the small leaf-wrapped packets of herbs down on the cave floor beside the skinny she-cat named Asphalt. "Eat these." He gestured with his paw at the nettle poultice. "Then put this wintergreen mush on your torn claw." He took a step back to give the injured she-cat room. Close by were Jayjay and one other cat named Gravel who was Asphalt's brother.

Asphalt purred with gratitude as she scooped up some of the herbs in her paws but her meow was laden with sincere confusion. "Why are you helping us?" she asked. "The Tribe want to wipe us out and you had an opportunity to leave and never come back, but you chose to return."

"I promised I'd check on your injuries, did I not?" he answered simply, his voice a reassuring purr. "I don't have many herbs, but it should be enough until the wound is safe from becoming infected."

The she-cat let out a relieved sigh. "Thank you. Apart from my brother, you and Jayjay are the first cats to ever offer me any kind of help. Cats who aren't strong enough to feed themselves die in the snow-season."

Jayfeather narrowed his eyes. "Helping others is what I've been taught all my life. It comes naturally." He had only been staying with the Mountain Pack for one full day since returning from the Tribe's cave and he had come to realize that Asphalt was one of the lowest ranking cats among the Pack. She slept closest to the freezing walls at night and was last to be fed when extra fresh-kill was brought into to the cave. "I made a promise that I would come back so I did."

"You did, but I thought you were just saying that so Flora would let you go. Why would anybody want to be here when they could be anywhere else?"

"I like being here," came Jayjay's quiet voice at Jayfeather's side. It was true, the young tom had been loyally hunting for the Pack whenever he could, giving away the vast majority of his catch to those who needed it the most. Even the prickly Boulder hadn't said a single negative word about the strange housecat living in the cave.

Jayfeather flicked his ear approvingly at the young tom. When he had returned to the Pack's Cave without Cash, Jayjay had been distraught, but he had perked up after Jayfeather had explained that Cash was safe and happy living with the Tribe. And Just like Cash, Jayjay was starting to gain the trust of his new cave-dwelling companions. Perhaps when Flora and Stoneteller met tomorrow on the border, they would see how the two half-brothers were able be on opposite sides yet still be friends.

I don't know if I should be excited or terrified about the meeting, Jayfeather thought to himself. He hadn't had a chance to speak with Flora alone but he knew he had too soon. The events at the border could decide the future of Tribe and Pack alike for moons to come.

Jayjay's claws tapped impatiently against the rocks beneath his pads. "I wonder what Flora will say to Stoneteller tomorrow. I hope they sort everything out without a fight- I would hate to have to meet Cash on the battlefield."

Jayfeather purred, amused that the housecat had been thinking the exact same thing. "I'm sure we'll be able to meet some sort of agreement. And even if things don't work out, no cat will expect you to fight your own kin." He turned towards Asphalt. "Get some sleep. I don't want you putting any weight on that injured paw for at least a day. If the poultice falls off, I'd need to go out and find more and I don't know where any of it grows yet."

"But I-" she began but Gravel cut her off.

"Thank you, Jayfeather," he meowed, his voice muffled slightly as if he was affectionately pressing his muzzle into his sister's fur. "The Pack is lucky that Stoneteller let us borrow you and Jayjay. Flora will never admit it, but our cats need all the help they can get."

Jayfeather was about to open his mouth to say that he and Jayjay would have helped even without Stoneteller's permission, but remembered he wanted the Pack cats to be on better terms with the Tribe. The truth would have only grown more distrust between the two groups. If the Pack found out that Stoneteller had actually tried to deny Jayfeather herbs to help them, there could be war.

"How long have the Pack and the Tribe been hating each other?" Jayjay asked innocently.

Gravel let out a bemused snort. "Forever. Or at least for as long as the two groups have known each other."

"So, like, many many seasons?" Jayjay followed up.

"No, the Pack haven't been living in the mountains for very long," Asphalt informed him. "We were born in this cave, but our mother and father had been traveling for a long time before they moved here. The Pack used to be just a wandering band of lost cats trying to stay alive before they settled in the mountains."

"So what's stopping you from wandering off again," Jayjay asked. "Not that I want you to go," he added quickly as a flare of reproach lit in the air between the two Pack cats.

Jayfeather was curious too, listening intently to what they said. He knew everything about the Tribe's origins- how they used to live by the lake and travel through the tunnels beneath the Clan territories, but he knew almost nothing about the Pack. Did they also come form a long line of ancestors who watched over them? He shook his head, inwardly laughing at his own foolish thoughts. Of course not; they were just housecats and loners.

"We don't know the whole story," Gravel began. "But I know cats had been traveling for a long time, meeting all sorts of other cats along the way. For whatever reason, they chose to stay in the mountains instead of continuing. That's all I know about the tale."

Jayfeather tipped his head to one side. That hadn't been much of a story at all but he suspected there was still plenty more of it hidden somewhere. He just needed to ask the right cat. Meeting all sorts of cats along the way? Did the Pack ever run into SkyClan?

"Jayfeather! We need to speak with you!"

Jayfeather pricked his ears in alarm at Flora's call. The Pack leader was padding hastily towards him from the front of the cave and beside her was the familiar scent of Boulder. The two cats didn't seem angry so Jayfeather assumed he wasn't in trouble.

"We need to talk about tomorrow," Flora told him sternly, stopping a fox-length away. Her voice carried the sharp authoritative edge she used whenever she was talking to a group of cats. She emanated confidence with every syllable, but in her heart, Jayfeather could detect fear and uncertainty.

"Run along, you lot," Boulder growled at Jayjay, Asphalt, and Gravel who were still huddled around the former medicine cat. "This doesn't concern you."

Jayfeather felt Jayjay flash him a puzzled look as if wondering if he should stay or obey the Pack cat's order. Jayfeather brushed his tail across the younger cat's flank indicating that it was okay to go. Jayjay grunted in understanding and turned to follow the other two cats away.

"Tell me everything that they tell you," Jayjay whispered in Jayfeather's ear before leaving.

Jayfeather nodded but didn't utter a word, keeping his attention focused on Flora and Boulder. He was alone in the back of the cave with them. Only Petal and her kit, Slate, were nearby but they were both fast asleep. Whatever Flora wanted to say had to be important if she didn't even want other Pack cats to hear.

Flora coughed to clear her throat. "Have you given any thought about tomorrow?" she asked him, ignoring formalities and getting straight to the point. "You've created a three-day truce, but it will end in violence unless you come up with a plan."

Jayfeather's tail twitched with discomfort, not liking the tone in the Pack leader's voice. She spoke as if she was already planning on going to war with the Tribe regardless of what he told her. Was she only speaking to him to humor him, or did she actually want his advice? He wanted to believe the latter. "I've been thinking quite a bit about the meeting, actually. And I have one idea that I think could work."

"You've had two whole days to think about it, and you have just one idea?" Boulder growled.

"Shut up, let him speak," Flora hissed at him.

Jayfeather let his blank gaze flicker over to the gruff tom. Flora might agree to what he had to offer, but Boulder wouldn't. "Have you tried to offer Stoneteller a compromise? There has to be something each of you has that the other wants. For example, you could request a small tribute of food if you guarantee your cats won't cross the border anymore."

"That won't work," Flora meowed, dismissing the suggestion quickly. "The Tribe wouldn't give us two mouse tails if we begged, and they know the Pack is weak right now. Why would they give up food when they could just chase us out and have even more food for themselves?"

"That was just an example," Jayfeather meowed calmly. He knew there was no easy solution to fixing the moons-old tension between the Tribe and the Pack. His only hope was to minimize the damage. "Maybe you could offer to adopt some of their customs in exchange for permission to stay in the mountains. If they saw that you were actively trying to respect their way of living, they might give you another chance."

"Become like the Tribe?" Boulder snarled, his hot breath ruffling Jayfeather's whiskers. "I'd rather die fighting them than join their foolish traditions. The Pack has never needed permission from anyone to live here. Flick brought us to the mountains because he knew we were strong enough to deal with any rock or bird we might find, and kept us here because he knew we were stronger than the Tribe."

Jayfeather let his gaze switch back to the she-cat, aware of the conflicted thoughts churning in her mind. He silently pleaded she would agree. Some of her cats might not support it, but it was either they adapt or face eradication.

Flora took a deep tired breath. "I will do this thing that you ask, Jayfeather," she hissed through clenched teeth. "If Stoneteller agrees as well."

"Flick would not have wanted that!" Boulder growled furiously, his claws unsheathing and scratching against the cold stone floor. "He would have wanted us to stay proud and fierce!"

"Flick is dead because of that pride!" Flora spat back angrily. "And the Pack isn't strong anymore. Each snow-fall we lose more cats to cold and hunger because our hunting strategies aren't as good as the Tribe's and we don't share fresh-kill like they do. If we can't get kits through the cold seasons, the Pack will cease to exist!"

"The Pack will cease to exist anyway if we become the Tribe!" Boulder screeched, his claws scraping the ground as he turned to face Flora. Hostility crackled in the air and for a moment, it seemed like the larger tom would attack.

Jayfeather took a nervous step backwards as Flora let out a growl and her tail lashed through the air.

"I won't let our misplaced pride get us all killed," she hissed coldly, her fiery attention focused on her Packmate. "I've seen too many kits starve or freeze to death not see the error in our ways. There is no shame in admitting that our customs are wrong if we can't even save our own."

"There's also no shame in dying for what you believe in," Boulder countered, his voice barely more than a deathly hiss.

"There is if your beliefs are wrong."

"A Tribe cat is here! Flora, a Tribe cat is- oh, sorry, am I interrupting something?"

Jayfeather let out the breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding as Nettle raced towards them. The tension between Boulder and his leader seemed to dissipate slightly as the excited cat skidded to a halt in front of them.

"Stoneteller sent a cat to discuss exactly when and where you want to set up the border meeting," she panted. "Come, she's waiting just outside."

Flora's pelt seemed to cool slightly as she watched her daughter, but then it heated up again as she glanced back at Boulder. "It is not up for debate. I was made leader of the Pack so I will make the decision." She padded off towards the cave entrance without giving Boulder a chance to argue.

Boulder huffed furiously and spat onto the cave floor. In his livid rage, he seemed to forget that Jayfeather was there and muttered something angrily under his breath. But then he noticed the former Clan cat and stomped off after giving him a disdainful look.

Jayfeather took a deep breath before following Flora towards the cave entrance. He could only pray to StarClan that things would go over well, but deep down in his heart he doubted there was any hope of that happening. Whatever the next couple days bring, I must stay strong.