Chapter 10

"It's almost time for the Gathering!" Birchtail yowled as he padded over to the camp entrance.

Ripplepaw's eyes gleamed with excitement as he bounded over towards the RiverClan deputy. For the first time in his life, he was excited for the Gathering. I hope Morningstar confronts those ThunderClan fleabags about what they did!

"Where's Morningstar?" Rainfall questioned as she walked up.

"She doesn't feel very well tonight, so I'm going to report for RiverClan instead," Birchtail explained.

Rainfall's eyes widened. "She's going to be okay, isn't she?"

The grayish-brown tom nodded. "Morningstar will be fine. After all, she has Nightsky watching over her." Birchtail glanced up at the moon, which was quickly rising in the sky. "We need to get going."

As the RiverClan cats made their way towards Fourtrees, Ripplepaw felt Minnowpaw slip into place beside him. He could scent fear coming off of her in waves, and her eyes were round. "There's no need to be scared," Ripplepaw whispered into her ear.

Minnowpaw glanced down at her paws. "I know. I'm just worried the other apprentices won't like me..."

"Why wouldn't they like you? You're a great cat, Minnowpaw." Ripplepaw gave her a quick lick on the ear. "And if anyone is mean to you, I'll shred them!"

Minnowpaw let out a mrrow of amusement. "Thank you," she purred, pressing closer to him.

Suddenly, Birchtail came to a pause at the top of the slope. Glancing back at his warriors he said, "I don't want any of you speaking to ThunderClan tonight. Is that understood?"

"Understood!" Swanfeather meowed, her eyes gleaming.

Birchtail nodded, before padding down into the clearing. As Ripplepaw followed him, the scent of the other four Clans came washing over him. We're the last ones here, he realized, before taking a seat next to Pikeheart. As he got comfortable, Ripplepaw could feel the gazes of several cats burning into his pelt. Turning around, he saw that several ThunderClan cats were glaring at him and his Clanmates.

"Don't pay any attention to them," Pikeheart whispered, flicking his tail back and forth. "They're just trying to get is riled up."

As Birchtail climbed up onto the Great Rock, Ravenstar glared at him. "Finally! I was beginning to think RiverClan wasn't going to show up." Her voice dripped with venom as she spoke, and Ripplepaw could tell she was trying to get under Birchtail's skin.

"RiverClan would never miss a Gathering," the deputy responded, taking a seat.

"Pity," the ThunderClan leader snorted, turning away from him.

Flystar stared at Ravenstar and Birchtail for a few moments, before stepping forward. The SkyClan leader quickly cleared his throat, before announcing, "All is well in SkyClan this moon. Prey is plentiful, and the nursery is full. We also have several new warriors. Weaselpaw, Hazelpaw, and Stoatpaw are now Weaselwhisker, Hazelwing and Stoatfur."

"Weaselwhisker! Hazelwing! Stoatfur!" the cats cheered.

Once the cheering died down, Flystar dipped his head to Ravenstar, signalling it was her turn to speak. Ravenstar stepped forward, her eyes gleaming mischievously. "ThunderClan is thriving this moon. Our borders are secure and we have plenty of prey. Our warriors are still celebrating the victory against RiverClan." As she spoke, the black she-cat glanced over at Birchtail. The deputy's fur was bristling, but he did his best to remain calm.

"That attack was unjust, and you know it," Birchtail commented, flicking his tail.

"We had every right to attack you," Ravenstar shot back.

Birchtail let out a low growl, but did not respond. Once the ThunderClan leader was finished giving her report, Birchtail stepped forward. Puffing out his chest he yowled, "RiverClan is doing well this past moon. Despite the unjust attack, we have fully recovered and are on high alert for any more attacks. Our bellies are full, and our warriors are strong. Morningstar was not feeling very well tonight, but she is strong and will make a full recovery."

Once all five leaders were done speaking, the five Clans began to split up to share tongues. Before Ripplepaw could even move from his spot, Willowpaw was at his side. "I'm glad you're here," she mewed. Glancing at Minnowpaw the ShadowClan apprentice asked, "Who is this?"

"I'm Minnowpaw," Minnowpaw introduced herself. "I'm Ripplepaw's sister."

Willowpaw dipped her head to Minnowpaw. "It's nice to meet you. My name is Willowpaw. I'm ShadowClan's medicine cat apprentice."

"So that's how you know my brother! I'm surprised he's never brought you up," the silver she-cat squeaked.

Ripplepaw let out a grunt. "I've had a lot on my mind," he said defensively.

"It's all right. I'm not angry." Willowpaw's whiskers twitched in amusement. She then gave Ripplepaw a look, as if she wanted to talk to him alone.

Glancing at his sister Ripplepaw meowed, "Will you excuse me for a moment? I need to talk to Willowpaw about medicine cat stuff."

"Go ahead."

Ripplepaw stood up and padded over to a large clump of ferns. Willowpaw followed after him, her eyes gleaming in the moonlight. As soon as the two apprentices settled down she whispered, "What's going on? Did you quit your job as Nightsky's apprentice?"

He shook his head. "I decided to continue my training for the sake of my Clan. I figured that if Nightsky is willing to poison me, she'll do anything."

"You're right," Willowpaw agreed. "I wouldn't trust Nightsky with the hair on my pelt, and Honeyleaf agrees."

"You told Honeyleaf?" Ripplepaw felt a low growl rising up in his throat.

"Yes, but don't worry. She promised that she wouldn't tell any other cat about what's going on," Willowpaw meowed. "Honeyleaf is very honest. She would never go behind my back, ever."

Ripplepaw allowed his fur to lie flat. "All right. Did she say anything else to you about Nightsky?"

Willowpaw shook her head. "Not really. All she said was that she never trusted Nightsky to begin with, so it didn't really surprise her that Nightsky would try to poison you."

Before Ripplepaw could say anymore, Birchtail let out a call. "RiverClan warriors, it's time to go!"

"I have to go," he told her. "I'll see you again at the next medicine cat meeting."

Willowpaw waved her tail in goodbye. "If you need me, you know where I am! You're welcome in our camp any time!"


By the time Ripplepaw reached camp, his entire body ached. I could sleep for an entire year! he thought as he made his way towards his den.

"What did Ravenstar say?" Morningstar demanded as she limped out of her den.

Birchtail flattened his ears to his head. "She made a complete fool out of us!" he growled. "Honestly, I think you've been way too soft lately."

Morningstar stared at him in shock. "What do you mean?"

"Exactly what I said! You've been way too kind to the other Clans, which makes us look soft. You need to grow a backbone, Morningstar. Otherwise the other Clans will continue to walk all over us and treat us as if we're kittypets." Birchtail's entire pelt was bristling now.

"There's nothing wrong with being compassionate-"

"You're right, there is nothing wrong with compassion. However, you're turning this Clan into a joke. No one even takes us serious anymore, and I guarantee ThunderClan will attack us again. I wouldn't be surprised if ShadowClan, or WindClan, or even SkyClan attacked us as well! You need to step it up, if you're going to be our leader." Birchtail stared into her eyes for a few moments, before stalking off towards the warriors den.

Morningstar stared at him, her eyes full of shock. Looking at her warriors she demanded, "Do you agree with him?"

Shellnose slowly stepped forward. "Yes," he confessed slowly.

Lilypelt nodded her head in agreement. "I think Birchtail is right. Things need to change around here, before it's too late."

Ripplepaw nodded as well, but he did not say anything. He was already on thin ice with Morningstar, so he knew his opinion would mean nothing to her. Morningstar is an incredibly weak leader. If I were leader, I'd never allow ThunderClan to attack us. RiverClan would be the most feared Clan in the entire forest!

The dark tortoiseshell's eyes filled with sadness. "Very well," she rasped, before limping back inside her den.

Once she was gone, the warriors began to chat among themselves about what Birchtail had said. Not in the mood for gossip, the medicine cat apprentice retreated into his den. As he curled up in his nest, Ripplepaw felt Nightsky approach him.

"How was the Gathering?" she asked stiffly.

Ripplepaw shrugged. "Nothing special."

"I see." The den grew silent as Nightsky struggled for words. "Well... I'll let you go to sleep. I'll see you tomorrow, I guess. Goodnight."

"Goodnight." Ripplepaw rested his chin on his forepaws, before squeezing his eyes shut. Within seconds, he found himself in an unfamiliar forest. Unlike the forest from his nightmare all those moons ago, this one was bright and dazzling. The scent of flowers filled the air, and warm sunshine shone down onto his pelt. "Is this StarClan?" he called out. Perhaps StarClan was coming to accept him as the new medicine cat?

Suddenly, a long haired white she-cat stepped out from the undergrowth. Her blue eyes were bright as she made her way towards Ripplepaw. "Greetings, Ripplepaw," the she-cat meowed, her voice soft.

"Are you a StarClan cat?" Ripplepaw wondered, tipping his head to the side.

Her whisker's twitched. "Yes, of course." For a moment, Ripplepaw thought he saw a glimmer of mischief in her eyes, but he ignored it. "I have a very important message from you. But you must keep it to yourself. Is that understood?"

He nodded.

"All right then." The white she-cat hesitated for a few seconds before continuing, "Ripplepaw, you must stop Nightsky and Morningstar. They are destroying RiverClan, and if you don't do something to stop them, I'm afraid several lives will be lost."

Ripplepaw's eyes widened. StarClan was giving him permission to save the Clan! "How can I stop them?" he demanded, his tail flicking back and forth excitedly.

"Do whatever you can, it doesn't matter. Just stop them!" her voice shook as she spoke.

"I won't let you down," Ripplepaw promised, puffing out his chest.

The she-cat smirked. "Good," she growled. Turning away, she headed back into the undergrowth. Now alone, Ripplepaw noticed the forest seemed to grow darker and the air got colder.

"What's going on?" he asked, before jolting awake in his nest. Heart pounding, he glanced over at Nightsky who was still fast asleep in her nest. As Ripplepaw watched her sleep, his throat tightened. I'll have to kill her, he realized. It's the only way.


Wow, thank you for all the reviews everyone! I am so glad everyone is enjoying this story. I really enjoyed writing this chapter, so I hope you all will like it as well. Things will be growing darker from here on out, just to let everyone know. Also, here's a question for everyone: Do you think the white cat that Ripplepaw met was really from StarClan? Or do you think is was a fake omen sent from the Dark Forest?

Thanks for reading! I will try to update as soon as possible.