AN: sorry about the big hunk between chapters - y'all certainly arent used to it on here. I can't promise it won't happen again but friday evening rather than Saturday just because
Firestar stopped in his step, staring at torn-up trees. Cloudtail hissed a curse.
"What makes them think they can do that, huh?" His tail lashed.
"Where is this?" Whitepaw asked, looking to where the two warriors were staring. Cloudtail looked at his daughter.
"That was Fourtrees," He explained as they continued. Leafpaw almost stumbled, looking back to the uncovered roots. That was Fourtrees? "I do not understand what makes Twolegs think they can do whatever they want."
"It's power," Firestar's reply was quiet. If Leafpaw had not been at his side, she might not have heard it. "Strength over another can lead toward destruction when misused. It does not help that the Twolegs give us little regard. Now," He turned to look at the group, raising his voice. His gaze went to Brambleheart, who was in the back with Squirrelpaw. "Can you hear me?"
"I understand you," the warrior replied. Firestar nodded.
"Stick close and be silent." He glanced at Hawktalon, "We're about to enter where these BloodClan cats are truly staying. Do not take risks. Do not uncover your scents. Is that clear?" Agreements arose. Firestar dipped his head to the TigerClan warrior. "You may lead the way."
The dark tom nodded, raising his tail as they started into the hollow. Leafpaw looked at him as they continued. Hawktalon had been quiet since his arrival, listening to Firestar and doing as he was told. It was surprising, the TigerClan warriors largely seemed to disregard the WindClan leader.
Hawktalon had come just before dawn. They had set out not long after. The sun was halfway up now.
They moved quickly into what remained of the forest. Leafpaw looked back briefly, the roaring of monsters filled her ears. Firestar and Cloudtail seemed increasingly upset by the destruction around them.
Suddenly, Hawktalon's head rose. "Hide!" He hissed. Cats darted into the brambles surrounding them.
Leafpaw was between Whitepaw and Cloudtail. The warrior's fur had risen, his ears straining for any sign of movement. Leafpaw's breath caught as she heard crashing through the leaf litter.
It almost reminded her of how squirrels sounded. Surely, no cat would ever make this much noise. Leafpaw was surprised as she heard voices.
"With how much the boss wanted to take this territory, you'd think hunting would be easier." Two tabbies came walking along the path the Clan cats had been taking. They were wearing collars, she realized. Her heart felt as though it had stopped when she saw teeth sticking out of them.
Brambleheart had told Leafpaw about his experience with them before but she had not wanted to believe what she had been told.
"I don't like that we have to hunt in general!" this cat turned his head to the other. "Better back in the town – didn't need to hunt then." She chuckled, shoving into the other cat.
"Giving those forest cats a run for it was fun though!" As they continued, Leafpaw glanced at the two white cats on either side of her.
They were not the most well-hidden. The brambles were in as rough of shape as the rest of the forest. She knew that any good warrior would spot them. Whitepaw was tense, green eyes round as she stared out at the cats. Cloudtail's claws had extended.
They were not spotted. Eventually, the Clan cats left the undergrowth behind. Hawktalon's icy eyes were ablaze, glaring in the direction the cats had gone.
"Let's keep going," Firestar's voice came out low. There was a strange look on his face. Cloudtail trotted up to his leader's side as Hawktalon took the lead again. Squirrelpaw fell back to walk with Leafpaw and Whitepaw.
"Did you see those collars?" Whitepaw's eyes were round, her tail bristling excitedly.
"I know right?" Squirrelpaw glanced over her shoulder. "In all my traveling, I've not seen anything like that before." Leafpaw looked back, anxiously. While they had to be long gone, it was possible there were more. They should be silent. She went to respond when Brambleheart spoke up.
"Remember we're supposed to be quiet." He shot a look over his shoulder at the three she-cats. "A nearly deaf badger could hear you three!"
"One already has," Squirrelpaw muttered. Leafpaw couldn't stop her whiskers from twitching and Whitepaw let out a snort. Brambleheart swatted Squirrelpaw with his tail.
"Excuse me." Attention went ahead as Firestar spoke. He had paused in his step. Hawktalon stood just behind him, blue eyes watching. "What don't you understand by do not attract attention." He looked at Brambleheart, "I expect better of you than to encourage them."
As the tabby's ears flattened and he lowered his head, Hawktalon looked at Firestar. The TigerClan warrior's tail was beginning to twitch. "Now, I expect silence. We already had too close of a call."
Quiet agreements rose from the warrior apprentices. They continued on.
Brambleheart looked up as Hawktalon's head jerked suddenly toward Firestar and Princess. He dipped his head as he realized the she-cat was looking at him. The others had been talking and it was too much for Brambleheart to be able to follow. "Hello," he meowed. "I'm Brambleheart."
"It's nice to meet you," Princess replied. Her eyes were shining as she looked to Whitepaw again and they continued to converse. "I was worried – what with everything going on…"
Brambleheart glanced at the Twoleg nest again, his tail twitching anxiously. He had been surprised when Firestar asked him, but it made sense. With these BloodClan warriors, an extra warrior was not a bad idea. He was not sure why he had been chosen. He did not like being in Twolegplace.
This garden smelled like many of the others they had been in. That scent alone was always almost overwhelming. It did not help that he could not get Tigerstar's voice out of his head.
Brambleheart took a deep breath. Firestar had wanted to visit his kin. That was fine. Being here did not make Brambleheart – any of them, kittypets. He rose as he realized Cloudtail was signaling him to come closer. Brambleheart ignored the confusion that wanted to arise as he started forward, stopping when he realized Hawktalon had sprung to his paws.
The TigerClan warrior's nose was in the air and his eyes were bright. He turned, quickly heading over the fence into the front garden. Alarmed, Brambleheart sniffed the air. His fur rose as he recognized the scent of another cat.
"Hang on, I'm gonna go get him." Whether it be a BloodClan cat or a random kittypet, someone would need help. Brambleheart followed quickly after. He caught up to them on the other side of the Thunderpath.
Brambleheart slowed in his steps, surprised at the sight before him. Hawktalon's tail was raised high as he rubbed against a she-cat. They were talking. He had to have been purring.
She turned toward the warrior, brilliant blue eyes like none he had ever seen before widened. Fear filled them at the sight of Brambleheart. She stepped back, dark ears flattening. Hawktalon looked at Brambleheart, his eyes bright.
"Brambleheart!" He meowed excitedly, "This is Sasha. Come meet my mother! – Did you know Tigerstar had more kits?" He turned to the other cat.
"I didn't." her gaze was focused on the WindClan warrior. She still looked scared. Brambleheart lowered his head as he approached. He knew this look well.
Brambleheart was shocked. He knew Mothwing and Hawktalon had a different mother but neither had mentioned her before. He had assumed she might have been of RiverClan or ShadowClan decent but still within TigerClan. Their mother was not part of TigerClan? Something he thought was akin to anger bubbled in him.
They were truly half-Clan.
As he got closer, Brambleheart got a better look at her. She was young. Much younger than Goldenflower. Her pelt was white, though her extremities were dark brown. She was very slender with a long muzzle. He had never seen a cat like this before.
"Hello," He greeted, dipping his head to the loner. "My name's Brambleheart." Brambleheart blinked as Sasha eyed him cautiously.
"Brambleheart," Sasha echoed. "Tigerstar never mentioned another cat."
"They…broke it off when I and my littermate were young." Brambleheart was not sure how true that was but he and Goldenflower certainly were not mates now. "My littermate is named Tawnyclaw." Sasha nodded.
Alarm flashed through her eyes as she looked past him. Sasha backed up. Brambleheart looked over his shoulder, seeing that Firestar had followed. With him were Cloudtail and Squirrelpaw.
"Don't run off like that." Brambleheart's chest tightened at the look his leader gave him. He lowered his head. Firestar turned to Sasha and Hawktalon. The tom still had his head pressed against his mother's shoulder.
"Greetings," He dipped his head. "My name is Firestar; I am leader of WindClan." Sasha eyed the WindClan cats cautiously.
"My name is Sasha," her tail flicked as she looked at Hawktalon. "I thought you and Moth were joining TigerClan."
"We did," Hawktalon replied. "I just had to escort them over." The queen nodded.
"I don't mean to intrude," Firestar looked at her, curiously. "But how do you know Hawktalon?" Sasha glanced at Hawktalon.
"He is my son," her head was held high as she regarded the Clan leader. "And Moth is my daughter. What of it?" Firestar looked surprised. Cloudtail and Squirrelpaw exchanged looks. It took Firestar a moment to respond.
"I just did not know his mother was outside of TigerClan," He commented, tail beginning to flick. "If you don't mind me asking – Sasha is an unusual name. What is it?" Sasha looked puzzled by his question. Hawktalon's eyes were narrowed.
"What do you mean?" She asked.
"I mean, most loners are named after something," Firestar explained. "Branch, Mouse, Red – the same goes with warriors but I don't know what a Sasha is." Brambleheart glanced at Cloudtail. He had not seen Firestar so forward about something like this before. The white tom shook his head.
"I don't know," Sasha admitted after a pause. "My Twoleg named me." Brambleheart's head shot up, astonishment jolting through him. Squirrelpaw looked like she wanted to say something. Cloudtail covered her mouth with his tail. Firestar was nodding, his tail continued to flick behind him.
"That makes sense," He meowed. "Twolegs do tend to give unusual names."
"Isn't that wild?" Squirrelpaw hissed. Leafpaw looked back to where Hawktalon had just jumped over the fence, shock still making her head spin. How could this be so? Squirrelpaw's tail was lashing as they approached the fence. "I mean, how could –" Leafpaw hushed her as they went over. While they had been where BloodClan cats could have been the whole time, it was more dangerous in the forest. Princess had told them she had not seen much of them, though had stayed in her garden out of worry.
She looked past Brambleheart to where Firestar and Hawktalon spoke quietly. Squirrelpaw was right, how could that be possible? They had always heard of how Tigerstar viewed Firestar and his relationship with Sandstorm. They knew what he thought of Squirrelpaw! The thought of what Brambleheart and Sandstorm had told them made her stomach feel as though it had flipped.
And yet Tigerstar had had kits with a kittypet.
Firestar raised his tail, stopping in his steps as he looked back at his Clanmates. He announced, "We're going to ThunderClan camp." Cloudtail and Brambleheart stiffened.
"Why?" Whitepaw asked. "What if there are BloodClan cats there?" Firestar glanced back at her.
"I want you four to see it. We'll be careful," he assured. "If there are, we will move on." He turned away, continuing forward quickly. Cloudtail glanced back at Leafpaw as they followed.
They stopped suddenly. Leafpaw's ears were pricked as she sniffed the air. All she could hear was the sound of monsters roaring. Any scent of cat was stale. Firestar turned to the rest of the patrol.
"Cloudtail, stay with the apprentices while we scout out camp." As the white warrior dipped his head, Squirrelpaw spoke up.
"Hang on, I'm almost a warrior," She protested. "Why do I have to stay here? Isn't one enough to keep an eye?" Leafpaw gave her sister a look. Firestar looked at his daughter.
"You're almost one – not quite yet though." She opened her mouth, and Firestar interrupted. "These cats are dangerous, Squirrelpaw. I assure you; two warriors are needed here." He turned away, signaling Brambleheart and Hawktalon to follow.
As they disappeared, Cloudtail turned to Leafpaw. His voice was quiet. "This isn't going to be good for him, is it?"
Squirrelpaw looked puzzled by his comment whereas Whitepaw looked away. Leafpaw responded, "I don't think so." Based on what Barkface had told her before, she understood Cloudtail's concerns. "I'll stick with him," She offered. Cloudtail slowly nodded.
"Who are you talking about? Firestar?" Squirrelpaw shook her head. "What's been with him recently? He's been weird." Leafpaw glanced at her sister. She was still unsure how much she knew.
"I'll tell you later," Cloudtail responded, rising to his paws. Hawktalon appeared.
"It's all safe," The enemy warrior's eyes were angry. "Seems they didn't have any interest in here."
Cloudtail padded toward the warrior, signaling the apprentices to follow.
They headed down a ravine. Leafpaw's eyes rounded as they pushed through a tattered fern tunnel. She took in the camp she had heard so much about.
Firestar and Brambleheart were near the middle, talking. Hawktalon moved over to the dark warrior's side.
"They chased us out only to not use this camp," the TigerClan warrior's tail lashed as he growled.
"It's close to where the Twolegs are working," Brambleheart pointed out. "And we were at Sunningrocks. They might not realize." Hawktalon snorted.
"They're not scared of Twolegs," He shook his head, looking at Brambleheart, "Do you want to see the warrior's den?" Brambleheart looked at Firestar and as the leader nodded, he responded.
"Sure."
"Oh, I want to see!" Squirrelpaw darted forward as the toms started to walk away. Whitepaw followed after her.
Leafpaw looked at Firestar, surprised by the look on his face. There was something wrong.
He turned away suddenly, heading toward a different part of the ravine. Cloudtail's eyes narrowed as he followed his leader. Leafpaw padded after.
"If I remember correctly, we're at the medicine cat den," Cloudtail explained as they paused. He looked at Leafpaw. "Go poke your head in, I think you'd like it. The den's actually through there – there's a little clearing with a pool."
"Really?" Leafpaw asked. "Where's the water come from?" Cloudtail shrugged.
"I don't know."
"This used to be a riverbed," Firestar spoke quietly. "Seasons before cats set foot here – that's what Bluestar told me. It's probably a leftover from that." Leafpaw looked at her father. It was not often he mentioned Bluestar. Cloudtail nudged her.
"Go on." She nodded, heading through the ferns.
When Leafpaw returned, she found that Firestar and Cloudtail had moved a bit away. Cloudtail was stiff as Leafpaw padded over.
"This was the elder den," the white warrior gestured to a fallen tree. Leafpaw glanced at Firestar, he was not looking at the elder's den.
Firestar was looking at a bush, growing through the fallen branches. His tail was lashing.
He jerked away suddenly, taking a deep breath as he started across the clearing. Leafpaw gave Cloudtail a look as they followed after him. "What was that?" She hissed, keeping her voice quiet so he did not hear.
"That was his prison," Cloudtail's voice was rough. The fur on Leafpaw's back rose. She paused in her step, shaking herself. Leafpaw looked over to where the others had gone.
They were at the medicine cat den now. Hawktalon was talking. Whitepaw went in first, quickly followed by Squirrelpaw and Brambleheart.
Hawktalon looked across the clearing. A look of unrelenting repugnance had twisted across his face. Leafpaw followed his gaze to Firestar. Her ears went back as he suddenly disappeared into a den beneath a tall rock. Cloudtail hissed a curse, rushing after their leader.
Leafpaw started after them but paused to look at Hawktalon again.
The others were back. The look on his face was gone. He looked at Brambleheart, eyes bright. If anyone else had seen it, they made no inclination. Leafpaw almost thought she imagined it.
Leafpaw turned away, shaking the feeling that had overcome her. She headed after Cloudtail.
The ground was sandy. She padded up to Cloudtail's side.
Firestar had stopped in his step, staring at a spot in the back of the den. His tail lashed wildly.
"She died there."
Leafpaw raised her head, ears pricked. Firestar's words sounded detached. "I came in here because I hadn't seen her since the fight began – both of them, really."
"Firestar," Cloudtail took a step closer. If he heard, Firestar gave Cloudtail no regard. Leafpaw almost wished BloodClan had stayed.
"He was still over her – her blood was on his claws." Leafpaw might have thought he was flexing his claws but none came out. "He seemed…pleased by me being there."
"Firestar," Leafpaw began. Firestar looked at his paws.
"I didn't know what would happen," He whispered. Cloudtail shook his head.
"He can't hear us," The white warrior's voice was low.
Leafpaw glanced over her shoulder as voices came from outside.
"– my den. This is where I'd sleep before everything happened." That was Hawktalon.
"Really?" Whitepaw asked. "Was this the leader's den before?"
"Tigerstar slept here before me."
"Come on," Brambleheart's voice rumbled. Cloudtail hissed and Leafpaw turned as she realized Firestar had responded to it. Terror like none she had ever seen before emerged on the leader's face as he whipped around. Brambleheart entered, Squirrelpaw flanking him. Firestar hissed.
He stumbled toward the back of the den, his back arched as his green gaze locked onto Brambleheart. Brambleheart's ears folded as he stepped back. "Great StarClan!" Squirrelpaw's eyes were wide with alarm. "What's his deal?"
"Just leave, okay?" Cloudtail ordered, rushing to Firestar's side. The leader had crouched. "You can come back in a minute." Leafpaw padded forward. Squirrelpaw looked ready to protest. Brambleheart pushed her back.
"Let's get him out of here," Leafpaw's voice was shaky. She took a deep breath. Cloudtail nudged him and to her surprise, Firestar rose. Cloudtail grunted.
"We should never have been here," He looked at the apprentice. "Tell Brambleheart to stay on his blind side, okay?" Leafpaw nodded. She turned, leading the way.
Leafpaw signed quickly to Brambleheart, who moved to where he was directed. Firestar stayed by Cloudtail's side once he was outside. Hawktalon eyed the WindClan leader, curiously.
"Go in, if you'd like." Cloudtail looked at Brambleheart, Squirrelpaw, and Whitepaw. "We're leaving after."
Firestar did not speak again until they had neared Fourtrees.
"BloodClan!" He hissed suddenly, his nose in the air. Leafpaw took in the scent around her, her fur rising as she caught it too.
"There!" Whitepaw exclaimed. Leafpaw turned, catching sight of the approaching cats.
"This way!" Hawktalon exclaimed, turning quickly toward the Thunderpath. Leafpaw's heartbeat quickened as she realized he was leading them toward the Thunderpath and Twolegs.
Suddenly, Hawktalon turned, disappearing beneath the Thunderpath. Leafpaw stumbled in her step, surprised. Where had he gone? Brambleheart disappeared next and Firestar had stopped, looking down. Leafpaw slowed in her steps as she realized there was a tunnel beneath the Thunderpath.
Firestar still was not moving, staring into the darkness. Leafpaw looked back at the approaching BloodClan cats. "Firestar, breathe." It was just her and him left. "We need to go – they're coming."
Firestar took a few deep breaths before he suddenly shook his head. He looked at his daughter in alarm and hurried her forward. They disappeared into the tunnel.
"Hawktalon said they don't know about the tunnel last time," Whitepaw hissed as they came to a stop. The rest of the patrol was huddled together. Firestar hushed the apprentice, his ears pricked as he looked back. Leafpaw strained her ears as voices arose.
"Where did they go?"
"They must have made it across the road – come on, we need to catch up with them." Leaving pawsteps sounded from above. Warriors relaxed.