Chapter Four

For the next two weeks, Eaglestar sent so many patrols to the ShadowClan border that the whole Clan was tired by the afternoon. Goldenpaw insisted that he had a hairball stuck somewhere.

"I could sleep for a moon," she mewed after she came back from another patrol.

"Let's go hunting," I suggested. I was looking for an excuse to get away from our leader.

"Okay," agreed Goldenpaw eagerly.

The two of us left the camp after telling Waterpool where we were going. Eaglestar was reluctant to let us out alone, but Waterpool said that the Clan needed fresh-kill. As we ran through the forest, sniffing, I mewed to Goldenpaw,

"So, when do we think we'll go to a Gathering?"

"Next moon, probably," she answered. Then her whiskers twitched with amusement. "Runningpaw told me how you reacted when you saw that RiverClan apprentice, Oakpaw."

"Huh?" My ears twitched uncomfortably. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"You can't have a crush on a RiverClan apprentice, Bluepaw, it's unheard of."

"Er…" I had nothing to say to that.

Goldenpaw purred. "You're so weird, Bluepaw. Anyway, let's hunt by the falls. I've always wanted to catch a fish!"

"Good idea," I agreed, glad to get away from that subject.

The two of us raced quickly through the trees. There was so much prey in the forest that it was hard not to stop and catch something, but like Goldenpaw, I had always wanted to catch a fish.

Suddenly, my sister stopped, fur bristling, tail held high, sniffing the air. I halted next to her.

"What's the matter?" I asked.

"WindClan!" she exclaimed. "WindClan on our territory."

"WindClan?" I was expecting ShadowClan. "Let's get back to camp and warn them!"

We couldn't. Suddenly, larger, muscular cats came out of the trees and bushes, surrounding us in a circle. They were definitely WindClan. I realized that Talltail, WindClan's deputy, was not there. Just then, Breezestar stepped out.

"What are you doing here?" snarled Goldenpaw. "This is ThunderClan territory! Get out!"

Breezestar purred with amusement. "No," he mewed. "We just want to talk."

"Why are you and Shadestar partners?" I demanded.

Breezestar looked surprised. "We are allies, yes," he agreed. "I agreed to make his Clan stronger if he would give me some of his apprentices."

"What?" I gasped in outrage. "That's impossible!"

"So he needed to prove his loyalty to me by attacking and challenging ThunderClan," continued Breezestar.

Goldenpaw snorted loudly at this statement. "What do you want with us?" she demanded.

Breezestar circled us. "We want you to join WindClan," he mewed.

I leapt back in shock. "Not a chance!" I snarled. "I'm loyal to ThunderClan!"

"Yes, but ThunderClan is weak and small," meowed Breezestar. "Look at us, Bluepaw, Goldenpaw! We are many. We could rule the forest."

I swished my tail from side to side and looked defiantly into Breezestar's eyes. "Sorry," I mewed. "But I would never join WindClan. I'd rather eat crowfood."

Breezestar's eyes flashed. He looked at his warriors. "Well, then," he mewed. "Kill them, Coalstripe, Foxpelt."

"Kill them."

The two warriors stepped into the circle. Coalstripe was a ginger tom with jet-black stripes down his back. Foxpelt was another ginger she-cat.

Coalstripe launched! Hissing, he tackled me, sending me sprawling on the ground. I leapt up and grabbed his neck with my teeth. If I was going to die, then I was going to die fighting.

I slashed with all my might at Coalstripe's flank. Next to me, Goldenpaw was wrestling with Foxpelt. I couldn't tell who was winning. I yowled in pain and anger as Coalstripe bit down on my tail.

I leapt back again, making him release me. But Coalstripe wouldn't back off. He launched himself again at me, clawing at my shoulder.

StarClan, please help! I thought frantically. I was going to lose. I'd never get made a warrior. And Goldenpaw…

Oakpaw…

"Rowwrrr!"

A sudden roar echoed through the clearing. Suddenly, Coalstripe was pulled off of me. I looked at the cat who had rescued me – it was Lionheart. ThunderClan was here!

Lionheart gave Coalstripe a lethal bite and he hung limp; he was dead.

And then, more cats flooded into the clearing, bearing the smells of RiverClan. Even more cats were here! With RiverClan and ThunderClan, we could surely drive these guys off.

I scrambled to my feet, wincing at the scratches Coalstripe had given me. Foxpelt was already dead, killed by someone, and the battle had totally turned.

It was then when I spotted Eaglestar wrestling with Breezestar. I had never seen our leader fight before, but he was certainly powerful. Eaglestar gave Breezestar a quick bite to the throat. Blood gushed out and the WindClan leader yowled in agony – then he hung limp. He was in the trance of losing a life – if it was his last then he'd be gone forever. I was pleased to see that he never got up again.

I turned to help the rest of the Clan. I leapt up on a WindClan warrior called Ashfoot, who had Goldenpaw pinned down. I sank my teeth and claws into his flank and sent him screaming into the bushes.

There were no more WindClan warriors left. I stared at the three dead cats on the ground: Breezestar, Coalstripe, and Foxpelt. WindClan would come back for them.

Slitstar, RiverClan's leader, padded over to Eaglestar. "We heard apprentices mewling," he meowed. "We thought we'd come and help."

Eaglestar bowed his head to him. "We thank you so much."

I spotted Oakpaw in the crowd and ran over to him.

"Thanks for saving us," I mewed.

Oakpaw nodded. "Of course."

"RiverClan!" shouted Slitstar. "Time to return to camp."

Oakstar mewed good-bye to me before leaving with his Clan.

Eaglestar padded over to me. "You fought excellently, Bluepaw, Goldenpaw," he mewed. "I think –"

"Eaglestar! Oh, StarClan, Eaglestar!"

We turned quickly. Flowerpetal was dragging a warrior from the bushes. It was a blue-gray she-cat. Steelfur! I thought in shock – at first. But then I realized that it was not she.

It was Waterpool.

And she was dead.

"No," I gasped, going suddenly limp. My mentor was dead…

Goldenpaw nudged me sympathetically.

"We've lost another one," groaned Halftail. "It's…Tailtip!"

Two warriors dead! I thought in anguish. I don't believe it…

Once we got back to camp, Eaglestar leapt upon the Highrock. "Waterpool and Tailtip were incredible warriors," he mewed. "They will be missed terribly. But right now, three ceremonies need to be performed." He paused. Then, "The new ThunderClan deputy will be Thistleclaw."

The black warrior stood up proudly. "I am honored to be your deputy, Eaglestar," he mewed.

"Thank you, Thistleclaw," meowed Eaglestar. "And a ThunderClan apprentice needs to be named," he continued. "Tigerkit, come here."
The dark brown tabby tom bounced eagerly forward. He looked a bit sadder since his mother's death, but that still didn't stop him from being energetic and lively.

"Thistleclaw," continued Eaglestar, "you will mentor Tigerpaw. I was a good mentor to you. Share all your knowledge that I have taught you to this young apprentice."

"Of course," replied Thistleclaw, and went to touch noses with his new apprentice.

"One more ceremony," mewed Eaglestar. "Bluepaw, Goldenpaw, come here please."

My insides turned to ice as Eaglestar called me to the Highrock. I stood next to Goldenpaw.

"I, Eaglestar, leader of ThunderClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on these two apprentices. They have trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend them to you as warriors in their turn."

He looked at us. "Bluepaw, Goldenpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and protect and defend this Clan, even at the cost of your own life?"

"I do," I mewed.

"I do," exclaimed Goldenpaw.

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior names. Bluepaw, from this moment on you will be known as Bluefur. StarClan honors your loyalty and your intelligence, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan." He rested his head on mine. I wish Waterpool could be here to see this, I thought as he turned to Goldenpaw.

"Goldenpaw, from this moment on you will be known as Goldencrest. StarClan honors your loyalty and your intelligence, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan." He rested his head on Goldencrest's before leaping down from the Highrock. He faced the two of us.

"Remember, you have to sit vigil for the night," he mewed. "You can't speak until sunrise."

We nodded and walked over to the center of the Clan, exchanged excited glances, and sat down, falling asleep instantly.

I awoke suddenly in the morning. Bluefur, I thought excitedly. That's my warrior name! I got up and stretched, seeing that the Clan was just waking up. Thistleclaw padded over to us.

"You can speak now," he mewed.

"That's a relief," sighed Goldencrest. "I couldn't say hi to anybody this morning!"

"Eaglestar wants to see you," continued Thistleclaw, ignoring Goldencrest.

"Okay," I mewed, and the two of us got up, padding toward Eaglestar's den beneath the Highrock.

"Bluefur, Goldencrest," he greeted. "My two newest warriors." We dipped our heads in greeting. "Now," continued Eaglestar, "I want to know what Breezestar wanted with you two."

"He wanted us to join WindClan," mewed Goldencrest. "He said that he and Shadestar were partners because Breezestar promised him that he would make ShadowClan stronger if Shadestar gave him some of his apprentices."

"And you said no," mused Eaglestar.

"We said no," I agreed. "But Shadestar wanted Breezestar to prove his loyalty to him by attacking and challenging ThunderClan." I waited for Eaglestar's reaction.

But instead he suddeny purred with laughter. "What an idiot Breezestar was!" he exclaimed. "Trying to do that on his last life. Mouse-brained. Well, I guess the new WindClan leader is Tallstar. Talltail has always been a good warrior." He let out one more purr of amusement before saying, "All right, you two. You can leave."

"Yes, Eaglestar," we mewed, backing out of the cave.

"Hey! Bluefur! Goldencrest!"

It was Redpaw and Runningpaw, racing to meet us.

"Congratulations!" exclaimed Redpaw. "I can't believe you two were made warriors!"

"Good names, too," added Runningpaw. "I can't wait to see what my warrior name will be."

"How's Tigerpaw?" I asked.

Redpaw shrugged. "He gets annoying," he admitted. "But he's definitely a strong warrior."

"That's good," mewed Goldencrest. "We need strong warriors after Waterpool and Tailtip…"

She sent a glance toward their graves at the edge of the Clan. Several cats were sharing tongues with them for the last time.

"I forgot to say good-bye to Waterpool," I mewed to the others. "I'll be back."

I padded over to my mentor's grave and whispered, "Thank you so much for all you have taught me…I'll never forget it." I spent a few moments by her grave before going to the fresh-kill pile and getting a thrush to eat with my friends.

"Why were they made warriors?" came an annoyed voice. It was Tigerpaw. "I'm just as capable of becoming warriors as they are!"

"No, you're not." Thistleclaw nudged him. "You won't be for a long time."

To be honest, it scared me that Eaglestar had chosen Thistleclaw to be deputy. Thistleclaw was a strong, brave warrior, like I've already said, but if it came to Thistlestar, he would most likely bring ThunderClan to an end with his eagerness for power.

"I'll be the best warrior in ThunderClan!" shouted Tigerpaw, shaking the deputy away from him. "And I probably don't need a mentor to do it."

Thistleclaw purred with amusement. "I'd like to see how far you'll get."

It was then when a thought struck me. I stood up quickly.

"Um," I mewed, "I want to go hunting by myself, okay? That all right?"

"Sure," answered Goldencrest, looking puzzled, "but why –"

"Bye!" I shouted over my shoulder as I left ThunderClan camp.

I entered the forest outside the clearing. I scented a mouse a few fox-lengths away, but didn't bother going to hunt it. I had another thing on my mind. Instead, I went to the left, toward RiverClan territory.

I paused by the river, sniffing the air. I ducked into the bushes when I scented RiverClan warriors.

A patrol appeared at the edge of the river. "I smell ThunderClan," announced a dark brown tom called Loudbelly.

A huge light-colored tom let out an amused purr. "Across from there is ThunderClan territory," mewed Crookedfoot. "There's bound to be ThunderClan warriors in ThunderClan territory."

It was then when a reddish-brown tom came into view – my heart leapt – just the cat I had been looking for. Oakpaw sniffed the air, his eyes widening. He turned to the others.

"I smell a rabbit," he mewed. "I'm going to catch it, okay? You guys can go on ahead; I'll catch up."

"You sure, Oakheart?" asked Crookedfoot.

Oakheart! I thought. He had been made a warrior!

"Quite sure," answered the tom.

The patrol shrugged and continued on their way. Once Oakheart was sure they were out of earshot, he turned back across the river and meowed, "Bluepaw?"

I came out of the bushes. "It's Bluefur now," I mewed proudly.

Oakheart swam agilely across the river and sat next to me. "Congradulations," he mewed. "I was made a warrior as well. I'm Oakheart now."

"I know that, silly." I nudged him with my head. "I heard Crookedfoot say."

"Our deputy, Rubytail, died in that battle with the WindClan warriors," mewed Oakheart.

My eyes widened. "Oh, really? That's horrible. So did ours."

"The new deputy is Crookedfoot."

I nodded. "He seems perfectly capable. Ours is Thistleclaw."

There was a small silence after that. Then Oakheart nudged me affectionately.

"Will we see each other again?" he murmured.

"Of course," I answered. "I'll come by the river every now and then, see if you're there…"

"Right." Oakheart nodded. "I'll see you, Bluefur."

"You too, Oakheart."

He swam with amazing strength across the river. And as he disappeared into his territory, I felt incredibly lonely without him.