-cowers behind something- sorry for the slow updates. please read and review!
Chapter Four
Word traveled like specks of dust on the wind. Everyone knew. Bluefur's belly grew and she shyly turned away from curious gazes, but no matter how hard the queen tried, there seemed to be a voice questioning her awkwardly large middle.
Her secret meetings with Oakheart had certainly turned on her. Bluefur had never meant to have kits with the handsome tom but it seemed things had just happened that way.
Bluefur had taken refuge in the nursery now, her breathing becoming harder and her gut giving a lurch every now and then. When the time came Spottedpaw hovered behind Snowtempest, formally of the name Snowpaw, who toiled with an small, odd root to give to Bluefur after her kits were born. The medicine cat in training was showing true potential in her first moon of practice.
The young blue and silver queen lay breathing tiredly, three small forms nestled by her side. It was stifling warm compared to the snow-laden world outside the little den. She gazed down with fatigue-hazed eyes at a misty-gray she-kit, a grey blue-tinged tom-kit and a brown-and-grey tom-kit. As if by some magic force, Bluefur knew what their names must be.
She nuzzled the only one that somewhat resembled his father. Pinekit. Then her ice blue gaze fell onto the grey queen that made a higher pitched mewl that only a mother could hear. Mistykit. And, lastly Bluefur nosed the broad-shouldered blue-grey tom. Stonekit.
That chilly night, a dark blue form with glittering green eyes slipped along the border next to Sunningrocks. She had crossed a two-leg bridge to get onto the RiverClan side. Her mouth was parted, scenting the powerful stench of the rival clan. The snow fell heavily, wind tearing at her lean form.
Before Bluefur gave birth to her kits, Kindheart had heard her daughter murmuring in her sleep of her mate from the river. Kindheart knew the danger but she had to find out. She had to know.
The older queen was an aged warrior with many skills but time was doing her in. She stalked quietly until a broad-shouldered figure melted from the RiverClan territory. His blue eyes glinted as he scented ThunderClan.
"Greetings, warrior," he called out. "You don't belong so close to the border."
Kindheart paused, not knowing whether to run or fight. She took a step back then registered the brown tom before her as pale moonlight illuminated the land.
"Who are you?" she rasped. Bluefur could not be a traitor. She just couldn't!
"That does not concern you."
"Do you know Bluefur?" Kindheart tread closer and closer, across the border until she was nose to nose with mysterious feline. He hissed in return.
"What do you know?" Oakheart growled.
The exchange of questions brought few answers.
Out of the bracken shot a black pelted tom, his amber eyes shining with fury. "ThunderClan!" he spat. "On RiverClan territory!" The queen and the tom clashed without pausing to look at one another. Kindheart could not leave; she needed more answers. Oakheart hesitated. The queen knew and she was in another clan's land. Should he really stop the fight?
Kindheart let out a screech as a flash of red light passed before her eyes. A soft darkness enveloped her as a voice whispered in her ear, the breath of her love tickling her skin. "Kindheart, my dearest," he beckoned, "Come and join me! Come with me to StarClan."
It ended suddenly. A swift bite to the throat made Kindheart go limp. The black pelted tom staggered back, suddenly realizing what he had done, his eyes wide with fear. He landed the jaw clamp in the wrong place and now he was responsible for a death. Oakheart's senses returned. A completely unnecessary death, he thought with panic rising in his throat.
That was when he realized Bluefur mustn't tell who the father of her kits were. They would surely be sentenced to death.
No more than a few hours or so later, Bluefur slipped out of the nursery, forcing herself onto tired paws. The snow glittered coldly as the rising sun struck it. The sky was clear of storm clouds for the moment. She stepped out into the endless whiteness, striding into the trees as Spottedpaw watched quietly from the corner of camp, which was already becoming alive with cats.
Bluefur reached the heart of the ThunderClan forest then veered toward RiverClan territory. She blinked in surprise when she saw that the river was not even close to frozen. She sighed then in relief when a lone tawny brown tom stood on the opposite bank.
The queen slid forward carefully on the snow towards him, but he gestured with his tail for her to stop. Oakheart turned around and vanished into the bracken. Bluefur was about to call out when he reappeared slowly dragging a lifeless gray form forward. The queen let out a horrified mewl and shot to the river's edge, fervently praying it wasn't who she knew it was.
Amazingly, Oakheart narrowed his eyes in concentration and, without releasing the dead queen, dove into the water. Bluefur gasped as the rushing water closed over his head then Oakheart appeared farther downstream but much closer now. The tom's paws churned in the water doggedly, refusing to give up though the freezing water chilled him to the bone.
Bluefur dipped her head forward, digging her sharp claws into the bank and taking Oakheart's burden as he struggled up. She was shocked when she recognized the cat's scent. It was ThunderClan for sure but a connection deeper than clan blood caused a mewl to escape her lips. Her mother was dead.
"Here," Oakheart gasped, falling limply onto the snow then struggling to his paws. "A RiverClan cat killed her by accident when she crossed into our territory. I think she knew about me and you." Oakheart paused for a brief moment. "She looks exactly as you described your mother."
"She's dead," Bluefur whispered, pressing against Oakheart then closing her eyes against the sight. She turned her silvery head and began licking her forbidden mate dry before he caught a chill.
"That's why I needed to speak with you," Oakheart demanded. "ThunderClan is going to be furious with RiverClan. If they find out who is the father of our kits, they'll receive no mercy." Bluefur shook her head slowly. She knew that word of her kits father must never get out but something else would be done.
"That's not all of it. I'm worried about Thistleclaw. I'm mean, we're friends but he's overly ambitious. I … I must not let him become deputy and destroy ThunderClan. So, the Gathering is tomorrow night," Bluefur said with a slight frown. "I'll have a good plan thought through by then." Bluefur licked Oakheart's muzzle then lifted her mother by the scruff. The body had lost all warmth and hung with a disturbing limpness.
At the foretold Gathering, Bluefur and Oakheart slipped away and quickly discussed how this would be done. Three nights from that night, Bluefur would take the kits to Sunningrocks and Oakheart would carry them across.
When the night arrived and the moon reflected ethereally off the unbroken surface of the snow, Bluefur slipped out of camp after darkness fell and all the clan was asleep. It was a good thing that there were no other mothering queens in the nursery. Gently guiding her kits, Bluefur trekked straight towards Sunningrocks.
The snow clung to their pelts for the sun had not melted it away yet. Pinekit stumbled and fell, mewling weakly, eyes barely open yet. Bluefur paused to lift him to his paws and cleaned away a bit of the snow. But the small group had to keep going.
At the river bank beside Sunningrocks, Oakheart slithered into view. Pinekit stumbled again but did not struggle, mewling like he had done before. As Oakheart carried the other kits across the river, Bluefur sat with the last kit as he died. She buried him by Sunningrocks, a grim marker symbolizing the link between RiverClan and ThunderClan that existed now.
A month passed like a single day. Thistleclaw had taken on an apprentice, Tigerpaw. This brown tabby was a troublemaker if there ever was one. He and his cronies, two younger toms called Longpaw and Darkpaw, resented authority almost as much as they resented the other clans. Led on by Tigerpaw, Longpaw and especially Darkpaw were brought into a dark depths that Tigerpaw had surpassed long ago.
Thistleclaw stalked quietly along the RiverClan border with his apprentice. Not too far into the ThunderClan territory was another two mentors and their apprentices. Their job was a simple patrol along the border to Fourtrees.
The dark tabby warrior trotted boldly then he tread closer to the border. Tigerpaw briefly passed over repeatedly.
A pair of green eyes glittered maliciously from undergrowth-laden RiverClan land as the falls neared closer, their well-known roar of falling water reaching the felines' sharp ears. The group of toms revealed themselves nearly directly beside the infamous drop. The head of the RiverClan cats curled his lip back in snarl.
"So, you think you can just stroll into my ground whenever you want?" the oddly patterned tom growled. His tail became thick and his neck fur bristled. Then the tom's companion blocked his line of attack with an outstretched tail. This peace-maker stepped forward, his blue eyes calm and unwavering.
"This is your warning. Step into this territory again and we will not hesitate to take drastic measures." The blue-eyed tom stared boldly into the amber depths that were Thistleclaw's. The green-eyed golden tabby beside him unsheathed his claws while he reminded himself of his motivations. RiverClan would be his and his golden-patterned tabby daughter would never be threatened.
Thistleclaw stepped forward while Tigerpaw witnessed with narrowed eyes, taking in every detail. He realized this was where his plan would take effect. Thistleclaw's eyes met the green orbs of his rival clan's. With a vicious war screech, they flung themselves at each other.
The other toms jumped into the fray, some battling with heated blood while others tried to separate the writhing, screeching mass. The other ThunderClan mentors heard this fighting and flew from the dense trees to the clash of the two clans.
Thistleclaw and Leopardkit's father tumbled precariously to the edge of the falls. Tigerpaw glanced up to the cloud filled sky. The moon's glow would be covered in a few moments and then the young brown tom would be free to perform what he called his solemn duty.
There was a heart pounding moment where the clouds broke and a column of light fell onto Thistleclaw and Torrentpelt. They reared onto their hind legs and hovered, locking eyes and a connection formed. Each realized they were evenly matched and they could not defeat the other and yet they knew to quit was to die because the fight would not stop.
Then the clouds shifted and the world was plunged into darkness. Tigerpaw exploded forward with a burst of energy, firing headfirst into the two toms' fight. They both felt the impact and scrabbled their paws in the air helplessly as they tumbled over the edge.
Thistleclaw and Torrentpelt were suspended in midair for a mere fraction of a second as they knew they fought together and now they died together. Tigerpaw's face was contorted into an expression of twisted satisfaction. Then the moonlight touched earth again and splashed across the young apprentice's face which was now of mock horror.
"Thistleclaw!" he called, voice altered with fake fear. All battling cats froze as they realized two cats were missing. They glanced around, realizing the toms responsible for the border fight had fallen to their death.
The two clans separated slowly, silently and, with the quickest glance at the opposing force, they slipped back into their territory.
Tigerpaw hurriedly ran back to his camp and howled the news, his voice ridden with so-called grief. The other two mentors an their apprentices entered the camp bearing marks of the battle and panting from sprinting back to the place they called home.
Yes, Bluefur would become a deputy and yes, after Morningstar was ravaged by Greencough, she would become Bluestar. And all the while, her heart was torn by the loss of friends, her brother falling to sickness, her kits in another clan and her true love crushed beneath a rock fall. The list didn't seem to end.
Then one day while young Graypaw set out alone for the first time, they came upon a young intruder born of burning fieriness that was new to the forest she loved so much.
:-;-:
the next chap is the last chap! i'm sorry if you liked this story. how bout i write another cat's life? review please!