Whitestar's P.O.V
Mud clung to his legs as the clans around him marched through the sodden earth, following the river. Beside him ,Tallstar was huffing from the effort of pulling his long limbs out of the mud. Whitestar sighed and pressed on, behind him the rest of the clans suffered similarly from the mud. Rain had begun heavily just days before and had soaked the land around the river, forcing them to have to travel away from it but mud was still an issue. Whitestar slowed and motioned for those nearby to do the same.
Willowpelt approached him, "We should rest for a little bit, the warriors carrying the kits are exhausted, as are the older warriors."
Willowpelt glanced meaningfully towards Tallstar and Barkface who had pushed his way to the Windclan Leader's side. Whitestar nodded before raising his voice, "We'll rest here for a little while, warriors with kits trade off with another warrior."
Warriors nearby sighed with relief as they hauled themselves towards the bracken nearby, some others jumping onto a fallen tree and nearby rocks to escape the mud. Leopardstar who'd been protecting the rear of the group approached, Blackstar having moved to take one of his kits from a Shadowclan warrior. The dappled leader nodded to him as she neared, Tallstar moved to join them.
"How long until we reach Skyclan?" Leopardstar asked, directing her question to Tallstar.
"I don't know why you're asking me, Leopardstar, I never made the journey. Not to mention its taking us so long due to how many of us are traveling." Tallstar snapped, the elder tom's seemingly endless patience finally wavering. Leopardstar frowned deeply and began to open her jaws to retort, thankfully Blackstar interrupted with a muffled grunt as he carried a long legged, black she-kit. Whitestar blinked at the kit who only looked at him.
"Hi." The kit chirped, Blackstar's face scrunched slightly.
"Hello." Whitestar replied, trying to not laugh at the sight.
Blackstar placed the kit at his paws before speaking, "Runningnose told me that Shadepelt is getting cramps, he and the other Medicine Cats are requesting that we rest for the remainder of the day as they don't want her to have her kits early."
Whitestar nodded as did Leopardstar, "I'll send out a patrol to find a drier area for us to rest."
After dispersing, Whitestar sent out Ashstripe to lead the patrol while he turned and went to find Sandstorm. Scanning around the different groups of exhausted warriors, Whitestar caught sight of Sandstorm's sandy pelt nearby, stepping around a few warriors he approached his former apprentice. As he neared she turned her head towards him and straightened up.
"Sandstorm, I need you to take out a hunting patrol, don't take any apprentices. We should start moving again at dawn." Whitestar mewed.
"Of course." Sandstorm replied curtly before moving toward Dustpelt and Mousefur.
With a tired sigh Whitestar moved to look over the nearby river, the river was much clearer than in the old territories, free from Twoleg rubbish. The clans had settled up the steep bank, and the river was in clear view. The journey had been just over three moons with injuries and newborn kits slowing down clans. Spiderkit and Shrewkit were old enough to be apprentices, yet due to the traveling were unable to begin training.
Whitestar could only shake his head and looked down the river which had begun to slow somewhat but the water churned dangerously. Silently Whitestar repeated the threats the Skyclan cats faced that he'd learned from Tallstar. Foxes more common than at the original territories, flooding from the river, and possibly rats, all threats that could also affect the other clans. After all, Skyclan could refuse to help them aside from settling and setting borders, the Skyclan cats had no reason to assist the other clans after what had happened to their ancestors. Whitestar wasn't even sure how large of a clan Skyclan was, or how they lived in their territory. So little known about the fifth clan and he worried that could cause discord between all the clans.
Soft pawsteps approached, "You're worrying again aren't you?"
He flicked an ear, "Ever observant Willowpelt."
Willowpelt sat beside him, her pale fur moving slightly with the breeze, "I should be when it comes to you," she sighed "We can't worry about the things we can't control, Starclan allows for things to happen for a reason. Thunderclan will persevere no matter what it may face, just keep your head high, our clan is looking to you for guidance."
Whitestar chuckled lightly, "I don't remember when you became so wise, Willowpelt."
"Always have been, just had no reason to speak it." Willowpelt huffed with a small smile.
Whitestar glanced over his shoulder towards his clan, Sootpaw and Rainpaw were telling stories with the Riverclan apprentices. Meanwhile Sorrelpaw was with the only Shadowclan apprentice and a few of the kits.
Willowpelt rested her tail on his shoulders as he turned to look back her. He dipped his head to her before looking up to the sky above.
Fireheart's P.O.V
The sun above shined down upon camp, the newest apprentices were still in camp, having been assigned to the elders and nursery for the day. Meanwhile, Cloudtail had taken Pepperpaw out for an assignment. The Dawn patrol had already returned and the clan was settling in for a relaxing day, kits played in the center of camp and warriors laid beside each other sharing-tongues and eating the prey caught by the hunting patrol. Fireheart watched over her clan from atop a flat boulder, beside her Iceclaw slept sprawled out in the sun. With a stretch, she hopped down from the boulder and made her way out of camp, it was a perfect time to go hunt and give Red her answer. Snakestar had taken several days to decide, and had spoken to the clan about it before allowing Fireheart to go and meet with Red.
After catching a pair of thrushes and burying them, she began her way to the Twoleg Place. Only stopping once to check an abandoned fox den, Fireheart arrived to the Twoleg Place border just before Sunhigh. Looking around momentarily, Fireheart began to walk the border keeping one eye out for a familiar red pelt. The sound of dogs barking beyond the fences and the roars of monsters kept Fireheart on alert, after all it wouldn't be the first time a dog escaped or a Twoleg had thrown something at a warrior. She also stayed aware of any lingering kitty-pets, noisy cats that never stayed to their own business.
A flicker of red flashed in the corner of Fireheart's eye as she passed by a break in the fences. Red and a tom Fireheart had seen at a few times near the border sat in the shade casted by the fence.
"Fireheart!" Red chirped brightly, motioning with her tail for Fireheart to join them in the shadows.
Fireheart dipped her head in greeting, "So you must be the infamous Harley."
The gray-brown tom flushed with embarrassment before nodding, to which Red leaned against him.
"What did Snakestar say?" Red asked, her paws shifting. Fireheart heaved a sigh before looking at the ground, Red drew a sharp breath.
Raising her head with a smile Fireheart replied, "You're welcomed to join Skyclan!"
Red's jaw dropped and after a moment she lunged tackling Fireheart in a flurry of giggling laughter, "Don't scare me like that Fireheart! Harley can you believe it he actually said yes!"
Harley grinned at his chipper mate before nudging her off Fireheart, "Thank you Fireheart."
Clambering to her paws, Fireheart shook her head, "It was a clan decision, we're glad to have you two apart of our clan so long as you work as hard as any other warrior does."
Harley nodded and got to his paws, Red was practically shaking in excitement as Fireheart led them back to Skyclan. Along the way she retrieved the birds she'd caught earlier and listened to Red and Harley as they asked a few questions and explaining the ceremony that would be preformed.
Yes, they would gain warrior names. No, Skyclan didn't eat bird eggs commonly. Yes, if they had kits they would be treated as any other Skyclan kit.
The pair quieted as they entered camp, a few calls of greeting and Rainfur leaving to alert Snakestar of their arrival. Fireheart guided them to the base of the Rockpile and climbed to the deputy's spot for ceremonies. Snakestar joined her atop of Rockpile and looked down upon the young pair. Since the clan was already gathered, Snakestar skipped over the summoning call.
"Today we greet these cats as new members of Skyclan, no longer are they outsiders but rather members of our clan, our kin. Red, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?" Snakestar asked.
"I do." Red replied confidently, her eyes staring back at Snakestar.
"Then by the powers of Starclan, I give you your warrior name. Red, from this moment on you will be known as Redfeather." Snakestar announced before turning to Harley, "Harley, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?"
The young tom straightened his back, "I do."
"Then by the powers of Starclan, I give you your warrior name. From this moment on you will be known as Blizzardstrike." Snakestar mewed, the clan began to chant their new names.
Fireheart smiled at the sight of Redfeather and Blizzardstrike, who were now speaking with Snakestar. The plan that they'd made for having the two young warriors join, included preventing Stick from finding out about Redfeather's location for at least a season cycle and making sure Stick didn't learn of Blizzardstrike's involvement. As some went to congratulate the two new warriors, Fireheart slipped off to join Iceclaw who watched the ceremony from atop the boulder he'd been sleeping upon earlier.
Leaping up onto the boulder she plopped down next to her brother.
"You seem particularly joyful." Iceclaw murmured glancing at her.
"I am," Fireheart confirmed, "We have two new warriors, another soon to be made, a healthy clan, and we're strong. There's nothing else I could ask for."
Iceclaw hummed lightly, he looked up to the clear sky above. Fireheart smiled softly and shook her head lightly. The clan was strong, well protected, and growing rapidly; Skyclan was in the middle of a golden age. Yet, distantly, Echosong's prophecy prickled at the back of her mind, lurking worry followed her every paw step. Fireheart's chest tightened, "May Starclan keep my clan safe, even if the cost is my life, I'll pay it to keep them safe."
Longtail's P.O.V
It's been three sunrises since the clans had taken it's last break, kits wailed from hunger and exhaustion from only having rest at night, and warriors were on near constant edge. Longtail himself was exhausted, even though there was prey, there wasn't enough nearby to feed every cat as the clan leaders didn't want warriors wandering off too far and getting lost. His paw pads were swollen much like many other warriors from the constant traveling and the stone in his stomach only seemed to get heavier and heavier. It was just after dawn and Longtail was hunting alongside Ashstripe, and Gorsetail of Windclan. Sandstorm and a few other warriors had also gone hunting.
Ashstripe motioned further upstream where a large crow clung to a large bush covered in dark berries, the bird was distracted by the berries, completely unaware of the trio of cats. Longtail nodded and used his tail to point over to the undergrowth to Gorsetail. The young warrior dipped his head and slipped silently into the undergrowth to allow the Thunderclan cats to hunt the bird. Ashstripe and Longtail went to opposite sides of the bush and crept forward slowly. Careful to stay out of sight, Longtail slipped into the shadows and glanced over to Ashstripe who slightly raised his tail. The moment Ashstripe dropped his tail they both lunged, aiming to startle the bird into each other's claws. Just a moment to late as the crow took flight.
However it only got a few tail lengths above the bush when a blaze of fire caught it midair from out of nowhere. Longtail startled so bad he fell into the prickly bush. Eyes narrowed he pulled himself free from the bush as he heard Ashstripe's gasp of awe and Gorsetail questioning call of "Who are you?"
He turned and was faced by a she-cat with fur that reminded him of the powerful flames that had once scorched Thunderclan's forest. Clamped within the jaws of the she-cat was the crow limp, she faced away from him, looking towards Ashstripe and Gorsetail. The bird dropped to the ground with a thud.
"I'm Fireheart of Skyclan. Am I right to assume you're from the other clans?" The she-cat asked before turning her head to look back at Longtail.
Instantly he was trapped within the most green eyes he'd ever seen.
Whitestar's P.O.V
Blackstar was pacing yet again, the large Shadowclan leader irritated that Whitestar's hunting patrol had yet to return.
"We need to get moving soon if we want to have any chance of making this journey shorter." Blackstar growled, his tail lashing. Leopardstar only graced him with an annoyed huff and a roll of her eyes.
Whitestar shook his head and turned back to Tallstar and Deadfoot who certainly looked dead on his paws. They had been conversing over whether it'd be possible to send a smaller patrol ahead to keep an eye out for dogs, as early the previous day a Twoleg had passed by the river with it's dog that had tried to lunge across the river at the scent of the cats only to be dragged back by the Twoleg. However an explosion of cats muttering and asking questions erupted. Tallstar looked over Whitestar's shoulder and gasped, quickly turning just as Leopardstar had jumped to her paws, Whitestar saw the hunting patrol Blackstar had just been complaining about but only with another member with them.
Beside Longtail was a cat that truly had a pelt of fire and eyes of the forest. A young she-cat stood confidently, unwavering even as dozens of eyes stared at her, Whitestar couldn't even say anything when Tallstar raced past him to stand before the she-cat.
For a moment all they did was stare at each other before the she-cat smiled, "You must be the Talltail my father speaks so fondly of."
Tallstar's eyes filled with tears, "It's Tallstar now, you are Sunblaze's kit?"
"One of several," The she-cat chuckled, "I suppose it's time for introductions, isn't it?"
Whitestar swiftly approached, motioning for Sandstorm to come with him, he acknowledged that Blackstar and Leopardstar were just behind him
"I would suppose so, I'm Whitestar of Thunderclan." Whitestar introduced, "And my deputy Sandstorm."
"Blackstar of Shadowclan this is my deputy Russetfur"
"Leopardstar of Riverclan and my deputy Stonefur."
The she-cat dipped her head respectfully to them, "I'm Fireheart, the deputy of Skyclan."
Whitestar dipped his head to acknowledge the deputy, she was young much like Sandstorm. Tallstar introduced Deadfoot to Fireheart a bit sheepishly, the old leader having been too caught up in meeting the daughter of his old friend.
Fireheart grinned, "I'm sure your journey has been long and difficult, if your clans are ready we can head to camp, my patrol is most likely waiting for me, when we meet up with them I'll send a warrior ahead to alert the rest of Skyclan. But I can wait if you need to"
Blackstar actually laughed much to Whitestar's surprise, the large tom raised his voice, "Do we need to wait or are we ready to end this journey?"
Around them the clans erupted into cries and yowls of excitement, Fireheart chuckled before motioning for them to follow. The clans had already gotten to their paws and began to follow the Skyclan deputy and their clan leaders to their new home.
They followed the river quite someways when Whitestar caught sight of a patrol sized group of cats lingering by the river. Four warriors and what seemed to be two apprentices, as they approached Whitestar was mildly surprised to see that once of the apprentices had a large claw mark scar on his shoulder and nicked ears. The other apprentice a bouncing tuft of fur lacked any marking of fighting at all. As they approached, the scarred apprentice rose to his paws first before the rest of the patrol. A large russet tom called out to them.
"Is that them, Fireheart?" To which the scarred apprentice beside him snapped, "Of course it is mouse-brain."
Beside Whitestar, Sandstorm snorted, "What a disrespectful apprentice."
Whitestar cringed as Fireheart sent a cold glare at Sandstorm, however the scarred tom turned his head towards them as they were now close enough for him to have heard Sandstorm.
"Apprentice?" The scarred tom hissed, clearly insulted, beside him two of the other warriors looked near hysterical and the orange apprentice stared at Sandstorm with gaping jaws. Fireheart stepped forward.
"This is my brother Iceclaw from an older litter, a senior warrior of Skyclan." Fireheart mewed, eyes locked onto Sandstorm, "These are Patchfoot, Waspwhisker, Fallowfern, Sharpclaw, and his apprentice Bouncepaw."
Whitestar greeted the other Skyclan cats, not even looking at Sandstorm, despite the fact he could almost feel Sandstorm's embarrassment radiating from her. After a short conversation Waspwhisker went ahead to alert the rest of Skyclan. Sandstorm attempted to apologize to Iceclaw only to get an annoyed grunt as a response. However the same was not true when it came to Tallstar, who'd easily started a conversation with both Fireheart and Iceclaw. Both apparently having grown up having heard stories about Tallstar and the other clans through Sunblaze, who was now a elder of Skyclan. Whitestar also learned that the Skyclan leader was called Snakestar and that the former medicine cat of Skyclan had been the one to foretell Skyclan of their arrival.
Soon enough the forest tampered off into a rocky gorge with the river leading off into a cave, where nearby many cats stood. Whitestar was in awe of Skyclan, the clan was easily the largest of any of the clans, in front of the large crowd of cats that stood before the clans was a trio of cats. A tom, who Whitestar could safely assume was Snakestar, a silver tabby she-cat who was probably the Medicine Cat, and finally a blazing orange elder who had ran straight into Tallstar. The pair of them laughing and greeting each other joyously.
"Its good to finally meet the other clans." Snakestar mewed, dipping his head in respect towards Whitestar and the other leaders.
"We are very grateful for Skyclan's help," Whitestar replied.
"You clans must be tired, we'll show you where you can rest, Echosong here however would like to speak with the other Medicine Cats." Snakestar stated flicking his tail towards the silver she-cat.
Whitestar and the other leaders muttered their agreements and followed Snakestar deeper within the Gorge.
A/N: Oh my goodness it's finally here! I'm so sorry for the long wait I got sick and I've been busy with school. I'm so grateful for everyone who's favorited and commented on this story, it really gives me confidence to continue the story (which has been planned out pretty far) and I'm so excited to share it with you all. I'm currently in need for some feedback about Fireheart's kits as I still do plan on Fireheart getting some, however I'm still on the fence on whether to use completely OCs as the kits aren't between Fireheart and Sandstorm or using Squirrelflight and Leafpool with a OC kit or two. Then I also need some names for the soon to be born kits in the primary clans. Ashfoot's are already planned but I need 3 names for Shadepelt's and maybe a few more for future litters. I was a bit concerned on what I was gonna name Red and Harley and eventually I got it down to Redfeather, Rosefur, and Dawnwhisker for Red and Blizzardstrike or Hickoryclaw for Harley. Pretty sure I'll keep their names as what I gave them, but if I should change them to something else just let me know.
Hope you all enjoy this chapter, it's a bit rushed to me but I hope you all like it.