New chap...danke sehr to Dewflower, and enjoy!

He's not my brother.

The words drummed their way through Brambleclaw's mind over and over again as he stared at Hawkfrost. He willed himself to believe it, but he couldn't. No matter what he'd done, Hawkfrost was his brother.

He could feel the icy blue eyes on him and lifted his own gaze to meet them. A growl rose in his throat. "You killed her."

"She deserved it." Hawkfrost's tone held no emotion; not even anger. Brambleclaw glared at him. Does he even care?

"Don't you see, Brambleclaw?" Hawkfrost went on. "Tawnypelt made the wrong choice. You could make the right one. My cats are strong; they will win this fight. You can share the glory, and we can rule as brothers."

Brambleclaw heard Squirrelflight suck in her breat and heard the urgent whispers of cats from both sides as they waited to hear what he would say. His eyes widened. What could he say? Once again, he felt like he was at Fourtrees again, looking straight into the amber eyes of his father.

He took a step forward. "Follow you? You're trying to take over the forest! You murdered my sister!"

All his hatred and bitterness was contained in those words, and with a snarl he threw himself at his half-brother before he fully knew what he was doing. Hawkfrost dodged nimbly aside, and Brambleclaw's hooked claws sank into wood of the log as he skidded to a stop. Before he could rip himself clear, he felt the RiverClan cat's teeth sink into his neck fur. Brambelclaw yowled in pain, swinging his paws back and feeling with a surge of satisfaction as they slashed down Hawkfrost's face. His half-brother released him with a cry of pain, and Brambelclaw scrambled to his paws. The log was slippery beneath him- if they kept on like this it wouldn't be long before one of them fell into the water. It was too easy to picture himself falling into the depths, the water swallowing him as he sank into blackness.

Like Tawnypelt. Glancing over the edge he caught sight of his sister's body, half-floating, her thick tortoiseshell fur already pulling her down. Brambleclaw swallowed and turned his attention back to Hawkfrost. Blood was running down the dark tabby's cheek and he panted as he glared at Brambleclaw.

"You aren't going to beat me."

Brambleclaw narrowed his eyes, his weight falling back on his haunches. "What makes you so sure?"

He leaped again, twisting in the air so that he landed directly behind Hawkfrost. Before he could lose his balance he launched himself back into the air, directly onto Hawkfrost's back. His half-brother reared up but was unable to shake him off. Brambleclaw's hind legs scratched down his flanks and as he hissed.

Suddenly Hawkfrost jerked himself forward, purposely sheathing his claws. He tumbled off the log and Brambleclaw fell with him, instinctively recoiling when he hit the cold water. The impact made him lose his hold on his half-brother, and for a few heartbeats he floundered desperately through the shallow water. Then Hawkfrost exploded out of the water beside him.

"You can't fight like a RiverClan cat." His eyes flashed before he tackled Brambleclaw, forcing him under. "You'll die in the water, just like your sister…"

His voice trailed off as Brambleclaw's head as thrust under. His feet scraped the muddy bottom of the lake, but he couldn't get a firm enough hold on the sludge in order to fight back. His eyes opened underwater but he couldn't see anything in the fogginess. A stream of bubbles exploded out of his mouth. Hawkfrost's paws were still on top of him; and he opened his jaws, only to receive a mouthful of water. He couldn't breathe...

He jerked underneath the water and felt Hawkfrost's paws slide off of him. Slowly he rose up, gasping as his head broke the surface, coughing up lake water. He heard Hawkfrost's growl and barely had time to duck away before his brother splashed down beside him. Brambleclaw continued to flounder away. He couldn't fight in the water, nor did he want to. Hawkfrost could swim much better than he could, and he had to keep this fight equal if he ever wanted to win.

The ThunderClan warrior sighed with relief as his paws touched the shore of the island. His muscles protested as he hauled himself ashore, still choking. For a moment his head rested against the mud in exhaustion, and then he heard the battle cry of his brother. Hawkfrost leaped upon the shore, his wet fur stained black from the water, unable to keep fatigue from shadowing the coldness of his blue eyes.

Brambleclaw forgot how tired he was when Hawkfrost's claws scraped his shoulder, releasing a fresh surge of pain. He killed Tawnypelt. I have to beat him, for her. He snarled again and forced himself forward, his teeth sinking into Hawkfrost's leg. As his half-brother pulled back he lost his balance, falling to the wet turf. Brambleclaw saw his chance and stood over him, paws pressing into his chest. Hawkfrost kicked out, sending Brambleclaw sprawling aside, only to get up again when Hawkfrost charged at him again.

The two brothers reared up, paws on each other's shoulders as they forced each other back and forth. Brambleclaw's jaws snapped down on Hawkfrost's ear as his brother's teeth gripped his shoulder. They were wrenched back and forth, each unable to throw the other off and yet unwilling to let go.

Brambleclaw could hear faint mews from the opposite shore and knew the others were watching with mixed emotions, too afraid to come nearer and intervene, willing to wait to see who the victor would be. With a wild thump of his heart Brambleclaw realized that he didn't know who would win this fight.

Simple fear lent him what he needed. Despite the nagging ache that beat though his body, he dug his hind claws into the ground and heaved himself forward. Hawkfrost was knocked off balance, his teeth ripping painfully free of Brambleclaw's shoulder as he fell forward upon the ground. The ThunderClan warrior held him there, paws against his chest.

Hawkfrost's eyes flashed up at him. "You're going to kill me? Your own brother?"

"You aren't my brother."

"What about when I saved you from Mudclaw?" Hawkfrost meowed. "What about when you came to the first meeting on the lake? You were my brother then. You'll always be."

His eyes were narrow slits of pale fire, mocking Brambleclaw. "You won't kill me. You don't have the strength."

I have to. He killed Tawnypelt...

Another voice entered his mind, He's your brother.

No he isn't. Not anymore.

He is your brother, just like Tigerstar is your father. And he always will be…

"No!" Brambleclaw's screech made both of them flinch in surprise. Hawkfrost took the opportunity and started to wriggle free. Brambleclaw tightened his hold, starting to bend down to give the bite that would end this battle.

Fur flashed past him then, pushing him roughly aside, away from the RiverClan cat. Brambleclaw tumbled back into the shallow water before he could see who had come to Hawkfrost's aid. He found his footing and emerged from the water. Water had streamed into his eyes and it was several heartbeats more before he could make out the identity of the cat.

Squirrelflight.

Her dark orange fur was stained with blood, her eyes cold and dark. She whispered something, but it was either too quiet or Brambleclaw was too dazed to hear it. She met his eyes for a few moments and then stepped back so that Brambleclaw could see Hawkfrost. Squirrelflight had torn his throat open; blood poured out onto the island shore as he thrashed desperately, trying to fight even though there was no cat around him to attack.

"He was your brother," Squirrelflight murmured softly. "I didn't want you to do it. I couldn't let you."

She stared at Brambleclaw as if waiting for him to claw her. The dark tabby felt his heart pound as he gazed at her, as he slowly realized what she'd done. He took a few careful, shaky pawsteps forward until he stood by her side. She gave a quiet purr as he buried his muzzle in her flame-colored fur, but Brambleclaw couldn't manage to reply. He could only close his eyes, turning sharply away, relieved that she was there, relieved that he did not have to watch the last struggles of Hawkfrost as he died, and relieved beyond measure that he did not have to be the one to kill him.

&&&

Leafpool finally saw Crowfeather as she strained to watch what was happening to Squirrelflight, Hawkfrost, and Brambleclaw on the island. The gray-black cat was standing frozen like everyone else, a hooded look to his eyes that told Leafpool he had heard what had happened to Tawnypelt.

Suddenly a black-and-white RiverClan cat let out a howl. "They killed him!"

He meant Hawkfrost, Leafpool realized. Brambleclaw and Squirrelflight were slowly making their way back across the log. The limp body of Hawkfrost lay on the shore of the Gathering place. Both cats looked tired, and Leafpool couldn't see any sign of victory in their eyes.

The words of Hawkfrost's warrior seemed to have stunned most of the cats on his side. One by one they began to flee, the black-and-white cat called Badgerclaw at the being the fore of them. Leafpool watched them go, wondering if their departure was because they did not have anyone to follow without Hawkfrost, or just out of fear of what their Clans might do to them once they found out what they were up to.

Only a few of the warriors stayed behind, besides Cedarheart, Crowfeather, and Squirrelflight's patrol. One of them was Rowanclaw. The dark ginger cat looked down at his paws, the tip of his tail lashing back and forth. Cedarheart was watching him, and silently his brother stalked over to him, looking him in the eye. "I'm sorry. Tawnypelt shouldn't have..." He looked at his paws. "I was a fool to follow Hawkfrost. "

Cedarheart did not say anything at first, but Leafpool felt her heart lift slightly when she saw warmth filter into the grief in his eyes. "Are you...coming back to ShadowClan?"

"If Blackstar will let me." He looked at the other cats around him. Webfoot and Briarpelt of WindClan, Oakfur of ShadowClan, and two RiverClan cats had all stayed behind. They looked around nervously, clearly wondering whether they'd be chased off.

Dawn was just appearing over the horizon, and Leafpool stared at the thin edge of the sun, hardly able to believe that this time yesterday, Tawnypelt and Hawkfrost had been alive. This time yesterday, no one had known about her and Crowfeather. This time yesterday, she had thought there had been peace. But now she knew she was wrong as she gazed into the eyes of Hawkfrosts followers. What would they do now? Where would they go? Would their Clans take them back?

"Leafpool." Squirrelflight's mew broke into her thoughts. "We're all kind of torn up. Maybe you could help patch everyone-"

"No." It was Crowfeather. He looked over Webfoot and Briarpelt, for the first time appearing like a deputy to Leafpool. "We should all be getting back to our own Clans now. We've been out too long tonight."

The others meowed agreement, clearly happy to be able to go home and rest after this horrific battle.

Rainwhisker commented, "Firestar will want to know about this."

Leafpool wondered what her father would think. Surely he would be reminded of Tigerstar; Hawkfrost's plan had been almost identical to his father's. Brambleclaw shifted nervously and Squirrelflight pressed her side against his comfortingly.

What will he do to Brambleclaw? Leafpool wondered. Will he see Tigerstar in him all over again, after tonight?

Crowfeather led Webfoot and Briarpelt by. Leafpool met his gaze for a long moment, nodding just enough to let him know that she was all right. He returned her nod with a tiny dip of his head, and then disappeared in the undergrowth. Leafpool looked after him. You're luckier than you know, Leafpool. Squirrelflight's words came back to her, and suddenly the embarrassed reply she had uttered earlier didn't seem adequate.

Cedarheart and the ShadowClan cats departed, and then the RiverClan cats. No one spoke; as if they were stunned into silence. Finally only the ThunderClan cats were left. They all looked instinctively toward Brambleclaw.

"What about Hawkfrost's cats?" demanded Sootfur. "We can't just let them go!"

"I'm not chasing after them," meowed Brambleclaw stoutly. "They'll most likely go rogue; we'll meet up with them soon enough."

Sootfur nodded reluctantly, and Whitewhisker wondered, "What about Hawkfrost's body?" She looked down into the lake, where Hawkfrost's body still lay, cooling in the crisp dawn air.

Brambleclaw looked away, and Squirrelflight spoke for him. "That's for Leopardstar to decide. He's her warrior."

"She'll wish he wasn't, once she hears about this," murmured Ashfur. He blinked. "Can we trust the others to tell their Clan leaders about it?"

Brambleclaw looked thoughtful for a moment. "Crowfeather will tell Onestar, and Cedarheart will tell Blackstar I'm sure."

"And Leopardstar?" Rainwhisker narrowed his eyes. "It would be easier for those two warriors if they make up some story about a badger or something that killed Hawkfrost and the other warriors."

The tabby warrior flicked his ears. "We can ask Firestar to send a patrol into RiverClan territory and tell her, in case you're right."

The dark tabby warrior flicked his tail in the direction of the ThunderClan camp. "Come on. Let's go home."

He looked more tired than Leafpool had ever seen him before, but she found herself following him without question. For a while they padded in silence, and Leafpool was amazed that her paws were still moving beneath her in her exhaustion. Dawn dutifully made its way over the horizon as they walked, and the stone hollow had come into sight before it occured to the medicine cat that they had actually won the battle.

I FINALLY get to do Crowfeather's POV for a bit next chap...