Disclaimer: I don't own Warriors, unfortunately. Believe me, I wish I did! But I do own a lot of characters in the story. I am responsible for all things happening now…

Years after Firestar's death and Leafpool is getting old, and Crowfeather has long since joined StarClan. Brambleclaw watches as Squirrelflight and Ashfur's kits play in the sun. Set kind of before Twilight happened, only cause I forgot where I put my book so I don't exactly remember who died and who the new apprentices were and what the new warrior's names were and stuff. O well. I am going to do a bunch of cats who have lost loved ones or so on etc. etc. and if you have an idea for one, please, feel free to suggest!

Alliances:

ThunderClan

Leader: Firestar – ginger tom with flame colored pelt

Deputy: Graystripe – long-haired gray tom

Medicine cat: Leafpool – light brown tabby she-cat with underbelly and amber eyes

Warriors:

Ashfur - pale gray (with darker flecks) tom, with dark blue eyes

Brambleclaw – dark brown tabby tom with amber eyes

Dustpelt – dark brown tabby tom

Cloudtail – long-haired white tom

Spiderleg – long-limbed black tom with brown under belly and amber eyes

Brackenfur – golden brown tabby tom

Sorreltail – tortoiseshell and white she-cat with amber eyes

Birchheart – pale brown tom with green eyes

Queens:

Whiteclaw – white she-cat

Squirrelflight – dark ginger she-cat with green eyes

Apprentices:

Stripepaw – gray, almost black, tabby tom with pale blue eyes

Duskpaw – pale gray (with spots of white) she-cat

Nightpaw – black she-cat with green eyes

Mousepaw – red brown tom with dark blue eyes

Elders:

Ferncloud – pale gray (with darker flecks) she-cat with green eyes

Rainwhisker – dark gray tom with blue eyes

Brightheart – white she-cat with ginger patches

Goldenflower – pale ginger she-cat

ShadowClan:

Leader: Russetstar – dark ginger she-cat

Deputy: Cedarheart – dark gray tom

Medicine cat: Littlecloud – very small tabby tom

Warriors:

Smoketail – pale gray tom with a white tail

Talonfoot – golden brown she-cat with white paws

Marshfur – gray tom

Applewhisker – red gold she-cat

Toadfoot – black tom with very blue eyes

Queens:

Tawnypelt – dark brown tabby she-cat with amber eyes

Apprentices:

Stormpaw – pale gray tom with green eyes

Rockpaw – black tom with dark blue eyes

Elders:

Oakfur – small brown tom

Tallpoppy – long-legged light brown tabby she-cat

WindClan:

Leader: Onestar – brown tabby tom, blind in one eye

Deputy: Owleye – dark brown tabby tom

Medicine cat: Graywhisker – small pale gray tabby tom with amber eyes

Warriors:

Weaselfur – long-legged pale brown tom

Tornear – tabby tom

Streakfur – black and white striped she-cat

Yellowpelt – golden tabby she-cat

Apprentices:

Leafpaw – white she-cat

Treepaw – black tom

Rippedpaw – red tom with brown underbelly

Queens:

Reedflower – golden yellow she-cat

Amberpelt – dark brown tabby she-cat with green eyes

Elders:

Whitetail – small white she-cat

Ashfoot –gray she-cat

Webfoot – dark gray tabby tom

RiverClan

Leader: Mistystar – gray she-cat with blue eyes

Deputy: Swallowtail – dark tabby she cat

Medicine cat: Mothwing – dappled golden she-cat

Warriors:

Hawkfrost – dark brown tom with a white underbelly and icy blue eyes

Stonestep – dark gray tom

Blackclaw – smoky black tom

Voleclaw – pale brown tom

Bluepool – silver blue she-cat with green eyes and a white underbelly

Shortear – small black tom with one white ear

Apprentices:

Tabbypaw – dark tabby she-cat

Swiftpaw – white tom with dark blue eyes

Redpaw – red tom

Queens:

Mosspelt – tortoiseshell she-cat

Elders:

Dawnflower – pale gray she-cat

Heavystep – thickset tabby tom

Cats Outside Clans:

Daisy – she-cat with long creamy brown fur who lives in a barn near the horseplace

Floss – small gray and white she-cat who lives with Daisy

Mouse – young brown she-cat with amber eyes

Hazel – young dappled brown tom with blue eyes

Berry – dark gray tom with blue eyes

Leafpool was resting contentedly outside the medicine cat den in the ThunderClan camp, letting the sun warm her light brown fur. She watched her new apprentice, Duskpaw, laughing about something with her sister, Nightpaw. The two were as different in looks as an eagle and a hedgehog, but their spirits were linked. Leafpool sighed. Her spirit was also linked to another cat, but not only to her sister, Squirrelflight.

It seemed so long ago, so distant, when she had first heard the words that had stirred her painful feelings for that cat.

Crowfeather!

The thought was fleeting, small, insignificant, but it brought an agonizing wave of grief washing over Leafpool in terrifying torrents.

Leafpool unsheathed her claws and gripped the dirt, shutting her eyes tightly. She braced herself against the battering of those feelings, and her head swayed slightly under the internal pressure.

"Leafpool?"

The voice shattered the piercing spikes that had driven into her heart, and Leafpool gasped, her eyes flashing open. Is it really that hard for me to think on? Leafpool scolded herself, and turned to face the speaker.

"Leafpool? Is something wrong?" It was Spiderleg, and his face was creased with worry.

"No, not at all. You look like the one who needs help. Is it Whiteclaw?"

Leafpool rose and made her way to the nursery. An urgent nod from Spiderleg had told her that his mate, Whiteclaw, was indeed kitting.

Leafpool settled down by Whiteclaw's side in the nursery, and sent Spiderleg to fetch Duskpaw.

"You're doing fine, Whiteclaw, just take deep breaths." Leafpool chuckled at her own, hoarse voice, remembering Cinderpelt saying those same words so many times.

Leafpool's heart lurched again, and she fought to control the fire of loss that leapt from deep within her battered soul. The missed the old medicine cat more than even she let herself know, and it only added to her many slowly healing wounds.

Leafpool licked Whiteclaw's shoulder comfortingly, then turned to send her apprentice to bring the herbs she needed from her den. Duskpaw's eyes were gleaming, and she raced away, her tail held high with excitement.

When Leafpool had finished, she called in Spiderleg, and lay down, tired. It had not been a particularly difficult kitting, and Leafpool had not had to do much at all, but for some reason, at the sight of the tiny gray and black and golden-furred kits, her eyes began to water, and the was overcome with exhaustion.

She sat patiently as Spiderleg and Whiteclaw cooed over their kits, giving them names and licking them affectionately. She sat there, smiling at Whiteclaw, until a sound came floating from the pretty queen's mouth that nearly made Leafpool scream, and tore her heart in to tiny, fractured pieces.

"I think I'll name the gray one Crowkit." Whiteclaw nuzzled the squeaking, dark gray kit.

Leafpool rose from the ground shakily, her paws unsteady, and her mind utterly destroyed.

Brambleclaw padded into camp, and dropped a chaffinch and a mouse on the fresh kill pile. His gaze lingered on the food for a hesitant moment, then he turned away. He wasn't really hungry. In fact, he felt slightly sick. But he didn't need to visit Leafpool. This feeling was a different kind of sick. Brambleclaw was heart-sick.

The tabby warrior turned his amber gaze to Squirrelflight, who was lying outside the nursery, watching her newborn kits playing around her. Brambleclaw flinched with pain as a pale gray warrior came padding over to her, and sat down next to her, his blue eyes reflecting his pride. When Ashfur's striking eyes found Brambleclaw's, the two stared for a moment, then Brambleclaw looked away, defeated.

Squirrelflight followed Ashfur's look, and Brambleclaw could feel her bitter gaze full of anger and confused pain sweeping over him. He hiccupped softly, flattening his ears against his head. Dejectedly, Brambleclaw loped over to the warrior's den and sunk down next to Sorreltail, who was washing herself slowly.

"What's the matter, Brambleclaw? You look awfully…tired." Sorreltail peered closely at Brambleclaw's sullen expression, then thought better of bothering him and padded away.

Warriors came and went from the den, all of them glancing worriedly at Brambleclaw lying half-asleep in a heap of ruffled tabby fur. When his apprentice, Mousepaw, came trotting over to try to wake him, he stared at the small tom with glassy eyes, and told him to train with Ashfur instead.

Mousepaw walked away, hurt, and wondered why Brambleclaw had mentioned Ashfur, whom he was sure his mentor despised. Brambleclaw watched the red-furred apprentice walk slowly away, then dropped his head back to the ground and blinked half-heartedly. Another stab of grief sliced at his heart when he thought of his previous ambition, his will to be the greatest warrior in ThunderClan, to become deputy. Now that he had an apprentice, his dreams could come true, but he no longer cared.

For a long while, until well after sun-high, Brambleclaw lay there, going over and over the terrifying thoughts of Squirrelflight, Squirrelflight, Squirrelflight. The beautiful she-cat was all he could think of, and every time his mind wandered, he was momentarily reminded with a sharp gutting stab of grief of the green eyes that belonged to his lost love.

Birchheart emerged from the warrior's den blinking in the sunlight. He shook each paw and stretched luxuriously, yawning widely as he did so. The sun made his pale brown fur shine, and his heart swelled with joy. Birchheart padded over to the fresh kill pile happily, his tail held high and strong, his steps sure and proud.

"Good morning, Birchheart! Oh, would you like to join a morning patrol? I'm getting Cloudtail, Sorreltail and Nightpaw." It was Brackenfur, who was padding over, trailing his apprentice, Nightpaw.

"Sure! I'm in the mood for a patrol! Let me get Stripepaw, then let's go!" Birchheart trotted away to find his apprentice, Stripepaw, twitching his tail happily.

"Stripepaw, come on! We're patrolling!" Birchheart called to his apprentice who had just finished a piece of fresh kill and was talking with Duskpaw.

"Okay Birchheart! G'bye Duskpaw!" Stripepaw galloped over, and Birchheart flicked his tail across her back.

"It's such a nice day, maybe we'll train a bit, too!" Birchheart mewed, smiling at Stripepaw. The excited apprentice nodded enthusiastically.

"Birchheart! Hurry it up, we're leaving!" called Brackenfur, who was slipping out of the tunnel behind the other warriors and Nightpaw.

"Coming!" Birchheart broke into a run, and flew out of the tunnel, racing after the rest of the patrol. Stripepaw followed, enjoying the warm sun and the joyful atmosphere.

The patrol went swiftly along the WindClan border, leaving the occasional scent mark and searching for signs of WindClan. There was nothing, so they continued on past the Ancient Oak and along the lake, till they came to the edge of ShadowClan territory. Birchheart stared out at the Halfbridge and across the glittering surface of the lake, breathing in the sweet scents of morning and lashing his tail with happiness.

The patrol walked a little more slowly along the Twoleg path, wary of the notorious warriors of ShadowClan. They left more scent marks, and peered behind every tree or bush, to make sure that no ShadowClan cats had been trespassing on their territory. When they had reached the place where the Clearing was visible from the path, Brackenfur suggested that they turn around. The cats agreed, and turned to begin the walk back, when Birchheart suddenly stopped and cried "ShadowClan!"

The patrol was instantly alert, and Cloudtail raced to the border. A ShadowClan patrol was padding along the other side of the Thunderpath, and the cats hissed menacingly when the ThunderClan patrol appeared across from them.

"I hope you weren't stealing prey!" snarled Cedarheart, the deputy. Four other cats, Smoketail, Rockpaw, Marshfur and Applewhisker fell in beside him, their lips curled.

Birchheart growled, then suddenly, with no warning, his claws sheathed, and the growl was caught in his throat. Birchheart choked. He was staring openly at Applewhisker, his blue eyes gazing at her red gold fur. He coughed as if he had an illness, but he could not tear his eyes away. Applewhisker, too, was staring open-mouthed at the young warrior, and their eyes were filled with the love that they had shared on the journey from the old forest. Applewhisker blinked, and a barely audible purr came rumbling from her throat. Birchheart desperately fought the urge to cross the border and press his brown pelt to her lovely shining fur, and his muscles trembled with the effort.

"Birchheart!" Brackenfur's sharp call shattered the moment, and Birchheart forced himself to turn away, to look to his Clan, and be there instead of the with warrior who was holding his heart.

"Birchheart!" the faint cry barely escaped Applewhisker's lips as she too was herded away by the warriors of her Clan. Birchheart was painfully torn in two at that very moment, as his two most beloved loyalties called him from different directions, calling from two places that he could only reach by treading two very different paths. He had to choose! He had to choose…

"Applewhisker!" Birchheart nearly screamed the word, that lovely, sweet-tasting word, but refrained himself, and only let it come out in a heartfelt gasp, sending his pain and grief with it. He turned and locked his gaze with hers one last time before the cries of his companions ripped him away, away from the one thing he knew he loved more than anything else in the now cold and unforgiving world.

With his aching heart in his mouth and his eyes desperately clinging to that last shred of the memory of Applewhisker's piercingly beautiful eyes, he trudged after his Clan mates, bracing himself for the scorn and insults that were hurled at his face. Even his own apprentice turned away from him shamefully when they arrived back at camp.

With a lead-weight heart, Birchheart disappeared into the warrior's den, his tail drooping, having none of the joyful spirit of that morning left. His soul was now caught in a deadly battle between loyalty to his Clan and forbidden love. The blood of his conflicting emotions was spilled again and again, washing out his insides with pain and confusion, and sending waves of black colliding in his mind. Birchheart whimpered and clawed at his bed of moss, terrible dreams swimming in his head: dreams of betrayal, of sworn allegiance, of giving up his life in ThunderClan, but most of all, of oceans red and gold, of sweet voices, and of his beloved Applewhisker.