Dawnheart was asleep. Or was he? It was dark and quiet. His body felt like it was floating. What a weird sensation. He expected this was what swimming felt like. He wouldn't know.
Was he asleep? Did he just ask that question? He felt a tiny sense of urgency in his…somewhere. What did he need to do again?
He floated up to the surface of consciousness. His head broke the surface.
Pain. Panic.
His head throbbed. He gasped and tried to open his eyes. He found them to be slow to respond. He focused and managed to open them a slit. He couldn't see anything. He breathed in. CedarClan scent. Snow. Stones. Trees. At least he knew he was home.
He closed his eyes and thought back. He had been running, running fast. He had needed to say something. He remembered Talonscore and fragments of conversation.
Rogues. Another voice spoke in his memory.
Dawnheart's eyes snapped open. The rogues. The attack. He had to warn Blizzardstar. He had to-
Something grabbed him by the scruff and began dragging him along the forest floor. Dawnheart tried to flail and fight but his limbs were slack and the pain in his head was making him dizzy.
Dawnheart couldn't fight. That much was obvious. He opened his mouth and breathed in. A familiar scent hit his throat.
"Slatefang?" he croaked.
There was only a grunt in reply.
Dawnheart groaned. He winced as his hips were dragged over a stone. His mind was so sluggish. He couldn't muster up any fear or shock at his situation.
"Slatefang, please- "
"Shut up." Slatefang hissed.
Dawnheart fell silent. Every passing moment he was becoming more lucid. The fog of pain was lifting and his mind began to race. He didn't have time to think of anything, however, as, with a mighty heave and a grunt, Slatefang hauled Dawnheart off the side of something.
Dawnheart felt his stomach lurch as he fell for half a heartbeat. He landed with a painful thump that sent a jarring pain echoing through his head. He gasped as his vision spun.
Slatefang grasped Dawnheart's scruff again and continued dragging.
After a few moments of tense silence Dawnheart began to hear voices over the sound of Slatefang dragging him over the pebbles. Dawnheart twitched his ears, trying to make out what the voices were saying.
Slatefang paused and bent his head down. He released Dawnheart's scruff and leaned his mouth close to Dawnheart's ear.
Dawnheart could barely breathe for fear. He closed his eyes and waited.
"Pretend to be unconscious." There were ragged pauses between each of Slatefang's words. The voice was the same, but the way it sounded was off. Like someone was imitating Slatefang's way of speech.
Dawnheart stiffened. Slatefang growled. Dawnheart relaxed instead. He focused all of his attention on keeping his body limp. It was harder than he had expected.
Slatefang grunted in approval and grasped Dawnheart's scruff in his mouth again. The gray warrior's grip was firm, but his teeth didn't pierce flesh. He continued to drag his captive along the bank.
Dawnheart's mind whirled. His heart pounded against his chest, making him feel slightly sick. His head still hurt tremendously. Even if he wanted to move and fight, he knew he couldn't. He would just have to trust Slatefang.
. . .
Crowfrost churned his paws against the cold pebbles. Songbird. The name tickled something at the back of his mind. It was so innocuous. He had been imagining something grander to match his StarClan mentor.
Songbird looked over each of the warriors. Pride shone in her eyes. "StarClan thanks each of you for your faith and loyalty." She said in her glossy voice.
Crowfrost straightened his back under her praise. He saw Snakefeather and Scarletclaw do the same out of the corner of his eye.
"The time has come now for you to prove yourselves." The gray she-cat continued. "StarClan's plan is now in motion. Your part to play has come."
Scarletclaw shivered with excitement. Crowfrost held himself steady. This is what he had been waiting for. He swallowed to force down the writhing anxiety in his stomach.
"You all saw what happened tonight. A wedge has been driven in the hearts of warriors." Songbird made a vague gesture at the Greatrocks with her tail. "Your leaders have failed you."
Crowfrost's stomach lurched but he held his tongue.
"If I may," Snakefeather ventured, "Aren't we to blame for exposing them to you?"
Crowfrost flinched, ready for Songbird to lash out at the spotted warrior. Instead, she made a tutting sound with her tongue as if she was quieting a wailing kit. Before she could respond, however, Scarletclaw rounded on the Alderclan warrior.
"Isn't serving StarClan the nobler pursuit?" she demanded.
Songbird held up her tail for silence. Scarletclaw sat at attention once again. Snakefeather still didn't look convinced.
"Scarletclaw is right. StarClan asked for your help for a reason." The gray she-cat said. "Your leaders have failed you, yes, but your loyalty should not have wavered."
Crowfrost felt cool relief smother his hot anxiety.
"This is a test for each and every cat. The clans are four for a reason. Cougarstar's invitation cannot be accepted." Songbird stamped a forepaw to punctuate her statement.
Crowfrost's eyes wandered to Cranewing. He had been sitting silently the entire time. His half-closed eyes followed Songbird as she moved but otherwise, he had been completely still. Crowfrost let his eyes fall back on Songbird. His belly flipped when he saw that she had been looking at him.
"Cranewing has sacrificed much in order to bring about StarClan's plan." She said. Her eyes narrowed. "He has a very different part to play."
Crowfrost flattened his ears and dipped his head to show his humility.
Songbird seemed satisfied. She turned away from him and continued. "Your task going forward is simple. Watch your clanmates. Listen to their grievances. Feed the fire of discontent. Only then will their true colors be revealed."
Crowfrost looked at his companions. Scarletclaw was nodding fervently. Snakefeather had one ear flattened in careful consideration. Crowfrost looked inward to his own thoughts.
Songbird had shown her wisdom in the past. She had kept her promises to him. If she said that this would strengthen CedarClan then it must be true. He thought of Petalpaw, returned to the clan safely. He thought of their victory against WillowClan. He steeled himself against his misgivings and cast them away.
His trust was in Songbird.
"I will visit you with further instructions." Songbird was saying.
Crowfrost shook himself and refocused his attention.
"Go now, your clans need you." With a wave of her tail Songbird dismissed them.
Scarletclaw jumped to her paws and bounded away without another word. Snakefeather rose to his paws with less urgency. His pale eyes flicked to Songbird and then to Crowfrost. The spotted tabby gave Crowfrost a tiny nod before he too bounded away. Crowfrost got to his slightly shaking paws.
"Wait." Songbird held up her tail.
Crowfrost paused and sat down again, nervous.
Songbird turned to Cranewing and whispered something in the warrior's ear. He nodded and got to his paws. Without so much as a glance in Crowfrost's direction the black and gray tom turned and bounded across the shore towards WillowClan territory.
Songbird watched him go with unreadable green eyes. "Your clan will talk about Cranewing." She said with a nod in the new deputy's direction. "Do not believe what is said."
Crowfrost blinked. He shoved away his questions. He nodded.
Songbird's expression softened as she looked at him. She purred.
Her purr cut off as her eyes wandered past Crowfrost's head. Her eyes widened slightly before narrowing to slits.
Crowfrost followed her gaze until he was turned almost completely around. Struggling along the shore towards him was Slatefang. The warrior was hunched awkwardly with his head down near his front paws.
A creeping sense of foreboding skittered up Crowfrost's spine as he watched Slatefang drag something towards them.
Apprehension turned to horror as Crowfrost recognized the cream and brown pelt Slatefang was gripping in his jaws. The scar on Slatefang's upper lip flashed white against his black muzzle as he strained to pull an unconscious Dawnheart across the stony shore.
The two remaining cats watched in silence as the dark tabby wrenched the limp warrior into their midst. He stopped a fox-length from Songbird's paws and let Dawnheart's scruff fall from his mouth. The pale warrior thumped to the ground. Crowfrost flinched.
Songbird stared down at Dawnheart's body with an unreadable expression. After some tense moments of silence her green eyes flicked up to Slatefang. The warrior was sitting, head bowed and motionless, at Dawnheart's side.
Songbird cocked her head. "And you are?"
Slatefang kept his head down. His eyes were stretched wide and unblinking. They stared at the ground without seeing as his pupils flexed. He was muttering something Crowfrost couldn't make out.
"Speak up." Songbird ordered. She lashed her tail once.
"I…I am." Slatefang mumbled.
"What?" Songbird flicked an ear in annoyance.
Crowfrost couldn't take it anymore. "He's my clanmate." He burst out. He looked down at Dawnheart's unmoving form. "They're both my clanmates."
Songbird's fierce gaze snapped to him. Crowfrost held eye contact for a mere heartbeat before losing his nerve. He studied his paws instead.
"Ah, yes." Songbird said after a moment. "Slatefang, is it?"
Crowfrost nodded. Slatefang continued to mumble.
Songbird stepped up to Dawnheart and regarded him. She leaned down and sniffed him. "He's not dead." She said flatly.
Crowfrost's legs shook. He took a step towards his clanmate. "What happened, Slatefang?" he said.
Slatefang's head jerked up and he looked at Crowfrost as if he had just realized the black warrior was even there. His jaw went slack and he stared, unblinking, at Crowfrost's face. His pupils were slits. Crowfrost wondered how the warrior could even see in the darkness. He backed up a step.
"It was an accident." Slatefang gasped. Each word was strained and disjointed. "I saw him watching the gathering and then…" He looked down at his paws at Dawnheart's body.
"He's not dead." Crowfrost repeated. "It was an accident."
Slatefang looked up at Crowfrost. His pupils rounded but there was still deep fear and confusion in his eyes.
"Crowfrost, I think I'm going mad." The dark tabby whispered suddenly. The words came smoothly and without the effort they had seemed to demand just moments ago.
Crowfrost watched his clanmate, unsure what to do. He looked up, ready to ask Songbird for direction.
She was gone.
The light had changed. There was no more rustling of undergrowth. He could see as well as feel the frost between his toes.
He was on his own.
Panic flared in his chest for a moment. He banished it with a deep breath and reason. Songbird trusted him. She must have decided that he was well prepared and didn't need her. He would prove her right. He gave himself a shake.
"We need to get back to camp." He said to Slatefang.
Slatefang stared at his clanmate before giving a short nod. The warrior looked exhausted. His fur was unkempt and his eyes were sunken. Something was wrong, but Crowfrost couldn't begin to imagine what.
Together they hoisted Dawnheart's limp body off of the ground and began the slow, awkward march back to the grove.
. . .
The sun was barely up by the time Crowfrost, Slatefang, and their burden reached the camp. The journey had been slow, silent, and torturous. It hadn't been long before Crowfrost caught the scent of rogues on the wind. Something had happened in their absence, but he couldn't leave his clanmates to find out.
Fear, bitter and burning, rose in Crowfrost's throat as he took in the scene just outside the fern tunnel. Ribbons of red smeared the ground amidst churned-up piles of dirt and snow. Flecks of fur and frozen blood dotted tree trunks and stones. The reek of rogues threatened to choke Crowfrost where he stood.
A concerned meow jolted Crowfrost from his thoughts. He looked around to see Petalpaw emerging from the dead ferns to his left. Her jaws were full of herbs and her green eyes were wide with worry and surprise. She hurried over to them and dropped her bundle at her paws.
"You're back!" she cried. "Blizzardstar sent a patrol to look for you." Her mew trailed off as her eyes fell on Dawnheart. She darted forward.
"Put him down." She ordered.
Crowfrost obeyed. He lay Dawnheart's top half onto a clear patch of ground. It took a moment but Slatefang eventually did the same with Dawnheart's back legs.
Petalpaw examined the unconscious warrior with quick precision. Her dainty white paws flew over Dawnheart's flank and head. She leaned her ear close to his muzzle and fixed Crowfrost with an expectant stare.
Crowfrost shook himself and blinked. The thrill of being so close to her again made his fear and tiredness fade. If she was here then everything must be alright.
Before Crowfrost could open his mouth to tell the truth he was interrupted by Slatefang's gruff meow.
"We found him like this. He must have been attacked by a rogue."
Crowfrost shot Slatefang a sharp look. This was not the time to be lying. Dawnheart could very well wake and prove Slatefang wrong, but as Crowfrost watched Slatefang's face he could see no lie. The confusion from before had vanished. Even his eyes seemed brighter and more alert. Slatefang was convinced that he and Crowfrost had found Dawnheart like this.
Crowfrost barely had time to process what that could mean when another familiar shape burst from the dead undergrowth where Petalpaw had first appeared.
Crowfrost's belly tightened as his eyes fell on Heronpaw. The apprentice had a thrush in his jaws and he skidded to a halt a few tail-lengths from where the others were standing. He flicked his ears in surprise.
Suspicion and anger twisted in Crowfrost's belly. Why couldn't Heronpaw just leave Petalpaw alone? He curled his claws into the frozen ground, ignoring the pain it caused.
Heronpaw glanced at Crowfrost. A familiar expression flashed across Heronpaw's face before it faded and he looked away. Crowfrost's whiskers twitched and he felt another nip of anger. His brother was still looking at him like nothing had changed between them. Crowfrost wanted to snatch those memories away from this imposter.
"Good, you're back, Heronpaw." Petalpaw's sweet voice splashed cool calm over the flames in Crowfrost's throat and belly. "Fetch Plumleaf for me."
Heronpaw nodded and dashed away without a word. Crowfrost watched him go, fighting the grief that threatened to overtake him every time he was forced to think about his brother's sudden change. He steeled himself against what Songbird had called distracting emotions. There was nothing he could do for Heronpaw right now.
He had another job to do.