Sweettooth padded alongside Shelldawn under the full moon that glowed in the sky. The rest of the clan was moving in front of them on the way to the island where the gatherings were held every full moon. As he turned his gaze away from Shelldawn for a few heartbeats, Sweettooth caught Willowshine staring at him, Her expression not betraying any emotion. She's been looking at me like this ever since she got back from the Moonpool, why?

Sweettooth and Shelldawn halted where they waited for their turn while their clan reached and climbed the fallen tree, crossing the glimmering frosted lake.

"It seems like we're first to arrive." Sweettooth meowed to Shelldawn. "Are you excited for your warrior announcement in front of the other clans?"

"Not more than I was at my ceremony," The pretty tabby bagan. "I don't care much for cats in other clans, except for Pouncestep, she's really nice. I know we're stronger together but most of them are just weird. Do you remember how Flamepaw and Finchpaw—Flameclaw and Finchflight now, always made funny faces behind ShadowClan warriors?"

"No."

"Well, you don't remember much else." Shelldawn responded with amusement. "I know, let's try to get you to know and remember as many cats as we can." Shelldawn meowed as she began to question him about his different clanmates and their heritage. "We'll start with an easy one, who's Reedstar's mother"

"Oh, I know it, she was called Mistyfur."

"Sorry Sweettooth but that's wrong, she was our leader so she was called Mistystar and before that she was Mistyfoot. She gave you your apprentice name in case you don't remember that as well. We'll stay with our current clanmates for now. Can you name all of our elders?"

"Well, there's Mothwing, Mosspelt, Minnowtail, and Duskfur."

"Hey you got this right! Who's the only queen in our clan?"

"That's Mistkit."

Shelldawn purred and chuckled, stifling bigger laughter behind it. "No, fish-brain!" She nudged him affectionately with her shoulder. "She's older than us, how can she be a kit? She was with us in the nursery, maybe that's why you remember her as Mistkit. She's Mistfeather now." Shelldawn glanced over at the tree bridge and Sweettooth followed her gaze, seeing the bridge already empty. "Come on," Shelldawn meowed to him, passing her tongue along his cheek as she made her to the tree's top. "Let's find a good spot to sit for the gathering."

Sweettooth watched Shelldawn crossing the tree bridge in a graceful manner and crossed right behind her. While on the island shore, Sweettooth could see ShadowClan and SkyClan reaching the tree bridge and starting to cross it. Soon after the new clans settled on the island, ThunderClan arrived with WindClan at their tails, the moor cats exchanging suspicion filled glares with the cats of the forest.

As WindClan was still crossing the bridge, Sweettooth saw a black ThunderClan tom rush over to a brown tabby she-cat from ShadowClan, and start talking to her in hurried whispers. The tabby returned him a worried glance that seemed to carry a lot of sadness in it, and the tom tottered with his head down over to the rest of his clan. Once the small WindClan party had finished crossing the tree, jumping down from its roots, their leader trotted over to the Great Oak, leaped on to a high branch, and began to yowl.

"Let the gathering begin!" The night-black she-cat demanded. "Leafstar," she called over to the SkyClan leader, who had just settled on a branch right beneath her. "Would you like to begin?"

"Thank you Nightstar," The brown-and-cream leader nodded to her caller. "Prey is running well in SkyClan. We are protected well from the cold and we have two new apprentices this moon. Pheasantkit and Mudkit are now Pheasantpaw and Mudpaw!"

"Pheasantpaw! Mudpaw!" The island clearing cheered for the two new warriors as they rose and took in their congratulations.

"In more news," Leafstar continued. "Bellaleaf has given birth to another litter with her mate Rabbitleap. The new kits are called Waspkit, Barleykit, and Ravenkit!"

"Bellaleaf! Waspkit! Barleykit! Ravenkit!" The clearing cheered again.

"That is all for now," The amber-eyed leader finished her report. "Tigerstar," She looked at the ShadowClan leader sitting farther away from the tree on the same branch as her and the ThunderClan leader. "Would you like to report next?"

"Gladly," The brown tabby rose to his paws. "Prey is running well in ShadowClan and Cinnamontail should have her kitting soon. Scorchfur and Snowbird have retired from their warrior duties and moved to the elder's den, ShadowClan thanks them for seasons of great service in the name of their clan. Reedstar," Tigerstar finished and nodded to the RiverClan. "We would like to hear your report."

"Even with the lake still frozen, prey is running well in RiverClan." Reedstar began, looking fondly at Sweettooth. "One of our warriors brought back six pieces of plump prey in a single patrol! We have named two new warriors as well. Mudpaw and Shellpaw are now Mudstripe and Shelldawn!"

"Mudstripe! Shelldawn!" the clearing erupted with yowls of congratulations, the strongest ones coming from Sweettooth.

"I have more to report but I would rather hear ThunderClan's report first." The leader finished. "Lionstar, If you may."

"Of course." The golden Leader nodded and rose to his paws from his place near the SkyClan leader. "Prey is running well in ThunderClan. We too, Will soon have even more kits in our clan, with Twigbranch already in the nursery." Lionstar reported as Nightstar growled from above him. "Nightstar, you've been on edge for the entire gathering, would you care to explain?"

"Prey is running well in WindClan," The leader meowed with agitation in her voice. For the first time since the start of the gathering, Sweettooth noticed how thin every cat outside of RiverClan looks. RiverClan cats were known for being bigger than the rest of the clan cats, but this time it was more than just that. It was clear that prey wasn't really running all that well in the other clans as the leaders claim. Sweettooth turned back to concentrate as Nightstar continued her report. "We also have four new kits, Applebreeze has kitted Wheatkit, Eaglekit, Flightkit, and Rainkit."

"Applebreeze! Wheatkit! Eaglekit! Flightkit! Rainkit!" The gathered cats yowled. These are a lot of names I'm not going to remember. When I'll have kits, I'll always remember their names, like I remember Shelldawn's. Every clan reported more kits, I wonder when will mine come.

"Hey Shelldawn," Sweettooth whispered gently to his mate. "When do you think we'll have kits?"

As if his words were claws raking through her spine, Shelldawn rested her gaze full of fear and apology on Sweettooth. Doesn't she want to have kits with me? Sweettooth attention snapped back to Great Oak as he heard Nightstar and Lionstar hissing at each other.

"Are you accusing my warriors of crossing your border and killing your clanmate?" The golden leader hissed at the WindClan leader.

"How can you accuse us?" A golden tabby ThunderClan tom stood up in defense of his clan. "You are the ones who took Bayblade!"

"Snaptooth sit down!" Growled the gray-and-white ThunderClan deputy, sitting on the roots of the Great Oak. "Don't talk in a gathering without your leader's permission!"

Faces full with confusion filled the clearing at Snaptooth's accusation as the cats realized a ThunderClan warrior had gone missing.

"Lionstar, did I hear Snaptooth correctly?" Nightstar questioned the ThunderClan leader. "Has Bayblade, a warrior of yours, disappeared in the direction of WindClan?" She finished her question with a rising growl. The black tom Sweettooth noticed earlier was staring hollow-eyed at his leader waiting for his response.

"Bayblade has gone missing but we don't know where he has gone." Lionstar tried to answer.

"I'm sorry to tell you this Lionstar," Reedstar meowed. "But my warriors have scented ThunderClan scent near our border with WindClan. It was stale when we found it, but it was ThunderClan."

"Bayblade killed Fluttercloud!" a tortoiseshell WindClan she-cat exclaimed.

"But how do you even know he's dead if you haven't found him?" The golden leader retorted to the branch above him. "Why would you be so quick to accuse another clan of murder?"

"Kestrelflight saw him in StarClan but didn't manage to speak with him." Nightstar meowed in a stern, ruling voice.

"He didn't have to wake us all from our visions because of that." a SkyClan medicine cat murmured in irritation. She must have missed an important part of her vision to be so grumpy.

"That is not the point Frecklewish," The WindClan leader meowed. "Fluttercloud is dead and Bayblade's claws bare his blood." Nightstar turned her gaze towards Lionstar and continued. "Fluttercloud's mate was Applebreeze, she is kin to me as Bayblade is kin to you. I understand that you want to protect him but he's a cold blooded killer, if you know where he is and not telling us then so are you!" She meowed as Lionstar's face shrinked in anger. "We remember how you killed Russetfur and took perhaps the most important of Harestar's lives."

"I won't stand here and let my clan face baseless accusations." The ThunderClan leader growled as he prepared to jump down from the branch he was sitting on. "You may say about me what you want, but you don't even know the full story behind Bayblade's disappearance. ThunderClan! We're leaving!"

The golden tom jumped from the oak as his clanmates headed towards the roots of the tree bridge where they waited to let their leader cross first. Sweettooth noticed the few WindClan cats who had come to the island, their heads were turned toward the much larger party standing at the roots of the treebridge, and their eyes still glaring at the ThunderClan cats leaving the gathering place.