Chapter Two

Shadowheart waited for teeth to sink into his flesh, for the pain that would soon engulf him as the foxes tore him apart. As he felt the hot breath of the foxes close in on him, a loud piercing screech rattled his ears. The foxes let out yelps of pain and surprise; and it caused Shadowheart to open his eyes. To his utter shock and relief, a black tabby tom had latched himself onto the second fox.

The first fox turned to help its companion, but the tom leaped from the second fox as it lunged forward. The first fox collided with the second, and the tom landed in front of Shadowheart. As the two foxes got back to their paws, the tabby slashed at the closest one's muzzle with a hiss. The tabby was a mere whirlwind of teeth and claws, and Shadowheart could barely believe a cat could move so fast.

"Shadowheart!" Ravenpaw yowled from above. "A patrol is coming!"

The tabby flicked his ears up as he heard the yowling LeafClan warriors, and quickly darted off into the woods. Firelight, Brownclaw, Snowfoot, and Sandpool came bursting through the bracken and flung themselves into battle with the two russet-furred beasts. Gaze dizzying, Shadowheart looked to his side to see blood heavily oozing from his wounds. Trying his best to get to his paws, he could feel his energy fading.

Snowfoot and Brownclaw slashed at the second fox, driving it back into a tree. Firelight and Sandpool chased the first fox off, while the second quickly joined its companion tail between its legs. Snowfoot, Brownclaw, and Sandpool chased after them. Firelight rushed over towards Shadowheart, her eyes wide.

"Shadowheart!" she yowled to him. "Snap out of it! Hey!"

Her words were a distant echo, and Shadowheart felt himself fading. Lifting his head to meet her gaze, he fell to the ground unconscious.

The scent of herbs woke Shadowheart. Jolting awake, he looked around in confusion. The familiar walls of the medicine cat den surrounded him. I'm back in camp, Shadowheart realized. The wounds on his haunches stung as he tried to stand. Hissing with pain, Shadowheart limped out of the medicine cat den. The camp was busy as usual, and no one seemed to notice him outside at first.

"Shadowheart!" Ravenpaw called to him. The black she-cat was running towards him from the apprentices' den.

Shadowheart purred and touched his nose to hers as she greeted him. "I'm glad to see you're safe. How is Sparrowpaw?"

"We were both okay, thanks to you!" Ravenpaw mewed, eyes wide with admiration. "And Firelight, Snowfoot, Brownclaw, and Sandpool weren't even hurt at all! Thanks to that mysterious tom!"

Mysterious tom? Shadowheart blinked, suddenly recalling the tabby who had come to the rescue. So I wasn't imagining things after all. Just who was that?

Ravenpaw began sniffing at Shadowheart's wound. "Oh good, this doesn't smell infected."

Shadowheart looked at his apprentice. "Yeah, but it definitely hurts a whole lot!"

"Comfrey root or dock might help with that," she tilted her head thoughtfully. "I'm sure Pinefrost and Sleetwhisker have plenty in their den."

How would she know that? Shadowheart stared at his apprentice. "R-Right, I'm sure they do..."

"Shadowheart?" a voice called to him, making both cats look over.

Firelight was walking towards them, Sparrowpaw at her heels. "You're finally up! How do you feel?"

"Everyone was super worried!" Sparrowpaw added, bouncing over to him. "But Pinefrost told them not to worry, since your wounds weren't deep enough to kill you."

Ravenpaw nodded. "Thanks to that stranger!"

Firelight blinked, looking at the apprentices. "Stranger? What stranger?"

"A strange cat came out of nowhere when the foxes cornered Shadowheart," Sparrowpaw told her mentor. "He fought them off until your patrol came, but ran off just before you got there."

Shadowheart's mind drifted. Who could this mysterious tom be? And why would he risk his own fur to save Shadowheart? What motive did this cat have?

Firelight had a thoughtful look in her gaze. "Shadowheart, let's go talk for a moment."

"Huh? Why?" he looked at his friend.

"Can we come too?" asked Sparrowpaw.

"No. It was your turn to clean out the nursery remember?" Firelight reminded her.

The tabby's tail drooped. "Oh, okay."

Shadowheart touched his nose to her ear. "Cheer up. At least this way you can visit Yellowsky's new kits."

"Right!" Ravenpaw nudged her sister. "Let's go!"

Once the apprentices ran off, Firelight motioned for Shadowheart to follow her. Slipping through the dirtplace tunnel, the two cats made their way into the forest. Firelight looked around for patrols, before turning her eyes on him.

Shadowheart blinked. "What is this about?"

"We should find that cat," Firelight urged, eyes narrowed. "What if they are one of Hawk's rogues?"

Frowning, Shadowheart tilted his head. "But why would he save me? Why not just let me die?"

Firelight thought for a moment. She shook her head. "It might have been a trick to get you to trust him," she managed to come up with. "So that's why we need to find him. To get the information we need out them."

"I guess it wouldn't hurt to look for him," Shadowheart reasoned. "If anything, I would like to thank him for saving my life."

His friend huffed loudly. "You trust others way too easily."

"I do not!" Shadowheart argued. "What's wrong with thanking someone for saving my life?"

Firelight flicked his muzzle with her tail as she walked ahead. "You don't know their motive behind it. As far as we know, it might not have been with good intentions."

"How can saving my life be anything but good intentions?' he countered, annoyance rippling along his pelt.

"I'm just being logical," Firelight insisted. "With everything that's happened, we need to be more cautious."

Not willing to argue about it further, Shadowheart just sighed and fell into step beside his friend. He knew Firelight had a point. However, he also found it hard to believe that the strange cat had saved his life with bad intentions. What cat would put themselves in immediate danger just to cause trouble? Shadowheart couldn't wrap his head around it. The only answers they would find were from the stranger themselves.

Despite his wounds stinging from the cold air, Shadowheart kept his pace from beside Firelight. The two warriors headed back towards the spot where they fought the foxes. Fox stench still lingered heavily in the air, and Shadowheart winced when he saw his own blood from beside the tree. Sniffing around carefully, Firelight searched through the nearby bushes.

Shadowheart looked around too, ears shooting straight up when he heard twigs snap up ahead. Freezing, he unsheathed his claws. Firelight had heard it too, and was stalking quietly towards the sound. Nodding to his friend, Shadowheart crouched along the other side carefully. Underneath the fox scent, was the scent of another cat; one that carried that of the twolegplace. Had the mysterious cat been a lost kittypet?

No. That's impossible. Everyone knows kittypets wouldn't be able to fight like that! Shadowheart flattened his ears and crawled closer. Firelight had already begun to bunch up her muscles, and the she-cat leaped through the bushes with a yowl. A surprised yelp came from the other side, and Shadowheart burst through into a small clearing. Firelight had a cat pinned under her. Instantly, Shadowheart recognized the black tabby as the cat from earlier.

"Firelight, that's him!" Shadowheart gasped, stepping forward.

Firelight's gaze didn't leave the tabby's. "Who are you?" she demanded, digging her claws in deeper. "Answer me!"

Calmly, the tabby met her gaze. Surprisingly he hadn't tried to fight Firelight, but instead look interested. Firelight snarled, her muzzle close to his. "Well? Tell me!"

"My name," the tom replied, unfazed by Firelight's hostility. "Is Blackflame."