Chapter 8

"Nightpaw, what are you doing here?" Mistyfoot hissed, narrowing her eyes at the small black tom.

Nightpaw did not cower – his spine stiffened, and he snapped back, "What are you doing here? Why did you sneak out of camp? Who are you meeting?"

Mistyfoot's tail lashed impatiently. I don't have time for this! She thought.

"Don't bother to deny it," Nightpaw went on. "I saw you go into the dirtplace and not come out. What's going on, Mistyfoot?"

"It's none of your business," Mistyfoot pointed out.

"It is if it endangers ThunderClan!" countered Nightpaw.

"What's going on?" demanded a voice. "Mistyfoot, I thought it would just be us."

Mistyfoot turned and saw Stoneheart padding out from the woods, his blue eyes narrowed at Nightpaw. The big gray tom flicked a pine needle from his ear.

Nightpaw bristled. Before he could snap at Stoneheart, Mistyfoot pointed out, "See? Just here to meet my brother – there's nothing wrong with that, is there?"

"He's a ShadowClan cat," Nightpaw muttered back, his claws flexing. His eyes were trained on Stoneheart as the bigger warrior padded up to Mistyfoot's side. "Brother or not."

"How many other ThunderClan cats know?" Stoneheart asked, looking past Mistyfoot to ThunderClan's side of the clearing.

Mistyfoot bristled. She snapped, "No one knew at all – he followed me! It's not like I encouraged him, Stoneheart!"

Stoneheart's eyes flashed.

Bushes at the other end of the clearing rustled. A fluffy silver tabby padded through them, followed by a big dark gray tom – Stormfur and Feathertail. Mistyfoot and Stoneheart stiffened in shock, and Nightpaw hissed.

"Well," Stormfur mewed, his amber eyes sparkling, "this isn't how I thought tonight would go."

Feathertail's eyes shone with relief, like the river in the sunshine. "Oh, thank StarClan!" she breathed, rushing up to Stoneheart and Mistyfoot. "I'm not crazy! I'm not the only one!"

Nightpaw's whiskers twitched. "What is going on?" he demanded, sounding more perplexed than hostile now.

Feathertail's eyes shone. "I had a dream!" she said earnestly, whirling to look at Nightpaw. "Brambleclaw – that's RiverClan's old deputy – came to me and asked me to meet other cats here at the new moon – and look, here we are!"

Mistyfoot blinked at the RiverClan she-cat – she had a dream? Then this really is real.

Feathertail looked to Stoneheart. "You had the dream, too?"

Stoneheart could only nod – he seemed just as stunned as Mistyfoot.

"Then which one of you had the dream from ThunderClan?" Stormfur asked, looking at Mistyfoot and Nightpaw.

Mistyfoot avoided his gaze. "Me," she replied.

Feathertail's eyes shone. "Oh, wow!" she purred.

Isn't she at all worried about what that means? Mistyfoot wondered. Mosspaw promised some sort of horrible event for us, and she's just bouncing around like a kit out of the nursery for the first time! The urge to chastise Feathertail was quashed when she met Stormfur's gaze and found him to be just as happy to see her, if not more. Mistyfoot locked her gaze on her paws.

"Wait, what?" Nightpaw sputtered. "So… you all had a dream?"

"I didn't," Stormfur pointed out. "But those three did."

Stoneheart sighed, resigned to Nightpaw's involvement. "Cats from StarClan came to us and asked us to meet here," he meowed. "Shadow, Wind, River, and Thunder must join together, for the forest shakes to its roots – that's what they said."

Nightpaw's eyes went wide. "Wow," he breathed. "But… I only see three of you here. Where's the fourth?"

"Oh, great," groaned a voice. "It's you."

The gathered cats looked to the WindClan slope and saw a long-legged, gray-black shape standing there. His blue eyes were narrowed on Mistyfoot and Nightpaw, his tail-tip twitching with irritation.

"Crowpaw?" Mistyfoot mewed quizzically.

"Who else?" snapped the WindClan tom. "Seems like StarClan hates me, sending me out here in the middle of the night to meet with you, of all cats."

Mistyfoot glanced at Nightpaw, who looked just as confused. Why would StarClan choose the misbehaving WindClan apprentice – or an apprentice in general – for something like this? Maybe they just want a thorn in our side…

"Who came to you?" Feathertail asked, eyes wide. She was clearly oblivious to any tensions between Crowpaw and the ThunderClan cats. "What was your dream like?"

Crowpaw bristled, taking an extra step away from the group. His narrow muzzle was curled into a disgruntled snarl. "None of your business!"

"I think it is, now," Stoneheart remarked. "If you're a chosen cat."

"Mosspaw, our sister, came to us," Mistyfoot added, gesturing between her and Stoneheart with her tail. Perhaps revealing their own visitor would put the apprentice at ease.

It didn't seem to – but then again, Mistyfoot wondered if Crowpaw had been born with a stick for a spine. The gray-black tom muttered, refusing to look at any of them, "Deadfoot came to me. Said to meet a bunch of cats at midnight."

"That's wonderful!" purred Feathertail. "Mistyfoot, Stoneheart, and I had that dream, too!"

"Then what's with the entourage?" Crowpaw snapped, glaring at Stormfur and Nightpaw.

Stormfur padded up to stand squarely beside Feathertail. "I was the only one she told," he meowed. "So I decided I'd come with her, in case this meeting wasn't the friendly kind."

"He followed me," Mistyfoot sighed, flicking her tail at Nightpaw. The apprentice looked put-out, and Mistyfoot felt badly for how she had put things. "He's involved now," she added. "No point in keeping him out."

Crowpaw's lip curled. That, Mistyfoot expected – but what she didn't expect was the worried flash in Stoneheart's eyes. Her brother had clearly become just as prickly as any ShadowClan cat if he was so begrudging now, and that made Mistyfoot sad.

"What happens now?" Crowpaw asked.

Feathertail blinked. "I… have no idea," she admitted, for once not sounding excited.

"I've had no other dreams," Stoneheart pointed out.

Mistyfoot frowned. "I haven't, either," she meowed. Was that a lie? "At least, none where Mosspaw came to me again."

All around eyes flashed with doubt. Was this really all for nothing? My other dreams… were they just dreams? Mistyfoot wondered. Did they mean nothing? Was our message just a coincidence?

"If StarClan said something important to you, then it's not nothing," Nightpaw insisted, raising his tail. "Shadepaw told me that StarClan does things in funny ways sometimes. Maybe they just wanted you all to meet tonight, and that's all?"

Stormfur looked thoughtful. "Maybe," he mewed. "You've all met one another, now. Perhaps a new sign will come?"

Crowpaw frowned. "Doubt it," he grunted. "Why talk to us, and not a medicine cat or a leader?"

Mistyfoot grimaced. "He has a point," she admitted.

Feathertail's tail lashed. "T-Then there must be something that only we can do!" she insisted, eyes wide and desperate. "Why else would we each have had identical dreams?"

Crowpaw curled his lip. "Because we're going bee-brained?"

Nightpaw hissed, "You're not helping!"

Mistyfoot looked down at Nightpaw in surprise. There was a spark in his eye that Mistyfoot had never seen before. Is he… actually excited about this now?

"Then I suppose the most we can do is wait," Stoneheart sighed. He sat down on his haunches. "Maybe StarClan will send us a sign tonight?"

"It can't hurt to give it a few more minutes," Feathertail agreed.

Mistyfoot sat, curling her tail around her paws. She looked up at the starry sky, at the blank blackness where the moon was hidden. Did StarClan really have another message for them tonight?

But moments stretched into eternity, and nothing came.

"Well, this was a fun waste of time," scowled Crowpaw, getting to his paws. "I have a hunting patrol at dawn. Thanks for nothing."

Before any cat could protest, the WindClan cat loped up the slope and into the darkness.

Feathertail looked cross, but Stormfur touched his muzzle to her shoulder. She sighed. "We should go, too," she admitted. She looked to Mistyfoot and Stoneheart. "Don't give up! There might be another message, so keep your eyes open!"

Mistyfoot glanced at Stoneheart, and the two nodded in agreement. It can't be for nothing, she insisted.

"We'll pass a message to Crowpaw if something does come," Stormfur promised. He waved his tail at the others. "See ya."

The two RiverClan cats left, shoulder to shoulder as they pushed through the undergrowth.

Stoneheart sighed. "Was this all a waste of time?" he wondered.

Mistyfoot frowned. "I don't know," she admitted, "but I don't think so. Something is happening – can't you feel it?"

Stoneheart's eyes flashed. He nodded, silently, and touched his nose to Mistyfoot's. "I'll let you know if I see anything else," he promised, before padding back towards ShadowClan. Within moments he was gone.

Mistyfoot sighed, looking down at her paws.

"Should we tell Shadepaw?" Nightpaw wondered.

Mistyfoot, feeling irritation returning, muttered, "Enough cats know already."

Nightpaw frowned. "I'm sorry," he meowed. "I want to help, Mistyfoot. Please… don't leave me out of this."

Mistyfoot blinked at the apprentice. He looked so earnest, so excited… and she could only imagine how devastated he'd be if he were left behind. He could go right to Tinystar and rat us all out if he wanted, she thought. But… I don't think he will… and I don't need more trouble on my shoulders.

"Alright," Mistyfoot promised. "You won't be left behind."

Nightpaw's tail curled over his back, and he grinned. "Yes!" he purred.

"Come on," Mistyfoot mewed, stifling a yawn, "we need to head back before we're missed."

She led the way up the slope and away from Fourtrees, ducking beneath ferns and dodging bracken that would hold their scent. They walked together in silence.

Shadow, Wind, River, and Thunder must join together, for the forest shakes to its roots.

Whatever the message meant, Mistyfoot feared it would affect the Clans on a scale they'd never seen before. Mistyfoot was no medicine cat, but she was certain most prophecies didn't mention all four Clans.

Thunder rumbled in the distance.

Whatever it was, Mistyfoot just hoped they could act before it was too late.