Hey guys! I just finished writing the new chapter! And yeah, I broke my writing streak last week. It was like bam! bam! bam! bam! and then Thanksgiving rolled around and I just couldn't write any more. :P I'm just weird like that.

Now, on to review answering!

Pie: I think your on to something there, and CAAAAAKKKKKEEEEE! LOLZ! You are fueling my random craziness! :P

Birdflame: Wow! That is ironic! And you may be right...

LeafWishes: How odd! I always thought it was slay the unicorn, save the dragon! *derp face* Just kidding! I actually thought it was save the damsel.

Raeda2001: THEY MIGHT ALL DIE! YOU MAY BE RIGHT! And thanks! :) It's so kind of you to say that. I really do love your compliments and how sweet you are! Kind words are always awesome and I love it when people encourage one another!

Guest: Thank you! And here you go—I needed a time skip anyways. ;P Though, the next chapters are going to be a lot of Greyleaf POVs and possibly several Goldenfur's. It's not that I don't like Pinestar—in fact, I've given his story and background a ton of thought. It's just because I'm nearing the last ten or so chapters of the story, and a lot of the climax buildup takes place in Thunderclan.

A Castle of Glass: Yes, they are awesome. I enjoy their music a lot! :)

Bobbie 1776: You reviewed so much, I'm gonna break each answer into pieces! YAY! I LOVE TO S OF REVIEWS!

27-Yes, it doesn't excuse Goldenfur's overprotective urges, but he was mentally and emotionally scarred for life. If you watched your mom get murdered and die right in front of you, wouldn't you want to protect your other loved ones? At least that's the line of thought I'm using to explain the craziness. :P

28-Nope, it's not Pinestar! And you're supposed to have no clue, so don't feel bad! :) Here's a hint about hints, there are a few scattered clues here and there, they just don't seem like clues...

29-LOLZ! RAAAAAAMMMMMPPPAAAGGEEEEE! ALL OF THUNDERCLAN IS NEXT!

30-Yes! The sickness has gone out of control! And you are so close to the plotline with that last statement that it's almost crazy!

WhenCowsFly: Yes! BAAAAALLLLOOOONNNNSSSS! Doom is on the brink of crashing upon them! And yes...yet may happen...or it may not...

Wow! This is the longest review answering I've ever done! I LOVE IT!

Chapter 30: Pinestar

Pinestar's mental condition had become much better since he had seen Greyleaf alive, and it had even improved to the point of where Fernshadow allowed him to roam around the camp once more. The dark brown tom hadn't been able to go to a gathering yet, and he knew that Shadowclan was pretending that he had fallen gravely ill to the point of not being able to leave his nest. But he had heard the murmurings of his clan members.

"Greencough outbreak in Windclan," one she-cat deduced in hushed whispers.

"Riverclan stealing prey," another would mew accusingly.

"Thunderclan prey running scarce," an elder would buzz.

"A warrior named Blackfur mauled by a fox," yet another would say.

And many more rumors and speculations could be heard by the attentive listener, but Pinestar only had an ear for those about Thunderclan. The scarce prey could be a bit of a problem, but he had been through the land a little over a moon ago and knew that this was most likely a stretched half-truth. After all, they were on the brink of Leaf-Bare. As to Blackfur's apparent death, Pinestar felt a slight guilt at his lack of condolence. When he had picked that snippet up, the thought had actually made him smirk. He had never really liked the tom. But Greyleaf had been fairly close to him, and Pinestar felt bad about not being there to comfort her.

But it wasn't until he spoke to Cedarheart—the calico had given him very reliable information, and she still looked at him as her leader, if not a friend—that his stomach really dropped.

"Can you..." He gulped, "Can you repeat that again?"

The green-eyed she-cat nodded and recited her previous statement. "Thunderclan didn't come to the gathering today. The only cat that came was a gaunt, grim looking apprentice, and it was clear that he had disobeyed orders to get there. According to him, there's been a major Greencough outbreak in Thunderclan, and it started a moon and three sunrises ago. There's only six healthy cats left." She paused for a moment and added, "Now that I think about it, Sunstar did come to the last gathering with only a pawful of cats, and they had looked tired and scrawny. I guess we know why now."

Pinestar sighed and released a breath he hadn't known he was holding. "Do you know which cats are still okay? Did the apprentice say anything?"

Cedarheart shook her head. "No, he just explained everything as best and fast as he could. He said that if he didn't get back to hunt, there would be even less prey to go around. He practically groveled in front of us when he begged for help."

Pinestar closed his eyes and tried his best not to explode. Everything seemed to be against them. First, he had killed Leopardheart. Then, Greyleaf had slipped into a coma. After that, Blackfur had died—probably breaking the leader's mate's heart. And now, Greencough was running rampant in Thunderclan! And it's not like they were even supposed to be together in the first place! Their whole relationship was forbidden!

Pinestar opened his mouth to choke out a response and ask if Shadowclan could do anything to help, but Cedarheart cut him off. "It's okay. I know what you want our clan to do."

Amber eyes wide, the black-striped tom jerked his head up in shock. "H-how?"

She gave him a genuine smile, green eyes sparkling shyly. "I know that you have a special tie to Thunderclan. I can see it in your eyes whenever it's mentioned. —it's okay!" She added when Pinestar opened his mouth to defend himself, "I know how you feel."

"You-you do?" He stammered.

She nodded, looking right into his eyes. "My biological mother and is there,—my half-sister, too—but she doesn't know who I am."

"Oh," he mewed, "I'm sorry."

She forced a tight smile and said, "Don't be. It's okay, really. I was just a mistake, the product of a little fun." The white undercoated warrior seemed to spit out the last word. "My biological mother decided that her mate was too boring for her, so she left him for a Windclan tom named Shrubtail." She scowled as she said his name. "Needless to say, I was eventually kitted, but my snake-hearted blood mother didn't want me—had never wanted me. Not even a sunrise after I was born, she took me out into the forest to die in the snow near the Windclan border. But what was worse was that she had the gall to demand that Shrubtail watch and make sure that I was dead before morning.

"Luckily, Russetstar had been walking along the lake and heard my cries and their angry conversation. He waited in the shadows until my biological mother had left the scene, and then he burst out and confronted Shrubtail. The mangy piece of fox-dung tried to blame my appearance on a rogue, say that I was the daughter of a horrible cat that had been attacking Windclan and that he was just about to pick me up and take me back to Windclan to see what my judgement would be. But Russetstar told him that he had seen the whole thing and demanded answers." She unsheathed her claws and dug them into the ground. "The fox-heart only confessed because Russetstar threatened to unmask the whole vile relationship and make it certain that Shrubtail never became deputy.

"Then, Russetstar took me with him to Shadowclan, leaving Shrubtail behind in the cold." She looked down, eyes hot with emotion. "He has never acknowledged me or told my blood mother that I even exist. To him, I'm just another piece of crow-food."

Pinestar didn't know how to respond. He had been an apprentice with Cedarheart, but he had never known where she had come from. He'd always assumed she'd been adopted by Badgerfall and Shadowfur after being orphaned by a disease like Greencough. He never would have guessed that that was her true past, and he felt a sharp pang of shame at knowing that it was a forbidden relationship like the one he shared with Greyleaf that had caused her so much pain.

"I-I'm sorry," Pinestar mewed, not knowing what else to say.

"Hey," she answered, looking back up at him with lighter eyes than before, "I already told you that it was okay."

"I know, but," he responded, passing to lick his white chest anxiously, "How many cats have you told this to?"

She seemed taken aback by his question, green eyes widening and fur blushing a little bit. "N-n-no one but you." She fiddled with her tail sheepishly, trying not to make eye contact with the leader.

"Oh, uh," he stuttered, having not expected that her reaction, but he caught himself enough to reply, "I-I'm honored that you would share something so personal with me."

She looked up at him again, eyes aglow, and smiled. Pinestar gave her a slight smile as well, still a bit uneasy, and licked a paw a few times. He dismissed himself with a polite nod and a murmured goodbye.

And though Cedarheart's actions caused him to be a it uneasy, it was the unknown fate of Greyleaf and Thunderclan that bothered him the most. The thought of his kits crossed his mind as well, and he shuddered at the thought of them suffering such a long and painful demise.

But that was just speculation. One thing was for certain.

Thunderclan needed help.

So, that's the end of this chapter! It was kind of taken up a lot by Cedarheart's story, but oh well! It helps introduce stuff!

Question Of The Week: In light of the new information, what role do you think Cedarheart will play?