Chapter 17

"Sit down," Honeytail mewed, beckoning with her tail. They were in the medicine cat's den.

Dewleaf did as she was told. She could smell scents of herbs wafting in the air around her. She turned her attention to Honeytail. "What can you tell me about my parents?"

"Well, they originated from the original four Clans, as you already know. They were both from different Clans, right? Yes, well, Feathercloud first loved Thorntail, she barely even knew Rainheart." Honeytail tilted her head, as if to think. "And… well, I'm not quite sure, but something caused them to… well, separate. I'm not quite sure what that was, perhaps they had an argument? Anyway, Feathercloud met Rainheart one day, and they just… fell in love. But since it's against the warrior code for that to happen, they decided to run away."

Dewleaf nodded. "Okay. And…?"

"They found this land here, and decided to form their own Clan, RainClan. Your father took on the name Rainstar, and recruited cats to join the Clan. The cats recruited included myself, Stealthstar, who was Stealthclaw at the time, Skyfur, Tigerstripe, and Whispersong," Honeytail informed. "Skyfur gave birth to her kits not long after, and Feathercloud went to visit them nearly everyday. I wondered if she'd have kits of her own." She let out a purr. "But, Rainstar and Feathercloud had a sort of grudge against each other for a little."

"Why?" Dewleaf questioned.

Honeytail sighed. "You know Whispersong, right?"

Dewleaf nodded. "Yes." She was a really pretty cream cat with strange, soft brown eyes.

"Whispersong tried to… um, steal Rainstar from Feathercloud. He realized it'd be wrong to do that to Feathercloud, so he denied Whispersong. And after that, they were back to being love struck doves again." Honeytail purred.

Dewleaf tried to picture Rainheart and Feathercloud being madly in love, but it wasn't possible. She could only see Feathercloud's eyes narrowed, and Rainheart feeling sorry.

"But Forestlily managed to find RainClan."

Forestlily? "Thorntail's sister came here?" Dewleaf asked.

Honeytail nodded. "She came to take Feathercloud back to ThunderClan."

"Why?"

Honeytail shifted into a different sitting position. "She claimed that Thorntail was going crazy without her. He wouldn't eat, and he wouldn't leave the warriors den. Rainstar convinced Feathercloud that she should go, to explain to Thorntail."

"Rainheart wanted her to leave?" Dewleaf hissed.

"Oh, no, he wanted Feathercloud to set things straight back in ThunderClan, then return to RainClan," Honeytail said hastily. "And I went with her, so I could receive full training from Mosspelt, the ThunderClan medicine cat."

Dewleaf nodded. "Okay."

Honeytail sighed. "We went to ThunderClan. And it really did seem like Thorntail would die without Feathercloud. And he was so happy to have her back, really. Then, we found out that Feathercloud was going to have kits, Rainstar's kits."

"M-me, and my siblings!" Dewleaf exclaimed.

Honeytail nodded. "Yes. Feathercloud felt depressed, so Forestlily came back to RainClan to fetch Rainstar. He and Thorntail talked things out. And… I don't know why, but Rainheart said Feathercloud should stay in ThunderClan, with Thorntail. Thorntail agreed to raise the kits as his own."

"And he did…" Dewleaf mused. She sighed. "I wonder why Rainheart did that."

Honeytail shrugged. "I'm not quiet sure, but he said something about Feathercloud being surrounded by friends and family, and that she'd be happier."

Dewleaf's eyes narrowed. "That's not what he told me!"

Honeytail shrugged. "He wasn't very confident. He and I were going to return to RainClan, but on the way, he decided he'd just go back to RiverClan and let Stealthstar be leader."

Dewleaf padded out of Honeytail's den, it was already sunset, and she hadn't done anything in return to RainClan, as she had promised. She hastily raced over to Tigerstripe. "Can I go on a patrol?"

Tigerstripe nodded. "Sure. Join Stormpelt and Skyfur on a hunting patrol, would you?"

Dewleaf nodded. "Thank you." She looked around and saw Skyfur paddding toward her. "Hello," she mewed, dipping her head.

Skyfur purred. "Tigerstripe says you'll be joining us. Come on, then."

Dewleaf nodded, then nodded to Stormpelt in greeting. He flicked his tail in return.

Skyfur led them out into the woods, her silver tail streaming out behind her. "We'll be going to the river."

"The river?" Dewleaf asked uncertainly.

"It's like a big stream," Stormpelt snorted.

"I know what it is," Dewleaf mewed, twitching an ear with annoyance. "B-but, are we fishing?"

Skyfur purred. "Of course. We fish and hunt in the woods. But today we'll fish."

"Oh," Dewleaf mewed. "I-I can't fish."

Skyfur's eyes widened, and Stormpelt snorted again.

"Dewleaf, why not? You're a Clan cat," Skyfur mewed.

"Yes, but I can't fish. You see, there are four original Clans. ThunderClan excels at stalking mice and squirrels in the undergrowth of the forest. RiverClan mostly fishes. WindClan is known for their speed and ability to catch fast rabbits. ShadowClan hunts in the marshes." Dewleaf shrugged. "I suppose Rainheart taught the Clan to fish, and Feathercloud taught the Clan to hunt in the forest."

Stormpelt looked unimpressed, but Skyfur nodded. "I see. So all the Clans have different talents."

Dewleaf purred. "Yes. But I can learn, if you teach me, to fish."

Stormpelt's eyes gleamed. "I'll do it. I just want to see you fall in the water."

Skyfur rolled her eyes. "Stormpelt…" But she was purring.

Dewleaf let out a squeal as she slipped and fell into the cold water. She splashed out, but she held a fish in her mouth.

Stormpelt purred. "Nice job, Dewleaf, that's a new technique to catch fish!"

Dewleaf rolled her eyes and shook her fur, sending water spraying into the air. Stormpelt hissed, and Skyfur took a step back.

"It looks like you've gotten the hang of it," Skyfur purred. "I'll go upriver, maybe I can catch some more fish. You and Stormpelt can keep trying here." To her son, she mewed, "Be nice."

Stormpelt shrugged in reply and turned to Dewleaf. "Come on, let's try hunting without getting your whole pelt wet."

Dewleaf rolled her eyes. "Fine, because falling in was great fun."

The black and gray tom purred. "Watch me, and be quiet."

She nodded, sitting down.

He stood over the water, but leaning kind of at an angle so his shadow wouldn't cast over it. He was crouched low, his face close to the water, and his paws just at the edge of the bank.

Dewleaf held her breath when a slim, silver fish, a bit small, flicked its tail around in the water and swam toward Stormpelt. She watched as he stiffened, but stayed still. Right as the fish passed him, he lashed out a paw with lightning speed and drew it back, bringing the fish flopping on the riverbank. He bit it quickly and looked up at Dewleaf.

"Impressive," she purred, shaking her sleek black fur. "Can I try?"

Stormpelt nodded. "Try not to slip in this time!"

"Stop it!" Dewleaf growled playfully, her eyes gleaming. She turned to the river, crouching just like Stormpelt had. Her eyes gazed at the water for signs of silver scales. She saw a little flittering movement. A small fish was weaving through the current. Trying to be quick, she scooped it up with her paw. It landed on the bank, but it flopped back into the water and swam away.

Dewleaf hissed. "I almost had it!"

"You need to grab it with your teeth or hold it down with your paws," Stormpelt told her, his tail twitching.

"Okay, I'll try," Dewleaf sighed. She settled down at the same spot.

Stormpelt sat down a few tail-lengths downriver. "So if you miss the fish, I can try and get it after it swims down here," he explained.

Dewleaf nodded and turned her attention to the river.

Half a Moon Later…

Dewleaf padded out of the warriors den, shaking her fur. She felt at home here at RainClan. It was hard to believe that her parents had started it, but it must be the truth. She padded to the fresh-kill pile and bit into a fish. At first, fish had tasted strange, but now, it was as normal as eating a mouse in ThunderClan. She gulped down the last bite quickly and got up. She glanced around camp, but most cats were just lounging around, sharing tongues, or resting.

RainClan is few in number, but has a large territory. And there aren't many threats, besides for maybe foxes and badgers, and other cats. We only have to go hunting maybe twice or three times a day, and patrol only once or twice. It's an easy life… Dewleaf yawned. I wonder how everyone back at ThunderClan is doing. I hope Cloudstorm is keeping away from Frostpaw. And I wonder how Clovernight is doing with Eaglepaw.

Dewleaf padded over to Honeytail, who was padding back into camp with herbs in her jaws. "Hi."

Honeytail purred. "Hey, Dewleaf."

The black she-cat dipped her head. "That's a lot of herbs."

"Yeah, I just wish I could have an apprentice to help me sort it all out. I'm sure one of Petaltail's kits will at leas have interest in being a medicine cat, or, well, I hope."

Dewleaf purred. "Do you want me to help?"

Honeytail shook her head. "No, that's alright. I'll manage. You go hunting or something."

She nodded and padded around camp, kind of bored.

"Hey, Dewleaf!" someone called.

She looked up and mewed, "Yes?"

Tigerstripe and Ivypaw strode toward her. "Want to go hunting with us?"

"Sure," Dewleaf purred. "Hunting or fishing?"

"Hunting," Tigerstripe replied with an amused purr. "Let's go." He and Ivypaw raced out of camp, toward a grove of trees. Dewleaf scrambled after them quickly, scenting the air.

She smelled a mouse and pinpointed its location. The little brown mouse was scuttling around the forest floor, digging with its small claws at the ground. It must be looking for a place to burrow during the cold leaf-bare, she mused as she took a few quiet steps closer. Her tail was out behind her and stiff so as not to hit any bushes. The mouse looked up for a moment, then began digging again. Dewleaf stalked closer, then pounced. It let out a squeak of alarm, but Dewleaf bit it quickly. She buried the limp body in the dirt and looked around. Ivypaw had already caught a squirrel and was kicking some leaves and dirt over it. Tigerstripe was stalking a vole nearby.

I wonder how everyone back in ThunderClan is doing…

"Sure," Clovernight called, rushing to join Shadowclaw's patrol. Berrytail and Lightheart were on it as well. "Where are we going?"

"Just patrolling the territory, and the borders," Shadowclaw growled in reply. "We need to watch out for the fox cubs."

Clovernight nodded confidently. "Don't worry, there's four of us, and there'll only be two or three little fox cubs."

"She's right," Berrytail pointed out. "And we haven't found a trace of them so far."

Shadowclaw shrugged. "Who knows?"

Lightheart sniffed the air. "I think I smell something," she said, her ears twitching.

Clovernight glanced over at her and tested the air. "She's right. It's a bit faint, but still fresh enough…" She trailed off and glanced at Shadowclaw. "What do you think?"

Shadowclaw scented the air and growled.

"It smells like--" Berrytail was cut off when a loud bark erupted in the air, causing all the others to jump.

"What was that?" Clovernight hissed.

Lightheart's eyes were narrowed. "Maybe… a dog?"

"It's a fox," Berrytail growled.

"He's right," Shadowclaw said. "It was a fox. And it sounded close."

Clovernight hissed.

Just then, a huge rustling noise frightened a raven, and it flew into the air, cawing a warining call.

Clovernight turned and hissed, bracing herself.

Three huge, ginger colored animals burst through the bracken, snarling.

"They're huge!" Lightheart snarled, her fur bristling as she readied herself to attack.

"I thought they were fox cubs," Berrytail yelped with surprise.

Clovernight wasted no time and leapt one of the foxes, scratching its muzzle that would surely leave behind a scar. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Shadowclaw grappling with another. Berrytail and Lightheart were attacking the last one.

She hissed as the fox scratched her flank and lashed out at it with unsheathed claws. The black and white she-cat sank her claws into its flank and bit its throat, but it shook her off. She rammed into its side, clawing at it and biting its throat. She was surprised to see Berrytail at her side. "What about the third fox?" she panted, seeing Lightheart helping Shadowclaw.

"We chased it away," he replied.

With his help, she got the fox to back up and bark. Together, they chased it over the WindClan border. They sat down to rest for a moment. Berrytail had a wound on his flank that was bleeding. She herself had a gash on her shoulder and some scratches here and there.

"Let's go back and help the others," Berrytail said urgently, racing off.

When they got back, the fox was just beginning to run away. Clovernight let out a breath of relief as she watched the fox leave, then heard a picked yowl of distress.

"No! No! NO!!!" Lightheart screeched.

Clovernight whipped around and saw a limp body on the ground, blood dripping from some wounds. She saw a ragged black pelt, lying on the ground. Berrytail stood over him, his eyes sad. He made his over to Lightheart, his sister, and began comforting her.

It was Shadowclaw.