Prologue
"Good-bye, Littlestar!" called a tortishell tom to small white she-cat running acrost the horizon. The tom walked into the brush near him. He came out on the other side of the brush. A stocky looking she-cat walked up to him.
"Greetings, Brushfoot." He said to her. The she-cat looked around.
"Tallpaw's ready to become a warrior." She said. The tortishell looked at her.
"That's very good. How about we go on the dawn patrol tomorrow?" He said.
"That sound's good, Patchedstar." Brushfoot said. Patchedstar looked at her again. "Tell him he's going on the dawn patrol and to get some sleep." He said.
"Okay!" Brushfoot said. She walked off towards a small brush pile. Patchedstar stalked into a large rock cave. He was confused. Littlestar, the small white she-cat, had said she was staying. She said her deputy had nearly killed her, and she was secretly pregnant, yet she had left that day. And, although most of the clan hated her for being an outsider, Patchedstar knew he loved her. Deeply troubled, Patchedstar layed down, and fell asleep.
Far off, Littlestar lay in the shelter of a bush. She was not asleep; she was to troubled to sleep. Why, why did I leave Patchedstar? Why did I leave desertclan in the first place? Why did Darktree try to kill me? What if when I get back, Darktree had convinced them I was dead and they won't let me back into the clan? What if I don't even make it back? Then the answers came over her. I left Patchedstar to go back to my clan. I was wrong to leave my clan with Darktree as a leader! I have to save them, know that I know what she will do for power. Although these questions troubled her all night, Littlestar finally was able to sleep.
In the sky, two stars were all that were left of the night. In the distance, a mesa stood royaly above the desert. Three cats slinked out of a clump of brush. From another clump, came a slightly smaller dark grey cat. Silently, they got together, two of the larger cats got in front, while the two smaller ones went behind them. They moved out of the brushy part of the desert, headed for the mesa.