Chapter 5:

A Shadowy Fate

Bramblepaw's POV

Bramblepaw was bored. He had just eaten, and was basking in the sun. He was going to become a warrior very soon. He was excited, but felt useless at the moment. The dark tabby, a spitting image of his evil father, Tigerstar, sat up and gave his shoulder a quick lick. Suddenly, he heard commotion by where the nursery was.

"Squirrelkit is gone!"

Bramblepaw recognized Sandstorm's voice, and he hurried to where she was standing.

"Squirrelkit?" Bramblepaw remembered the feisty young kit, soon to be an apprentice.

"Oh, where has she gone now?" Bramblepaw whipped around to see his leader, Firestar, and Squirrelkit's father, approaching his mate. Sandstorm simply shook her head, tears beginning to well up in her eyes.

"Don't worry, Sandstorm, I'll send out a search patrol," he reassured his mate, "We'll find her."

Bramblepaw shook his head. That Squirrelkit was always getting into trouble and scaring her mother to death. He hurried out of camp, no patrol behind him. He was sure she was not far into the forest.

Suddenly Bramblepaw smelled badger. Frightened, he leaped into a nearby puddle to cover his scent and pelted into a bush. He watched as the badger paused, sniffed the air, then hobbled on.

Bramblepaw crept out of the bush and struggled to catch Squirrelkit's scent through the rankness of the badger. Had the badger gotten Squirrelkit? He managed to get a hold of her scent trail and followed it to a clearing, near Fourtrees. But it ended there, and there was blood covering the grass.

"Oh, no," Bramblepaw whispered in shock.

Suddenly, the ThunderClan search patrol, led by Firestar, hurried up behind him. Firestar took one look at the blood and turned his head away, tears forming in his green eyes. "The badger," he murmured. "I knew it. There was no hope."

Bramblepaw felt sorry for his leader. He also felt sad for Squirrelkit. He thought she would make a nice warrior one day. He sighed.

Firestar turned and led his patrol back to camp, his head held low, tears splattering on the grassy ground, his tail dragging along behind him. Gray-black clouds started to cover the sky, and the rain that fell signaled StarClan was sad too.

OoOoOoO! Suspence! What will happen next? Why Squirrelkit? You will soon see...-Liontide