Chapter 1

"S-Stormfur!" Brambleclaw gasped, his voice shrill with disbelief. "What… what are you doing here?" He took a few paces forward to stand nose to nose with his old friend. Seeing him now almost made all the pain leave his exhausted body.

"Great StarClan…" Stormfur murmured, running his gaze up and down Brambleclaw. "What happened to you?"

Brambleclaw purred and leaned forward to touch noses with the gray warrior as if he were saying, "I'm fine…" But then his happiness faded to be replaced with a rock-hard seriousness. "Badgers." He growled; eyes narrowed in grief and rage.

Stormfur just shook his head, as if he couldn't quite believe him though the reek of badger still hung in the air of the destroyed camp. Brambleclaw glanced over his shoulder and caught sight of a distinct dark ginger shape padding towards them.

"Squirrelpaw!" Stormfur cried, the uncertainty gone from his golden gaze in less then a heartbeat. He dashed past Brambleclaw to nuzzle her cheek in greeting.

"Squirrelflight," She corrected him, just as pleased to see him. "Crowfeather's here too."

Stormfur's head shot up. "Really?" he gasped out.

As soon as he spoke, a gray-black tom stepped out of the shadows his eyes shining with warmth that Brambleclaw rarely saw. But he didn't say anything only leapt a few paces foreword to stand nearby and listen to their conversation.

"If you've just come here to say hello then you might as well leave!" Dustpelt's impatient yowl sounded over the anxious muttering. "We have work to do."

"Actually we did come here for a purpose," Brook mewed quietly. "We have something to tell your leader."

"Well I'm here." Firestar rasped. The ginger tom made his way to the front of the cats. Midnight followed him and Stormfur dipped his head in respect to both figures.

"My father's in the mountains," Stormfur began in a clear, strong voice. "But his back leg has been injured and he can't make his way back to the Clans yet. He's currently staying with The Tribe of Rushing Water."

"He should be returning in a moon or two," Brook added.

A steady silence hung in the stone hollow now. It was only broken by the whisper of the wind and the crunch of Firestar's kneading paws.

"Are you sure?" their leader meowed anxiously. "Are you sure he's really there?"

Brook nodded, "Yes he really is."

"Then I look forward to seeing him in a moon."

But Brambleclaw wasn't so sure. He felt that same wave of ambition crash over him again, the same one that his father had felt--the one that drove Tigerstar to commit so many crimes. Would he follow his father's footsteps? Brambleclaw shuddered just to think of it even though his half-brother Hawkfrost had already agreed to.

He was brought back to reality when he heard Firestar's voice addressing the Clan. "Stormfur and Brook will be staying with the Clan tonight," He meowed. "It's too late for them to start travelling back tonight."

"Surely not!" Ashfur muttered loud enough for every cat to hear. Brambleclaw had only just realised that the gray tom had ventured up beside Squirrelflight. "We have enough to worry about already!" he continued. "Why should we take care of outsiders?"

Squirrelflight glared at the tom, the fur along her spine beginning to bristle menacingly. "That outsider you're talking about is my friend!" she spat angrily at him.

Ashfur looked a taken back of having seen Squirrelflight so angry with him. Brambleclaw snorted. He probably thought Squirrelflight's only friend was himself!

Glancing back at Squirrelflight he saw her about to make another fast retort but Firestar silenced his daughter with a furious stare. Then he turned to the WindClan leader, Onestar who sat a few tail-lengths away.

"ThunderClan thanks you," He meowed. "But you must go now. We need to have time to grieve for our dead and tend to our wounded."

"Of course," The tabby leader dipped his head then gathered the rest of his Clan with a wave of his tail. Then they padded out of the trampled thorn tunnel together.

Crowfeather brushed past Squirrelflight on his way out. "Say good bye to Leafpool for me," He whispered.

Squirrelflight nodded, the expression on her face unreadable. Stormfur cast her a confused glance from he was sitting by Brook, their tails entwined together. He obviously didn't know that Crowfeather had fallen in love with another cat—a cat that wasn't his sister.

"I'll explain later," Squirrelflight murmured to him.

"Where's Cinderpelt?" Firestar meowed. "We need her!"

"She's dead."

The Clan turned their heads as Leafpool made her way to the center to stand by her father. The tabby she-cat's eyes were dark with horror and grief.

"Dead? But how?" Brightheart gasped, her fur stood on end with shock.

"She was with Sorreltail—she had her kits. But a badger broke in… and…and…"

She was cut off by a howl of grief from somewhere in the throng of cats. Anxious muttering began to rise around the Clan. "Will Leafpool stay with us?" one meowed. "Is Sorreltail alright?" and "Who else is dead?"

Leafpool seemed to shrink away from the voices and Squirrelflight dashed forward to steady her sister. Brambleclaw came up on the medicine cat's other side and let out a meow. "How can you say that?" he called out. "Leafpool came back didn't she? Why wouldn't she stay with us?"

Leafpool shyly dipped her head and leaned into Squirrelflight's dark ginger fur as if to seek comfort. Brambleclaw gazed into the green depths of Squirrelflight's eyes, guessing he'd find anger there. But instead there was only deep sorrow for her sister.

"I will treat your wounds," The young medicine cat mewed at last. "And… and I'll stay with you."

"Good," Firestar murmured, touching her shoulder with his tail tip. "Glad to hear it, my daughter."

Then the leader began to send out orders to the rest of the Clan.

Brambleclaw shot Rainwhisker a sympathetic glance when he saw the dark tom carrying a limp body to the centre of the clearing. His brother, Sootfur had obviously died in the fight.

Brambleclaw stumbled forward in shock as he felt a cat brush by him in an affectionate way. To his surprise he saw Squirrelflight.

"Thank you," she murmured to him.

Then she leapt away to go speak to Ashfur. The flecked gray tom was staring at Brambleclaw with unmasked hostility. But Brambleclaw didn't care. Squirrelflight had shone more affection to him in that last heartbeat then she had in the past two moons. She showed him that maybe she still cared.

Haha this is like the longest chapter i've ever written. I'm so proud. x) Review? Please?