Goldenstar woke in a jolt, his golden eyes wide and alert. After a few heartbeats of panic, Goldenstar registered his surroundings; he was lying down next to the Star Shard with his two kits resting next to him. He faintly heard the roar of the waterfall and bright daylight flooded the cave. Goldenstar got to his paws as his kits gently woke up.
Springpaw let out a yawn. "That was the best cat nap I've ever had!"
"Did we really see StarClan?" Fallspaw inquired.
"We did," Goldenstar replied. "Now we must return home." His kits sleepily nodded and followed their father out of the cave and into the mist.
"We'll be able to get Quailpaw back, right Father?" Fallspaw asked once they entered the thick woods.
"Of course," Goldenstar responded. "We'll defeat the pack and return our missing cats."
Goldenstar was surprised by the amount of cats in his camp by the time the three WaterfallClan cats arrived back home. He spotted Moonshadow conversing with nine cats in the middle of the camp, and it took him a while to realize that those cats weren't his own.
"What's going on here, Moonshadow?" Goldenstar asked as he approached the group.
"Our patrols found these cats waiting for us by the border," Moonshadow explained. "They claim that their leaders sent them to help us for the fight tomorrow."
"How do they know about the battle?" Goldenstar asked. He didn't announce the fight to his Clanmates earlier that day.
"I'm afraid that Cedarstep heard what Reedleg told us, and he told Otterwhisker, who told Pineheart, who told Nightstrike, who told Leopardnose, who told Leapingriver, who told Dustberry, who told Cliffjumper, who told Meltingice, who told Mousethorn, who told Feathershade, who told—" Moonshadow went on until his leader interrupted him.
"I think I get it, Moonshadow," Goldenstar gently reprimanded. "I'll gather the Clan." He quickly padded towards Stonecleft and winced as he leapt on top of the rocks. "Let all cats old enough to swim in the river, join here beneath Stonecleft for a Clan meeting!"
The majority of the cats were already gathered outside glaring at the newcomers and simply crowded around Stonecleft. The other Clan cats were pushed forward by the crowd towards Stonecleft.
"As you all may know due to gossip," Goldenstar began, "there is a fight with the dogs and their leader tomorrow morning. I journeyed to the Star Shard and conversed with StarClan; they only affirmed the battle and we have their blessing in this fight. It also seems that we have some uninvited guests in our presence." He motioned towards the cats in front of him. "Please introduce yourselves."
The first cat to stand up was a dark ginger tom with faint brown patches and gleaming green eyes. "The name's Emberdust of RowanClan," he purred and shot a glance at Leopardnose, who merely looked away.
A light brown tabby tom with green eyes was next. "My name is Flashspark of RowanClan."
"I'm Tumbletwig of RowanClan," a dark brown tabby tom with amber eyes greeted.
A pretty brown and cream she-cat with amber eyes stood up next. "My name is Hazelnose of MeadowClan," she greeted.
"I'm Fuzzyface of MeadowClan," a fluffy dark gray tom with dark blue eyes smiled, his fuzzy pelt giving the reason for his unusual name.
"And I'm Shadowmask of MeadowClan," a familiar black tom with blue eyes announced and nodded at Goldenstar.
A small dark reddish tom with green eyes stood up next. "My name is Foxrun of ThistleClan," he greeted.
"I'm Voleear of ThistleClan," a dark brown tom with large ears and amber eyes went next.
"And I'm Dashwind of ThistleClan," a dark ginger tom with amber eyes announced.
"WaterfallClan welcomes you and we are grateful for your assistance," Goldenstar meowed to the visitors and then raised his head to his Clanmates. "Cats of WaterfallClan, we shall provide shelter for our guests and they shall travel with us for the battle tomorrow."
"Does that mean they'll be sleeping in the warriors' den?" Cloudedsky chided. "I don't want Rowan breathe in the den."
More outbursts similar to Cloudedsky's were followed and Goldenstar raised his short tail for silence.
"They shall stay in the warriors' den but only for tonight," Goldenstar solved and leapt down from the rocks, signaling the meeting to an end. His thoughts instantly went to the visitors; Goldenstar knew that Emberdust was Secretfaith's father and he was a powerful warrior. Flashspark's sister was the RowanClan deputy and the littermates used to be part of SavageClan, but unlike other former cats, the littermates were born in RowanClan, then PineClan. Tumbletwig was Rumblestar's eldest son and only StarClan knows what's in store for the young tom.
Hazelnose was a senior warrior of MeadowClan and Goldenstar knew that Sloestar sent some of her best warriors by sending Hazelnose to help them. Fuzzyface was the Clan deputy's son and a highly respected warrior, despite his unusual name. Shadowmask was a different story; back when they used to live in the old territories, Goldenstar visited the Great Oak after a Gathering with a bunch of other apprentices from the other Clans. He remembered playing with Shadowmask, then Shadowpaw, during that fateful night when Goldenstar broke his tail and paw. He also knows that Shadowmask has his own litter of kits named Maskpaw and Sandpaw.
Foxrun of ThistleClan was a former SavageClan cat who joined ThistleClan, then BrambleClan, when the notorious Jaggedstar was still in reign. Foxrun later proved his loyalty when he fought against Jaggedstar and Smoke Claw and helped them win the battle. Voleear was the deputy's brother, who Goldenstar used to play with after Gatherings as well. The tom was known to be quite stubborn at times, but his loyalty was said to be boundless. Dashwind was a young warrior, only made one a moon ago. Judging from the tom's perpetual energy, he was excited to be serving his Clan by fighting the dogs.
Goldenstar then made the connection to some of the cats; each Clan sent a cat that was closely related to their leaders, which signified their seriousness of this fight.
Thank StarClan for their assistance!
This also reminded Goldenstar that he had not decided who to send to the battle tomorrow. It was clear that he wound send Moonshadow, and himself but he had not thought about whom else.
"Uh…Goldenstar?" a voice called and snapped the Clan leader from his thoughts. Nightstrike, a senior warrior, was standing in front of his leader.
"What can I do for you Nightstrike?" Goldenstar asked.
"I just wanted to request myself for the battle tomorrow," Nightstrike firmly asked.
"Why is that?" Goldenstar asked.
"I noticed that the other Clan leaders sent Flashspark and Foxrun for their patrols," Nightstrike pointed out. "Both of them were SavageClan cats and back in the day there were a lot of dogs roaming around our territory. All cats were required to know how to deal with the mutts, so the SavageClan cats have experience fighting with dogs."
"Thank you for mentioning that, Nightstrike," Goldenstar meowed. He hadn't made the connection himself and was grateful for the black and white warrior's insight. "You shall be on the battle patrol tomorrow."
"Thank you, Goldenstar," Nightstrike politely meowed. He dipped his head in respect and padded towards the nursery towards his daughter, Dustberry.
Well that's one warrior down.
Goldenstar was also aware that this could be a trap, so he wanted to leave an equal amount of warriors here guarding the camp while the other half fought in the battle.
The golden tabby tom really wanted Cedarstep to fight, but he knew his senior warrior was in no shape to fight dogs with his injury still healing. Pineheart's strength equally matched Cedarstep's so that added a cat. Ryeleaf was also a strong warrior and his swiftness would be helpful in the fight. Otterwhisker would be staying behind, along with Leapingriver and Feathershade; he trusted those she-cats to keep the Clan in order while he was away. Cliffjumper was built for strength and his sister was nimble and cunning, which would prove to be an advantage with the large dogs. Meltingice would also be anxious to get her apprentice back.
That's Pineheart, Ryeleaf, Nightstrike, Moonshadow, Cliffjumper and Meltingice.
He could spare two more cats so he decided to add two newer warriors. Moonshadow's son, Privetdrop, had his father's slyness and Auburnwhisker had never seen battle before.
Yes, Privetdrop and Auburnwhisker shall come as well.
That leaved Otterwhisker, Leapingriver, Feathershade, Stalkshine and Cloudedsky to fend off the elders and the kits. He was positive that Leopardnose and Mintshard will be helping as well if the camp was attacked.
Sounds like a plan.
He reminded himself to announce the cats who were participating later that evening.
"You seem to have a lot on your mind," Leapingriver pointed out loud as she gently shouldered her mate out of his deep thoughts.
"Unfortunately, I do," Goldenstar replied and let out a purr.
"Well why don't we fix that?" Leapingriver purred. "Why not we go hunting? It'll be just the two of us! I'll be a nice break for you."
Goldenstar didn't need to think that over twice. "Hunting sounds delightful," he agreed as his mate led him out into the prey-rich forest. The golden tabby tom couldn't remember the last time he and his mate got to spend some quality time together and it most likely was before their kits were born.
His mate headed towards the river that wove into their territory and flowed towards MeadowClan territory. Goldenstar tried to block out the sounds of the birds chirping and the squirrels racing above them; he wanted to save his strength for fishing. He was grateful that new-life had arrived and the prey was flourishing in the land.
The mates finally arrived silently at the gray-blue river, which was around three fox-lengths wide with pebbles and stones lining it. Breathlessly, Leapingriver took her place besides the river and scrutinized the flowing water. Goldenstar took his spot a few tail-lengths to the right and scanned the water, looking for any signs of movement or shadows. After many heartbeats, he slowly raised his awry paw a half tail-length up and flung his paw into the water. His claws met flesh as a largemouth bass flew into the air. Goldenstar quickly reached upwards to catch the fish, but he misjudged his timing and the bass slipped out of his reach. Not wanting to loose such a precious catch, Goldenstar quickly fumbled around, trying to get a grip on the wriggling prey and he ended up smacking it into his mate's face. Surprised, Leapingriver yelped and tumbled into the river with a splash!
Goldenstar quickly dashed forward and scanned the water for his mate. It wasn't long until a pair of white paws grabbed his broad shoulders and Goldenstar was flung into the water as well. Holding back a yelp, the WaterfallClan leader quickly closed his mouth and surged upwards and broke the surface.
"What was that for?" Goldenstar cried, but failed to hide his amusement in his voice.
"I could ask you the same question," Leapingriver growled, a tail-length from her leader. Both cats were drenched and maintaining control against the current.
"I swear it was an accident!" Goldenstar purred as he gently padded towards the riverbed. He teasingly splashed his mate as he swam past her.
"Oh, now we're playing kit games, are we?" Leapingriver threatened as she splashed her mate's back. Goldenstar froze and roughly turned around; Leapingriver would've felt a little bit intimidated if it weren't for his amused facial expression.
"I suppose we are," Goldenstar playfully growled. "If any cat finds us like this, I'll say you started it." He forcefully shoved river water towards his mate with his forehead.
Leapingriver growled and violently raked her paw against the frigid water. Goldenstar swiftly ducked beneath the surface and Leapingriver followed in suit. The minnows shoaled around Goldenstar, as if curious about his features, but once he moved the minnows darted away to safety. Studying the water, Goldenstar caught sight of his mate a fox-length away from him; his light brown and white lover was playfully chasing away a sunfish, waving her white-tipped tail in the water as the shiny fish sped away in fear. The WaterfallClan leader gently swam towards his mate and the two made a break for the surface and relished the taste of the air. The two mates gingerly padded their way towards the forest, but not before Goldenstar amusingly splashed Leapingriver once more, resulting in the Clan leader to be plummeted into the river once again.
Spitting out river water, Goldenstar purred as his mate shook her drenched pelt dry and gave his forgotten bass a sniff. Goldenstar forcefully shook his thick pelt dry and was aware that his pelt needed a good few licks. Leapingriver sat down next to the fish and took a few good bites.
"At least this experience resulted in something productive," the she-cat purred and licked her whiskers. Goldenstar settled besides her and the two WaterfallClan cats shared the fish, welcoming the sounds of the forest settling down for the night and watching the sun sink below the tree tops.
Once the prey was nothing more than bones and scales, Leapingriver gently groomed her mate's pelt, mumbling under her breathe how the tom acted like he never cleaned his fur. Goldenstar let his eyes close and fell into a deep purr, feeling quite relaxed.
A familiar tightness suddenly appeared in Goldenstar's chest and it felt hard to breathe. He tried to open his eyes, but something was keeping them closed. His heart began to pound and he was sure that the entire forest heard it. Goldenstar suddenly felt like he was falling out of the sky as his stomach was flung next to his heart. He tried to open his mouth to yowl, but no sound came out. The heat soon escaped from his body, leaving his corpse icy and frigid.
Goldenstar's eyes immediately flashed open and the tightness soon escaped his chest. He was aware of Leapingriver gently calling his name and draping her tail over his.
"Goldenstar…Goldenstar, are you alright?" Leapingriver worriedly asked.
"I'm…I'm fine," Goldenstar panted.
"Was it another vision?"
"Yes…but I haven't had one of those in seasons," Goldenstar explained. "Perhaps this means that they have come back." Hope flared in his belly.
"Perhaps," Leapingriver replied, sounding unconvinced. "But the visions only came when something dire was soon to happen, right?"
Goldenstar nodded. He hadn't thought of that. "I hope this doesn't mean that the battle tomorrow won't be dreadful."
His mate shrugged. "We'll just have to see." She glanced at the setting sun. "Perhaps we should head back home; this battle won't be won without a good night's sleep." She got to her paws and gently roused her mate to his own shaky paws. "And it seems like you require one," she gently teased.
Goldenstar flicked his ear and rested his muzzle against hers. "What will I ever do without you?" He kinked his much shorter tail against hers.
"I pray that you will never find out," Leapingriver purred.