Hey guys! Long time no see, and I'm sorry for that. I had to wrap up a big project for the end of IT week, and then I decided I may as well just take a break over the holiday weekend. I have to say a special thanks to Into Nothing who is amazing for reviewing each chapter! O.o' It's so nice to read your in depth reviews, and I'm really grateful to you for pointing out any errors! (I think you'll have a field day with this one xD). From all the feedback, it seems like you guys hate poor Wolfpelt the most. And for his accent! I'm hurt! Just kidding. I did lay it on a bit thick. And those of you who hate him now will really hate him after this chapter. I don't know if my description of SkyClan is at all factual, but that's just the way I interpreted them. I think it makes them more interesting. I'm sorry that there's not much action in this one! Plz enjoy regardless!

Chapter Seven

"Are you sure we should eat it?"

"Well it's meat, isn't it?"

"Yeah, but what if it's poisoned?"

"Are you listenin' to yerself? Poisoned? How could an animal be poisoned?"

"Snakes are!"

"This ain't no snake."

"Ew! I think it just twitched!"

"It's dead, Dawnstorm. Just eat it."

"I'm not hungry."

Wolfpelt let out a hiss. "Fine. Then I'll eat it."

The four cats were circled around the tiny abandoned body of a bat that Nightstorm had batted out of the air. It lay on its side at their paws with a wound to the side of its head. Skyeyes gagged at the sight of it. All the good meat she'd had at the camp threatened to come right back up her throat. Wolfpelt reached out and poked it.

"Go on then, tree hugger," said Nightstorm. "Eat it if you dare."

Wolfpelt narrowed her eyes at her before he lowered his head. He took one bite before he grimaced and stumbled back a few paces. The others laughed as he doubled over and began to wretch all over the cave floor. Rowanheart, the closest to him, leapt away to avoid touching the nasty smelling liquid.

"Gross!" giggled Skyeyes. "I told you!"

The SkyClan tom couldn't speak for several moments. He wiped his mouth and turned to them. "It tasted awful!" he whimpered. "Great StarClan! I can't get the taste out of my mouth!"

"I hate to say I told you so," chuckled Skyeyes. "It didn't look or smell delicious."

Wolfpelt continued to wipe his mouth as Rowanheart stood and tossed the rest of the bat into the darkness. "I think it's safe to say that we've had our last meal now," Rowanheart chuckled. "That is, unless you ladies would like to give it try."

"Don't!" croaked Wolfpelt. "The taste! Ugh!"

"We should rest for a bit," Nightstorm suggested, giving her injured paw a lick. "No use staying up for the rest of our lives."

"That sounds so ominous," murmured Rowanheart. "But I agree. Let's rest somewhere in the open, where nothing can sneak up on us."

The three turned their eyes to Wolfpelt, who had just gotten up. He sniffed and wiped his mouth once more. "I'm fine," he said. "I'm fine. I'll make it. What were ya'll sayin'?"

"That we should rest," Rowanheart repeated. He flicked his tail down the tunnel. "There ought to be somewhere safe for us to lie down for a while in there."

----

They nestled together under a dim beam of moonlight with their pelts brushing and their hearts as close as any cats' could be from different Clans. Skyeyes chose to lie next to Rowanheart, whom she found herself gravitating towards seemingly automatically, and by Nightstorm, who reminded her so much of her mother. They were hungry, but they didn't care. They were cold, but they didn't care. Each of them were too involved with wondering how much longer they had, whether this would be their last moment or whether the Dark Forest had something so much more sinister waiting behind the next bend. Skyeyes doubted that a conversation would ever start up. Not that she minded one bit. She was content to lie with her pelt pressed again Rowanheart for ages, though even this small act of intimacy made her feel guilty inside. Would Sandstone be angry with her were she to tell him? No, he'd understand.

She was worried. She wasn't worried so much for herself anymore: the others wouldn't let her believe for a second that she wouldn't be the one to emerge from the tunnel when dawn finally came. She was worried for them, but most of all, she was upset. If she really was the one to survive the cave, why in StarClan's name couldn't she take at least one of these cats with her? They didn't deserve to die.

"So," Wolfpelt said after an uncomfortable silence. He nodded to Nightstorm. "Ya'll know all about the Dark Forest in ShadowClan, eh?"

The longhaired she-cat flicked her tail. "How typical. You judge me so quickly for being from ShadowClan."

"Well you were the only one who knew about that Macabre guy!" he protested. "Just spill it. What're ShadowClan doin' messin' around with the Dark Forest? They're the ones who started this whole mess in the first place!"

"ShadowClan were dying when Hollowstar called upon the Dark Forest!" Nightstorm hissed. Her fur began to rise on her haunches. "I hear, though these are just stories, that half the Clan were dead from starvation, and that some ShadowClan cats were so desperate, they…" She trailed off. Skyeyes traced her spine with her tail-tip, and Nightstorm let out a sigh. "They turned to cannibalism."

The cats grimaced. "Great StarClan!" exclaimed Wolfpelt.

Nightstorm's brow furrowed. "Yes, great StarClan," she muttered spitefully. "Everyone says that, but when have StarClan ever done anything for us, hmm? Redclaw, the medicine cat at that time, begged and begged StarClan to save his cats, but he received no answer. What else was Hollowstar to do? He asked Macabre to give ShadowClan strength. He had no way of knowing what Macabre would do to them. At first, the Dark Forest shielded ShadowClan, and they didn't ask for a sacrifice. ShadowClan were safe in his hands. Then things started to turn for the worst. Macabre began to steal ShadowClan kits and force them to join the Dark Forest. He completely took over Hollowstar's duties. Cats were dying. Cats were working for the Dark Forest without even having died. Hollowstar knew he'd had enough and rallied the Clan to fight them off. Once more, Redclaw tried to speak to StarClan, but there was no answer. They were on their own. StarClan have turned their backs on ShadowClan numerous times." She narrowed her eyes. "And they have turned their backs on me."

"Oh spare us your sob story," grumbled Wolfpelt. "You think life in ShadowClan is so tough? 'Woe is us! All the Clans hate us and StarClan are gone!'" Skyeyes stifled a laugh at his high-pitched imitation. "Pah! Everyone thinks bein' in SkyClan is a real trip, like prey just falls from the damn sky. We jump for our prey. Want to know the number one cause of death in SkyClan? Starvation. And not because there's not enough prey. Oh, there's plenty, if you know how to catch it. It's the catchin' it part that's so dangerous. Breakin' a leg is certain death. Sure, when a clanmate is injured, we all pitch in at first, helpin' 'em get to their dens and sometimes bringin' 'em food. But here's the truth: SkyClan cats hunt for themselves. Toms hunt for their she-cats if they've got kits, and we all take turns huntin' for Nettlewhisker, but other than that, you're on your own in SkyClan. So when a cat breaks their leg, we feel sorry for 'em, feed 'em for a bit, and then Nettlewhisker sits 'em down. He says somethin' along the lines of, 'Hey, you're hurt, and we're all real sorry, but if you don't heal, you don't eat, and if you don't eat, you will die.' I guess the hardest part is watchin' 'em try to hunt and watchin' 'em fail. After a few days you see their ribs. They sometimes joke that it's a slow day or that the prey just got out of reach. But we all know. After a quarter moon they've got hollow eyes. And after that, well, we're diggin' their grave." Wolfpelt laughed. "That's about the only thing in SkyClan no cat does for himself."

"That's barbaric!" cried Rowanheart. "What about your elders?"

Wolfpelt grinned. "Oh, you mean, elder?"

Rowanheart lowered his eyes.

"It's alright. Ole' Leechbite hunts for himself, believe it or not. SkyClan cats keep their jumping ability right until their dying day."

"Oh, and that wasn't a sob story?" growled Nightstorm.

"No, I think of it as more of a horror story," Wolfpelt chuckled. "It's supposed to make ya' steer clear of SkyClan. It ain't all sunshine and rainbows."

"I don't think it's like that anywhere," grumbled Rowanheart.

"Well what's life like in RiverClan?" Skyeyes asked.

Rowanheart purred. "It's not a sob story like ShadowClan," he joked, but Nightstorm let out a growl in spite of the humor in his tone. "And it's not a horror story to scare poor kits out of their minds like SkyClan," he added, dipping his head to Wolfpelt, who just snorted with a proud smile on his face. "RiverClan is RiverClan. I enjoy my life. I love to swim, I love to fish—even if I don't always catch anything—and I love my family." He paused, and a peaceful look came over him. "I have a younger sister named Koipaw," he said. "When my mother was carrying her, there was a food shortage in RiverClan. We all tried to scrap together what little we could find to try and feed ourselves, but there wasn't enough to go around, and there surely wasn't enough for a queen to get the right nutrition to nourish her kits. I'm the oldest kit from my mother's first litter. One of my brothers was born stillborn, another got sick, and the other…mother won't tell me, but I think he was eaten. Mother tried to have a second litter, but there wasn't enough food, and she lost them too. When she was expecting Koipaw, I knew I had to make sure that this kit was born healthy. I was a young warrior then, and I searched all over RiverClan territory looking for plump prey. I didn't find anything, and I refused to go home hungry, so…" He looked away shyly. "I wandered onto ThunderClan territory."

"Look who's high and mighty now!" chortled Wolfpelt. "Stealing from ThunderClan! Don't you know they woulda just given it to ya' if you asked?"

Skyeyes snorted. "What are you talking about?"

"ThunderClan are the push-over Clan," he explained. Skyeyes narrowed her eyes at him, but Wolfpelt only shrugged. "Hey, I'm just statin' a fact, sweetheart. Name one story about a Clan helpin' another Clan that don't involve ThunderClan in some way."

"Yes, yes, you've made your point," growled Rowanheart. "Now, may I finish my story?"

The SkyClan tom flicked his tail. "Don't mind me."

"Anyway. Yes, so I went into ThunderClan territory. Even if I felt guilty, I knew I had to find food. I hunted for hours and found absolutely nothing." He shook his head. "I don't know how you do it, Dawnstorm. The forest was so loud, but I could never spot any birds or mice. Dejected, I was about to turn back when all of a sudden I came to that little Twoleg place, you know, the one next to SkyClan territory? I smelled something like fish and scrambled up the fence to see what it was. There was a small pond behind one of the Twoleg's nest. There were fish there that were brightly colored, huge, and so very slow I knew I could catch one, even on an empty stomach. So I did. I stalked the largest, fished it out, and stood to marvel at it. It was massive! It would feed Mother for days if I could only get it to her! I was about to leave when I heard a laugh from above me. I looked over to see a huge black kittypet. I panicked, thinking it would try and attack me. I was so skinny back then it wouldn't take much to break me in half. But the kittypet only laughed and pointed to my catch.

"'I've been trying to nab one of those koi for ages,' the kittypet said.

"'What's a koi?' I asked. I'd never heard of one before.

"'That's what the fish is called,' the kittypet replied. 'My housefolk like to keep them around. I've tried a hundred times to catch one, but I'm no good at fishing.' The kittypet seemed nice, so I relaxed. Then it asked, 'So are you one of those wild cats I hear about?'

"'Yeah,' I said. 'I'm from RiverClan.'

"'RiverClan? Never heard of them.' The kittypet looked like he wanted to keep talking, but then there was a yowl from the Twoleg den, and I took off. I just grabbed the fish and ran all the way back to RiverClan. I had to sneak into RiverClan camp to be sure no one demanded that I share my fish. I got it to Mother, and she ate it so quickly I thought she'd choke on it. The next day, she gave birth to my beautiful little sister. When Mousepelt asked her what she was going to name my sister, she named her after the fish that gave her enough strength to deliver." Rowanheart let out a rumbling purr. "Koipaw is the most important thing in the world to me."

"She's the little calico that stepped up at the Selection right?" asked Nightstorm.

Rowanheart nodded.

"She's beautiful," purred Nightstorm. "I had a daughter not unlike her once." Wolfpelt rolled his eyes across the row, and Skyeyes bit back laughter. "Her name was Leafwhisker. I was so proud of her."

"What happened to her?" asked Rowanheart.

The ShadowClan she-cat waved it away with her tail. "Oh, the usual. Killed, in a prey dispute. We were simply out of prey—other than those disease-infested rats, and we're not going to even touch those. So we snuck prey from WindClan. They called us out on it, and that impulsive cat Patchstar leapt right into battle, even if the accusations were entirely true. And since warriors these days over look the part of the warrior code that says that we do not need to kill to win our battles, she was brutally murdered, by Sleetfur, no less."

"Sleetfur!" cried Wolfpelt. "How in StarClan's name did you resist tearing his throat out?"

Nightstorm let out a purr. "Easy," she said. "I promised myself to outlive him in the cave. And when the situation arose, well, I took matters into my paws."

Rowanheart and Skyeyes exchanged glances. "What do you mean?" asked Rowanheart.

"I tripped him," she replied with a shrug. "How did you think I'd hurt my paw? The damn tom weighs as much as a tree when he's running for his cowardly life. I tripped him, and when he lay, helpless, he met my eyes and asked me to help him. And I said no. Why would I help the tom that took my daughter from me? And know what? I enjoyed watching him die almost as much as I enjoyed having been the one to cause his death. Perhaps StarClan hears prayers from ShadowClan after all."

They were all awe-struck, but Wolfpelt smothered over his horror with a loud scoff. "Now I see why no one pities ShadowClan. Ya'll seem quite capable of fightin' yer own battles."

"Yes," she replied. "We're a proud Clan."

"Did you have any other children, Nightstorm?" Skyeyes asked.

"Oh yes. I had a son, named Duskpelt. He was the kind of warrior every ShadowClan queen wants. He was no pushover. He took control when he wanted to, he fought his own battles ruthlessly, and he stood up for Leafwhisker when she was alive. My poor daughter—he scared away every suitor she had! He didn't think a single one of them were good enough for his beloved sister." Nightstorm smiled broadly. "I thought one day I'd see him grow up to become ShadowClan's leader."

"But he was killed too?" mumbled Rowanheart.

She shook her head. "No. The Selection took him. He faced it bravely, like I knew he would, but…" Nightstorm gazed off. "Dognose told me later on that he had heard Duskpelt screaming not far from the exit of the cave just before dawn. He'd almost made it."

The cats fell silent. Skyeyes felt herself beginning to grow nervous. This was as good a time as any to tell them the truth about her. She drew herself up and opened her mouth. "I need to say something," she mumbled. "I'm not…guys?"

None of them were looking at her. She frowned at Nightstorm before she felt Rowanheart's fur rise. He got quickly to his feet. "What are they?" he hissed darkly.

"What?" asked Skyeyes. "What are you looking at?"

"They look like cats," mumbled Nightstorm. She stood too. "What do they want?"

"Nothing good, I'm sure," growled Wolfpelt. He got up and stood at the head of the group. "What do you want?!" he shouted at them.

Skyeyes ducked under Rowanheart to get a glimpse at the newest threat. She saw six shapes moving towards them: they were bright and they lit up the darkness as they walked. They looked like fallen stars but were in the shapes of cats.

"Maybe it's StarClan!" she said hopefully. "They've come to help us!"

"Fat chance," hissed Wolfpelt. He unsheathed his claws. "Don't come any closer!" he threatened. "Take one more step and I'll flay you!"

They halted instantly. Wolfpelt blinked and looked back at them with a confused look before one of the figured stepped forward. They watched with disbelieving eyes as its shimmering form dimmed and grew more real. Long, golden tabby fur cascaded over a lean frame, and gorgeous brown eyes scanned the chosen cats. The cat, who Skyeyes figured was a she-cat, flicked a long tail with luscious fur hanging off of it. She was absolutely stunning. She let out a melodic purr. She turned those eyes on Wolfpelt.

"Oh Wolfpelt," she purred. "Have you forgotten me already?"

All the color drained from Wolfpelt's face. His lips turned downwards, and the lower half of his body sank to the ground. "No," he whispered. He shook his head violently. "No! You're not her!" The SkyClan tom tried to scramble away, but the beautiful she-cat followed him. "Get away from me!" he snarled. "You're not Ruefur! You can't be!"

"Why are you so doubtful?" purred the she-cat. Wolfpelt froze as her fluffy tail wound its way under his chin. He shut his eyes and bit down hard on his lip. "Look at me, Wolfpelt," she purred. "It's me, your love. It's Ruefur."

"NO!" he howled. He shoved her away and fled backwards a few paces. "This is a fowl trick! I won't let a fake like you ruin my memory of her!"

As the Ruefur copy continued to pursue Wolfpelt, two other figures stepped forward from the group. The first darkened until its fur was black as night. Its eyes seemed to catch fire and burn across its face. They were the same sun-bright yellow as Nightstorm's. The tom locked eyes with her, and a sly smile eased its way across his lips.

"Long time no see, Mother," he chuckled. "Look who I brought."

The tom grazed the second shape with his tail, and along its wake beautiful tortoiseshell dapples sprang to life on the cat's fur. Soon the color spread to its entire body, and a pair of leaf-green eyes blinked open. The two cats began to stalk towards Nightstorm, who looked about ready to collapse from shock.

"Duskpelt?" she mumbled. "…Leafwhisker?"

The two cats let out identical purrs. "Oh Mother," they said in unison, "we've missed you."

"Get away from me!"

Skyeyes swung her head about. She thought that Nightstorm had been the one to cry out, but she saw that it was Rowanheart, who was pinned against the cave wall by a tiny silver tabby tom, who flicked his tail in amusement as he let out a laugh.

"It's me, Flintpaw!" the tom purred. "Why're you acting so strange, Rowanheart?"

"You're a fake!" shrieked the tom. "Get away!"

Skyeyes felt her limbs lock up. She turned her head slowly to the last figure, the one that hadn't materialized just yet. Her breathing turned ragged as it paced slowly forward.

"Dawnpaw," Skyeyes breathed. "You're Dawnpaw, aren't you?"

The figure nodded and let out a purr as identical blue fur appeared, and a pair of identical blue eyes stared at Skyeyes from the darkness. It was as if her sister had never died.

"He was right, you know," purred Dawnpaw, "to name you after your eyes." Skyeyes screamed as all of sudden her sister's face twisted in fury, and her teeth doubled in length. Those perfect eyes darkened to crimson. Dawnpaw cocked her head to one side and smiled a smile full of hatred. "They're the only thing the that'll be left of you by the time I'm through."

Next chapter will be out sometime this week, I promise! The only thing that annoys me about this chapter is that I wonder whether there would be any kind of Twoleg place at all if SkyClan were still in their old territory. Well, let's just assume that there is, for the heck of it. I'm trying to take this slow since there aren't many cats and I can't just kill them all off without much development (or can I...?) Please review! It makes me so happy to read your reviews, even if you hated it!