Okay, next chapter. Oh, and yes, I know that in The Sight Minnowpaw was described as being gray and white, but in Twilight she was described as being completely black. I have decided to stick with her original description, so don't bother to tell me that her pelt color has changed. I already know. But I don't care. I'm going with how it originally was, and that's that.

Sorry it's so short. I originally had more written out for this chapter, but cut it out because it didn't fit.

Chapter Three

Willowpaw had not forgotten about Jaypaw. The gray tabby tom still stalked her dreams, and while she enoyed the feelings he gave her, he scared her, too. He was everywhere, she could hardly close her eyes without seeing him, let alone sleep. And, as if that wasn't bad enough already, Mothwing was beginning to notice, and she was afraid others were, too.

The pale gray RiverClan she-cat shook her head and got up out of her nest, unsheathing her claws in a stretch that reached all the way from the tip of her nose down the legnth of her long tail. It was early in the morning, but she couldn't sleep anyway. Passing Mothwing, who was still curled up in her nest asleep, she stepped out into the main part of the camp.

An apprentice, Minnowpaw, who also happened to be one of Willowpaw's best friends, passed by. "Hi, Willowpaw!" exclaimed the apprentice, happy as always. She's lucky. She doesn't have any forbidden problems to attend to, thought Willowpaw bitterly. But, she forced herself to fake a smile and nodded a 'hello' back.

However, the small black she-cat was not so easily deterred. Padding over, she asked, "What's wrong Willowpaw? You don't look so good; Are you sure you're feeling well?"

Willowpaw knew her friend was only asking out of genuine concern, but she couldn't help replying impatiently and in a bitter tone. "Of course I'm sure! I'm absolutely fine," she added in a lower tone, hoping that Minnowpaw wouldn't pry any further. However, as usual, such hope was in vain.

"No, you're not," meowed Minnowpaw. "And I'm not going to stop asking until you tell me what's bothering you, so you may as well tell me."

Willowpaw was sorely tempted to reply 'You are' but held her tongue. Minnowpaw's friendship meant too much to her for her to jeopardize it with a thoughtless comment like that. Looking up, she found Minnowpaw's intelligent green eyes gazing evenly back at her, daring her not to answer.

Sighing, she looked away again and meowed, "Okay, I'll tell you, but only on one condition."

"What?" asked Minnowpaw, intrigued.

"You have to promise not to tell anybody, and I mean anybody, under any circumstances. Got that?" The black cat nodded, looking almost as if she was going to burst from the suspense of waiting. "I-" Willowpaw began, then stopped. This was almost as difficult as telling Jaypaw himself, though for different reasons. With him, she had been admitting her feelings to the tom she had a crush on, and though that had been difficult, it had felt right, at least. But now she had more doubts and misgivings than ever. It felt as if she was giving up everything that made who she was, her position as medicine cat apprentice, the life she had known and loved ever since she was a tiny kit in the nursery. Did she really want to give it all up?

"Well, hurry up!" meowed Minnowpaw, bouncing up and down.

Jerked back to reality, Willowpaw began agian. "I- I think I'm in love." She cringed as soon as the words left her mouth, knowing that she could not take them back and fearing the consequences.

Minnowpaw's eyes went round with surprise and disbelief. "Bu- but you're a medicine cat!" she gasped out, stumbling over her words in shock.

"I'd noticed, thanks," meowed Willowpaw dryly. She really didn't need this right now.

"This is against the warrior code!" Minnowpaw continued as if she hadn't heard anything.

"Again, noticed."

"Bu-but who is it you think you're in love with? Pebblepaw?" Her whiskers twitched in amusement at the mention of her brother.

"No," replied Willowpaw as if the mere thouhgt was ridiculous. Sighing, she had dreaded this question!, she meowed, "I, I can't tell you. It's a secret."

"And the fact that you were in love in the first place wasn't?" asked Minnowpaw sarcastically. "Listen, Willowpaw, you've already told me this much, you may as well tell me all of it. So come on, who is it? Someone in RiverClan?"

Willowpaw looked directly into Minnowpaw's eyes and said, "It's Jaypaw."

"Who?" asked Minnowpaw, not daring to believe her ears. If Willowpaw had said the name she thought she'd said, then both of them were in for a whole heap of trouble.

"Jaypaw, the ThunderClan medicine cat apprentice." Willowpaw was finding it hard to remain calm. Blinking, she swallowed her fears in an effort to appear more at ease than she felt.

Minnowpaw bowed her head and shook it slowly, muttering under her breath as she did so. "Oh, Willowpaw," she looked up, her eyes wide and fearful, "what have you done?"

Willowpaw gulped audibly, instantly regretting her decision to tell Minnowpaw.