Runningpaw gasped. What? Give ShadowClan one of their warriors? Simply preposterous!

Cinderhope was gaping. He seemed to think the same thing. But he didn't say anything- he was silent, not replying in any way to what Hurricanesong had demanded.

"Unthinkable! Unbelievable! N-no!" Cried Skycloud. "Why would we give away one of our warriors to you? It's stupid!"

Hurricanesong looked over his claws. "Well, maybe you would do it because you want your kits back in one piece." He unsheathed his claws, which made everybody flinch. Fortunately, he didn't run them down the pelt of any cat. The black tom raked his claws across a nearby boulder, making a quite unpleasant screeching noise.

Skycloud wrinkled his nose and tried to put his paws over his ears by lowering his head. "What was that?" He asked Runningpaw.

The brown apprentice shook his head. "I don't know, but whatever it is, it isn't good."

Runningpaw was right. He shivered as he heard many different pawsteps coming from the bushes behind the ShadowClan deputy and realized with a shudder that it was a signal to his Clanmates that were bordering the clearing.

"It was a signal!" Hissed Skycloud hostile-like. "Oh StarClan, it was signal! What does he want the rest of his warriors to do now?"

Runningpaw shook his head. "Whatever it is, it can't be good. Wait and see," He mewed urgently, sweeping his tail over his friend's mouth to hush him.

Skycloud rolled his eyes, but then widened them as he saw three or four bulky warriors similar to Hurricanesong in frame. Each one took up a kit in its jaws, making their own kit squeal with terror.

Runningpaw unsheathed his claws with fury. "If you put one claw on any of those kits, you'll find yourself chopped into pieces!" He hissed with a new energy to protect ThunderClan's future warriors.

Hurricanesong went back to looking over his claws. "Well, we might leave them and put them down…if, that is, you are willing to cooperate. Hand over one of your warriors and we'll let the kits go."

Runningpaw glared at the ShadowClan deputy with untold hatred. This cat was expecting them to give ShadowClan one of their warriors that had taken moons to develop into a warrior.

"I still think that it's simply hollow-headed to think that we'll give over a valued and long-trained warrior!" Runningpaw snarled.

Skycloud shifted where he was sitting, but stood up tall and nodded. "I agree with Runningpaw. Why don't you just take a blade of grass out of our territory and be done with it?"

Runningpaw trembled with silent laughter at his friend's joke. It was true though- if ShadowClan wanted something from ThunderClan, they should take a vole or badger or something.

Cinderhope hung his head. "They want a warrior- we'll give them one."

Runningpaw was surprised at Cinderhope's reaction to this outrageous request but was even more surprised at the next words that the deputy mewed.

"Take me, Hurricanesong. I'll come with you back to ShadowClan. Just hand over the kits and I'll be gone."

Hurricanesong smirked. "Good choice, Cinderhope. I find that it will be very…rewarding, to both Clans."

Skycloud was gaping along with Runningpaw. "But that's wrong! Cinderhope, you can't go with them, you're deputy! What would Ashstar think?"

Runningpaw nodded. Skycloud had a point- Ashstar would be devastated if she saw that her favored deputy was gone, along with the rest of her Clan. There would be a big ruckus and they would be deputyless.

And another thought went into Runningpaw's mind: if Cinderhope came with Hurricanesong back to ShadowClan, then it would be most likely that Ashstar would choose Mudpelt as the deputy. And that wouldn't be a good thing- every cat in the Clan knew that Mudpelt had been trying to become deputy and leader for moons, ever since he was an apprentice as a matter of fact.

"Then I'll go," Runningpaw mewed. He knew that he would miss his Clan, but he had to be the one to join ShadowClan if it meant keeping Cinderhope and in the process blocking Mudpelt, the kit murderer, off from becoming deputy in his place.

"No, Runningpaw!" Skycloud hissed. "Don't go! P-please!" Tears were welling up in the young warrior's eyes as he begged for his best friend to stay.

"But I have to. I don't want Cinderhope to be the one to go. That way ThunderClan won't have a deputy."

"But they will if Ashstar appoints another one by sunset! Come on, Runningpaw, think for a second here! We need you here!" Skycloud pleaded.

Runningpaw couldn't believe that Skycloud was going against Cinderhope just to keep his friend, but shook his head. "No…no. I'm going with Hurricanesong."

"No!" Skycloud sobbed. "We've been friends for how long…moons! More than fourteen! Our parents were friends! Our siblings are friends! My brother is actually in love with your sister! You- you can't go," He said a bit quieter this time when most of the cats were staring at him and wondering why he was talking about his brother in love with his best friend's sister.

"Then who will go?" Asked Runningpaw, arousing many voices from ThunderClan cats. This sure was an inflammable subject for ThunderClan at the moment, Runningpaw realized. He should be taking it a bit more seriously. "Who will possibly volunteer?"

"I can!" Cinnamonpaw yelled above the racket. "Mossflower nor this Clan needs me anymore! I'll go."

Hurricanesong seemed to agree. "She would be a good queen. She could mate with many toms."

Mossflower shook her head. "You aren't going anywhere, Cinnamonpaw! I'll go," She decided firmly.

"How about none of us go and we leave one kit there?" Asked Skycloud.

"Are you nuts, Skycloud?" Hissed Runningpaw. "We can't let them have any of our kits! They belong to ThunderClan, and we have a right to them! We won't surrender to them just because they want one of our warriors.

"Look, I have an idea. Why don't we go back to camp and get someone? Maybe then the pressure wouldn't be so hard," Runningpaw suggested, instantly thinking of how much relief there would be in the Clan if Mudpelt left.

"No, we don't need to do that!" A voice rose above the rest. "I'll go, for StarClan's sake!"

Runningpaw turned his head to see who had just mewed above the rest. He was surprised at who he saw.

Sorry this chapter was short, but I wanted a good cliffhanger. Every fanfic needs to have a pull-your-hair-out cliffhanger! . don't worry, I won't make your wait long.