Chapter 14

C'mon guys. Only 3 reviews? I know that last chapter was pretty terrible, but, still… -sniffles- Oh well. Hopefully, this one will be better than that last one. Anyways, we got our second dose of Hepatitis B shots today, and my entire arm is numb, so expect a lot of spelling mistakes.

AliKatNyah - I bet it was, too. He was probably trying to get back at Brambleclaw, but Hawkfrost didn't go into details, so he had no idea what he was actually getting into.

Shadowed Horizon - Meh, I'm not the hugest fan of flashbacks - I just had no idea what to write! :P Yeah, I think Ashfur was the traitor. See AliKatNyah's reply.

Foxstar24 - Lol, I don't hate Ashfur that much. He loved Squirrelflight, but she didn't love him back. You gotta feel sorry for the poor guy. I definitely know what he feels like.

When Firepaw woke that morning, panic welled up in his chest. This wasn't the apprentice's den. It wasn't even BrambleClan camp! It took a few frightful moments for the young apprentice to remember the events of the nights before. But this revelation didn't ease his terrified thoughts. Instead, it made them even worse. What would Hawkstar do to them, now that Bramblestar was dead?

"Firepaw! You're awake!"

The ginger tom was snapped out of his thoughts at a familiar voice. He turned his head to see Minnowpaw padding up to him, a huge, cheerful grin on her face. He smiled shyly back at her and stood up.

"I've got great news!" she twittered as they padded towards the fresh-kill pile together. Firepaw silently picked out a scrawny mouse from a pile, waiting for his friend to continue.

"Hawkstar says that Pouncepaw, Pebblepaw and I are doing a hunting assessment today, and if we do well we're going to become warriors!" she exclaimed. Firepaw could see the glitter in her eyes, and knew that wasn't all she wanted to say. He was right.

"He also said that he wants to see how you, Blackpaw and Nightpaw are doing, so you're coming with us!" The grin on her face grew even wider. She didn't seem to notice how her companion shrunk nervously at these words. What if he didn't do good? Would he be made a kit again? He shivered at the thought. As much as he had loved the nursery, and the feeling he got from snuggling up to Squirrelflight at night, he didn't think he could handle a demotion.

Minnowpaw, through all her excitement, finally seemed to noticed the expression on Firepaw's face. She smiled at him.

"You're not actually nervous, are you?" she asked teasingly, a playful hint to her voice. She flicked his ear with her tail. "Hawkstar wouldn't make you a kit again if you do bad. He's always complaining about how we need more warriors now than ever. I don't really know why, though. Now that we're joined with you guys, it's not like we have any enemies or anything."

Even though he was still nervous, the ginger apprentice noticed with a hint of amusement that his friend talked a lot more than the rest of their Clanmates - except for maybe Pebblepaw, since the two siblings were so alike.

Their conversation was interrupted as Pouncepaw approached behind Minnowpaw. "Hurry up, Hawkstar says we're going out soon."

He glanced at Firepaw with a raised eyebrow. "You, too. Everybody else has already eaten. Our mentors are getting impatient."

Firepaw noticed a cold air about the tom that he hadn't really felt at the Gathering. It was like Pouncepaw was a completely different cat while he was at camp. He wondered what other traits the silver tom possessed.

Side-by-side, Firepaw and Minnowpaw padded towards the fresh-kill pile. She picked out a fish, it's scales still slimy and wet. Firepaw stared at it apprehensively and picked out a vole instead. Minnowpaw noticed, unfortunately for him.

"Don't tell me you've never eaten a fish before!" she cried. Her eyes widened in disbelief as the other apprentice shook his head. "Wow, you BrambleClan cats are deprived. C'mon, try it."

She pushed the gross-looking creature towards him, but he shook his head, refusing it. Minnowpaw shook her head, clicking her tongue in a motherly way. Firepaw giggled like a she-cat.

"Now, now, Firepaw," she meowed, her voice high-pitched. "You must eat your fish, or Tigerstar will come and get you in your sleep."

"Fine," Firepaw mumbled grudgingly. Minnowpaw's face lit up and she pushed the fresh-kill back towards him. He sighed, and leaned forward slowly. The she-cat watched him expectantly, leaning in close. Taking a deep breath, the ginger apprentice took the smallest bite he possibly could. Minnowpaw raised an eyebrow at him.

"Good enough, I suppose," she meowed disapprovingly. Firepaw grinned impishly at her and dug into his vole. He finished it at about the same time his friend finished her fish, and the two of them headed towards the group of cats that was their patrol.

"Finally!" Nightpaw meowed, bounding forward and nuzzling her brother. "I thought you guys would never get here!"

Voletooth, who seemed to be leading the large group of cats, snorted. "At least their here now. Let's get going."

The small brown tabby tom flicked his tail, and the patrol, which consisted of himself, Reedwhisker, Mosspelt, Minnowpaw, Pebblepaw, Pouncepaw, Blackpaw, Nightpaw and Firepaw headed out of the camp entrance.

Firepaw felt nervousness well up inside of him again as he looked around the unfamiliar territory, the cold breeze from the lake making him shiver. What if he got lost, and couldn't find his way back?

The tom growled inwardly at himself. Why did he have to act so paranoid all the time? He was so worrisome, yet he had no reason for it. If he did get lost, he could just follow the lakeside back. If he was unsure of that, he would eventually wander into the old BrambleClan territory. It couldn't be too hard to find his way then.

"We separate here," Voletooth meowed, stopping and turning to face the patrol. "We will meet at this spot again at sunhigh. Remember, don't do anything mouse-brained - we could be watching you at any time."

The warrior's words didn't help. Firepaw could feel the butterflies fluttering about in his stomach. It felt as if they were at battle with one another, fighting as fiercley as Bramblestar and Hawkstar the night before.

Voletooth waved his tail, and the six apprentices bounded off in their own direction. Firepaw was probably the only one without a spring to his step. Casting his green eyes about the territory, he saw that Horseplace was nearby. He could easily use the old Twoleg nest as a landmark, and there would be plenty of prey inside as well.

As he came closer to the large building, the mouth-watering smell of mice wafted out from it's inside. He could also catch the musky scent of hay, horse and - cat? He had been told that the cats who had once lived there, Smoky and Floss, had been killed moons ago. So how could there be cat scent now?

Firepaw shivered again, though this time it wasn't from cold, but from fear. There could be any cat living there now, from a helpless kittypet to a murderous rogue to a-

"Firepaw?"

The ginger tom's thoughts were cut off by a familiar voice behind him, and he spun around to face it's owner. His jaw dropped in shock. Standing before him was Leafpool, looking perfectly healthy, as if nothing had happened and she were still BrambleClan's medicine cat. She, too, looked amazed at seeing the young apprentice.

After getting over her initial surprise, she spoke again, her voice filled with alarm. "Firepaw, you have to get out here. This is HawkClan territory. If they find you here, they'll kill you."

He shook his head sadly. "Hawkstar killed Bramblestar and took over our Clan. We're called TigerClan now."

The former medicine cat's eyes widened in disbelief, and then dulled with grief. She sighed quietly, the little wisp of breath filled with unhappiness.

"Bramblestar was a good cat before he became leader, you know," she meowed quietly. She began to usher Firepaw towards the barn with her tail. "Come, you must meet some cats."

He silently obliged, though his steps were wary. He didn't know what these cats were like, but he had to trust Leafpool. She had never lied to him before, and she would never befriend a dangerous cat. At least, that's what he thought…

"Stormfur, Millie, Brook, you in here?" Leafpool called into the dim light of the barn as they stepped inside. There was a slight rustling near the back, and a few hushed voices before three cats stepped into the open. Behind them were three kits, looking as if they had just learned to walk at that very moment. Firepaw's eyes widened. Standing before him were three cats he had only heard of in stories, all presumed dead.

"Who're you?" squeaked a tiny little voice from around the brown tabby she-cat's paws. The apprentice looked down to see a silver kit staring up at him with wide blue eyes.

"Thrushkit, this is my nephew, Firepaw," Leafpool meowed. She glanced at the other cats. "Firepaw, this is Stormfur, Millie, Brook, Thrushkit and Swiftkit."

All of them, except for the two kits, who had engaged themselves in a play-fight, smiled warmly at him. Firepaw ducked his head, blinking shyly. It was so strange, being around all these cats that he had heard of, but never met.

"Firepaw tells me that Bramblestar was killed awhile ago, and that Hawkstar has taken over both Clans. He renamed it TigerClan," Leafpool meowed to the other cats. Stormfur suddenly looked angry, almost furious.

"Tigerstar must have set him up to do this," he snarled angrily, his claws unsheathing. "Why else would Hawkstar name it TigerClan? Did he make a Bonehill, too? Is he ruthlessly murdering innocent half-Clans, just like his wretched father?"

Firepaw was shocked. He didn't understand what Stormfur was saying, and apparently, neither did Leafpool, Millie or Brook. Despite this, all three of them had sympathetic looks in their eyes.

"This isn't like last time, Stormfur," Brook meowed gently, pressing up to him comfortingly. "Hawkstar isn't Tigerstar. At least this time there is no BloodClan to help him."

Stormfur deflated considerably, sheathing his claws. "I suppose," he meowed. "But I still want to get rid of him as much as I wanted to get rid of his father."

"D-Did you know Tigerstar?" Firepaw asked nervously. The gray tabby turned to him, and his eyes hardened again, though he didn't get as angry as last time.

"Yes, I knew Tigerstar. He tried to kill me and my sister. If Stonefur hadn't stuck up for us like he did…" Stormfur hesitated, shaking his head slightly. "I don't even want to think about it. Just know that he is the reason I am alive today."

The group of cats were silent for a moment, thinking about everything thy had just heard, when Millie piped up, "Leafpool, are you going to tell Firepaw about the… prophecy?"

Firepaw stared at the medicine cat and Millie, shocked. Leafpool stared at the former kittypet for a moment before nodding solemnly. "I suppose I should. He and his siblings are our only hope, aren't they?"

She turned to the ginger tom, taking a deep breath. "Firepaw, long ago, the very day that Bramblestar became deputy of ThunderClan, I received a prophecy. The fearsome tiger will rise again, bringing a storm harsher than any other, and only fire in the blackest of nights can stop it."

Firepaw stared at Leafpool. "So what does that have to do with me?" he asked, though he was already beginning to put it together in his head, like a jigsaw puzzle.

"I believe that the fire in the blackest of nights is you and your siblings. Firepaw, Blackpaw and Nightpaw."

Firepaw nodded, though the usual nervousness was welling up in his chest. How were he and his siblings supposed to save the Clans and stop the tiger? Tigerstar. The very thought of the evil tom made him shudder. The menacing brown tabby had returned through his two sons - now, only one.

"I think you should go now, Firepaw," Leafpool meowed, already ushering him out of the barn. "You must tell your siblings of this. Try to bring them to meet me as soon as you can. We must figure out how to stop Hawkstar from really turning the four Clans into one, not just physically, but mentally, too."

A/N: This is my longest chapter yet - 2110 words! w00t! I am extremely, extremely, extremely, extremely sorry for such a late update. I was majorly procrastinating, and when I finally got to writing the chapter, Word shut off and I had to rewrite the whole thing. It was the saddest moment of my life. :P So, once again, very sorry. Perhaps I'll give you all my address so you can come and stab me to death with pitchforks.