A/N: Thought it was time for an alliance update since so much has happened.

(Alliance Update)

Unnamed Clan

LEADER: Ghoststar - pale gray, almost white tom with blue eyes

DEPUTY: Spiderfur - dark brown tabby tom with amber eyes

Apprentice, Winterpaw

WARRIORS:

Mistybird - pale gray she-cat with lighter gray tabby markings; has yellow eyes

Whiskertail - long-furred tabby tom with blue eyes

Apprentice, Shadowpaw

Stonefang - dark gray tom with unusually long teeth; has blue eyes

Icefeather - long-haired white she-cat with green eyes

Robintail - black and brown tabby tom with amber eyes

Apprentice, Foxpaw

Oakfoot - black tom with yellow eyes

Rosefang - badly scarred creamy brown she-cat with blue eyes

Suntalon - ginger tom with a darker ginger tail

Apprentice, Goldenpaw

Mothfire - pale ginger she-cat with green eyes

Apprentice, Grubpaw

Daisytail - brown, white and black she-cat with a bushy tail

Mudstripe - dusky brown tom with amber eyes; last known survivor of PebbleClan

APPRENTICES:

Shadowpaw - dark gray, almost black tom with green eyes

Winterpaw (gender change XP) - white she-cat with amber eyes

Grubpaw - dark brown tabby tom with amber eyes

Foxpaw - dark ginger tom with a white chest; has piercing green eyes

Goldenpaw - pale golden she-cat with a bright ginger tail; has green eyes

QUEENS:

Honeypool - light brown she-cat with amber eyes

Redflower - reddish brown she-cat with green eyes, mother of Fernkit by Ghoststar

Speckledove - gray and dark gray mottled she-cat with yellow eyes, mother of Frostkit, Dovekit and Ashkit

KITS:

Fernkit - tortoiseshell and white she-cat with blue eyes

Frostkit - gray and white speckled she-cat with yellow eyes

Dovekit - gray and white she-cat with yellow eyes

Ashkit - dark gray tom with amber eyes

Chapter 24

Days had passed since Sparrowfur had saved Mistkit from her doom. Willowcloud looked down at the four kits that she was now suckling. She had wondered what sort of fate befell her sister. She knew that Sparrowfur would likely be punished for leaving the Clan. She wondered if the Clan even knew about Mistkit's survival. Surely by now they would have noticed that one kit was missing? Search parties were normally sent to find the missing kits, but it seemed as though Ghoststar didn't care.

Maybe he's biding his time, she thought after she sighed.

"Good morning my love." Leopard's rasping purr made her heart skip a beat. Willowcloud looked up to see his green eyes peering through the cave's entrance. "I hope you're hungry," he added after pushing a sparrow across the ground.

"How did you find that?" Willowcloud stared at the sparrow in disbelief. By now most of the prey had vanished. Finding anything decent to eat was difficult with the first snowfall.

"I saw it flapping around in the snow," he explained. "I realized that one of it's wings was broken so…I put it out of it's misery."

Suddenly a thought crossed Willowcloud's mind. She thought of her sister and how defeated she looked at the time she'd given up Mistkit. Willowcloud's stomach churned with fear when she realized that the sparrow was a sign from StarClan.

Oh StarClan, is Sparrowfur with you? She looked up at the roof of her cave.

The breath of a second cat suddenly warmed her neck. She tried to turn around and face whoever was with her, but no cat could be seen aside from Leopard and her kits.

"Thank you." She pulled the sparrow closer, wondering if it would somehow bring her sister back from the dead.

Concern gleamed within Leopard's eyes when he saw the dark look in her own. "Is something wrong?" he asked after a moment of silence passed by.

"It's just…. Sparrowfur is gone." Willowcloud looked down at her kits once more. If she had been quicker, none of this would have happened. She felt no regret for having kits, but she did regret not helping Sparrowfur. The medicine cat had tried to help her out, whereas she had turned her down. "Ghoststar killed her."

"Why would he kill his medicine cat?" Leopard sounded more surprised than anything else.

"He does not believe in StarClan." Willowcloud watched as Leopard spun around to face Embertail, who must have approached without warning. "He wants to ensure that none of the warriors in this new Clan do not believe. The less cats who believe in StarClan, the less power they will have over the forest."

That makes sense, Willowcloud thought. StarClan only comes when they are needed the most.

"Does every cat not believe in StarClan?" Leopard tilted his head in confusion.

Willowcloud recalled that he didn't know much about StarClan. She had only told him a few things, but that was it. She was afraid that he would refuse to believe in something that could not normally be seen. She herself had been skeptical at first until her first meeting with Silverleaf.

"The elders would have fought against his new ways," Embertail replied. "He would have killed them first. After that…I'm sure there are survivors, though they keep their voices quiet."

It's not like they have any other choice. Willowcloud looked back down at her kits. By now they were asleep, much to her relief. Badgerkit was almost always squirming while he suckled, and Petalkit had a loud mew that woke almost every creature in the gorge up. She was proud of her kits and the way they acted, but there were times when she wished for some peace.

"If only there was a way to stop him," Willowcloud murmured. She nudged Petalkit softly, enjoying the warmth of her daughter's fur.

I could have stopped them, had I listened to StarClan, she added silently. But my kits are more important to me. My kits and…Leopard. All of them needed protection, and they wouldn't have gotten that had I listened to StarClan.

Embertail must have disappeared from Leopard's sight, because silence followed. Willowcloud's stomach growled, reminding her of how hungry she was. She quickly leaned forward and began to eat.

Warm blood trickled down her throat as she envied the taste. It reminded her of the times she had spent with Sparrowfur when they were kits. They used to argue over which pieces of fresh-kill were better. Sparrows were difficult to eat because of their feathers, but Leopard had plucked them out for her. Mice were juicy and tender, but they didn't go very far. Rabbits were large enough to feed an entire family, if one was lucky enough to catch one.

Once the sparrow was finished, Willowcloud moved the remains out of the cave. There was no need to attract any scavengers, and she didn't want her kits nosing into things they shouldn't. She glanced around warily to make sure there were no predators around. Leopard had vanished once again, annoying her to no end.

One of these days, she thought with a shake of her head.

She was terrified that one of those days she would find him slain near the gorge. The sparrow had been the first sign sent by StarClan. If something happened to her Leopard…she wasn't sure what would happen. She knew that sooner or later, Ghoststar would come up with ways to keep her away from the Clans. And either way wouldn't end well.

A/N: If anyone guesses what happened to Sparrowfur, you all get Mistkit plushies! This chapter was extremely difficult to write, and more of a filler than anything else. Hopefully the next few chapters will get better and longer, as I have many plans for the ending of this story already ^^ Also, there's a new story called Storm's Cry that I'm planning. Go check out the summary on my profile, you'll likely find it there.