(Sorry, I said I would post this and Chapter 12 yesterday, but I got hit in the face with a study guide...yay exams)

By technicality, this chapter occurs (chronologically) before Chapters 9-10, but it's best fit was here. Partly to distract you all from the possible carnage of the last chapter?

Anyways, we're back to Willowleaf and Mouseclaw! The only couple that is constant? Haha. Haha. Ha.

Chapter 11: StarClan's Deceit

Willowleaf could tell that Mouseclaw was wearing out, and half of her really regretted taking him on this quest. How had she been so foolish? He wasn't in the condition to make a journey of this type. Originally, she had wanted support, and his presence usually made her feel better. But they had been traveling for many sunrises now, off-course and frequently asking for directions from any cat they encountered. By now, she was tired of his confused looks, his pessimistic remarks, and the way he spoke to her, as if he was just tired of doing this.

"Let's stop here for a bit," said Doveheart, perking her ears. Willowleaf looked around the small clearing they had stopped in, a little relieved when Mouseclaw nodded gratefully and instantly lay down. Doveheart smiled.

"I'll see if I can catch something nearby," she said. "Willowleaf, keep guard." Willowleaf nodded, tentatively going to sit by Mouseclaw. He cracked open an eye for her.

"Hey," she said. "How are you feeling?"

"Like a warrior, not a kit that needs to be looked after." Mouseclaw closed his eyes again. Willowleaf sat beside him, the end of her tail hovering over his flank. A while ago, she would have happily touched him. Now she wasn't sure if that sort of contact would be appreciated.

"I should be worried about you," she said. "You've only just recovered."

Mouseclaw sighed and didn't reply. Willowleaf wanted to move away a bit, by now used to this. She knew she couldn't expect much else from him. He couldn't place the accusations – murderer, destroyer. All those things she was.

"Do you think we're almost there?" said Mouseclaw. "I'm beginning to hate this stupid wolf."

"I hope so," said Willowleaf. "It will be nice to go home."

"Why, so you can ignore me more easily?" said Mouseclaw. Willowleaf didn't answer. She couldn't. She didn't want to run from him, but at this point she saw little other option. Either she could leave him or he could leave her. Which he would do. He had promised not to, but he would.

"I love you," she said in a quiet voice. It almost felt like talking to open space. Mouseclaw softly opened his eyes again, pulling himself into a sitting position.

"I love you, too," he said. "The part of you I know, anyways."

"I'm sorry."

"But it isn't going to change, is it?"

Willowleaf shook her head. She didn't want to cry anymore. She wanted this conversation to be over – she preferred his silence to his questions. Mouseclaw sighed, shaking his head.

"I don't know how long I can take this," he said. "I'm sorry for saying it, but it's better than keeping it secret."

Willowleaf shook her head. She knew what he had wanted to say, but his words had a hollowing effect. She stared at her paws, feeling numb, feeling cold.

"Don't cry," said Mouseclaw. "I'll feel bad."

"I won't cry," said Willowleaf. "I was expecting this."

"That makes me feel worse, not better."

"It's too hard to love someone like me. You deserve someone so much better."

"Willowleaf – "

"The burden I have to bear, it drives everyone away in the end," said Willowleaf. She didn't want to look up and see his face. A part of her was screaming, reaching out for Mouseclaw to break through her walls and tell her that her burden didn't matter, that it wasn't important, that he would trust her and love her unconditionally. But that part was kit-like and stupid. Willowleaf wouldn't listen to that part of her heart anymore – what did it know, anyways? Mouseclaw was a good cat, and he deserved better than living half a life, tethered to her side.

"You could tell me," said Mouseclaw quietly. "You know I wouldn't run away."

"I can't tell you." She couldn't. It wasn't an option. Maybe he wouldn't stop loving her, but the risk was too great. For both her emotions and for his well-being. He was endangered enough just being near her. If he knew the truth, it would make him a target, a player in the game she hated so much.

"Why not?" said Mouseclaw. "I've stood by you this long, haven't I?"

"It's not about trust," said Willowleaf.

"Then what?" said Mouseclaw. "I've already nearly died protecting you. And that was miracle enough, but it should go to show – I'm not afraid. I would have died for you, Willowleaf. How can you sit there and say you love me, when I almost died for you, and you can't even tell me why I should?"

"There is no almost," said Willowleaf savagely, looking up finally. "You did die for me, Mouseclaw. And then I died for you, and here we are."

Mouseclaw recoiled from her words, but then his eyes narrowed.

"Maybe you're right," he said. "Maybe I have stopped living. I certainly can't defend my Clan. It seems like all I've got left is the empty play-at-romance I have with you."

"Are you saying none of that was real?" said Willowleaf.

"You're the one who said it, not me."

Willowleaf didn't know whether to laugh or to cry. I wasn't kidding.

"Willowleaf isn't speaking in metaphors." Willowleaf hadn't even heard Doveheart approach, but now she glanced back to see her guide sitting at the edge of the clearing, watching them. Willowleaf's chest felt tight, and her words wouldn't come out. Doveheart sighed. "Mouseclaw, I think you should know that in those earthquakes, you really did die. Willowleaf had been granted a second life, and she gave it up for you."

Mouseclaw looked between the two of them, his eyes growing wider. Willowleaf couldn't speak.

"I think you should know that Willowleaf and her littermates are part of a prophecy," said Doveheart. "I think you should know that she has powers over ice, and she ran away because she accidentally lost control over them, and they killed Brackenfur. I think you should know that her ice powers are so powerful that three other cats were killed, and that's why the rogues are so afraid of her."

"Four," said Willowleaf. Her paws were buzzing. "Ebony, Pond, Scrape, and Daisies. And I killed Brackenfur, Ebony, Pond, Scrape, and Daisies." She laughed, and through her laughter, she started to cry. "I killed them all."

"And I think you should know, Mouseclaw, that Willowleaf saved everyone in those earthquakes," said Doveheart quietly. "She froze a pit of darkness to save her littermates, and she stopped the shaking for good."

"You've left out a few details," said Willowleaf, beginning to shake. Doveheart shot her a soft glance, her amber eyes sad. "You've left out that by freezing those shadows, I collapsed the border between StarClan and the Dark Forest. You've left out that I can do nothing but destroy, and that I'm going to freeze the entire world one day. Then it won't matter that I saved everyone, because everyone will be dead."

Her tears were icicles on her face, and her powers were tingling on her paws. Mouseclaw was staring at her, his eyes wide, as if this information was still lingering in his mind without making an impact. But there was something else here, and that something was fear. He had never looked upon her with fear, but because Doveheart had told him, he knew everything.

Willowleaf rounded on Doveheart, surprising the fluffy grey she-cat.

"Why would you tell him?" she hissed, spitting tiny ice spikes.

"I wasn't going to let this secret ruin the love you have," said Doveheart.

"It was always going to be ruined!" screamed Willowleaf. "You betrayed me!"

"Willowleaf, this is best – "

"I get to decide what is best!" Doveheart took a step back. Willowleaf shook her head, taking a deep breath to suck the power back inside her and keep the temperature steady. Then she shook her head and dashed off, farther away.

She had to get away from them, but the lingering looks in their eyes - Doveheart's calm splintering into doubt and Mouseclaw's unhappiness fracturing into fear. She staggered through the unfamiliar pine trees, her breath catching in her throat, unable to really process. She could have been freezing the dew as she passed. She solidified herself – she wouldn't lose control over her powers just because she was upset. Taking a deep breath, Willowleaf stopped short and looked around.

She stood in unfamiliar trees, and though she scented Doveheart and Mouseclaw far away, she didn't want to return to them. Her anger felt more hot than cold now, which was good. Maybe she hadn't been so angry. Maybe she hadn't needed to run away from her problems this time. Still, she had trusted Doveheart, and Doveheart had given up the secret she had been determined to keep. Now that Mouseclaw knew, who knew what would happen? He wouldn't know what to do. He would leave her.

She scented the air again. It didn't really matter – she had to go back and find him and face the consequences. She was afraid to see the worry on his face, but she could handle his words. She could handle him leaving. Everyone else had wanted to leave, and those who hadn't would soon. It would be better for him this way. A familiar scent, tinged with danger. She knew this scent.

"It's about time," said Willowleaf into the open air. "I've been in trouble because of you."

"Maybe it is a trouble you needed." The white he-wolf slipped out of the trees, his face stoic. "Hello, Willowleaf."

"Do you know everything?" said Willowleaf. Fountain appeared to smirk, if she could call it smirking.

"I know much," he said. "I am in contact with a very special member of New StarClan, and she knows far more than I do."

"Then you can tell us what to do," said Willowleaf. "The border between StarClan and the Dark Forest is falling down. The darkness you spoke of, the shadow dust, it's infecting StarClan. You were right. If that border falls, the Dark Forest cats could come back, and StarClan could work with them. We could be facing another War of Shadows, but this time, we wouldn't have StarClan on our sides."

"The answers you seek already lie in your prophecy," said Fountain, flicking his tail. He looked up. "Your Clan-mates approach. This is good."

"Willowleaf!" Just then, Doveheart burst through the trees, Mouseclaw breathing heavily as he followed behind. Doveheart paused, and then her eyes narrowed. "Fountain."

"Doveheart, Mouseclaw," said Fountain. He flicked his tail, eyeing Mouseclaw. "So you know the truth now, do you not?"

"It doesn't make much sense to me," said Mouseclaw. Willowleaf didn't want to hear his voice, so she turned away. She felt Mouseclaw's eyes on her, hard and thoughtful. "But I'm going to help Willowleaf with whatever she's facing."

Surprised, Willowleaf glanced back at him. Mouseclaw smiled. She was wordless.

"Fountain, please," said Doveheart, taking a step forward as if reaching for something. "We need answers. What do we do? The border is falling."

"As I said to young Willowleaf, you have most of the answers you need," said Fountain.

"The prophecies?" said Doveheart. "But we don't understand them. They contradict."

"That's because you have been seeing the words incorrectly," said Fountain. "Long ago, before any of you were born, a prophecy was given to Firestar."

"Firestar knew my prophecy?" said Willowleaf. Fountain nodded carefully.

"There will be three cats, kin of your kin, with the power of the stars in their paws. A dark prophet will arise to complete the Good Four, light of light and the first enemies of the darkness. With starlight in their paws, they will defeat the shadows to save the Clans."

"No, that's my prophecy," said Doveheart. "That's about the War of Shadows."

"Listen, Doveheart," said Fountain, eyes flashing. "Everything is connected."

"You can't mean…"

"The stars must shine through the darkness. A friend who seems an enemy will pave the way for the path-makers. If they fail, so shall we all. If they fall, so shall the world. Goodness cannot falter, but it must bow to the Five that will come in glory.

"When great overcomes good, flame will quench the eternal darkness, water will fall into starlit power, wind will curl the straight lines of truth, rock will knock at the door of balance, ice will freeze the roots of everything, and the land will shake to end it all.

"Drown in water, drown in air, drown in ice. Drown in earth, drown in fire, and then stars will be your truth."

"It's all one prophecy," said Doveheart, amber eyes wide. Fountain nodded.

"This drowning part," said Willowleaf. "I haven't heard it before."

"It was always there," said Fountain. "In fact, it may be the closest thing to a warning I can give you."

"Drowning in water is easy," said Doveheart. "But how can someone drown in air? Or ice?"

"Brackenfur," said Mouseclaw suddenly. Willowleaf shivered at the word, turning around. Mouseclaw's eyes shone. "Brackenfur drowned in ice. Quite literally."

"Then drowning in earth could mean the earthquakes," said Doveheart, nodding. "Bramblestar, perhaps? Or…?" She looked at Mouseclaw, who nodded, determined and resolute.

"What about the other two?" said Mouseclaw. "In air and water? Brackenfur's accident happened before mine, so shouldn't that mean the other two came before?"

"I'm more worried about the fire," said Doveheart. "That's the only one left."

"Not for long." Fountain stared at the sky, his eyes wide, as if the sun itself was emblazoning images into his mind. Willowleaf watched, swallowing back a strange sort of fear. "Fire is coming." His eyes snapped back down to meet Willowleaf's. "Very soon, Willowleaf, you will lose a dear friend."

"What?" said Willowleaf, but Fountain was nodding.

"I suggest you hurry home," said Fountain. Willowleaf got to her paws, suddenly trembling. A dear friend – who? Would she lose someone to fire this time? Birdpaw's powers…

"Wait, Willowleaf," said Doveheart. "What else can we do? About the border?"

"The stars must shine through the darkness," said Fountain. "This is New StarClan. They will be the hope you need. The prophecy of power, I believe, gives direct directions to each of the Five."

"Ice will freeze the roots of everything," said Willowleaf quietly. "If that doesn't mean destruction, what could it mean?"

"I suppose that is your instruction to decipher," said Fountain.

"But we've been trying to do that all along!" said Willowleaf. "We need your help." Her heart was racing, but she held steady. She wanted to get home. She couldn't lose someone else, and she didn't even know who would be lost.

"I believe you will find your answers," said Fountain, eyes flashing. "The land has shaken, and the end is coming. The fire will be the final sign. Then everything will happen."

"The end is sooner than we'd like," said Doveheart. "That means the border will fall, doesn't it? We don't have enough time."

"Time will not be a problem," said Fountain. "This prophecy has been in the work for lifetimes. I think an end will take longer than you would like."

"Does the war have anything to do with it?" said Mouseclaw. "With RiverClan?"

"That's obvious," said Doveheart, gritting her teeth. "Old StarClan means to use them to cut us off. They start a war, we have even less allies. If the Place of No Stars and Old StarClan unite, we'll be wiped out." She shook her head.

"We are fighting, too," said Fountain. "You still have a friend in RiverClan."

"Rushpaw," said Willowleaf. Fountain nodded.

"I think you will find a friend in WindClan as well," said Fountain. "At the very least, you will find another part of the puzzle you may not have been expecting."

"Fantastic," said Doveheart. "So now, we have even more cats wrapped up in this mess."

"A mess it may be," said Fountain, "but at least you are not alone."

"In comparison to this, my prophecy was much simpler," said Doveheart. "My part of the prophecy, I suppose."

"I would not consider your trials over," said Fountain. "Never forget the apprentice that only speaks to you."

"Another riddle," said Mouseclaw under his breath.

"I see," said Doveheart, nodding. "Tigerheart still has a part to play, then."

"The Place of No Stars has planned this well," said Fountain. "And Old StarClan will ally with them."

"That doesn't make any sense," said Mouseclaw. "StarClan is meant to help the Clans, no matter what. They can't destroy them."

"You will be amazed what creatures will do, when their other option is hellfire," said Fountain in a soft voice. "I understand that you still have questions, but you should return. The end game will begin before you return."

"Fantastic," said Mouseclaw. "Fantastic."

"So many cats involved," said Doveheart, shaking her head. "I can't keep track."

"Every cat is involved," said Fountain.

"Some are more involved than others," said Willowleaf. Fountain made a noise that she supposed was a laugh.

"This is true," he said. "If you have other questions, I cannot answer them. I suspect this is the last time we will see each other."

For some reason, that made Willowleaf sad. She took a deep breath. If she could not trust Mouseclaw and Doveheart, she could trust no one.

"Last time we met, you said my choice would lead to destruction," said Willowleaf. "You said that I would freeze the world, and that everyone would die. And if I did not do this, I would fail."

"Yes," said Fountain. Doveheart and Mouseclaw were silent.

"Does it matter if I fail, if I've already killed them all?" said Willowleaf. Fountain flicked his tail.

"I don't know," he said. "I know much, but not everything. I would suggest that your future is inevitable, but that is not how prophecy works. Prophecy is about choice and about a cycle. You must choose your destiny."

"I either choose to kill everyone or destroy the balance," said Willowleaf. "That doesn't sound like a choice to me." She didn't feel afraid, suddenly. She was surprised at her ability to keep talking.

"You are more powerful than you think, Willowleaf," said Fountain. His eyes gleamed. "Vastly more powerful."

"I can mimic others," said Willowleaf. "And I have ice. I really don't think I need any other powers."

"There is an ability still hidden to you, one that is wrapped up in a lie," said Fountain. "Do not worry. That will unravel given time."

"We should get going," said Mouseclaw softly. Willowleaf jumped, surprised to find him closer than she was used to. His blue eyes were not angry. "If there's really someone we're going to lose…" He shook his head.

"Wait," said Willowleaf, turning to Fountain once more. "There was another prophecy, wasn't there? There will be Five, greater than any who have come before them, and they must restore peace to blood, before time runs out. We were supposed to solve that prophecy first."

"That should be obvious," said Fountain. "It was a diversion."

"A diversion?"

"A lie, set up by Old StarClan to ensure that you gained ownership of your powers before being tested." The wolf flicked an ear. "If that's all…"

"Thank you," said Doveheart softly. "We owe you much."

"I will remain here, should you need me," said Fountain. He blinked deeply. "But the end is coming soon, and I do not think it wise to come looking for me when you hold the answers yourself. Goodbye Mouseclaw. Goodbye, Doveheart, Light Prophet. Goodbye, Willowleaf, Fourth of the Great Five."

They dipped their heads to the great wolf and turned away, and Willowleaf could feel his eyes on them until they slipped into the trees.

Bye, Fountain. :( ACTUALLY, though, if you want more Fountain, he's something of a principle character in a parallel fic I'm writing, Hollyleaf's Retelling! By that I mean he's going to feature for like...three more chapters. Maybe. Anyways, if you want more prophetic, cat-speaking white wolf, he'll be there in the near future!

Back we go, to Mountainstone!

Review/Favorite/Follow if you liked it (or hated it, which I can understand, because WillowXMouse shouldn't have problems ever nope nope). Next chapter up tomorrow!

~Elsi