A.N: The second to last chapter guys! And the last chapter where I have to quote the book! I know I'm spotty on the disclaimers, but hey, here's another one. Enjoy ^.^

I do not own any of hte characters in this series, nor (most) of the dialogue.

Shadows and water sloshed around, blinding me and filling my ears and mouth when I tried to call out. Jaypaw's tail quickly flew out of my grip and disappeared into the darkness. I kicked up as white spots flicked across my vision, and my whiskers broke the surface first, then the rest of my fur was hit with a cold breeze. A breath whooshed into my lungs and I kicked against the current to stay afloat again. It worked for a time, until I felt my fur dragging me down, and the rock pressing against the soft fur of my ears. Terror washed over my head that had been as clear and cold as the water I was spinning in before the rock ceiling steeply angled down until I could barely press my nose against the small pocket of air between the hungry waters that threw my body against more stone. Deciding to take one last breath before the tunnel closed around me, I inhaled sharply through my nose and dove forward into the darkness.

Water rushed alongside me, fur dragging me down as I tried to pull myself forward. It didn't work well, as I felt my head scrape along the ceiling, and a sudden current bashed me straight against the wall. Bright air bubbles erupted from my nose and mouth as I gasped. Water rushed in before I could close it, and I felt a pressure in my head begin growing. A throbbing started somewhere near the back of my skull and my lungs seized and danced inside my chest. Darkness was pressing in on my vision, but more than that, the silence pressed in on my ears. Everything sounded distorted, through there was nothing but the occasional slap of water where the stream curved and separated from the ceiling. On each of these turns, I was buffeted against the outside wall and I could feel the dirt, rocks and flotsam picked up by the water scraping along my sides.

I was pulled for what felt like eternity, and all I had as company was the pain steadily growing in my head, until I closed my eyes against the pain. It made little difference in the darkness, but the pressure behind my eyes was agonizing. I barely recognized when the current slowed, and I drifted for a few seconds, before I felt myself sinking. Air bubbles drifted out of my open mouth, and I didn't want to open my eyes. The darkness was so inviting, that I just wanted to sleep, with the water so buoyant and soft… Light had sprouted behind my eyes, I could almost hear the ancestors calling me when something brushed my nose.

Putting all of my remaining energy into a single action, I opened my eyes to look up. The water was dark, just as it had been in the cave. A surreal light came from somewhere above me, but a shape was covering it, a shape that looked like a cat… Jaypaw's soft tabby fur barely registered, but when he reached down with his paws and pulled me up, I seemed to come back to myself. The pain came back full force and I writhed under the surface, following the grey apprentice up to the air again. I grasped his tail in my jaws, barely having the strength to pull myself up, until I was being both dragged and I was working myself to swim upward. He broke the surface first, and I followed shortly, gasping and coughing as soon as the air hit my face.

Water droplets fell into my eyes as I gazed around the surface of the lake. The dark gold head of Lionpaw was just a bit farther ahead. Hollypaw's black head was almost invisible if not for the starlight glancing off the water, outlining the contour of her head. The stars were just glimmering out of the cloud cover that resided after the rainstorm, bouncing off the lake and tipping each wave with white light. Breezepaw appeared with Swallowkit in his jaws.

I sucked in blissful, cold, sweet breathes of air, tipping my muzzle up as to not lose the surface again. I paddled wildly as the water tried to take me down again, and fought against it as coughs rattled up from my chest, shaking my whole body.

"Jaypaw!" I heard Hollypaw's voice clearly across the water. There was no other sound than the thundering of my heartbeat, the splashing of water and gasping of breath.

"We're okay!" I mewed, trying to keep the smug note out of my voice; It was almost easy when I started sputtering in the middle of my sentence. The black she-cat was already heading over to help Jaypaw, and instead I struck out for the land that I could see not far away.

"The shore's over there!" I could hear from behind me. It didn't matter as I struggled through the water toward Breezepaw, who was right by Lionpaw. The golden tom was splashing about wildly, and dove under before coming back up seconds later. His eyes fixed on me as he yowled a terrifying sentence. "Sedgekit's gone!"

Horror bolted through me and I didn't pause to think. The kits meant everything, and I sucked in a huge breath before letting the water pull me under again. It was dark, just like before; but instead of feeling the need to close my eyes, I scanned the shadows for the little shadow of Sedgekit. Soon I spotted him drifting in the water, much how I must have looked, with bubbles drifting upward from his mouth. I sunk down beside him and grasped the fur on his back carefully, and lifted him through the cold water. My lungs hurt, but nowhere near as badly as last time as I pulled both of us back up toward the light. Breaking the surface, I suddenly felt heavier as the true weight of Sedgekit pulled at my neck and teeth. The kit coughed quietly, and then began shivering and batting at the air, believing he was still underwater possibly.

Lionpaw popped up loudly beside me, ears flat and heavy with water. He grasped Sedgekit's tail, which wasn't helpful at all, and began following me toward the shore. I only glanced behind me once to check if Breezepaw was there, and I saw him splashing along with Swallowkit in his mouth. Hollypaw held Thistlekit, who had stopped struggling as the ThunderClan apprentice pressed forward toward shore with her brother following her closely behind.

Soon the round pebbles touched my pads instead of empty water, and I pulled myself a tail-length onto the ground before collapsing on my side. I hadn't noticed the burning in my legs until just then, and I coughed weakly as I let Sedgekit go. The little tom staggered a few steps before vomiting water up in weak spasms, his chest heaving while his fur stuck to the skin.

"We're all safe!" Hollypaw meowed quietly, and then lifted her head, looking at me with bright green eyes. "Are you two okay?"

Lionpaw grunted next to me, shaking out his fur, "Only half-drowned,"

I purred at the sarcasm, he sounded so much like Breezepaw that I turned to look for the dark apprentice that was licking the kit he had been carrying. My tail twitched and the water clinging to it splattered across Lionpaw's face. "We'd better get the kits back to camp."

I glanced around at the other cats, all equally drenched, though, sheltering in the shade cast by the glowing moon. The night had come down while we were inside the tunnels, bringing some cool temperatures with it. The kits shivered, even though Breezepaw was drying them rapidly with his tongue. A shiver of warmth passed through me, seeing the dark tomcat care about something that much. Normally he didn't show emotion, but the look in his face, a scared light but also desperation to help Thistlekit, Sedgekit and Swallowkit brought out a vulnerability in him I hadn't seen much before.

"Let's take them to Leafpool, It's nearer and we need to make sure they're okay." Hollypaw announced, staring into the darkness of the woods. My pelt bristled as I looked at the creeping shadows and unfamiliar shapes outlined in silver. But then I glanced back over the kits, where Sedgekit was still coughing, and a mouthful of water splashed across the ground again. The other two didn't look much better, and Breezepaw was out of earshot, or at least just not listening per usual. I harbored the feeling of hostility though and suspicion toward going to the ThunderClan camp, but my worry over the poor shape of the kits was quickly overdid it. "Holypaw's right," Jaypaw added, blue eyes looking at the kits as well.

Swallowkit got up and padded over to the apprentices, her eyes slit with anger and exhaustion. "That," she mewled indignantly, "Was the horriblest thing I ever did!" A drop of water rolled along the little cats back and she shook it off violently, fur fluffing out in the process.

"You wait til you taste Leafpool's medicine," It was obvious that Jaypaw wasn't joking by the strained look on his face. I could only imagine how many times Jaypaw had attempted to feed herbs to kits before, and unsuccessfully at that.

"Leafpool?" Breezepaw's yellow eyes were narrowed as he approached the group, the other two kits drudging behind him, barely able to stand on their own.

"The ThunderClan camp is closest," I said quickly, my own gaze meeting his. It was obvious that neither of us trusted the ThunderClan apprentices now. But a quick look at Sedgekit, where small beads of blood were beginning to form where she had been scraped and thrown around in the tunnel, was worrying.

"Okay," My Clanmate hedged, a last glance told me everything, 'Only stay as long as we must.'

"Listen." Jaypaw mewled suddenly, and a complaint that the semi-comatose Thistlekit was about to make broke off. A screeching caterwaul carried across the wind, and my fur bristled with fear. That was the familiar cry of WindClan being called to battle! Onestar needed us! My paws itched to run to Crowfeather's side, where he would talk to me quietly until the moment of attack. He would point out the weakness in the ThunderClan line, point out the weaker apprentices to send running first, and convincing Whitetail to let Breezepaw and I stick together.

"It's coming from the forest border," The tabby apprentice continued.

"There's going to be a battle if we don't get back soon!" His dark sister stood at point, nose up and fire in her green eyes.

Lionpaw jumped to his paws, tail swaying back and forth in agitation. "We can show them the kits. If they know they're safe, there doesn't need to be a fight."

I drew Swallowkit towards me with my tail, and Breezepaw already had Sedgekit huddled between his paws, and Thistlekit leaning against his flank. "Are we going to the battle?" Swallowkit looked up at me with huge eyes, and I could clearly see the reflection of the moon in her amber orbs. "I can help fight!" Sedgekit mewed, roused by his sister's comments. He still looked unsteady, and Breezepaw barred his way when he tried to sink into a hunting spring, often used to catch the rabbits on the moor.

"This battle is because of you three, running off like that." Breezepaw muttered, chastising, to them. "A warrior doesn't need to go into battle to be brave, but to defend his family is the best he can do. You want to get back to Gorsetail, right? You all love her?" Three heads nodded an affirmative. "Then you must protect her. And in order to that, we have to get to the fight before any blood is shed." Breezepaw rumbled.

"Taking care of your Clan is the ultimate show of loyalty," I added. "You are all as brave as warriors, if only to stop this battle in time. And you can't tell your mother about this; or the rest of the Clan. They would go to war with ThunderClan again, and that would hurt many others." My voice dropped to a whisper, and all three kits looked up at me. I suddenly felt like I knew what it was like to be a queen, to foster the next generation on stories of brave cats that went into battle to do only what was right, and had the courage and love of the ancient cats. "You must not tell anyone what went on here, tonight. You understand why?" A hesitation, but all three nodded again. A smile slid across my muzzle and I licked each kit on the head. "You will all be great warriors, someday."

"Do you think you can make it?" Hollypaw was suddenly in my face, and I had to stop myself from flinching back. Her burning gaze travelled from me to Thistlekit, who, emboldened now, puffed up her chest. "Of course we can!"

Jaypaw padded over and scented each of the kits, pausing over Sedgekit's wounds. His blue eyes were confused, but he proclaimed firmly, "They need herbs, but it can wait a while."

"Walking will warm them up," I pointed out. Yes, walking away from these ThunderClan cats. Barkface would help the kits when they got back to camp, there was no need to spend more time here.

Hollypaw started up the shore, pebbles rolling away from her paws, followed closely by Breezepaw, who carried Sedgekit in his jaws because of her injuries. Jaypaw was next to his sister, and with a glance back at me, Lionpaw joined them. Swallowkit looked up at me again, her face bathed in moonlight. "Heatherpaw?" She squeaked,

"Yes dear?" I cast a glance over my shoulder at the lake.

"I don't like the water anymore. Or those cats that were down there."

My startled gaze flew back to Sedgekit. "You mean the ThunderClan apprentices? Swallowkit, you should be happy, without Jaypaw we couldn't-"

"No silly, the other cats, the big ones. One of them had blue eyes, like the sky." The little she-cat's face was squashed with confusion as she tried to describe the cats she had seen. "He was kinda misty, I couldn't see him well, but he had a white stomach… and the other one, he was huge! Almost bigger than Crowfeather!"

I shook my head, trying to block the idea that Hawk's Shadow and Tiger Strikes had visited the kits. Had they warned them too? I opened my mouth to ask Swallowkit when her next words made my blood run cold.

"They told us that there was a secret behind that rock. They helped us over, and told us to wait until they came back. Then… then the water started coming in and Thistlekit got all quiet. We couldn't get back over… It was so scary."

"Swallowkit, don't say such nonsense. There were no other cats in the tunnels. Come on, we have to get back to the Clan. To see your mother, remember?" I forced a note of happiness into my voice, and scooped up the kit, leaping after the other apprentices. Thoughts made my head spin, until one question surfaced. Had Hawk's Shadow lured the kits into the Cave on purpose? If so… had he tried to kill them?

Lolz, cliff hanger for you guys :) The last chapter should be up either tonight or tomorrow, so keep watch for it ^^