Chapter 21

Hoo boy this is a long chapter! :D I hope you like it! I got a big burst of inspiration as I was writing it. X3 THIS is dedicated to Vixenfur, Dragonheart, everyone back at the site, and all of you that have been reviewing and keeping with the story! (Like Vixenfur and Dragonheart! :D) But sorry it took so long to update! :( I didn't intend for the wait to be so long, but… Enjoy! ;)

Bubblewing lay on her side, staring at nothing. Her stomach twisted nervously, and she felt nauseous. Soon, Beartooth would let everyone know about her and Coyotefur.

She squeezed her eyes shut, clenching her teeth. What was going to happen to her? And what about Coyotefur? Would they be kicked out of their Clans, out of the forest…?

"Bubblewing." A nervous voice caught her attention. She looked up to see Badgerface, shifting his weight from side to side, not meeting her gaze.

"…Yes?"

"Uhm…Beartooth…wants you…" he meowed. "He's…"

"Making the announcement now," Bubblewing finished for him, getting to her feet. Badgerface nodded and quickly turned around, leading her across the clearing. Cats were whispering and staring; they knew something was going on.

Beartooth was waiting by the entrance to the camp. "I've sent for Coyotefur and Cranestar to be brought here. Cranestar should know exactly what's going on, and this is for Coyotefur," he meowed sternly, fixing Bubblewing with a cold expression. Bubblewing matched it.

"What will happen to us?" she asked, trying her hardest to be apathetic, though she felt like crying.

Beartooth turned at the rustle of leaves. "We'll see."

Doubletooth led a shocked Cranestar and a shameful Coyotefur through the entrance. Coyotefur's gaze met Bubblewing, and he stopped for a moment. This was the first time Bubblewing had seen Coyotefur without his proud, brimming confidence. It made her feel worse; she kind of felt like she was the cause of this. He still walked with a good posture, though his head was low, and his tail drooped to the ground. He mouthed 'I'm sorry' and followed Beartooth. Bubblewing stared at the ground for a moment before catching up with the others.

They gathered in front of Dreamstar's den. Everyone seemed hesitant to go in, even Beartooth, and Bubblewing wondered why. So, she shrugged mentally to herself and stepped through the opening.

"Dreamstar…?" she called. She stopped when she saw Dreamstar huddled in the corner. He looked distant, and scared. "Dreamstar," she called again, feeling a twinge of worry for her leader and friend.

He looked up suddenly, making Bubblewing jump. "Ah…" He stood a bit shakily. "What is it?"

She cleared her throat. "My, uh…my trial is starting, sir. Coyotefur and Cranestar have come as well."

Dreamstar's eyes clouded more. "Oh…right, yes…let's go…" He padded quietly past her, and Bubblewing let her tail drag as she followed. Her growing anxiety about her future made her overlook Dreamstar's strange behaviour.

The two leaders quietly discussed the situation, not wanting the other cats to hear. Bubblewing strained to eavesdrop on the conversation.

"…about it?" Cranestar was meowing.

"No…knew they liked each other…" Dreamstar replied; it was easy enough to fill in the blanks of the words Bubblewing missed.

After another few moments, the two cats came back to their group, and they all moved towards Stone Mound for the conference.

Dreamstar called for RiverClan to gather, though there was almost no need since a lot of the Clan had already huddled around to get in on the action. Some cats looked worried, some excited, and some just plain confused.

The RiverClan leader took in a deep breath, and exhaled slowly. "…We're here today because of a problem with my deputy, Bubblewing…she and her…her mate" – he spat the word through grit teeth, his hatred for Coyotefur clearly growing – "were discovered last night in the forest." There were some gasps from the Clan. Bubblewing looked at her paws. "As we all know, mates between Clans are forbidden…" He stopped, not knowing how to continue. He didn't want to have to exile Bubblewing. She was like a daughter to him; he didn't want to end up losing her…but that was his duty as leader, he had to make the decision. He had to make all the decisions. His paws trembled, and he tried his best to steady them.

RiverClan waited expectantly. It was almost like it wasn't big news to them; the two warriors had shown affection for each other since they were apprentices many, many moons ago now. It was still a fresh memory in their minds of when Coyotefur had been the one to bring Bubblewing out of her slump when she had found out the truth about her parents. He had risked a lot with that, so it had been quite obvious for some cats.

Including Dreamstar.

The suspense drilled at all of the cats in the clearing; both Bubblewing and their leader were beloved cats to their Clan. While no one wanted to banish Bubblewing, it would be irresponsible of their leader and everyone else to just let it slip.

Bubblewing's heart was beating harshly against her ribs. She glanced at Coyotefur to find he was already watching her. She smiled a little, feeling tears welling up in her eyes; her only comforting thought then was that even if she were exiled…she would still have Coyotefur, right?

After a long moment of pure silence, Dreamstar finally opened his mouth to speak. Too much…this is too much, he was thinking, paws still trembling.

A shrill cry caught the crowd's attention, all alert and on their paws. No cat moved, though; they were all glancing at Dreamstar. But he was frozen, his eyes clouded and his legs shaking.

A new voice made the cats turn their heads, surprised. "Doubletooth, Ribbonpaw, Wreathpaw, Squirreltail, go find out what's wrong!" Bubblewing was on her feet, a fierce look in her eye.

She wasn't exiled yet – she was still RiverClan's deputy!

The other three cats hesitated a moment, not sure if they should take orders from her, but Ribbonpaw barked a, "Yes, ma'am!" and raced off without any doubts. As Bubblewing caught up with them, they decided to trust her.

They dashed out of the camp, wondering what could possibly be going wrong this time. They slowed when Ribbonpaw stopped in front of them, panting slightly.

Otterstream was trying to help Evergreenclaw get away from another new creature. She was bleeding badly from a long, deep wound to her shoulder. Otterstream was also bleeding, but mostly covered in the other she-cat's blood as she attempted to flee from the animal.

The mysterious beast was rather strange looking, or more so than the others. It had a flat looking face with beady eyes, and long, wide arms and legs to match its stretched-looking body. To top it all off, it had lengthy, sharp claws. It sat there lazily, though wary of its surroundings.

"Wreathpaw, Doubletooth, go help Otterstream and Evergreenclaw. We'll handle this…thing," Bubblewing instructed, wrinkling her nose at the smell of the thing. Wreathpaw and Doubletooth nodded and went to help their clanmates, while the other three closed in on the animal.

Squirreltail's fur bristled and Bubblewing bore her fangs in a ferocious hiss. It seemed to squirm. Ribbonpaw had managed to get around behind it, and crouched low in the grass as if he were hunting. Bubblewing nodded to him, and he leaped, claws unsheathed. He grabbed onto its back, forcing it to move more. Then Bubblewing and Squirreltail launched themselves towards their opponent. Squirreltail scratched furiously at its flank while Bubblewing bit down hard on its neck. It screeched and shook them off with surprising force. It ran away through the trees, making grunts of pain as the blood soaked through its fur.

When they were sure it was gone, they all raced over to Evergreenclaw.

But they were too late.

Otterstream, Wreathpaw and Doubletooth all hung their heads; Otterstream lifted her head and gave a loud yowl of sorrow.

After a long while, Squirreltail quietly meowed, "We really need to do something about these Twolegs and their animals…"

Bubblewing nodded in agreement. The forest couldn't afford to lose any more cats. She stood up and gave her fur a shake. "All right…we need to bring Evergreenclaw back to camp."

Together, the cats all hauled her limp body through the trees and back to the RiverClan camp in a solemn silence. When they reached their home, they gently let the deceased warrior down, a crowd slowly gathering around them. Sapphirestone and Vixenfur stood by Dreamstar, who was still shaking. Bubblewing padded over to them.

"…What happened?" Sapphirestone asked.

Bubblewing shook her head. "…Another strange creature from the Twoleg establishment…it killed her…there was a lot of blood, and we were too late…" she explained, her eyes watering.

Vixenfur stepped forward and rasped her tongue over Bubblewing's ear. "It's okay, Bubblewing…there wasn't anything you could do. She's with StarClan now."

"Yeah…" Bubblewing glanced up at Dreamstar, and gave the other two she-cats a questioning look. They both shrugged, looking worried.

Being as Dreamstar didn't seem up to it, Sapphirestone took over the duties of the burial ceremony.

The next morning, Bubblewing remembered her trial. She looked around; were Coyotefur and Cranestar still there? She wasn't sure. She was distracted by all the whispers about Dreamstar. About what might have happened to him, what was wrong…and even some about his capabilities as leader. Bubblewing pretended not to hear them as she padded toward his den.

"Dreamstar…?" she called into the darkness.

Vixenfur walked out, looking worried and nervous. "He's…saying strange things…" she whispered.

Bubblewing blinked. "Like what?"

As if on cue, the young leader poked his head into the daylight. His fur wasn't groomed properly, and his eyes were still distant.

"…I don't know if I can handle being leader," he meowed shakily.

No, Dreamstar! You can't - ! :3 Well, you'll just have to review to find out what's wrong with him….Hope you appreciated the long chapter! :) Sorry they've been so short and scarce lately. :( I hope you'll review, thanks for reading!