AN: Ok, you can all thank DREAMFeathersong for this chapter being up. She was going to absolutely kill me if I didn't post it, so here it is. :) Sorry that all of a sudden I spell her name Whispering-grass, but a friend pointed out that's how it should be and I can't figure out how to change it in the other chapters without deleting them and reposting them which I am too lazy to do. Disclaimer- I don't own the idea for Warriors, yada yada yada... OK let's begin!

"WAIT! Ummm, I can explain!" I cried out, not wanting the new black warrior to check out what was behind me.

He snorted. "Yeah, you better explain Whispering-grass. Fernstar sent me out here to get you. She doesn't want any cat out in the storm." Every cat understood why Fernstar was so strict about cats out in bad weather of course. Her mate had been killed when lightning struck a tree he was standing near and killed him. I didn't want Fernstar angry with me, so I was just about to agree and say we should head back to camp and hope that he would forget where I had come from, when he opened his mouth and thrust it high in the air. "What's that smell? It's not quite LakeClan... or any other Clan for that matter..."

I fluffed up my fur, hoping to block his view, even a little, from the small cave opening. "I don't smell anything. Let's go back to camp Darkthorn!"

"No!" His eyes narrowed and he started sniffing again. "It might be a rouge! We have to defend our Clan!" Oh, leave it to a new warrior to think of the worst circumstance.

I raised my voice at him, "Darkthorn! There's no rouge! I was just in that cave chasing after a mouse I saw." Buy the story, buy the story, buy the story! I chanted in my head. I think he was just about to too, when the worst thing that happened could.

Stonepelt, hearing my raised cry, poked his head out of his den. Darkthorn spotted him and yowled, "ACCKK! INTRUDER! Whispering-grass, help me fight him off!" He whipped around and was preparing to leap for Stonepelt when I pounced on him. He was smaller than I was, but stronger, so we were just about equally matched. "What are you doing Whispering-grass?" He snarled at me. "He's the enemy, not me!" Again and again we tumbled, head over paws, batting each other. I noticed his claws were sheathed, but that didn't stop him from pummeling me in the stomach with his back paws.

"Darkthorn, listen to me! Don't hurt him, he's my brother!"

"Like fox-dung he is! You don't have any litter mates Whispering-grass!" Of course. He wouldn't know the story. He wasn't born when it happened and it wasn't a story anyone liked repeating. It was like Stonepelt had never existed. Which was just the way I had wanted it, until now. Now I just needed Darkthorn to understand so that he wouldn't kill him! "Why should I believe you?"

"Why would I lie to you Darkthorn?" He suddenly pulled away from me and darted up a tree. He sat on the lowest branch, tail furiously swishing side to side, and looked down at me and Stonepelt, who now crawled all the way out from his den and hobbled over to me. I licked his head and glared up at Darkthorn.

He stared back and after a moments pause meowed "Fine. Maybe I'll believe you. But he has to tell the story."

Stonepelt looked up at me, confusion in his eyes and I could tell they were burning with a thousand questions, who is this cat, why is he here, why did you fight, are you staying with me yet... but I had to turn away to glower at Darkthorn once more. "He can't tell you anything Darkthorn. He can't speak. He... he..." I broke off into tiny mewls, sounding just like a kit that couldn't find it mother. Maybe I was mistaken, but I thought Darkthorn's eyes lightened a bit when he saw how distraught I was. He gave me a minute to calm down, but asked again if Stonepelt really was my brother and why he couldn't speak or walk. So, against my better judgment I told him. Stonepelt laid down. He had heard this story a thousand times before, when I had told him it when he was younger so that he would understand. Now I told it to Darkthorn so he would understand. He sat in his tree, not moving. As I spoke, I became aware the storm was clearing up. Soon Fernstar would send more cats to look for the both of us, so I sped up. When I was done, he still didn't move and I gave an impatient twitch of my tail. He cocked his head and stared at Stonepelt, who was still laying on the ground.

Finally, Darkthorn spoke again, "can I see him walk?"

I briefly nodded my head and started murmuring to Stonepelt, "you have to get up Stonepelt, we're going back to your den." I heard a low guttural sound in the back of his throat, one of the only sound he makes, one of annoyance or disagreement. "Please Stonepelt, we have to go before cats come looking for Darkthorn and me." He sneezed, but allowed me to guide him back to his cave. I could feel Darkthorn's eyes watching us and I faintly heard him leap down from the tree and follow us back to Stonepelt's pathetic den. I made a mental note to start searching for a better, roomier cave further from camp so Darkthorn wouldn't find him again. I lead Stonepelt into his cave and said goodbye. When I came out Darkthorn was waiting for me. "Well?" I asked, rather brusquely, not having any patience left for this cat that had discovered the secret I worked so hard to protect for so many moons.

He gestured with his tail that we should walk, so I followed him. We padded silently into a clearing where he finally spoke. "I want to let you know, that I believe you and I won't tell your secret, or rather his, to anyone."

"Swear by StarClan," I meowed, still suspicious.

"I, Darkthorn, swear by StarClan to never reveal this secret I have just unearthed. But Whispering-grass, I just don't understand. Why would our Clan just kill him? How could any of them, especially your mother live with that guilt?"

"Darkthorn, I've been asking myself the same question and I've had a lot longer to think about it. The answer is that cats can be just cruel. They said it was to put him out of his misery, but he's not upset. He's only sad when I have to leave him and he wouldn't have had to be sad about that if they hadn't tried killing him. I was the only one who really loved him."

Darkthorn didn't really even seem to be listening but he said slowly, "That's why you won't have Fallingleaf take care of you when your sick. You only let Meadowpaw."

"Yeah. You noticed?"

His ears went back a little and he broke our eye contact saying, "let's get back to camp before Fernstar gets paranoid and sends out the whole Clan looking for us."

"Yeah," I murmured, and I followed a tail length behind him back to LakeClan camp, wondering how this could possibly turn out well.

AN: There, happy now DREAMFeathersong? Sorry it wasn't Falconpaw, but Darkthorn makes it more interesting and someone else voted for him... Wonder who that was... :) Thanks for reading! Please review and point out all my little errors I know are there. And then fawn over what a wonderful story this is! ;D