A/U: Thanks Son of The Sea 100896 and WildCroconaw for reviewing! You get Hawkflash plushies! *Tosses plushies into crowd* Anyways, this chapter is a bit short, yet it is an important one. I hope you enjoy :D

Chapter 18

Cold distant stars gleamed above Flowerpaw's head as she cleaned out the remains of her nest. Most of ShadowClan camp was bustling with activity. There were two new warriors who had only just been named the day before. Frostclaw and Fallowfern were their names, and they were boastfully repeating their names to each other like a bunch of excited kits. A sharp remark from Owlclaw made both cats stop.

Towards the apprentice's den Spiderpaw and Vinepaw play-fought. Neither seemed bothered by what Flowerpaw had been doing over the last couple of days.

Her secret meetings with Stormpaw and Copperpaw had continued to go on unnoticed, much to her relief. The three of them were still trying to figure out what the meaning of their prophecy was. And why they were brought to the Clans.

On top of the secret meetings, Flowerpaw was facing another problem.

Hawkflash had been having bad dreams over the past couple of days. Many of them seemed to involve cats with devastating powers. According to her mentor, these cats would often come to the Clans and destroy them without question. Other times there would appear to be a mysterious shadow figure hovering around the Marked. That figure, according to Hawkflash, stopped the Marked from destroying the Clans.

I wonder what the dream means, Flowerpaw thought as she tossed her old moss into a pile outside of camp. She knew that the dream could mean anything at this point. Hawkflash had told her that every dream had a meaning. All cats needed to do was listen to them.

"Are you ready to look for herbs?" The sound of her mentor's voice made Flowerpaw jump in surprise. She spun around to face her, than flattened her ears in embarrassment. "Is something wrong?" Hawkflash asked as she approached more cautiously.

"No," Flowerpaw replied. "I was just thinking of what might happen if a predator came after us."

Her response was pitiful. Hawkflash's eyes gleamed with worry. Flowerpaw lowered her gaze when she realized that Hawkflash would see right through her lie. The medicine cat was wittier than most of the warriors in ShadowClan. She had earned that skill from Littlecloud.

"We'll be fine," Hawkflash murmured. "If anything happens to me you can use your powers to heal."

The ShadowClan medicine cat apprentice dipped her head in apprehension. Finally she could use her powers for something that would prove useful. Maybe once that happened Rowanstar would see her as an asset to the Clan rather than something that could be a danger.

Hawkflash padded out of the fern protected den. In the camp Tawnypelt was sharing tongues with Dawnpelt and Tigerheart. All three of them looked blissfully peaceful. None of them were aware of the dangers that surrounded the dream Flowerpaw had received. The dream itself felt like it had happened many seasons ago, when in reality it had only been several nights ago.

She needed to figure out more about the dream. Mostly Flowerpaw wanted to know why StarClan would refuse them. Or why they refused to speak with the cats who had been born Marked. Hawkflash was still unaware that something had happened between Flowerpaw and StarClan. She acted like nothing had happened at all around her mentor.

Soon they had reached a part of the forest where herbs were plentiful. Here the ground was marshy. A few good herbs grew around the marsh. Dandelion and chervil were a couple of the herbs that could be found here.

Flowerpaw sniffed the ground until she caught the distinctive scent of chervil. All around her the rich scents of ShadowClan could be detected. Yet there was one scent that stood out amongst all the others.

"Do you smell that?" she asked Hawkflash. The dark brown she-cat was digging up the chervil that had grown over newleaf and greenleaf.

Hawkflash's ears pricked forward with keen interest. "I smell ThunderClan," she growled through the stems.

Flowerpaw followed her gaze. The only things she could see were a few frogs that hopped about across the marsh. She could also see a distinctive shadow moving about in the cattails. Suddenly her eyes widened in dismay. The shape looked very familiar. And it smelled familiar as well.

She recognized the scent of Copperpaw all too well. The ThunderClan apprentice's scent was distinctive compared to her own Clan's scent. It was almost as if each of the Marked had a distinctive scent that set them apart from the Clans. Copperpaw smelled of the woods and ferns. Stormpaw smelled like damp weather.

"Show yourself you rat!" Hawkflash snarled. Her tail was bushed out to make it look twice its size. Only Flowerpaw remained on the defensive. She didn't want to hurt her friend unless she had to.

Before Flowerpaw had a chance to make out what was happening, a screech sounded in the air. She yelped in surprise when another cat ambushed Copperpaw. Flowerpaw didn't have time to react. Copperpaw moved faster than her attacker by transforming into an animal.

Hawkflash stared at the scene with a horrified gaze. Her sharp green eyes continued flashing as Copperpaw, or the badger, swiped at the mysterious attacker. Flowerpaw wasn't sure who the stranger was. Or where it had come from.

"Lets go before this gets dangerous," Hawkflash murmured after realizing waiting was pointless.

What if she got hurt? Flowerpaw thought worriedly. She felt guilty for feeling more loyal towards her friend than to Hawkflash. After spending so much time with those who were like her, her loyalties were becoming divided. I know Rowanstar would never forgive me, she told herself. I have to think for my Clanmates. Yet deep inside, a hole was being worn away. She knew that the others were beginning to feel this way. That sooner or later, a rift would form between the Clans and the Marked.

As if the thoughts had made them appear, a lithe figure emerged from the darkest part of the marsh. Flowerpaw wasn't that surprised to see him. Somehow it felt as though he had a reason for coming to her.

"You finally understand what is happening," he meowed. Flametail curled his tail as he watched her. His fur gleamed with starlight, making it appear as though it was on fire. "The Marked are dividing the Clans, little by little," he went on. "Sooner or later, a war will come. Only the Marked can undo the damage that has been created."

Flametail disappeared before Flowerpaw could ask what he meant. She continued to stare at the spot, as if it would drawl the attention of more StarClan cats. Instead only the snarls of Copperpaw and the cat remained.

Flowerpaw lowered her gaze as his words sank in.

The Clans were dividing themselves. And it was all because of the Marked.

A/U: I know the whole bit between Copperpaw and the other cat was random. But you'll find out who the cat is later on. Believe me, it's a shocker! And as you can see, the story is slowly coming to an end. Hopefully you all have enjoyed reading this so far. Please remember to review!