Thank you to everyone who reviewed my last chapter! Reading your reviews gives me determination to write the next chapter, so here you are!
Something was going to light up the night sky. Why had Tanglestar not received a message from Starclan? How did Skystar even know that she hadn't gotten a message? Questions swarmed the cat's mind as she dived through the undergrowth, heading back to camp.
"Tanglestar!"
The leader froze in mid step, and turned her head to see Smokesong bounding along after her.
"What is it?"
"I need to speak to you."
"Go ahead," Tanglestar encouraged, sitting down, showing she was ready to listen.
"It's about what you were doing last night," Smokesong said, flicking his ears back and forth while twitching his tail.
Noticing the warrior's odd behavior, Tanglestar answered the question with a question. "Is something wrong?"
"No. Yes," Smokesong shook his head, as if clearing his mind. Then he looked back at the she-cat and continued. "I've had a weird feeling all morning… I can't explain it. It's like something is building up inside of me- well, not so much inside of me, but around me. Something is wrong, it's just not right."
Smokesong never had so much trouble explaining something. Tanglestar knew something was wrong.
"When did this feeling start?" She asked.
"When I woke up. No, actually…" the gray cat stared at the dirt. "It began last night. When Dawnfur and I found Hawkmask."
The stone. Tanglestar knew it was the stone. She had felt it too, and she could tell the stone was the source of it. The question was, should she tell Smokesong?
Tanglestar knew Hawkmask was a loyal warrior, and that was the reason she had brought him with her the night before. She knew he wouldn't tell any other warrior, except maybe Smokesong, his best friend.
"Are you sure you want to know?"
The gray tom nodded.
"A stone. It's the reason Hawkmask got hurt last night."
Smokesong coiled back in disbelief. "A stone? Are you serious?"
The tabby she-cat nodded slowly. "Yes. I'll explain it later. For now we should go back to camp." Tanglestar trotted away through the undergrowth, and seeing no point in arguing, Smokesong followed.
"All cats old enough to catch their own prey, gather here before the Meeting Tree!"
The morning patrol had returned and brought prey with them. A hunting party had also left after Tanglestar arrived at camp. They had also returned long before sunhigh, bearing prey.
"I have received a disturbing message," she began. Cats perked their ears, and mumbles rippled through the clan. "Tonight, something will light up the night sky. I don't know what it is, or why, but I have received a message that it will happen. Because I don't know what it is, no cat is to leave the camp from now until tomorrow morning. I want the dens reinforced to make sure no cat gets hurt in case this threatens our camp. Who will volunteer?"
"I will," Rosefeather, a she-cat that always hung out with the tom cats answered.
"Me too," Willowmist decided.
"Thank you," Tanglestar meowed, bowing her head. "I need two more cats."
Timberear, a brown tabby, stepped forward. "I'll help."
Following the tom's lead, Dawnfur spoke up. "I'll help too."
Tanglestar nodded. "Alright. I appreciate your dedication to this clan. The meeting is over."
The four warriors who volunteered to help bounded off towards the nursery and the elders den. The remaining cats wandered back to the warriors den, or decided to munch on a piece of fresh kill. Taking one last look around camp, Tanglestar scrambled down the tree trunk and landed on the ground with a thud, sending a cloud of dust into the air.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
Tanglestar looked up to see her sister standing a tail length away, flicking her tail and scowling.
"Tell you what?"
"Tell me about the message! I am deputy, after all, I deserve to know."
"I'm sorry Mosspelt, I've been… preoccupied." The leader glanced at the ground, guilt flooding her mind. Why didn't she think about telling her sister?
"Whatever," the she-cat hissed. "Is there anything else I should know?"
Should she tell Mosspelt about the stone? If Tanglestar did, Mosspelt would only worry. She would only get in her way and stop her from getting the stone. Her sister didn't need to know. "No. There's nothing else."
"Good." With that, the spotted tabby stalked off across the clearing, and Tanglestar slipped into her den, hoping she had made the right choice.
Please review, and thank you for taking time to read this chapter! Also, it might be a while before I post another chapter, so I'm sorry ahead of time if it takes a while!