Tanglestar jolted awake, her breathing rapid and heart pounding. Had it only been a dream, or was it a message from StarClan? Ready to shake off whatever it had been, the clan leader rose to her feet and pushed through the leaves covering her den into the clearing.
Meows floated around the camp, and Tanglestar blinked, letting her eyes adjust to the noon sun.
Tanglestar headed to the pile of fresh kill, and glanced around camp to see how the clan was faring. Willowmist sat alone in a shady corner of camp, a red line slashed across her forehead. Timberear and Foxblossom sat outside the warriors den, chatting over their prey. Both looked in good shape, no big gashes covering their sides.
The last two warriors in the clearing were Smokesong and Hawkmask. The toms were lounging by the camp entrance, sprawled out in the dirt, enjoying the sun.
Abandoning the idea of getting a piece of fresh kill, Tanglestar headed towards the toms. On her approach, they looked up and greeted her.
"Hi Tanglestar. Is something wrong?"
"I need to talk to both of you."
The toms shared a curious glance before rising to their paws to follow their leader.
The three cats managed to squeeze into the leader's den, and made themselves comfortable before Tanglestar began.
"Weird things have been happening. It all sounds crazy, but please believe me, I'm serious."
Hawkmask nodded, understanding. Smokesong gave a small nod as well, curious. Tanglestar continued.
"As Hawkmask knows, I've been searching for special… stones. They aren't just any stones, these ones glow. And I know I need to gather all the stones, but that could prove difficult. When Hawkmask came with me to find the first stone, we encountered a black tom, who ended up stealing the stone. I need to find him, and to do that, I'll be gone from camp for a while. That's where you two come in."
The warriors exchanged an uncertain glance. Hawkmask spoke up.
"How are you going to find the tom?"
Tanglestar shook her head. "I'll worry about that later. But while I'm gone, you two are going to need to help run the camp. I haven't told Mosspelt where I'm actually going, and I don't plan to. If I end up taking longer than two days, you guys need to cover for me, ok?"
The warriors nodded.
"Good. You two are the only ones who know about this, so keep it quiet, ok? I'll leave in two days. And I'm not coming back until I get that stone."
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