Chapter 78
Jaystar opened her eyes and realized that she was seated around the Moonpool. Thoughts of her second death kept flashing in Jaystar's mind and as she stared around the Moonpool, she wondered if it had only been a dream. Sent by StarClan? Probably not, but it could have been just a normal dream that normal cats got. After all Jaystar had slept at the Moonpool and now she had woken up beside it once more. Rosestripe never murdered Stripepool and then never turned her claws onto Jaystar. When she returned back to camp, Jaystar would find Rosestripe ordering the patrols around and Stripepool taking care of Rustkit and Tigerkit. Maybe Sandstorm, Thornclaw, and Brackenspot would come up to her and talk as they had in her dream. Jaystar couldn't wait to get back to camp, but when she turned around and saw two cats staring at her she realized something. Rosestripe, Stripepool, Sandstorm, they had all been real. This was the dream.
"Jaystar, you have lost your second life," Graystripe's meow was loud, but Jaystar barely heard him. Instead Jaystar was staring at Stripepool just like the light brown tabby was staring at her. Stripepool looked much different then the cat Jaystar had recently known. Stripepool's fur was much thicker and it shined with health- or it could have been the stars glittering in her pelt. Her amber eyes were brighter than normal and Jaystar also saw there was a cloud of sadness in them. Sadness in leaving Spiderleg, Brackenspot, Brownfeather, Heavystorm, Moonwhisker, Rustkit, and Tigerkit. Maybe sadness in leaving Jaystar too as well as her other friends in ThunderClan.
"Stripepool, I'm so sorry. I could've stopped her. I'm such a mousebrain!" Jaystar's words came tumbling out of her, her dark gray eyes wide with grief. Stripepool would always be her sister even if they didn't share any blood. Nothing would ever change that. Stripepool padded forward and rested her head on Jaystar's shoulder. "Jaystar, it's okay. It's not like you saw Rosestripe kill me and even if you did what could you have done? The best thing you can do for me is tell Spiderleg and my kits that I love them. Tell them not to mourn me forever because I will be with them always." Jaystar glanced up at Stripepool and gave her sister in so many ways a final goodbye lick. Stripepool slowly began to disappear.
"Stripepool, where are you going? Come back! Graystripe, where is she going?" Jaystar whirled around, almost expecting Graystripe to be missing too, but the gray warrior was still staring at her with warm gold eyes. Graystripe didn't give any sign that he heard her because he meowed, "It is time for you to return to your Clan." Graystripe then began to stare at something that Jaystar couldn't see. Shaking his massive heard, Graystripe mewed quietly, "The prophecy is about to be fulfilled." Jaystar wanted to ask what Graystripe was talking about, but could already feel herself beginning to leave StarClan territory.
*
Jaystar opened her dark gray eyes and realized that she was laying in a puddle of her own blood. The wounds on her stomach had healed thanks to StarClan, but the other wounds that Rosestripe had inflicted on Jaystar were still stinging. Jaystar would have to see Leafpool or Applefrost soon, but first she had to deal with Rosestripe. As Jaystar glanced around, she realized that Rosestripe was no where to be seen. Suddenly a cat screamed in pain and Jaystar scrambled to her paws, racing in the direction where the scream had come from. Could it be Rosestripe or had the dark ginger warrior killed again? Jaystar had to know.
Jaystar sprang through a couple ferns and what she saw surprised her. Rosestripe was limp and was hanging in the jaws of a black cat. Thinking of the prophecy, Jaystar thought she knew who the cat was until she recognized the smaller shoulders, the darker colored paws, and the thicker fur. It wasn't Spiderleg Jaystar was looking at, but Brackenspot. Seeing Jaystar, Brackenspot dropped Rosestripe and meowed, "Sandstorm sent me out to look for you with Brightheart and Mousewhisker. I heard fighting." Glancing down at Rosestripe's body, Brackenspot mewed, "I saw her standing over the bodies of you and my mother. I thought you were dead. I didn't mean to kill her... it just happened in the fight. When I realized I had given her a fatal wound, I thought I had to get her to Leafpool. Am I... am I going to be exiled now?"
"Of course not, Brackenspot. Rosestripe, lost her place in the Clan when she killed Stripepool and then when she tried to murder me, she lost all respect for the warrior code. If you had not killed her and she had gotten away, I would have ordered any one of our warriors to kill her." Jaystar meowed, reaching out her muzzle to touch Brackenspot's cheek. "Anyway StarClan told me that a cat would be murdered today and that the kin of the killer would end their life. I thought this cat would have been Spiderleg since he actually did share blood with Rosestripe, but it turns out to be you. I would not dare punish a cat who was a part of a StarClan prophecy."
"Thank you, Jaystar," Brackenspot mewed just as Brightheart and Mousewhisker appeared through a group of ferns. "Brackenspot, we were wondering where you had gone-" Mousewhisker glanced down at Rosestripe's limp body. "That's Rosestripe... what happened?" Jaystar stared at Mousewhisker, realizing that this was the first time she had seen him as her half-brother. Mousewhisker had always been a brave warrior and a good friend, but now as Jaystar stared at him, she realized that he was probably one of the best warriors in the Clans. Jaystar just never noticed because he had kittypet blood.
"I was looking for Rosestripe and Stripepool and when I found them, I spotted Rosestripe standing over Stripepool's dead body. We got into a huge fight and Rosestripe ended up making me lose another another life. When StarClan repaired the wound that killed me, I saw Brackenspot standing over a now dead Rosestripe. Brackenspot saved my life as well as probably more ThunderClan lives." Jaystar meowed, wondering if Mousewhisker thought she had done the right thing by not punishing Brackenspot. Now that Jaystar saw Mousewhisker as her kin, she wanted his opinion more than any cat. "That was a wise decision, Jaystar, and a good one. Brackenspot was only doing her duty as a ThunderClan warrior." Glancing at Jaystar, Mousewhisker added, "You are a great leader, Jaystar."
Relieved Jaystar realized that she needed a new deputy since Rosestripe had gone to join... StarClan? No. Cats like Rosestripe went to one place. The place of No-Stars where Tigerstar, Darkstripe, Brokenstar, and Hawkfrost roamed. And now the former ThunderClan deputy would be another number to their ranks. Would Mousewhisker be a good replacement for Rosestripe?
