~Chapter 27~

The full moon had risen high in the sky. A cold, blustery wind rushed past Dawnstar's fur. She narrowed her eyes at the clearing where the Clans were supposed to meet. Solar had not been there, and she had sent out three cats to look for him. Luckily, there was no trace of the loner, and Dawnstar guessed that he left without letting them know. In a way, Dawnstar was relieved, and yet she was also angry that he had not told anyone.

Her own warriors had gotten into shape after finding their new home. Shrewfoot's belly was getting swollen, and Flamecloud said that it wouldn't be long before her kits came. To Dawnstar's annoyance, there had been a hint of pride in his green eyes. Couldn't he see how dangerous this was going to be? And because of the way he had acted, she had forced him to stay back at camp and make Toadfoot keep an eye on him. Tigerheart wouldn't have had the guts to keep an eye on his own brother, and he would have just let it slide like nothing had happened.

"Hello Dawnstar." She turned to see that Cinderstar and the rest of ThunderClan had arrived. They were milling about with the ShadowClan warriors, exchanging news and sharing tongues. It was like any other Gathering, except, they were seeing each other since the Journey.

"Hello Cinderstar," she replied gruffly. The gray tabby's eyes narrowed and she slipped past Dawnstar to share a few words with Scorchfur. The deputy let out a purr of amusement and turned to look at Dawnstar, whose mouth hung open in pure shock. How dare Cinderstar talk to him like he was her mate? She could do nothing but glare at Cinderstar as the ThunderClan leader spoke to everyone else.

It was than that Dawnstar noticed Peppermint wasn't there. Eagleheart was there, but his eyes were full of pride, like something had happened back at camp. Than it struck her.

Dawnstar had watched the couple get closer, and it seemed like every day during the Journey Peppermint got a little closer to Eagleheart. She must be expecting his kits.

"Dawnstar, how is the prey running in ShadowClan?" Thornclaw asked. His golden brown tabby fur was sleek and well-groomed, as if he had worked hard to keep it that way.

"It's certainly running," she replied, unable to hide the happiness that rose in her voice. It was good to talk like they had back in the Journey. "How is prey running in ThunderClan?"

Thornclaw tipped his head to the side and blinked. "Well, if you count all of the mice we've seen, it's running," he meowed. He licked a paw as if to prove his point.

Dawnstar had noticed how plump ThunderClan looked compared to her own Clan. Perhaps they had been getting a good leaf-bare after all. She let out a purr as he padded away. It was a relief to see that one more Clan was doing so well, despite the cold weather that had taken hold.

During the last quarter moon, snow had fallen over the forest. Prey had become somewhat scarce, but it was still out there. The hunting patrols just had to work a little harder at finding it. Most of the mice and voles had hidden themselves in their burrows, and the frogs and lizards were long gone now. Unfortunately they couldn't stand the cold like furred animals, and they disappeared during leaf-bare.

Eventually, WindClan arrived as well. Weaselstar had grunted a greeting, while the rest of his Clan joined in the evening's talk. Emberfoot had started talking to some of his former Clanmates again, and they were sharing tongues like they were old denmates. It was a good sight to see; it meant that the Clans were whole and healthy. And yet, RiverClan had yet to arrive. Dawnstar hoped everything was okay with Reedstar. The last thing she wanted was for something to have happened to the black tom.

Suddenly the three leaders heard Reedstar's call, and RiverClan came swarming in like bees. Reedstar himself strutted in like he was leader of all Clans, and sat next to Weaselstar, who eyed him coolly. Shellspots and Bluefern padded towards Squirrelflight and Sorreltail, who greeted them with rubs of their noses. Sneezepelt, Pebblenose and Duskfur had gone to share a few words with Willowclaw and Sedgepelt.

Finally, when the moon had risen to its full height, Cinderstar joined the four leaders. She nodded to them, and began the Gathering herself. "Cats of all Clans, welcome to the Gathering. A moon of peace has passed, and now we must decide what to do about the borders." She looked at the four leaders, and Dawnstar nodded in agreement. Although they had already figured out their territory, the borders still needed to be established.

"ShadowClan would like the border near the clearing," she declared. It was a large enough piece of land for them to hunt on when the going got tough. No one argued with her, but Dawnstar could see that a few ThunderClan cats were unhappy with her statement.

"We'll make the river our border," Reedstar meowed. "Anyone who crosses it will see to our claws. And anyone who crosses the silver birch trees will see them as well."

WindClan's territory was farther north then the rest of the Clans. So Weaselstar stated that the stream would be his border. And Cinderstar said that the line of boulders that stretched between the clearing and ThunderClan territory would be the border. When they were finished with the task, the Clans muttered in silent agreement.

"RiverClan has two new warriors, Timberclaw and Ryepelt," Reedstar meowed when the official Gathering began. Dawnstar spotted the two young cats. Ryepelt had a dust-colored pelt, while Timberclaw had gray-and-white fur. "Daisytail also had her kits," he added when the yowls of congratulations ended. "Otterkit, Swoopingkit and Brazankit." More yowls followed his words, and then Cinderstar spoke.

"ThunderClan is doing well. Peppermint has moved to the nursery, and Mangopaw is now an apprentice." Dawnstar narrowed her eyes at the mention of Mangopaw.

Mangopaw had been given up when her mother Flowerpetal died during the fire in ShadowClan camp. Russetstar had pretty much gone mad in that time, and because of that, she gave up poor Mangopaw.

"WindClan is well," Weaselstar called from his place. "We also have two new warriors: Shadeflower and Hazelfern."

Suddenly it was Dawnstar's turn. She wasn't entirely sure what to say, so she took a big gulp and began to speak. "All is well in ShadowClan. We have nothing else to report."

The Clans began to break apart when the meeting drew to an end. It was strange to see them break apart. Dawnstar had grown so used to seeing them together. They had worked together when they were on the Journey, and as fast as the wind, that interClan relationship broke off. In a way, she wished that it could have lasted. It had been nice to not have to worry about boundaries or border fights. But that was now in the past, and they had to look to the future.