A/N: Ah, a chapter... Sorry for the non-warning about the Allegiances, I just couldn't add an AN after the last chapter. Anyway, you may have noticed some missing names in the Allegiances, this is not a mistake, they were killed in the storm. And yes, it was a tornado. A pretty tiny one, but still. Anyway, more than fifty reviews! Ha ha, thank you guys. I'll have sixty thousand words after these chapters... Maybe even with just the Allegiances...Quite happy... Sorry this chapter is again, short, it's a preparation for the next chappie.. Which will be slow because i'm busy. Sorry.
"Russetfur..." Came a slick voice, low and sultry. The queen's eyes snapped open. A pair of large amber eyes glowed in front of her in the dark of the night. She was in the nursery, and the night was fully dark, for the new moon was still in place. Letting her eyes adjust, Russetfur saw a dark brown tabby pelt on a large frame. Couple with the amber eyes, she thought for a moment that Tigerclaw had come for her, until this cat's bent tail and scent eradicated the possibility.
Relaxing, she meowed irritatedly,"What do you want, Brokentail?"her voice groggy and throaty.
"I want you to come with me." he responded, his eyes narrowing slightly.
The queen snorted. "You resorting to trying to get old, not to mention pregnant, she-cats now? Why don't you hit on Featherstorm if that's your thing, I'm not in the mood for your crap." She rested her head on her paws again, trying to ignore the prickling in her pelt spurred because of the similar situation.
"Don't flatter yourself, Russetfur. I'm not looking for a mate. I'm looking for supporters. You are well-liked and respected in the Clan, and a queen. Who's a better follower for me?" Brokentail asked, having managed to actually think something through.
The dark ginger she-cat rolled her eyes. "What a relief. But I'm not doing that, either. I don't like you, trust you, or think you should be deputy. Why would I want to pad after you like an apprentice trying to impress? You've already got Jaggedtooth and Wetfoot under your spell, and even Rowanclaw too, if I'm not mistaken. Leave me alone."
"You want to know why you're going to support me, dear Russetfur?" the tom asked, his voice dangerous. "Because I know whose kits you carry. I saw it all. I saw you trying to fight, to run... And I saw you pass out. I think you should follow me if you want your brats' lineage to remain a secret. " His vocie turned dark and harsh at the end, and he turned tail and padded away as he finished.
Fear encircled Russetfur's soul. Brokentail had seen? And he hadn't done anything? When she cried out for help, or even after Tigerclaw left, he still had done nothing? Bile rose in her throat, and she spat on the ground in disgust. Still, the queen rose and walked silently after the cruel tom.
"A wise choice." Brokentail chuckled darkly. He was supposed to be on watch, so they didn't need to sneak away from camp. They simply strolled out. They hadn't gotten very far when Brokentail suddenly sat. "I don't know why you didn't tell the others about what Tigerclaw did to you, like my so-called "mother". But I don't care. I assume you have good reason, so I'll make this brief.
"Russetfur, no matter what I do or say, you will support my decisions and know that everything I do is for the greater good. You will never question me or disobey me, and you will not speak of my coercion to any other cat. Or I will, and I swear by the dead body of my predecessor, I will first tell every cat who the father of your kits is. And then I will kill them." Without waiting for a response, the disturbed deputy pelted away into the shadows.
Getting slowly, shakily to her paws, Russetfur started back to camp, taking two tiny steps before muttering, "Too bad I don't give a damn who knows about Tigerclaw anymore." Her statement was true; the loss of her grandmother, Cloudpelt, Poolcloud, and Dawncloud in the storm had hardened her. Or broken her- she no longer cared about her treachery in loving Tigerclaw, or in meeting with Charlie. All she cared about was taking care of her kits and Flamesong.
Thinking Flamesong's name to herself made Russetfur pause and draw a breath through her teeth. The black she-cat had lost her memory to the point of her being ten moons old, but that wasn't the worst part - every two days or so, no matter how well she had been filled in the past couple of days, she forgot it all again, back to the same day in her apprenticeship.
So Russetfur calmed her, comforted her, and kept her from freaking out too badly when she forgot her mind again. Skyheart did his best to help, but he was lost in a daze. He had lost so much, too. His mentor, his brother, and now he had lost the memory of his mate.
Whitewater, Cloudpelt's sister, was not holding up well with the loss of her only littermate. She and Sleetpelt often cried in the warriors den at night, or so said Gingerheart. However, Gingerheart also heard the Whitewater thought she was expecting Cedarheart's kits, which could be a factor in the emotionalism. Russetfur sure knew what pregnancy did to your emotions.
The queen reached camp and slipped past Brokentail, sitting guard again. "Did you have a good time streching your legs, Russetfur?" he asked in an innocent voice.
"Just wonderful," she smiled back before turning away to slip back into the nursery. The darkness of the situation hit her. She had to pretend to be a loyal follower of Brokentail, or her kits would be killed. The thought made her cringe and groom her belly fur nervously as she settled back into her nest.
The queen woke to Flamesong jabbing a paw in her side, her eyes wide with confusion and fear. "Russetfur? Russetfur, what's going on? I-I-I think I'm expecting kits! But I don't know how I could be, I never.. Please, Russetfur, is this a dream?" The dark ginger she-cat closed her eyes tight for a moment. She hated doing this.
"Flamesong... You've had an accident. There was a storm, and you hit your head on the Burnt Sycamore. Your memory reset to when you were ten moons old, and an then you were made into a warrior, with the name Flamesong, and you are mates with Skypaw, who is now Skyheart. You are expecting his kits. In a couple of days, your mind will erase all of this and I'll have to tell you again." she explained, trying to keep it to a minimum as Shadestorm was still sleeping.
The small black she-cat hesitatted, then gave a small smile. "This is a joke, right? You're.. yanking my tail, that's all. Russetfur, please tell me this isn't really happening?" she had said nearly the same thing the last time, and like the previous time, her eyes grew misty.
"I'm so sorry, Flamesong. I am so, so sorry. You need to talk to Skyheart this time, though. Tell him you love him, even if you don't really mean it. Because you did, when you were you, you loved him."
Flamesong nodded, tears falling in earnest. "I will." she breathed. "I will." Russetfur moved forward so that they could touch their heads to each other, locking eyes. Then the younger she-cat closed her eyes and gave the slightest of chuckles. "You have to deal with me blubbering and denying it every couple of days?" she asked in a shaky voice, trying to alleviate the pain of the situation.
"I don't mind it, honestly. Would you rather have someone like Blackfoot tell you? I'm sure that'd go over just great." she said the last bit with a sarcastic roll of her eyes.
Flamesong laughed. "I s'pose not." She glanced around the nursery. "Brightpaw and Shadepaw are queens as well? And you? I thought you'd be a singleton for life."
"They're Brightflower and Shadestorm now. And yes, I'm lugging around a litter with the rest of you." She licked her belly fur. "And I think I shall be a singleton from here on out. I didn't mean for this to happen either. Just not the I've-got-to-have-a-mate-and-fifty-kits type."
The black-furred she cat gave her a look. "Well now look at you. Maybe you'll love having kits so much you'll never leave the nursery. Maybe you will have fifty kits!" The two she-cats looked at each other for a moment before bursting into laughter nearly simultaneously. The idea of Russetfur being simply a queen for the rest of her life was fairly ridiculous.
"That would definitely get in the way of my becoming leader, wouldn't it?" Russetfur said as she held her chin high in mock pride.
Flamesong played along. "Oh, ambitious, are we? Since when did Raggedstar make you his deputy?"
"Oh, the other day. We certainly have been going through a lot of deputies. Wouldn't particularly surprise me if he made a queen one next." Russetfur replied.
The young queen tilted her head. "What do you mean, going through deputies?"
Russetfur realized that she didn't know about Lizardfang's death, or all that followed. "Right.. You see, Lixardfang was killed by rats and Foxheart was made deputy, but she..she was killed fighting the rats that killed Lizardfang, so Raggedstar appointed Cloudpelt as deputy in her place. But he died in the storm where you lost your memory, and now Brokentail is deputy."
"What?" her jaw dropped. "Brokenpaw-tail, Brokentail is deputy? He's younger than I am! Has he even trained an apprentice?"
Russetfur tilted her head. "Not really. He was given Lilypaw as an apprentice, but that wasn't all that long ago. It's only because he's Raggedstar's son." she made her voice very low and quiet at the end, recalling her deal with the said tom.
"That," Flamesong pronounced. "Is ridiculous."
Russetfur began to agree when a horrified screech ripped threw the camp, tearing at every cat's eardrums and at their hearts.
