I'm back, everyone! Sorry for the slower-than-usual update.

Reviews!

Callie the Cat Goddess: You changed your penname! Anyway. I look forward to your reviews :)

Archangel of ShadowClan: Thanks so much! I sorta feel bad for my characters...

Wyatt200: You'll see in this chapter that you may be right... *wink* *nudge* *cough*

Rainstone18: Yes, YAY is right :)

Munnamunna: No, she's not insane. But I guess you could say that she's pretty close to that stage.

Onto the story...

Chapter 6

Brightshadow padded gingerly across the clearing, then slowed as she neared Snowstar's den.

She exchanged a nervous glance with Redfire. What now?

It was Redfire than padded in first, sweeping his tail encouragingly across her pelt before stepping inside Snowstar's den. Brightshadow had no choice but to follow. As she padded into the den, she blinked to adjust to the sudden gloom, then found Snowstar's dark blue eyes boring directly into hers.

"You must have heard from Rainclaw that Foxkit has gone missing," Snowstar reported, the gleam in her eyes spreading, seeming to create a cold light all around the den. "He's a kit, so a likely possibility is that he went out exploring out of camp, as they all do. That's why I only am sending out one search patrol for the time being."

"What has that got to do with us?" Redfire asked, glancing at Brightshadow again.

Snowstar flicked her tail. "You both, and I, will be the search patrol. At the moment, I cannot think of any group of cats more capable."

Brightshadow blinked. "I don't think-"

"Are you questioning me?" Once again, Brightshadow was forced to meet her mother's challenging blue stare, and she lowered her head submissively. Snowstar flicked her tail. "That's exactly what I thought." Without another word, she padded out of the leader's den and into the dim evening light.

Redfire and Brightshadow padded after her, wordlessly.

Even the soft grass seemed to pierce her paws like thorns as Brightshadow padded across the clearing. The cooling night air seemed to freeze her muscles in place, and the darkness of the pine forest spooked her. Something was horribly wrong; she could feel it.

A quick glance at Redfire's bristling fur told her that he was thinking the same thing.

Pushing the thoughts of darkness behind her, Brightshadow opened her jaws slightly, tasting the air. There. A scent hit her tongue, almost painful as it washed over her... but it didn't smell right. It was lost... there was something missing from it.

Shaking her head to clear the thoughts, Brightshadow flicked her tail. "I think it's this way!" she called, more to Redfire than to Snowstar.

Foxkit... please don't leave... it's not your time yet.

Her nose low, Brightshadow padded through the trees, trying to keep up with the scent trail. The scent grew stronger - except it wasn't Foxkit's scent. It was his scent, but there was something missing - it wasn't entirely... well... whole.

She had smelled that scent too many times before to forget it.

On Mosscloud, Cedarkit, Poppytail, Leafpaw... and so many other cats that she had tried so hard to forget.

Death.

The scent of death.

Foxkit was dead.

Her close friend - though only a kit - was dead.

Snowstar pushed past her into the small clearing, still sniffing the air as she glanced around her. Redfire brushed past her, his fur touching hers, and she wanted nothing more than to lean into the warm, familiar pelt and stay there for eternity.

There was a small, familiar bundle of fur on the ground, motionless. No.

"Foxkit!" Brightshadow pushed past Snowstar and sank down beside Foxkit's fluffy body, burying her nose into his cold fur. Oh, StarClan, why would you be so cruel as to take a kit out of this world and send him to Silverpelt?

Snowstar lowered her head and nosed Foxkit gently, sighing when he didn't move. Redfire pressed comfortingly against Brightshadow, but even that wasn't enough to soothe her. Foxkit is dead, she told herself. Nothing that can be done, anymore.

"There's no foreign scent on Foxkit," Brightshadow stated, forcing herself to steady her shaking voice. "He was killed by a cat. There's a bite mark on his throat - it was made by a cat." Why, StarClan? Why does this poor kit have to die - he had his whole life ahead of him!

"It's a ShadowClan cat, too," Snowstar growled. "Come on, let's get back to camp. I'll look more closely into it tonight, and make an announcement at dawn."

Redfire dipped his head and padded alongside Brightshadow. "Who would do this to a kit?"

oO0Oo

Brightshadow, for some reason, couldn't sleep, that night.

oO0Oo

Brightshadow had been pacing around the camp all night, so it came as a pleasure and relief when Snowstar called her into the leader's den the next morning.

Well. Not really.

In a sense, though, yes.

Snowstar's eyes, however... were... she couldn't explain it. Her fur was bristling ever-so-slightly, as if she were worried about something. Her eyes - they were deep pools of darkness, but there was also a strange gleam to them, something like - relief? Satisfaction?

"Snowstar. It's a pleasure." Brightshadow dipped her head, the usual gesture of respect. Her mind was burning with curiosity. What happened?

Snowstar growled. "Don't flatter me with petty words."

Brightshadow blinked, startled. "Is something wrong, Snowstar?"

The white she-cat scoffed. "You're one to ask. Do you think the clan wouldn't figure out what you did?"

What in the name of StarClan did I do? "What?"

"Don't pretend you don't know."

"Snowstar, I swear by StarClan that I don't have a clue about what's going on." Brightshadow's voice was sincere, though laced with panic. Something's wrong... is she going to have another fight with me, but this time, to the death?

"Brightshadow, I know you killed Foxkit."

What? No, she's lying. I didn't touch Foxkit. What in the name of StarClan does she mean? Unless some cat framed me so that it looked as though I killed Foxkit. There's no cat like that... other than Snowstar and her supporters. Her supporters don't act without her approval...

"I did no such thing."

"The evidence is right here, Brightshadow. Go see for yourself." Snowstar flicked her tail toward Foxkit's limp body. "Look between the claws. There's your fur in it. I don't know any other cat with fur as silver as yours. It had to be you."

Brightshadow stalked over to Foxkit's body, anger tensing behind her muscles.

Crouching, she saw that there was indeed a tuft of her fur between Foxkit's claws. There was also a tendril of moss there, too. Whoever did it took my fur from my nest. "Snowstar, look closely. There's moss here, too. The fur is from my nest."

"Or you just scuffed up a lot of dust while you killed him," Snowstar retorted. "Do you think I can't tell the difference?"

Brightshadow sniffed Foxkit's body, again. There was Snowstar's scent, of course, because she had been investigating it, but behind that, there was another scent. It also belonged to Snowstar... but it was stale, from the previous day. Of course, I should have guessed.

Snowstar killed Foxkit. Of course, Brightshadow couldn't say that to her face - it was a death sentence.

What in the name of StarClan is going on?

Is she planning on killing me? It was bound to happen sometime... I just never thought it would happen so soon.

Why is she doing this? Is it because of what happened between me and Redfire?

"So, Brightshadow." Snowstar's cold voice jerked Brightshadow out of her thoughts. "Do you admit to killing Foxkit? If so, I will tell the clan. If not, I will still tell the clan, but the final sentence may be harsher." So either way, I'm going to die.

But I know I didn't kill Foxkit.

How can I ever look at Snowstar the same, now?

I can't confess to something I didn't do.

"No." The words left Brightshadow's jaws before she knew they did. "No, I cannot."

"Very well. I will hold a clan meeting."

oO0Oo

"As you may have heard, Foxkit is dead," Snowstar announced, setting her mouth into a grim line. Brightshadow glared. It's fake, she wanted to say, it's all fake. Snowstar killed Foxkit, and she's framing me for it.

You killed Foxkit, Brightshadow glared.

Snowstar met Brightshadow's glare with her own. I had my reasons.

Brightshadow unsheathed her claws, hackles raising defensively. She knows, she thought to herself. She knows that I know she killed Foxkit. This... cannot be good, for me. Or for anyone. They need someone to show them the truth... and no one else knows it.

"I spent a while looking into it, last night," Snowstar continued, as murmurs spread through the clan. "And I have reached a conclusion."

You cannot do this.

"Brightshadow, step forward."

Horrified gasps spread throughout the camp, and cats moved away, clearing a path for her. She flattened her ears, but that didn't stop her from hearing the horrified murmurs. She glimpsed Redfire staring at her, shock in his eyes, but she looked away.

"Do you admit to killing Foxkit?"

Brightshadow puffed out her chest, slightly. "No."

More murmurs, growing louder. Or maybe it was just the pounding - her heart pounding - in the background that made it seem deafening. Cats didn't bother to hide their furious glares, shot in Brightshadow's direction. Yet... there was something of fear in their eyes. It sparked a little satisfaction inside Brightshadow, despite herself.

"What do you have to say for yourself?" Snowstar's cold blue gaze raked over her pelt in disgust.

Brightshadow swallowed. "I would never harm a kit. Besides, Foxkit was my friend. Why would I kill Foxkit?" She drew in a breath. "I happen to know that whoever did it-" she shot a pointed glare in Snowstar's direction "-took a tuft of fur from my nest. How do I know this? There was a tendril-"

"Stop!"

Brightshadow's head whipped up at Snowstar's voice, and the white leader let out a growl. "Stop filling my clan's heads with lies, traitor."

"You and I both know it's the truth, Snowstar."

A collective murmur. No one, no one, ever stood up to Snowstar like that in front of the clan.

Snowstar's eyes flashed. "This is a closed matter. Rainclaw, Shadestorm, I want you both to escort Brightshadow to the extra den. Stand guard. I will decide what to do with this traitor, and I will make sure that she lives to regret what she did."

Brightshadow stared around her, in shock, as the two named warriors shoved her roughly forward, through the crowd.

It hurt the most to see that Redfire actually believed Snowstar.

oO0Oo

Redfire's POV:

It wasn't possible.

How could Brightshadow have killed Foxkit?

Sweet, charming Brightshadow... she wasn't capable of it.

The world was unfurling in front of Redfire. Everything had gone wrong so soon, so easily. How had it happened? It should never have happened. Why did Foxkit have to be killed... just then? Why did Brightshadow kill a kit?

Or maybe, Snowstar was wrong. Brightshadow hadn't killed Foxkit... so why would Snowstar lead every cat to believe that she did?

Unless... Snowstar killed him. But that wasn't possible. All executions of cats took place in the center of the clearing, as usual. Why was this one so different? And why a kit? Why Foxkit? Unless she had something against Brightshadow... her own daughter.

Why am I making excuses for Brightshadow? Redfire chided himself mentally, though he wanted nothing more than to claw some cat furiously. Brightshadow... was it all for nothing? Everything we had between us? Why did you break it?

It's because you love her, a voice whispered, in his head.

Redfire growled. Of course I do. But now that I know she killed a kit... do I still love her?

Yes.

That bothered Redfire. He couldn't get the warm glow of Brightshadow's eyes out of his head... or the way she tipped her head to one side while curious. She had always seemed so sincere, so much more than other cats... but was she just the same?

No, she's more than that, he told himself.

Pawsteps sounded behind him, and he whipped around, hackles raised, only to see that it was Snowstar. "You look ready to fight off a whole patrol," she mewed, quietly. "Are you all right? I think we need to talk about what just happened. In my den."

Wordlessly, she padded away, leaving her deputy to follow.

He couldn't help glancing once more at the extra den - at Brightshadow - before padding into Snowstar's den.

"You must be shocked," Snowstar mewed, and she almost sounded sympathetic. No, it's all fake. She kills cats from her own clan publicly - and she passed the cruel thoughts on to her daughter. To Brightshadow... it's not fair to her, or to me.

"I can't believe she would do it," Redfire murmured, his eyes clouding.

Snowstar's tail-tip twitched. "After all this, I hope you don't find yourself still in love with Brightshadow."

"I... I'm not sure." He voiced his doubts directly.

"I feel the same way you do," Snowstar mewed, her voice sickly honey-sweet. "Brightshadow was my daughter... I don't even want to call her that, anymore." Nor did you ever want to call her that, even though you were her own mother. You didn't like her because she was opposed to your killing ideas, and now, you're jumping at this opportunity to kill her.

Redfire shook his head, hating himself as he spoke. "I think that whatever we had between us - it's over." But just because I don't support Brightshadow's actions doesn't mean I support yours.

oO0Oo

Brightshadow's POV:

"Get in, and stay there." Rainclaw's rough growl was followed by a set of claws raking across her flank.

Wow, this is tough.

Brightshadow did her best not to flinch and padded cautiously inside. It was dark, larger than she had expected, and cold. The two toms stood outside, their backs to her - as they were supposed to be. Even the cats watching over camp each night stood like that.

She sniffed the air. It wasn't stale, as she had expected it to be. There was a cat scent, familiar, but not so... altogether. No, it didn't make sense. How was it even possible? Unless a cat came here to clean out the den very often... but the den was dusty, so that didn't make sense.

Then it hit her that she wasn't alone.

There was another cat here, probably sharing a fate with her. It actually might not be too bad to have company... she wouldn't die alone... but it probably wouldn't last. Brightshadow felt a pair of eyes staring at her, and she whipped around, facing the corner of the den.

A rather charming gray-furred tom stepped out of the shadows, and his blue eyes met hers.

"Ashpaw?" she whispered.

The old friend from when she was an apprentice hadn't been killed by Snowstar for wandering from a hunting patrol for the fourth time, as she had been led to believe. He was alive... how was that possible? He's lived so long in the darkness... how does he ever manage?

The tom was about her age, but slightly larger. He dipped his head.

"I prefer to go by Ashflame, now," he stated, with that painfully familiar toss of his head. "But it's me, all right."

Oooh! Special POV this time! I'll try to to a few more of the different POVs thoughout the story!

I hope you enjoyed this chapter.

Leave a review as you go!

~ Stormy