What if I DID own Warriors? This would happen in the 1st series…

Chapter 8 – Brokenstar's Promise

The next day, Firepaw blinked awake to see Dawnpaw prodding him.

"What?" he yawned.

"Birdstar's called a Clan meeting!" he mewed happily.

Firepaw followed him and sat down at the edge of the Clan.

Suddenly, Firepaw noticed Mousefur, a young ThunderClan cat, cowering on the ground in front of the Skythorn.

What is going on?

"ThunderClan are in trouble!" Birdstar yowled. "ShadowClan are attacking!"

"We must help!" Leafblade called from his usual root.

She flicked her tail. "We are allies."

Mousefur blinked. "ThunderClan would do the same," she mewed. "But now they are in trouble!"

Her eyes were wide.

"Leafblade will be in charge of the camp," she ordered. "The patrol will be: myself, Hawkflight, Eagleclaw, Shadowfur, Twilightsky, Silverstripe, Firepaw, Dawnpaw and Icepaw!"

Firepaw leaped to his paws, energy and excitement thrilling him.

He bounded beside his mentor as they raced through the trees, Mousefur in the lead.

"Remember, you have only had a bit of battle training," she told him, "rely on your instincts when you don't know what to do."

"I will make you proud, Birdstar," Firepaw vowed.

They raced through the trees like a furry, shimmering river, their paws thudding on the forest floor like a rhythm.

They crossed the border, and Birdstar lengthened the stride so they were bounding through the thick undergrowth of ThunderClan territory.

They charged into the ThunderClan cmp.

Firepaw's eyes flew wide with astonishment. The clearing in the sandy ravine was full of screeching, battling cats.

"SkyClan, attack!" Birdstar let out the fierce caterwaul before plunging into battle.

Firepaw braced himself. He could see that the ThunderClan cats were outnumbered.

At once a black tom bowled him over.

Thinking furiously, Firepaw leaped to his paws swiftly. Now what? The tom was young, but much bigger than him.

Firepaw quickly did a forward roll before the enemy could react, and kicked out hard with his hand paws, gouging the tom's soft underbelly.

He yowled in pain and leaped high.

Firepaw saw his weight some onto his forepaws as he straightened out in mid-air, and knew he was going to be squashed.

He tried to roll out the way, but he was too slow.

He found himself pinned down easily.

Firepaw, you mouse-brain! You call yourself a warrior apprentice?

He swiped his forepaws and caught the other cat's muzzle, but he didn't get a good enough grip and only pulled out fur, not splitting the skin.

He hissed in frustration, and the other cat raked his hind paws down Firepaw's stomach.

Firepaw yowled in pain, feeling it rake through him, burning.

Then he caught a glimpse of ginger fur, and a cat leaped onto the black warrior, knocking him off.

Sandpaw!

He leaped forward to help her, slashing hard at the ShadowClan cat's flank. Sandpaw leaped high, landing on the tom's back and biting hard on his scruff.

Growling, the tom shook them off and fled into the undergrowth.

Sandpaw saw a dark-brown apprentice, Dustpaw, in trouble facing two cats, and whispered something into Firepaw's ear before bounding off.

Firepaw hadn't heard her properly. But he had no time to think about it.

He saw Birdstar, pinned to the ground by… Brokenstar!

He snarled and leaped high, landing in Brokenstar's flank and throwing him sideways.

Firepaw clawed the dark tabby fiercely, overcome by rage that Birdstar was hurt.

A flash of tabby fur caught his eye and he saw Birdstar beside him.

Brokenstar hissed.

"Can't take me on yourself, Birdstar?" he spat. "I didn't know you needed an apprentice to save you!"

Birdstar glanced at Firepaw. "Go now," she ordered him. She turned her golden gaze back to the ShadowClan leader. "I must fight for my honour."

Firepaw dipped his head and leaped away as Brokenstar and Birdstar became locked in a furious combat.

"ShadowClan, retreat!" Brokenstar yowled.

Firepaw whipped around. Brokenstar was glaring at Birdstar with glittering eyes.

The ShadowClan cats bounded out.

"And stay away!" a ThunderClan cat yowled after them.

"Thank you," Bluestar meowed to Birdstar.

"Don't worry about it," she murmured.

Dawnpaw bounded over to Firepaw. "I pinned down Clawface!" he mewed triumphantly. "But… then he got away."

"I clawed Brokenstar!" Firepaw meowed.

"No way!" Icepaw mewed, padding over. "I bet he turned you into crowfood!"

"No, it's true!" Firepaw protested, his green eyes wide.

"Sure, kittypet!" Icepaw growled. "You can claw Brokenstar, but when you face me, you wail like a kit!"

"Oh yeah?" Firepaw dropped into a crouch. "Want to bet?"

"A moons worth of dawn patrols!" Icepaw hissed, playful as well as angry. Firepaw found that odd.

"You're on!" he growled, tail lashing.

Dawnpaw sat down with a bump. "I can't wait to watch this!" he declared, and Firepaw shot him a half-amused half-annoyed look.

"Hey, you're supposed to be on my side!" he mewed.

"Excuse me," Icepaw meowed. "He's my brother, kittypet!"

"Do you want to stay and let Spottedleaf patch you all up?" Bluestar was asking.

"Yes, thanks," Birdstar mewed. "I can't risk any warriors fainting on the way home. The blood scent would scare away ThunderClan prey!" she mewed jokingly.

Bluestar nodded slowly.

"Firepaw!" Spottedleaf called.

Firepaw padded over to the tortoiseshell medicine cat. She pressed cobwebs into his wounds, and Firepaw gritted his teeth against the pain, glancing down at his stomach wounds.

Firepaw didn't see, but Spottedleaf had a very odd look in her amber eyes as she watched the young apprentice.

"You fought bravely," she murmured into his ear.

"Back off, Spottedleaf!" Sandpaw hissed from behind him.

Firepaw looked at her in confusion. Spottedleaf was only being friendly… right? Why does Sandpaw suddenly go angry at her?

Then he saw jealousy in her eyes – jealousy?

"You're done," Spottedleaf mewed.

Firepaw stood and padded away.

Sandpaw bounded after him. "Firepaw!" she called.

"Yeah?" he looked at her.

"Could you meet me in four days at night – at Fourtrees?" she asked.

Firepaw looked confused. "Why?"

"Just – please be there!" Sandpaw mewed desperately.

"Okay," Firepaw meowed slowly.

He was about to ask her what she'd whispered to him, but then Birdstar called to her Clan, and Firepaw had to just watch as he was led away from the ThunderClan camp. And still she watched him.