As always thanks to my reviewers WyldClaw, smartblueladybug, and Mallowfeather of Earthclan! You guys are amazing!

Also, this chapter goes out to my awesome friend cutie222 :) I miss you, I hope you're reading this!

Heres chapter 9 for you guys, this one is a bit of a short one like the last, but its pretty exciting!

Chapter 9

Batwing opened her eyes to gleaming sunlight tickling her whiskers. She smiled in ecstasy as she gazed at the gold which trickled through the warrior den, setting alight. A couple of the warriors were still asleep, and so she padded gently out of the den, making sure not to make a sound.

As she walked out into the clearing, the glorious light of dawn met her, hues of pink and lavender swirling through the sky.

The clearing was quiet, only a couple of cats up. Rabbitfoot sat next to the freshkill pile, nibbling at a plump squirrel, chatting with Leappaw. Speckleclaw and Addertooth stood outside of the nursery, their faces worried as they talked, probably about Deerspots.

Eaglewing stood next to the highrock, talking with Greymoon, Frostatil, and Goldenfoot in a hushed voice, her long tortoiseshell fur tussled from a restless sleep. As Batwing came over, the deputy smiled and beckoned her with a flick of her tail.

"I want you on the dawn patrol," the she-cat mewed. "Greymoon will lead it."

Batwing nodded, blinking her sleepy eyes quickly in hopes of waking herself up. She turned to Greymoon expectedly, wondering who else would join them on patrol. "Rabbitfoot," the grey warrior called out, causing the she-cat to look up from her meal abruptly. "You too Leappaw."

The two cats bounded over to the group, their eyes bright at the prospect of joining the patrol. Batwing grinned in relief, happy that she'd have someone to talk to. Greymoon nodded and took the lead as he bounded out of the camp, through the gorse tunnel, his sleek muscles showing through his thin pelt.

Batwing's paws crunched softly on the ground as she walked, following the patrol through the forest towards Snakerocks. The light of dawn cast beautiful shapes on the leaves and flowers, turning them hues of gold and pink.

Rabbitfoot came up next to Batwing, her steps in sink. "So how're things going with Fawnpaw? It must be hard to have an apprentice when you've just become a warrior!"

Batwing shook her head, her smile returning. "It was at first," she admitted, keeping her eyes on the crevices in the stone as they approached snakerocks, sure that the warm sunlight would attract the horrible creatures out into the open. "But now its amazing, Fawnpaw is so sweet, its so easy to teach her and get along with her!"

Rabbitfoot sighed, her eyes filled with longing. "I wonder when I'll get an apprentice," she muttered, her eyes also on the rocks, flicking back and forth. "It'll be awhile, the only new kits will be Deerspots' and hers won't be born for another half moon."

Batwing nodded, her eyes sad as she realized that her friend was right. It would be a long time before there were new apprentices. She raised her nose to the air, as they approached the thunderpath, puzzled.

"Greymoon," she called out. "Do you smell that?"

The warrior turned around, his expression darkened. "Shadowclan," he hissed. "Close."

Leappaw came up next to Batwing, her eyes as round as moons. "You mean past the border?"

Goldenfoot's lips drew back to show her sharp teeth, bounding forward after Greymoon, towards the border. As the patrol came into view, so did the Shadowclan cats. There were four of them, a black tom with white paws which Batwing remembered as Scratchfur, Twigtail, a greyish brown she-cat, and Blueflower.

Blueflower's blue eyes were sad and she locked gazes with Batwing, a pleading look in them, as if she were begging for mercy for what she was about to do. Batwing had never actually seen the warrior close up before, simply at gatherings, and her only memory of her was when she had helped Cloverkit escape.

Batwing narrowed her eyes in anger, a feeling of betrayal welling up inside of her. Shadowclan was trespassing, they knew they were, and Blueflower was clearly a just and fair cat, she should have nothing do with what was going on in Shadowclan, the horrible things Dawnspirit had told her about.

Greymoon stepped forward, his eyes cold. "You're trespassing on our land," he stated.

Scratchfur clearly didn't want to leave without a fight, however it was obvious he had expected a smaller patrol. The Shadowclan cats were outnumbered, and the tom knew it. "Shadowclan rules the forest now," he snarled, his lips drawn back. "This is your only warning, next time we fight."

The tom flicked his tail and bounded across the Thunderpath, the rest of his patrol following suit.

Batwing's mouth had dropped open, and now it remained slightly ajar as she watched the cats leave. "They rule the forest now?" she blurted out, her golden eyes sparked with rage. "What in Starclan's name is that supposed to mean?"

Leappaw had backed up and now she was pressed up against Batwing, her pelt trembling. "Whats happened to them?" she whispered.

No cat answered, and Greymoon simply turned and started back to camp, his face livid. Frosttail followed directly behind him, her temper showing through her furious expression.

Batwing glanced over at Rabbitfoot, her eyes frightened, hardly believing what had just happened. Scratchfur's words still echoed through her mind.

"Next time we fight."

"I wonder whats going on there," Startail mewed, her voice chirpy as talked between bites of her mouse. "I mean- they've been acting crazy, something awful must happening in their camp."

Batwing nodded, her mind wandering back to what Dawnspirit had told her, about the terrible things happening in Shadowclan, what Crookedstar was doing to his clan. "Yeah." she muttered, taking another nibble of her squirrel. "Awful things."

"I mean, its not like all Shadowclan cats are evil, it must be something else," Startail said, oblivious to her best friend's vague and preoccupied attitude. "But such a sudden change, I can't even imagine whats going on there."

"I guess we'll find out at the gathering," Batwing said quickly, hoping to change the subject. Blueflower's sad eyes were still swimming before her eyes, and she hated the sight of them, filled with regret and torn loyalties.

Startail nodded and took a big bight out of her mouse, her face puzzled. "You're friends with Dawnspirit, right? Did she say anything about it at the last gathering?"

Batwing nearly choked on the bite of squirrel she had been chewing, and coughed loudly, hoping to cover up her surprise at the question. "She didn't say anything," she mewed quickly, managing a smile.

Startail nodded slowly. "Maybe you can ask her a the next gathering?" she suggested.

"Sure," Batwing mumbled. "I'll do that."

Startail continued talking, her voice happy as she moved on to another topic, however Batwing hardly heard her. For now her father's words were flowing through her mind, making her tremble in fear as the thoughts became very real.

"Nothing is as it once was. Everything is going to change."

Seems like Shadowclan is getting a bit rowdier, not that that is very surprising

Anyone like how Blueflower's character is beginning to develop? She's becoming a lot more complex then just Dawnspirit's friend

Please review!