"Squirrelflight!" She heard Foxpaw call from below. "I did what you said! The fire has almost completely gone!" He chirped. A quick glance over the hollow could have told Squirrelflight that herself. A few flames flickered in the distance, but all that was left was smouldering wood and foliage, which was being hammered by the powerful rain.
"Good work, Foxpaw." She praised him. "Why not try to find some dry prey for the injured?" Foxpaw nodded, his tail fluffed in excitement still. He seemed to be thinking that the survival of the clan relied on him. Squirrelflight couldnt help but smile at his enthusiasm.
He raced away with Icepaw, who was now recognizeable, the rain having washed away the soot.
"Firestar?" Sandstorm looked up, her ears twitching. "Should you be up?"
"I'm feeling just fine." Firestar assured her with a raspy purr. Sandstorm flicked one ear back in disbelief but said nothing, surverying the clan.
"There aren't any deaths. Everyone is okay, besides some smoky lungs and burnt paws." She reported. Firestar let out an uneven sigh.
"Thank StarClan. Thank you, Sandstorm." Sandstorm squeezed her eyes shut and trotted away to check on the nursery.
Firestar cleared his throat. While he prepared himself, Squirrelflight surveyed the hollow, searching for her kits. She saw Jayfeather, one paw bandaged but the other working away at a singed Thornclaw. Lionblaze was entertaining the distressed kits with hunting crouches and battle swipes. Their excited cries brought some relief to Squirrelflight's tense shoulders.
She finally saw Hollyleaf, who was chatting quietly with Brackenfur. The senior warrior seemed mostly unharmed besides a tuft of scorched fur on his tail. She let out a sigh of relief, until she saw her sister.
She was gently applying a poultice to the shoulder of Ashfur. The tom's face was unreadable. His blocking of the branch had cost him some fur off his body, and Squirrelflight couldn't help but feel a little victorious about this.
Firestar seemed to see the same thing and he made an annoyed grunt, as though he didn't want his second daughter anywhere near the speckled tom.
"All cats old enough to catch their own prey, and with enough strength, please gather under the Highledge!" Firestar called. Most of the cats seemed surprised. Those who were mostly uninjured has sought shelter from the rain and now trudged out in annoyance, their pelts sticking to their bodies. Leafpool looked surprised as Ashfur slipped out from under her paws, sitting underneath the Highledge. He refused to meet Squirrelflight's eyes and instead stared straight ahead. Ferncloud sat next to him and gently licked away some of the soot from his fur. Cloudtail weaved his way through the crowd before plopping down next to the tom as well, cracking a joke that Squirrelflight didn't hear and that Ashfur had no reaction to.
"I've recieved word that no cat was killed in the fire." Firestar announced first. A relieved sigh swept through the cats. "However, this was not for lack of trying." He continued. His strange words seemed to stun the clan as they glanced between each other in confusion.
"What do you mean, Firestar?" Cloudtail asked loudly. Squirrelflight glared down at Ashfur, whose eyes had narrowed to blue slits.
"I wish I could wait to say this, after what we have just been through this tragedy. But there is no time to waste after what I have learned." Firestar sighed. "Ashfur." The named rippled through the clan as cats turned to find him amongst the scorched fur. Ferncloud look at him in surprise and Cloudtail twitched one ear, looking at his foster brother. Ashfur's face still remained unreadable.
"Ashfur..." Firestar continued. "I have been informed that, during the fire, Ashfur attempted to murder three cats. Hollyleaf, Lionblaze and Jayfeather." This time, outraged cries spread like the first itself had.
"No!" Ferncloud cried out in shock, getting to her paws to look at Ashfur in horror. Cloudtail snarled, his fur bristling.
"Say it's not true!" Cloudtail demanded. Ashfur met neither of their gazes.
"It is true!" Hollyleaf shouted, her tail thrashing. "He blocked our only exit out of the flames and was going to let us die!" She yowled. More outcry followed. "And, he told us that he had tried to kill Firestar before us!" Squirrelflight flinched. She had wished Hollyleaf had let Firestar say that, but she knew her daughter had her own haughty temper when it came to justice.
Cloudtail's claws shot out in an instant.
"Say... Say it's not true." He demanded. Ashfur said nothing. "Look at me!" Cloudtail demanded with a distressed screech. Ferncloud was silent with horror, taking slow pawsteps away from her brother. Ashfur finally swung his head around to look at Cloudtail.
"It's not true." He muttered. His hollow words didn't seem to calm Cloudtail, whose face was a mixture of grief and unbridled rage. His loyalties were pinned against his brother and his uncle.
"Liar!" Lionblaze yowled, his thick fur bristling. "We all heard you! Me, Holly and Jay! And Mother! You tried to kill Firestar using the fox trap last season!" He practically howled the words. Something in what he said made Ashfur sneer.
"You're still going to call her mother?" Ashfur snapped. "After what she said?" He snarled. He then turned to the Highledge and Squirrelflight felt a slight panic in her heart. She had forgotten to mention the lie she had concocted to save her kits. "Brambleclaw, wouldn't you be interested to know that these kits aren't even yours?" He hissed.
The clan seemed distraught, cries of confusion ringing out. Brambleclaw flicked his ears back, glancing at Squirrelflight in distress and confusion. Squirrelflight stepped forward while Firestar acknowledged her with a gentle nod.
"Those kits have the blood of Brambleclaw through them." Squirrelflight growled, surprised at the strength in her voice. "I lied in order to save my kits." She hissed. "And even if I had lied, don't you think a few attempted murders area little more trouble?" She snarled.
Now the clan seemed to rally and turn on the speckled gray tom, their backs arching as they formed a wide circle around him. Only Ferncloud and Cloudtail remained, their eyes brimming with grief and confusion.
"You really did all that?" Cloudtail choked out, his smoke-stained fur still bristling. Ashfur grit his teeth.
"You have no idea! You have no idea how much pain I was in!" He screeched. Cloudtail's face suddenly composed with resolve, and he padded past Ashfur without another look, brushing up against Ferncloud.
"Come on, Fern." Cloudtail growled. Ferncloud said nothing, but only stared at her blood brother. When Cloudtail forced her paws to move, she cried out.
"Ashfur, no!" She cried out in grief, one paw outstretched. For a second, a flicker of regret crossed Ashfur's face. "No!" She cried again.
Dustpelt helped Cloudtail guide the distraught molly away from Ashfur as she cried out, her body trembling.
Squirrelflight stepped back to allow her father to speak again, dipping her head with respect and thanking him.
"Ashfur. Since you have attempted to murder four cats of your own clan, I must make the decision to exile you from ThunderClan." Firestar spoke evenly, despite the distraught cry from Ferncloud echoing in the hollow. Cloudtail's teeth were grit so tightly that a small trickle of blood was straining his fur. Ashfur jumped to his paws with a hiss.
"Where am I to go?" He demanded.
"You'll become a rogue. Where you go after that, it is no trouble to ThunderClan. If we catch you on our territory, you will be treated as an intruder and attacked on sight." Firestar explained. Ashfur's eyes narrowed in fury.
"Fine." He snarled, thrashing his tail, though he could not hide the fear and grief in his eyes. He turned and was surprised to see Thornclaw and Brackenfur approach him, their fur bristling.
"We will escort him to the border, Firestar." Thornclaw boomed in his deep voice. Brackenfur said nothing, but with his narrowed eyes, he didn't need to. Ashfur took a step back, his tail bristling as the reality of the situation crashed down on him.
"Ashfur, how could you!" Cloudtail yowled, his eyes filled with grief.
"I just wanted to be loved!" Ashfur cried back, his eyes flattening. Ferncloud rushed from her mate's side to push her muzzle into Ashfur's neck.
"I did love you." Ferncloud cried softly. "Wasn't that good enough?" She whimpered. Ashfur seemed taken aback at this, his eyes wide.
"Enough!" Firestar cried, his voice settling the hollow. "Thornclaw, Brackenfur, please escort Ashfur to the border." The brothers nodded, with Brackenfur gently nudging Ferncloud away from her brother.
"How could you..." Ferncloud cried again, allowing Dustpelt's tail to wrap around her in comfort. Ashfur's facade had quickly fallen apart and now his face was contorted with grief.
"No, I don't want to go!" He shouted at Thornclaw and Brackenfur, backing up. "Firestar, please!" He turned back to the Highledge. Firestar said nothing, only narrowing his eyes at the speckled grey tom.
"Take this like the warrior you once were." Brambleclaw finally spoke, his tail thrashing. Ashfur stared at him, mouth agape, seeming to lose his words.
"Let's go." Thornclaw shouldered Ashfur towards the exit of the hollow with no remorse. Brackenfur was quickly at his side, claws unsheathed and legs stiff, but walking calmly.
Cloudtail got up quickly and follow the three as they left the hollow, his thick tail the last they saw as the group disappeared.
Squirrelflight let out a long sigh of relief. Her legs seemed to buckle underneath her and she fell with a thump while cats cried out near her. Darkness filled her vision and she finally gave up the fight, falling into a deep sleep.