Fireheart

"This is their camp, all right," Fireheart murmured, scanning the hollow.

"I can't believe Brokenstar managed to drive WindClan out of such a well-protected place!" Graystripe declared. Fireheart noticed that there were several tears in the grey warrior's fur. Probably from all of those thorns back there, he thought.

"It looks like they put up a good fight," Fireheart pointed out mildly. Inwardly, he was thinking no such thing. How on earth did WindClan expect to win this battle? Compared the ThunderClan camp, WindClan had almost no protection here. It was painfully obvious how badly the battle had gone; clumps of fur and patches of dried blood were little all around the camp. Mossy nests had been dragged out of the burrows and torn apart. Everywhere, the scents of ShadowClan and WindClan were mingled. WindClan smells terrified, Fireheart realized. But ShadowClan feels victorious. As well they should. Driving a whole Clan out of its territory―imagine that!

"Let's find the scent trail out of here," Graystripe suggested, shuddering. Fireheart rolled his eyes and reluctantly followed the other warrior out. Coward.

The two warriors moved forward, into the camp. Fireheart searched through the main body of the camp, while Graystripe inspected the burrows lining the camp walls.

"Hmph! WindClan cats must be even smaller than I thought!" Graystripe hissed, squeezing in and out of the small holes. Fireheart didn't reply. He had picked up a pungent scent trail that was half WindClan and half fear-scent. It led from the opposite edge of the camp, out onto the moor, and then away into the distance. With Graystripe in tow, Fireheart bounded forward.

The trail led far into the uplands; farther than Fireheart had thought possible. But it was only when he and Graystripe stopped for a break at the top of one of WindClan's hills that Fireheart realized exactly where they were.

Far off behind them lay the Moonpool. Even from the hill, Fireheart could see it: a tiny clawprick of light in the dusk.

"I wonder if Nightpelt is there yet," Graystripe murmured, relaxing against the sandy hill.

"I hope he is," Fireheart replied practically. "We head into unknown territory as soon as we cross that Thunderpath. Do you realize that, Graystripe? The last thing we need is to run into the new ShadowClan leader as well!"

Only as he finished his rant did Fireheart notice that the fur along his spine was standing straight up. His claws were unsheathed and digging into the ground, and the look on Graystripe's face was a mixture between shock and fear.

"I'm… sorry, Graystripe," Fireheart murmured, letting his fur lie flat and retracting his claws.

"It's alright," Graystripe answered. "You're stressed too, I know."

Fireheart just nodded, glad that Graystripe was willing to write off his outburst as stress. I have to be more careful. Tigerclaw wouldn't have mistaken that for stress.

"Let's get moving again," Fireheart suggested after a moment. Graystripe nodded, and the two started off, slowly making their way down the slope.

"Let's check on Ravenpaw!" Graystripe meowed enthusiastically. "We left him at the Twolegs' barn with Barley, didn't we?"

"I don't think we should do that now," Fireheart pointed out, fighting to keep his frustration under control. "We're hunting for WindClan, remember? There's no time to lose. We should keep moving until we find them."

"Oh, right." After this Graystripe was quiet for a while, thankfully, giving Fireheart some time to think.

The cats crept down and started off again, heading away from the very outer edges of WindClan territory. The scent trail led them in the direction of a wide black Thunderpath that was crowded with monsters.

"Those poor WindClan cats," Graystripe meowed loudly. "This must have been the first time they ever saw a Thunderpath!"

It's their own fault if they couldn't defend their own territory, Fireheart thought to himself. What sort of 'Clan' gets chased out of their own territory?

"Well, it looks like they crossed here," he murmured aloud. "Their scent is getting fainter."

"They might've doubled back, though," Graystripe counted. Exhaustion was beginning to show in his eyes and he was moving slower. "Should we search, or…"

"I'm not sure," Fireheart mewed, pausing to think. Evening was coming. If they didn't find some bit of scent soon they might have to turn back. No one would take me seriously if they knew I'd failed my first warrior mission! We have to finish this.

Carefully, Fireheart padded out onto the quiet surface of the Thunderpath. He didn't stop until he reached the grass on the other side. There he paused, mouth wide open to check for scents, but all he could smell was the bitter, acrid smell of the Thunderpath.

Then there was deafening screech of a noise. A monster tore past just behind him, scaring Fireheart nearly out of his wits. The ginger warrior leapt into the air and darted forward, stopping underneath a thick hedge of prickly-sided leaves.

As the monster raced away, Fireheart checked for WindClan scent one last time. To his surprise, there was a trace of WindClan scent there, stirred up by the quick passing of the monster.

"Greystripe! I found something."

The plump grey tom stood up and hurried across the Thunderpath. However, by the time he reached Fireheart, the scent was gone.

"What? Did you find the trail?" puffed Graystripe. Fireheart shook his head, unsheathing his claws in frustration. "I smelled something, but I can't pinpoint it." Without so much as a glance at Graystripe, Fireheart pushed forward, through the prickly hedge. Graystripe followed. Both toms were on the alert for any trace of WindClan scent.

"What do you suppose is out here?" Graystripe asked―loudly. Fireheart felt his hackles rising and forced them back down.

"I don't know. I don't think any Clan cat has ever been out this far."

"Except WindClan," Graystripe corrected him.

By this time, the pair was far enough from the Thunderpath to distinguish the WindClan scent. The trail led away from the Thunderpath and straight through the field.

"Fireheart!" Graystripe called suddenly, veering off of their path.

"What?" Fireheart called back, barely keeping his irritation out of his voice.

"Look!"

Fireheart lifted his head. Ahead of them lay a Thunderpath that arched high into the air, almost like a bigger replica of the bridge that spanned one of RiverClan's streams. A second Thunderpath ran underneath and curved away, into the dark.

Graystripe was closely inspecting a thistle growing in the field. It can't talk, you know, Fireheart thought. "Graystripe, what―"

"They must have settled somewhere near here!" Graystripe declared loudly, startling Fireheart. When he saw the odd look on Fireheart's face, he elaborated a bit more. "WindClan, I mean. Their scent is practically drowning this thistle! They must be nearby!" With that, the grey tom began trotting toward the Thunderpath. I'm surprised he has the sense not to rush straight onto it.

Even as Fireheart stepped forward, Graystripe stopped and stared at the dark, bitter-smelling Thunderpath. "Why in StarClan would WindClan come to a place like this?"

"I guess not even Brokenstar would follow them here," Fireheart answered, mentally filing away Brokenstar's one shortcoming to remember later. If I ever have to chase away my enemies, I'm going to make sure no cat finds them… ever.

"They must be scared, living so close to the Thunderpath," Graystripe noted, stopping short of the black, foul strip. No, they're absolutely happy, living here, Fireheart thought sarcastically. They love it! Then he stopped as well. Graystripe was actually right for once―the WindClan cats were probably on edge.

"Wait, Graystripe," Fireheart called, even though the grey warrior wasn't moving. "We might want to stop here. If WindClan is hiding so near the Thunderpath, they must be fairly desperate not to be found. They're more likely to trust us if we arrive in daylight instead of creeping through the dark."

"Does that mean we can rest?" Graystripe asked happily, pricking up his ears. He looked more alert at the mention of rest than he had in hours. Fireheart resisted the urge to roll his eyes.

"Just until it's light," he answered. "We'll find somewhere the hide and see if we can get some sleep. Are you hungry?" Fortunately, Graystripe shook his head. "Good."

"Where should we sleep?" Graystripe asked, still looking excited and hyper.

Fireheart had long since noticed a dark shadow nestled near but not too near the lower Thunderpath. "How about there?"

"Is that a rabbit burrow? No, too big. Don't tell me there's a badger set here!" Graystripe meowed loudly.

"Let's take a look," Fireheart suggested, even as Graystripe zipped ahead to check it out.

The hole was larger than a badger set, smooth and lined with stone. Fireheart cautiously sniffed it as Graystripe ran ahead, thoroughly exploring the tunnel.

"I can feel air flowing," Fireheart mewed, his voice echoing out into the darkness eerily. "It must come up somewhere near the tangle of Thunderpaths over there."

"Is it empty?" Graystripe asked noisily. You tell me, Fireheart mentally replied. You're the one who's explored every inch without a thought for safety.

"Smells like it," he answered out loud.

"Come on, then! I'm tired." Actually, Graystripe looked hyper enough to go on an all-night hunting trip, but Fireheart suspected that would change as soon as his excitement wore off, so he followed Graystripe into the tunnel.

Inside, there was nothing to be smelt except for the foul, bitter fumes of the Thunderpath. A roaring noise rumbled overhead, causing the whole tunnel to vibrate. Fireheart flinched. Are we underneath the Thunderpath? He fluffed out his coat against the drafty air.

Something brushed against his pelt and he tensed, ready to strike out at it. Just in time he realized it was Graystripe, circling in preparation for sleep. Fireheart crouched down himself let his body relax. He closed his stinging eyes and imagined the sunny forest back in ThunderClan territory. He let his imagination lift him up and carry him away, away to a sunny, warm, perfect forest where he and Spottedleaf could be together forever.

Soon, Fireheart was asleep.