CHAPTER EIGHT

"Mom! Mom, wake up! I think something's wrong with Bluekit!" a mew interrupted my dreams and I felt four tiny paws batting at my stomach.

I lifted my head and looked down at the white she-kit. "Why? Where is she?" I sniffed my kits, picking up the scent of death and my heart sunk in my chest. Puddleheart was afraid of this. Afraid that Bluekit was too small to survive. I had been preparing myself like Puddleheart advised me to. "Let me take her to Puddleheart," I whispered and picked up the limp gray she-kit and stood up, gazing at the black tom who was still sound asleep. Bluekit reminded me most of her real father, none of them looked like Strikefang but he was oblivious, as was the rest of the Clan. They all believed they all just took after me.

Quietly, I slipped out of the nursery and padded into the clearing, seeing Sleekfeather in the middle of camp, watching. She nodded at me, eyeing the limp kit and I could feel the sympathy but I said nothing, entering my brother's den.

"Puddleheart?" I mewed through the fur in my mouth and set her down gently. "Where are you?"

My brother's voice came from the back part of the den, the part only he could go in. "I'm back here. What's going on, Beestripe?" He slipped out, herbs in his jaws and he dropped them when he spotted Bluekit's limp body. "Oh StarClan, no." He took hold of Bluekit and set her on the floor, grabbing some herbs from the wall of the den and placed them on her. "Get back to the nursery, I'll place her in the middle of camp and you can sit with her in the morning." He licked my muzzle and looked down at his kin.

I nodded, looking at the she-kit with sadness and then exited the den, walking past Sleefeather against and entering the nursery, settling back down in the nest and wrapping my tail around the two kits I had left. I won't let StarClan take you two from me, I thought silently, hearing Lightkit had fallen back asleep and Shadowkit was still sleeping.

Goodnight my precious'. I smiled, never believing I could be this happy from having kits. Cloudkit was an apprentice now, Strikefang her mentor just like I'd asked. I had told Strikefang to make sure not to bring her outside of the territory yet, I wanted to be there. I hadn't told Nightfur about the kits yet, far too busy being surrounded by Dawnpelt, Crowfrost, Junipernose, and Sleekfeather who thought they were related to my kits through Strikefang. Wasptail, Puddleheart, Needleflower, and Yarrowfur visited often as well. It had been almost a moon since Stonetooth's death and since I'd had my kits. We'd found my father's body and sat proper vigil.

But oh how I missed being out in the pines… I closed my eyes and felt sleep overcome me.

"Beestripe! Beestripe! Can we go out of the nursery today?" Shadowkit asked, bouncing after. He was large for only being a moon. Lightkit was about his size but not quite, she'd be a good outgoer with her long legs. Shadowkit, on the other hand, would be a nice pine hunter. Bluekit was smaller than both of them, her legs were not as long as Lightkit's but she would've still been a nice outgoer.

Leaf-bare was right around the corner. "Alright, fine. But I'm coming with you. Maybe we can get Cloudpaw to watch you this time so you don't wake Tawnypelt up from her nap again," I purred. Ever since they were born I had shown Cloudpaw as a sister to them and nothing else. And they treated her like a sister too.

Cloudpaw's head suddenly popped into the den. "I heard my name?" she asked, eyes shining in amusement as the kits jumped up and down. "Come on you two! Don't worry, Beestripe!" She slipped out of the den and the kits raced after, me trailing slowly behind.

It was getting colder outside and I puffed out my fur to keep from shivering. Puddleheart was talking to Oakfur and Kinkfur. He told me that Oakfur wasn't looking too good and it might be time to say goodbye this leaf-bare. Needleflower entered the camp with Junipernose and Lionpaw, prey clamped into their jaws. My sister was smiling at Junipernose and I felt myself purr. More kits for ShadowClan? Spikefur, who had taken over as leader of the outgoers for the time being, entered camp with Yarrowfur and Wasptail, Sleekfeather and Birchpaw slipping past them, snickering. Ever since the split in the Clan, no one had been getting along. The pine hunters always had more cats than the outgoers. When they came back from the unknown territory, they smelled different, like flowers and water instead of pinesap. The other cats had begun to notice.

Rowanstar exited his den, speaking to Crowfrost who was picking through the prey pile and Puddleheart's ears pricked as he eavesdropped, still speaking to the elders. who seemed to notice.

Last night when Bluekit had died, Puddleheart had buried her himself and we didn't sit vigil. I wasn't sure why but I said nothing about it. She would've made for a good medicine cat, too. And Puddleheart knew it.

Something was up with Rowanstar, however. He seemed more distant and he didn't leave camp at all anymore. He just whispered to his deputy and medicine cat and made announcements. The time he was covered in blood but hadn't left his nest flashed through my mind. What was going on?

"Beestripe, are you okay?" Cloudpaw asked me, now standing next to me with a tilted head and her light blue eyes shining in worry. Lightkit and Shadowkit was playing with a mossball a tail length away.

My tail twitched. "Do you think… Do you think Rowanstar is losing too many lives?" I asked, surprised that that had came out of my mouth. I wasn't expecting that at all. "I mean, he's so cautious and worried now…"

Cloudpaw's face went grim and she kneaded the ground with her paw. "Puddleheart told me Rowanstar was having these dreams… Of the Clan cats going to war and every time he dreamt it, Rowanstar would lose a life, in the dream I mean," she mewed her eyes watching our leader. "Puddleheart thinks he's fighting warriors in his dreams and they keep killing him, somehow."

Thoughts raced through my head. "Like the Dark Forest warriors? Why would they be attacking Rowanstar?" I knew that Tigerstar once ruled ShadowClan but he was officially dead, Firestar had killed him before he died. Brokenstar was dead as well. Who could it be?

"I don't know…" Cloudpaw mewed, interrupting her thoughts. "Puddleheart says he lost a life last leaf-bare from sickness and he's lost at least three or four more with his dreams, plus he lost the one from Mistystar." Her eyes clouded with worry. "This is bad, isn't it?"

I nodded slowly, feeling fear come off the 'paw. "Don't worry," I mewed, looking at my kits with concern as they played with the mossball. "When they're able to eat prey from the pile, I will take over your training," I told Cloudpaw confidently. No one would deny me that.

She nodded and looked up as Strikefang called to her. "I have to go. See you, Beestripe!" she purred and padded to her temporary mentor and they left camp.

"Lightkit, Shadowkit, come on!" I mewed to them, noticing that Strikefang must be taking Cloudpaw out for night training since the sun was sinking in the sky. "Time to get some sleep."

My kits whined. "Aw, we were having fun!" Lightkit grumbled, slowly trailing after me as I led them to the nursery, pushing them through the entrance and slipping in after them.

It was awful, but I couldn't wait to be out of camp again and not have to worry about my kits. I wanted to be Cloudpaw's mentor already!