I can't even begin to apologize for how late this chapter is. I'm currently flying on a plane from New York after a weekend of good food and shopping (squee!), and feeling extremely guilty that I haven't updated in so long. Luckily, however, the ideas in my head have had time to settle down and get themselves organized, so it looks like things might move a little bit faster after this. Maybe. No promises :P
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Her muscles tensed. Beside her, the warriors paused. Wind rustled the leaves gently, bringing with it a familiar scent, grassy and dry. Her tail lashed, swiping a fern frond from side to side.
"WindClan!" came an unnecessary hiss.
Icefang poked a head out of the undergrowth, her sharp eyes gazing through the trees towards the open expanse of dry heather beyond. The smell was coming from a copse of birch trees not far from their current position, swaying slightly in the intermittent gusts that curled in from the moor.
"I'd estimate about three or four warriors," muttered Eagleclaw, nosing along the base of a nearby oak. "The scent markers are weak, so maybe they're not in the best shape." Her eyes glinted. "We could probably send them running without losing so much as a whisker."
Icefang's lip curled as she sat back on her haunches. "Absolutely not." Her bright gaze traveled over her patrol: Eagleclaw, her pelt blending in seamlessly with the dry bracken poking out of the muddy snow around them. Ashfoot, crouched a few paces behind, his eyes fixed on Icefang, his expression blank. Redpaw and Sparrowtail, sitting side by side near Eagleclaw. She frowned. Sparrowtail had been foisted upon her by Shortwhisker, who insisted that the tortoiseshell get out of the camp and collect some hideous-smelling plant. She would be no use in a battle – in fact, more of a liability, as someone would have to protect her while trying to save his or her own skin.
"We don't want a fight. Still, they're suspiciously close to our side of the border, and I'd like to know what's going on. If there's any evidence they've been stealing prey, don't hesitate to attack. We don't have a single mouse to spare this leafbare. Wait for my signal – we'll approach slowly and loudly, so they don't get spooked."
Icefang turned and plunged into the ferns, her pelt tingling. The delicious sensation of giving orders and knowing that they would have to be obeyed had not gotten old in the past few days. Her initial exaltation still made her heart jump at odd moments, brought a spark to her eye the moment she remembered that sweet feeling of hearing her name on Cinderstar's tongue as he pronounced her deputy.
The group of WindClan warriors became visible even before they caught her scent. As soon as Icefang glimpsed fur between the brambles, she waved her tail above the underbrush, signaling her patrol to move forward. She heard them come crashing closer, and emerged from the bushes like a prowling pine marten, her paws quiet on the snow. Having come upon them from downwind, the WindClan warriors were unaware of the presence of an enemy Clan until Icefang was practically on top of them.
The first warrior to catch their scent spun around, hackles raised, and let out a surprised hiss, franticly moving closer to his Clanmates and nosing their flanks to warn them of Icefang's approach.
"You're very near our border," Icefang meowed immediately, motioning to her patrol to surround the enemy cats. There were three, as keen-nosed Eagleclaw had guessed: a skinny gray tabby tom, a pale brown tabby tom, and a small gray she-cat. Icefang recognized the two toms as Webfur and Tornpad, but she didn't know the little gray. All three looked hollow-eyed and thin, their pelts unkempt and ruffled. Tornpad had a long and jagged scar above his eye that showed white and puckered through the fur.
Webfur stepped shakily forward, his eyes darting from one ThunderClan warrior to the other, his anxiety turning the air sour. Icefang felt a sense of pride as she watched her warriors, despite the hardships they had faced, stand up to the enemy warriors, their lean muscles moving smoothly underneath their coats, their eyes sparkling. Her heart thumped faster thinking that they belonged to her Clan. Hers. Her fangs glinted as she grinned.
"We're sorry," Webfur stammered. He glanced back at his clan members anxiously, but neither of them seemed like they were going to offer any help. "We didn't… that is, we weren't going to cross the border. We weren't hunting." He gazed helplessly at Icefang, eyes dull.
Sighing inwardly, the white she-cat stepped forward. Ashfoot and Eagleclaw closed the gap behind her with practiced steps. As always, Icefang's pale pelt was immaculately clean, despite having trekked the length of the WindClan and RiverClan borders for the better part of the day. Though the snow had become ice and taken on a dusty layer, Icefang still melted into the whiteness, the outlines of her pelt slightly blurred, her form moving in and out of reality as she circled the warriors, only her eyes remaining fixed on theirs.
"What were you doing then?" she questioned without emotion.
Webfur hesitated again, but Icefang let out a low and sinister growl. "I don't want any more excuses," she rumbled, flattening her ears. "Tell me straight or I'll send you running with your tails between your legs. Why are you snooping around by the border? Searching for prey, perhaps? Trying to steal some territory?"
The fur on Webfur's spine lifted defensively as he glared back at her, fire finally igniting in his eyes after Icefang's accusations.
"No!" he hissed. "We were doing nothing of the sort, and I resent those allegations. The truth is, my Clan has been driven from our camp by dogs."
A sharp intake of breath echoed around the clearing. Icefang could sense the surprise and sympathy emanating from her warriors, but her face remained impassive.
"Indeed? Is WindClan so weak as to be driven from their home by a few mangy, idiot mongrels? Are we supposed to offer you food and shelter, bring you into our home? What do you expect, a welcome?"
Again, Webfur gave a growling response. "No! You're the one who insisted on prying into WindClan's business. We're staying on our side of the border, you see?" He traced a paw along an invisible line and sat down meaningfully on the WindClan side. "There's no cause for conflict."
Webfur's defensive innocence was getting under Icefang's skin, but she could feel the eyes of the ThunderClan warriors on her and she knew what they wanted. Suppressing a sigh, Icefang meowed, "Alright, I can see there's no cause for trouble. Still, if WindClan has been driven from their camp, it's our duty to help."
A murmur of agreement rose from the ThunderClan warriors, and Icefang gave herself a mental nod. The Clan first, she reminded herself. Always the Clan before anything else.
Webfur's ruff bristled, but he did not disagree. His two Clanmates, the brown tom and the gray she-cat, leaned closer to him and whispered something. They exchanged mutters, and then the brown tom stepped forward, his eyes darting back and forth warily.
"WindClan thanks you for your concern," he meowed, scuffling his feet and wrinkling his nose as though he smelled something foul. "But we can take care of ourselves." Without another word, the skinny warrior turned and pelted out of the undergrowth, emerging onto the moor at a run and disappearing into the tall grass, leaving only a wake of shivering stalks behind him.
Icefang's pelt grew hot and she turned her gaze on the remaining two WindClan warriors, willing them to explain their clanmate's rude behavior. But neither of the cats said a word. They looked at each other, sharing some unspoken message, and then melted away just as quickly and silently as the brown tom. The ThunderClan patrol was left alone and confused at the edge of the territory.
"That was weird," Redpaw snorted as they got to their feet and turned back in the direction of the camp.
"Well, the Gathering is tonight," Ashfoot spoke up cheerfully. "We can find out more then."
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Icefang paused at the crest of the hill that sloped down into the hollow of Fourtrees. It was her first time at a Gathering as deputy, and though Cinderstar was accompanying them, she still felt the thrill of leading her Clan through the forest at a run, feeling the chill wind stream past her and listening to the thud of the warriors' paws behind her on the forest floor.
"When you feel ready," Cinderstar murmured in her ear. He was pressed close beside her, shivering. Apparently his skeletal frame couldn't put up with the frigid leaf-bare weather. Lately Cinderstar's weird personality shifts had taken a new turn. He'd left behind the forgetful, dazed character of the past moons and thrown himself into teaching Icefang everything he knew, following her around camp and giving pointers on how to run things. It both pleased and frightened her. On the one paw Icefang eagerly absorbed all of the advice her gave, however annoying his presence became. On the other paw, it felt as though Cinderstar were placing his life's knowledge on his shoulders in preparation for… well, it felt like he was preparing to die.
"WindClan and ShadowClan are here," Icefang pointed out. The scents were strong in the air but Cinderstar's senses weren't as sharp as they once were.
"Let's go," meowed the gray tom. He bunched his muscles and leapt forward, racing down the slope with surprising speed for such an old cat, though Icefang could see that the exertion of leaving camp and trekking halfway across the territory was beginning to effect him. Waving her tail for the rest of the ThunderClan group to follow, the white she-cat dove into the ferns, following Cinderstar's trail.
As soon as they entered the hollow, Cinderstar made his way to the Great Rock, but Icefang hung back for a moment to survey the other Clans. As she had suspected, most of the WindClan cats looked the same as Webfur and his patrol had appeared that morning at the border: skinny, hollow-eyed and sporting dull, ruffled pelts. Even the leader, Guststar, looked starved and exhausted.
Turning away from the WindClan warriors, Icefang padded closer to a group of ShadowClan and RiverClan cats, scenting the air carefully and keeping her ears open. There was a mix of apprentices and warriors from both clans, and their conversation was more of the usual – telling stories of past battles and other remarkable tall tales.
All of the ShadowClan cats she recognized, and they looked much the same as always. But as she raked her calculating gaze over the present RiverClan warriors, Icefang noticed a new face that she had never seen before. Granted, the she-cat had missed the last few Gatherings, but she would have heard about a new litter of kits or new apprentices. But there was something odd about this tom, who looked to be about her same age, with a deep black pelt and wide blue eyes. He was listening to the warriors speak but seemed apart from the group, sitting a few whisker-lengths away from the circle and keeping his eyes fixed on the storytellers while his ears swiveled back and forth as though listening to other things.
Icefang felt a brush of fur and glanced around to find Eaglepaw and Redpaw sitting on either side of her, their gazes locked on the black RiverClan tom.
"Weird," Eagleclaw mewed matter-of-factly.
"Definitely not normal," agreed Redpaw, nodding her small head sharply.
"Neither of you have seen that tom before, have you?" Icefang questioned in a whisper, following the warrior's every movement with her eyes.
"Nope," Eagleclaw confirmed.
"There was this dream…but no, not for real," Redpaw hissed with a chuckle.
"But he smells like RiverClan, and he doesn't look like a kittypet…" Icefang trailed off, watching the tom curiously.
Suddenly, the RiverClan warrior's focus shifted; his head turned and his eyes shot sideways, locking on Icefang. They both stared at each other for a moment, equally shocked and enthralled. Then the tom's lip curled into a feral smile, and he rose to his feet gracefully and began picking his way across the clearing towards the three ThunderClan she-cats.
"Ohh, he's coming over!" Redpaw squealed excitedly, scuffing her paws in the dirt.
"He's handsome," Eagleclaw drawled, nudging Icefang's shoulder.
"He's from RiverClan," Icefang replied flatly. Though she had noticed the tom's sleek pelt, lithe form and glittering eyes, her thoughts were flying in an entirely different direction. There was obviously something odd about this warrior, a manner of sorts that set him apart from the others in the clearing. It made Icefang's pelt prickle, and she had resolved as soon as they had exchanged looks that she would get to the bottom of it.
"Go find Stonepelt," Icefang murmured out of the corner of her mouth, watching raptly as the tom approached.
"Why?" Redpaw whined, her tail lashing back and forth in frustration. Eagleclaw rose wearily to her feet and gave Redpaw a gentle nudge.
"When she wants you to leave, leave," the tabby warrior meowed in exasperation. "Icefang is deputy, after all." The two she-cats padded slowly away, Redpaw casting anxious looks over her shoulder.
Icefang forgot about them as soon as they were out of earshot. The black tom was a few tail-lengths away. Her curiosity getting the better of her, Icefang couldn't help but take a few steps to meet him.
"Icefang?" purred the strange warrior, settling back on his haunches. His long tail curled gracefully around his front paws and lay twitching slowly back and forth between them.
"Should I know your name too, then, since we're being mysterious?" Icefang growled cynically. She felt foolish – somehow she wanted to impress this strange cat, even though she knew it was a ridiculous notion. The she-cat had foregone her usual icy countenance for a more relaxed, sarcastic manner, which was more than she allowed for most other cats, even her Clanmates.
"I should think not," mewed the black tom in a low voice, sporting a sly grin. His whisker twitched as he watched her eyes narrow.
"I don't usually take kindly to outsiders," Icefang mewed haughtily. She suppressed the lightning bolt of angry shame that pierced her chest as this sentence left her lips, all too aware of her own past.
"Who says I'm an outsider?" purred the RiverClan warrior. Then he shook his head slightly and gave a low, rumbling chuckle. "My name is Eelshadow. I've heard a lot about you."
Icefang rolled the name around in her mind. Eelshadow. It fit him, almost too perfectly, as though he had chosen it himself yesterday. "And I don't know anything about you, except that you obviously weren't born in RiverClan, or any Clan." These kinds of assumptions might usually be considered extremely offensive, but there was something permissive about his nature that Icefang felt in the air, a freedom unique to their conversation.
"Good guess," mewed Eelshadow, "but you're wrong. I was born in RiverClan."
Skeptical, Icefang cocked her head and blinked at him. "You didn't grow up there."
Eelshadow laughed. "No, that's right. My mother was a rogue, my father a Clan warrior. When he died my mother decided it was time for me to return to my birthplace. So here I am – a new warrior of RiverClan. I just received my name three days ago. Do you like it?" His grin gave his blue eyes a wicked slant, but Icefang only flashed a brief smile and shrugged.
"It certainly fits you," she purred, her tail lashing.
Just then the call for the Gathering to begin rang out over the clearing. Icefang gave Eelshadow a swift nod goodbye and dashed to the Great Rock, scaling its side in two powerful leaps and skidding to a stop at Cinderstar's side.
"Chatting?" meowed the gray tom, sitting by himself behind the three other leaders.
"Maybe," Icefang replied vaguely. Toadstar of ShadowClan was saying something about crows, but Icefang was barely listening. Instead, her attention was almost completely focused on the lone figure of Eelshadow, once again sitting apart from the RiverClan group, his narrow face turned up towards the Great Rock while his ears cupped in all directions, picking up the slightest sounds from every corner.
This was the first creature Icefang had encountered in her seasons in ThunderClan that she could not immediately place. Most cats were profoundly transparent, easy to read and pitifully shallow. Even Eagleclaw was disappointing sometimes with her lack of depth, though Redpaw never ceased to impress Icefang with her grasp of concepts far beyond her age and level of experience. But Eelshadow seemed to share some essential part of Icefang's makeup – that innate ability to be stoic and sly at the same time, to wear a mask of despair while celebrating inside. It the first time Icefang had taken a good look at herself from the other side, experiencing what it felt like to speak with herself, to watch her emotions move flawlessly through her features while within a different story was playing out. After a only a few exchanges with the black tom she could feel a similarity between them that no other cat would recognize, and it made her heart beat faster, her whiskers quiver, her tail swish.
"Icefang!" hissed Cinderstar. "Come on, Icefang!" He brushed past her to take his place at the front of the Great Rock. Apparently Floodstar had already spoken, and Icefang was a little annoyed with herself for missing his speech. Still, by the looks of the warriors below, he hadn't said anything of interest to anyone, and Cinderstar would have made a comment if he had.
"ThunderClan has suffered much in the past few moons," Cinderstar began, "but we are recovering quickly. The fire devastated our portion of the forest, but prey has returned and our daily routine is back to normal." He stressed this last phrase, letting the other Clans know in as subtle a way as possible that ThunderClan was patrolling its borders as frequently as ever, and they'd best not think this was a good time to try anything. "As you may have heard already, we have recently had to deal with yet another tragedy in too few seasons. My most recent deputy Brightpool perished in the snowstorm of a moon or two ago. Her body was found buried beneath the snow. This terrible accident has been yet another grief for my Clan, but we have remained strong, and Brightpool's memory will only serve to strengthen us in the future.
"As you can see, I have appointed Icefang as my new deputy. I believe that her admirable qualities will help my Clan through this troubling time, and that she will make an excellent leader when the time comes. Other than this piece of news, ThunderClan has nothing more to report. Thank you."
The cats in the hollow cheered Iccefang's name, and she felt a thrill of excitement through her veins as the sound echoed through the clearing. It was about time.
When Guststar finally stepped forward to speak, a hush fell over the hollow. Obviously the other Clans had noticed the odd appearance of the WindClan warriors, and everyone wanted to know what was going on. Icefang, of course, already knew what they were going to say, but she was still interested in Guststar's words.
"As I'm sure you noticed, my Clan has also undergone a period of hardship recently," the brown-furred she-cat meowed wearily. "Since we have nothing else to report, I will cut to the issue. Three dogs are loose on WindClan territory, two of the same that were terrorizing us last Greenleaf," the she-cat meowed. "I know what you're all thinking – dogs? How can WindClan be defeated by a few idiot mongrels?"
Icefang could have sworn that she felt Guststar's gaze on her as she quoted the ThunderClan she-cat's words of that morning, but it was probably just her imagination.
"But," continued Guststar, "we would like to bring this image into your minds. Imagine sleeping peacefully in your nest at night, with the wind whistling through the brambles and your Clanmates asleep around you, silently. Then, like a thunderclap, three enormous beasts, four times your size at least, come tearing into the camp, ripping up camp walls and dens, their teeth inches form your ruff, and you are still half asleep. Your hear warriors shouting and kits squealing, but you are trapped beneath the ruined remains of your den." She paused for a breath, catching the eye of her deputy, Russetstripe, and then tiredly continued.
"A moon ago we lost our beloved medicine cat, Rabbitnose, to one of the dogs. Grasstail has taken her place as full medicine cat, but the loss has shaken our Clan to the core. Luckily none others have lost their lives although many have been wounded."
Icefang thought of the deep, ugly gash one of the WindClan warriors' foreheads, and shuddered.
"We have been forced to leave our camp, as the dogs continued to destroy what little we could repair. It seems that the Twolegs release them onto the moor during the night to protect the sheep, and this is when they follow our scent trails to the camp. Once they discovered it they would not leave it alone. We are now living in a ditch in the ground by the waterfall. We are afraid even to leave the ditch for fear of leaving trails that will lead the dogs to our one remaining home."
Silence pervaded the air as Guststar's speech came to a close. Not a cat moved until Icefang became so frustrated with the stillness that she stepped forward and laid her tail gently across Guststar's shoulder. Drawing in a deep breath, Icefang meowed, "Though we may be four different Clans, and when prey is scarce we are enemies, today, tonight, let us be friends. When once Clan is in need, it is the duty of the other Clans to help them. Is there anything we can do to help WindClan during this time?"
For a moment Icefang was afraid that Guststar would be angry, or that Cinderstar would publicly reprimand her for not speaking with him first. But after a long pause Guststar sagged towards the rock, her tail drooping and her shoulders shaking. It was as though every cat in the clearing had been holding their breath and suddenly they all released it at the same time, and a collective sigh spread through the hollow.
"Yes, RiverClan will send aid if WindClan is in need of it," Floodstar added, stepping up to Guststar other side. Cinderstar followed his example, and after a grumble of annoyance Toadstar did the same. Guststar shrugged and nodded her head slowly.
"My warriors are tired and hungry. Our current 'camp' is fine for a while, but if we can't get the dogs to leave we will have to go elsewhere. If there is one thing we need it is strong warriors to help us drive the dogs away. And then we will be able to take care of ourselves," she added more fiercely.
"Very well," meowed Floodstar solemnly. He gazed out at the hollow with his unsettling pale eyes and promised, "We will send a patrol to help WindClan."
"As will ThunderClan," Cinderstar agreed, meeting Icefang's eyes calmly and raising his eyebrows.
"ShadowClan will help," mewed Toadstar reluctantly, but he didn't seem too mad.
"Tomorrow at sunrise all three patrols will meet by the waterfall to plan. I believe this Gathering can be dismissed," meowed Floodstar matter-of-factly, diving forward off the Great Rock. Murmuring broke out among the warriors below as Icefang turned to help Cinderstar down the side of the rock.
"I can't pretend not to be angry that you did that without asking me," he mewed, "but you were right." He gazed at enigmatically. "I chose well, finally."
Icefang chose not to reply, but her lips twitched into a smile. As soon as they reached the hollow the ThunderClan cats gathered around, congratulating Icefang and whispering to Cinderstar, excited by the night's events. Icefang hung back this time, letting Cinderstar lead for once, needing space to think. Luckily Stonepelt was back at camp, and Eagleclaw and Redpaw were eagerly trying to convince Cinderstar that they should be part of the patrol going to WindClan the next day. Icefang slowed to a trot, letting the group pull ahead, and set her mind to the task at hand.
After a moments of turning over ideas in her hand, a sound in the bushes snapped Icefang back to reality. She could still hear and smell the ThunderClan warriors ahead, so there was no way a predator was nearby if they hadn't already detected it. Curious, Icefang paused and peered into the undergrowth.
At first all she saw was slowly swaying ferns, speckled by rays of moonlight, but then a dark shape materialized between the shrubs and took the form of a cat. Icefang scented the air and recognized the smell at once. A rare tingling sensation took hold of her as the figure drew closer, slinking silently past the trees. Her Clan had disappeared by now, but worry had long since deserted her.
The black cat gazed out at her, blue eyes wide and shining. Still it said nothing, merely waved its tail lazily through the air and blinked at her. Icefang couldn't help but break into a grin as she bounded into the ferns towards him, and then both cats were gone, leaving only the swish of the leaves to tell that they had been there.