Yuck. Yuck yuck yuck. Blegh. I just reread that last chapter for the first time, and I am sorely disappointed with myself. I was in a hurry to get it posted, since the idea had just occurred to me and I was angry for being so late, but now I feel bad. The number of mistakes was appalling. Please forgive me. I'd just like to point out that I'm usually very good at grammar, but when I type fast and upload without revising, it looks like a first grader wrote it. No offense to first graders, of course, but I should be able to do better nowadays. Oh well. Just want to let y'all know that I am aware of my numerous typos, and I hope you can still get my meaning despite them. I'm sort of in love with where this story is going…. Muahahaha :D

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It was the simplicity of Eelshadow's plan that was most attractive to Icestar. He had everything perfectly lined up, every detail worked out to the smallest degree. Even after hours of going over the scheme in her head later that day, she could find no flaw in the plot. The one thing that was bothering her, like a particularly stubborn tick lodged behind her ear, was the fact that it had been Eelshadow and not herself who had come up with it. That just made her blood boil.

What have I come to? She groaned to herself as she crouched at the edge of the training hollow, her tail flicking back and forth. I used to spend my afternoons concocting conspiracy after conspiracy, all perfectly organized and beautifully effective. Now I'm taking orders from fever-touched rogues? It was all she could do to smother a wail of self-pity.

"How was that Icestar? Was that good?" Rosepaw called. She was standing with her paw pressed firmly on Graypaw's neck. The gray she-cat was glaring at Rosepaw, her lips twisted in a defiant snarl.

"Try it again!" answered Icestar wearily. Rosepaw's face fell, while Graypaw smiled.

"This time I'll shove your face in the dirt!" the gray she-cat spat, scrambling to her feet.

Icestar took little pleasure in watching the young cats spar. Usually she would be following her apprentice's every movement with rapt attention, shouting out pointers and congratulating Rosepaw on every well-executed twist or turn. But today she couldn't muster the same enthusiasm. She felt old and useless, despite her youth and bright future. Eelshadow had developed a flawless plan before she had even started thinking about the upcoming moons. She had briefly mulled over some ideas, but nothing as detailed as the RiverClan tom's proposal. Only adding to her general irritation was the fact that Stonepelt had been hanging on her all morning, pestering her with questions.

The news of the poisoned river had spread like wildfire through the ThunderClan camp before Icestar had even returned from her discussion with Eelshadow. It seemed that Eagleclaw had told Thrushwing, who had then made an announcement without Icestar's approval. It wasn't that Icestar was angry, except that now everyone was coming to her asking for her to describe the scene, and asking what she was going to do about the shocking turn of events, when she had yet to go over the situation herself. Ashfoot wanted her to send fresh kill to the RiverClan camp, which she flatly refused. Mossfur and Whitefoot had gotten together and outlined an attack plan, complete with specified targets for every warrior to single out during the invasion of the RiverClan camp. Icestar had dismissed that suggestion pretty quickly, much to their dismay. Some cats had even proposed that she allow the RiverClan warriors access to clean drinking water on ThunderClan territory in order to stop the demise of the entire clan. No one had yet come up with something that Icestar deemed even remotely helpful, and she herself was devoid of ideas.

"I think that's enough for today," called Yellowstripe, striding forward from the edge of the sandy hollow. Icestar blinked and focused on the apprentices again.

Rosepaw was once again standing victorious over Graypaw, her head held high. But she wasn't looking at her defeated opponent. She was gazing expectantly at Icestar, her eyes wide and hopeful.

"Well done," Icestar muttered, getting slowly to her feet. "I agree, let's call it a day."

Graypaw slid out of Rosepaw's grip and shook the sand from her pale fur. "Next time I'll win for sure," she growled over her shoulder at the brown tabby apprentice, marching away.

Rosepaw stared after her, her expression mournful. It looked like she was about to call out an apology when Icestar stepped in front of her and blocked her view.

"You've improved," meowed the white she-cat, nudging Rosepaw gently. "A moon ago Graypaw would have beaten you for sure. Now look at you! Not even tired, eh?"

Rosepaw shrugged and looked at the ground. "I guess not."

Though she felt a little guilty, Icestar didn't try to cheer her up. She wasn't in the greatest mood either, and she knew that any attempt she made to lift Rosepaw's spirits would probably only make things worse. Smothering a sigh, Icestar flicked her tail across her apprentice's shoulders and led the way back to the camp.

Stonepelt was beside her the moment she emerged from the bramble tunnel.

"How was training?" he asked Rosepaw. The brown she-cat shrugged again and trudged past him, heading for the apprentices' den, probably to sulk. "What's wrong with her?" he questioned of Icestar, concern layering his voice. "I've never seen her so depressed, especially not after warrior training."

"Don't ask me," Icestar murmured. "Whatever it is, it isn't my problem."

Now Stonepelt was really worried. His dark blue eyes sparkled with anxiety.

"If there's a problem between you and Rosepaw then there must be something wrong, with one or both of you. Did anything happen this morning?" He asked, trailing behind her as Icestar padded morosely toward the fresh kill pile, eyeing the newly caught prey. Her appetite still hadn't returned after experiencing the gruesome stench of the dead snakes from the day before. "Or are you still anxious because of yesterday?"

"Neither, really," she lied, avoiding his gaze. She pulled a dead finch from the pile, stared at it for a moment, deciding, and then poked it away. She wasn't too worried about the poisoned river or the snake omen, for the time being, and she couldn't very well tell Stonepelt about her conversation with Eelshadow.

"Not hungry?" Stonepelt whined. He was like a queen fretting after a sick kit. It made Icestar's claws itch.

"Not today," she replied, willing him to go away. She just wanted a few moments of peace to sort things through before going ahead with Eelshadow's plan. Just a few moments. Was it too much to ask?

"You should really eat something." Stonepelt was still following her, even as she approached her den, which was usually the only place she could go for some solitude.

"Maybe later," she snapped, her tone turning sharp. "I'm tired, I need to rest. Go hunt or something." Without even glancing in Stonepelt's direction, she swept through the lichen curtain and dove into the dark comfort of her den. She could sense Stonepelt waiting outside for a moment before padding slowly away. She could imagine his frequent glances back at the den, hoping that she would come out and apologize, but of course she didn't. He would have to learn to deal with her black moods just the same as her good ones if he was truly serious about being her mate.

Icestar allowed herself a few minutes to rest and regain her composure before delving into the serious matter of Eelshadow's mischievous designs.

It wasn't that she disagreed with his plan. On the other paw, she quite liked it. Her primary annoyance was the way he had proposed it; with such of an air of arrogance that Icestar had had to put in a massive effort not to leap up and claw the smirk from his face. She was accustomed to a feeling of superiority – among her Clanmates and among the other leaders. Not once had she ever felt a step behind, or even a step in tune with other warriors, except for perhaps Eagleclaw and Redwhisker. She had always been one step ahead. Until now. Eelshadow was right alongside her, but his pawsteps were erratic and unpredictable. She could not guess what his next move would be, not even when he explained his plans. Icestar had never felt threatened before… until, well, now.

It was nearly sunhigh before Icestar emerged from her den again, having worked over her anxieties and come to a conclusion. She paused behind the lichen for a moment, squinting through the mossy shield. After scanning the camp and seeing no sign of Stonepelt, she felt a wave of relief.

Instead of the big gray tom waiting for her, she caught sight of Redwhisker bounding across the clearing in her direction. The red-furred she-cat was perhaps one of the few warriors that Icestar felt comfortable spending time with today, and the cat that she had been hoping to run in to.

"Redwhisker!" she greeted happily, touching noses with the young warrior.

"I just got back from hunting with Eagleclaw," purred the she-cat, giving her pelt a quick shake.

"Catch anything good?" Icestar mewed.

"A moorhen!" said Redwhisker, breathless with excitement. "It almost got away, but I did this crazy flip in midair and caught it on the wing! It was amazing!" Her eyes were bright and wild.

"Good for you," Icestar said with a chuckle. Then she added, "Where did Eagleclaw go? I need to talk to both of you."

Redwhisker cocked her head. "I think she went to talk to Shortwhisker about a thorn in her pad. Should I go get her?"

"That'd be great," Icestar meowed. Redwhisker dipped her head and darted away, ducking into the medicine den with Eagleclaw's name on her lips.

Icestar paws were twitching with anticipation as she watched the ferns, but she didn't have to wait long. Eagleclaw and Redwhisker appeared a few moments later. Icestar was relieved to see that the golden tabby wasn't limping, though a tangle of cobwebs was plastered on her left forepaw.

"So what's this about?" Eagleclaw grumbled as soon as she was standing before Icestar. "Redwhisker just said it was urgent or something. Can't I take a nap first?"

Icestar rolled her eyes. If any other warrior had spoken to her in such an insolent manner she wouldn't have hesitated before swatting their ears. With Eagleclaw, and with Redwhisker, she was always more lenient, even though she knew it was wrong to play favorites.

Icestar leaned close to them, and both she-cats instinctively leaned in as well, falling silent as a sense of secrecy fell over their heads. Icestar whispered, slowly, "I need to have a discussion with you two… about the future."

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I know it's not very long, but I wanted to stop there for dramatic effect. Aren't you proud of me? I actually updated two days in a row! :D