Chapter 16!

Stormpaw's tail lashed anxiously as he watched Silverstream's patrol leave. I should be on that patrol. A wave of fury crashed over him, though he quickly quelled the sudden emotion, sinking his claws into the ground as he reminded himself over and over that Foxpaw truly was a much better tracker. If anyone could find her, it would be Foxpaw. You better bring her back to me alive…

"Stormpaw!"

The dark gray tom turned to see Whitestorm padding towards him. "You heard Fireheart—we need to get this debris out of the camp."

"Yes, Whitestorm." Stormpaw dipped his head, willing the anxiety in his chest to calm. "Where should we move it to?"

"We could use it to patch the holes in the camp boundary," Graystripe flicked his tail towards one of the rather large gaps torn through the brambles.

"That's brilliant," Whitestorm rumbled. "Do that, Stormpaw." He turned to a few of the warriors Fireheart had yet to name for other duties. "Sootfur, Tawnypelt, Swiftstep, Longtail—you help, too."

Stormpaw felt his heart steady slightly, watching his Clan-mates fall instantly into their orders, working with a clear and determined focus. One that Stormpaw shared. I must put the Clan first.

He padded across the clearing, to a huge branch that had fallen almost directly in front of the elders' den, taking it firmly in his jaws and dragging it to one of the holes. Sootfur was already there, working with a tangle of thorns that had been swept into the camp.

"Perfect," the young warrior mumbled through the vines. "Put that just there and I'll weave these thorns through it. It'll be even better than the original barrier."

"Good idea," Stormfur dropped the branch as he was directed, watching for a moment as Sootfur worked with the thorns. Already his paws were cut, but he didn't even blink, working steadfastly. "I'll be back with more."

"Thanks, Stormpaw!"

The dark gray apprentice dipped his head and made his way to more debris. Between he and Sootfur, they filled two of the larger gaps, finishing the second just as the rain began to ebb almost entirely away. Only a fine mist lingered—slightly too heavy to be called a fog—and the sun was breaking through the formerly dense clouds.

Already, the camp looked much better. What fresh-kill could be salvaged had been, and placed in a ragged-looking pile. Most of the debris was gone, and Runningwind, Rainwhisker, and Sorreltail were leaving on a hunting patrol. Stormpaw scanned the clearing for any sign that Silverstream's patrol had returned, his heart skipping a beat as he caught a flash of dark ginger, only to sigh a moment later as he realized it was Fireheart's flame-colored pelt, and not the much darker red fur of he and Cindercloud's son. The dark gray apprentice was, however, surprised to see Bluestar sitting next to their deputy, her shoulders hunched and her eyes dark. Yellowfang sat to his other side, and the three appeared to be having a serious conversation.

"I wonder what we should do now…" Sootfur sat next to Stormpaw, his amber eyes following Stormpaw's gaze. "Bluestar seems… Shaken."

"Shaken…" Stormpaw echoed. "That's a good word for it…"

The pale gray tom beside him sighed. "Fireheart tries his hardest to make us think she's okay, but really, every cat can tell she's not the same." His voice was layered with concern, and his ears flicked uneasily. "Right? You can tell, too, can't you?"

"Unfortunately, yes." Stormpaw let a sigh of his own pass his lips. "But even if she is ill, we must believe in her." He thought briefly of Foxpaw's words, and the sudden wisdom the red-furred apprentice seemed to have developed, before shaking his head.

"You're right." Sootfur shook his pelt, ridding it of the rain water that had collected in his thin pelt. For once, Stormpaw thanked his RiverClan heritage, as the rain seemed never to want to cling to his fur. "I suppose we should see if Whitestorm needs us to do anything else, Fireheart seems busy."

Stormpaw nodded, following the older tom across the clearing to where Whitestorm and Graystripe were finishing patching the last hole. They had only made it halfway when the gorse tunnel began rustling, Silverstream's slender form slipping through, followed closely by Foxpaw and Featherpaw. Instantly, Stormpaw felt a wave of relief wash over him.

"Featherpaw!" He called, racing to her side. "Featherpaw, are you okay?" Graystripe was there, too, his amber eyes wide with concern. The light gray tabby didn't seem quite herself, though she nodded faintly in response to Stormpaw's question. Then the gorse tunnel rustled again, revealing Dustpelt and Cindercloud—and carried between them, Ashfur's limp, battered form.

"Oh StarClan no…" Graystripe's meow was hardly heard over the wail that split the air as Ferncloud emerged from the nursery, rushing to Dustpelt and Cindercloud and leaving her kits to follow more slowly. Foxpaw blinked, before catching Dustpelt's pointed look and intercepting the kits halfway across the clearing.

Stormpaw exchanged a glance with Hailpaw, and the pale silver tom gave Featherpaw a nudge. "Come on, Featherpaw, let me take a look at you and make sure you're not hurt."

"I'm fine," she mumbled, bowing her head. "But Ashfur…" Her lithe form trembled, and Stormpaw pressed his flank against hers, lending her his support.

"I'll be the judge of who's fine and who's not." The medicine cat apprentice had adopted Yellowfang's business-like tone, and with a spark of pride, Stormpaw realized just how much Hailpaw had grown. Just as he knew Foxpaw and Hailpaw looked after Featherpaw as if she was their own littermate, he felt the same kinship with the two toms.

Featherpaw sighed, but allowed Stormpaw to urge her towards the medicine den, where Yellowfang was emerging with herbs—after watching her conversation with Fireheart and Bluestar, Stormpaw had a feeling they were for their leader.

"Alright," with a brisk nod, Hailpaw began moving about the medicine den, while Stormpaw took a seat next to his sister, running his tail comfortingly down her side in an attempt to soothe her obviously frazzled nerves. "Can you tell me what happened?" The medicine cat didn't turn away from the herbs he was mixing.

Featherpaw took a deep breath, before beginning quietly, "I was hunting…"

"You were on patrol with Brambleclaw, Sorreltail, and Cindercloud." Stormpaw noted, earning a nod from Featherpaw.

"We split up, and it started storming badly. Soon, I couldn't even see a mouse-length ahead of my nose… Then Ashfur found me. He told me that we needed to go back to camp, and to hurry, and then before I knew it he just barreled into me, and then the t-tree, it just fell on us… I tried to talk to him, and to get him to move, but he already… He was already dead…" She pressed her ears flat against her head, her eyes dark with sudden grief. "He saved me…"

"Then he died a death any warrior would be proud of."

All three apprentices turned to see Fireheart push his way into the medicine den, his flame-colored pelt matted and dull. His eyes however, shone with fresh grief and determination. Hailpaw dipped his head respectfully to his father, and Stormpaw and Featherpaw quickly followed suit.

"We will grieve his death," their deputy continued. "But if he were alive, he would only want what's best for ThunderClan, and right now, we all need to be as strong as Ashfur was. We all need to put others before ourselves and recover from this terrible storm."

"Yes, Fireheart." Stormpaw bowed his head, and Featherpaw nodded her own understanding, though her eyes were still dark.

"As your deputy, I'm telling you to save your grief for later." Fireheart gave them each a warm, understanding look. "As your father," he glanced at Hailpaw, "And Graystripe's best friend," his eyes then fell to Stormpaw and Featherpaw, "I'm telling you it's going to be okay. We will mourn tonight, and tomorrow we will wake and do our duties knowing that Ashfur is watching over us from the ranks of StarClan."

"Thank-you, Fireheart," Featherpaw stood, pressing her nose into their deputy's dirty pelt for only a moment, before turning back to Hailpaw. "I'll be alright, Hailpaw, thank-you. I'm going to go sit vigil now."

Stormpaw dipped his head first to Hailpaw, then to Fireheart, and followed his sister to where they had laid Ashfur in the center of the clearing. Ferncloud was there already, Dustpelt at her side. Brambleclaw and Tawnypelt, who had trained with him for a few moons, were there, too. Featherpaw settled silently beside them, and Stormpaw followed suit, resting his chin on her shoulder as she pushed her nose into Ashfur's cold pelt.

"Thank-you, Ashfur…" She whispered softly. "I promise to become a warrior you would be proud of saving…"

Stormpaw closed his eyes, feeling his heart ache for his sister. He couldn't imagine how it must feel, to know that a clan-mate had giving their life for his. That's what it means to be a loyal warrior… To give your life for you clan and your clan-mates. If I had to choose between my life and the life of any other ThunderClan cat, I would choose my Clan-mate. And Ashfur knew you would do the same, Featherpaw, if you had the option. That's why it's okay… That's why as long as you keep that promise, Ashfur will know he did the right thing.

The sun was only just setting when Bluestar emerged from her den again. She took one long, agonized look at Ashfur's body before leaping onto the Highrock, stumbling slightly where she stood before managing to yowl her summons. The cats that weren't sitting vigil assembled slowly, thought Bluestar's tail lashed with impatience.

"ThunderClan!" She yowled, her eyes suddenly burning in the light of the stars. "This storm was sign!"

Murmurs immediately rippled through the clan, shocked whispers and startled looks washing through the ranks. Stormpaw looked up at his leader through wide amber eyes, feeling a cold chill seeping through his pelt, despite the warm, muggy air left by the storm.

"It is a sign that StarClan has turned against us!"

"Bluestar, no!" Yellowfang whirled to face Bluestar from her place beneath the Highrock, and the rest of the Clan fell completely silent as Bluestar hissed furiously at the medicine cat.

"Silence!" Yellowfang's head dropped in defeat, her eyes filled with despair as they met Hailpaw's. The pale silver tom bowed his own head, his shoulder slouching. "StarClan has turned against us—so we must turn against StarClan!"

She stepped forward, her blue-gray pelt shining in the steadily brightening moonlight. "I, Bluestar, leader of ThunderClan, hereby declare war on StarClan!"

Hey guys! Sooo… I made this chapter a little dramatic, I know… And I want to know what you think! I was originally going to let Bluestar slip away peacefully, with only Tigerstar to wear at her sanity, but… I enjoyed her war against StarClan, and I figured I could work it in well with my current plotline, so… Let me know what you think! I feel like the chapters are getting kind of rushed, but I really want to start getting into the real plot, and Foxpaw and the rest need to be warriors first, soo… You can expect that fairly soon ;P

No one reviewed the last chapter, soo… Thanks for reading, guys, and remember to let me know your thoughts and feelings! I take every opinion into careful consideration.

Thanks again! See you next chapter!