Hey all, once again I am so so so sorry that I havn't updated in forever. I just get so caught up with school and now swimming, I have a swim meet every weekend ad that takes up so much time. Anyways here is the next chapter, im really gonna try to get the next one up soon, hopefully within two weeks but now guarantees. Thanks to all of you who are sticking with the story I really really appreciate it and for those of you who leave reviews you really make my day.
Please leave a review or PM me, I really like to get your feedback.
Moonstream stared ahead in shock, her green eyes resting on Mintflower's limp body.
The dark furred deputy lay unnaturally still, her blue eyes cold and lifeless. Blood seeped from a gash along her throat and the she-cat's claws were outstretched and curled. She had gone down fighting.
Coming out of her daze, Moonstream could see Nightswallow looking over the body and she hurried over to help. Moonstream's pelt prickled uneasily as the strong scent of Thunderclan rushed over her while she nosed through Mintflower's pelt.
"Why would they do this?" Nightswallow whispered, almost thoughtfully as if trying to make sense of the situation, "It doesn't make sense."
As Moonstream worked her way around Mintflower's body she mentally took note of other injuries. In addition to the gash on her neck, there was also a barely detectable trickle of blood coming from the back of the she-cat's head. Near Mintflower's haunches there were a few shallow claw marks that barely broke the skin and the fur around the marks was missing.
Moonstream narrowed her eyes, spotting a few damp patches of fur along Mintflower's belly and her paws. The medicine cat apprentice turned to look at Sunvine who was explaining the story to Reedstar and any of their nearby clanmates and spotted the warrior shifting uncomfortably on his paws, his wet paws. Wet paws!
"Where did you say you found her?" Moonstream asked, attempting to hide the thick suspicion in her voice, she moved closer to Sunvine, instintually inspecting his pelt as well.
"I found her by the stepping stones laying partially in the water. I had to pull her out by the scruff" Sunvine responded flicking water droplets from one of his forepaws.
"Why are your back paws wet?" Moonstream questioned "If you pulled her back onto out side of the border then your back feet would have been planted on the bank."
Sunvine narrowed his yellow eyes, baring his teeth before speaking slowly, each word coming out on it's own "She was heavy, I slipped"
"Where did the black fur between your claws come from?" Moonstream demanded stepping closer to Sunvine and meeting his yellow eyes with her own green.
Sunvine squirmed under her gaze, opening his mouth to reply, but being cut off by Reedstar.
"What is the meaning of this?" Reedstar demanded, shoving his way in-between both Sunvine and Moonstream.
Moonstream opened her mouth for a heaty retort before thinking better of it, she flicked her tail nonchalantly "Just trying to get the story straight so we can better understand what happened."
"We know what happened" Reedstar replied dismissively "Mintflower was caught unawares by the border, she was attacked and killed and Sunvine pulled her body from the river which explains the fact that her fur is beneath his claws."
Sunvine glared triumphantly as Reedstar defended him and Moonstrea hissed in frustration at her fathers dismissive words that clearly had a sense of finality about them, obviously ending the discussion. Moonstream stalked away from him, sitting back down between Galeforce and Swirlspots.
Reedstar looked out over his clanmates, Sunvine standing close beside him. The sun had began to set lower in the sky and the island was bathed in a warm orange glow. The drying reeds whistled as the crisp leaf-fall wind blew through the camp and a few stray leaves blew past the gray leader's face.
"We will hold a vigil for Mintflower tonight, she served the clan as deputy for many many moons" Reedstar meowed solemnly. Instead of settling beside his fallen deputy to share tongues one last time, the large tom disappeared into his den, followed by Sunvine.
Moonstream glared after them before stalking toward the camp entrance, Swirlspots and Galeforece followed silently, curious to know what was on their friend's mind. A dark ginger tom stood by the entrance on guard, his amber eyes flickering with uneasiness at the current situation.
"Where are you going?" the ginger tom demanded "It's not safe out there, with Thunderclan crossing our borders and attacking."
Moonstream snorted "Flameclaw, let me past. I'm going out to collect herbs. No warrior would dare attack a medicine cat and as you can see, im bringing two warriors with me" she flicked her tail, pointing to both Swirlspots and Galeforce behind her.
Flameclaw opened his mouth to speak but then thought better of it, stepping back he allowed the cats to pass.
As the small group got further and further from camp, Moonstream visibly relaxed.
"Moonstream" Galeforce spoked quietly "Where are we going?"
"I need to think, i need to figure this out" she replied, not exactly answering his question. Soon her companions realized the general direction they were heading. Sunningrocks!
The small patrol stopped as they reached the open clearing that led to the river, marking the border between Thunderclan and Riverclan.
Moonstream thoughtfully stared at the river for a few heartbeats before speaking.
"Something doesn't feel right. Sunvine said that she was attacked here but there is no sign of a battle and Mintflower wouldn't have gone down without a flight.
Slowly she padded up to the rivers edge before sitting down thoughtfully.
"And how did he know to look here for her and why was he looking for her in the first place, and those marks on her pelt"
"What marks?" Swirlspots spoke up "Does it have something to do with the fur between his claws?"
Moonstream nodded, still looking deep in thought "Sunvine said that he pulled her out of the river by the scruff and he slipped which caused fur to get caught between his claws, that would also explain the fact that her fur was wet and how his paws got wet, but."
Moonstream stepped out onto the first stepping stone, looking the rocks over carefully while she spoke "Two things don't fit into his story. If he pulled her out of the water by the scruff then why was she missing fur by her haunches and also, if an attack was what killed her then why was the only obvious wound a slash to the throat. Mintflower wouldn't lay down and let herself be killed."
"Maybe there was more than one attacker and she was held down?" Galeforce offered, concerned by Moonstream's train of thought.
Ignoring Galeforce's concern Moonstream continued her search around the stepping stones and her companions watched her curiously.
"Aha!" Moonstream exclaimed "Just like I thought."
Galeforce and Swirlspots moved closer, following Moonstream's gaze to where a small pool of dried blood had crusted over on the corner of the second stepping stone.
"When I was looking over Mintflower's body, there was a small barely visible wound on her head. Which could have been caused by colliding with this rock" Moonstream explained, puffing out her chest in pride.
"That flea-pelt did this?" Swirlspots snarled, digging her claws into the soft sandy ground "Is that what you're saying?"
Moonstream frowned "All I'm saying is that I'm suspicious of him, his story doesn't add up to an attack by Thunderclan, and why lie about any of it unless he is hiding something"
"Who is hiding something?"
The three Riverclan cats had been so deep in conversation they hadn't noticed another presence approaching the from across the border.
Galeforce bristled, his white pelt fluffed out aggressively, as the blue tom trotted closer to the rivers edge and he leapt in front of Moonstream in an attempt to protect her from the intruder.
Swirlspots smirked watching the two toms stare each other down, Galeforce flexed his muscles and fluffed out his coat making the Riverclan tom look even bigger while Swiftbreeze unsheathed his claws uneasily.
As the tension grew thicker in the air Swirlspots stepped forward "Alright you two" she commanded "Knock it off before I push you both in the river to cool off!"
Realization dawned on Galeforce and he looked back and forth between Moonstream and Swiftbreeze "Is this him?" he muttered and Moonstream nodded, knowing exactly what he meant.
"Yes Galeforce, this is Swiftbreeze."
Swiftbreeze bowed his head in greeting "It's nice to finally meet you Galeforce, I've heard a lot about you."
Galeforce narrowed his amber eyes "Wish I could say the same, but I cant"
Both toms watched each other carefully for a moment before Swiftbreeze looked away from him, the tension still thick in the air.
"Who were you talking about when I arrived?" Swiftbreeze asked, genuine concern flickering in his blue eyes.
"Sunvine" Moonstream growled "He returned to camp today with Mintflower but she was dead. He said she was killed by a Thunderclan patrol"
"She was attacked here at the stepping stones" Swirlspots added while Galeforce just continued to watch him suspiciously.
"He must be lying" Swiftbreeze concluded while shaking his head "His story is not possible. None of our patrols have been in this part of the territory today, and no one returned to camp with any fresh wounds from a fight."
"How can you be so sure?" Galeforce asked "You obviously spend a lot of time outside camp" his amber eyes flickered between bother Moonstream and Swiftbreeze "How can you be so sure where the patrols went and the fact that no one fought today. How can we trust him?" Galeforce demanded "If Sunvine is telling the truth and Thunderclan did kill Mintflower then why would he admit it to us, what proof do we have that he isn't covering for his clan"
Swirlspots shot him a look and Galeforce just shrugged "I'm just trying to be realistic, and to get as much information as we can."
"I say we take him back to camp with us, let Reedstar deal with him" Galeforce bristled stepping up to Swiftbreeze until the toms were nearly touching noses.
"Galeforce!" Moonstream snapped, stepping between the two tense toms.
"What? I'm just saying?" Galeforce muttered still eyeing Swiftbreeze suspiciously.
"You don't need to interrogate him and we are not bringing him back to camp" Moonstream huffed her green eyes glinting sharply.
"It's quite alright Moonstream" Swiftbreeze soothed, resting his tail on her shoulder and the queen visibly relaxed, "Galeforce has no reason to trust me just yet" the blue warrior took a step towards Galeforce and bowed his head respectfully "I am more knowledgeable about the daily activities of my clan than most cats being that my brother is a medicine cat and my mother is the clan deputy."
Galeforce watched Swiftbreeze thoughtfully for a moment before nodding "Alright , if you guys trust him, that's enough for me."
Swiftbreeze blinked gratefully, letting out a sigh of relief "So you all think that Sunvine had something to do with Mintflower's death?"
Swirlspots spoke up, her cream and white pelt fluffing out anxiously "He is claiming that Thunderclan did it."
"But I'm almost positive that Sunvine had something to do with her death" Moonstream added quickly "His story just doesn't make any sense."
"Mintflower was strong, she wouldn't have been easily killed by one cat but there are no signs of a battle or a struggle" Galeforce began to relay their suspicions to the blue warrior "Her only wounds were a slash to the neck and a small wound on the head."
"Her fur was wet indicating that she had fallen in the river and she stunk of Thunderclan" Swirlspots wrinkled her nose as she spoke.
"Oh and there were also patches of fur missing by her haunches" Moonstream added quickly.
Swiftbreeze thought quietly for a moment before speaking "No sign of a struggle...or a larger scale battle...It's possible she was ambushed and taken down by one cat"
"That's not possible, Mintflower wouldn't have gone down without a fight" Galeforce insisted, his amber eyes lit up as realization of where Swiftbreeze's train of thought was going "Unless...she suffered a head injury and was knocked unconscious!"
"That would explain the head injury, the blood on the stepping stones and how she could possibly be killed by one cat" Swirlspots meowed in amazement, growing more excited as they approached what seemed to be the truth.
Swiftbreeze turned around and headed back onto Thunderclan territory for a moment, heading towards a clump of reeds and tansy growing just within the territory.
"Aha, just as I thought" Swiftbreeze exclaimed "There is some black fur over here."
The three Riverclan cats crossed the stepping stones, one by one, making their way over to the area where Swiftbreeze was standing. Moonstream hooked the clump of black fur between her claws and Swirlspots carefully sniffed at the plants for a moment.
"I can easily smell Mintflower...and Sunvine" she meowed, her voice very audible as the words left her mouth, realization of just what this cat could be capable of sending cold shivers through her pelt.
"My guess is that Sunvine attacked Mintflower, killed her and dragged her body across the river to gather Thunderclan scent, all in an attempt to better his standings with your father" Swiftbreeze growled, his teeth clenched and his fur bristling in anger "He could possibly be trying to move into the role as deputy."
"That's not possible" Galeforce spoke up "He needs to mentor a Riverclan apprentice first"
Swiftbreeze shrugged "When he lived in Thunderclan he was desperate to become deputy, but he knew how to buy his time and he knew how to maneuver himself to be exactly where he wants to be. Just because he doesn't have an apprentice now, doesn't mean he wont have one soon. Whoever becomes deputy next has to watch their back, Sunvine doesn't have a shred of clan loyalty in his body and he has no problem eliminating those he thinks are in his way"
Suddenly his blue eyes grew cold, fearful and serious all at the same time "He cannot know that you suspect him" he warned "If he feels, even for only a moment that you don't trust him or that you know too much, he wont have any problem doing away with you"
"So you want us to keep quiet about this?" Galeforce hissed "When we know he is the one responsible, what about the proof, Reedstar has to listen to that."
"No Galeforce" Swirlspots meowed quietly "Swiftbreeze is right, Reedstar trusts him, there is no way he would listen to us and you know it. To reveal the truth now would be to send ourselves to Starclan."
"Lets all agree to keep this quiet until its the right time to confront him" Moonstream added, the queen's white and patched pelt fluffed out fearfully and she unconsciously pressed her body closer to Swiftbreeze's. The blue tom curled his tail around his mate, as if that simple gesture would protect her.
"Alright, agreed"
"We need to get back to camp" Galeforce noted "The moon is nearly at it's peak, Reedstar should be announcing the new deputy soon."
Swirlspots nodded, she glanced over at Moonstream and Swiftbreeze and then stepped forward, flicking Galeforce with her tail-tip "Come on, walk with me" the cream and white she-cat started crossing the stepping stones, heading back into Riverclan territory and Galeforce reluctantly followed, casting a sorrowful blue gaze back at Moonstream.
Swiftbreeze buried his face in Moonstream's fur "I worry about you, ever since Sunvine showed up I've had this feeling that something horrible is going to happen and I'm just worried about you and the kits"
Moonstream managed a shaky purr "We're all going to be fine."
"At any point, any time at all if you feel unsafe in Riverclan I want you to come to Thunderclan where I can protect you" Swiftbreeze insisted, his blue eyes blazing with the ferocity of his love and his worry.
Moonstream nodded slowly "I promise."