Brambleheart hissed. Leafdawn glanced at him.
"This is helping you," She reminded him. "We need to ensure it stays where it's supposed to. Your shoulder needs all the help it can get." The tom gritted his teeth. When Leafdawn returned, it was determined the shoulder had been broken as it dislocated. They had only just reset it and it was past sunhigh now. The night prior had been awful, without even considering the pain.
"It's in, right?" He asked, "It takes a bit to push it back out, doesn't it?" He was certainly not going to fight someone else any time soon. The medicine cat shot him a look.
"You broke where your leg connects to," She explained, touching part of his other shoulder. "Not the leg bone itself." She moved her paw onto his leg. "It is not securely in because of the break. If we keep it where it should be, which this should." She pulled the reed tighter, "Then you might get away without a limp. I could show you with rabbit bones if you'd like?" The warrior shook his head, letting out a huff at the pain.
"I understand."
"Good." She pulled away as the last of the reed blade was wrapped around him. Poppy seeds were pushed in front of Brambleheart. Leafdawn glanced over to Firestar, who lay on the other side of the den.
They had returned with Firestar that morning. Brambleheart was still unsure what exactly had happened. He knew that Tigerstar and Hawktalon's bodies were in camp.
This was over. A patrol had been sent to the TigerClan border.
"I need to head out – I want both of you to rest." Meows of agreements rose from the toms and the tabby watched after Leafdawn as she stepped out of the den.
As he turned back, Brambleheart saw that Firestar was looking at him. Fresh cobwebs had been applied to his wounds.
"Come here," His voice was a low rasp. The warrior's chest tightened.
"I don't think Leafdawn wants either of us moving," he began.
"She can chew me out later." Firestar said, "We'll say I ordered you to. Don't put pressure on your leg and take the seeds with you." The warrior lapped up the seeds, holding them in his mouth. Brambleheart rose to his paws, limping over to the other warrior.
He lay beneath him, resting his head on the leader's haunches. The seeds were set down in front of him. Firestar's tail wrapped around his upper back. There was a pause before the leader spoke.
"What am I going to do with you?"
"I don't know."
"What would I do without you?" Brambleheart did not hear this, he was not sure whether Firestar knew he had said it.
"I didn't know he was going to do that," The warrior's voice was low. He did not know what he would have done had Firestar died.
"I can't fault you for wanting to know your birth brother," Firestar replied. "Certainly, considering I'm the reason you did not know him sooner."
"It's not your fault," Brambleheart began. Hawktalon had done that for him. Brambleheart should have known better.
"Yes, it is." Firestar sighed, "I took you and that was wrong. It will always be wrong." Brambleheart began to shake his head, opening his mouth to respond. The look his leader gave him silenced him.
"I also do not regret that day and I don't care if that makes me selfish," Firestar meowed. "You are a son to me." There it was again. Son. Brambleheart had almost convinced himself it was a misunderstanding on his part. He had not heard it, after all. "However, I will never fault you for wanting to know Goldenflower or your birth siblings, but I want you to know that I love you. Sandstorm, Leafdawn, Squirrelflight – you are family to them."
"I want you," Brambleheart's voice was barely above a whisper. "I love you, too." He was loyal to Firestar until his last breath. All of them. Firestar purred deeply.
"The day Bluestar died," Brambleheart's ears pricked. Firestar never liked talking about that day. "I had a dream. She…came to me and she gave me a prophecy. She told me, trust the sapling beneath the twisted tree and you shall save the Clans. It took me some seasons but I realized, it was about you." Brambleheart stared at him, unsure what to say. "I was meant to take you that day," The leader's voice cracked. "You – we –"
Realization dawned for the warrior.
This was always going to happen. It was written in the stars.
"I never wanted this for you," Firestar finally whispered. Brambleheart looked at him, confused.
"It's StarClan's will," he said. Fear made the warrior's chest tighten at the look Firestar gave him.
"You are your own cat," The leader rasped. "I am, too. Outside forces do not matter. All I want is for you to do your best – all of you." It took Brambleheart a second to respond, his head still spinning. What did Firestar mean?
"Yes, Firestar." He finally said.
"Good kit." There was a weak rumble of a purr. "Now, eat your poppy seeds and get some sleep. I'm sure you're in a great deal of pain." Brambleheart followed the order immediately, lapping up the medicine before resting his head on his father's haunches again. His eyes closed and he drifted off to sleep.
Mothwing stared at Hawktalon's body.
The last she had seen of him was when he had stormed out of camp the day prior. It was hard to believe he was dead. That either of them was.
It was later in the day. A patrol had met a WindClan patrol at the border. The leader's camp had been upset at the news, but Leopardstar had chosen to meet with the outsiders first. Mudclaw had been left in charge, information of this was not to leave camp yet. They were in WindClan's camp now. Warriors glared at each other and the tensions were high.
"Mothwing." She forced her gaze away at Tawnyclaw's meow. She and Leopardstar had been talking to Tornear. Their leader had been injured in the fight, it seemed. "Come on, we're going to go talk with Firestar." The queen nodded, following them toward a large rock. Leafpaw – dawn was standing outside of an opening. She blinked at Mothwing, who nodded back. Tornear led them inside.
The scent of herbs hit Mothwing's nose. Her eyes quickly readjusted to the light. Firestar lay near the entrance, Brambleheart sleeping against him. Tornear sat near his head. The leader looked up; cobwebs were wrapped around his neck.
"Good evening," He rasped. "We have much to discuss." The TigerClan cats settled in front of him.
"We've heard Tornear's version of events," Leopardstar meowed. "What happened from your perspective?" Mothwing was surprised as Firestar looked at her and Tawnyclaw.
"I'm sorry for your losses," he said. "I did not know Hawktalon well but Tigerstar's left a hole which will hang over the Clans for seasons. I'm sure you will miss them both." Tawnyclaw dipped her head.
"We will. Our father was a great cat."
"Indeed." His gaze went back to Leopardstar, "They both tried to kill me and my warrior on my territory. I'm sure my deputy provided details." The TigerClan leader nodded.
"Your actions were defensive," Leopardstar meowed. "If these were planned, I want you to know none of us knew about this."
"So, what now?" Tornear asked, his tail twitching.
"We rebuild," Tawnyclaw replied. "Bring back the Clans of old." Mothwing glanced at her sister. There had been no real discussion of this between them. This decision did not surprise her.
"I imagine one of you is going to be ThunderClan's leader," Firestar looked to the sisters. "Will Mothwing take over ShadowClan?" Mothwing's eyes widened at the thought. She did not want to be leader of any Clan.
"ShadowClan will be mine, actually," Tawnyclaw meowed. She looked at Mothwing, "And I imagine you don't want ThunderClan?"
"I don't." Firestar nodded. Surprise had lit up his gaze.
"Then a leader is to be decided."
"Dustpelt was recently promoted," Tawnyclaw put in. "They would respect his authority."
"I can't see him accepting Firestar's leadership," Leopardstar meowed slowly. She looked at him. "You've killed two ThunderClan leaders and your warrior killed our deputy." Firestar shifted.
"I did not kill her."
"Our Clanmates don't see it that way," Leopardstar responded. Tornear let out a growl and Firestar signaled for silence.
"Blackfoot knows the truth," His voice was quiet. "As do any others that launched the attack on ThunderClan camp that day. We'll have a Gathering to sort out territories. Compel him to confess there." Leopardstar and Tawnyclaw glanced at each other.
"He'll tell the truth," Tawnyclaw answered. "If he wants a place in ShadowClan, he will. No matter what it may be." The enemy leader mewed his approval. Mothwing glanced at Leopardstar. There was something to be said about Gatherings.
"Last night, we got what our medicine cats believe to be a sign," Leopardstar began. The WindClan cats looked at her, curiously. "A tree on the shore was struck by lightning. It burst into flames and crashed onto the island, forming a bridge." She regarded the leader, "We've had cats living on that island but after everything that's happened, our medicine cats believe it's meant to be a gathering spot." Firestar nodded.
"Bring all your warriors and we can divide your territory from there."
"What about our WindClan cats?" Tawnyclaw asked. "They want some of your territory, at least." There was a shift in the enemy warriors.
"They're not WindClan," Tornear's voice was low. "They betrayed us."
"They believe they are."
"My warriors are not going to accept them even if I wanted them to," Firestar meowed. "They have made their choice. They are ThunderClan." Leopardstar dipped her head. Mothwing would most likely end up in ThunderClan, she reflected. She could help with that. Those warriors would listen to her.
This whole thing felt surreal.
"We'll have a meeting at the island then," Leopardstar rose to her paws. "How quickly do you think you could make it?" They would need to tell the Clan when they returned. Chaos would soon erupt.
"Three days," He meowed. "Let's do it during the day. Sunhigh." Meows of agreements rose. Mothwing glanced at the injured leader; his wounds would certainly not be healed by then. Firestar continued, "I have one more thing I want to talk to you about." Tornear looked at him, ears pricked. They must not have discussed whatever was to come.
"Which is?" Leopardstar asked.
"The word of the Clan leader is the warrior code," Firestar quoted. "That is a bad rule. I want to open up the possibility of getting rid of it." The other warriors looked at him, shocked.
Leopardstar's ears went back, "We are not going to change the warrior code because of one cat. That is ridiculous." Mothwing was surprised as the apparently not-sleeping Brambleheart's eyes opened. The warrior let out a growl at the TigerClan leader's tone. Leopardstar gave the warrior a scornful look but Firestar's tail curled around him. His face softened and Mothwing recognized love in the leader's gaze as he hushed him.
"There's no reason for anyone to be aggressive. It's just a suggestion." The injured warrior relaxed against Firestar. Tawnyclaw was watching her littermate.
"How are you doing, Bramble?" she asked.
"Tigerstar broke my shoulder," he replied. Tawnyclaw snorted.
"That sucks."
"Yeah." Tawnyclaw looked to Firestar.
"Changing the warrior code is a massive thing to ask of the warriors."
"It is. However, warriors following orders blindly has led us to Tigerstar's reign." Firestar meowed, "It led to Brokenstar's, too. Rules have been added, they can be removed."
"This has never happened," Leopardstar replied. "How will we ensure our warrior's obedience else wise?" Firestar's gaze was cold.
"This has not happened as far as we know." He said, "We also did not know about SkyClan until recently. My warriors follow me because they trust me to lead them toward prosperity. If your warriors do not trust you, that is a personal issue." The golden she-cat's ears went back.
"We'll…think on this," Tawnyclaw touched her tail to Leopardstar's flank. The leader hesitantly meowed her agreement.
"We'll give you an answer at the island." Firestar meowed his agreement and Tornear rose, starting to escort them out of the medicine cat den.
"Wait, Mothwing." She looked back at Brambleheart's meow. The warrior had raised his head off his Firestar's haunch. Amber eyes looked at her.
"Yes?"
"I'm sorry," He meowed. "I never wanted to hurt Hawktalon. He just…" The warrior trailed off, looking at Firestar, "He made me make a choice."
And Brambleheart had chosen Firestar. After a moment of thought, the queen dipped her head. "I'm sorry he made you choose." She cleared her throat as it came out a rasp. Brambleheart blinked at her and Tawnyclaw touched her tail to her half-sister's back. Mothwing turned away, heading out of the den after her Clanmates.
They gathered the bodies and were escorted to the border. It was getting dark. Leopardstar signaled for the patrol to stop not far in. Tigerstar was set down. "Runningbrook, take Mothwing's spot with Hawktalon," She ordered. "Bring him to camp. We will mourn him." Mothwing shifted her brother onto the warrior. The she-cat blinked at the queen and Ashfoot dipped her head, signaling the rest to follow. There was no protest. Tawnyclaw, Mothwing, and Leopardstar remained.
"We'll bury him here," Leopardstar looked down at her fellow leader. "You can say your goodbyes." Mothwing looked at her father, unsure of what to do. Cautiously, she stepped up to him.
Blood still stained his pelt. The queen pressed her nose against his side briefly before stepping away. Mothwing was more upset about Hawktalon. She did not know how to feel about that. She sat at Leopardstar's side.
Tawnyclaw stepped forward next. The tortoiseshell curled against her father's side. Her head rested on his shoulder as she took in his scent. There was a moment of stillness before Tawnyclaw began to clean the blood from his pelt.
It was dark when she finished. Tawnyclaw pulled away. "Let's get digging," she said. The other warriors rose to help. The burial was silent.
"Feathertail asked if she could see Crowpaw's grave," Tawnyclaw meowed when they started back to camp. "It'll probably be Squirrelflight and Stormfur, too." Leopardstar nodded.
"As long as they have at least Tornear's permission and you escort them," she replied. Tawnyclaw dipped her head.
"Of course, Leopardstar."
