The sun was slowly starting to rise, bringing with it the temperature of leaf-bare that was so exceedingly frigid that it penetrated through Russetpaw's thick, long ginger fur. The she-cat let out a shudder, feeling her teeth chatter as she pressed against her brother, Scorchpaw, for support. The two apprentices were at the center of the clearing, watching their father as he addressed them from the Tall Branch above.
Russetpaw's heart was racing in her chest. She knew what this meant. Swiftstar hadn't left his den for the past day, and the senior warriors had been coming and going in. The chaos that came from the branch nearly put a stop in the daily routines, but Berrysplash had ordered the other warriors to ignore it and continue as usual. The whispers of "war" and "fight" and "death" had swept through the camp like a rippling wave, and now, every cat was intent on hearing what Swiftstar had to say. She had a sinking feeling that she knew what it was – and from the looks on several of her Clanmate's expressions, she had a pretty good idea that they shared the same conclusion as she did.
"Clanmates." Swiftstar's words rumbled deep in his throat as he swung his gaze from cat to cat. His yellow eyes met Russetpaw's, and Russetpaw lifted her head, returning his gaze. I won't ever be afraid again. Her father dragged his gaze away from her and met Scorchpaw and Adderstripe's eyes before finally looking at Sunleaf. "We are going to attack ThunderClan at sunhigh."
Mewls of shock, hisses of outrage, and gasps of surprise swelled through the crowd. Russetpaw could make them out, clear as day.
"Attack?" Petalspring's blue eyes were wide. "We can't do that!"
"Why not?" Hawkfeather argued with Petalspring. "They declared war on us at the Gathering. We should bring it to them, first." The tabby's fur bristled as Petalspring glared daggers at him.
"If we do not attack first, they will," Grayflight agreed. "It's better that we attack them instead of waiting for them to ambush us."
"Swiftstar." Rabbitfur's voice took the crowd by surprise. The gray-and-white tom was usually quiet during Clan meetings. Russetpaw gazed at her mentor with interest. On their way to the Gathering, Rabbitfur had been urging her to keep quiet about Finchwing and to not cause trouble with the ThunderClan cats. The worry was evident in his blue eyes, and Russetpaw whispered a silent apology to him, since she had tried to speak to Winterfall. It was clear that Rabbitfur wanted nothing to do with ThunderClan. "If I may."
"Speak." Irritation was palpable in the Clan leader's words. Even though it would have sent any other cat crawling to their knees, Rabbitfur didn't budge. Perhaps it was because he knew the Clan leader for so long, or if it was because he simply had nothing to lose. Russetpaw wasn't sure.
"Is there not any other way?" Rabbitfur asked. "Do we really need to spill the blood of our Clanmates again instead of just confessing what happened to Finchwing? You remember the last battle with ThunderClan just as clearly as I do. Several of our apprentices died because they weren't able to fight against the fury ThunderClan retaliated with us. Our medicine cat was attacked in the battle because she was mistaken for an enemy warrior, and the ThunderClan cat was so blinded by rage he barely noticed when he almost killed her."
What? Russetpaw looked over at Violetheart, who was sitting next to the medicine den. The pale gray she-cat hung her head, a tremble running through her body as the shadows of the past clouded her blue eyes. That really happened? Her sister, Heathercloud, rested her tail-tip on the medicine cat's shoulders, but even her comfort couldn't seem to shake away the trauma of her past as Violetheart turned and headed back into her den.
"The casualties ranged in the dozens. The battlefield was a bloodbath. I couldn't even recognize my own Clanmates, they were more blood than fur. ThunderClan calls it 'the day of death,' we refuse to acknowledge it because we were the ones who lost. Do we want a repeat of that?" Rabbitfur's gaze drifted towards Russetpaw and Scorchpaw. "Do you want to see your children die?"
"Things have changed," Swiftstar said when Rabbitfur was finished. "Cloudstar led us in those times, and he approached the battle in a way not even a rabbit would. It was thanks to his shortsightedness that we suffered so many losses and wounded. I won't make the same mistake he did. If we don't attack, then we're just sitting ducks for ThunderClan to come and slaughter us en masse. I will not sit here and wait for that to happen. I'll bring the battle to them, and I'll crush them. My children will not die. I'll be watching them when they're fighting."
Rabbitfur's blue eyes widened. "You can't be serious. Russetpaw hasn't even finished her training – neither have the other apprentices. They've only been apprentices for a season."
"If she fares well in today's battle, she will be a warrior." Swiftstar lifted his head. Russetpaw stared at her father, her eyes round with shock. The fear about the battle that was sending her heart into overdrive was knocked aside momentarily as her father's words sunk into her mind. If she fought well today, he would make her a warrior? I haven't even been training as long as Adderstripe and Brambledusk have! I thought he'd never make me one! But… is this really the way I want to be one? By throwing myself into a battle that we caused? Excitement and trepidation battled each other inside of her as she tried to think of what was right.
"I heavily advise against this, Swiftstar," Rabbitfur finally said after a few moments of silence. "It will cost them their lives."
"Nonsense." Swiftstar shook his broad head. "I've heard and listened to you. Take that in mind. Yet this is the decision I have made." He glanced around the clearing. "Berrysplash?" he addressed his deputy. "What do you think?"
Berrysplash looked up, a flicker of alarm in her bright blue eyes. Then she nodded slowly. "I agree with you, Swiftstar. We must teach ThunderClan that they cannot mess with us."
"Berrysplash?" Rabbitfur stared at the WindClan deputy.
"See?" Swiftstar glared down at Rabbitfur. "I have the support of my warriors. If you want to be a coward, you can leave WindClan. But know that you will go with dishonor and I will have you hunted down as a rogue until the last of your days."
"I'm not backing out," Rabbitfur growled through clenched teeth. "As long as you have heard my worries, then I am satisfied."
"Good." Swiftstar nodded. "Then you are coming with us. Hawkfeather, Grayflight, Driftberry, Hollyfrost, Adderstripe, Brambledusk, Scorchpaw, and Russetpaw. You will be part of the initial patrol that breaks into camp. Thrushwing, Dovewillow, Larchcloud, Patchshine, Blackpaw, and Gorsepaw. You will be right behind us! We'll stalk through ThunderClan territory and, when the sun is at its peak, we'll invade their camp. We will attack, and we will win!"
"WindClan! WindClan!" Hawkfeather began to cheer. Grayflight and Oakcloud took up Swiftstar's cheer, and slowly the rest of the Clan joined in, their cries exuberant and joyful. The hesitation about the attack seemed to melt away like morning dew, because there was no trace of it in the cheering voices… save for the lack of clamor from Rabbitfur and Adderstripe, who watched Swiftstar with stony faces.
"What about the rest of us?" Berrysplash asked when the cheering was over. "You didn't mention me, Swiftstar." Confusion was rampant on the WindClan's deputy face.
"I will need a sizable patrol to defend the camp, in case ThunderClan has already anticipated my move and is on its way to attack," Swiftstar explained to the deputy. "You are the cat I trust most to protect the camp, and I am leaving you several strong warriors to help you."
Berrysplash shrugged. "All right, Swiftstar. The camp will not fall so long as I am guarding it." With that, she lowered her head to the WindClan leader. Swiftstar leaped from the Tall Branch, confidence gleaming in his piercing eyes.
"Get ready, WindClan cats!" Swiftstar exclaimed. "We move out soon!" His cry was still lingering in the air as he left the clearing to enter his den, his senior warriors trailing his heels. When he was gone, Russetpaw held out the breath she had been holding. This would be her first full-fledged battle – the only other time she had fought was when she had joined the fight against RiverClan, and it was nothing close to a frontal assault on a camp.
"Russetpaw." Russetpaw turned to see Rabbitfur, walking over to her. The lithe tom lowered his head and gazed in her eyes. "You're sure you're ready?"
"I was born ready!" Russetpaw exclaimed, determination fueling her resolve. "Don't worry about me, Rabbitfur. ThunderClan will never know what hit them!" What happens if I run into Winterfall? Hatred had burned in the silver tabby's eyes when she had seen him at the last Gathering, and their friendship had been destroyed. But… it's because of a lie. I know what happened to Finchwing. I lied to him about it.
"Russetpaw?" Rabbitfur asked. Russetpaw realized that her tail had drooped and her head was hanging. She pulled herself back up and met her mentor's gaze steadily.
"I am ready," Russetpaw repeated. "I promise. I won't let you – or my father – down. If I fight well, I'm going to be a warrior!" There's no way I won't mess this up. Lust for battle made her unsheathe her claws, but the conflicted expression that made Rabbitfur's face caused her to sheathe them again. Rabbitfur?
"Good," Rabbitfur meowed. "That means you will have won the competition."
The competition! Russetpaw swung her eyes over camp and caught the glare of Wildpaw, whose tortoiseshell fur was on edge. The she-cat was beginning to march through the clearing, heading for Russetpaw. Russetpaw curled her lip, ready to engage. Rabbitfur stepped in front of Russetpaw, and Gorsepaw raced in front of Wildpaw to stop her from achieving her target.
"Don't!" Rabbitfur urged Russetpaw, lashing his bobtail. "She's not worth it. Let her go."
Russetpaw stared at Rabbitfur, fury boiling in her blood as she watched Gorsepaw physically push Wildpaw away. Then she nodded to her mentor and turned on her heel, marching away towards the camp entrance. Rabbitfur watched her go, his yellow eyes flat. Russetpaw let out a deep breath, and out of the corner of her eye she spotted Scorchpaw walking over to her with a rabbit in his mouth.
"Share?" Scorchpaw asked, dropping the rabbit in front of her.
"Sure." Russetpaw waited for her brother to take the first bite, and just as he chewed the stringy flesh, Russetpaw sank her teeth into the rabbit and took a chunk out. The taste of the moorland sang on her tongue, but it was dulled by the impending sense of battle. Russetpaw could only take a few more bites before pushing it away and allowing her brother to finish the rest.
Will I die? Russetpaw thought, imagining herself in a battle against a fierce ThunderClan cat. Rabbitfur's ominous words echoed in her mind, and the tormented expression on his face as he pleaded with Swiftstar crossed her thoughts.
"Do you want to see your children die?"
I won't! Russetpaw thought fiercely. She was grateful to Rabbitfur for being an excellent and patient mentor with her, but the fact that Rabbitfur didn't have enough faith in her to trust her to fight made the tip of her claws itch with frustration. I'll prove him wrong! I'll prove them all wrong! Tonight, I'll be a warrior.
"Are you ready?" Scorchpaw asked, looking up at Russetpaw. His ginger-and-white muzzle was stained with rabbit blood, and he drew his paw over his nose to wipe it off.
"Of course," Russetpaw replied. If another cat asks me that, I'll show them a battle move I'll use on a ThunderClan cat! "Are you?"
"I think so," Scorchpaw meowed. "I hope this is the right thing to do. It's all because of Finchwing." Darkness shadowed Scorchpaw's eyes.
"Yeah…" Russetpaw shut her eyes as she remembered Finchwing's horrible screams. She didn't think she would ever be able to erase those pitiful sounds from her mind, no matter how hard she tried. "Should our father had been honest with Flintstar when he asked about Finchwing?"
"I bet a battle would've started right at that Gathering," Scorchpaw growled in response. "I think what our father did was right. But I don't like that it'll spill innocent blood."
"There's no way to avoid this battle," Russetpaw pointed out. "It's been brewing for a while, hasn't it?"
"Aren't you worried about fighting Winterfall?" Scorchpaw asked.
Russetpaw dropped her head and her eyes darted to the ground. Maybe it was best that her friendship with Winterfall had been broken off. If they were still friends, how could she attack him in the battle? What if he had been hurting Blackpaw or Scorchpaw, and she had no choice but to attack him? She couldn't hesitate while the cats she loved were in danger. "We're enemies now. Like you said."
"But you wish you weren't," Scorchpaw said.
"It doesn't matter anymore," Russetpaw told her brother. Why was he saying these things?
Scorchpaw nodded. "Yeah, you're right. Don't worry, Russetpaw! I'll protect you."
"Protect me?" Russetpaw echoed in disbelief. "No way! In case you forgot, I'm the only one of us who's actually fought before! So, I'll be the one protecting you."
"Maybe our father purposely kept us out of battles," Scorchpaw guessed, "so we can prove ourselves when he wants us to."
"It makes sense," Russetpaw agreed. Her paws were fidgeting as her gaze traveled to the pale afternoon sky, dotted with fluffy white clouds. The leaf-bare sun was just at its highest peak, its yellow orb radiating dozens of rays that spanned the camp and dappled her pelt. It was time, Russetpaw realized. Swiftstar had said that the attack would happen when the sun was at its highest peak, and it was.
Scorchpaw seemed to notice this too. His amber eyes narrowed, their slits reflecting the opacity of the sun. He got to his paws, disregarding the bones of the rabbit, and met Russetpaw's gaze. Russetpaw nodded to him. She was ready, and so was he. She glanced over to the clearing to see all of Swiftstar's named cats gathering into the clearing. They wore battle-ready expressions, and the air was tense and apprehensive.
Hawkfeather was gathering the cats, performing a head count as he made sure that every cat was there. Russetpaw craned her head, searching for Gorsepaw and Blackpaw, but the two apprentices were by their mentors, Heathercloud and Oakcloud's sides. As Blackpaw turned to meet Russetpaw's gaze, and took a step towards her, Oakcloud tugged her back. The night black she-cat flashed an apologetic look at her. Russetpaw shrugged. She understood.
Adderstripe hovered next to Brambledusk, his claws itching, and Brambledusk whispered something in his ear, but whatever he said didn't seem to calm down the ginger-and-white tabby tom. Distress and torment was written all over Hollyfrost's face, and Russetpaw couldn't understand why the she-cat was so upset. Russetpaw found herself bounding over to the she-cat.
"Are you okay, Hollyfrost?" Russetpaw asked. Why was she so upset? Was she afraid of the battle? Did she not want to fight?
Hollyfrost stared at Russetpaw, her blue eyes wide. "I… I can't… bring myself to think this is right," she whispered the words, her gaze flittering towards the other warriors. She doesn't want them to hear it. I understand. "I just… don't know… if I can fight."
"You have to fight!" Russetpaw whispered to her, her voice sharp. "If you don't, you'll be seen a traitor!"
"I know!" Hollyfrost snapped. "So, what do I do?"
Russetpaw opened her mouth, about to say something, but Swiftstar's cry made her stop in her tracks. "WindClan! We leave to attack!" The WindClan's leader jubilant cry enacted a howl from his warriors, and like a raging sandstorm, the WindClan cats sprinted after Swiftstar as the horde of cats exited the camp. Their back paws kicked up grass from the moorland, blinding Russetpaw's vision. Hollyfrost cast Russetpaw a conflicted gaze, but she had no choice but to join the cats. Russetpaw followed her, on her way to her first battle.
The WindClan cats carved through the moorland, the leaf-bare sun bearing on their backs, zig-zagging through their home. Their speed rivaled those of the gods themselves. No cat slowed down, even though Russetpaw was pretty tempted to. The hills seemed to roll forever as they climbed more and more of them and galloped through the grassland. They reached the gurgling stream that marked the border between the hills and the forest, and Swiftstar raised his tail to order the WindClan patrol to halt.
"Single line from here now," he ordered under his breath. "Let's cross the stream." Without waiting for any cat to speak, Swiftstar leaped from the river bank to the first stepping stone. He paused once, and then scaled each of the stepping stones easily, as if pretending each of the stones was the moorland. He landed on the other side and nodded to Hawkfeather, the cat behind him. Hawkfeather crossed the stones just as easily as Swiftstar did, leading to a kindling suspicion in Russetpaw's heart that these cats must have done this more than once.
The rest of the warriors followed, leaving the apprentices behind. Russetpaw recalled doing this when she was a kit alongside Blackpaw. If it was hard then, it would be easy now, considering she was bigger, faster, and smarter. Russetpaw raced up to Blackpaw, who gave her a nod, seeming to reminisce old times. Blackpaw leaped on the rocks, crossing to the other side. Gorsepaw followed her, wavering slightly. That left just Russetpaw and Scorchpaw.
Russetpaw recalled the day that she and Blackpaw had stood at the riverbank, staring out at the stepping stones as if one wrong move would kill them. They had been so foolish crossing the stream solely to impress Swiftstar – actually, it had been Russetpaw dragging Blackpaw alongside her. The guilt never truly left her – she could've gotten Blackpaw killed. She wouldn't need to impress Swiftstar by crossing into territory. She'd have to impress him by fighting. And I'll show him just how good a fighter I am in today's battle.
The ginger she-cat leaped on the first stone. The chilly stream water lapped at her paws, and Russetpaw recoiled from the feeling instantly. Wanting to avoid any more water, the she-cat leaped from stone to stone, her heart pounding in her chest. This is easier than fighting, so why am I shaking? Russetpaw leaped on the other side of the bank, turning on her heel to see her brother scaling the stones and landing behind her. Gorsepaw and Blackpaw had been waiting for them, and when they arrived, they turned around and ran into the woodland, following the scent of the WindClan cats.
Russetpaw leaped over twigs and skirted around rocks, placing her paws down lightly. She could crack a leaf or a twig and ThunderClan would be immediately alerted. She could see the flicking tail of Heathercloud, a few fox-lengths away. She and the other apprentices would have to hurry up if they wanted to join the battle on time. She quickened her pace, but all her scents and instincts were on alert until she reached Heathercloud's tail. The rest of the apprentices were right behind her.
Even though they walked and walked, the woodland stayed the same. There was no indication of where they were, no markers that Russetpaw could see. The scent of ThunderClan was more rank by the minute, and suddenly Heathercloud stopped. Russetpaw peered over Heathercloud's broad shoulder to see that the rest of WindClan had stopped as well. Swiftstar stood at the head of the cats, his tail-tip twitching as he stood over a massive stone hollow surrounded by tall cliffs.
"There's a tunnel around here," Swiftstar murmured. "WindClan, follow me." Her father skirted around the cliffs, until his body suddenly disappeared into the foliage. The rest of WindClan followed, and Russetpaw waited patiently behind Heathercloud. Finally, Heathercloud squished her way through the thorn tunnel. Russetpaw was right after her, wincing as the thorns scratched at her thick pelt. The scent was thicker and thicker, and now, Russetpaw could hear the hisses and whispers and mewls of cats. But one cry ran out, louder than all the others, and it did not belong to a ThunderClan cat.
"WindClan, attack!"