The air in the clearing is heavy with the scent of Windclan cats as the two clans wait atop the ravine. Graystripe feels a tremor of anxiety as he will have to address them and Shadowclan from the Great Rock. Though he notices the Shadowclan cats aren't there, has the sickness overrun them so much they cannot attend a gathering? A pang of pity for Whitethroat reminds him of Tigerclaw, and the terror in the young cat's eyes as the massive tabby loomed at the edge of the Thunderpath. Suddenly his paws itch to run up and leap onto the Great Rock and proclaim about the dark tabbies presence in the forest.
Crookedstar and him flick their tails to signal the other cats to follow. They run down the ravine and into the clearing.
"Graystripe!" Onewhisker bounds up to Graystripe's side just as he and his clan settle down into the clearing.
"Hello, Onewhisker." He greets the brown tabby.
"I'm sorry to hear about the fire. I know how bad it is for a clan to be driven from it's home.' His eyes meet Graystripe's sympathetically.
"We're waiting for the forest to be healed before we go back."
"I'm sorry…."
"We're making due. Patrols go out with Riverclan to hunt, and Thunderclan cats patrol our borders to check how much progress is being made with the forest recovering."
Onewhisker purrs, "At least you are thriving and getting along with Riverclan."
"Yes. I am glad for their generosity in this dangerous time. We have kits, and if we were back in our unsheltered camp, well any predator might take them away since we do not have any fresh leaves to cover the camp."
"Yes, it's why we have lookouts on our open territory near camp. Tons of birds like to look for tiny prey to eat. Defenseless kits being one of them. But I am sure once you get back and rebuild your camp it will be like you've never left. Like for us. It's like we've never been run out of our home. We have been blessed with kits as well this greenleaf and Morningflower's kit is here as an apprentice-it's his first Gathering."
Graystripe remembers the tiny wet bundle of fur he, along with Fireheart, had helped carry throughout their journey back to Windclan territory through the rain. He follows Onewhisker's gaze across the clearing to a young brown tom. Although small like the rest of his clan, the apprentice's muscles are already lean and well developed beneath his short, thick fur.
Noticing Onewhisker suddenly dips his head, Graystripe turns to see Tallstar approaching them. The Windclan leader looks at him with a fondness in his gaze, "Hello Graystripe. I did not get a chance to congratulate you on your promotion. But where is Fireheart? I have not seen him twice now."
"He was killed in a rogue attack a few moons ago."
Tallstar's eyes glitter with sadness, "I see." He then shakes his pelt he continues, "Anyway congratulations. Having traveled with you, I was not surprised Bluestar chose you as her deputy. You are young yet you have done well. But I can also not see Bluestar among your cats. Is she ill?"
"Nothing she won't recover from." He answers the Windclan leader, though personally he has his doubts. He hopes it will be the truth eventually, but Bluestar still looks so lost.
Beside him, Onewhisker looks up sharply. Following his gaze to the slope on the other side of the valley three Shadowclan cats race into the clearing, Runningnose at the head. He feels a glimmer of relief as he recognizes one of the cats as Littlecloud who has clearly recovered from the sickness thanks to Cinderpelt.
The other clan cats back away from the Shadowclan cats as they skid to a halt in front of the Great Rock. News of their disease has clearly spread through the forest.
"It's alright," Runningnose meows, panting, as if he can read their minds. "Shadowclan is free of the sickness. I have been sent ahead to tell you to wait before you begin the meeting. ShadowClan's leader is on his way."
"What makes Nightstar so late?" calls Tallstar from Graystripe's side.
"Nightstar is dead," answers Runningnose bluntly.
A stunned ripple spreads through the other cats like a breeze through trees, and he blinks. How could the ShadowClan leader be dead? He had only recently received his nine lives. What a terrible sickness! No wonder Littlecloud and Whitethroat had been so afraid to return to their camp.
"Is Cinderfur coming instead?" Whitestorm calls, referring to the ShadowClan deputy.
Runningnose looks at his paws. "Cinderfur was one of the first to die of the sickness."
"Then who is your new leader?" demands Crookedstar, emerging from the shadows on the other side of the Great Rock. Runningnose glances at the Riverclan leader.
"You'll see for yourselves soon enough," he promises. "He'll be here shortly."
"Excuse me," Graystripe murmurs to Tallstar and Onewhisker. "There is something I must share with Runningnose."
He pads to where the ShadowClan medicine cat stands, surrounded by warriors and apprentices, all anxious to discover who ShadowClan's new leader was. He wonders how the old cat would react to hearing about Yellowfang's death. Runningnose has seen so much death lately that perhaps it wouldn't mean much to him anymore, but Graystripe feels he should break it to him privately, before he makes an announcement from the Great Rock.
After all, Yellowfang had trained Runningnose when she had been ShadowClan's medicine cat. The bond between the two cats must once have been very close, if only for a short time before Brokentail drove Yellowfang out of her Clan.
Graystripe signals with his tail to the ShadowClan medicine cat. Runningnose looks relieved to be leaving the circle of inquiring faces as he follows him to a quieter spot beneath one of the oaks.
"What is it?" he asks "Yellowfang's dead," he meows gently, feeling a fresh thorn of sorrow drive itself into his heart. Runningnose's eyes cloud with grief. The gray-and-white tom bows his head as Graystripe goes on: "She died trying to save a Clanmate from the fire. Starclan will honor her bravery."
Runningnose doesn't reply, just swings his head slowly from side to side. He feels his own throat tighten with sadness, but he can't afford to let grief overwhelm him here. He touches the tom's head with his nose and pads quickly away.
The rest of the cats are beginning to weave anxiously around one another, their mews growing louder.
"We can't wait any longer!" Graystripe hears a Riverclan warrior mutter to his neighbor. "The moon will be setting soon."
"If this new leader is going to be late, that's his problem," Mousefur agrees. He knows the real reason for her keenness to get on with the meeting and return to camp. With Tigerclaw loose in the forest, none of the Clans were safe. He sees a flash of white fur at the center of the clearing as Tallstar leaps onto the Great Rock. He has obviously decided to start the meeting without ShadowClan's leader. Crookedstar starts toward the rock.
Graystripe braces himself, ready for his first Gathering at the head of his Clan, and desperate to warn the other cats about the threat that lurked in the woods.
"Good luck." He feels Sandstorm's breath ruffle his ear fur. He turns and gently touches her warm cheek with his muzzle, grateful for the support. Then he threads his way through the other cats towards the Great Rock. He is stopped in his tracks by a yowl called from the slope behind him.
"He's here!" He turns and sees Darkstripe craning his neck beside him, but their view is blocked by the other cats peering and rearing up on their hind legs to get a look at ShadowClan's new leader as he passes through the crowd. Darkstripe's ears suddenly prick with surprise. The striped warrior is staring up at the Great Rock, his eyes glittering with barely suppressed excitement. Graystripe twists his head to see what has prompted such a strong reaction from his Clanmate. Framed by the cold light of the moon, he sees the powerful shoulders and broad head of the cat who had leaped onto the rock beside Tallstar. The other leader seems puny and frail beside this massive figure. And with a cold shiver of dread, Graystripe realizes that the new leader of ShadowClan is Tigerclaw.