CHAPTER FORTY NINE

"I don't like this idea anymore than you do, but we have to go through the forest to reach the lake."

"What if we get lost going through the forest? It could take days for us to find our way through, and if we're lucky, find the lake."

"Even if we did manage to find our way through, there's no telling what we'll find on the way through."

Birdpaw winced as she heard the bickering between the ThunderClan cats and the RiverClan cats. Spruceleaf tried voicing her opinion every now and then, but she was lost among the toms who thought they knew best. What annoyed Birdpaw the most was that they were wasting time arguing. They'd tried reaching an agreement the other day, but once they reached the forest, that all changed. Birdpaw could tell from the way his whiskers twitched that Acorntail was unhappy with the idea of traveling through the forest. Only Flamestrike and the other ThunderClan warriors seemed more at ease.

"This is completely harebrained," Spruceleaf muttered under her breath. She'd finally given up trying to convince them otherwise. Instead of arguing, she padded over to Birdpaw and sat down beside her. "The longer we sit here and argue, the less time we'll have for traveling."

"You'd better get used to it," Darkflower meowed after reaching them. Birdpaw looked at her mother thoughtfully when she noticed how tense she was. The rest of her Clanmates had been circling around the clearing uneasily for the last few heartbeats. Emberstar had finally had enough with their bickering; Birdpaw spotted him bounding over to the group with his fur prickling in annoyance. "Toms are always going to argue among themselves."

"Not all toms are like that," Spruceleaf tried arguing.

Amusement crawled through Birdpaw when she heard the doubt in Spruceleaf's voice. After seeing the way these cats argued, she had a feeling her mother was right. Darkflower seemed indifferent with it though as she swiped a paw over her muzzle, giving it a quick lick.

"I never said that all toms are like that," she pointed out. "Most toms feel as if they have to prove themselves, when they're just wasting their time."

"Enough!" Emberstar's yowl cut through the air, causing all three of them to look in the direction of the arguing cats, "We're going through the forest; it's safer and easier that way. We have numbers on our side."

Oakfire looked as if he was ready to argue when he seemed to think better of it. Birdpaw's shoulders sagged in relief when she realized that was it.

He is a good leader, she thought after watching him take control of the situation. A wise leader knew when to intervene and cease the fighting. Emberstar had seasons of experience, telling her that he was more than capable of getting them through the forest.

Once that was established, no cat dared argue with Emberstar as they began weaving through the undergrowth in small groups. Birdpaw watched warily as everyone tried to avoid getting too close. The movement of such a large group would only attract unwelcome attention. A shiver swept through her at the thought.

SkyClan had already endured enough pain throughout the last few moons. The last thing she wished upon them was for yet another attack. Yet, she also knew the only thing they could do was prepare themselves for the worst possible outcome. True, they had endured enough pain, but they had also survived for as long as she could remember.

It didn't take long for the once grassy terrain to be replaced by rotting leaves and thick bands of trees. Birdpaw's senses were already muddled from the nearby stench of Twolegplace. The forest carried a whole new set of smells that caused her lungs to burn.

"Keep your ears and eyes open." Birdpaw nearly leaped out of her fur at the sound of Birchpelt's voice. She blinked as her mentor reached her so that their pelts were nearly touching. "The forest is always filled with unknown danger."

"Mother told me stories about badgers and foxes," Birdpaw admitted sheepishly.

Amusement swept across Birchpelt's gaze as Birdpaw tasted the air for anything that could pass for a badger or a fox. She'd heard tales of the large creatures attacking bypassing cats. Though they grew up in the gorge, her mother had heard the stories passed down from the elders before the journey started.

"If she's told you anything about them, she's right," Birchpelt meowed. "They're both dangerous creatures."

"That may be true, but there is a way to get around them," Oakfire suddenly intervened. Birchpelt's eyes narrowed when he joined them heartbeats later after hearing the last part of their conversation. "If you want to train your apprentice to defend herself against them, take it from those who know what to expect."

Mousebrain, Birdpaw rolled her eyes as she noticed Birchpelt's fur bristle indignantly. She hated being told what she was and what she wasn't capable of doing. Though SkyClan hadn't faced too many problems with badgers, foxes were a different story.

"Birdpaw is my apprentice, in case you haven't forgotten," Birchpelt snapped. Her tail twitched irritably as Oakfire took a step back in surprise. When it came to defending her Clanmates, Birchpelt did so without hesitation. Birdpaw ducked her head in embarrassment as she caught others looking in their direction warily. She understood why Birchpelt was so annoyed - after all, she was Birdpaw's mentor, and Oakfire just seemed to think he could step in whenever he felt like. "I don't need you butting in and offering ThunderClan's opinion on how I'm training her."

Oakfire's ears flattened in surprise when he realized what Birchpelt meant by that. He opened his mouth, ready to defend himself when Birchpelt glared at him. Instead of saying something that would make the situation worse, Oakfire wisely clamped his mouth shut and put some distance between them.

For a moment, Birdpaw wasn't sure what to say as she noticed Birchpelt relax once Oakfire was gone. Everyone else just gave them a wide berth after noticing how tense the SkyClan deputy was. Experience taught Birdpaw that it was best not to question why Birchpelt was suddenly so hostile. She had a feeling this had something to do with the journey rather than their conversation.

"Are you okay?" she asked hesitantly once she was sure Birchpelt wouldn't say something she would regret.

"I'm fine," Birchpelt rolled her eyes. She paused in her stride as they wove in and out of the bushes that were scattered along the forest floor. Birdpaw managed to keep up with the large group of cats, along with the other SkyClan apprentices. "I'll be fine once we reach Clan territory."

Birdpaw only nodded in agreement to that. Her whiskers twitched at the thought of what it would be like once they reached the lake. Flamestrike tried describing it as best as he could. She tried picturing what territory would best suit the Clan once they made it home. He said that there were plenty of areas that SkyClan could claim once they negotiated terms with the other Clans. Yet, Birdpaw wondered how willing the Clans would be when it came to giving up parts of their own territory.

We've traveled so far already, she thought warily. We can't just let the Clans tell us that we're not welcomed at the lake after going through what we did.

Her tail lashed at the thought. SkyClan managed to survive just about everything that was thrown at them. She knew in the back of her mind that they would survive whatever peril the Clans put them through, if it came to that.

...

The large group had been traveling for what felt like moons through the seemingly endless forest. Birdpaw's paws felt heavy with exhaustion as she managed to keep up with the rest of the group. She was suddenly thankful that she had grown since their time in the mountains. Her legs were no longer small. Now, muscles rippled beneath her pelt from moons of traveling. She was almost as tall as her mother. Even the other apprentices were fully grown.

Ebonypaw, Driftpaw, Brightpaw and Wrenpaw were all fully grown compared to when they began their journey. Though they hadn't been given warrior names yet, Birdpaw knew that it was only a matter of time before Emberstar held their ceremony. One of the many reasons she held off her own ceremony was because they hadn't received their warrior names yet. It didn't seem fair for her to receive one when they had been relatively ignored.

"Why hasn't Emberstar given them their names yet?" she asked Birchpelt as they traveled together.

Darkflower, her mother, was further ahead of them. Birdpaw hadn't missed the fact that her mother kept listening to their conversations every now and then, as if keeping an eye and ear on what they were saying.

Why? she wondered. I know my mother has always worried about me, but I'm almost fully grown now. I can easily take care of myself.

"This journey has been distracting enough," Birchpelt whispered back. She wasn't sure why they were whispering. Emberstar was the furthest ahead, with Flamestrike and Oakfire flanking him on either side. All three toms looked uneasy being so close, but it wasn't as if they had a choice in this cramped forest. "Being in the mountains when they were taken didn't help matters."

Birdpaw looked down at the ground guiltily. That didn't seem like a valid reason. They'd been training longer than her. She couldn't blame them for feeling so resentful for being pushed aside like they were. It wasn't fair.

"If Emberstar wants to give me a warrior name, then he has to give them their names first," she decided out loud. Birchpelt blinked in surprise, though she didn't bother arguing with that idea. "I don't like being seen as the favorite."

She added the last part with a hint of annoyance in her mew, and Birchpelt nodded in understanding. As much as she hated to admit it, Emberstar was showing obvious favoritism. Birdpaw hadn't missed the fact that Brightpaw especially was annoyed with her and Emberstar.

"That is a wise choice... almost as if a Clan leader would make that decision," Birchpelt mewed after a moment of silence.

Birdpaw flinched at the mention of 'Clan leader'.

She wasn't in any hurry to step up as leader of anything. Though she managed to find the Clans on her own, that didn't mean she was ready to lead an entire Clan. Besides, there was still too much to learn.

Her mentor was about to say something else when they all heard a yowl of alarm from up ahead. Birdpaw's fur stood on end as she caught a stench filling the air. A familiar scent that caused everyone to freeze in alarm. Darkflower taught her what a fox smelled like before they reached the mountains. She recognized the stench almost immediately, and it left her heart pounding with dread as she realized that their large group must have attracted the predator.

"Is there any way of going around them?" she heard Spruceleaf ask anxiously.

"Not easily," Flamestrike growled with a lash of his tail. "There's a family of foxes living up ahead."

Now she understood why they all stopped in their tracks. Unease swept through Birdpaw as she realized the severity of the situation. If they were caught, the family would more than likely attack. While their group was large enough to defend themselves against the foxes, most of the SkyClan warriors were still recovering from being trapped in the mountains for so long.

"We can do this if we're careful enough," Oakfire muttered, though he didn't look too convinced with his own theory.

"We can take them." Birdpaw stiffened at the sound of Brightpaw's voice. All four of SkyClan's older apprentices stood together, as if they were trying to prove their point. "We're larger in number-"

"That's enough, Brightpaw," Emberstar snapped after reaching them. Birdpaw watched curiously as Brightpaw flinched under her leader's piercing gaze. Not only was Emberstar her leader, but he was also Brightpaw's father. To see him stand against her was like a double-blow against the apprentice. "We're doing this as carefully as we can, and hopefully without the need to risk injury."

"All you've ever done is contradict whatever decision we make!" Brightpaw fired back. Her pelt began bristling with outrage as Wrenpaw stood protectively beside her sister, looking equally angry. "How long is it going to take for you to realize that my sister and I are ready to be warriors?"

Everyone stood in breathless anticipation as they waited for Emberstar to say something in his defense. Truthfully, Birdpaw did wonder why he waited so long to name them as warriors. Of all the apprentices, Brightpaw and Wrenpaw had been waiting the longest. She could understand why they were so tired of waiting, yet it left her worrying that the longer they stayed out here, the higher chances they had of being attacked.

"If you continue behaving like kits, you will be treated as such," the SkyClan leader growled without hesitation. Anger gleamed within his eyes as he stood in front of the two apprentices, and for a moment, Birdpaw thought he was about to cuff Brightpaw over the ears for speaking out against him. "We are going around their territory. It is the safest path to take."

No one dared argue with Emberstar over that conviction. Birdpaw tried to avoid the glares Brightpaw and Wrenpaw threw her. It was as if they blamed her for their father's behavior towards them. She desperately wanted to tell them that it wasn't her fault, and that she wanted nothing to do with whatever he was planning for her.

AN: I know it's been forever since my last update, and I'm sorry about this. This chapter was also relatively boring, but it does point out a few interesting details regarding Emberstar's relationship with the Clan. Along with the tension between Birdpaw and the other apprentices. That little detail is going to be important in future chapters. On a side note, this is probably going to be a much longer story than I imagined chapter-wise. Originally, it was supposed to be sixty-five chapters long, but I'm guessing it'll surpass that number as the plot continues.

At any rate, long author's note aside, I wanted to thank Niqhtshadow and Clear Water for reviewing! You guys are awesome for even getting this far, and following me despite my lack of updates ^^

Niqhtshadow - Thanks, and I'm glad to hear that you feel it was accurate. It'll be a while until we hear about Reedriver again, but I do have some rather interesting plot twists for him ;)

Clear Water - It does indeed :) Yeah, the dreams do add a bit of foreshadowing, and so does this chapter. It'll be fun to write about the Clan's reactions towards SkyClan and the prophecy, especially since so few cats know about either.