Talonpaw snapped his jaws at the heel of the last ThunderClan warrior as they raced across the scent marks, back across the stream towards the oak trees that made ThunderClan's home. They kicked up pine needles beneath their paws, and when they leaped into the water, the splash soaked Talonpaw's fur, but he didn't care as he watched them retreat.

"And don't come back!" Talonpaw howled. "This is ShadowClan territory! You'll never get it for yourself!" He glanced over his shoulder, spotting Maplepaw, Owlpaw, and Shrewpaw bounding over to him. Blood stained their pelts. Maplepaw had a scratch down her flank, Owlpaw's ear was torn, and Shrewpaw was shaking blood from a wound on his forehead.

"You ran awfully far," Maplepaw commented.

Talonpaw's tail twitched. Now that Maplepaw had saved his life, was she going to use that as an excuse to talk down to him? But there wasn't anything condescending in her voice – no, it seemed… soft. The tabby tom shrugged his shoulders. He had wanted to give Hailpaw one last bite – or maybe even the black-and-white cat that had flung Daisypaw aside. But the battle was over, and ThunderClan was back in their respective territory. Unless he had an order from Lionstar, it would be violating the warrior code to chase after them and attack again.

"We're heading back to camp," Shrewpaw told Talonpaw. "Are you coming?"

Talonpaw nodded. "Yeah. Just give me a few minutes."

Shrewpaw and Owlpaw exchanged a glance, but the both of them simply nodded and disappeared into the shadows of the pine. The only cat who remained was Maplepaw. Talonpaw wondered what she wanted – and why was she standing so close to him? He could feel the fur on his back of his spine prick up in self-defense.

"That was your first battle, wasn't it?" Maplepaw asked.

Talonpaw nodded. "Yeah."

"It gets easier," Maplepaw promised, lifting her tail as if to rest it on his broad shoulders, but she left the action incomplete, her tail laying suspended in the air. The two cats stared at the stream until a high shriek split the air, sending the remaining birds from the pine trees flying away.

"RiverClan! RiverClan battle patrol!"

Maplepaw and Talonpaw exchanged a horrified glance. RiverClan?! Right after ThunderClan? Without a second spare, the two apprentices pelted towards the direction of the voice – which was easy, for the cat would not stop calling out. Talonpaw skidded to a halt when he saw Eaglepaw, who was surrounded by the cats who had opted not to go back to camp to receive treatment from Stormbrook or Birdpaw. Lionstar was among them.

"RiverClan?" Lionstar's voice was low in his chest as he growled. "Where did you see this?"

Eaglepaw was shoved aside as Cloudsong stepped forward. "When you sent us to examine the rest of the territory to make sure there were no ThunderClan warriors sneaking around, we saw a RiverClan patrol," the white-furred tom explained, his voice calm and collected, but Talonpaw couldn't ignore the lust for blood in it.

Lionstar's fur fluffed up. "Could this possibly be coordinated?"

"I doubt it," Cloudsong replied. "They have no idea what they're doing. Two of them tripped on the roots of a pine tree. Right now, Whitesky sent them back to camp to get treated because they sprained their paws."

"That means their patrol is smaller," Lionstar hissed. He turned on his heel and stared at the cats who were around him. Despite just having fought his first battle, the news of even more invading cats made Talonpaw's claws dig further into the ground and ignited the lust for a fight in his heart. "Any cat who is incapable of fighting, go back to camp and have your wounds treated by Stormbrook and Birdpaw! Any cat who refuses to give up the pines without a fight, follow me!"

Talonpaw let out a battle cry and could not help but look next to him, wondering if Maplepaw would join in as well. The tortoiseshell she-cat added her own cry to the howls, anger burning in her eyes. Lionstar and Cloudsong discussed something in hushed tones, and then Lionstar waved his bushy golden tabby tail, disappearing into the shadows of the pine forest. The rest of the ShadowClan patrol followed him. Talonpaw caught sight of his father at the head of it. Even though there was quite a lot of fur missing from his pelt and some blood trickling from scratches, he didn't look seriously wounded. Talonpaw glanced around and found his mother's gray-and-white pelt. She looked battered and beaten, but she moved swiftly, darting from shadow to shadow.

"Can you keep going?" Talonpaw asked Maplepaw as they tagged at the back of the crowd.

"Isn't that a question I should be asking you?" Maplepaw inquired. "This is going to be your second battle in one day, while I've chased away more invaders than you've had mice!"

Talonpaw's fur fluffed up and his hackles rose, but before he could spit out a reply to her, she added softly, as if to soothe the sting of her words, "You did really well in the battle, though. I've never seen a cat who just started their training fight like you did. You have a really good mentor in Sparrowflight."

Is that it? Talonpaw flexed his claws. Insult me, compliment me to make me feel better, and then start all over again? He had no idea what was going on in Maplepaw's mind. Did she like him, or did she just want to make it clear how better she was compared to him? That seemed more like a job for Daisypaw – Daisypaw, after all, was much more brazen and narcissistic than Maplepaw. If she's trying to be kind, she sure has an odd way of going about it.

Maplepaw blinked twice, suddenly seeming to realize what Talonpaw was feeling but was unable to convey in words. "I'm sorry if it came off as an insult, Talonpaw. I really didn't mean to." She shuffled her paws. "It's just been me and Daisypaw since Snakenose, Bluefeather, and Lightpebble became warriors. Daisypaw can be a pawful to deal with, and I was looking forward to knowing my new denmates before I became a warrior. I thought you'd be the most interesting of them all, considering you want to train to work under Lionstar directly. I didn't mean to offend you."

Talonpaw blinked at her. "Apology accepted," he said, detecting the genuine remorse in her words. He was glad she had communicated openly and effectively with him – he was grateful that she wasn't trying to be mean, she was just trying to speak to another denmate as if she was talking to Daisypaw. "I'm sure Daisypaw has always been a tough furball to deal with."

"Being a she-cat in ShadowClan isn't easy," Maplepaw meowed, quickening her pace. "You have to prove you're just as strong as the tomcats. You have to work twice as hard, bring more prey…"

"If any cat ever dares tell you you're worth less because you're a she-cat, I'll rip their ears off, Clanmate or no Clanmate!" Talonpaw exclaimed, feeling his fur bristle as he thought about the fact that his Clanmate would ever dare discriminate against one of their own Clanmates based solely on their gender.

"Sometimes the elders and the older warriors do it," Maplepaw meowed, a bitter smile on her face. "It's all right, though. It's just when they're in a bad mood… and they get over it, anyway."

"It doesn't matter," Talonpaw growled. "It's unacceptable. I will let Sparrowflight know."

"I can take care of myself, but that's a kind offer," Maplepaw meowed. "Now, come on. We need to defeat these RiverClan trespassers!" Putting on more speed, Maplepaw shot away, her tortoiseshell fur a blur in the dark green pine forest. Talonpaw followed her, wondering where Shrewpaw and Owlpaw went. He caught Shrewpaw's pale brown fur a few fox-lengths in front of him, and Talonpaw tensed his muscles. He felt the pain from his wounds, raw and aching, but he would not let any RiverClan cat trespass on his territory. He ran to catch up with Shrewpaw.

"Talonpaw?" Shrewpaw looked over his shoulder, his amber eyes round. "Oh, you finally got away from Maplepaw?"

"Huh?" Talonpaw stared at the pale brown tom as he let out a lowly chuckle. "What do you mean?"

"Never mind." Shrewpaw grinned, but the light of mischief never left his yellow eyes.

Talonpaw rolled his eyes and cuffed Shrewpaw's ear. "Shut it," he grumbled. "We need to find RiverClan and figure out whatever the hell it is they think they're doing."

Shrewpaw nodded in agreement as the ShadowClan patrol fanned out into a single file line, sneaking through the trees and using their shadows to mask their deadly approach. Talonpaw wished he could be at the front, to catch a look at what was approaching them, but the only thing he could see was the heads and backs of his Clanmates. He lifted his head, trying to peer over them.

He caught a glimpse of a stocky, broad-shouldered white tom with amber eyes and torn ears. Is that Whitesky? Behind Whitesky were three RiverClan cats – one was a ginger-and-white tabby tom, the other was a brown-and-white speckled she-cat, and the other was a pale tortoiseshell she-cat. All of them were massive, and Whitesky nearly reached Lionstar in size – which was not an easy feat to accomplish.

A low growl rumbled in Lionstar's throat, and he whispered something to Cloudsong. Cloudsong nodded and passed it to the cat behind him, who continued to pass the message down until it reached Shrewpaw and Talonpaw. It got to Shrewpaw first, who Eaglepaw whispered it to. Shrewpaw turned to Talonpaw, his eyes round.

"What did they say?" Talonpaw pressed his friend.

"Lionstar is going to leap onto Whitesky when he's not looking and take him hostage," Shrewpaw told him, his tail sticking straight up in the air and waving back and forth. "Lionstar wants Sparrowflight, Cloudsong, Toadstep, Redfeather, Snowsplash, and Hopflight to join him in the initial assault. The patrol is small, so the rest of us are going to be here as backup in case they need it."

Talonpaw sheathed his claws. "So we're not going to fight?" he asked, confused.

"If we're not called." Shrewpaw shrugged. Talonpaw blinked, baffled as Lionstar's named cats fanned out in a line that nearly encircled the pitiful RiverClan patrol. With a yowl, Lionstar leaped onto Whitesky, and the ShadowClan cats landed onto the remaining RiverClan cats. Talonpaw watched in astonishment as Sparrowflight's claws sliced the throat of the pale tortoiseshell she-cat, and Cloudsong rolled with the ginger-and-white tabby tom. The brown-and-white she-cat snarled in fury, but Toadstep silenced her with a powerful blow to her jaw. Lionstar pinned down Whitesky, his claws arched right above his throat, ready to sink them in.

Lionstar looked up, his mouth stained with blood as the RiverClan cats stared at the leader of their patrol, pinned like helpless prey underneath the massive ShadowClan leader. "One step, and he's dead," Lionstar growled.

"Don't hurt him!" pleaded the pale tortoiseshell she-cat.

"Shadefire, silence!" hissed the ginger-and-white tabby tom.

"He's going to kill him, Flamestripe!" Shadefire wailed. "How will Willowstripe go on if Whitesky dies?"

Flamestripe's tail twitched back-and-forth uncertainly, while Shadefire stared pleadingly at Lionstar. Lionstar looked down at Whitesky, disgust in his green eyes as if the white tom was nothing more than a meager piece of crow-food.

"Do it," Whitesky taunted as he laid under the grip of Lionstar. "Kill me."

"Shut up, Whitesky!" yowled the brown-and-white she-cat.

"Birdflower's right," Flamestripe said. He was even beginning to look worried when he had originally silenced Shadefire for trying to interfere. "Just keep your mouth shut. Lionstar, what are your demands?"

"Oh, I'm not looking for demands." Lionstar tightened his grip on Whitesky and gazed at the RiverClan warriors. "Pineflower, Larchfur, Foxblaze, Hollyshade, Ivypelt. Any of those names sound familiar?"

The RiverClan cats gazed at each other uncertainly. Shadefire shook her head softly, while Birdflower clawed the ground in front of her and Flamestripe lifted his head to meet Lionstar's gaze.

"They don't," the ginger-and-white tabby replied.

"Pity." Lionstar's voice was flippant. "They should. ShadowClan remembers the names of the RiverClan warriors we slay. These are the names of the ShadowClan cats that have died under your relentless attacks in the past four seasons. Whitesky is now mine." The big golden tabby tom delivered a powerful blow to Whitesky's head, knocking the tom out. "Tell Reedstar that if he wants his warrior, he can come to my camp to retrieve him. I will not allow another of my Clanmates to die under your treacherous claws. Not anymore."

"Before you even think about attacking," hissed Cloudsong as the RiverClan warriors immediately crouched down, "just take a look at what's behind us." The white tom waved his tail, and taking that as an order, Talonpaw stepped out of the shadows that had been concealing him. The rest of his Clanmates did as well, and the fear and horror that fell upon the RiverClan cats' faces was plain as day. "You'll all be slaughtered. If you want to settle this peacefully, grab Reedstar and Otterfrost, and we can discuss what we want in exchange for Whitesky."

"We're leaving," Lionstar growled. "You have three days. On the third day at sunset, if no progress is made, consider Whitesky one dead warrior for the five of mine you have killed." The big golden tabby tom draped Whitesky across his broad striped back and melted into the shadows, the rest of ShadowClan following him. Talonpaw stayed behind but made sure the shadows covered him so the RiverClan warriors didn't see him. He could feel Shrewpaw brushing behind him and knew the tom had decided to stay back to see how the RiverClan cats were reacting.

They were simply staring at each other in astonishment. Flamestripe shook his broad head. "It was Whitesky's idea to lead the attack, and now he got taken because of it," he gasped.

"Willowstripe is unable to handle this," Shadefire fretted. "She loves him dearly, and now he's held hostage. He's her mate! How am I supposed to tell her?"

"I still think you should be with your own mate," Birdflower muttered under her breath. Shadefire snapped her head over to glare daggers at her, but Birdflower cleared her throat and meowed, "We'll have to go back to camp to report to Reedstar. If we follow Lionstar and try and take Whitesky by force, we'll all get ourselves killed."

Flamestripe nodded. "Birdflower is right. There's nothing we can do but tell Reedstar. He can figure it out from there. We just have to trust that ShadowClan won't harm Whitesky while he's being held prisoner in their camp."

Shadefire let out a sigh, and Birdflower nodded in agreement. Flamestripe looked over his shoulder, as if he could catch a glimpse of Lionstar, but the ginger-and-white tabby tom shook out his pelt and leaped away, the two RiverClan warriors following him. When they were gone, Talonpaw turned on his heel, making sure Shrewpaw was next to him, and followed the scent trail back to camp.

"A prisoner," Shrewpaw breathed out. "I've only heard of Clans holding prisoners, but I never thought I would see it with my own eyes."

"If RiverClan really is responsible for those many deaths, maybe Whitesky deserves it," Talonpaw murmured. "Hey… wasn't Foxblaze Owlpaw's father?"

Shadows fell over Shrewpaw's dim amber gaze. "I think so."

Anger made Talonpaw unsheathe his claws and sink them into the ground. "Then he does deserve it," he growled. "If Foxblaze was alive, Owlpaw would have a father to look up to – and probably a mother, too. He's alone, because Foxblaze is dead and Blossomflower can't look at Owlpaw without being reminded of Foxblaze. RiverClan didn't just kill cats – they've killed families, too."

Shrewpaw nodded in slow agreement. "What do you think Reedstar will say?"

"If you know yourself and your enemy, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles," Talonpaw quoted the very first thing Sparrowflight had said to him when they started battle training. "I don't know Reedstar, so I can't say for sure, Shrewpaw."

"What if you were leader, and a warrior of yours was being held hostage?" Shrewpaw inquired.

Talonpaw paused. "I guess my loyalty would be to my Clanmate before anything else," he meowed. "But I wouldn't want to put his life in danger. I'd listen to what the other Clan leader had to say, and if the terms were fair, and I would get my Clanmate back in return, then I'd do it. If not, I'd have to figure out some other way to get my Clanmate. Even if that means fighting."

"You'd make a good Clan leader, Talonpaw," Shrewpaw meowed as the two cats approached the brambles that draped over the dip in the pine forest. "Your loyalty has always been to your Clanmates before anything else."

"So is Lionstar's," Talonpaw meowed. "That's why he's Clan leader. I just hope this decision doesn't backfire on us." He slipped down the walls of the hollow and entered through the thorn tunnel, Shrewpaw hot on his heels. The two apprentices entered camp, and Talonpaw looked up to see the sun setting, bringing with it the hues of the evening. Talonpaw blinked in surprise – it seemed only seconds ago he was forcing Owlpaw and Hawkpaw to become sworn brothers. Where did this day go? As he rolled his shoulders back, he was achingly aware of the pain from the scratches and bites he endured in the battle with ThunderClan. Talonpaw found his paws taking him to the medicine den, but he stopped for a moment when he saw Toadstep approaching him and Shrewpaw.

"Good, all the apprentices are back in camp," Toadstep meowed. He waved his tail over to Eaglepaw, Hawkpaw, Owlpaw, Daisypaw, and Maplepaw, who promptly came bounding over. "Lionstar wants to speak to all of you. Stay here."

Talonpaw exchanged a surprised glance with Shrewpaw. Daisypaw immediately began to lick her cream-and-white fur, smoothing it down so that it shone in the setting sun. Maplepaw elbowed her to get her to stop, while anger blazed in Owlpaw's eyes. Talonpaw guessed that the young tabby apprentice had heard his father's name being mentioned during the hostage negotiation situation. When Lionstar arrived, the setting sun silhouette the thick mane of fur around his neck, confirming his namesake.

"As you all know, we have a hostage in our camp," Lionstar meowed, wrapping his tail across his paws. He pointed with his tail to a thick bramble enclosure near the thickest part of the camp wall. Talonpaw could spot a dark and gnarled hollow tree right in the tiny clearing. "Whitesky from RiverClan will be living in that thicket until further notice. Any one of you could be appointed as his guard – I will not limit guards to just warriors or just apprentices. But I do want to let you know, if you are on guard duty for Whitesky, never keep your eyes off him. Always keep your ears alert and your eyes open. If he tries to attack you, yowl like you've never yowled before. Is that understood?" His dark green gaze bore into the apprentices.

They all nodded.

"Good." Lionstar lifted his head. "I want you all to go get those wounds treated. I'll have a senior warrior guard Whitesky until dawn, and then Talonpaw, you'll take over from there until Sparrowflight needs you." With a wave of his wispy tail, the ShadowClan leader disappeared back into his den. Toadstep watched him go and gave a brief nod to the apprentices. Talonpaw's fur pricked on the back of his spine as he realized what Lionstar had just ordered him to do.

He just asked me to be the guard for a RiverClan enemy! Is this him showing me that he's starting to trust me, as one of his trusted generals?