Chapter Text
The Clans made camp right there on that grassy slope. And that night, with the indigo sky above them and the claw-pricks of silver stars filling the lake below, they celebrated their arrival at their new home.
The darkness of the hill came alive with the sound of purrs and the brushes of pelts against one another— short, long, glossy, wiry, black, white, ginger, brown, and every combination in between. Hunting patrols brought back as much prey as they could find to allow the Clans to feast. Beneath the watchful eyes of Silverpelt, cats of all Clans grouped together in a large, loose circle. Warriors joked and boasted, apprentices saw who could leap the highest over their friends, squealing kits chased each other around lounging cats, and elders reminisced on moons long past.
As Tawnypelt gazed at the joyful cats lounging under the shining moon and stars, she felt like she was witnessing one of the happiest Gatherings she’d ever attended. But then Tawnypelt blinked and peered a bit closer, noting the closeness between former enemies— how united they were in their joy and relief.
Not a Gathering… It’s like I’m looking at a camp. A single Clan’s camp.
If she hadn’t known these cats her whole life, she’d not be able to distinguish where one Clan stopped and another began. Even their once unique Clan-scents had all blended into one. The only thing that separated them now were their memories.
“It’s strange, isn’t it?” Squirrelpaw murmured from Tawnypelt’s side.
The two of them were sharing a pigeon. Squirrelpaw lifted her head from a half-eaten wing and followed Tawnypelt’s gaze towards the crowd of cats.
“Beautiful, but strange,” Squirrelpaw amended, her mew wistful.
“It won’t be like this for long,” Tawnypelt warned, noticing the starry look in her friend’s gaze. “Soon enough, cats will remember their old grudges and feuds. But for tonight at least… We are one Clan.”
Squirrelpaw nodded, silent for a moment as she thought, before she heaved a sigh.
“Do you ever wish you could stay in one moment forever?” Squirrelpaw asked. “And stop everything from changing?”
Tawnypelt snorted. “Stop change? Life is change, Squirrelpaw. Look around us. Think of how different everything is now than it was only a season or two ago.”
Squirrelpaw gave her bushy red tail an emphatic lash. “Sure, but I like the way things are now.” She turned large, appealing eyes onto Tawnypelt. “I like being able to see you and Crowfeather whenever I want. We’ve already lost our old homes, and Feathertail and Stormfur. I don’t want to lose you both too. Can’t at least that stay the same after this?”
Tawnypelt softened in the face of Squirrelpaw’s optimism. Her friend was so fiercely idealistic, it was sometimes hard to not get swept away in her romantic fantasies. In truth, Tawnypelt would love it if she didn’t have to go back to being rivals with Brambleclaw, or their mother, or Squirrelpaw, Crowfeather, and Mothwing. But the fact remained that life wasn’t an idealistic fantasy.
“We can visit Stormfur. He isn’t that far away,” Tawnypelt pointed out. “If this lake really is meant to be our new home, he’s only a few days’ walk right back there.” She waved her tail towards the mountains behind them. “But there was always going to come a point that we would say goodbye to each other. There’s always been four Clans.”
Squirrelpaw shot her a fierce glare. “But if ‘life is change,’ why can’t that change too?” Squirrelpaw nodded towards the crowd of cats. “Isn’t this so much better than fighting over scraps of territory, or mice that have darted across the border? Why can’t the four Clans be more than what they’ve always been? Haven’t we shown them that it’s possible?”
Tawnypelt sighed, a dark feeling slowly building in her gut. “You know, there was once another cat who sought to unite the Clans into one.”
Squirrelpaw’s lips curled back in a faint, disgusted snarl. “Tigerstar? Oh come on, Tawnypelt. You know that’s not what I mean. Besides, Tigerstar didn’t care about uniting the Clans to help them. He just wanted the power to rule over everyone.”
“That’s true,” Tawnypelt admitted. “But there’s still a reason why he failed. The Clans will never unite into one. We are too proud. Too different.”
“Not that different,” Squirrelpaw muttered under her breath.
Tawnypelt didn’t bother continuing to argue with her. She had the feeling that Squirrelpaw was too hard-headed to be swayed on this matter anyway. And besides, Tawnypelt had just noticed a different dark ginger pelt slipping through the crowd towards them, his amber eyes locked on her.
“Still wasting your time with ThunderClanners, Tawnypelt?” he teased, his gaze flicking from her to Squirrelpaw.
Squirrelpaw rolled her eyes. “Hello to you too, Rowanclaw. Nice to see you’re as pleasant as ever.”
Rowanclaw inclined his head.
“And nice to see you’re still as loud-mouthed as ever, Squirrelpaw,” he said in an even voice.
Squirrelpaw let her gaze drift pointedly over Rowanclaw’s missing ear tip. “If I knew you were going to be this annoying, I’d have let the twolegs keep you. You know, I don’t think you’ve ever actually thanked me for freeing you.”
That barb finally cracked Rowanclaw’s cool facade. His ears angled back, and his tail started to twitch.
“Tawnypelt was the one that freed me, actually,” he growled.
“And have you thanked her?” Squirrelpaw sniffed, clearly pleased that she’d managed to ruffle Rowanclaw’s fur.
Rowanclaw rolled his eyes instead of answering. He turned away from Squirrelpaw to focus all of his attention on Tawnypelt as if the ThunderClan cat wasn’t even there.
“Some of our Clanmates are talking about having a spar to celebrate,” he said
“Alright. Good for them,” Tawnypelt responded, curling her tail around her paws.
Rowanclaw frowned at her. “You don’t want to join?”
“I’m fine just spectating.”
“Spectating what?” Squirrelpaw chimed in. “Do you mean like battle training?”
Rowanclaw spared a brief glance at Squirrelpaw, giving a derisive scoff. “ThunderClan cats don’t even know what a spar is?”
Squirrelpaw bristled. “I’m sure I at least know enough about fighting to beat your annoying tail!”
“The kind of spar he’s talking about is not exactly fighting,” Tawnypelt explained with a blink at Squirrelpaw. “Or exactly battle training… You’ll see if they do it.”
“But you won’t do it with us?” Rowanclaw pressed. “Even if I challenge you?”
Tawnypelt narrowed her eyes in disbelief. “Seriously? You’d challenge me?”
Rowanclaw lifted his chin, his expression unbearably smug. “Tawnypelt, you have wounded my honor and pride, and I demand retribution.”
Tawnypelt scoffed incredulously as Rowanclaw began the ceremonial words.
“Meet me claw-to-claw, fang-to-fang before our Clanmates and StarClan, so they may all witness and judge the victor.” He dipped his head. “Do you accept?”
Annoyance flashed through Tawnypelt.
“Well my honor and pride demands that I do, as you well know,” she snapped.
Rowanclaw swished his tail, and Tawnypelt wanted to smack that self-assured look off his face. “Is that a yes?”
“Fine, you daft furball,” Tawnypelt growled. “But when I win, remember it’s your own dumb fault for challenging me.”
Rowanclaw just purred, dipping his head to her again before turning and striding right into the middle of the Clans.
“A challenge has been issued and answered!” Rowanclaw yowled for every cat to hear. “Witness the spar!”
Cats turned, blinking at him with confused expressions. Only the ShadowClan cats’ gazes went bright with interest. They grouped closer to Rowanclaw and the cats from the other Clans followed, turning the loose circle into a ring with Rowanclaw in the center.
“I still don’t know what’s going on,” Squirrelpaw hissed in Tawnypelt’s ear.
Tawnypelt hauled herself to her paws, eyeing the sheer number of cats staring at Rowanclaw— and soon also her. A part of her couldn’t believe that she’d let Rowanclaw goad her into agreeing to this.
“You’ll see soon enough,” Tawnypelt said. “Just cheer for me, yeah?”
“Of course!” Squirrelpaw exclaimed.
Tawnypelt squared her shoulders and strode forward, slipping through the crowd of cats to end up in the center of the ring with Rowanclaw.
“I thought we all were going to spar?!” Ratscar called from where he stood with Snaketail and Cedarheart.
“Hogging all the glory, Rowanclaw?” Snaketail asked, his tail-tip twitching.
“Can’t you two just flirt like normal cats?” Cedarheart, Rowanclaw’s brother, hissed.
Tawnypelt shot a scorching glance from over her shoulder, and Cedarheart’s jaw snapped shut so quickly, she was surprised he didn’t bite his tongue.
Tawnypelt turned to face Rowanclaw again, narrowing her focus down to only her opponent.
“Yeah! Kick his tail, Tawnypelt!” Squirrelpaw yowled from the crowd.
When Tawnypelt had asked her to cheer for her, she hadn’t meant now. But still her friend’s support warmed Tawnypelt, and she allowed her lips to curl back into a snarling grin at Rowanclaw.
ShadowClan cats began to slowly stomp their paws in unison. After a moment of hesitation, the other Clans joined in.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
The sound resonated across the slope like Tawnypelt had stepped inside a pulsing heart. The rhythm echoed in her bones. Rowanclaw dipped his head to her. Tawnypelt returned the gesture in order to formally begin the spar.
Rowanclaw stepped forward first. He swayed from side-to-side as he walked, flowing with the heartbeat. Tawnypelt joined him, letting the rhythm guide her paws. They weaved around each other, sizing the other up.
Tawnypelt didn’t give Rowanclaw the chance to capture their audience’s favor by making the first real move. Instead as she brushed by him again, she bunched her powerful limbs under her and sprung. She rolled in mid-air over Rowanclaw, clearing him with just enough distance so that her pelt didn’t touch his, and landing on his other side. She whirled to face Rowanclaw. The crowd yowled their approval, the sound of their pounding paws getting lost for a moment in their cries.
Rowanclaw reared onto his hind-paws, then sprung. Tawnypelt ducked as he leapt towards her. They twisted around each other like snakes as they both pivoted to face the other again. Rowanclaw’s paws had barely touched the ground before he leapt again, evoking some gasps from the crowd at the impressive height he reached this time. As he came back down to land, Tawnypelt swept her forepaws towards his legs, hoping to knock them out from under him. Rowanclaw side-stepped, but still slightly stumbled, eliciting a few hisses of disapproval.
Tawnypelt pressed him now that she’d forced him to misstep. Finding her rhythm again in the crowd’s beating paws, Tawnypelt darted from side to side, harrying his flanks alternatingly in unison with the sound. Rowanclaw dipped and dodged, and Tawnypelt prickled with frustration that he’d recovered from his mistake.
Rowanclaw reared up again, but this time Tawnypelt met him on her own hindpaws. She matched every strike of his forepaws with her own. She could feel his strength in the way her legs reverberated with each blow she deflected. Rowanclaw swiped for her head again, but instead of matching his blow, this time Tawnypelt ducked under it, slipping behind him. She had hoped he would expect resistance to the hit and over-extend, but instead Rowanclaw just fell back to all fours and rapidly pirouetted to face her.
The cats’ paws began to pound faster around her— the beating heart galloping now. They were running out of time. In response, Tawnypelt’s motions became more frenetic as she kept pace with the rhythm. She and Rowanclaw swiped and sprung and whirled. Their paws barely touched the other’s pelt even as each movement became faster, larger, stronger than the last.
“It is finished!” Blackstar’s yowl cut through the crowd.
Tawnypelt and Rowanclaw both landed back on the ground from a final leap, panting. The ShadowClan cats’ ceased their stomping paws immediately, and the cats from other Clans quickly followed suit. For a moment, the entire clearing was silent until Rowanclaw stepped forward and lifted his tail. The crowd cheered, paws now stomping in a rhythmless cacophony, and the sheer noise from the massive audience assaulted Tawnypelt’s ears. Rowanclaw lowered his tail and stepped back. Tawnypelt took his place, lifting her chin and tail. The crowd roared their approval once more, paws pounding, as Tawnypelt’s ears were again flooded by sound.
Tawnypelt blinked, realizing that the cats outside of ShadowClan likely had no idea that they were supposed to cheer for the cat they thought had sparred best. She glanced over her shoulder to see Rowanclaw shooting her an amused look, having come to the same conclusion.
“A draw!” Blackstar declared as the cries died down.
Tail swishing, Rowanclaw leaned closer to her.
“I guess you’re not better than me after all,” he said, whiskers twitching smugly.
Tawnypelt scoffed and as she turned aside, she swatted her tail across his muzzle. “We both know which of us misstepped.”
“Tawnypelt!” She glanced over her shoulder to see Squirrelpaw scampering up to her from out of the crowd, Brambleclaw and Crowfeather not far behind. “That was so cool! But— what was that? You called it sparring, but you two barely touched. It wasn’t very much like fighting at all.”
Tawnypelt shrugged. “You don’t have to wrestle in the dirt to see which cat is the most graceful and powerful. In fighting or battle training you’re always trying to injure or subdue your opponent. You still want to win when you spar in ShadowClan, but the goal is a bit different,” Tawnypelt licked a paw and began to flatten the fur on her face that had gotten ruffled in all her leaping and spinning. “But it’s called ‘sparring’ because it used to be more violent many generations ago. Cats really would claw each other up in front of the Clan over slights to their honor. But the use of real force was forbidden a long time ago.”
Rowanclaw winced.
“Except for under Brokenstar,” he muttered.
Tawnypelt’s ears flattened against her head. When Brokenstar ruled, she hadn’t yet joined ShadowClan, but she’d heard the infamous horror stories of Brokenstar’s violent, bloody spars, which he’d claimed would strengthen the Clan— he’d even had kits fight, claws unsheathed. Cats had died.
“Except for under Brokenstar,” Tawnypelt agreed.
“Well done,” Brambleclaw purred, touching his nose to Tawnypelt’s. “I thought you won.”
“Very impressive, both of you.”
Tawnypelt’s ears twitched at Hawkfrost’s smooth mew. She glanced at him as he padded up to her and Rowanclaw, and Squirrelpaw scoffed quietly to herself at his appearance. Brambleclaw, however, blinked at Hawkfrost welcomingly.
“Are those sorts of performances commonplace in ShadowClan?” Hawkfrost asked.
“Not too common,” Rowanclaw said. “Usually spars are reserved for days with warrior ceremonies or other types of celebration.” Rowanclaw shot Tawnypelt a smug glance. “Of course though, technically, a warrior can challenge another warrior to a spar at any time.”
Their conversation was interpreted by a yowl from Firestar. ThunderClan’s leader had strode into the center of the crowd and lifted his tail for attention.
“Cats of all Clans!” Firestar began, lifting his chin. “We have reached the place StarClan meant us to find. We have much to be thankful for, and when morning breaks tomorrow, the Clans will explore their new homes properly.”
Rowanclaw huffed quietly to himself and leaned over to whisper into Tawnypelt’s ear.
“Of course it’s Firestar who thinks he has the authority to speak for all the leaders,” he muttered. “Bossy furball.”
One of Hawkfrost’s ears twitched towards Rowanclaw, and he shot him a glance that seemed like he was in agreement. But a quiet hiss from Squirrelpaw told Tawnypelt that Hawkfrost wasn’t the only cat who’d overheard Rowanclaw. Squirrelpaw glared at Rowanclaw, but Firestar continued before his daughter could scold Rowanclaw:
“But I would like to start ThunderClan’s life here by honoring a new warrior.” Firestar had taken a seat, curling his tail around his paws, and his chest puffed out in pride. “Squirrelpaw, where are you?”
“W–what? Me?!” Squirrelpaw’s indignation at Rowanclaw had swiftly turned to astonishment, making her squeak like a kit.
Whiskers quivering in a silent purr, Tawnypelt glanced over in time to see Squirrelpaw spring to her paws, her ears pricked and her tail standing straight up.
“Yes, you.” There was a gleam of amusement in Firestar’s eyes as he beckoned to his daughter. “ThunderClan owes you more than I can say for making the journey to sundrown-place, and helping lead the Clans to this new home. Dustpelt and I agree that if ever an apprentice deserved her warrior name, you do.”
Squirrelpaw blinked, still startled into stillness for one more heartbeat before she squared her shoulders and began to march forward. Tawnypelt, Brambleclaw, and Crowfeather all murmured their congratulations to her as she passed. Squirrelpaw made it about halfway through the crowd before Sandstorm intercepted her. Sandstorm’s eyes glowed with pride as she gave her daughter a few swift licks to smooth her fur. Tawnypelt watched Leafpaw come over as well to press her muzzle against her sister’s side.
Dustpelt then padded up to lead Squirrelpaw the rest of the way to Firestar, and he stood beside her as they waited for the ThunderClan leader to speak.
Firestar blinked encouragingly at Squirrelpaw before lifting his head to address the gathered cats.
“This is the first time any cat has spoken these words in our new home,” he began. “I, Firestar, leader of ThunderClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. She has trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend her to you as a warrior in her turn.”
There was a burning intensity in his eyes, and Tawnypelt understood how much this moment meant to Firestar— not just for him as Squirrelpaw’s father, or even just for ThunderClan— but for all four Clans that had journeyed here from their home far away. By calling upon StarClan to make a new warrior, they were claiming this unfamiliar place as their own. There had been many, many times on the journey when they had feared they had left their warrior ancestors behind, but Firestar addressed them now as confidently as if their spirits had come down from the glittering stars to stand among them in the crowd.
But how will we speak to StarClan when the Moonstone is so far away? Tawnypelt wondered.
She gave her ears a small shake and made herself concentrate again on Squirrelpaw’s ceremony. She was getting ahead of herself. They’d only just reached somewhere that looked as if it would make a safe home for the Clans. The rest would come with time.
“Squirrelpaw,” Firestar was saying, “do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?”
Squirrelpaw’s reply rang out clearly. “I do.”
“Then by the powers of StarClan I give you your warrior name. Squirrelpaw, from this moment you will be known as Squirrelflight. StarClan honors your courage and your determination, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan.” Firestar rested his muzzle on Squirrelflight’s head, and she gave his shoulder a respectful lick.
Tawnypelt purred quietly to herself. Determination was an unusual virtue to mention in the warrior ceremony; in Squirrelflight, it sometimes showed as stubbornness, and had led her into trouble more than once. But Tawnypelt also remembered the times on their journey when her determination and will to succeed had put fresh heart into all her companions. Would they have even made it to the sundrown-place without her?
When the new warrior stepped away from Firestar, Leafpaw bounded up to her, the first to greet her by her new name. “Squirrelflight! Squirrelflight!”
Her call was taken up by cats of all the Clans around them. Squirrelflight looked around, her green eyes shining with pride. As Tawnypelt began to make her way through the crowd to Squirrelflight’s side, Brambleclaw and Crowfeather followed towards her.
“Congratulations,” Tawnypelt purred.
“You deserve it,” Brambleclaw said. His voice was warm— the quarrel he’d had with Squirrelflight about Hawkfrost earlier that day forgotten in the face of finding their new home and Squirrelflight’s ceremony.
“Mind you,” Brambleclaw added teasingly. “You should still listen to your senior warriors.”
Pride and joy shimmered in Squirrelflight’s gaze, but there was also a flash of wicked amusement as she blinked at them.
“I’m not falling for that! None of you outrank me! You can’t tell me what to do anymore!” Squirrelflight purred.
Crowfeather snorted. “Like you ever listened to us before.”
But he warmly touched his nose to Squirrelflight’s anyway.
Squirrelflight’s tail flicked mischievously. “You all were still bossy about it,” she purred.
“I think we all know who the real bossy one is,” Dustpelt put in, overhearing her.
Squirrelflight let out a mrrow of laughter and affectionately butted her former mentor on his shoulder.
“Well, I must have learned it from someone,” she meowed. She blinked, and added more seriously, “Really, thanks for everything, Dustpelt.”
Dustpelt let out a brief purr before slipping away into the crowd.
The meows of celebration died down as Blackstar stepped forward and signaled with his tail for silence. “This is all very touching, but I think we’ve celebrated enough for one night. It’s impossible to say what’s down by the lake in this light. Prey, predators, twolegs… There’s a lot of territory to inspect tomorrow. We should rest.”
“Meanwhile, we ought to keep watch,” Firestar added. “For ThunderClan, Squirrelflight can be one of the guards, since she must hold her vigil tonight anyway. Deputies, find two or three other warriors to join her. We don’t want foxes sneaking up on us while we’re asleep.”
Tawnypelt’s brows arched at Firestar’s orders. Squirrelflight was already heading off towards the edge of the crowd to take up her guard post, but she leaned close to Brambleclaw and Crowfeather to whisper to them.
“‘Deputies?’ Well, he’s certainly not talking about ThunderClan’s deputy since he doesn’t have one… But still it’s a bit presumptuous, even for Firestar, to think he can tell the other Clans’ deputies what to do.”
“He didn’t mean it like that,” Brambleclaw whispered back, and Tawnypelt didn’t miss the way his shoulder fur prickled defensively.
Tawnypelt shrugged, not bothering to argue with Brambleclaw. All of ThunderClan was handling their lack-of-deputy situation weirdly anyway. Firestar still had not appointed a deputy to replace Greystripe, and any cat could see how irrational he was being about it. He was just putting more strain on himself by shouldering the deputy duties in addition to his own. Tawnypelt had noticed that Firestar sometimes used Sandstorm and Dustpelt to organize hunting patrols, so why not just officially make one of them his deputy? In the slim chance that Greystripe did return to ThunderClan, they could just step down like what had happened with Hawkfrost and Mistyfoot.
Tawnypelt glanced at the cats who’d taken up the watch. Squirrelflight had been a good choice— even if she hadn’t gotten her warrior name tonight, she’d been so excited about finding the lake that Tawnypelt doubted that she would have slept anyway. But Tawnypelt winced to herself as she realized that Mistyfoot had assigned Hawkfrost to join her. Hopefully his presence wouldn’t drive Squirrelflight too crazy throughout the night.
Tawnypelt blinked in surprise as Rowanclaw brushed past her, heading to join Squirrelflight and Hawkfrost.
“You got put on guard duty?” Tawnypelt asked.
Rowanclaw huffed and rolled his eyes. “Apparently Russetfur didn’t like us sparring without her and Blackstar’s approval, and found it ‘disruptive’ and ‘attention seeking.’ And that ‘ShadowClan matters should be kept between ShadowClan Clanmates.’” His tail twitched. “Since I was the one that challenged you, apparently that means I’m the one who gets in trouble.”
Tawnypelt glanced over her shoulder, her gaze seeking out the stern deputy. Russetfur was watching them from across the crowd, apparently making sure Rowanclaw reached his post, but when she noticed Tawnypelt, she turned her narrow, disapproving gaze onto her too. Tawnypelt quickly looked back at Rowanclaw, knowing that even though he was getting the brunt of the blame, Tawnypelt was clearly still on thin ice for even participating.
“Well that’s only fair,” Tawnypelt quipped. “I didn’t want to do it at all, if you remember.”
Rowanclaw only scoffed, padding off to take up his post without responding. It was probably the prudent move since Russetfur was liable to put him on watch again tomorrow if she thought he wasn’t promptly following her orders.
Cats began to settle in to sleep, curling up in the patches where the grass grew thickly, or finding shelter in the sparse bushes with low-growing branches.
“How about we take that gorse bush?” Brambleclaw asked, pointing with his nose a few tail-lengths up the slope.
Tawnypelt and Crowfeather followed him up and they crawled under the lowest boughs. Tawnypelt scrabbled in the debris underneath the bush until she made a somewhat comfortable nest and settled down.
“Room for two more?” Leafpaw’s head poked under the bush, Mothwing blinking behind her.
“Come on in,” Tawnypelt said.
“We’ve got extra space tonight with Squirrelflight on watch,” Crowfeather pointed out, his jaws splitting in a yawn.
The two medicine cats slipped under the bush. Tawnypelt rumbled a purr of greeting as Mothwing settled in next to her, which Mothwing was quick to return. Unlike with Hawkfrost, Tawnypelt had managed to strike up an easy companionship with her half-sister.
Maybe it comes from us both having to deal with frog-brained brothers, Tawnypelt thought, her whiskers twitching with amusement.
“You came in quick tonight. The elders and kits are still doing well then?” Brambleclaw asked the medicine cats.
Leafpaw nodded. “Most every cat is still strong after our stay with the Tribe. We’re keeping an eye on Harekit and Kestrelkit to make sure they don’t develop a cough from the cold, but so far they are both healthy, thank StarClan.”
Tawnypelt murmured an agreement. Harekit and Kestrelkit were Sorrelshine’s and Tornear’s kits who had been born only a little over a moon ago during the Clan’s stay with the Tribe. Part of the reason the Clans had stayed with the Tribe for so long was to allow the pair of kits time to grow so that they’d be strong enough to travel.
“Tallstar is the most concerning,” Mothwing said quietly. “He seemed to stabilize while we were at the Tribe, but he’s not getting better. Even just these few days of travel has really strained him.”
Brambleclaw blinked at Mothwing. “If he’s not getting better…”
Tawnypelt glanced at Crowfeather, but he just looked grim and unsurprised. Tallstar’s poor health was no secret— neither was that the WindClan leader was on his last life.
“He’s dying,” Crowfeather said flatly. “And soon.”
Tawnypelt’s ears pricked. Well, Tallstar’s health wasn’t a secret, but she hadn’t known it was that bad.
“Barkface told you?” Leafpaw asked quietly.
Crowfeather nodded. “And the rest of WindClan. Earlier today, before we broke camp this morning.”
Tawnypelt wracked her mind, trying to recall if she’d seen Tallstar lately. Did he really seem even more frail than he’s been? She didn’t think she’d gotten a good look— Tallstar was always surrounded by a group of WindClan warriors and Barkface, who basically never left his side.
Crowfeather stared down at his paws. “At least Tallstar got to see our new home.”
“He might still stabilize again once we stop traveling,” Mothwing pointed out.
Crowfeather didn’t look hopeful.
“Then Mudclaw will be WindClan’s leader,” Brambleclaw mused.
Crowfeather scoffed, but didn’t verbalize his thoughts into words.
Everyone quieted down as the exhaustion from the day of travel caught up to them. As Tawnypelt closed her eyes, hearing the breathing and feeling the warmth of the pelts at her side, she realized that this might be the last night that she got to sleep with these friends and siblings around her. Then Tawnypelt’s exhaustion got the better of her as sleep covered her like a lapping black wave.
Allegiances
WindClan
Leader: Tallstar— a tall, elderly black-and-white tom with an unusually long tail
Deputy: Mudclaw— a mottled dark brown tom
Medicine cat: Barkface— an elderly brown tom with a short tail
Warriors: Runningbrook— a light grey tabby she-cat (Mate: Rushtail)
Wrenflight— a brown she-cat
Ashfoot— a grey she-cat with blue eyes
Apprentice: Owlpaw
Onewhisker— a brown tabby tom
Tornear— a grey tabby tom (Mate: Sorrelshine)
Webfoot— a dark grey tabby tom
Apprentice: Weaselpaw
Robinwing— a light brown she-cat with blue eyes
Apprentice: Thistlepaw
Nightcloud— a black she-cat with amber eyes
Crowfeather— a dark smoky grey, almost black, tom with deep blue eyes
Apprentices: Owlpaw— a light brown tabby tom
Weaselpaw— a ginger tabby tom with white paws
Thistlepaw— a solid grey she-cat
Queens: Morningflower— a tortoiseshell she-cat (Mate: Cloudrunner. Kit: Gorsekit— a pale grey and white she-cat, Antkit— a brown and black tom)
Sorrelshine— a grey and brown she-cat (Mate: Tornear. Kits: Harekit— a brown and white tom, Kestrelkit— a mottled grey tabby tom with white flecks)
Whitetail— a small white she-cat (Expecting Kits)
Elders: Darkfoot— a dark blue-grey tom
Cloudrunner— a pale grey tom (Mate: Morningflower)
Rushtail— a light creamy-brown tom (Mate: Runningbrook)
ShadowClan
Leader: Blackstar— a large white tom with huge jet-black paws
Deputy: Russetfur— a dark ginger she-cat
Medicine cat: Littlecloud— a small tabby tom
Warriors: Oakfur— a light brown tom with green eyes
Cedarheart— a dark grey tom with yellow eyes
Nightwing– a black she-cat
Dawncloud— a pale ginger she-cat
Kinkfur— a grey tabby she-cat with bushy fur
Rowanclaw— a dark ginger tabby tom with amber eyes
Apprentice: Talonpaw
Snowbird— a white she-cat with green eyes
Ratscar— a dark brown tom with many scars
Tawnypelt— a tawny and brown tabby tortoiseshell she-cat with green eyes
Snaketail— a dark brown tabby tom
Apprentice: Scorchpaw
Whitewater— a white she-cat with one sighted eye
Apprentices: Scorchpaw— a dark grey tom
Talonpaw— a pale grey tom
Queens: Tallpoppy— a long-legged light brown she-cat (Kits: Applekit— a mottled brown she-cat, Toadkit— a dark brown tom, Marshkit— a brown and white tom)
Elders: Boulder— a solid grey tom
ThunderClan
Leader: Firestar— a ginger tom with a flame colored pelt and bright green eyes (Mate: Sandstorm)
Deputy: None (Greystripe, missing)
Medicine cat: Cinderpelt— a dark grey she-cat
Apprentice: Leafpaw
Warriors: Mousefur—a small, dusky brown she-cat
Dustpelt— a brown tabby tom (Mate: Ferncloud)
Sandstorm— a pale ginger she-cat with leaf-green eyes (Mate: Firestar)
Brackenfur— a golden-brown tabby tom
Apprentice: Whitepaw
Cloudtail— a fluffy, solid white tom with blue eyes (Mate: Brightheart)
Brightheart— a ginger and white she-cat with one blue eye (Mate: Cloudtail)
Thornclaw— a golden-brown tabby tom
Brambleclaw— a dark brown tabby tom with amber eyes
Ashfur— a grey tom with darker flecks and blue eyes
Rainwhisker— a dark grey tom
Sootfur— a grey tom
Sorreltail—a tortoiseshell and white she-cat
Spiderleg— a black and brown tom
Squirrelflight— a dark ginger she-cat with one white paw, a bushy tail and green eyes
Apprentices: Leafpaw— a brown tabby she-cat with white paws, a white belly and amber eyes
Whitepaw— a solid white she-cat with green eyes
Queens: Goldenflower— a golden she-cat (Permanent queen)
Ferncloud— a light grey she-cat with darker flecks and green eyes (Mate: Dustpelt. Kit: Birchkit— a light brown tabby tom)
Elders: Longtail— a tabby tom with an unusually long tail (retired early due to eye injury)
RiverClan
Leader: Leopardstar— an unusually spotted, golden tabby she-cat
Deputy: Mistyfoot— a blue-grey she-cat with blue eyes
Medicine cat: Mothwing— a dappled golden tabby she-cat with amber eyes
Warriors: Blackclaw— a black tom
Apprentice: Volepaw
Skyheart— a pale brown tabby she-cat
Shadepelt— a dark grey she-cat (Mate: Vixenleap)
Vixenleap— a black she-cat (Mate: Shadepelt)
Heavystep— a brown tabby tom
Apprentice: Stonepaw
Hawkfrost— a dark brown tabby tom with a white underbelly and ice-blue eyes
Apprentice: Reedpaw
Swallowtail— a dark brown tabby she-cat
Apprentices: Reedpaw— a black tom
Volepaw—brown tabby tom
Stonepaw— a grey tom
Queens: Grasswhisker— a brown tabby she-cat (Kits: Beechkit— a light brown tom, Ripplekit— a dark grey tabby tom)
Mosspelt— a tortoiseshell and white she-cat (Kit: Willowkit— a pale grey tabby she-cat)
Dawnflower— a pale grey she-cat (Kits: Minnowkit— a dappled dark grey and white she-cat, Pebblekit— a mottled grey tom, Tumblekit— a black she-cat)
Elders: Beetlenose— a solid black tom
Missing Clan Cats
Greystripe— a long-haired grey tom
Unaligned Creatures
Smoky— a muscular grey and white tom who lives at the horseplace
Floss— a small grey and white she-cat who lives at the horseplace
Daisy— a she-cat with long creamy-brown fur who lives at the horseplace (Expecting kits)