[TB] DAWN -- Chapter 5 (Patreon)

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Time seemed to stand still even as Stoneheart stalked ShadowClan’s territory for prey. The sun was beginning to sink, finally, when he forced himself to call it quits – his hunt wasn’t very successful, with only a blackbird to show for it as he pushed his way into the clearing.

He blamed thoughts of Rowanclaw and the lake for his poor hunt as he dropped his catch on the fresh-kill pile. Still, Stoneheart couldn't help but notice that other hunting parties hadn’t been any luckier – with all the noise and bustle from the Twolegs in the forest, prey was even harder to catch.

We’ll starve if we don’t move soon, Stoneheart thought, glancing at his Clanmates. He picked up a vole, still warm and smelling of Skipnose, and padded towards the elder’s den.

It was a short walk – the elder’s den was under a hollowed-out prickerbush that grew just near the fresh-kill pile. Stoneheart ducked underneath the low branches, stepping carefully so as not to wake Runningnose, who was wheezing away in the far corner.

Brick and Boulder, ShadowClan’s other elders, were sharing tongues together in their nests, their voices low and rasping. When Stoneheart appeared, their conversation was cut short, and they looked at him with bright, eager eyes.

“There’s our little adventurer,” purred Boulder, his thin tail twitching. “Come here, come here! Tell us all about your journey!”

Stoneheart swallowed. He set the vole down at the elder’s paws, not missing the way their eyes bulged hungrily. “I’m afraid I don’t have time for that,” he meowed quietly. “I’m going to Fourtrees tonight with Russetstar, to meet with the other Clans.”

Boulder blinked. “I suppose you are,” he sighed. “Ah, well.” He shrugged his thin shoulders and began tearing apart the vole into chunks. He worked expertly, his life in BloodClan making him no stranger to the gritty details of hunger.

Stoneheart looked to Brick. The old ginger she-cat had once been one of the most fearsome of BloodClan’s warriors, a terror in the Twolegplace; but after taking a bad injury, she could hardly leave the camp. She looked skinnier than Stoneheart had ever seen her, and his heart ached.

“How are you doing, Brick?” he asked.

Brick turned her gaze to meet his. “As best as can be expected,” she rasped. “And you?”

“The same,” Stoneheart answered.

Brick lowered her head. “You must miss him so...” she sighed, pain in her gaze. “I’m so sorry, Stoneheart.”

Stoneheart pressed his forehead against Brick’s. She had been like a mother to Stoneheart and Rowanclaw when both cats were young and still finding their own paws in the world. He wondered if Brick had slept at all since Rowanclaw had gone missing – she certainly didn’t look it.

“There’s nothing either of us could’ve done,” he told her.

“If you're to leave, you cannot go without him,” Brick insisted, raising her head. Her eyes flashed determinedly. “You know that, right?”

Stoneheart nodded. “I wasn’t planning on leaving him – or anyone – behind.” He tried to ignore the fact that Brick hadn’t included herself in that statement. He hadn’t even considered how difficult it would be for the elders to make the journey to the lake, too. We won’t leave them behind, either. Not if we can’t help it.

“Good,” Brick decided, nodding. “Good.”

Boulder pushed part of the vole over to Brick. “Try that,” he rasped. “It felt softer.”

Brick bent down to gnaw at the vole, trying to grind it down between her old teeth. Boulder crossed the den, setting another chunk of vole over by Runningnose before padding back to Brick and easing himself down to eat what remained.

Stoneheart’s jaw clenched. The elders shouldn’t have to ration! It was all the more reason to get the Clans moving. He glanced between the prickers and frowned. “I should be going,” he said, noting the position of the sun. “I’ll be back.”

“Be careful,” Boulder warned. “These Twolegs don’t work like the ones we’re used to...”

“StarClan watch over you,” Brick added, licking Stoneheart’s shoulder.

“And you,” Stoneheart purred back. He rubbed his muzzle affectionately against Brick’s before he slipped out of the den.

Outside, he took a moment to check his pelt for stray thorns. They always liked to snag in his thicker pelt, no matter how much he tried to avoid them. The sun was just beginning to set, now, casting the camp in a deep red-orange glow. If they were going to make it to Fourtrees before moonhigh, they’d need to set off right now.

Russetstar seemed to be of the same mind – Stoneheart could see her sitting beside the camp entrance, tail wrapped over her paws as she listened to Orre’s report. Blackfoot was beside her, stretching each leg in turn. Littlecloud was just padding out of the medicine cat’s den. Stoneheart decided to get moving before he was called out for lagging behind.

“... The tunnel just doesn’t seem safe. We spotted Twolegs shuffling in and out of it like ducks,” Orre was meowing as Stoneheart approached. “I’d cross over the Thunderpath – we didn’t see any sign of the usual monsters at all while we were investigating.”

“I see,” Russetstar mewed, curling her tail a little. “Odd that it’s far safer to go over a Thunderpath than under.”

“Doesn’t feel right,” Blackfoot agreed, curling his lip. His pale-yellow eyes rested on Stoneheart. “Ready?”

“As I’ll ever be,” Stoneheart responded.

When Littlecloud caught up, the small tabby tom meowed, “I’m ready, too.”

“Then we should be going,” Russetstar determined. She raised her chin, eyes taking in the entire camp. Stoneheart hadn’t realized that nearly every cat had crawled out from their dens, eyes bright and wary, to see them off.

Raising her voice, Russetstar meowed: “ShadowClan! We shall return soon and, StarClan willing, we will return with a solution.”

“We don’t really need to leave,” asked Nightwing, her voice wavering, “right?”

Stoneheart blinked sympathetically at his Clanmate. Nightwing was definitely not alone in her worries – Tallpoppy and Cedarheart both looked rankled at the thought of leaving the forest. Even more of his Clanmates looked uncertain. Only Finchsong looked resolute and confident, giving Stoneheart an encouraging nod from beside the nursery.

“Let’s go,” Blackfoot growled. “We’re wasting light.”

“Orre, Wolftooth, you have the camp,” Russetstar meowed curtly. She looked to her patrol, and went on, “Come!”

Heart pounding in his ears, Stoneheart followed Russetstar through the tunnel and out of camp. The roar of Twoleg monsters outside was almost deafening. How long would it be before they tore into the very heart of ShadowClan?

We don’t have time to waste with arguing, he thought to himself, striding beside Littlecloud. We must make the right choice!

———————————————————

The trip to Fourtrees took them from sunset to moonrise, the sky turning from blood-red to the dark, soft purples of night. Starlight shimmered between the whisps of cloud that hung in the sky, the swelling moon flooding the world with its light.

It was a quiet trip. Though Stoneheart ached to know what Russetstar planned to say – she had seemed on board with the idea of leaving the forest yesterday, but what if her mind had changed since? - the patrol stayed silent as they approached the Thunderpath.

They did their best to skirt the Twolegs, but it seemed like they were everywhere along the Thunderpath, swarming like bees over their hive. The reek of Twolegs and their monsters clouded the cat’s senses, but crossing the Thunderpath was as easy as Orre had promised. No monsters were using the path, not with these big, boxy Twoleg creatures standing guard all along it – but if they cared about the cats slinking through the shadows, they didn’t show it.

“What is that?” Blackfoot’s hiss broke the silence almost as soon as they made it safely over the Thunderpath.

Stoneheart turned around – the big white tom had turned back, going down the slope into the little ditch that housed the Twoleg tunnel, the path that ShadowClan normally used to safely cross the Thunderpath for Gatherings or patrols. A stream that broke away from the river ran through the tunnel here, and Blackfoot was sniffing around the round stone walls, his tail lashing.

“They’ve blocked it!” he snarled from below. His eyes glinted in the dark as he looked to Russetstar. “We can’t get through the tunnel anymore!”

Stoneheart frowned, easing himself down the slope to investigate, dry grass crackling underpaw. It was indeed as Blackfoot had said – the tunnel, once open and free for traversal, was blocked off by several long, thin planks of wood.

Stoneheart tested it with his paws, ignoring a hiss of caution from Littlecloud. It didn’t budge beneath his weight, and the wood felt firm and new. It reminded him of the old Twoleg nest he’d stayed in when he and the others had followed Purdy through the Twolegplace – some of the windows had been barred like this there, too.

“I can’t move it,” he reported, turning to look up at Russetstar.

The dark ginger she-cat's face was hard to read in the shadows. “Very well,” she decided. “Let’s move on.”

“Shouldn’t we try to take it down?” Littlecloud wondered, eyes round.

Russetstar flicked her tail. “We’ve more urgent business right now,” she said simply. She started to pad away. “Come, before we’re noticed.”

Stoneheart fell down on all fours again, sharing an uneasy glance with Blackfoot before following Russetstar. He looked back as they clambered up the slope, his stomach clenching. That tunnel feeds the major stream in ShadowClan territory. It looked like water was still able to flow beneath a gap in the wood. If the Twolegs block it off entirely...

Do they even realize what they’re doing?

They broke away from the stream. Stoneheart was painfully aware that there ought to be a small patch of forest here – now, all that remained was flattened earth and stumps, some pulled out of the earth and some not. Stoneheart could smell the tang of sap in the air here, like blood after a battle.

“StarClan above,” he whispered, feeling sick. This forest had been there yesterday, hadn’t it? He vaguely recalled seeing it over the Thunderpath. How quickly the Twolegs were working frightened him deeply.

“That’s not even the worst of it,” Blackfoot meowed, some sympathy in his eyes. He nodded ahead.

Stoneheart followed his gaze, and his heart nearly stopped.

Fourtrees, a monument to all four Clans that had stood for seasons beyond counting, was gone – swept away, as if it had never existed. The four great oaks and their surrounding woodland had been flattened out, smoothed to hard-packed mud like WindClan territory. There was no evidence of the great oaks themselves, either, though Stoneheart did see an irregular lump of gray that must be the Great Rock, where the Clan leaders stood to make their announcements under the full moon’s light.

Bile rose in Stoneheart’s throat. It’s worse than I could’ve imagined! Was this blank, barren nightmare what the Twolegs intended to do to the entire forest?

Littlecloud picked his way through the tracks of Twoleg monsters, his tail low. “StarCan couldn’t stop them,” he sighed. “We prayed, and prayed...”

Blackfoot sniffed the air. “No one else is here yet,” he reported to Russetstar.

Stoneheart took tentative steps into the clearing, as if the world might fall out from beneath him for how surreal it seemed. He headed for the Great Rock, horror gripping his chest – he had once looked up at this stone and imagined standing atop it, lit by the full moon. Now, though... no leader would ever sit there again. This lump of misshapen rock was nothing a young cat could aspire to.

He felt Russetstar’s tail-tip on his shoulder, and realized he was trembling. He turned to look at his leader. “This must have been awful to watch,” he whispered.

“It was,” Russetstar agreed, her eyes respectfully downcast, as if she were mourning a dead Clanmate.

Stoneheart leaned into his Clan leader for a moment, letting her support his weight as it felt like he couldn’t stand. Rowanclaw, the entire forest... all of it is disappearing. StarClan, is this really what you want for us?

The lack of growth here made it easy to scent ThunderClan before they arrived. Stoneheart and Russetstar pulled away from one another as Tinystar hesitantly stepped into the clearing, Sandstorm at his side. Behind them both, Mistyfoot was helping Brackenfur hobble over a difficult Twoleg monster track.

“Tinystar,” Russetstar meowed, dipping her head just so.

“Russetstar,” Tinystar greeted, returning the gesture.

The two stared at one another, and Stoneheart was uncertain why until he realized that, without Fourtrees, the only contact the Clans had with one another were the occasional patrol sightings. ShadowClan, being on the other side of the Thunderpath, had far fewer of those sightings in the first place. This must be the first time in a while that the two leaders had seen one another face to face.

“You made it!” Mistyfoot’s voice was full of relief, her eyes shining in the dark as she locked eyes with Stoneheart.

Stoneheart rushed over to his sister, shoving his muzzle into her thick fur. Breathing in her scent, he longed to wail to her about Rowanclaw as she had wailed to him about her problems on the journey – but the timing was just wrong, and he could feel Blackfoot’s eyes boring into his pelt.

“Where’s Nightpaw?” he asked instead, lifting his head to look over her shoulder. The patchy undergrowth the ThunderClan cats had come from was still. “Shadepaw?”

“Tinystar said they needed to stay behind because they hadn’t been chosen by StarClan,” Mistyfoot explained.

“What?!” Stoneheart hissed. He pulled away, fighting the urge not to glare at ThunderClan’s leader. “But they were just as important as the rest of us!”

Mistyfoot flicked her tail. “I argued so as well, but...” She looked around her, wary. “The forest is dangerous right now. Tinystar doesn’t allow big patrols out anymore, not after Brightheart and Cloudtail were captured by Twolegs near Tallpines.”

Stoneheart blinked, stunned. “Captured?!”

Mistyfoot nodded. “Captured,” she repeated, her eyes hard and worried, “and not long before we got back. We’re not sure what to do... has anyone from ShadowClan gone missing?”

Stoneheart swallowed, a lump forming in his throat. Her invitation to speak almost had the words tumbling from his jaws like a crying bird: “I...”

“Tinystar!”

The thin, railing voice saved Stoneheart from responding. He looked behind him and saw Tallstar hobbling towards the gathered cats. Barkface, Mudclaw, and Crowpaw were just behind.

Stoneheart fought to keep himself from gawking – the WindClan cats were barely fur-covered sticks, their bodies thin and ragged and clotted with mud on their bellies and paws. He was baffled that they were even standing, let alone that they made it here. Crowpaw was the only one with any meat on his bones, and Stoneheart could see even that had already begun to rapidly change.

“You’ve come,” Tallstar breathed, huffing. He stumbled forward, but Crowpaw caught the WindClan leader before he fell. After getting to his paws, Tallstar mewed, “StarClan be praised!”

“Tallstar!” Tinystar’s eyes were wide with concern, the fur along his spine risen with shock at the sight of Tallstar. “Please, sit... rest yourself.”

Tallstar sagged to the earth. Tinystar exchanged a worried glance with Russetstar, who looked just as alarmed at the WindClan leader’s haggard appearance, though she wouldn’t be caught dead being so friendly with him.

“Crowpaw,” Mistyfoot breathed, “how is WindClan?”

Crowpaw looked cross that Mistyfoot had even asked the question. “What do you think?” he grunted.

Mistyfoot frowned, looking stung. Stoneheart sighed. Didn’t take long for Crowpaw to become cold again, he thought regretfully. If Shadepaw had been able to come, she wouldn’t have stood for his attitude.

“We’ve lost a few cats,” Crowpaw went on, his tone softening as if he realized he was being rude. “It’s been hard.”

“It’s been hard for us, too,” Mistyfoot murmured. She touched her nose to his ear. “Ferncloud and Snowstep lost a kit while we were away, and Dappletail died from eating a rabbit.”

Stoneheart swallowed. Inside, he was conflicted – should he be so grateful that ShadowClan had lost no one yet? He touched his tail to Mistyfoot’s, his heart feeling too sore to ache any more. “There will only be more loss, if this meeting doesn’t go well,” he murmured.

“Where’s RiverClan?” asked the WindClan deputy Mudclaw, eyes darting across the remains of the clearing. “Did those fisheaters decide not to come?”

The smell of RiverClan had drifted over the clearing just as Mudclaw’s insult left his lips, as if he’d intended it that way – Leopardstar slid out of what little undergrowth remained, her eyes narrowed. Stoneheart only recognized Feathertail in her party, and concern lit in his chest at the stiff way she regarded her patrol.

“Where’s Tawnypelt?” asked Russetstar, who seemed just as confused.

“And Mudfur?” Littlecloud wondered, stepping towards the pretty golden she-cat beside Leopardstar. The two were similar enough to be copies of one another. “Mothwing, has he...?”

“He’s not dead,” Mothwing replied, “but he’s been ill lately... I came in his stead.”

Mothwing! Stoneheart recalled the last Gathering he’d attended, where her name had been announced. That's right, she’s Leopardstar’s kit, and Mudfur’s apprentice. His eyes slid over to the smaller-bodied dappled gray tabby whose pale-yellow eyes were placidly observing the other cats. An uneasy feeling struck Stoneheart as he watched the way the tabby moved. And he is...?

“Falcontail is here in Tawnypelt’s stead,” Leopardstar meowed, flicking her tail at her son.

Tinystar’s eyes flashed with worry. “Her stead? Does that mean...?”

“Tawnypelt was captured by Twolegs,” Falcontail explained. “I am the deputy of RiverClan in the meantime.” His eyes slid over the crowd, and his raised his chin as if bolstered by their skeptical looks.

Tawnypelt, too? Stoneheart looked to Feathertail, who was keeping herself a pace away from the other RiverClan cats. Oh, StarClan!

“Speaking of,” Falcontail went on. His pale gaze rested on Tallstar and Mudclaw. “Tawnypelt went missing chasing one of your warriors out of our territory. Care to explain?”

Mudclaw’s hackles rose, the fur along his spine lifting. Before he could snarl, Barkface meowed, whiskers twitching in thought, “Wherever Tawnypelt is, Robinwing must be as well! She never returned, either.”

“We assumed a hawk had taken her,” Tallstar explained mournfully. “There have been many of them on the moors lately...”

Falcontail flicked his tail dismissively, his eyes flashing with annoyance. “I don’t care if it was a hawk or a Twoleg or a dog,” he grunted. “WindClan should answer for its trespassing!”

Mudclaw’s claws slid out. “I’ll give you an answer, you little upstart!” he spat. Glaring over at Leopardstar, he snarled, “What’s with making this kit your deputy? He’s greener than newleaf!”

“That is my son,” Leopardstar snarled back. Her dappled hackles rose, and she stepped between Mudclaw and Falcontail. “And I will not explain myself to petty prey-thieves!”

Stoneheart felt dizzy, watching the Clan leaders unsheathe their claws and turn on one another. Tinystar and Russetstar were trying to diffuse the situation, but Leopardstar and Mudclaw’s hackles would not lower. Tallstar looked lost, bulging eyes darting between the others as if he could hardly keep track of them.

Frustration roiled in Stoneheart, bubbling up and out: “Enough!” he roared.

His voice rang out in the empty space, and he realized that beside him stood Mistyfoot, Feathertail, and Crowpaw in a line, all looking just as flustered with their Clanmate’s behavior. The leaders of their Clans broke apart, staring up at the four young cats in shock and some disbelief.

“You’re forgetting why we’re here,” Mistyfoot meowed, stepping forward. Her dark blue eyes were hard as she looked over the group before her. Moonlight turned her shoulders silver. “The forest is dying, and we need to decide how we’re going to the lake!”

Stoneheart sighed, relief flooding him as he saw the other cats relax. Bickering won’t do us any good – we need to make a decision, here and now! His gaze rested on Falcontail, and that uneasy prickle in his pelt returned. That one, though, looks like he enjoys being difficult.

“You’re right,” Tinystar meowed, swallowing. He looked bashful, and Stoneheart recalled that the ThunderClan leader often had a hard time controlling his temper. The small black tom turned to the others. “These cats went a long way to bring back hope for all of us. We need to sit down and figure out where to go from here.”

“There’s little to discuss,” Tallstar rasped. “WindClan cannot wait – we're starving on the moors. The Twolegs have driven out every bit of prey and those they haven’t chased off, they’ve poisoned.” He took a deep, wheezy breath. “We must leave.”

“Agreed,” Tinystar meowed, his ice-blue eyes certain. “The Twolegs are closing in on where we once made camp. Our territory is shrinking, and we’re finding it difficult to feed ourselves. I am for moving to the lake.”

Russetstar’s gaze was even as she regarded the other Clans. “ShadowClan territory is being closed off as well,” she explained. “If we don’t find some solution soon, the Carrionplace will be our only option for prey – we all know how hard a decision that will be. I, too, am for moving to the lake.”

Stoneheart’s heart beat in his ears. That’s three of four, he thought, looking at Leopardstar. The dappled she-cat was aware that all eyes were on her, and she was choosing to lick her chest fur. Come on, Leopardstar, don’t...

“RiverClan sees no need to leave,” Leopardstar said primly, raising her chin. “The Twolegs are nowhere near our territory, and we’ve had no trouble feeding ourselves.”

“Leopardstar!” Mistyfoot breathed, eyes round with shock, “You can’t mean that!”

Feathertail was bristling. “Look around you!” she snapped, sounding exasperated. Stoneheart couldn’t imagine how difficult returning to RiverClan had been for her without Stormfur, only to find that Leopardstar was against leaving. “You think this destruction will stop at the riverbank?”

“If RiverClan wasn’t going to be in trouble, why did StarClan send cats from all Clans?” Crowpaw countered, his tail lashing.

“My brother died, Leopardstar!” Feathertail cried out. “Don’t do this!”

“Stormfur made his choice to go with you,” Falcontail sneered back. “Just like Leopardstar is making her choice now!”

“Leopardstar, are you certain about this?” Barkface’s eyes searched the RiverClan leader’s gaze. “If StarClan chose four cats to go... it must mean they want all four Clans to go to the lake, together!”

“Are you truly going against the will of StarClan?” Sandstorm wondered, narrowing her gaze. “All because the Twolegs haven’t decided to invade your territory yet? What will you do when they start coming in droves? They’ll be done with us, then; we might not be able to help if you ask.”

Leopardstar’s eyes flashed, and her lip curled. “I do not see that happening for some time, if it happens at all,” she meowed curtly. “And besides – you're taking the words of these wayward warriors very seriously. Any cat could make up a sign from StarClan as a reason for anything – have you thought of that?”

“We didn’t make this up!” Stoneheart snarled, feeling his neck fur rise. Fury flashed beneath his pelt, and he wanted to claw that expression off of Leopardstar’s face. “What kind of monsters would we be to do that?!”

“And what of our missing cats?” Leopardstar swept on without responding to Stoneheart. “Would they remain here, abandoned to Twolegs? I wouldn’t dream of leaving the forest without Tawnypelt – surely all of you feel the same for those you’ve lost?”

An uneasy silence spread through the clearing. Stoneheart’s throat tightened – she was right about that, at least. Stoneheart had no intention of leaving the forest without Rowanclaw, even if he had no idea how to find him or if his mate was even alive.

Leopardstar glowered at each cat before looking up at the sky, towards the moon and stars. “If StarClan has anything to add, now would be the time.”

There was nothing.

“See?” Falcontail mewed, curling his tail over his back. “There you have it.”

“StarClan told us what to do, you mouse-hearts!” Crowpaw seethed. He stepped forward, his tail lashing like a furious snake. Stoneheart readied himself to intervene, should the WindClan apprentice leap. “You’re just going to ignore it all?!”

“Leopardstar... can we not convince you otherwise?” Russetstar wondered. Her green eyes searched Leopardstar’s amber, and Stoneheart recalled that the two had been friends, once, when RiverClan and ShadowClan had ruled half the forest as LionClan. “Is there nothing we can say?”

Stoneheart trembled, his fur rising all over his body. “This can’t be for nothing!” he snapped, sinking his claws into the earth. “Stormfur didn’t die for nothing - we didn’t suffer and journey and go through everything we did for nothing!”

“Leopardstar please, there has to be something we can do to convince you,” Mistyfoot meowed, her gaze intense.

Feathertail narrowed her eyes. “You’ll regret not taking this threat seriously – once the Twolegs are on RiverClan land, it’ll be too late for everyone else!” she pleaded.

Crowpaw lashed his tail. “I can’t believe we have to bargain with a Clan leader like we would a kit who won’t sleep!” he hissed. “What would you want to make you budge?”

“We’re not budging,” Falcontail answered, hunching his shoulders against the deluge of protest. “Haven’t you been listening? Or has your journey made you forget that a Clan leader’s word is law?”

Leopardstar shook her head. “No,” she declared. “My mind is made up, and my points still stand – RiverClan has no reason to leave, not for hunger, not for land, and not without Tawnypelt.”

“Then I see no reason to continue this meeting,” Russetstar decided curtly.

Stoneheart’s eyes widened. “W-What? Why not?” He looked to the others, seeing the disbelief in his eyes reflected there. How could this have fallen apart so quickly? What was Leopardstar thinking?

“Clearly, if StarClan came to four cats of the four Clans, they intended the lake to be for the four of us,” Russetstar meowed, turning her back on the other Clans. “Since one of us disagrees with the will of StarClan, perhaps that means we four aren’t meant to settle in the same place.”

“So, it’s all got to be spoiled because Leopardstar is being a brat?” Sandstorm snapped. “Because she thinks she can starve us off our territories?”

Falcontail’s hackles rose. “Say that again, ThunderClan!”

Sandstorm rose to her paws, unsheathing her claws. “You think I don’t see your patrols lingering near Sunningrocks, trying to sniff out our weaknesses? I don’t think you’ve lost enough whiskers yet to be deputy!” she snapped. “I would watch your tongue!”

Tinystar laid his tail over his mate’s shoulder. “Enough,” he meowed. He looked to the others, giving the journeying cats an apologetic look. “I don’t agree with Leopardstar and, I’m sorry, Russetstar, I don’t really agree with you either – I do know, deep down, that all four Clans should make this journey... and that we shouldn’t do it without those we’re missing.”

“Tinystar,” Tallstar rasped, eyes wide, “my Clan is starving! We’ve no other options!”

“Come and stay with us,” Tinystar offered, without hesitation. His eyes turned warm upon his old friend. “ThunderClan will welcome you at Sunningrocks.”

Mudclaw bristled, eyes burning. “There’s no way we’d just agree to--”

Tallstar’s eyes shone. “Thank you, Tinystar,” he breathed. “We will do that.” Mudclaw, meanwhile, looked as if he’d been struck by a Twoleg monster.

“Stoneheart, come,” Russetstar meowed, flicking her tail. “We need to be off before the Twolegs wake.”

Stoneheart felt like wailing. No! He thought desperately, watching the Clan leaders begin to break apart. No, no, no! StarClan, someone, do something!

“Is this really it?” whispered Crowpaw. The skinny tom looked hopeless. “Why send us all that way if no one was going to listen?”

“Not no one,” Feathertail growled, glaring down at Leopardstar. “Just one of us.”

Mistyfoot was looking up at the stars, as if beseeching them for an answer. She sighed, lowering her head, and Stoneheart guessed his sister saw nothing there. “We’ll figure this out,” she meowed. “StarClan and Midnight never said it would be easy – if we have to only take three Clans to the lake, then...”

Feathertail blinked. “If only three Clans go to the lake, then I will go as part of those three Clans,” she declared simply.

Stoneheart looked at Feathertail, shocked. Would she toss aside RiverClan so easily? Without Stormfur, he thought, she might.

“Don’t stop trying,” Mistyfoot urged. She searched Feathertail’s gaze. “There has to be some way!”

Feathertail frowned. “Not with Falcontail as deputy,” she pointed out. “You... you all have no idea what’s happened in RiverClan without Tawnypelt. It’s impossible to talk to Leopardstar without Falcontail butting in, and she just listens to whatever he says because he’s her son. If Tawnypelt doesn't come back...” Her voice trailed off.

Stoneheart frowned. “Then we’ll find her,” he decided, looking at the others. “We’ll find all the missing cats.”

“How?” Crowpaw wondered. “They were taken by Twolegs - who knows where they are now?”

“I think Stoneheart is right,” Mistyfoot meowed. “We don’t want to leave without them, anyway; and if any cat can convince Leopardstar of what’s right here, it’s Tawnypelt. We need her.”

And Rowanclaw, Stoneheart thought. He didn’t say it, though. Now wasn’t the time. If the missing cats were taken by Twolegs, then Rowanclaw would be with Tawnypelt, and Cloudtail, and all the others.

“Crowpaw!” called Tallstar. He was clustered up with Tinystar and Sandstorm. Mudclaw was pacing back and forth, glaring and gnashing his teeth. “Go with Tinystar and Brackenfur to their camp. Find WindClan a place among them.”

“Yes, Tallstar,” Crowpaw called back, his tail flicking awkwardly.

Falcontail glared at Tinystar and Tallstar. “Whatever ThunderClan decides to do with its territory is its business, but if either part of your little alliance so much as breathes over the RiverClan border...”

“That’s enough, Falcontail,” Leopardstar declared. She looked at Feathertail and meowed, “It’s time to be off.”

“Stoneheart!” Blackfoot growled. He, Littlecloud, and Russetstar were already gathered on ShadowClan’s side of Fourtrees. “Must we call you thrice? Like an apprentice?”

“Keep your eyes open, and search,” Mistyfoot ordered, her eyes flashing between all four of them. “We don’t have much time.”

Stoneheart breathed in the scents of his companions once more, before they broke apart again. Feathertail was the first to go, but not before pointedly touching her nose to each of them. Be brave, Feathertail, Stoneheart wished, watching her join the RiverClan party.

Crowpaw rubbed himself against Stoneheart, a faint purr in his throat. Mistyfoot pressed her forehead against his, sighing.

“Tell Nightpaw and Shadepaw I miss them,” Stoneheart murmured.

“I will,” Mistyfoot agreed. She looked him in the eye, worry wavering in her gaze. “Would Stormfur have been able to do this, do you think?”

Stoneheart swallowed. “I don’t know,” he admitted. “But I think we can.”

Mistyfoot smiled, faintly, and then took off, Crowpaw following her. Stoneheart watched Sandstorm and Mistyfoot split off with Tallstar and Mudclaw, heading for WindClan territory while Tinystar and Brackenfur took Crowpaw deeper into the forest. Stoneheart hoped to StarClan that they would be safe together.

He got to his paws and loped over to Russetstar and his own Clanmates, feeling hollow inside. The smell of Twolegs and sap was no longer so sickening as the nagging idea that everything he and the others had done so far had been for nothing.

“What will we do now?” Littlecloud wondered, sounding as small as he was.

Russetstar frowned. “We are ShadowClan,” she meowed, resolute. “We will do what we do best – and do it ourselves.”