[TB] STARLIGHT -- Chapter 27 (Patreon)

<< INDEX || Chapter 26 || Chapter 27 || Chapter 28 || From the Beginning >>

The Moonpool.

Crowflight found it difficult to breathe as he and Shadepaw pushed through the hawthorn and out of the stony hollow. Had they really found the place where the Clans were meant to speak to StarClan?

A glance at Shadepaw told him they had. Her expression was wide-eyed, mystified with whatever the starry cats standing on the water’s surface had told her. The way her eyes shone made Crowflight’s heart flutter with admiration.

“We need to tell the others right away,” Shadepaw meowed, breath puffing before her nose. “Oh, Crow – this means that this is really where we’re meant to be!”

Despite how warm her enthusiasm made him feel, Crowflight found it hard to be just as excited as she was about this. For one, he was no medicine cat – he had seen the Moonstone once, back in the old forest, but he hadn’t felt anything while he’d been there.

For another, there was the matter of what this meant for the Clans – not just the others, but, foremost in his mind, WindClan.

Onewhisker can get his nine lives, now, Crowflight thought. He stared into Shadepaw’s eyes and longed for her joy and happiness to spread to him.

That means Mudclaw will make his move, whatever that might be.

“Crow?” Shadepaw wondered. Her head was tilted, confused. “I thought you’d be excited... Are you okay?”

Crowflight swallowed. “I’m just worried,” he admitted.

“Worried? For what?” Shadepaw blinked at him. She at least seemed to guess half of what was on his mind: “Onewhisker can get his nine lives now! WindClan will go back to normal, and my vision won’t come true!”

Crowflight ground his paws against the stone. “I don’t think it will be that easy,” he rasped.

Shadepaw’s gaze narrowed with worry. Crowflight wrestled with himself – should he confess just how bad things might get, now? Would that be disloyal to his Clan? Yet her gaze was compelling, and Crowflight was certain he couldn’t ignore her if he tried.

Besides, was this not her worry, too? She was the one who had received the vision of the moor tearing asunder, after all, and she wasn’t a WindClan cat. That must mean that StarClan wanted her – and potentially ThunderClan - involved.

“Mudclaw is planning something, I think,” Crowflight confessed. “I’m worried that revealing the Moonpool will cause him to act.”

Shadepaw bristled. “What could he possibly do? Tallstar chose Onewhisker! Mudclaw can’t still think he’s meant to be leader of WindClan!”

Crowflight sighed. “I think he does, Shade - and that’s a problem. If he attacks Onewhisker before he can get his nine lives...”

“He wouldn’t dare!” Shadepaw’s entire body bristled. “That’s going against the will of StarClan!”

“He doesn’t think it’s StarClan’s will!” Crowflight countered, willing her to understand. “No cat knows what Tallstar said to Onewhisker before he was made deputy – Mudclaw thinks it was all a plan to push WindClan further into ThunderClan’s paws! He’s convinced that Tinystar had something to do with all of it!”

“He didn’t!” Shadepaw hissed. “My father would never-”

“Can you prove that, though?” Crowflight challenged.

Shadepaw faltered, and she looked down at her paws.

“The only cats who can are Onewhisker, Tinystar, and Mistyfoot, and none of them have said a thing,” Crowflight went on carefully. “Mistyfoot only told me that Onewhisker might not have been appointed properly. If that’s true, then Mudclaw might have a legitimate claim to leading WindClan! So long as that possibility exists, he’s willing to fight for it.”

Shadepaw’s eyes went wide to their whites. Crowflight saw her claws dig into the soil. “I-I had no idea...”

“My Clanmates are divided,” Crowflight went on, lowering his voice. “They’re taking any excuse they can to fight with one another. Sooner or later things are going to come to a head, but telling them about the Moonpool now will only make things happen more quickly.”

Wind whistled through the barren hillside. The sky was still patterned with stars, but the colors were lightening just a bit. Morning was coming, and it would be cold.

Shadepaw twisted her tail. “I can’t keep this from the other medicine cats, Crowflight,” she breathed. The words seemed to come to her with difficulty. “The half-moon is tomorrow night. If we’re to make it in time, I need to tell them now. It’s my duty.”

Resigned, Crowflight sighed. “I know.” She couldn’t keep this from them.

“What am I supposed to do?” she asked, her voice small and quiet.

“I don’t know.”

Shadepaw blinked at him, slowly. “Oh, Crow... I don’t think this is something you can run from.”

Her words were similar enough to Deadfoot’s to bite at his pelt: “You cannot ignore what lies in front of you.”

“I don’t know why everyone thinks I’m meant to do something about this,” Crowflight muttered. “I’m not some great cat just because Deadfoot was my father.”

Shadepaw scoffed. “Of course not, mouse-brain!” She lifted her paw and touched it against his chest, and from it a warm feeling spread throughout Crowflight.

“You’re special because you’re you,” Shadepaw murmured, her eyes glittering. “There’s no one else like you in the whole world. You were the one chosen to help bring the Clans here – that must mean StarClan sees something in you that no one else does. The journey might be over, but I can still see StarClan’s blessing upon you, Crowflight. You’re not done yet.”

Crowflight swallowed, overcome with emotion as he stared into Shadepaw’s eyes. “What am I supposed to do, though?” he whispered. “How can I save my Clan?”

Shadepaw moved her paw away. “I don’t know,” she admitted. Her expression turned thoughtful. “But, maybe you’ve gotten hung up on the wrong thing here...”

“What do you mean?”

“Whether or not Onewhisker was chosen properly doesn’t matter at this point,” Shadepaw meowed simply. “Maybe it never mattered in the first place.”

Crowflight opened his jaws to tell her that of course it mattered, but a quick shake of her muzzle told him to keep the thought to herself and let her finish.

“What does matter is who you think will be the best fit for WindClan,” Shadepaw expressed. “It could be Onewhisker, Mudclaw, or anyone else – but what’s really important is which cat will lead WindClan into the best possible future.”

“But the warrior code...” Crowflight struggled. “Deputies are meant to be Clan leader!”

Shadepaw shrugged. “So? The warrior code has changed before, it can again. It’s not some immoveable object, like some boulder or mountain. It should be able to bend and shape to what’s best for the Clans, shouldn’t it?”

Crowflight felt discomfort wiggling in his pelt like ants. The warrior code had changed, that much was definitely true. Tinystar had changed it once, and Crowflight was certain it had probably been altered before that – but the idea of it being so fluid scared him.

After all, if it was fluid for him, then it was fluid for everyone... even cats like Mudclaw.

“Crow,” Shadepaw meowed on, “we have to go. Morning is coming. I have to tell Brackenfur and the other medicine cats, and you need to go back to WindClan.”

Crowflight struggled. He searched for the energy to beg her not to do that, to just give him a little more time – but from the look in her eyes he knew it would be futile.

He thought of it again, then – of running away, taking off across the endless moorland that stretched beyond the Clan’s borders. He thought of taking Shadepaw with him, but knew she would never leave. This was Shadepaw’s life, her responsibility. The conviction in her eyes was like fire: Not even death would stop her, if Crowflight were even capable of thinking of such a thing, which he certainly was not.

The thought of being out there, alone, without her, made Crowflight realize that he would never be happy that way.

He bent his head and touched his nose to her’s. “Alright,” he conceded. “Let’s go.”

“You cannot ignore what lies in front of you.”

Deadfoot’s words rang in his head like hawk’s cries as he and Shadepaw carefully picked their way down the steep hillside. No, Crowflight understood, he couldn’t ignore what lay in front of him. Everything was going to come to a head, and whether he liked it or not he would have to find some way to stop it.

———————————————————

“Where have you been?”

Duskwhisker’s hiss in his ear felt like claws raking against his skull. Head throbbing with tiredness, Crowflight tried to pull away from her, but the black she-cat stubbornly thrust herself forward to fill the gap, her eyes blazing.

“I had to do so much to cover for you, you know?” she growled. “Were you off seeing that ThunderClan cat?”

Crowflight hissed back, “Quiet!”

“So, you were!” Duskwhisker huffed. “Great StarClan, Crowflight, I didn’t think you could get any more fluff-brained...”

Crowflight’s pelt crawled. He and Duskwhisker were sitting near the hunter’s entrance, the plump rabbit that Crowflight had managed to catch on his way back from the Moonpool split open between them. The sun was high in the sky now and Crowflight wanted nothing more than to sleep – his brain felt like it was full of bees.

The last thing he needed was Duskwhisker attracting unwanted attention, but blessedly it seemed like things were quiet. Tornear and Thistlepaw were off on patrol; Smokewillow was sharing tongues across camp with Robinwing, who had grown exceptionally large in the past moon; Poppyfoot was touring the woven boundary with Weaselpaw, looking for any broken parts, while Webfoot and Ashfoot shared tongues outside the medicine cat’s den, where Barkface and Ryewhisper were laying out leaves to dry.

More concerning was Onewhisker, who was sitting atop the Tallstone. He looked like he was idly sunbathing in the weak sunhigh rays, but Crowflight could see his half-opened eye glaring down towards the elder’s den, where Mudclaw and Emberfoot were sharing tongues. He looked as if he would pay a rabbit’s foot to know what they were talking about.

“Well,” Duskwhisker grumbled, “you’re lucky things are so disorganized right now, otherwise I wouldn’t have been able to claim you were part of my dawn patrol. If Whitetail caught a sniff of you...”

“I know,” Crowflight sighed. He rested his head on his paws, fighting fatigue as if it were an enemy warrior. “I owe you...”

“You bet you do...” Duskwhisker hissed. “What was so important, anyway? You two on some mission from StarClan or something?”

“I can’t tell you that,” Crowflight mumbled.

“Well, it had better be something like that,” Duskwhisker complained. She licked her chest fur, the sound of her tongue not at all helping Crowflight’s tired mind. “The only way you’re coming out of this with your whiskers intact is if StarClan themselves come down to say it’s okay that you’re breaking two codes...”

He wanted to tell her to stop ranting, but he really didn’t have the energy. In fact, the sound of her voice was lulling him to sleep, the vibrations of her words resounding in his ears until darkness began to creep up behind his eyes and swallow him whole...

“Wake up, fluff-brain!”

Crowflight felt a jab in his side and bolted awake, whiskers quivering. He opened his jaws to ask what had made Duskwhisker hit him so hard, but his scent glands were flooded with a very familiar ThunderClan scent.

Shadepaw!

He saw her trotting into camp, flanked by Whitetail, Tornear, and Thistlepaw. They must have caught her along their patrol route, Crowflight guessed.

Her presence in camp alerted every cat, and caution filled the air. The last time she had been here, her delivery of tansy had sparked a huge argument over territory – not at all Shadepaw’s fault, but Crowflight was sure she was becoming associated with trouble.

Onewhisker pushed himself to his paws. “To what do we owe this visit, Shadepaw?” he asked mildly.

Shadepaw looked slightly tired on her paws, but to her credit she did not let it show in her words: “I have urgent news for Barkface and Ryewhisper!” she breathed.

Both medicine cats met her in the center of the clearing. “Yes?” Barkface asked, twitching his muzzle so that a bit of dried herb dislodged itself from his whiskers. “What is it, Shadepaw?”

Shadepaw explained what had happened the night before – that she had received a sign from StarClan, and had followed it to the Moonpool. There was no mention of Crowflight’s involvement, and he sighed with relief, perhaps too loudly, as he felt Duskwhisker’s eyes burn into his pelt.

“...I saw them there, Barkface!” Shadepaw meowed, her tone reverent and excited. “StarClan is waiting for us at the Moonpool!”

“Really?!” Ryewhisper gasped, his eyes wide.

Shadepaw nodded enthusiastically, but her gaze never left Barkface. The old medicine cat looked skeptical, and for a moment Crowflight wondered if he might discount Shadepaw’s words, like her mentor often did – but then his expression turned joyful, and he sighed with relief.

“Thank StarClan,” he rasped. “Finally!”

At his acceptance, the Clan began to murmur excitedly. Weaselpaw wondered if he could go, but he was quieted by Poppyfoot. Robinwing leaned into Smokewillow and expressed her relief that they wouldn’t have to pick up and move again.

Onewhisker stared down at Shadepaw, his eyes shining with gratitude. Mudclaw stared at Onewhisker, his expression unreadable.

“We’ll need to get a move on if we’re to make it in time for the meeting tonight,” Ryewhisper realized, his voice cutting through the chatter of the crowd. “It sounds like a long trip!”

“It was,” Shadepaw agreed. She danced on her toes, as if that was all that was keeping her awake at the moment. “Brackenfur went to tell ShadowClan, but I must be off, to tell Mothwing...”

“Hang on, youngster,” Barkface soothed, lifting a paw to stop her. “If you’ve been up all night already, there’s no way I can let you go all that way just to come back and lead us on this journey - Ryewhisper!”

His apprentice jolted to attention. “Y-Yes?”

“You will go and tell Mothwing,” Barkface ordered. “You’ve been to RiverClan’s camp already, and you’re going to be faster going across the moors than this little one, tired as she is...”

“Of course,” Ryewhisper agreed immediately.

Shadepaw looked like she might protest, and Crowflight thought her pride just might make her do so – but she sighed, and let her exhaustion show. “Thank you, Barkface,” she breathed gratefully.

“I’ll go with you,” Emberfoot offered, getting to her paws.

Together, she and Ryewhisper trotted out of camp. A moment later, Crowflight saw their shapes cresting a nearby hill, going full pelt before they disappeared behind it, quick as a rabbit.

Back in camp, Crowflight realized that he had been called upon by Onewhisker: “You and Whitetail will escort Shadepaw home. Is that clear?”

“Of course,” Crowflight mewed, getting to his paws. Exhaustion threatened to pull him back down onto his belly, but he fought against it, for Shadepaw’s sake. “Ready whenever.”

He met Whitetail in the center of the clearing, feeling her pelt prickling against his. If the white she-cat had anything to say about his absence yesterday, she wasn’t about to say it right now. It would sour the mood immediately.

“I’ll be on my way as soon as possible,” Barkface promised, looking down at Shadepaw fondly. “We’ll meet by the tree-bridge.”

“Sounds good,” Shadepaw purred. “I can’t wait!” She turned around and met Whitetail and Crowflight, dipping her head to both in a respectful greeting.

Crowflight spotted Barkface and Onewhisker turning to talk to one another. He couldn’t hear a word, and he didn’t have to guess what it was likely about. The rest of his Clanmates gathered in their respective huddles, some around Webfoot, others around Mudclaw, to discuss what had just happened.

Pelt prickling, Crowflight moved away, walking behind Shadepaw as they pushed through the gorse barrier and out into the moorland.

Their walk through the hills was brisk and quick, the icy winds cutting deep into their fur. Whitetail hung back, while Crowflight walked beside Shadepaw. She seemed to be giving them space, but Crowflight guessed her ears would be straining to listen to every word they said.

“I think it’s going to storm,” Shadepaw murmured. “The wind is so strong...”

“Definitely,” Crowflight agreed. The cold air sucked at his lungs. “We’re overdue for a blizzard, I think...”

Shadepaw ruffled her fur. “Those must be awful out here!” she complained.

“It can be,” Crowflight meowed. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Whitetail drift further back, as if the conversation about weather was boring her to tears.

That seemed to be exactly what Shadepaw had wanted.

“I have a plan,” she meowed, her voice low in the high winds. “I’m going to tell Tinystar about my vision.”

Crowflight’s tail stiffened, but thankfully the cold air was enough to disguise the true reason why. “What for?” he hissed back. “Won’t he dismiss it because it’s not about ThunderClan...?”

Shadepaw’s eyes flashed. “Not if I tell him I saw it at the Moonpool,” she countered.

Crowflight’s stared at her, unable to disguise his shock. “You’re going to lie?”

Shadepaw shook her head. “Not quite,” she corrected. “I did see the vision, after all – I'm just changing around the when of it.”

“But-”

“But what?” Shadepaw hissed. She hunched her shoulders against a strong breeze that almost knocked her off her paws. “If I say I saw it at the Moonpool, then that means that ThunderClan can get involved without making it look like it was any one cat’s idea! And if the conflict is settled without us, then... Well, it’s just another dream that they’ll dismiss as a misinterpretation. Nothing changes either way!”

Crowflight leveled his gaze on her. He recalled talking with her about Barkface’s cloud-vision, wondering if medicine cats would lie. The risk she was taking, the potential blow to her legitimacy as a medicine cat... He was conscious of Whitetail behind them, but he wanted to press against Shadepaw more than anything right now.

“Thank you,” he whispered. He didn’t know what else to say.

Shadepaw gave him a look that made the icy winds mean nothing. “It’s for you, Crow,” she murmured. “I’d do anything for you.”

They dropped Shadepaw off at the tree-bridge and let her go on her way. Whitetail and Crowflight watched her disappear into the forest before turning back, heading straight for the rowan tree.

Crowflight might’ve suggested that they stop to try and hunt, but Whitetail didn’t seem like she was willing to linger – her muscles were taut with tension, and it seemed like she didn’t want to be anywhere near Crowflight, though she was pointedly keeping him within her line of sight.

Does she think I’ll attack her? Crowflight wondered. His heart thudded in his ears. What if she attacks me?

But they trekked on, quiet, the tension stirred by the cold winds. It was only when they neared camp that Whitetail broke the silence. As they passed single-file beneath the shadow of Lakeview, Whitetail stopped and blocked Crowflight’s path, her pale gaze narrowed.

“You never told me what you and Mudclaw were up to, you know,” she said pointedly.

Crowflight flicked an ear. No, he hadn’t, and honestly, he had hoped it wouldn’t come back up again. He stalled, choosing to look at his own paws rather than respond to his Clanmate. He was far, far too tired for an interrogation.

He heard Whitetail sigh through gritted teeth. “I know he was your mentor, Crowflight, but that was a long while ago,” she said, trying to force patience into her voice. “He’s a dangerous cat, and taking his side is only going to be trouble for WindClan, especially now.”

Crowflight frowned. Her concern seemed genuine, and he didn’t entirely disagree. He turned his muzzle leveling his gaze with Whitetail’s. Once, the fact that the white she-cat was looking at him like he was a misbehaving apprentice might’ve irked him; but now he sensed she was just very worried.

Shadepaw’s words echoed in his mind: “Do you think Onewhisker is the right cat to lead WindClan?” he asked.

Whitetail blinked, as if surprised. She fumbled, for a moment, the cold air whistling above their heads. Then, she mewed, “I was skeptical like any other cat when it was revealed that he was the new deputy. I thought for the longest time that we’d be looking at Mudstar by now, and I had accepted that. But...”

She took a breath, fixing her gaze firmly on Crowflight. “Onewhisker was my mentor, Crowflight, like Mudclaw was yours. I know for a fact that leadership was never something he wanted. He never liked too much conflict, or arguing with other cats. But he’s growing into it, now. I don’t care about whether or not he’s made some alliance with ThunderClan - in him, I can see a leader that will carry on Tallstar’s legacy, and that’s all that matters to me.”

Whitetail blinked at Crowflight. “What kind of leader do you see Mudclaw becoming?”

Crowflight said nothing.

Whitetail seemed to take that as an answer, anyway. She turned her back on him, throwing her muzzle over her shoulder to mew, “You’ve gained so much respect from your Clanmates for bringing us here, Crowflight. Don’t throw it all away now.”

She stalked away, and that seemed to be that.

Crowflight watched her go, the wind slicing into his ears. From beneath Lakeview he looked out at the rolling moorland, covered in a light frost, the grasses bending and rattling in the wind, and he sighed.

I’m not going to run, Father, he thought. He dug his claws into the hard soil. I’ll do everything I can to save WindClan.