Bluestar's Prophecy

Through the bare branches of the oaks, Bluepaw could see cats streaming toward the clearing. They sent snow flying as they careered down the hillside. Their paws crunched the flattened snow as they skidded to a halt in the clearing.

Cedarstar watched through narrowed eyes as Hailstar jumped onto the Great Rock. Wordlessly RiverClan flooded around ThunderClan and pressed in among them, their pelts cold and damp, until the stench of fish made Bluepaw dizzy.

Snowpaw rubbed her nose with a paw. “Couldn’t they go and get warm with ShadowClan?” she grumbled. “Or at least hold their stinky breath.”

Bluepaw closed her mouth so she couldn’t taste the scent. At least RiverClan wasn’t treating them as though they had greencough. But why were they late? She stared up at the leaders, waiting for Hailstar to explain. But the RiverClan leader only nodded a greeting to the other leaders.

“Let’s start,” he meowed, still breathless from his run.

Bluepaw blinked. Were the leaders so distrustful of one another that, even under the truce of the full moon, they wouldn’t give anything away?

Something heavy shoved Bluepaw from behind. Her forepaws slid on the icy ground, and she almost lost her balance. Crossly she jerked her head around. “Watch out!”

A stocky gray tabby sat behind her.

Clumsy mouse-brain! “You nearly knocked me ov—” She stopped mid-hiss. The tabby’s mouth was odd-looking—twisted, as if put on upside down. She stared, surprised by how strange it made him look.

“Hi,” the tabby mewed. “I’m Crookedpaw.”

“Crookedpaw?” He looked too big to still have an apprentice name, but it certainly wasn’t his paw that was crooked.

He shrugged. “I’m guessing my warrior name will be Crookedjaw,” he joked.

He was an apprentice! Bluepaw tried to think of something to say to him that wouldn’t sound rude.

“Unless”—he flicked his tail under her nose—“my tail goes the same way. Then Hailstar might have to rethink.”

Bluepaw shifted her paws. Was that supposed to be funny?

Her heart sank as Crookedpaw shrugged and looked away, his eyes darkening. “I knew cats would stare at me.”

Bluepaw felt hot with guilt. “I’m sorry,” she apologized. “You surprised me, that’s all.”

“I’d better get used to it.” Crookedpaw lifted his chin. “Until everyone gets used to me.” The playfulness returned to his eyes. “At least no one ever forgets my name,” he mewed breezily. “What’s yours?”

“Bluepaw.”

Crookedpaw sat back on his haunches and looked her up and down. “You’re not very blue,” he considered.

Bluepaw purred. “I look more blue in daylight,” she teased.

Crookedpaw gazed around the Clans. “Is this your first Gathering?”

Bluepaw shook her head.

“Then you know what’s going on?” Crookedpaw mewed. “What do the leaders talk about?”

“If you listened, you might find out!” a RiverClan warrior hissed in Crookedpaw’s ear.

Crookedpaw ducked to Bluepaw and dropped his mew to a whisper. “Which one is Pinestar?”

Bluepaw flicked her tail toward the ThunderClan leader, but she couldn’t take her eyes off Crookedpaw. Why hadn’t he been to a Gathering before? He must have been an apprentice for moons. “Why haven’t you come before?”

“I was apprenticed late,” he whispered. “I was a pretty sickly kit.” He puffed out his chest. “Not anymore though.” He glanced back at his Clanmates. “I think I surprised the whole Clan by growing this big.”

Bluepaw’s whiskers twitched. She liked this cat.

“Hush!” This time it was Dappletail who leaned over. “The leaders are speaking.”

“Sorry.” Crookedpaw’s eyes sparkled with mischief. He waited a moment for Dappletail to turn her attention back to the Great Rock, then whispered in Bluepaw’s ear. “Which one’s Heatherstar?”

“The small one. Cedarstar’s next to her.” She flicked her tail from the leaders to the medicine cats gathered in their own small knot at the side of the rock. “That’s Goosefeather, our medicine cat, and the white she-cat is Sagewhisker, the ShadowClan medicine cat.” She shuddered. “And that’s Hawkheart.”

“Don’t you like him?”

“He killed my mother.”

Bluepaw felt Crookedpaw’s tail touch her cheek lightly, then whisk away.

“Where are the deputies?” he asked.

Sunfall glanced over his shoulder. “The ThunderClan deputy is right in front of you, and he’ll pin back your whiskers if you don’t do as you’re told and be quiet!”

Bluepaw flinched, then saw Crookedpaw rolling his eyes. Did nothing faze this cat? Stifling a purr, she turned to watch the leaders.

Heatherstar stood on the edge of the rock. “We have restocked our medicine supplies.” Her eyes flashed toward the ThunderClan cats. “And all our elders and kits have finally recovered from the attack.”

Sunfall growled. “We fought only warriors! No kit or elder was attacked!”

“I’m sorry.” Heatherstar’s eyes glinted. “I meant to say, our kits and elders have finally recovered from the shock of being invaded without warning and seeing their kin brutally attacked in their own nests.”