River Of Fire

Twigpaw felt she could hardly bear the rising tension for another heartbeat when ferns on the far side of the border parted and Violetshine came into view, her whiskers quivering and her eyes watchful. “Okay, I’m here,” she mewed as she padded up to her sister. “What’s this all about?”

Twigpaw’s tail drooped. I missed Violetshine! Isn’t she pleased to see me? But there was no affectionate greeting for her from her sister.

“I’m worried about the prophecy,” Twigpaw explained, ignoring her hurt. “There have to be five Clans, and how can there be, when there’s no ShadowClan anymore? We have to do something!”

To Twigpaw’s dismay, her sister’s yellow eyes were cold. “What do you care about the future of ShadowClan?” she asked. “Besides, I’m a SkyClan cat now. ShadowClan has nothing to do with me either.”

“But you were brought up there!” Twigpaw protested.

“Yes, and it was no fun, believe me,” Violetshine retorted. “I had to watch Darktail take over and cats die. Going back there is the last thing I want.”

“But—” Twigpaw tried to interrupt.

Violetshine ignored her. “Besides, I can see how vulnerable it was under Rowanstar’s leadership,” she went on, “so perhaps it’s not so bad that it fell apart. Rowanstar’s weakness gave Darktail the opportunity to take over. And things are going well now, with SkyClan and ShadowClan combined. It’s taking some getting used to, but—”

“Going well?” Twigpaw interrupted. “Really? Couldn’t you feel the tension at the Gathering? The SkyClan cats were supporting Leafstar, but the ShadowClan cats were furious when she was talking about Yarrowleaf and Sleekwhisker.” Twigpaw reached out a paw to her sister. “Please, Violetshine, tell me the truth. Was it really as simple as Leafstar made it sound?”

Violetshine relaxed with a sigh, though she swept the surrounding forest with a glance before she replied. “No, you’re right, it wasn’t.” Seeming relieved to be telling some cat, she went on, “It was really awkward. Leafstar turned them away at first, and then some of the ShadowClan cats—their kin—snuck them into their old camp. Tree and I found them there, and we had to tell Leafstar.”

Twigpaw blinked in astonishment. “I don’t suppose she was pleased.”

“She was furious! She wanted to drive them out all over again. It was Tree who convinced her to let them stay.”

Twigpaw felt even more astonished to hear that. “Wow—he must be a good talker!”

“He is,” Violetshine admitted. “A bit like you. Except he follows through.”

Twigpaw gasped, stung by her sister’s words. “Look,” she meowed, “I’m sorry about leaving SkyClan, but I just didn’t belong there, as much as I wanted to.” When there was no response from Violetshine, she asked, “Haven’t you ever felt that way?”

“More times than I would have liked,” Violetshine sighed.

Twigpaw was encouraged to feel that her sister was warming to her a little. “All right,” she began, “so hear me out about the prophecy. StarClan wants there to be five Clans. And I have to tell you something I’ve told no cat before. . . .” Twigpaw hesitated, swallowing nervously. She had no idea how Violetshine would react, and after she had spoken there could be no going back. “At the medicine cats’ half-moon meeting, I went to the Moonpool.”

Violetshine’s eyes stretched wide with shock. “You went? What did the medicine cats think about that?”

“They never knew,” Twigpaw explained. “I hid in the bushes until they left. But after that, I saw a vision . . . a dreadful vision of fire and a ruined camp. StarClan showed it to me! And now I’m afraid terrible things will happen unless we can find a fifth Clan.”

Before Violetshine could reply, the ferns near the border parted, and a muscular yellow tom stepped into the open. Twigpaw recognized Tree. He padded up to the border, sat down beside Violetshine, and lifted one hind leg to scratch his ear.

“You Clan cats are so afraid of StarClan,” he meowed, not bothering with a greeting. “If StarClan wants you to do stuff, why can’t they be clearer about it?”

“Any medicine cat would ask the same question,” Violetshine commented wryly.

Twigpaw turned to Tree. “What are you doing here?” she demanded.

“Oh, I was bored,” Tree replied. “I just thought I would follow Violetshine. I’ve been missing you, too.”

Twigpaw could see a glimmer of amusement in Tree’s eyes, but she couldn’t see what the joke was. I never could see why some cats think Tree’s so funny.

Violetshine batted Tree over the head with her tail. “You should stop following me!” Twigpaw sensed she didn’t mean that seriously. “What do you think about all this?” she added.