The Raging Storm

“Warriors get bellyaches, not apprentices!” Pigeonpaw called back.

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you.” Blossomheart’s whiskers twitched as she returned to the shrew.

Palepaw looked up as Finleap and Violetshine passed. “Are you going back to ThunderClan tonight?” she asked Finleap.

Violetshine answered for him. “He’ll go home in the morning.”

“What’s it like being a ThunderClan warrior?” Gravelpaw paused mid-crouch and blinked at Finleap.

“It’s okay,” Finleap told him. “I guess it’s the same as being a SkyClan warrior.”

Gravelpaw tipped his head thoughtfully. “What if we have a battle with ThunderClan?” he asked. “Will we be allowed to fight you?”

Violetshine flicked her tail sharply. “We won’t have a battle with ThunderClan. Not now that we’ve got Tree to keep the peace.” She caught her breath. Do I still believe that? Even if Tree stayed with the Clans, she was no longer sure he could help keep the peace. She pictured him alone in the forest and wondered if he was on his way back to camp yet. She felt guilty for leaving him. Perhaps she should have stayed. What if he never came back? Would anyone care except her?

Worry clawed at her heart, but she couldn’t leave camp now. She had to watch Finleap. Before the apprentices could ask any more difficult questions, Violetshine nudged Finleap into the bramble den. “We’re sleeping here tonight,” she told the apprentices as she ducked in after him. “Don’t keep us awake by chattering like starlings.”

Finleap followed her in and surveyed the nests circled around the central stem. “Where shall I sleep?”

Violetshine sniffed the bedding until she found two nests that smelled stale. “These haven’t been slept in for a while.” She realized with a pang that one of them was Twigbranch’s old nest. Suddenly she missed her sister with a longing she thought had faded. “Is Twigbranch happy in ThunderClan?” she asked as she climbed into it.

“Yes.” Finleap hopped into the nest beside her and sat down. “She seems at home there.”

“Are you?”

“I’m still getting used to it,” Finleap mewed. “But I like being near Twigbranch.” He paused, his gaze unreadable as night swallowed the den. “Although I think I was wrong to assume she wanted the same things as me.”

“What do you mean?” Violetshine blinked at him. “Aren’t you close anymore?”

“We’re still close.” There was sadness in Finleap’s mew.

Violetshine was puzzled. “I thought you’d be mates by now.”

“So did I.” Finleap shifted in his nest. Violetshine could hardly see him in the darkness. “Twigbranch is just focused on her apprentice. She doesn’t want a mate.” Bracken crunched as he settled down. “I’m probably being selfish. Maybe I should be focusing on my apprentice too.”

“Twigbranch was always serious about being a good warrior.” Violetshine kept her mew bright. “I’m sure she loves you.”

“Yeah.”

As her eyes adjusted to the growing darkness, she could see the silhouette of his ears. “Was Reedclaw glad to see you?”

“Yes.” He sounded cheerier. “She’s nearly well enough to leave the medicine den.”

“I didn’t think Leafstar would be so upset about you visiting.”

“Harrybrook and Bellaleaf seemed ruffled too, but I don’t think it was about me coming back. What did Hawkwing mean when he said I’d caught Leafstar at a bad time?”

Worry crept along Violetshine’s spine as she remembered how badly the meeting had gone. They were closer than ever to war with ShadowClan. And Tree had been humiliated. What if he left? The thought made her feel sick.

“Violetshine?” Finleap’s mew jerked her from her thoughts. “Is something wrong in SkyClan?”

“No,” she answered quickly. It felt disloyal to reveal SkyClan’s problems to a ThunderClan warrior, even Finleap. “Everything is fine.” As she blinked into the darkness, her paws pricked anxiously.

She hoped she was telling the truth.

CHAPTER 10

Alderheart’s pelt prickled. He still didn’t feel all that comfortable in ShadowClan’s camp. Even here, alone in the medicine den with Puddleshine, he couldn’t shake the feeling he was being watched. He pressed a small morsel of deathberry to Puddleshine’s lips. When the unconscious tom didn’t stir, he gently pried his teeth open and slipped the dark flesh through the gap. Puddleshine didn’t even twitch. His head felt heavy, like dead weight against Alderheart’s paws as he laid it back on the edge of his nest.

The sun had set and evening was fast turning to night. Darkness was pressing at the edges of the medicine den. Puddleshine hadn’t regained consciousness since Juniperclaw and Sparrowtail had carried him back to the ShadowClan camp that morning. His breathing was shallower, and his fur was damp. Heat throbbed from his pelt and flooded Alderheart with fear. Would Puddleshine make it through the night? What would Tigerstar do if the ShadowClan medicine cat died?