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Fireheart sprang. With a mighty swipe he bundled the RiverClan warrior off Sandpaw and away from the edge. Sandpaw skidded away, closer to the drop. Fireheart lunged forward and grabbed her by the scruff of her neck with his teeth. She squealed with rage as he dragged her away from the gorge, her paws scrabbling on the muddy ground. She sprang to her paws as soon as he stopped and hissed at Fireheart, her eyes burning with fury, “I can win my own battles without your help!”
Fireheart opened his mouth to explain but a terrible howl made them both turn their heads. Graystripe was leaning perilously over the side of the gorge, his hind legs straining. Beside him, Fireheart glimpsed a white paw clutching at the edge. Graystripe leaned down with his mouth open, trying to get a grip on the paw, but it disappeared out of sight in a terrifying rush. Graystripe cried out after it, his wail echoing along the gorge.
All the cats stopped fighting at the sound of Graystripe’s agonized call. Fireheart froze, panting with shock and exhaustion. The RiverClan cats scrambled to the edge of the gorge. Slowly Fireheart followed them and looked over the side. Far below, through the deafening spray, he saw the dark head of a RiverClan warrior sink beneath the foaming water.
With a cold feeling of horror, Fireheart recalled the words of the WindClan medicine cat: “This day shall bring an unnecessary death.”
CHAPTER 8
Leopardfur lifted her head and yowled into the wind, “Whiteclaw! No!”
Graystripe scrambled backward until all four paws were on safe ground. His wet fur was bristling and his eyes were wide with shock. “I tried to grab him…he just lost his footing…I didn’t mean to…” The words tumbled out breathlessly. Fireheart bounded across to his friend and pressed his nose into his flank for comfort, but Graystripe backed blindly away.
One by one, the other cats turned away from the edge and looked at Graystripe. The RiverClan cats’ eyes were narrowed with fury, their shoulders tense. Willowpelt and Whitestorm moved instinctively toward Graystripe, taking up defensive positions on either side of him.
Leopardfur growled deep in her throat, but it was a warning to her own cats. They were to stay back. The RiverClan deputy stared Tigerclaw straight in the eye. “This has gone beyond a border fight,” she murmured. “We shall return to our Clan. It has become a matter to settle at another time and in a different way.”
Tigerclaw defiantly returned Leopardfur’s stare. He showed no fear, but merely gave the smallest of nods. Leopardfur flicked the tip of her tail, then turned and padded away. The RiverClan cats followed her, and the whole patrol disappeared into the bushes.
Leopardfur’s menacing words made Fireheart shiver. A sense of foreboding settled over his heart like a cold shadow as he realized that this battle might have started a war.
“We should leave,” meowed Deadfoot, limping forward. “Your two young warriors served us well, and my Clan thanks you.” But the formal words of gratitude sounded hollow after the tragedy they had just witnessed. Tigerclaw nodded, and the two WindClan warriors began to head back toward their own territory. Fireheart meowed a quiet farewell to Onewhisker as he passed. Onewhisker glanced briefly at him, and walked on.
Fireheart noticed that Sandpaw was standing at the edge of the gorge, staring down at the torrent below. Her paws seemed frozen to the ground, and her eyes remained fixed on the steep drop. Fireheart guessed she had realized how close she had come to sharing Whiteclaw’s fate.
Fireheart started toward her but Tigerclaw growled, “Follow me!”
The tabby warrior charged away through the trees, and the rest of his patrol followed after him, but Fireheart hesitated beside Graystripe. “Come on,” he urged. “We should keep up!” Graystripe shrugged, his eyes dull and clouded with pain, and began to pad after the others, dragging his paws as if they were made from stone.
Soon the cats ahead of them were out of sight, but Fireheart was able to track them by their scent. Tigerclaw was leading them back toward ThunderClan territory, straight through RiverClan’s strip of forest. Fireheart guessed there was no need to worry about RiverClan patrols right now. The damage had been done. It would be pointless to take the long way around by Fourtrees.
Tigerclaw had halted the patrol and was waiting for Fireheart and Graystripe at the border of ThunderClan’s territory.
“I thought I told you to follow me,” he growled.
“Graystripe was–” Fireheart began.
“The sooner Graystripe gets back to camp, the better,” interrupted Tigerclaw.
Graystripe said nothing, but Fireheart bristled at the deputy’s harsh tone. “Whiteclaw’s death wasn’t his fault!”
Tigerclaw turned away. “I know,” he meowed. “But it’s done. Come on, and this time keep up!” He leaped away, crossing the scent markers that bounded ThunderClan territory.
Fireheart had been looking forward to this moment since leaving WindClan’s den among the Thunderpaths. Now he hardly noticed as he pounded past the markers, keeping one eye on Graystripe.
The rain eased as they followed the familiar trail to the camp. When the patrol emerged from the gorse tunnel, some of the other Clan cats bounded out of their dens, their tails held high in greeting.
“Did you find WindClan? Are they safe?” Mousefur called. Fireheart nodded absently, but felt too hollow to reply. Mousefur’s tail dropped. The other cats hung back at the edge of the clearing. The expressions on the faces of the returning cats told them that something serious had happened.
“Come with me,” Tigerclaw ordered Fireheart and Graystripe, leading them toward Bluestar’s den. Fireheart kept close to Graystripe so that his fur brushed against his friend. Graystripe just padded onward, neither drawing closer to Fireheart nor moving away.
A warm mew welcomed them from the shadows beyond the lichen. The three cats pushed their way into the snug cave.
“Welcome!” Bluestar leaped up, purring. “Did you find WindClan? Did you bring them back?”
“Yes, Bluestar,” Fireheart replied quietly. “They are safe in their camp. Tallstar told me to thank you.”
“Good, good,” meowed Bluestar. Her eyes darkened as she noticed Tigerclaw’s grim expression. “What has happened?”
“Fireheart decided to return home through RiverClan territory,” growled Tigerclaw.
Graystripe looked up for the first time. “It wasn’t just Fireheart who decided—” he began.
Tigerclaw interrupted him. “They were found by a RiverClan patrol. If my patrol hadn’t heard their yelps in time, they wouldn’t have made it home at all.”
“So you rescued them,” meowed Bluestar, relaxing. “Thank you, Tigerclaw.”
“It’s not that simple.” Tigerclaw snorted. “They were fighting beside the gorge. A RiverClan warrior who was battling Graystripe fell over the edge.” Fireheart noticed Graystripe flinch at Tigerclaw’s words.
Bluestar’s eyes widened. “Dead?” she asked, looking horrified.
Fireheart meowed quickly, “It was an accident! Graystripe would never kill a cat over a border fight!”
“I doubt Leopardfur sees it that way.” Tigerclaw turned on Fireheart, his tail lashing from side to side. “What were you thinking? Traveling through RiverClan territory! And with WindClan cats. You’ve sent a message that we are their allies, which will only drive RiverClan and ShadowClan closer together.”
“WindClan was with you in RiverClan territory?” Bluestar looked even more alarmed.
“Just two warriors. Tallstar gave us an escort home; we were tired….” Fireheart murmured.
“You should not have been in RiverClan territory,” Tigerclaw snarled. “Especially with WindClan cats.”
“It wasn’t an alliance. They were escorting us back home!” Fireheart protested.
“Does RiverClan know that?” spat Tigerclaw.
“RiverClan knew we were going to find WindClan and bring them back. They agreed to it at the Gathering. They shouldn’t have attacked us—it was a special mission, like the journey to Highsto
nes.”
“They didn’t agree to let you travel through their territory!” spat Tigerclaw. “You still don’t understand Clan ways, do you?”
Bluestar stood up. Her eyes flashed as she looked around at the three cats, but her voice was calm. “You should not have entered RiverClan’s hunting grounds. It was a dangerous thing to do.” She looked sternly from Fireheart to Graystripe. Fireheart searched her eyes for a harsher reproach, but could find none. He felt torn between gratitude and guilt. He had caused a rift with RiverClan that might threaten the safety of his Clan for many moons.
Bluestar went on, flicking her tail uneasily. “At the same time, you did well to find WindClan and bring them back. But we will need to prepare ourselves for an attack from RiverClan. We need to start training more warriors. Fireheart and Graystripe, Frostfur tells me two of her kits are almost ready to begin their training. I want each of you to take a kit as your apprentice.”
Fireheart felt stunned. What an honor! He couldn’t believe Bluestar had suggested it—especially now. He glanced furtively at Tigerclaw. The deputy sat rigid as a rock.
Graystripe raised his head. “But none of Frostfur’s kits are six moons yet!”
“It won’t be long before they are. The divisions at the last Gathering troubled me, and today…” Bluestar’s voice trailed off, and Fireheart noticed Graystripe look down at his paws once more.
