by Erin Hunter
Bramblestar lifted his chin. “ThunderClan will give up territory for SkyClan!”
Squirrelflight jerked her muzzle toward him. Lionblaze’s hackles lifted while his Clanmates blinked at each other in surprise. Hope flared in Twigbranch’s chest. “Do you think he’ll really give up land?” she whispered to Finleap.
“I hope so.” He was watching Bramblestar through narrowed eyes. “SkyClan mustn’t leave.”
Bramblestar looked urgently at Harestar. “Is WindClan willing to sacrifice land to keep SkyClan beside the lake?”
Harestar hesitated. He looked toward his Clanmates who stared back, pelts prickling. “We will give up territory if the other Clans give up territory too. If SkyClan needs land, all must provide it, or none. No one Clan must have an advantage. It’s the only way to keep peace.”
Bramblestar blinked hopefully at Mistystar.
She stared back at him coldly. “I’ve made RiverClan’s position clear. We think it’s better for everyone if SkyClan returns to the gorge.”
“What about the vision?” Bramblestar’s tail flicked.
Tigerstar growled. “We’ve survived prophecies before. We’ll survive this one. ShadowClan is taking back their land. SkyClan can live on it at their own risk or they can leave.”
Leafstar curled her lip. “So, no Clan is willing to make space for SkyClan?”
Around the Great Oak, heads dropped and paws shifted uneasily.
The SkyClan leader’s amber eyes shone like fire. “I see how it is. . . . Every cat wants other cats to be the ones to help. Some of you talk so much about uniting, about your wish for us all to live peacefully side by side, as if you care as much about the other Clans as you do your own. But it’s clear to me now that that is all lies! No wonder StarClan sees storms in your future. We’ve seen and heard enough. We’re not part of the lake Clans, and I think we can all agree on that by now. SkyClan doesn’t belong here. We never will.”
“Please,” Bramblestar pleaded, “don’t make a rash decision. We can still find a solution, I know it.”
Leafstar eyed him coldly. “If it will make you happier, I will consult with my warriors tonight and decide in the morning.” She leaped from the branch, and the crowd opened below to let her pass as she headed toward her Clanmates. Sagenose and Bellaleaf met her silently, their eyes dark.
Twigbranch felt Finleap move beside her. He was trembling. “They’re really going to leave,” he mumbled. She hardly heard him. Her heart was racing. I have to speak to Hawkwing and Violetshine before they leave. As she darted across the clearing, threading between her Clanmates, she heard Finleap calling. “Twigbranch!”
She ignored him. Didn’t he understand? This might be the last chance she had to speak to her kin. “Hawkwing!” She reached her father, breathless.
He pressed his muzzle to her head.
Violetshine stared at her. “We’re leaving.” Grief glistened in her gaze.
“You can’t go!” Twigbranch looked at them desperately.
“We must follow our Clan,” Hawkwing told her.
“I’m sure Bramblestar will let you join ThunderClan. You can stay by the lake with me.” Twigbranch stared desperately at her father. “You mustn’t leave. I’ll be alone!”
Violetshine glanced at Hawkwing uncertainly. He blinked back at her and turned to Twigbranch. “We are SkyClan,” he told her. “Where SkyClan goes, we go.”
“You could come with us,” Violetshine mewed eagerly. “Leafstar would take you back. And Finleap too. We could all be together.” Twigbranch hesitated. Perhaps she should leave with them. “You’ve been SkyClan before. You could be SkyClan again,” Violetshine pressed. “All your kin are in SkyClan.”
Twigbranch’s fur prickled. What about ThunderClan? It had taken her so long to discover she truly belonged there. But her ThunderClan Clanmates weren’t kin. How could she live without kin? As her thoughts whirled, her heart seemed to crack. She took a breath and met Violetshine’s hopeful gaze. She knew what she must do. “I’m ThunderClan now.” Twigbranch dropped her gaze. “I never belonged in SkyClan. I’m not sure I ever could.”
She felt Hawkwing’s breath on her muzzle as he leaned closer. “You have to do what you feel is right. And so do we.”
She looked up, a lump in her throat. “Please don’t leave me.”
Hawkwing’s eyes rounded with sorrow. “There’s nothing I can do. I’m SkyClan’s deputy. My Clan needs me. I can’t leave them.”
Anger surged in Twigbranch’s chest. “But you can leave me!” She glared at Violetshine. “How can you go after all we’ve been through?”
Violetshine stared back at her in surprise. “But you left me, over and over.”
Twigbranch froze. It was true. She’d abandoned her sister, first to ShadowClan and then to SkyClan. Guilt washed over her. Was this what it felt like for Violetshine?
“SkyClan!” Leafstar called to her Clanmates from the long grass. Harrybrook and Macgyver hurried after her.
“We must go,” Hawkwing mewed huskily. He turned away.
Twigbranch gazed frantically at Violetshine. “Is this the last time I’ll see you?”
“I don’t know.” Violetshine touched her muzzle to Twigbranch’s. Her breath was warm in the chilly night air. “It’s up to Leafstar now.”
“Good-bye.” Twigbranch could hardly speak. Her throat tightened as Violetshine pulled away and headed after Hawkwing. As she turned back to her Clanmates, she saw Finleap. He was watching Plumwillow and Sandynose disappear into the grass. She hurried to his side. “Did you say good-bye?”
He didn’t answer. The sorrow in his gaze pierced her heart.
“Are you planning to go with them if they leave?” She felt numb.
He stared at her. “I love you, Twigbranch. But if you don’t want to have kits, I should go with my kin. At least I’ll be somewhere I belong, instead of chasing a dream that might never come true.”
Twigbranch stared at him. “Don’t you care what I want?” Anger cut through her grief. “Having kits isn’t just your choice. It’s our choice. And just because I don’t want to have kits now doesn’t mean I never will.”
Finleap’s ears twitched self-consciously. She didn’t wait for him to respond.
“You’re meant to love me,” she snapped. “Not the family I might give you. If you won’t wait until I’m ready, then I guess you weren’t the cat I thought you were. Maybe you should leave.”
Pushing past him, she headed into the long grass.
CHAPTER 15
Violetshine followed Hawkwing across the tree-bridge and jumped down onto the shore. They were heading home to the pine forest, probably for the last time. Clouds were drifting across the moon, and a breeze rippled the surface of the lake. The weather was changing. She landed next to him, the gravel shifting beneath her paws. “Will Twigbranch be all right without us?”
Hawkwing hesitated. “She has ThunderClan. They are her family now.”
“And I guess she has Finleap,” Violetshine mewed hopefully.
“Yes.” She heard a catch in Hawkwing’s mew as he turned and hurried to catch up to his Clanmates. She tried not to picture Twigbranch’s expression as they had said good-bye. I’m sorry for leaving you. Twigbranch was the only cat she’d known her whole life, since the moment she was born. This fresh separation rekindled the loss she’d felt as a kit, when ShadowClan had taken her to live in the dark pine forest, while her littermate was in ThunderClan. Her heart ached as Tree fell in beside her. She felt his warmth next to her.
“Twigbranch will be okay,” he murmured softly as they padded along the shore.
“I’ll miss her.”
“I know.” Tree gazed at the SkyClan cats ahead.
An owl hooted in the woods on the far side of the lake, its cry echoing over the water before a gust of wind snatched the sound away. The breeze carried the scent of rain. Violetshine fluffed out her fur.
“If we go to the gorge, do you think I’ll ever see Twigbranch again?
” She looked at Tree, but he seemed distracted. His gaze had slipped away. What was he was thinking about?
Ahead, Macgyver walked beside Leafstar. Hawkwing trailed a little behind with the others, matching Plumwillow’s pace. Macgyver flicked his tail crossly. “I hope Bramblestar hasn’t made you change your mind.”
“I promised to think about it overnight.” The SkyClan leader steered the patrol closer to the shelter of the trees.
“We have to leave.” Harrybrook hurried closer to Leafstar.
Behind him, Bellaleaf’s ears twitched. “We don’t have to do anything.”
“We shouldn’t let the Clans push us around.” Sagenose bent his head against the wind. “If we leave, they will always remember us as weak.”
“We should stay and fight for our place beside the lake,” Bellaleaf pressed. “It’s what StarClan would want us to do.”
Leafstar snorted. “StarClan has only ever made life difficult for us.”
Frecklewish pricked her ears. “StarClan can see further than we can. Perhaps we must bear a little hardship before we can find peace.”
“We’ll find peace at the gorge,” Macgyver meowed.
“And we’ll see old friends,” Harrybrook chimed in. “The daylight warriors will be pleased to see us.”
“We don’t need daylight warriors,” Dewspring huffed. “We’re real Clan cats now. I like living in a forest. I don’t want to live somewhere strange.”
“It won’t be strange once you’re used to it,” Macgyver mewed.
Sagenose grunted. “We can’t go back to the gorge. Our life is here now. There’s plenty of prey in the forest, and there won’t be trouble from rogues anymore. Once we’ve shown the Clans that we can’t be pushed around, SkyClan can thrive beside the lake.”
“I don’t want to leave Finleap.” Plumwillow’s tail fluttered nervously over the stones. “How will he cope without his kin close by?”
“He’s got Twigbranch,” Macgyver told her. “He’ll have kin of his own before long.”
Harrybrook scrambled over a rock jutting beneath the trees. “You promised we’d go home to the gorge, Leafstar. You can’t change your mind. You saw the hostility from the other Clans. They only think of themselves. They don’t care about us. Why should we care about them?”
Leafstar kept walking, her gaze fixed ahead while her warriors argued. Violetshine watched her father as he followed them. Was he going to speak? Suddenly, she felt Tree’s fur bristling against hers. She glanced at him and saw his pelt bushing. Could he scent danger? She stiffened and tasted the air. There were only prey-scents from the forest. She realized that Tree’s ears were pricked; he seemed to be listening intently. His gaze was fixed, as though someone were walking beside him, but no cat was there. A chill reached through Violetshine’s pelt as she recognized the glazed look in Tree’s eyes. He was seeing a dead cat! Her heart quickened. Was she surrounded by ghosts?
Tree suddenly quickened his pace. She hurried after him as he caught up to the others. “Leafstar!” His mew was urgent.
The SkyClan leader stopped and faced him. Worry flashed in her eyes. “What’s wrong?”
“A dead cat is with us.” Tree dipped his head respectfully to the empty space beside him.
Harrybrook and Sagenose backed away, their pelts spiking. Hawkwing narrowed his eyes.
“Who is it?” Leafstar tipped her head.
“I don’t know her name.” Tree spoke quickly, as though he had important news to share. “But I’ve seen her before. She says I must remind you of Echosong’s vision. It led you to the lake. She says you belong here. You must stay.”
Macgyver whisked his tail. “He’s imagining it! He’s just scared of leaving the forest.”
Tree didn’t take his eyes off Leafstar. “She says you must stay.”
Leafstar glared at him. “Echosong’s vision may have led us here, but it will not keep us here. I must do what’s right for SkyClan now, not what was right for us when Echosong was alive.”
Tree glanced anxiously to the empty space beside him. “She says SkyClan must stay,” he told Leafstar. There was urgency in his mew.
Leafstar shifted her paws. “I’ve heard from every cat now, both living and dead.” She dipped her head to Tree. “Thank you for your concern, but I can’t risk my Clan on the visions of loners. You don’t truly understand what it means to be a Clan cat. No one voice can be louder than another. Only the good of the Clan counts.” Leafstar turned away and began heading along the shore. Her Clanmates followed, silent now.
Violetshine stopped nervously beside Tree. “Is the dead cat still here?”
“She’s gone.” The yellow tom gazed at her dejectedly.
“I’m sorry Leafstar didn’t listen to you.” If she had, then SkyClan wouldn’t have to leave the lake. Violetshine wouldn’t have to leave Twigbranch.
“The Clans will never listen to me,” Tree murmured. “They don’t want my help.”
“I listen to you!” Alarm flashed through Violetshine’s fur. Was he planning to leave? “I’ll always listen to you. You’re wise and kind and good.”
He blinked at her slowly. “I wish things could have been different. I wish I could have made a place for myself in the Clans. But there’s no role for me here.”
Desperation clawed at her chest as she realized what he was saying. “You could be a warrior. I could train you.”
Tree shook his head. “I have to stay by the lake. The dead cat was so sure we should stay. And besides, I was meant to be a loner. Being with your Clan has made me realize that. There’s no place for me in SkyClan, or any Clan. If SkyClan leaves, it must leave without me.”
Her breath caught in her throat. This was what she’d feared all along. How could she be happy without him? “Don’t you want to be with me?”
“Of course I do.” His gaze was full of warmth. “We belong together. But I can’t be a Clan cat.” He reached his muzzle close to hers. “Why don’t you come and be a loner with me? We don’t need a Clan. We can be happy on our own.”
Violetshine swallowed. She’d been afraid he would suggest that, because she knew she would be tempted to go with him. Should she? The thought of spending every day with Tree thrilled her. But how could she turn her back on her father and her Clan? They meant everything to her. But Tree loved her. Not because she was kin, but because she was special to him. She could see that in the way he was looking at her, his eyes glistening with hope. He wants me to stay so much.
“We could remain by the lake,” Tree went on. “You’d be near Twigbranch and you’d be with me.”
Violetshine wanted to bury her nose in his fur and say yes. She wouldn’t have to leave the lake and abandon her sister, and she’d be able to stay with the cat she loved. But she couldn’t imagine life without Hawkwing. She’d grown up without him; she couldn’t risk losing him again. Not like this.
And she could tell from the claw she could feel in her chest at the thought of turning her back on her Clan, that SkyClan was where she belonged.
She steadied her breath. The patrol was disappearing into the forest. “Come on,” she mewed lightly. “Let’s catch up to the others. It’s late and I’m tired. Maybe Leafstar will decide to stay and we won’t have to make a choice.”
Hurrying past Tree, she followed her Clanmates. Her whiskers trembled. Was Leafstar really going to lead SkyClan away from the lake? I can’t leave Tree and Twigbranch behind. Every hair on her pelt seemed to spark with dread. But I have to! How could she choose? Her only hope now was that Leafstar would decide to stay. As she padded into the forest, she glanced up. Where the canopy met the sky, stars glittered like dewdrops. Please, StarClan, let Leafstar make the right choice.
Violetshine opened her eyes. Dawn light was seeping into the den. She sat up, relieved to feel Tree still snuggled in the nest beside her. They were the last cats left in the den, and she could hear paw steps outside. She nosed him softly. “The Clan is awake.”
Yawning, he got to his paws.
“Has Leafstar made her decision?”
“I don’t know.” As Violetshine hopped out of the nest, hope fluttered in her belly. Had Leafstar changed her mind in the night? Would she announce that they would stay and fight for their place beside the lake? She headed out of the den and waited as Tree caught up to her.
Leafstar was already standing in the clearing. Dewspring and Reedclaw huddled close by. Around them, warriors picked their way over the tattered remnants of the torn dens. A cold wind tugged at Violetshine’s fur. She moved closer to Tree as rain began to drip from the branches overhead.
Hawkwing sat at the far edge of the clearing, his paws tucked under his tail, while Sandynose paced beside him. Palepaw, Gravelpaw, and Nectarpaw clustered outside their den, their fur pricking with excitement.
Dewspring leaned closer to Reedclaw. “Are we leaving?”
“Leafstar hasn’t spoken yet,” Reedclaw whispered back.
Frecklewish peered from the shelter of her den, narrowing her eyes against the wind.
Leafstar glanced around the ravaged camp, determination in her gaze. Violetshine held her breath. Don’t make us leave. A fierce breeze rustled the young leaves overhead as Leafstar spoke.
“I’ve thought hard about what is best,” she meowed slowly. “I’ve decided that SkyClan will leave the lake. We are returning to the gorge.”
More claws seemed to rake Violetshine’s gut. She stared at Leafstar, wishing she’d misheard, hoping wildly that perhaps the SkyClan leader would see the disappointment in her eyes and change her mind. But Leafstar stared resolutely at her Clanmates. She was being so strong, and yet it was clear that she needed her Clan’s support. Violetshine knew suddenly that she couldn’t stay if her Clan left. She turned to Tree and saw grief glittering in his eyes. He knew what she was going to say. She swallowed. “I have to go with them.” Her mew was no more than a whisper.
“I know.” Tree pressed against her. “I’ll miss you. But I must stay.”