Chapter 7

“You’re actually going to find new territory and form your own Clan while you wait for the original Clans to heal themselves?” Golden mewed outrageously. “But what if the Clans are perfectly fine? Surely you can’t just leave a whole new Clan you just made!”

“I won’t be going back if it takes too long,” Silverfur hissed back. “If the Clans come back together when we’ve already settled in, there’s no going back.” Moonshine thought she saw a flicker of sadness in her blue eyes.

If you go, there’s no going back. Moonshine knew the SkyClan warrior knew that. She’ll be taking a big risk. Doesn’t she want to go back to her family and friends and Clanmates? Surely that will be disloyalty!

As if he could read her thoughts, Shadow stood up from where he was washing and stood at Silverfur’s side. “She’s not being disloyal,” he declared. “She’s only making the right choice. And she really is right. If you—we—have any chance of survival, we need to form our own Clan.”

“But that’s nearly impossible,” Moonshine protested. “There will be so many problems. Like, who will be leader? What will our Clan be called? Where will the territory and camp be?”

“We can solve that last question right now!” Silverfur insisted. “Let’s go looking for new land!”

Shadow glanced at her. “Sure, but where? Should we travel toward Clan territories? Or the opposite direction?”

“The opposite direction, of course!” Silverfur meowed determinedly, flicking her tail impatiently. “We wouldn’t want to collide with the other Clans.”

“Can’t we just make ourselves at home by the lake?” Moonshine pleaded.

Silverfur shook her head. “No! Remember the rogues already took our territory? This is our own Clan? That means we’ll have our own territory. Our own warriors. Maybe even our own rules!”

Moonshine gasped in disbelief. Did Silverfur really mean it? This is going too far. “We can’t just abandon the warrior code!” she argued. “That’s our whole way of life! Without it, we would be nothing more than a bunch of rogues.” She paused, remembering the rogues who had driven them out in the first place.

Silverfur glared at her. “I didn’t mean the warrior code! I meant other simple rules, like when to do a deputy ceremony or a warrior ceremony.”

Moonshine couldn’t argue with that. I guess she’s right. It’s our only chance right now. She lifted her chin. “Okay, Silverfur, I agree with you. We should form our own Clan.”

Golden’s head jerked up in surprise and he opened his mouth to argue, but then clearly thought better of it and closed it. “Okay, I’m in.” He nodded.

“Well, then,” Silverfur mewed cheerfully, her tone light. “Let’s go!”

 

Moonshine glanced up at the darkening sky. The first warriors of StarClan were beginning to appear in the sky, and she wondered again if Treasure was with them. You were such a brave warrior, she thought. You must be safe with them. One day we shall meet again.

“My paws are aching,” Shadow grumbled from ahead. “When are we going to stop, Silverfur?”

Silverfur, who was in the lead, glanced back at him. “We need to find a safe place, Shadow. Would you want to sleep right on the forest floor, out in the open?”

“At least there’s trees,” Shadow muttered. “And I bet no cat but us is trekking these woods right now.”

Suddenly a dark shape exploded out of a tree. Silverfur let out a hiss of alarm and flashed out a paw, striking the cat’s face. It bolted away, howling with pain.

“Spoke too soon,” Silverfur growled. “Come on. And stop complaining, Shadow. We’ll be there soon.”

Behind Moonshine, Golden let out an alarmed yowl. She turned around, eyeing him anxiously. “Are you alright?”

Golden stopped and started licking vigorously at his paw. “Nothing. I trod on a thorn.” He put his paw gently back on the ground.

“Come on!” Silverfur called. “I can see something up ahead!” She suddenly shot forward and flew past them.

Moonshine ran after her. “Wait!” she called. “We should stay together!” She could barely see anything in the growing darkness. Something hit her paw and she fell over with a startled yelp. She rolled back to her paws and glanced behind her.

Must have been a root, she thought, turning back around. She raced through the darkness again, hoping to see her friend’s silver pelt flash through the dark.

Panic spiraled inside her as she stopped and stood still, taking in a mouthful of air. No, she thought. Where are they? She pricked her ears but the forest was silent. That was strange. Why have the animals stopped making noises?

Moonshine turned around in a circle, her heart beating faster. Is a fox coming? Or even a badger? She scented the air but she couldn’t smell anything other than the plants around her. Silverfur, where are you? she wondered.

Moonshine.

Moonshine gasped as a sharp voice sounded from her mind. She felt as if thorns were digging into her from the inside, and she squeezed herself into a ball in pain.

Moonshine.

Moonshine flinched back, falling onto the ground even though there had been no physical blow, and fell into blackness.

 

Moonshine opened her eyes and leaped to her paws. She was standing in a grassy clearing surrounded by tall pine trees. The wind whistled softly pass her and the grass was definitely much softer than where she had been before. Where am I? This isn’t where I’m supposed to be. Where’s Silverfur and Golden and Shadow?

“Moonshine.” A gentle voice made her turn. A silver-and-white tabby she-cat with blue eyes sat across from her.

Moonshine tipped her head. “Starlight?” She gazed at her in wonder as the StarClan cat nodded. “Why are you here again?”

“You must find your way,” Starlight meowed, half ignoring her question. “Even in the darkness.”

“Okay,” Moonshine mewed. “So are my friends okay? Where are they?”

“They are in no danger,” the silver-and-white tabby replied. “But in order to find them, you must become stronger in more ways than one.”

“What does that mean?” Moonshine yowled as Starlight began to fade. Come back! she screamed silently. Tell me more!

Moonshine blinked open her eyes and stared at the dark shadows around her. Will I see my friends again?

 

The next time Moonshine opened her eyes, sunshine was streaming through the branches of the trees. She pushed herself to her paws and stared at the forest around her. Dew covered the grass and leaves, sparkling in the morning light. Birds chirped all around her, and she breathed in the fresh scent of the trees and grass. She missed the scent of the oak forest, the camp, and especially her Clanmates.

So I’m going to find Silverfur and Golden and Shadow. They’re my Clanmates now.

Moonshine opened her mouth to taste the air and caught the scent of mouse. She dropped into a hunting crouch and crept forward, angling her ears toward a small pine tree where the brown creature was nibbling on a pile of seeds.

Sorry, mouse. You’re mine now. Moonshine gathered her hind legs closer and then pounced, her forepaws landing squarely on the mouse. She quickly killed it with a bite and carried it back to her spot.

After she ate, Moonshine began padding through the forest again, the loneliness spreading through her again. She paused and glanced up at the sky, twitching her ears and turning herself in what she guessed was the right direction. I’m pretty sure she went that way, away from the setting sun.

As Moonshine made her way through the peaceful forest, a bittersweet memory suddenly came back to her, when things had still been peaceful. My life—our lives—had been perfect . . . until the rogues came.

 

Moonkit leaped out of Leafkit’s reach, her heart beating fast with exhilaration. She gripped the moss ball tighter in her jaws, leaping over a tree root and ducking being a log. Can’t catch me! she thought, unable to speak with the moss in her mouth. She crouched, panting, waiting for a sign of her brother.

“Gotcha!” Leafkit suddenly pounced onto her tail from behind her. Moonkit yelped, dropping the moss. “Ha!” her brother exclaimed. “Told ya you couldn’t beat me.”

“Fine,” Moonkit huffed, “but to make it fair, I’d like to see you try beating me in a race!”

“No!” Leafkit yowled. “Not a race! I’m terrible at that!” The two kits burst into laughter.

Moonkit smiled. A flower seemed to bloom inside her, happiness flooding through her body. She wished she could stay here forever, out in the forest with Leafkit. But . . .

Suddenly paw steps thudded behind them. Moonkit’s heart skipped a beat and she grabbed Leafkit’s scruff, stuffing him into a bush. She leaped in after him. “Shh,” she told him. “Be quiet and still.”

“I know!” Leafkit whispered back. “You’re the one being—” He broke off as the paw steps came closer.

Moonkit slapped her tail across his mouth. She peered through the leaves as a dark ginger tabby tom with black paws and ears and leaf-green eyes leaped over the log they had been playing by, followed by a black-and-gray she-cat with amber eyes.

“Leafkit, Moonkit,” came Treasure’s deep, warm voice. “We know you’re in there. Come out and explain yourselves.”

Reluctantly, Moonkit and Leafkit padded out of the bush and stopped in front of their father, their heads hanging. “It was my idea,” Moonkit explained truthfully. “I thought since we’d be apprenticed any day now, we could go out in the forest and explore a little. Isn’t the forest so, so great?” she added with an elated squeal, but Flakeheart gave her a sharp look that made her happiness drop down a level.

“You know the forest isn’t a place for kits,” their mother scolded. “There are dangerous animals out here. You could have been hurt! Now stay in the camp until you’re actually apprenticed, okay?”

“Yes, Flakeheart,” Moonkit replied.

As the four cats headed back to camp, Moonkit took one last longing look at the forest, breathing in the fresh scent of trees and prey.

 

“The camp is under attack!”

Moonpaw leaped up from where she was sharing prey with Leafpaw and glanced at the thorn tunnel. Rogue scent touched her nose and she let out a soft growl, her heart pounding in fear.

“Something to use those battle moves we learned on!” Leafpaw exclaimed eagerly, though there was a flicker of fear in his blue eyes.

Moonpaw watched as the rogues burst through the camp entrance and a battle started around her. She looked around for something to do and immediately fixed her eyes on a shape outside the apprentices’ den.

Lightningpaw, newly apprenticed, was sitting there, her black-and-white fur bristling in fear. Moonpaw widened her eyes in horror as a brown rogue crept toward her. This is only her first day as an apprentice!

Moonpaw ran toward Lightningpaw and the rogue, fear coursing through her veins. Just as the rogue nearly reached the black-and-white she-cat, Moonpaw slammed into him, pinning him to the ground, and slashed his ears as hard as she could. She leaped off as the rogue bolted away, and turned to Lightningpaw.

“Are you alright?” she asked.

“I’m fine, quit worrying,” Lightningpaw snapped. “I’m the one who should be asking you that, not the other way around!”

 

Moonshine paused in her steps for a moment and closed her eyes. Wow. I can’t believe I remembered that line of hers so clearly. We won that battle . . . but with a loss. Lightningpaw’s brother, Stormpaw. I can’t believe she could deal with so much at so young. Oh, Lightningpaw, Leafclaw, where are you?

She opened her eyes and continued walking, barely aware of where she was going. A spike of shock suddenly shot through her. Moonshine stared at where the ground gave away in front of her. A steep hill led down to a rocky clearing ahead. In a corner of the clearing, a fallen tree and a few large boulders formed perfectly into the shape of a den. There was a gap in between the rocks for the entrance, and she thought she saw a flash of silver in the darkness of the den.

Moonshine’s heart seemed to lift. Silverfur!