The Warrior's Return (A Shrouded Path book 3)

Chapter 4

After a long, silent night, dawn came. A cool layer of dew had collected on the rocks and the grass, and on the pelt of every cat who sat in the clearing of the RiverClan camp. The sun broke above the horizon, casting watery light on the forest, bringing with it the chirping of birds and forest prey. Minnow was exhausted, but she hadn't fallen asleep; it seemed that no cat had. During the night, Pebblenose, Nettlestep, and Sorrelstream had returned to the nursery to be with their kits, but other than that, no cat had slept a wink.

Slowly, the RiverClan cats got to their paws, blinking and yawning in the morning light. "Troutleap," Birchstar addressed the elder, "Tawnyclaw and Twigtail can assist you in the burial." Troutleap nodded gratefully, and Tawnyclaw and Twigtail agreed without protest. Every cat stood around, as if unsure of what to do, and even Birchstar looked a little lost. Minnow didn't envy his position as a leader.

Troutleap, Tawnyclaw, and Twigtail approached the bodies of Bristlepelt, Sweetstripe, and Beechclaw and were about to remove them to be buried when the ferns at the camp entrance rustled. Immediately every cat was on point, hackled raised and tails bushed out. Minnow half-expected a wave of enemy warriors to burst into the camp, but was a little surprised at who she did see. The large form of Duskstar padded in, dew dripping from his fluffy fur, followed a pawstep behind by his medicine cat, Dawnpelt. They were alone, but everyone was still heavily on guard, expecting the worst.

"Duskstar," Birchstar nearly spat the ThunderClan leader's name, ears drawn back slightly as he approached him.

Duskstar, however, remained calm, his shoulders straightened and his head held high. "Birchstar," he returned, his tone grim. "I apologize for not waiting for a patrol at the border, but such an urgent matter couldn't wait." He shifted his paws. "I'm not sure if an apology is good enough, but all the same, I want you to know that I am deeply sorry for yesterday's events. I hope you'll believe me when I say that I was completely unaware of any of it, and the ThunderClan warriors that didn't participate are innocent."

Duskstar looked past Birchstar, finally seeing the bodies, and sighed heavily. "Oh, StarClan," he murmured, and Minnow could tell he was genuinely upset. She hadn't believed that he had a paw in the battle, but now there was no doubt of his innocence. Both he and Dawnpelt appeared deeply sorrowed by the three fallen cats. "I am so sorry for the loss of your warriors," he said to Birchstar.

Birchstar relaxed, his shoulders sagging a bit. Minnow knew he was tired; they all were. "Thank you," he meowed. "If you had no part in this, I can only assume that Featherstar didn't, either."

Duskstar nodded. "From what I can tell, she was just as oblivious as I. I'm ashamed to think that I was fooled by my own deputy."

"He's not still your deputy, is he?" Mudpelt blurted from the crowd of cats.

Duskstar shook his head. "As of now, Copperfoot has been removed from his position, and he and the rest of the traitors are confined to camp. They've betrayed their Clan and every Clan in the forest."

"Is Graytail the only dead?" Birchstar asked.

Nodding, Duskstar replied, "Yes. And I hope the Dark Forest welcomed him." His tone was icy.

The Dark Forest. Minnow knew that the cats who ended up in the Place of No Stars had done something truly awful in their lives, not worthy to walk in StarClan. She supposed it was a fitting place for the traitorous ThunderClan tom. She shuddered as she thought of that place, remembering seeing it from StarClan during her visits and in her dreams.

Birchstar spoke to Duskstar again. "What is your plan for dealing with this?" he asked.

Duskstar lifted his head. "As of now, I'm not sure," he admitted. "But this isn't something I'll be taking care of on my own. When we leave, we'll be traveling to the WindClan camp to speak with Featherstar. Hopefully we can get a plan in order."

Birchstar seemed to agree. "I think you should talk to Berrystar, too," he said. "Something like this involves all four Clans, even if ShadowClan wasn't involved. We need to do this together."

"I think you're right," Duskstar replied, standing. "I'll speak with Featherstar to get an understanding of what really happened, and from there we can decide what to do next. And I'll inform Berrystar as well."

"Very well," Birchstar said back. "Promise me that they won't go unpunished."

"As StarClan is my witness." Duskstar's voice was steady and true, and Minnow knew he could be trusted. "I'll send a messenger to you tomorrow to fill you in."

Without another word, Duskstar and Dawnpelt left. As soon as Dawnpelt's pale gray tail had disappeared through the camp entrance, Birchstar sighed heavily and murmured a few words to Tawnyclaw. The deputy nodded before he joined Troutleap and Twigtail, and they began to carry off the dead warriors. Birchstar spoke to the Clan again.

"I know you're all tired," he meowed. "And I doubt the borders will be disturbed today, but all the same, I'd like to send out a patrol. And we'll need a hunting patrol as well, to replenish the fresh-kill pile."

"I'll take a border patrol," Redblaze spoke up immediately. "I'll bring Amberpaw with me."

"I'll go, too," Cherryheart offered.

Reedtail, Specklefur, Poppywhisker, and Sootpaw made up the hunting patrol, and all the cats set off, leaving the camp very empty. "Everyone else, get some rest," Birchstar ordered. "Then we can resume patrolling as normal and start to fix up the camp." Every remaining cat went to their dens, and Birchstar padded over to Minnow and Apollo. "There aren't any extra nests in the warriors' den, but I'll have the apprentices make some later. For now, I'm sure Troutleap wouldn't mind sharing the elders' den with you."

"Thank you," Minnow meowed. "I think we could use some sleep." Looking at Apollo, she could tell he agreed.

"Great," said Birchstar. "When you're awake you can show Apollo around the territory." His tone was good-natured, and he seemed to have no problem with the sudden addition to his Clan. Minnow knew how grateful the RiverClan leader was for the additional help during the battle, and she had a feeling that no cat would have a problem with an outsider joining the Clan, given how much loyalty he had already proven to them.

Minnow showed Apollo to the elders' den, tucked behind a pile of smooth, river-washed stones. It was silent and empty, as Troutleap was out burying the dead warriors, so Minnow and Apollo curled up silently in two empty nests. Too weary for words, they both fell quickly into sleep.