In the following days, the clan had been very unsettled by Otterpelt's omen, despite Maplesky's attempts to calm them. No cat seemed sure what was going to happen.
"Cat skulls and bones..." Cherryberry shivered, her amber eyes round. "Will we die out?" Not far from her, Dipfoot and Shallowpool sat together, speaking quietly.
"Otterpelt said the river was running with blood," Dipfoot meowed uneasily.
His mate nodded nervously. "It must mean death... Perhaps a battle?"
Iceslide crouched by the fresh kill pile, nibbling at a trout as he listened to his clanmates ponder about the dream. It was making him uneasy too, but he tried to push it to the back of his mind. He didn't want to think about what doom might await them.
Shorestep padded past him, her apprentice following. "What if Otterpelt's right?" Heartpaw asked, her blue eyes wide with fear. "Are we going to die? Is Riverclan doomed?"
The sandy brown and white she-cat turned to the apprentice, her green eyes gentle. "Hush, there's nothing to worry about." She promised. "Maplesky has been a medicine cat since I was just a kit. He knows what he's doing. If he says it was an ordinary dream, he's right."
Heartpaw hesitated. "But..."
"Nothing is going to happen to RiverClan." Shorestep twitched her ears toward the elders den. "Dewwhisker and Shadepath need fresh bedding. Why don't you go take care of that?"
The silver and white apprentice reluctantly nodded and quickened her pace across the clearing. Shorestep turned away, her eyes flickering with unease. Even she isn't sure. Iceslide thought. She just doesn't want the younger cats to worry. He grunted and stretched out his front paws and arched his back, growing bored eavesdropping on his clanmates. An idea flashed in his mind. I haven't been in twolegplace for a while. He'd made several kittypet friends there. I wonder how they are? Shimmerstar and Salmonstripe lay together by the tree stump where meetings were called. Dipfoot and Shallowpool had their backs to him now, and Shorestep disappeared into the warriors den. The coast is clear! He got to his paws, glancing around before heading toward the camp exit.
"Shimmerstar?"
Fox dung! Iceslide awkwardly changed direction as Frostedcloud walked past him. He sat down and awkwardly started cleaning himself. The deputy glanced over his shoulder at him briefly before continuing toward Shimmerstar. The silver spotted she-cat was laying against her mate, Salmonstripe, who was grooming her. He paused when the deputy approached, swiping his tongue over his muzzle.
"Yes?" Shimmerstar rested her tail around him and looked up at the deputy.
Frostedcloud dipped his head. "Sorry to interrupt. The fresh kill pile is running low. I'd like to take out an extra patrol, if that's alright with you?" The clan leader didn't respond. "Shimmerstar?"
"Hmm? Yes, of course." She nodded quickly. "Go ahead, Frostedcloud. We'll need to stock up before the river freezes over."
When the deputy turned away, Salmonstripe looked at her, his green eyes filled with concern. "Are you alright?"
Shimmerstar sighed and rested her chin on her paws. "Otterpelt's omen has struck fear into the clan," She murmured. "I must admit it's on my mind too. Something must be done."
The reddish tabby shifted close to her and rested his chin on her head. "Don't worry. RiverClan will be safe."
"How do you know?" The silver she-cat closed her eyes.
"Because you're our leader." His eyes gleamed.
She glanced at him and a purr rumbled in her throat as she nuzzled him. "I don't know what I'd do without you, Salmonstripe."
Iceslide snapped his attention away from the romantic pair and looked around. No cat was paying attention to him. Finally! He quickly slid through the reeds and bounded across the stepping stones, relieved to be out of the confinement of the camp.
***
It was sunhigh when he reached twolegplace. He crouched and leaped onto a fence, quickly steadying himself. RiverClan cats weren't taught to climb. Truffle and other kittypets he knew had taught him how to master this skill. The first time he'd tried many moons ago, he'd missed the fence completely and fell onto the other side. Kittypets laughed at him about it for over a moon.
"He says he can swim, but I didn't think clan cats could fly too!" One cat had laughed his head off.
Iceslide jumped down into the backyard and looked around. His friends liked hanging out on what they called a "patio". It had a strange clear rock with a stick upright in the center. That was called a "table", and it was made of something called "glass". It reminded him of the hard sheet of ice that froze over the river in leaf-bare. It held up some sort of giant leaf. It reminded him of some odd looking tree, or a mushroom. Around it stood strange things twolegs liked to sit on. They were called "lawn-chairs" They'd looked uncomfortable and flimsy, but when he'd lain on one, he was surprised at how good it felt. On a sunny day, the lawn-chair was warm underneath him. He was disappointed to find that no cat was here at the moment. Parrot is usually here...
It was getting colder now, so the chair wouldn't be warm. The leaves on the trees were turning gold and yellow. Leaf-bare was coming. Despite this, Iceslide went to the patio and leaped onto a bright teal lawn-chair, turning and settling on his belly before resting his chin on his paws. The material was cool under his pads, but he didn't mind. I guess I'll wait here. He thought and closed his eyes.
"Iceslide!"
Not a moment later, a paw jabbed him in the shoulder and he nearly had a heart attack. He snapped open his eyes and scrambled to his paws, instinctively unsheathing his claws and digging them into the chair. "What the-"
A tortoiseshell tom crouched on the glass table beside him, green eyes gleaming with amusement. A rainbow collar clung to his neck, fake and vibrantly colored feathers hanging from his tag. "Haha! I scared you, didn't I?" He purred, his fluffy tail waving. "I thought a warrior was always ready for an attack?"
"For Starclan's sake, Parrot!" Iceslide sighed, his tail curling up in amusement. "Where were you?"
"Inside." The tom leaped down from the table and purred. "I was looking out the window. When I saw you, I scratched at the door so my housefolk would let me out. Then!" He suddenly dropped into a sloppy hunting crouch. "I crept to the backyard as quietly as I could!"
Iceslide purred in amusement. "I never heard you coming!"
"I know." Parrot purred and waved his tail. "Come on, I think everyone's at Juicy's house today." A "house" was a giant den for twolegs that they shared with the kittypets. "Let's go!" He padded away, his tail high in the air. Iceslide leaped down from the lawn-chair and followed him, eager to catch up with his friends. He hadn't seen them in moons.
"How's Waterclan?" Parrot asked as they headed around the side of the house.
Iceslide snorted. "RiverClan." He corrected. "And it's fine, I guess... How are you?"
The tortoiseshell tom purred. "Great! My housefolk got me a new toy." He paused, looking over his shoulder at his home. "Want to see?"
"Maybe later." Iceslide replied. He wasn't very interested in these fake mice and balls of yarn. It's much funner to catch real prey!
"Okay." Parrot paused when they reached the road, looking both ways before crossing. "Guess what I had for lunch?"
Iceslide hurried after his companion. "What?"
"Turkey!" The kittypet exclaimed excitedly as they reached the other side. "It was so good! Have you tried any?" When Iceslide shook his head, he went on eagerly. "You should!"
As much as he enjoyed Parrot's company, the young tom was more hyper than a squirrel in new-leaf. He drove Iceslide crazy sometimes, chattering constantly like the bizarre bird he was named after. He'd described the strange bird, covered with red, blue, and green feathers. Iceslide had never seen such a strange creature and was still unsure of it's existence. Knowing Parrot, the crazy kittypet made it up to fool a dumb clan cat.
They crossed a few backyards until they reached Juicy's. This yard didn't have a patio, but a couple chairs on a stone slab. Sure enough, his friends were settled there. A fat orange and white tom lay on his back on one of the chairs, his eyes closed and a content look on his face. A ginger tabby she-cat lay curled up on the other chair, her tail tucked over her pink nose. Under the chair lay a tortoiseshell she-cat. Closest to the wall was a small silver spotted tom who looked nervous.
"Hey, Juicy!" Parrot called, bounding over to them. "Look who I found!"
The plump orange and white kittypet grunted as he rolled over onto his belly and blinked at Iceslide. "Hey! Long time no see." He purred.
"Iceslide!" The tortoiseshell and white she-cat's ears perked and she got to her paws, trotting over to him. Her purple collar jingled with each step. "It's good to see you!" She bumped her head against Iceslide's, and he purred, looking into her glowing blue eyes. I forgot how pretty Violet was.
"I couldn't stay away," Iceslide purred as the other two cats approached him. "Hi Princess," He meowed to the ginger tabby she-cat.
She purred a greeting. "How are you, dear?"
"Hey, Iceslide." The undersized silver speckled tom looked up at him, his pale green eyes warm.
He purred. "Dime! You look well." Unlike the other cats, the small tom wasn't a kittypet. He was a loner, cast away from his family for being the runt of his litter. He was as old as Iceslide and still only the size of an apprentice. He didn't want to give up his freedom to become a kittypet. Instead he hunted around twolegplace.
"Thanks," Dime dipped his head. "So do you."
"Iceslide, I saved you some tuna, but, uh..." Juicy looked away, his whiskers drooping. "I ate it."
He let out a purr of amusement. "I can't say I'm surprised!"
Violet nudged Iceslide. "So, tell us what you've been up to!"
He looked down, his pelt burning at how close she was to him. "Err not much. I've been hunting and fishing." They continued talking for a long while. He knew a warrior shouldn't be in a backyard hanging out with kittypets. But he'd grown quite fond of these cats. At this point, they knew him better than his own clanmates did, and he felt more comfortable with them. Parrot was fun and full of energy. Juicy was kind. And Violet, well... She certainly was a lot. He wondered why the warrior code told the clans to despise kittypets. They're just ordinary cats like anyone else! What's the harm in having friends?
Sunset was nearing and Iceslide reluctantly left his kittypet friends, promising to return when he could. He'd nearly reached the camp when he heard Shimmerstar's meow ringing across the clearing. "Maplesky has something to say."
There's a clan meeting going on. Iceslide realized and crouched behind the reeds, peering out. I'd better wait until it's over, or some cat will notice me sneak in. Shimmerstar sat on the tree stump. Frostedcloud, Maplesky, and Otterpelt stood below.
"I know you've all been worried about Otterpelt's dream," Maplesky began, his yellow eyes fixed on his clanmates. "As I said before, even medicine cats have regular dreams sometimes-"
"That's fish-brained!" Ravenfeather interrupted, his amber eyes narrowed. "A river of blood? Cat skulls? That sounds like an omen to me!"
Beside him, Winterlight touched his flank with her tail. "Let him speak." She murmured. The black warrior slowly relaxed and leaned on her.
The medicine cat blinked gratefully at her and continued. "StarClan seemed to want to reassure you all. Last night I dreamed of the river flowing with fish, the sky bright and warm, and RiverClan thriving with new kits." Behind him, Otterpelt was silent, her gaze fixed on her paws.
The clan broke into murmuring. Some cats sounded relieved, while others were still unsure.
"How do you know it wasn't one of your "ordinary dreams"?" Troutspots called out.
"My old mentor spoke to me," Maplesky meowed. "It was a message straight from StarClan." When the clan didn't respond, the light brown tom raised his head. "There is nothing to fear. RiverClan will thrive."
Dipfoot let out a soft sigh. "Thank StarClan."
"See?" Shorestep nudged her apprentice. "I told you."
As the clan dispersed, Shimmerstar leaped down from the stump, flicking her tail for the medicine cats to follow her. Iceslide froze when they headed straight for him. Oh no! He shrank back until he was concealed in the reeds, pressing himself to the ground. Please don't see me or scent me!
The three cats leaned close together on the other side of the reeds. "Well done, Maplesky." Shimmerstar whispered.
The medicine cat sighed. "I don't like lying about StarClan." Lying? Iceslide's eyes widened.
"We should have told the truth!" Otterpelt hissed, her amber eyes filled with distress. "We need to warn them!"
Shimmerstar rested her tail on the she-cat's shoulder. "The clan was afraid, Otterpelt. Whatever our destiny is, we must face it without fear."
Maplesky touched his nose to Otterpelt's ear. "I'm sorry. Shimmerstar is right. We can't spread panic." He paused. "I've told you before not to tell the clan your omens until you know what they mean."
The reddish brown she-cat looked down. "This one seemed important."
"It is." Shimmerstar agreed. "Which is why we must handle it carefully before spreading panic. Perhaps you'll have more dreams to make their message clearer."
"I suppose." Otterpelt mumbled.
The three cats turned away. Iceslide waited until they were too far away to hear him and stepped out of his hiding place, hardly believing what he'd heard. They're lying to the clan! We really are in danger...