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“What’s your problem, anyway?” Stormfur had demanded, after Crowpaw had muttered another curse in the direction of Squirrelpaw. “Always complaining about something.”
“Maybe if I hadn’t been forced on this journey…” Crowpaw spat back. “I know you all seem to be enjoying yourselves. You’re not worried about getting back home. You know your clan will have missed you.”
Stormfur looked him over silently, amber eyes impossible to read. Feathertail had paused alongside her brother, casting Crowpaw a sympathetic look, but the others had already begun to move on. They were tired of hearing Crowpaw’s complaining.
After a few seconds, Crowpaw’s ears became hot, and he charged ahead, ignoring the obnoxious stare Stormfur was giving him. What did the bulky gray tom know, anyway? He didn’t feel how Crowpaw felt, surrounded by a clan who didn’t want him.
Crowpaw was the only surviving kit of Deadfoot, the last of a legacy, and he already knew he wasn’t meeting any of the expectations his father had set before Crowpaw even took his first breath. He knew his mother often thought of his dead kit-brother, Eaglekit. Even in the nursery, he would hear her mumble his name in her sleep. He was sure Eaglekit would be impressing WindClan, he was sure Eaglekit would make their mother proud.
What did the RiverClan tom know of any of that?
When the travelling group bedded down to rest that evening, Stormfur shoved Crowpaw’s shoulder just as he began to get comfortable.
“Come with us.” He said, and gestured back to where Feathertail was waiting, her long, fluffy tail like a shining halo in the setting sun.
Crowpaw grumbled the entire way, but did as told, following the warriors to the nearby stream.
“We thought we could teach you to fish.” Stormfur said, and Feathertail let out a pleasant chirrup.
“Our mentors taught us, when we first came to RiverClan.” She added. Crowpaw hesitated.
“I don’t want to eat fish .” He snapped, instead of asking what was really on his mind.
Where had they been before?
“We didn’t either, when we first crossed the river .” Stormfur said, with a bit more emphasis, and settled down on his haunches. Crowpaw reluctantly followed suit, and Feathertail laid on his other side.
After a few moments of silence, Crowpaw let out a loud sigh.
“This is how you hunt ?” He asked. Feathertail chuckled, and Stormfur looked at him patiently.
“We can’t spend all our time running after our prey like you.” He said, lifting Crowpaw’s thin, wiry tail up with his own thick one. “We aren’t built for it.”
“No, you’re meant to swim .” Crowpaw curled his lip at the thought.
“Or stalk .” Feathertail offered. “See, we have broad shoulders, like a ThunderClan cat.”
That was true, Crowpaw noted. He couldn’t resist the bait anymore.
“ Why would you look like ThunderClan?” He asked, snapping back to stare down at the water.
“We’re part ThunderClan.” Stormfur explained. “Our father is Graystripe, the ThunderClan deputy. Our mother was Silverstream, of RiverClan.”
Crowpaw ground his claws into the ground. He hadn’t known that.
“So? What of it? Tawnypelt is a ThunderClan cat, but she lives in ShadowClan.” He snapped, still not looking at either sibling.
“Before. You said that we knew our clan would miss us. But we know what it’s like to not feel wanted anywhere.” Stormfur continued. “Living with a paw in two clans feels like an impossible weight.”
Crowpaw didn’t respond. He hoped to stare into the water until the RiverClan siblings got bored and abandoned him.
“Stormfur is trying to say… that we understand. And that, we want to be your friends through this journey. Not your enemies.” Feathertail explained with her soft voice, brushing her tail over Crowpaw’s haunch. Stormfur grunted in response, and then lunged forward with his paw and slapped a shadow out of the water.
The mist sprayed into Crowpaw’s face, and a fish flopped onto the shore. Feathertail leapt on her brother’s catch and quickly dispatched it, licking her lips afterwards.
“Care to try it?” She asked, as Stormfur circled around Crowpaw to take a bite out of the fish. Crowpaw’s stomach turned at the thought, and he shook his head, looking away.
But still, his heart thumped with excitement at the prospect of friends.
Stormfur and Feathertail barely left each other’s side.
Crowpaw sort of understood now. Brambleclaw and Tawnypelt were close, too. They mirrored each other’s movement at times, and seemed to be in sync. But they lived a world apart, and had their clans.
Stormfur and Feathertail had each other, and it seemed like that was it.
If Crowpaw ever wanted to approach one, it had to be with the other, as well. Which, he didn’t mind so much. Feathertail was sweet, and Stormfur was at least sensible, if annoying at times. They were both tree-lengths better than the wretched ThunderClan apprentice journeying alongside them.
Crowpaw was nearly a warrior, and he tried to act like one, but that one-
“Careful.” Stormfur bumped Crowpaw nearer the bushes as they walked past a Thunderpath. A monster rumbled by, and the group paused until the sounds of its growls had faded away.
“Thanks.” Crowpaw muttered. Stormfur looked surprised, blinking back at him before trotting ahead with a small smirk on his muzzle. Crowpaw’s ears flattened, and he begrudgingly followed the tom.
“What happened to your mother?” He asked, later on when they stopped to rest, their paws burning from their long journey.
“She died giving birth to us.” Feathertail explained. “Brambleclaw and Tawnypelt’s mother, Goldenflower, nursed us before we were brought to RiverClan.”
“Really?” Brambleclaw overheard, cocking his head to the side.
“How could you forget us!?” Feathertail teased with a giggle.
“ I remember.” Tawnypelt assured her, pausing in grooming her long fur. “Stormfur would kick me out of the nest almost every night.”
“I wasn’t a moon old!” Stormfur objected, letting out an exasperated chuckle.
“If your mother was dead, why did you go to her clan?” Crowpaw pushed on, annoyed by Brambleclaw’s interruption.
“Crookedstar, the leader before Leopardstar, was our grandfather. We were all that was left of Silverstream, so… he wanted us.” Stormfur answered. Crowpaw said nothing, but pulled back a little. They were wanted. By the clan leader, no less! What right did they have to tell him they understood , then?
“But it was hard without Graystripe. Sometimes I only wished to go back to ThunderClan.” Feathertail added.
“We would have welcomed you.” Brambleclaw told her, and Squirrelpaw let out an affirmative purr.
“Yes, with all your power as an apprentice?” Feathertail curled her tail around her paws.
“Do you even like being in RiverClan?” Squirrelpaw asked boisterously. Crowpaw couldn’t help but roll his eyes with gusto. What a stupid question.
Feathertail and Stormfur didn’t immediately respond.
“You don’t ?” Squirrelpaw balked, ceasing her endless bouncing on her toes to stare. Crowpaw shook his head from surprise, focusing on the siblings.
“It’s hard…” Feathertail began.
“It’s hard to look into the faces of cats who were going to let you die, and feel safe.” Stormfur said. Or wanted , Crowpaw supposed. But wait, let them die ?
“You mean…” Brambleclaw trailed off, and both he and Tawnypelt began to shift their weight uncomfortably.
“Mean what?” Squirrelpaw asked, glancing between them. For once, Crowpaw was glad she asked.
“When Tigerstar joined RiverClan and Shadowclan and made TigerClan. You’ve heard the stories, haven’t you, Squirrelpaw?” Stormfur asked. Squirrelpaw shrunk a little, closer to Brambleclaw. Of course, Crowpaw had heard of that! What cat in the forest hadn’t ? Even though it had all started and ended before either he or Squirrelpaw were born, he remembered Ashfoot telling him stories about Tigerstar’s assaults on WindClan.
“Tigerstar tried to have us killed, because we were half-clan. My mentor, my kin, Stonefur, died protecting us. We’re only alive because of him. Nobody else in our clan who could help even tried.” Stormfur continued. Crowpaw could see how his claws dug into the dirt. Feathertail too, seemed tense. “They would have all sat by and let us die. But we’re supposed to move on like… like it didn’t happen.”
“If you hate them all so much, why did you even come on this journey?” Tawnypelt asked, earnest.
“StarClan sent me the sign! I had to!” Feathertail shot up, her tail raised and her face creased with worry. “Even if they stood by then… I’ll never be the one to stand by for someone else.” She declared.
“And I go where Feathertail goes.” Stormfur added solemnly. “Besides. We don’t hate them. It’s just…”
“Hard.” Feathertail finished sadly.
The conversation died off abruptly. When the group picked their travelling back up, Crowpaw tried his best to keep pace with the RiverClan siblings.
Crowpaw’s paws were heavy with the weight of what they had learned from the badger Midnight. Stormfur, still damp with the salty, sun-drown-place water, had his jaw firmly set as he stared ahead. The other cats, even Squirrelpaw, were all appropriately dower as well. Tawnypelt silently nursed her aching shoulder wound, and Brambleclaw pressed his shoulder against Feathertail’s.
Crowpaw thought of Ashfoot, thought of Morningflower, and Tallstar, and his mentor, Mudclaw- cats who cared about him, cats who were surely missing him, and cats who could be dead now. All this time they had wasted, having to journey so far, just for some badger to tell them to come back the way they came! Who knew what was left of their home?
And where would they go ? And would Tallstar even listen to Crowpaw? He was only an apprentice, after all! And he had abandoned his clan, just as danger was looming…
“Chin up, everyone.” Feathertail piped up, after they were given a few moments to doubt and mourn. “StarClan sent us on this mission for a reason. Now we know why. We’ve come all this way- this must be the way we’re meant to take the clans.”
“Take them where ? The Twoleg place?” Crowpaw spat. Feathertail levelled him with a calm stare, unphased by his sharp tongue as usual.
“We must have a little faith. And we must have light paws. We’re going to save the clans.” She continued, getting to her feet and urging Stormfur to his paws as well. Tawnypelt followed, testing her lame leg on the forest floor before nodding.
“ShadowClan won’t fall so long as I can help it.” She murmured.
“Firestar will listen to us!” Squirrelpaw squeaked, energy seeming to flood into her as she fluffed out her tail. “And the other leaders will listen to him!”
Crowpaw and Stormfur both snorted at that, but Stormfur slowly nodded his head.
“You’re right, Feathertail. We don’t have any time to waste.” The siblings looked to Crowpaw, who cleared his throat nervously.
“Right. If only you could all run as fast as me.” Crowpaw joked, and the group shared a soft chuckle.
“Come on, everyone.” Feathertail made sure everyone was on their paws one last time, and groomed a bit of the salty water from Brambleclaw’s ear. “Let’s go home.”
Crowpaw could only look at her, taking in her shining, silver fur and beautiful, feathery tail. He thought, perhaps, he was in love with the RiverClan cat.
Still, there were more important things at paw.
“You did a good job back there.” He told Feathertail, as they moved through the forest. She glanced at him. “Everyone was ready to give up. I was, anyway…” Crowpaw admitted. “But you changed how everyone was thinking, before we could get stuck in the mud.”
“You helped. So, thank you.” She murmured. “I’m used to just keeping Stormfur’s head up. It’s harder with more cats to worry about.”
Crowpaw stared at the foliage for a few moments. He didn’t really worry about anyone. At least, he hadn’t before the journey. Now, he worried about the five cats he journeyed with, and even his clan back home. Now, worry was all he could do, it felt like.
“What’s your mother’s name?” Feathertail asked, suddenly. “Is she still alive?”
“Yes. Ashfoot.” He said. “And Deadfoot was my father. He died before I was born.” He added.
“We have something in common, then.” She smiled.
“Mudclaw is my mentor, though. He’s taught me everything I know.” He added hurriedly, thinking of his mentor. He wondered if Tallstar had given him a new apprentice in his absence, and his gut twisted.
“Mosspelt took us in when we came to RiverClan. She’s our mother now.” Feathertail explained, the warmth in her voice evident. “She taught us much, as well. We’ve never really been without, so long as we’ve had her.”
Crowpaw considered how Mudclaw had thoroughly trained him, how he had showed him what kinds of plants were safe to trod and what would leave him with prickled paws, and how he regaled Crowpaw with great stories of WindClan’s past.
“Yes, me too, I suppose.” He had never much missed having a father. Only ever resented the expectations the dead deputy had left him. His heart was beginning to ache, thinking of his family back on the moors. By StarClan, he hoped they were well.
“You must miss them.” Feathertail said after a few second’s silence. “I can see it in your eyes.” Crowpaw looked up to her in surprise, pausing as he walked. She stopped too, looking back at him with fondness in her gaze. “Promise me, you’ll let them know how much they mean to you when we get back.” Her stare hardened, and the soft Feathertail was nearly glaring down at him now.
“O-Of course.” Crowpaw stuttered out, hunching just a bit. “You’ll tell Mosspelt, as well?” He shot back, straightening up a little. Feathertail’s expression eased and she touched her nose between Crowpaw’s eyes.
“Of course. Mosspelt knows how much we love her. But I’m sure Graystripe could hear it again.” She looked almost wistful.
“Oi.” Stormfur had trotted back to them, noticing their absence. “Didn’t you hear me say, we don’t have any time to waste?” The gray tom usually had a kind look in his eye, same as his sister. But he was glaring at Crowpaw now, like he had told him the river was empty of fish.
Feathertail scoffed, but when she moved to pad forward, Stormfur blocked her. He nodded to Crowpaw, who hurried to get past his fierce stare.
He caught up with Tawnypelt, who seemed focused on just staying on her feet, and glanced back at the siblings.
He couldn’t catch anything that was said, but he could see Feathertail’s face twisted in annoyance, and Stormfur’s brow was low and set. They were arguing.
They caught up before the group was out of sight, and Stormfur casually shouldered Crowpaw back until Feathertail was trotting alongside Tawnypelt, offering her some soft words of encouragement, and Crowpaw was stuck next to the sour RiverClan tom.
But Feathertail glanced back at him once, and offered him another small smile. His heart fluttered.
Had she loved him, too?
Crowpaw could hardly move as the blood pooled around his feet, Sharptooth unmoving just a few rabbit lengths from him.
Feathertail, too.
Stormfur had rushed to her side, letting out a baleful wail.
“ No! ” He bellowed, with more pain than Crowpaw had ever imagined could exist in one cat.
She had died for him.
Sweet Feathertail, with her sleek fur and kind heart, had cut her life so short for his wretched self. It simply couldn’t be. Was this truly what StarClan intended to happen?
Stormfur still screamed with grief, as the others slowly gathered around, their tails and ears low.
“Oh, Feathertail…” Tawnypelt whispered, collapsing near her and burying her nose in her fur. Squirrelpaw cried softly, and Brambleclaw laid his tail across Stormfur’s haunch. The Tribe cats gathered near, with mournful cries and sympathetic stares.
It couldn’t be.
Crowpaw crept forward, his legs shaking like moor grass.
He reached her still-warm body and tucked his nose into her fur, breathing in the last of her scent. Their scents had mingled so much on this journey, they smelled almost like their own tiny clan. But he could smell her distinctly, like the flowers that grew in the damp soil near the river.
“She’s saved us all.” One of the Tribe cats murmured.
But who was supposed to save her ? Crowpaw wondered.
Time seems to stand still, but the Tribe began to move, and the Clan cats flowed with them.
The cave-guards dug a hole near the waterfall, and the prey-hunters moved to lower Feathertail’s body into the hole.
Stormfur leapt forward with another anguished cry, and took a mouthful of her fur to guide her to her final resting place.
“She should be buried in RiverClan.” Brambleclaw said softly, his voice hoarse. “Her home.”
“She will always have a home here.” Crag told him gently, brushing his tail over the tom’s spine. “The Tribe will always honour her and her memory. She will live on here, in the mountains she saved.”
Besides, Crowpaw thought numbly. Did they even have a home to bury her in anymore?
Tawnypelt and Brambleclaw helped Stormfur push dirt over Feathertail’s body, and Squirrelpaw shuffled closer to Crowpaw, pressing their sides together.
They sat there for a long time. The Tribe cats all paid their respects, but slowly began to resume their normal activity. Crag and Brook remained with them, seeming to stand vigil for Feathertail.
Stormfur laid over the fresh dirt of her resting place, his sides heaving with the effort to even take a breath.
The shock slowly left Crowpaw, and he felt his shoulders shudder and shake, and Squirrelpaw pressed her head under his chin to support him.
When Crowfeather felt he had left nearly all his heart there on the mountain, Stormfur still had not risen from the dirt.
Brambleclaw had urged Tawnypelt up, and was moving towards the apprentices.
“We have to get home.” He said, voice still tight. “For Feathertail, at the very least.”
Crowpaw didn’t know how they were supposed to keep moving. But when Tawnypelt helped him stand, it seemed like his legs could still hold him. The four of them looked towards Stormfur.
“Stormfur. We must keep going.” Brambleclaw began. Stormfur didn’t even raise his head, only curling more into the dirt.
“Stormfur…” Squirrelpaw whispered sadly, her eyes brimming with emotion until she had to look away.
Crowpaw took the few shaking steps he needed to reach Stormfur, and nudged his shoulder with his nose.
Stormfur whipped his head around to hiss at the WindClan tom, but it was weak, and he began to immediately sniffle.
“Just leave me here. There’s nothing left for me. I want to die with Feathertail.” He moaned. “Go without me.”
“You can’t!” Tawnypelt objected. Crowpaw flicked his tail at her, and nudged him again.
“Get up. We don’t have time to waste.” He told him.
“I came along to keep her safe .” Stormfur whimpered at his feet. “And now she’s dead .”
“And now, you have to finish what she started.” Crowpaw pressed. Feathertail, help me, he thought. Help me keep his head up!
Stormfur shook his head with a cough.
“You must!” Crowpaw snapped. “Who else is going to help RiverClan? What about Mosspelt?” Stormfur looked up at him with a sniff, his eyes bleary. “She… she said she’d never stand by and let someone else suffer. Are you going to do just that?” He demanded, grabbing one of the tom’s strong shoulders in his claws and shaking him lightly. “Get up , Stormfur, you must get up! For Feathertail!”
“I’m not Feathertail!” He shouted back, scrambling to his paws to loom over Crowpaw. “Feathertail was good, and kind, and she cared ! I don’t care anymore! ” He roared, grinding his claws into the gritty mountain dirt.
“You have to !” Crowpaw hissed back, steeling his nerves and refusing to back down from the bulky tom.
“ Why ?!” Stormfur yowled, a whisker’s length from Crowpaw’s snout, his amber eyes burning with fury.
“Because someone has to!” Crowpaw croaked, his voice breaking halfway through his retort. “Someone has to care. She did. So now we have to. For her .” He whispered. Stormfur’s breath was coming in laboured pants, but it began to even, and he finally took a step back from Crowpaw. The apprentice let out a small sigh of relief.
“There’s nothing left for me back home.” Stormfur repeated, gazing mournfully back at his sister’s grave. “But I’ll finish this journey. For Feathertail.”
When they finally left the mountain, Crowpaw walked with his fur brushing along Stormfur’s.
I’m here. I’m here for you. He thought. We’ll do it, together .
Crowpaw could hardly hold back when they saw the Highstones crest over the hill.
“There it is! Mothermouth!” Squirrelpaw cried, darting ahead.
For once, Crowpaw left Stormfur’s side, and rushed ahead with her, easily surpassing the bulky ThunderClan apprentice.
The scent of the clans rushed up to greet him, and he breathed it all in before he took in the sight below him.
His stomach dropped.
He could see his beautiful moorland, WindClan’s home. It looked torn to pieces. There were giant scoops out of the earth. The rocks where Mudclaw had taught him to check on ShadowClan territory had been dug out of the ground and scattered. There seemed to be not a lick of prey scent around.
The others had caught up, and a somber silence overtook them.
All the territories looked as ravaged as WindClan.
“Is that… Fourtrees?” Brambleclaw whispered.
A gaping hole in the forest where the four great oaks once stood was all Crowpaw could see. He looked away, trying to keep his last meal settled in his belly. Had they made it in time? Or were their clans already destroyed?
Ashfoot! Mudclaw! Tallstar!
Crowpaw descended into the territories without another word. He heard the thumps of his friends’ paws behind him.
Morningflower! Barkface! Whitetail! Nightcloud!
The faces of his clan flashed in his mind as he streaked across the moorland. StarClan, please ! They had done everything they were supposed to do! Please, please , let him see his mother one last time!
“Hey!” A squeak called out, and Crowpaw skidded to a halt, glancing around frantically for the source. Then, he saw a small brown tabby hurrying towards him.
“Owlkit?” He asked, head tilted as he panted. “What are you doing outside of camp?”
“That’s Owl paw to you!” The tom growled, swiping in Crowpaw’s direction.
“Owlpaw, stay your claws.” Webfoot! The gray tom trotted up next to the young apprentice.
“Do you remember me, Webfoot?” Crowpaw asked nervously.
“Of course I remember your surly face.” The warrior snapped. The two looked even more gaunt than WindClan ever looked, and Webfoot seemed exhausted. “We thought you were dead.” He looked over Crowpaw’s shoulder and saw the rest of his journeying friends. “Come. You’ll need to speak with Tallstar.”
He and Owlpaw began to lead them the wrong way from camp. Crowpaw piped up, his voice trembling.
“Isn’t camp that way?” He asked.
“We’ve moved.” Webfoot said simply, though his tone was dark. His home really had been destroyed, Crowpaw deduced.
He lead them to the old rabbit warrens, and- there! There was WindClan, alive. Perhaps not well, but alive.
“Ashfoot! Mudclaw! I’ve come back!” Crowpaw called, rushing ahead of Webfoot to cry out. “Morningflower! Tallstar! It’s me, Crowpaw!”
His ruckus roused some cats from the burrows, their eyes wide in surprise. He heard his name murmured around the cats, and then he saw Ashfoot rushing out of a den, her eyes fixed on him.
She stopped just short of him, and seemed to take him in with wide, green eyes. Crowpaw stood still for her, his heart in his throat. Would she be angry?
“I thought you dead.” She whispered in turn, and pressed her forehead against his. “How you’ve grown, my son.” She purred weakly. “Thank you for coming back.”
By now, most cats had gathered, including Tallstar.
Their leader looked haggardly, his skin hanging off his hips and his eyes rimmed with pink. Mudclaw walked alongside him, and he glowered down at Crowpaw.
“Where have you been ?” He demanded, scraping up the grass with his claws.
“Yes, I would like to know as well.” Tallstar asked, glancing at Crowpaw’s menagerie. “Your clans have been so worried.”
“We all received signs from StarClan to journey to the sun-drown-place and… StarClan’s given us the solution to… this.” Crowpaw glanced around.
“They couldn’t have just told Barkface?” Mudclaw asked with a disbelieving growl. Crowpaw tried to stay firm. Mudclaw was only angry now. He’d forgive Crowpaw.
“It… StarClan…” He thought of what Feathertail had said before, when he wondered the same. “They showed us the way we have to go. The Clans must leave if they want to survive.”
The clan began to murmur frantically, their voices tinged with fear and worry. Tallstar glanced around, and levelled Crowpaw with a glare.
“You expect us to just leave , Crowpaw?”
“Can we stay ?” He retorted, trying to ignore the look of shock Ashfoot gave him. “We’ve already been chased from camp. And Fourtrees…”
He felt the shudder run through the clan. They must have seen it, he thought.
“You all look like you’re starving.” He observed finally. No one objected. Tallstar simply shook his head.
“I need to get to Blackstar.” Tawnypelt spoke up. “We need to spread the word. The clans must leave.”
“Then go.” Brambleclaw told her. “We’ll go to ThunderClan.” They all looked to Stormfur.
The tom nodded.
“And I, RiverClan.”
Crowpaw felt pain stab his heart as Tawnypelt moved to leave. She licked her brother’s cheek first, and when she glanced back, Crowpaw gave her a nod. The tortoiseshell molly had made the journey on an injured leg, and Crowpaw had nothing but respect for her. She nodded back, and then began her journey across the moor.
Brambleclaw and Squirrelpaw left, too, but not before Squirrelpaw darted over to press her nose against Crowpaw’s cheek.
Stormfur turned without much of a glance, but Crowpaw hurried to catch up with him before he left.
“Tallstar, I will escort him to RiverClan.” He called back. His leader didn’t seem to mind, giving him a weak flick of his tail before turning to discuss with his deputy.
“I don’t need an escort.” Stormfur said, but his tail wrapped around Crowpaw’s for a moment. “But thank you.”
I didn’t want you to have to be alone for the first time . Crowpaw thought. “Wait.” He said, remembering something, and rushed back to his clan just a tree length away.
He pressed his nose into Ashfoot’s neck and let out a purr.
“I love you, mother.” He said. Ashfoot gazed down at him with such warmth he thought he might burst into flames.
“And I, you.” She told him.
Then, he walked Stormfur down the sloping moorland, into what was left of Fourtrees. Both of them tried not to look.
When they reached the river, Stormfur took a few steps in, before pausing and turning to look at Crowpaw.
“Will you come with me?” He asked simply. Crowpaw couldn’t say no. Not to Stormfur.
He braved the water, with Stormfur bracing his shoulder, and dragged his soggy tail onto the other shore.
RiverClan seemed to have fared the best so far, with little of their territory touched. They reached camp without being intercepted.
“Stormfur!” A fluffy tortoiseshell molly bounded towards them, eyes shining. “Oh, Stormfur!” She wrapped her paws around Stormfur’s shoulders and hugged him tight. Cats came out the dens curiously. It was just like returning to WindClan. “We thought you had been killed! Oh- Where’s Feathertail?” She asked, and faltered when Stormfur didn’t immediately respond.
“I’m sorry.” He choked out, and hung his head. “I couldn’t protect her.” He whispered to his paws. Crowpaw nudged his side firmly.
She just pulled Stormfur closer and began grooming between his ears.
“She’s will Silverstream, now.” She said. That must be Mosspelt, Crowpaw thought.
“Mosspelt?” He asked, and she perked up in response. “I… Feathertail…” He swallowed the lump in his throat and coughed. “Feathertail died to save me. Before she died, she… she wanted to tell you that she loved you.”
Mosspelt’s face wilted for a moment, but she quickly pulled herself together and let out a loud purr.
“That would be how she would want to go. Helping some other cat.” She said with a watery purr.
Other RiverClan cats began to approach, and Crowpaw spotted Leopardstar looming above them, perched on a large rock.
“It’s good to see you back, Stormfur.” She said, and Stormfur straightened up to look at her with a big sniff. “I’m sorry Feathertail couldn’t make it back with you.”
Crowpaw expected Stormfur to drop his head again, but he just stared right back at Leopardstar.
“We travelled far, to a place where the sun drowns in the water. A badger told us that StarClan showed her the only way for the clans to survive. RiverClan must leave this place, with the other clans.” He said. RiverClan took it about as well as WindClan.
“Are you crazy ?” A cat Crowpaw nearly mistook as Brambleclaw thundered. But this tom had a white throat, and icy blue eyes. “Why would RiverClan go anywhere? Our territory is fine.”
“You know our fish have been fewer and fewer, Hawkfrost.” A black tom with scars across his face sitting next to Hawkfrost told him.
“Peh. Let them leave, and we’ll have the rest of their territory. There will be more than enough food!” The tom, Hawkfrost, continued. Stormfur glowered at the tom.
“Did just you two go on this journey?” The scarred black tom asked.
“Yes, and who are you?” Leopardstar jumped down from her perch and stalked over to Stormfur and Crowpaw.
“I’m Crowpaw.” He responded, keeping his voice steady.
“Of WindClan.” She deduced with a lazy leer.
“We travelled with cats from all the clans.” He continued. “Brambleclaw and Squirrelpaw of ThunderClan, and Tawnypelt of ShadowClan. They’ve told their clans of the same thing. We all must go. And we can show you the way.”
Leopardstar glared at him, and Hawkfrost shouldered his way over to stand by her.
“This is probably some kind of trick by the other clans.” He muttered.
“ Trick ?” Crowpaw snapped. “Yes, we travelled all that way, and had Feathertail killed , for some trick .” He hissed. Hawkfrost pulled back a little with a curl of his lip.
Stormfur stood, pulling away from Mosspelt and putting himself between Crowpaw and Leopardstar.
“It’s no trick. I have no reason to lie to my clan. I begged Feathertail not to go on this journey, and I went with her only because I couldn’t stop her. She was so loyal to you, her RiverClan, that she could not stand by and let something happen.” He laced the words with adder’s venom. Crowpaw couldn’t be sure, but he thought he saw Leopardstar flinch. “And that’s what we learned from the journey. RiverClan must leave, or die.”
The clan was quiet, looking to their leader for guidance. Leopardstar seemed deep in thought.
“Where’s Mistyfoot?” Stormfur asked suddenly, looking around.
“Gone.” Hawkfrost said simply. “I’m deputy now.”
Stormfur looked stricken.
“She’s missing, like many other cats.” Mosspelt hurried to say. “But, you came back. She will come back, too.” She assured him. The scarred black tom approached with a nod.
“If anyone can, Mistyfoot will.” He pulled Stormfur into a light embrace. “I’m glad you made it back, Stormfur.”
“Thank you, Reedwhisker. I hope Mistyfoot is able to return like I did.”
Crowpaw felt a shudder run up his spine when someone sniffed him. RiverClan cats were beginning to crowd them, and a few had begun to sniff him with wrinkled noses.
“You can go back to your own territory now, WindClan.” Leopardstar told him, narrowing her eyes.
“I’ll escort him.” Stormfur stood up, giving Mosspelt one last lick over the ear and shouldering a path through the bulky RiverClan cats for Crowpaw to follow.
He helped him swim across the river again- Crowpaw didn’t know how he could stand it- and even helped dry off his shoulders.
“I’m sure we’ll see each other soon.” Stormfur said, sounding like he was assuring himself as much as he was assuring Crowpaw. “I never thanked you. Back at the mountains.”
“For what?” Crowpaw wondered.
“For not leaving me in the dirt there.” Stormfur wasn’t looking at Crowpaw. “For making me keep going.”
The sound of the river filled the silence between them.
“I was falling in love with Feathertail.” Crowpaw admitted, not knowing what else to say. Stormfur let out a short laugh.
“I know.” He looked at him, finally, and pressed his cheek against his. “There will be another cat out there for you, Crowpaw. Someone who can put up with you.”
“There will be someone else for you, too, Stormfur.” He hurried to tell him. The RiverClan tom cast him a sad look, his amber eyes soft and round.
“I hope they’re willing to hold together a heart as broken as mine.” He said, in a whisper barely loud enough to not be snatched away by the rushing water.
Getting the clans to finally leave had been the easy part. Guided by a shooting star, they pushed onward.
Crowpaw lead them- imagine, him, an apprentice, leading all the clans?- with his friends. He was walking in front of Tallstar, who seemed weaker than ever before. He silently worried if his leader would even survive the journey.
But he couldn’t think that way. Tallstar had been alive forever. Surely, he would see their clan to their new home.
Stormfur walked alongside him, just like on their journey before. The aching hole left by Feathertail’s absence wasn’t unnoticed, but they managed, together.
The RiverClan deputy, Mistyfoot, had been returned, and was a boon to Stormfur’s mood. But, StarClan took as they gave, and his father Graystripe had been snatched by the Twolegs ripping up their home. And they were forced to leave him behind, without a chance to escape and return to them.
When they reached the mountains, the Tribe helped shelter the clans.
Crowpaw and Stormfur were sitting by Feathertail’s grave when Tallstar approached him.
“Crowpaw. You’ve done well, with your mission from StarClan. You have saved WindClan.” He told him. “And with your training from Mudclaw, I trust you’re ready to receive your warrior name.”
Elation flooded Crowpaw, and he glanced at Stormfur, almost not believing what he was hearing. Stormfur gave him a small smile and an encouraging nod.
They headed into the den, where a small crowd gathered as Tallstar prepared the words for the ceremony.
“May I ask something, Tallstar?” Crowpaw cut in, his heart thumping. The clan cats around them began to murmur at the break in tradition. “I would like to pick my own name. I would like to be called… Crowfeather.” He glanced back, at Stormfur. “For the one cat on our journey who never returned.”
Stormfur’s ears flattened, and he dropped his head.
Tallstar paused, then nodded. “Very well. Crowpaw, you are a loyal and brave warrior. You should have been made a warrior a long time ago. For your dedication to your mission, you shall now be known as Crowfeather.”
Yowls of his name rose up around, and his friends charged forward from the crowd to purr and congratulate him.
“Now I’m the only apprentice…” Squirrelpaw huffed. Brambleclaw and Tawnypelt laughed at her, and nearly overwhelmed Crowfeather with their fluffy fur.
Stormfur approached lastly, and pressed his face into Crowfeather’s neck. He seemed at a loss for words, so Crowfeather only purred against him.
I will never let her memory die, Stormfur. I will help hold your heart together, He promised.
When the time came for the clans to leave, Stormfur hesitated. Brook and Crag were with him, saying their goodbyes. He couldn’t seem to drag himself away from them, or the Tribe, or Feathertail’s final resting spot.
“I should stay here.” He said softly. Crowfeather nudged his shoulder with his nose. “I mean it, Crowfeather. With my father gone, what’s left for me in RiverClan? At least here, I’d be with Feathertail.”
The thought had occurred to Crowfeather, too. He’d miss Ashfoot, and he had only just become a true warrior. But he’d always felt like a stranger in WindClan. At least in the Tribe, that would make sense.
“No. We have to finish the journey.” He told him. “Remember? For her. Besides, I think Mosspelt would miss you too much.” He teased gently.
Stormfur was still for a few more moments, then began to nod, getting to his paws.
“You’re always welcome here, both of you.” Crag told them. Brook nodded, lapping both of their ears before they went on their way.
Crowfeather had just drifted off to sleep when he felt someone jostle him. Blearily, he lifted his head with a growl. It wasn’t enough that he had been on a non-stop journey, but he couldn’t even rest when there was time?
His anger left him when he saw it was only Stormfur, his gray fur gleaming in the moonlight.
“I can’t sleep.” He said. Crowfeather huffed.
“That’s too bad for you.” He sat his head back down. He heard Stormfur chuckle, and nudged him again.
“Do you think because you’ve got your warrior name now, you can be rude?” He asked playfully. Crowfeather tried to hide his smirk under his paw, but Stormfur just shoved him a bit rougher.
“Alright, I’m awake.” Crowfeather got to his paws with an exaggerated stretch, and followed Stormfur a bit away from the sleeping clans. His paws were sore and his muscles ached, but he didn’t mind Stormfur’s company over a nap.
They didn’t go far, and laid down together under the expansive sky.
“Is that Silverpelt?” Stormfur asked.
“What else would it be?” Crowfeather wondered.
“I don’t know. It must be. I guess they are keeping an eye on us.” He conceded. Crowfeather wondered if Deadfoot was keeping an eye on him. He wondered if Silverstream was watching Stormfur. And he wondered if Feathertail was watching them both. “I think we are getting close.” Stormfur continued. “I think tomorrow, we’ll find home.”
“I hope so.” Crowfeather nodded. “I can’t stand much more walking.”
“Neither can our young and old.” Stormfur said. He would make a good deputy, Crowfeather thought. Much better than that obnoxious Hawkfrost. He was thoughtful, and wise, and steady. “But we’re close. I can feel it.”
“I trust you.” Crowfeather said, because he did. Stormfur looked at him with his rich amber eyes, and for a moment, all Crowfeather could see were those eyes and the stars framing them.
Then, someone leapt on his tail.
Crowfeather let out a soft shriek, but he had already turned and seen Squirrelpaw, her tongue extended as she padded forward and wedged herself between Stormfur and Crowfeather.
“Apprentices, right?” Stormfur asked with a laugh. Crowfeather whacked Squirrelpaw over her ears as Tawnypelt settled down next to him, and Bramble laid down on Stormfur’s side.
“I can’t sleep with all of Brambleclaw’s snoring.” Squirrelpaw complained loudly. Brambleclaw let out a grunt of disbelief.
“Better to stay as an apprentice forever, then, and stay out of the warriors den.” Tawnypelt suggested, and they all began to laugh.
Crowfeather was still looking at Stormfur, and as his chuckles subsided, Stormfur was still looking at Crowfeather.
He was right.
When they crested that final hill, Squirrelpaw running ahead as always, and saw it.
The moorland. The forests. The lake, Silverpelt glittering across its surface.
“Home.” Brambleclaw breathed.
“We made it.” Tawnypelt said.
“We did it!” Squirrelpaw squealed, her sister Leafpaw padding up beside her and butting their heads together.
“You did it, Feathertail.” Stormfur murmured beside Crowfeather.
A breeze passed through them all, warm, and smelling like heather.
WindClan’s choice was easy. Tallstar, weakened as he was from the journey, was able to find them a perfectly suitable camp with Crowfeather and Onewhisker’s help.
It was right. But not for Crowfeather.
He whispered a gentle goodbye to Ashfoot, before he could change his mind. She didn’t seem to mind, her eyes soft as he turned his back on her and began to race across the moor.
They did it. Their journey was over. The clans could survive here, unbothered by twolegs.
But it wasn’t for Crowfeather. Tallstar was to die soon, and Mudclaw would take over. Maybe Crowfeather would be in better standings then. But his mentor had never seemed to forgive him for leaving without a word.
Besides. He knew better.
He slowed as the moor began to grow thick with reeds. A weak scent marker had been placed, diluted and smelling like all of the clans.
But, there he was, waiting, with a knowing smile.
“I knew you’d come.” Stormfur said, smug. Crowfeather sneered, but took a breath.
“It’s over.” He said. Stormfur nodded, and then surged forward, pressing their chests together and laying his chin over Crowfeather’s shoulder.
“You held me together, this whole time. And I never noticed.” He murmured. Crowfeather said nothing, just buried his nose deeper in his friend’s thick neck fur.
“Let’s go home.” Crowfeather said, once they pulled apart. Stormfur surveyed the lake once more, taking a deep breath, before nodding.
“Together.” He said, and the two of them headed back the way they came, step for step, the mountains lined in moonlight in the distance.