Jaystar's Dream/Chapter 4

''Jaywing rose out of his nest. ''Cinderpaw was waiting for him at the entrance to the warriors' den.

"Where were you? Goosestar was getting impatient," his apprentice asked.

"In here, as you can see. And for millionth time, Cinderpaw, his name is Darkstar."

"Oh, sorry. Anyway, Duckstar's about to send out the dawn patrol."

Does she ever listen?

Jaywing padded towards Windwhisper, Snakestrike, and Cloudtuft, who were about to set off.

When they got to their hunting ground, he noticed Cinderpaw had her ears pricked. Suddenly they all heard a rustle.

If that's a mouse, he must be very big, thought Jaywing.

A young silver tom who looked just like Cinderpaw burst out of the bush nearest to them and faced the small she-cat.

"Cinderella, where have you been? I've been worried sick!" he yowled.

"Sorry, Sky. I'm a NightClan warrior apprentice now. I won't be coming back to Twolegplace." Cinderpaw replied. "And my name is Cinderpaw. Now that you know, I won't be answering if you call me Cinderella."

At least she'd admitted she was an apprentice this time.

Sky yelped. "Cinderpaw! You can't leave me by myself! I'll die!"

"You've got Mummy and Daddy. If you want to be with me, you can join this Clan," Cinderpaw replied.

"I don't want to join, sister! But I'll always be thinking of you." With that, Sky turned to leave.

"Tell Mummy and Daddy I say hello!" Cinderpaw called after her brother.

"I will!" he yowled. Soon he was out of their sight.

Windwhisper turned to them. "Now, let's hunt!"

They got back to camp with three mice, two voles and a thrush.

Later, in the evening, Darkstar padded up to him.

"Do you want to go to the Gathering tonight?" he asked.

"Okay, Darkstar, I will come. And so will Cinderpaw," Jaywing replied.

Darkstar and Clearpelt led the Clan out of camp. When they got there, the other three Clans were there. Stormstar, the SquirrelClan leader, padded forward.

"SquirrelClan is well, and now that we are coming to leafbare, we have stopped hunting as much to save prey for the upcoming cold moons," he mewed.

As the old tom stepped back, an even older she-cat, Chasestar of BlazeClan, stepped forward. "BlazeClan is well, and we have a new litter of kits. And NightClan had been crossing the border!"

"What? We haven't!" Darkstar yowled.

"Don't deny it, Darkfrost. And what is an ordinary warrior doing on the Newsrock anyway? Where is your leader?"

"NightClan's leader is here, talking to you right now," Darkstar growled. "How dare you accuse my Clan of crossing the border?"

"We have scented your stink very close to our camp. What are you going to tell us now, that we need our medicine cat to fix our noses?"

"Maybe he has to," the dark tabby hissed.

"I promise you, Darkstar, if your cats cross the border one more time, you will have to answer to my Clan's strength," Chasestar hissed. Darkstar ignored her and made his announcement

"We are well. Jaywing, Snakestrike and Ashclaw have been made warriors. We have three new apprentices, Amberpaw, Cinderpaw, once a kittypet, and Stormpaw. I am mentoring Amberpaw, Moletail is mentoring Stormpaw, and Jaywing is mentoring Cinderpaw."

"Jaywing! Snakestrike! Ashclaw! Stormpaw! Amberpaw! Cinderpaw!" Jaywing felt proud when he heard his name being spoken first by his leader and then by the cats of the other Clans.

"Really? A newly-made warrior is already a mentor?" Chasestar snarled. Jaywing ignored her, just as Cinderpaw and Darkstar did. I'm not going to let some angry BlazeClan leader wreck my happiness.

The CloudClan leader Flamestar padded forward, his huge shoulder muscles rippling.

"CloudClan has two new warriors, Ashtail and Sunpetal, we are well-" he meowed in a deep voice, "-well enough to take over all the other Clans." He narrowed his eyes. "So you had better be careful." With that, he signaled for his Clan to follow him.

Jaywing turned to Cinderpaw. "Why in StarClan would Flamestar want to take over the other Clans?" Cinderpaw shrugged.

"Probably something got to do with his Clan 'starving'." Jaywing could sense a war. A big one.

"NightClan! We're leaving!" Darkstar announced. Chasestar muttered something to her deputy and brother Greyhound, perhaps something rude about Darkstar and NightClan. If she said something spiteful about us, it doesn't mean it's true, he reminded himself.

When they got home, Sandthistle bounded up to them. "How was the Gathering?" he asked.

"Trouble from both Chasestar and Flamestar," Jaywing meowed.

"Were they both together against us?" Sandthistle questioned, greeting his kits, who padded up to them.

"No, they both had different problems. Flamestar seemed to be threatening all the Clans," Cinderpaw told the ginger tom.

"That's what you should expect from Clan leaders, young ones," the senior warrior told him.

"They'll always be like that?" Cinderpaw asked, her eyes wide.

"Not always, but they tend to be like that," Jaywing replied.

"When I'm Clan leader, I'll be very fair and peaceful!" Cinderpaw meowed.

"Chasestar was an apprentice at the same time I was. At a Gathering once, Wolfstar, who led this Clan before Rowanstar, who died a sunrise before you joined us, and Foreststar, BlazeClan's former leader and Chasestar's father, were fighting about something, and then the SquirrelClan leader Lightningstar got aggressive, and Chasepaw said the same thing you did, young Cinderpaw," Sandthistle meowed.

"Are you meaning I'm lying?" Cinderpaw hissed, her fur fluffed up, making her look twice her size. The young tabby looked like she was going to spring at Sandthistle when the ginger tom spoke.

"I'm not implying that, I meant just be careful."

Cinderpaw nodded. "Of course I will."

Jaywing settled down in his nest, ready to sleep. ''For StarClan's sake Ashclaw and Snakestrike, stop talking! Some cats are trying to sleep here.''

Finally the littermates fell asleep, and Jaywing wondered how their mother could be a kittypet when they seemed to be all muscle. They probably inherited it all from Darkstar, who was probably the strongest cat in the Clan.

''Darkstar always seemed so loyal, I'd never had guessed he had taken a kittypet as a mate! ''Jaywing thought. ''But that's over know, and Rowanstar forgave him. Now I really need to sleep. . . . ''

"Greetings, Jaywing," a deep voice meowed. Jaywing spun around to see a massive grey tom with brilliant green eyes.

"Greetings," he replied nervously, who was this cat? Then he calmed down seeing the stars in his fur. He must be a StarClan cat.

"I am Skyheart," the tom meowed.

''Skyheart! I'm his decendant. He was the father of the mother of the mother of the father of the mother of the father of the mother of the father of the father of the mother of the father of Windwhisper. Or something like that. ''"It is an honour to meet you, Skyheart."

"You must be wondering what I am doing here, in your dream," the massive tom meowed.

I'm dreaming? Jaywing looked around. ''Of course I'm dreaming. ''"I am."

"I am here to train you," Skyheart meowed.

''Train me? ''"Train me?"

"Train you. There is a coming threat, son. I will teach you special battle moves to defeat the enemy, starting from tomorrow night. I'll see you then?"

Jaywing turned and thought for a moment. ''Can I trust this cat? Of course I can trust him, he's a StarClan warrior.''

Turning back to Skyheart, he meowed, "We'll see each other then."