Warriors: Rainfeather's Honor

Epilogue

Rainfeather and Wolfheart crouched by the StarPool together and pushed their muzzles into the clear water.

Rainfeather opened her eyes to see the clearing she had been taken to to meet Springstar, and see her mother. This time, though, the clearing was empty.

"Where are we?" Wolfheart asked her. Rainfeather looked to see her mate standing behind her.

"StarClan's hunting grounds." Rainfeather turned back. It was a glimmering she-cat who answered. "I'm Berrybush, SpringClan's first medicine cat. Wolfheart, we will give your lives now. Rainfeather, you can watch, and we have something for you afterward."

Wolfheart stepped forward and received his nine lives, each looking more painful than the last. Rainfeather had to fight the urge to run to her mate's side. Wolfheart got lives for courage, justice, honor, respect, freedom, loyalty, certainty, and truth. It was only eight lives, but Featherbreeze told them not to worry.

"Wolfstar, Wolfstar, Wolfstar!" Rainfeather cheered along with the rest of StarClan.

Featherbreeze approached Rainfeather. "We want to give you something that has only been bestowed upon four cats: the original leaders of the Clans. Instead of giving you nine lives, we tell you what we honor you for. This ceremony will imprint your own constellation among the stars. Your name will never be forgotten. Are you ready?"

Rainfeather was shocked. What had she done to deserve this? Instead of asking, she said, "Yes, I am ready."

"Then, my little rain, I honor you for your love of all things, be it your mate and kits," Featherbreeze looked pointedly back at Wolfstar, "or your Clan, or even the balance of all things in the forest. I honor you." Rainfeather closed her eyes as her mother touched their noses together. Instead of pain, though, she felt warmth and the spiraling feeling she felt when she saw Wolfstar and her kits.

Featherbreeze disappeared into StarClan's ranks, and two more cats padded toward Rainfeather. "Doeleap! Beestar! Oh, I've missed you so much, and so have Waspwing and Stonefall and Tigerlily and Honeyblossom. Deerdapple said she wished she could ask you a question, but she never told me what."

The yellow tom and the brown she-cat glanced at each other, a knowing gleam in their eyes. "Tell her we said yes," Beestar meowed. "Rainfeather, my loyal apprentice, I never stopped loving you like my daughter. I honor you for your ability to learn, adapt, and understand complex things and ideas. I honor you."

This time, at Beestar's touch, Rainfeather felt burning curiosity and the satisfaction of solving a problem. Featherfloat must have gotten her curiosity from me, then, Rainfeather realized.

Doeleap came next. "I honor you for your hope. Hope that you could raise four kits that were not your own, and hope that you could raise them well. I honor you." Doeleap's nose to Rainfeather's sent a vision of four little kittens all in a row, who became strong warriors.

A tortoiseshell she-cat took her place in front of Rainfeather after Doeleap and Beestar returned to StarClan. It was Blossomstar. "Not many cats are alive to see three leaders, Rainfeather. I honor you for your determination. Determination was the only way you could have taken in those four kits, and the only way that Cloudeyes could have become a warrior. I honor you." Blossomstar's nose to Rainfeather's muzzle caused the silver-blue she-cat to feel the heavy rock of resolution in her gut.

Springstar honored Rainfeather for her intelligence, and Berrybush honored her for her kindness. An unfamiliar tom approached her next.

"I am Greenlight, the first deputy of SpringClan." He had a pale pelt and intense eyes. Looking closer, Rainfeather realized he was missing the black pupils that every cat had. Every cat except Cloudeyes.

"You're blind!" Rainfeather exclaimed.

"Indeed. I know better than most cats that you have to earn your position in the Clan. I honor you for your sacrifice. You were willing to give up your life for your mate, and you told Honeyblossom to save your son instead of yourself. I honor you."

Greenlight's tail touched Rainfeather's flank, and she was rushed into a whirlwind of pain. She felt the relief she had experienced when Honeyblossom, Honeypaw then, had told her she would try to save Cloudeyes, Cloudkit then, over Rainfeather when they both suffered an extreme bout of greencough, at a time when there were only enough herbs for one cat.

The next cat who came forward surprised Rainfeather so much that she hissed.

"I know," Strikepelt said quietly. "I'm surprised I made it to StarClan, too." Rainfeather's father hung his head sadly. "I'm so sorry, Rainfeather. I truly thought I was doing the best for you. Now that I see you with him and your kits, I realize I was wrong. Could you ever forgive me?"

In his speech, Strikepelt had touched his paw to his daughter's shoulder. Rainfeather was flung into her earliest memory: Strikepelt leaning over her in the nursery, purring lovingly at his mate and kits.

"I forgive you, Strikepelt. I understand how you feel, now, with my own kits." Rainfeather nuzzled Strikepelt's ear.

The dark ginger tom raised his head and starlight wisdom filled his eyes. "I honor you for your forgiveness, my daughter. You forgave Jaggedclaw after the ambush on our camp, and you forgave me for nearly ruining your life. I honor you."

Strikepelt rejoined StarClan, and Rainfeather saw him sit between Featherbreeze, his former mate, and Swiftsprout, his brother. When no other StarClan cat approached, Rainfeather blinked in confusion. "That's only eight," she told them.

A voice came from behind her. "I think it's my turn." It was Wolfstar. Rainfeather instantly brightened. She turned to her mate.

Wolfstar pressed his muzzle to Rainfeather's. The she-cat filled with the love she always felt around Wolfstar.

"I honor you, Rainfeather, for your faith. Faith towards your Clan, faith towards your family, and faith towards me. I don't know what I'd do without you. I love you all the way to StarClan and back, and I always will. I honor you."

Rainfeather suddenly knew what she was supposed to do. "I have to give you your ninth life," she whispered. Louder, she meowed, "I give you a life for love. Love your Clan and your family, no matter how it changes. I'll always call you by your true name. Forever, Wolfheart."

The big gray tom twined his tail with hers. "Forever," he whispered back.