Alone #2: The Ebony's Roots

Chapter 2

A moon had passed. A terrible moon. A moon of secrets and lies, of terror and betrayal. She had failed to mentor Foxpaw and the tom was now apprenticed to Flamefall instead of her.

Ebonywind sighed as she trekked with her Clan to the Gathering. The orange-red leaves of leaf-fall crunched under her paws. Through shadowed and sunken eyes, she could see Foxpaw casting miserable looks at her.

"It's not your fault, Ebonywind," Foxpaw had told her after the ceremony. "You're suffering. But I need an education."

Ebonywind winced as she caught everyone's attention.

"It's the outcast..." the whispers stung Ebonywind like bees.

Ebonywind tucked her head down and followed her Clan shamefully.

"Ebonywind!"

She hesitantly looked up to see the warm eyes of Amberclaw.

"I need to talk to you," she blurted. "Meet here tomorrow night, midnight."

Amberclaw blinked slowly. "Alright."

Ebonywind breathed out a breath that she didn't know she had been holding.

I guess I was going insane, with no one to talk to you.

"Thank you. It might've saved my life."

Ebonywind didn't watch with much attention as Leafkit and Whitekit were announced to be apprentices. She didn't listen as Frostdapple, Ashblaze, Sandleaf and Foxpaw were congratulated. Her whiskers or ears didn't even twitch as RiverClan and WindClan shared their news.

She followed the rest of her Clan like an obedient kitten as they left, she followed them to the camp without saying a word, she ignored the glares and hisses as the cats jeered her as she left. She was emotionless on the outside and raging on the inside.

StarClan! You live without a care for the lives you ruined. It was your prophecy that ruined my life. Your prophecy that made me homeless. Your prophecy that made my mother abandon me.

Shivering slightly, she crept towards the ragged den she had been forced to live in and waited for sleep to come.

The next day, Ebonywind huddled in her den and viewed the camp. Leaf-bare was coming soon, she noticed, not that she cared. As usual, time flew and finally, the cats were all in their dens for the second time in what seemed like minutes for her.

She left the den, treading carefully on the marshy ground, hesitant to step on a pine for fear of waking the cats up. Ebonywind passed dark pine trees that blotted out the moon and ignored the scents of prey that found her.

The gathering hollow.

It was massive and breath taking. It was cruel and cold. It had been the place where many things had happened, and not all of them were good.

Amberclaw's familiar scent rushed into her nose and she breathed it in, using it as her anchor to the world.

"You're here," Amberclaw's voice was unenthusiastic, her eyes bored.

"I'm here." Ebonywind collapsed on the mossy ground, desperate. "I need to talk."

Concern was in Amberclaw's voice when she spoke next. "What happened?"

"Luckystar," she cried the one word.

"It's been great for me, lately," Amberclaw said curiously. "They've been treating me nicely since they know who my mother is. I get the first pick of fresh-kill and stuff."

Fury coursed through her. "I've been living by myself. ShadowClan doesn't know who I am. They treat me like dung and as if I'm crazier than a fox in a fit."

"I'm sorry," Amberclaw said.

"You don't understand!" she hissed back.

This was supposed to help! But instead, it had made her feel worse. "I'm sorry," she blurted. "Goodbye."

Painfully, she left the hollow, aware of Amberclaw's confusion.

StarClan, what now?

It hit her. What was Ravenflight experiencing?

I need to talk to her.

With her head dropped, she padded back to the camp, ignoring her ruffled fur and the waves of jealousy coming off her.

"Why are you out of camp?" a suspicious voice cut into her thoughts.

Flamefall had been sitting at the mouth of the warriors' den.

"Went to make dirt," Ebonywind said vaguely.

Flamefall's eyes bored into hers. "Don't lie to your mentor, now," she hissed.

"I'm not lying," Ebonywind said boldly before ducking into the den and curling up on her nest.

She was rudely awoken the next morning by a loud, shrill wail. Noticing the other warriors clambering out of their nests tiredly, she followed them out into the clearing of the camp.

One glance to the sky told her it wasn't sunrise yet, but another piercing noise told her exactly what was happening. Silverspots was kitting.

Ebonywind stood with everyone else, impatiently waiting to see the kits. Flamefall had led a patrol out with another glare at her, and Rosedusk had taken a few cats out to hunt.

Littlecloud came out of nursery, his eyes weary. "There are two healthy kits!" he called to the cats surrounding him.

A few moments later, Puddleshine poked his head out of the nursery and left the den and hurried across to the medicine den, emerging a few moments later with some herbs in his mouth.

Ebonywind followed the other stream of cats to the nursery line until finally it was her turn. She burst into the nursery, wincing a little at Silverspots' mew of surprise once she saw who it was.

"I'm sorry," she muttered, peering at the two kits. "They're beautiful."

"Thank you." Silverspots purred. "I love them already."

"Have they got names?" Ebonywind asked curiously.

"I don't know. I don't want them to feel alone when they grow up, like you have. I don't want them to be gossiped, so will you name one of them?" Silverspots said seriously.

"I feel honoured. I'll name the tom," she decided quickly.

Pride thumped in her chest as she gazed at the little tom. He was a mess of fur, his eyes barely open. A sea blue shone through the eyelids.

"Light gray fur," she mused. "His blue eyes will be beautiful. Tabby. I will name him Blazekit, for the fire in his heart that will never die."

"Thank you," Silverspots breathed. "The she-cat will be Willowkit, for her light brown fur."

Ebonywind left the den, happy that one cat in the camp trusted her enough to let her name one of their kits. Briefly, she wondered who the father was. Most likely, it was a rogue. ShadowClan she-cats often married out of the Clan.

A few sunrises later, Ebonywind found herself at the Gathering island again. This time, it wasn't Amberclaw.

"Hello," Ravenflight mewed.

"Ravenflight, you have no idea what I'm feeling! None of the cats trust me, no one knows that I'm Luckystar's kit, no one knows and I can't let them know they'll throw me out," Ebonywind spilled out every emotion she had been feeling the past few days.

"I understand. The WindClan cats worship me, but I don't like it. They trust me too much." Ravenflight said calmly.

"Thank you. It makes me so happy to hear that someone else is struggling like me."