Moonstripe's Prophecy

Chapter 7

As Moonpaw followed his mentor out of camp, he wondered what his and Treepool's dreams could mean. He tried to look for similarities between them, but his head felt heavy with fatigue, and he couldn't think properly.
"What are we going to do today?" Moonpaw asked his mentor.
"We're going to patrol the border. You see... your father had always loved it so much... we don't have to if you don't want to..." Stormstar answered, grief slicing through his voice like a claw through a fallen leaf. Moonpaw knew his father had been one of Stormstar's closest friends.
"I...I'd like that." said Moonpaw. He knew his father would want him to stay strong. Stormstar had chosen Sandfeather for the new deputy. Everyone had been happy about the choice, including Moonpaw.
As the two cats neared the forest border, a strong gust of wind almost blew Moonpaw of his feet. Moonpaw thought he saw cats, all of them lithe, running as fast as the wind. He decided it was just his imagination, and continued walking. For some reason, Stormstar's fur seemed unruffled by the sudden breeze.
"Right, we start here. I'll set the first scent-marker, and then you can try," Stormstar told Moonpaw.
Just as Stormstar turned around, Moonpaw felt a strange sensation, as if his paws were under water. Then, a river appeared, and there were sleek shapes swimming in it. Then it all vanished. Even though his paws still felt wet, Moonpaw was sure it was still his eyes playing tricks. What kind of a cat swims?
Then, it was Moonpaw's turn to set a scent-marker, and they moved on along the border, where towering oaks covered the sky. Suddenly, out of nowhere, Moonpaw heard thunder. He felt the prickle of bramble thorns underneath his pads, and smelt squirrel. A few fox-lengths away, a cat was stalking a mouse. And then, yet again, it all vanished. Have I eaten some bad fresh-kill...? thought Moonpaw. Stormstar was far ahead of him now.
"Hurry up Moonpaw! We haven't got all day!" Stormstar yowled up ahead.
"I'm coming!" Moonpaw mewed. If he had anymore hallucinations, he was going straight to Treepool.
As he and Stormstar raced through the trees, Moonpaw began to sense something. The oak and birch trees were turning into... PINE TREES?
Now Moonpaw was confused. He sensed cats all around him, but couldn't see any, as of they had merged into the darkness of the shadows. Right then, something clicked in Moonpaw's head. Darkness...shadows...In his dream, Cloudstar had told him that the Moon will always give light to shadow... and Treepool had seen cats lurking in darkness...
Moonpaw realised he wasn't imagining things. StarClan was sending him signs. One about wind, one about water, one about thunder, and one about shadows. He felt like the shadows were important. Then Stormstar called to Moonpaw, and he had to postpone his new ideas for a while.