The Barn Cat

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Palepaw padded along-side Brightshade and Springfall, nerves pricking throughout her pelt. She was finally coming home, and she was nervous about seeing her clan again, especially her parents. Springfall's words made her feel guilty about how they have been missing her. They probably thought she was dead by now. "Here's the end of your territory, if you remember it," Springfall teased. Brightshade dipped his head, "thank you, Springfall. We can go from here." Springfall gave a small nod, "good luck with Lightningstar, she wasn't very amused when you all left." "Thank you for the warning," Brightshade mewed again, this time they watched Springfall trot back to his territory. Palepaw could only smell her clan's scents now, and hers just didn't seem to fit in. Brightshade's didn't either, they smelt more like the barn cats than anything. She hoped Hawk would be okay, he didn't really seem too happy about anything, but he didn't seem stressed either. "You ready to be home?" Brightshade asked. Palepaw let out a nervous sigh, "yeah. I hope that Lightningstar won't be mad at us." Brightshade gave her a comforting stare, "she won't. I bet once she knows what's happening she'll give you your warrior name straight away." "I hope I even get one at all." "You will, don't worry," the tom's walk turned into a trot, "I'll make sure of it."

Together, the two cats ran through their territory, their paws seeming to take them there with ease. Soon enough, it started to feel like she never left. She remembered running through the forest with her mentor, Swallowflight. How she told Palepaw to let your body remember your home, not her brain. Her paws would take her there, and they were doing that now. They had just passed Catching Tree, and were coming up to their camp. Finally, they made it to the small stream that was nearly three cat lengths long. It was in a circle, bushes covering every end so that no one could see inside the circle. Their camp. Palepaw held her breath as Brigthshade lead her to their hopping stones, her paws starting to feel weak as he stepped onto the first one. She let out a long sigh, telling herself that everything would be okay. She followed Brightshade across the rocks, and now they were at the entrance of camp. No one was sitting guard yet, which means everyone would be sharing tongues at this time. "Ready?" Brightshade asked. Palepaw nodded to him, butterflies floating in her stomach. "Ready." Brightshade gave a flick of his tail, and pushed his way into camp, Palepaw a whisker behind him.

Gasps echoed throughout the camp as the two cats walked in, astonished stares and frozen cats staring at them. Palepaw turned to her right, expecting Lightningstar to be on the Leader's stone, but she wasn't there. She must be inside it, in her den. Palepaw stared around the camp again, everyone was just staring at them. Why was no one saying anything? She spotted Streampaw and Toadpaw laying with Pebblepaw, and they were all staring at her. Then, movement from the warriors den changed her gaze to stare. Her heart started beating and she shifted her paws with conflicted feelings. Tornfur came padding out of the den, and Palepaw couldn't decide whether she was happy, sad, or nervous to see her father. The light gray tom turned his half white face to her, his blue eyes filling with shock and love when he realized it was his kin. "Palepaw!" His happy cry broke the silence of the camp, and he came charging at her. Palepaw tried to come towards him, but she couldn't move. Her father ran into her, placing his head on hers and wrapping his tail around her as she closed her eyes.

"What?" Sunnyeye's voice came from the same direction as Tornfurs. Palepaw opened her eyes, meeting her mother's hazel ones. "Palepaw!" Her cry sounded just like Tornfur's, but hers cracked a little before she came charging too. Her mother came to her left side, and rubbed her cheek along Palepaw's. She was stuck between them, and she finally felt like she was home again. Suddenly, all the silence from the cats staring at them broke into happy cries and cheers, and they all came running over to greet Brightshade and Palepaw. "Where have you been?" Swallowflight's yellow fur caught Palepaw's eyes, and Tornfur and Sunnyeyes pulled away just a tiny bit for Palepaw to be able to see all the cats. "I was on a quest from Starclan," Palepaw answered. "But that was supposed to be a joke!" Pebblepaw retorted. "You knew about this?" Swallowflight mewed in shock. "I knew she was saying something like that, but we told her it was just a dream." Toadpaw answered Swallowflight. "And you didn't think to tell us?" This time it was Tornfur, and he sounded angry. "Leave Toadpaw and Pebblepaw alone," Palepaw mewed, "they didn't believe me, and they probably thought I just ran away for it." Pebblepaw stared at Palepaw, "we're warriors now, Palepaw. I'm Pebblestripe now." "And I'm Toadvine," Toadvine added. "I'm," Streampaw's voice came from behind Pebblestripe and Toadvine, and the large light-gray tabby tom pushed his way in front of them. "I'm so sorry," he mewed.

"Streampaw," Palepaw pushed her way towards him, but his gaze was full of guilt. "Streamfrost now," Toadvine corrected her. Palepaw gave him a glare, but turned back to Streamfrost. "Streamfrost, you have nothing to be sorry about." He shook his head, "I was the only one who knew where you were. I watched you leave, and I watched Brightshade follow you. I didn't tell anyone, like you said. I felt so guilty for not telling everyone the truth, especially when they all started panicking." "You kept a secret," Palepaw answered simply, "it's not your fault. Besides, I had Brightshade with me, it's better than what Ivypaw had." Ivypaw. Sadness hit her. They might have been fighting, but now they'd truly never be friends again. "What is going on?" Lightningstar's voice broke all the cats away from Palepaw and Brightshade, and Lightningstar's gaze was just as surprised as everyone else's.

"Palepaw, Brightshade," their leader kept her mew calm, but her gaze was fixed on the two cats still standing by the entrance. "Lightningstar," Brightshade mewed, dipping his head in respect. "It's been a while," Lightningstar nodded back to the large tom, "where have you two been?" "Palepaw was sent a vision from Starclan," Brightshade answered, "she had to go meet up with a cat from every clan, which I'm sure you know was Mistfoot, Leafstride, and Ivypaw. Well, I saw her sneaking out the night we went missing, and I wasn't going to let her go by herself, so I followed her." Lightningstar's gaze was unreadable, but Palepaw felt it was her turn to speak. "We had to find a black cat with a white spot on his chest," Palepaw mewed, "we, the four cats that got the vision, were told that we needed to find him so we don't get destroyed by the evil." Lightningstar's eyes grew hard, "what evil?" Brightshade's turn. "This black cat has a clan himself, but they call themselves the Wild Ones, or the barn cats. Well, he had a vision that we would be coming, and that he would need the clans to help him survive. We were told we need them to survive this 'evil' thing. We found them, and we lived with them for a few moons." Brightshade turned his gaze back to Palepaw, he wanted her to speak again.

"When we were about to come home, they got attacked by a group of cats larger than two clans combined, and that wasn't even all of them. There are more, more that want to take over the forest." Cats all around her let out shocked gasps, and murmuring spread through the camp like wildfire. Lightningstar leaned forward, interested, "and what are we supposed to do?" "We brought them here," Brighttshade answered, "the barn cats." "In our territory?" Sootfrost, the deputy, demanded. Palepaw shook her head, "they're at Meeting Rocks. We want all the leaders and medicine cats to meet there, to decide what we should do with them." "We can't get rid of them," Brightshade added before anyone could speak, "or we, every clan, will die. There will be no more clans, we need these cats." Lightningstar stared at them for a while, then nodded, "very well. Streamsong, you come with me. Sootfrost, you are leader for the night, decide who stands guard outside our entrance." She turned her gaze to Brightshade and Palepaw, then stared at Palepaw. "You're also coming." "What about me?" Brightshade asked. "You weren't sent the vision," Lightningstar answered, "you're home now. Rest. We only need Palepaw tonight." Brightshade swished his tail, he was irritated but he didn't argue. He turned his gaze to Palepaw, "don't let them get rid of them." Palepaw nodded, "I won't, I saw what happened, I know how much blood will be spilt." Brightshade nodded, then padded away.

"Very well, let's go," Lightningstar mewed. "Wait!" Sunnyeye's cry made the three she-cats turn around. "Let Tornfur and I come with you, we just barely got her back, please." Lightningstar shook her head sympathetically, "I'm sorry, Sunnyeyes. This is for the leaders to decide, but don't worry. She'll be back home soon, this time she's here to stay." Palepaw gave her mom a sympathetic stare, "I promise." Tornfur padded over to his mate, "c'mon, Sunnyeyes. She'll be back soon. Let's go rest, when she gets back she'll have a story to tell us." Grateful for her father, Palepaw turned her gaze back to Lightningstar, who gave her a small nod. "Let's go."