Starlight

Chapter 6

Skystar looked calmly down at the WindClan warrior. "Tallstar died just a few moments ago," she meowed. "There was not enough time to gather anyone else other than Mudclaw."

"Mudclaw, you're our leader now," meowed Webfoot. "We will all grieve for Tallstar, but we need you to help us settle in our new home."

A murmur of agreement came from his Clanmates. Mudclaw dipped his head in acknowledgement, but he turned back to Onewhisker with his eyes gleaming in fury. "Onewhisker, it is not your place to speak out. I'm not Tallstar, and I will not allow my warriors to act this way. Go sit down and let me finish speaking before you throw anymore tantrums," he growled.

Onewhisker flattened his ears and for a moment Brambletuft thought he was going to attack the new leader. But he dipped his head reluctantly and stepped back beside Ashfoot and Crowfeather.

Mudclaw watched him through narrowed eyes. "As I was saying," he went on after Onewhisker had sat back down. "Before Tallstar died, he requested that WindClan and ThunderClan remain friends, as he believed that was the best way to live in peace. I say this in respect to Skystar and her Clan, but I will not let that happen. Friendships over borders only lead to more problems, and we all need to focus on our own Clans only while we settle in."

Skystar nodded. "I agree with Mudclaw," she meowed, stepping up to his side. "However close I was with Tallstar, Clan rivalry will never fully disappear, and it would only be a matter of time before border fights break out, or prey stumbles across the wrong border."

"So you're going to disrespect Tallstar's dying wish because of new borders?" Onewhisker hissed. "Skystar, you and Tallstar helped each other multiple times over, why change that now?"

"That's because Mudclaw is not Tallstar," Skystar replied calmly. "If Clan leaders kept hold of the same relationships with each leader, the new leaders might have a harder time gaining their bearings. When Crookedstar died, any agreement ThunderClan shared with RiverClan was lost the moment Leopardstar earned her title. The same was for ShadowClan, when ThunderClan gave them time of peace to recover from the effects of Brokenstar."

"But you aren't Leopardstar or Blackstar," Onewhisker argued. "You understand that some relationships over borders are more important, right?"

Mudclaw and Skystar exchanged a look, and Brambletuft knew what they were thinking about. Tallstar had just spent his dying breath admitting to falling in love with a kittypet and regretted his choice of returning to the Clan and becoming leader. Briefly, Brambletuft wondered if Tallstar would be able to find his mate in the skies, or if kittypet ancestors reside too far away now. He wondered if he'd ever fall in love with a cat outside the Clans. But all thoughts of that were stripped away when he caught sight of Squirrelflight from the corner of his eye. Sure, she was oddly close with Crowfeather right now, but once the Clans separated into their own territories again, he'd be able to get close with her even more than the WindClan warrior.

"Clan leaders can't have relationships over borders, Onewhisker," Mudclaw growled. "That's only for young apprentices who still need to learn. You're a senior warrior, so maybe you should act like it."

Onewhisker gathered his haunches under him, ready to spring at Mudclaw, but a white she-cat ran out from the group of WindClan cats.

"Mudclaw is our leader now," she murmured quietly. "It will look bad in front of the other Clans if you fight here."

"Stop!" An outraged cry came from Barkface at the same moment. "Sheathe your claws, Onewhisker," he told the WindClan warrior. "Do you want to start a fight with Tallstar's spirit still watching over us? We should be sitting vigil for him, not bickering over what will happen now that he's gone. You betray him by behaving like this. He always expected the best from his senior warriors." He paused, with a long glance at Skystar, and then added, "I trust Skystar's judgment. This may not have been Tallstar's choice, but you must accept it."