Divided Loyalties

First Gathering

Kitty walked between her mentor and Brightheart. She was still very worried about Cinderpelt.

Was is a fox? Graystripe was standing over her...

"Excited about the Gathering?" Brackenfur asked his apprentice.

"Sure, it'd be nice to make a few friends" Kitty replied. "Well...you can't be too friendly, you have to remember these Clans are also your enemies in battles" Brackenfur explained.

"Of course" Kitty said. Really? What's wrong with making friends from other Clans?

They walked towards the Fourtrees, a few cats were already there.

"Those cats are WindClan" Brackenfur explained, "You can recognize them by their sleek bodies and long tails, although ShadowClan and RiverClan aren't here yet..."

Kitty nodded. She ran down to the clearing where the other cats were at. "She went ahead of the deputy!" Brightheart gasped.

Kitty flipped around, her face full of embarrassment.

Woops, I didn't know that...

Graystripe's face was full of anger. Kitty closed her eyes, expecting Graystripe to claw her face for being so reckless. Instead, she heard a yelp from Brightheart. Kitty opened her eyes and saw blood dripping from Brightheart's good ear. Graystripe was next to her, snarling.

"Softpaw did nothing wrong! Say anything like that again and you will lose your good eye!" Graystripe screeched. ThunderClan gasped, as well as Kitty.

He must've ripped Cinderpelt's face! But why is he doing this?!

"Something wrong, Graystripe?" a black and white tom asked.

"No, Tallstar, our Clan is fine!" Graystripe said with the faint tone of a snarl.

"Really? I don't see your leader! Did something happen to the poor kittypet?!" a brown tom hissed. "No, Mudclaw" Graystripe meowed, "He simply had to go somewhere important".

"Back to his twolegs?" Mudclaw yowled with laughter. "You will not speak of our leader like this!" Brambleclaw hissed, running towards Mudclaw till their noses were inches apart, "You're lucky there's a truce tonight".

"I think you're the one that's lucky, Son of Tigerstar"Mudclaw hissed, taking off.

"You snake-heart!" Brambleclaw yowled.

"Here comes ShadowClan and RiverClan" Brackenfur said.

Many more cats poured into the clearing. Several of them locking eyes with Kitty. A huge brown tom with icy eyes tripped and fell right in front of her.

"Ah, sorry" the cat lifted himself up, "My name is Hawkpaw of RiverClan".

"Softpaw...of ThunderClan" Kitty meowed nervously, wrapping her tail around her paws.

"New apprentice?" Hawkpaw asked, also wrapping his tail around his paws.

"Yes, my apprentice is Brackenfur" Kitty replied.

"Mine is the leader of RiverClan herself, Leopardstar" Hawkpaw said, lifting his head with pride.

"Wow" Kitty said in awe, Hawkpaw's so big and strong...Brackenfur said...wait...what'd he say again?

"Yep" Hawkpaw said, his eyes gleaming.

"Hey Softpaw!" it was Brambleclaw and a tortoiseshell she-cat, "Meet my sister, Tawnypelt".

"Hello Tawnypelt" Kitty said, still feeling Hawkpaw's intense stare burning through her pelt.

"Hello" Tawnypelt replied.

"This is Brackenfur's new apprentice, Softpaw" Brambleclaw explained.

Before Tawnypelt could reply, Blackstar yowled for the Gathering to start. The four leaders gathered together. Blackstar got up to the top of the Great Rock.

"We have two new apprentices, Smokepaw and Talonpaw"

"Smokepaw! Talonpaw!" the Clans chanted.

"We have been doing perfectly fine, Runningnose has moved to the elder's den, may we all wish him seasons of good rest. Tallstar?" Blackstar said, looking at Tallstar.

"We have no apprentices, but Ashfoot had recently had one kit, Crowkit" Tallstar announced, "Leopardstar?".

"Yes, of course, we have two new apprentices, Hawkpaw and Mothpaw"

"Hawkpaw! Mothpaw!"

Kitty's fur tingled and her heart began to race. I wonder if you can have a mate from another clan...there's nothing wrong with that, right?

"Kitty? Kitty!" it was Graystripe, his face conflicted: half shocked, half furious, "Why are you looking so moony?! It's not another tom, is it?!".

"No...it was the fresh-kill earlier...best thing I've ever had!" Kitty lied.

"Uh...Graystripe?" it was Blackstar, ears twitching with annoyance. Purrs of amusement echoed around the clearing.

Graystripe's fur fluffed out in embarrassment as the other Clans began to holler with laughter, even Thornclaw and Ashfur couldn't hold back their yowls.

"Flirt with apprentices on your own time" Leopardstar growled.

Kitty felt her ears burn as she looked at Hawkpaw. His head was low and his tail was tucked between his paws.

Is he jealous? Kitty thought with a flicker of pleasure.

"So where's Firestar?" Blackstar asked, eyes curious.

"He went somewhere, I don't know" Graystripe replied, "We have three new apprentices, Spiderpaw, Shrewpaw, and Softpaw".

"Spiderpaw! Shrewpaw! Softpaw!"

Kitty's fur tingled once more as Hawkpaw chanted her name but not the other two names.

"Fox!" a panicked voice said.

Kitty flipped around. Are they enemies here?

Brambleclaw and a RiverClan tom sniffed around, and sure enough, a group of foxes were snug in a burrow between two roots of one of the Fourtrees.

"Let's quietly leave before they wake up" Tallstar whispered.

Quietly, the apprentices started leading the queens and elders across the clearing, tip-toeing on their little paws. Kitty felt a warm pelt press against her.

It was Graystripe.

"Go!" Graystripe whispered in a panic.

Kitty noticed that Spiderpaw and Shrewpaw were already leading their queens and elders out of the clearing. Hawkpaw and Mothpaw were flanking a plump RiverClan she-cat while Mudclaw lead some WindClan apprentices out of the clearing.

Blackstar jumped off the Great Rock silently as he could.

Kitty started to tip-toe across the clearing.

Foxes...how dangerous are they here?

CRACK!

Kitty froze, and looked down. She had stepped on a twig.

Kitty began to run, even faster as she heard several sets of paws thundering after her.

Kitty's mind swirled, she jumped into the river. The current slammed her head against a rock.

Kitty gasped and reached for the rock, but she fell back as a huge figure climbed over the rock.

...Hawkpaw?

But, no, Kitty knew it was what she feared.

A huge russet fox.