Warriors: The Chosen Warrior: Final Darkness (Book 6)

Chapter 9

When she returned to the camp, several cats remained out in the hollow settling down for the night, save for Dapplerock and Darkflight preparing for their vigils. Sorreltail and Brackenfur were finishing up sharing tongues after a meal, and Whitesnake and Shiningice were saying goodnight to Swiftclaw and Stone as they tried to get comfortable in their makeshift den - a small bramble thicket that was just enough to fit the two cats in it. Firestar was speaking to Darkflight, Dapplerock, and Bravespark about their vigils in the center of the hollow, explaining the rule of how they were not to talk and were tasked with guarding the camp by themselves as the rest of their Clanmates slept. With a final congratulations, Firestar left to go to his den, and in time, the two new warriors and forager were left alone in the camp.

That was when Leafsong finally emerged from the thorn tunnel. The unexpected movement caught the attention of all three cats, and they hurried to meet her.

"Darkflight, Dapplerock," the warrior whispered lowly so no one still awake could overhear. "I need you to come with me for a little bit. I need to show you something." At the apparant quesion on both of the littermates' faces, Leafsong corrected, "Well, I guess show you someone. She'll be here soon."

Their eyes all widened as the brother and sister exchanged a look with one another, surely understanding what was happening now after Leafsong's inturrupted talk earlier.

Dapplerock visibly struggled with a short internal battle before she finally burst out softly, "But what about our vigils?" She looked guilty already, looking up at the night sky as if storm clouds would come to cover the stars just to strike her with lightning.

"I think StarClan will understand you breaking them for a short while under these circumstances," the ThunderClan she-cat comforted. "I don't know when else it would be a good time to do this."

Dapplerock and Darkflight exchanged a silent conversation then as they looked to one another before nodding in acceptance. The pale-ginger warrior turned to Bravespark.

"Could you please stay in the camp and see if anyone leaves their dens?" she asked. "If someone gets up it should only be to use the dirt-place, and if they ask where Darkflight and Dapplerock went you can just motion to outside the hollow. They should assume they are patroling around the camp."

Bravespark nodded, eagerly taking up the task. He positioned himself in the center of the hollow as Leafsong led the warriors out, his gleaming eyes and perked ears as keen as any born-warrior.

"She should be here soon," the she-cat whispered as she halted some fox-lengths outside the thorn barrier of the camp. Dapplerock and Darkflight waited quietly in the night, but Leafsong could easily sense anxiousness within them between their bristling pelts and hopeful eyes. She herself was nervous about how this would actually go.

It felt like ages had passed before something other that the cool leaf-fall breeze stirring dead leaves and the faint call of an owl reached the cats' ears. All three of their focuses went toward the noise, and a black figure was quite visibly seen approaching from some badger-lengths away in the dappled moonlight. She stopped a few paces away, and the split family stared at each other with a deafening silence. Leafsong watched the special moment on the side, barely daring to breathe.

Darkflight was the one to speak first, though as softly and gently as the gust the weaved between among them. "Are you... our mother?"

Redswirl nodded. "Yes," she murmured. Her eyes glistened with emotion.

Dapplerock's breath hitched. "We're... ShadowClan cats?" Her voice sounded very small in the immense space.

Their mother looked at them with wide, hollow eyes, all the weight of her decision to give them up coming down all at once on her. Her mouth moved as if she was speaking, but nothing came out.