Graystar finally rose from her nest and stretched out her protesting muscles. Thanks to her dreaming, she didn't feel rested at all... but she had a job to do, and so she couldn't afford to stay in bed. Her clan couldn't afford it.

The fluffy gray she-cat exited her den, blinking to help her amber eyes adjust to the sunlit clearing. Her gaze swept the camp.

Morningrose was up, already switching out the cats on guard. Rainsong was sent back to the warrior's den after half the night on watch, while Dewpaw was made to take her place guarding the camp entrance.

Smokefern was sitting by himself near the freshkill pile, taking slow bites of a skinny mouse.

Icespark and Honeyrose emerged from the warrior's den while chatting to each other. They continued talking as they crossed the camp to the freshkill pile, barely sparing Smokeflash a glance even when they had to pause their conversation to pick up prey. The two she-cats moved not far off, lied down side by side, and then resumed talking.

Graystar padded forward at the same time Morningrose bounded over in her direction, Featherpath quick behind her. Graystar tilted her head curiously, but soon realized that they were heading towards Smallcloud, on guard at the base of the Highrock, and not her.

"Hey, Smallcloud. You can switch off now, and go get some rest," Morningrose told him.

Smallcloud shuffled his paws together and peered up at the deputy. "Actually... it's okay, I don't feel tired yet. I can stay on guard for a while longer," he mewed. It seemed to be true; his blue eyes were bright and alert.

Featherpath jerked her head back, staring at Smallcloud with wide eyes as though he had some sort of disease. "Did you fall asleep on watch? Is that why you aren't tired?" the ginger she-cat demanded suspiciously.

Smallcloud flattened his ears timidly. "No, I didn't," he murmured. "I just didn't do a lot yesterday, so I'm fine."

Morningrose nodded in understanding. "Alright, that's fair. Come on Featherpath, I'll post you at the warrior's den instead." The deputy beckoned with her tail, and then the two she-cats walked off towards the warrior's den, where Echoleaf was waiting to be relieved from duty.

Graystar wandered over to sit next to Smallcloud. "Do you enjoy being on guard, then?" she asked as she watched Echoleaf spring to her paws and swish her tail gratefully at Morningrose before bounding towards the prey heap. "You don't have to be on watch until you're fading from exhaustion. Echoleaf looks like she has plenty of energy left."

Smallcloud was watching her too. "I know," he mewed. Then he turned to face Graystar and gave her the most cheerful smile he could muster. "But keeping watch is the one useful thing I can do - even with my bad leg."

Graystar's heart melted with sympathy for the injured tom. "You'll always be useful to our clan, Smallcloud," she assured him.

"Thanks, Graystar," the little tom purred.

Then Echoleaf strolled towards them, carrying a vole. She dropped it at Smallcloud's paws and sat herself down right beside him. "Hey Smallcloud! Your leg looks like it's healing well," she meowed by way of greeting.

"Er... yeah, it's getting better," Smallcloud replied.

Graystar smiled to herself and stood, leaving them to talk. But she could still hear Echoleaf say "Look how smooth the scarring is!" even as she walked away.

The leader was intercepted by Tigersplash, who trotted up to her with his head and tail high. "Good morning, Graystar," Tigersplash rumbled. "Is there anything I can do to help you out today?"

Graystar twitched her whiskers. It was normal for Tigersplash to try and win favour with her -- he probably fancied himself to be the next clan deputy. "You can go ask Morningrose. I'm sure she'll need cats for a patrol," Graystar suggested.

Tigersplash hesitated, then dipped his chin. "Of course. Thank you, Graystar," he purred, then padded off to go find Morningrose.

Graystar suddenly realized that she was incredibly hungry, and changed course to walk towards the freshkill pile. She passed Honeyrose and Icespark on the way, and slowed a little to hear what they were talking so avidly about.

"Tigersplash?" Icespark offered, her blue eyes following the dappled dark tom. 

Honeyrose flipped her tail dismissively. "No, he hasn't changed at all," she replied. "Besides, he loves the clan system. Someone wanting to be the leader of a clan wouldn't fight to destroy it."

"Though he's definitely strong enough to kill someone," Icespark ventured. "And I bet his pelt blends right in with the forest shadows. He could have followed Redpaw out at night and no one would have seen a thing."

Honeyrose huffed. "So could Shademask. Their fur is pretty much the same colors."

"Would Shademask really try to kill the clan, though?" Icespark meowed with a frown.

"More likely than Tigersplash," Honeyrose answered.

Graystar flicked her ears. Traitors. They were talking about who in the clan could be traitors. Despair clawed at her heart as she pulled a fat robin from the freshkill pile. Clanmates were already turning on each other. Would her clan tear itself apart?

~~~

In the apprentice's den, Blackpaw was curled up in his nest, stubbornly refusing to move.

Viperpaw poked his side. "Get up."

"No." Blackpaw covered his eyes with a paw.

"You have to move sometime today," Viperpaw growled, poking him again. "You can't just laze around in your nest all day."

"Watch me," Blackpaw hissed without opening his eyes.

Echopaw padded over to sit next to him. "Blackpaw, we're all grieving," she murmured. "But it's because Redpaw's gone that the clan needs us more than ever."

"I. Don't. Care," Blackpaw growled. "Leave me alone!"

"Dewpaw's on guard, and Tinypaw's already gone to find her mentor to train. If you want to be a lazy pain in the tail, fine!" Viperpaw yelled. "But I'm going to go do something useful so that Redpaw death wasn't for nothing!" With that she turned and stalked out of the den, her tail lashing.

Echopaw watched her go with sad eyes. "She's taking it almost as badly as you are," she murmured to Blackpaw. "Don't let her hurt you. She's just grieving."

Irritated, Blackpaw sat up and glared at Echopaw. "Can't you mouse-brains just let me be?"

Echopaw sighed and stood up. "Alright. Don't forget that we're still here for you, though." She turned and started to exit the den.

"Wait," Blackpaw called out as a thought struck him.

Echopaw stopped and looked back. "Yes?"

"Where's the hole Redpaw snuck out from?" Blackpaw asked.

Echopaw hesitated, then padded over to the back wall. She used her claws to separate the brambles. "It's right here. Dewpaw showed it to us last night."

Blackpaw stared at it for a long heartbeat, then lied back down. "I hate it."

"If it wasn't there... Maybe Redpaw would still be alive. But maybe not," Echopaw meowed. "We can't change it now." Finally, she turned and left.

Blackpaw waited until she was safely out of sight before jumping to his paws and going over to the secret exit. He didn't trust his denmates not to come back. He didn't think he could stand to see their eyes look down at him in pity, or hear their meaningless words of sympathy any longer. He glanced back to make certain no one was there to watch him before slipping out through the den wall, wincing as broken branches scratched his sides.

He needed to be alone, to grieve in peace without anyone trying to reassure him that Redpaw was somewhere better now, or that he couldn't have done anything to save him. Because it was his fault that his best friend was dead. If Blackpaw hadn't come up with that stupid plan to try and expose the traitors, then Redpaw wouldn't have gone looking for him. And he wasn't somewhere better now, because he wasn't at Blackpaw's side, where he was meant to be.

Blackpaw lowered his head and hurried through the forest, heading towards the river.

~~~

"Leafsky and Basilwisp, you two can join Shademask and Iriswhisper on a hunting patrol," Morningrose told the pair. The two nodded and padded over to the other half of their patrol, waiting by the camp entrance.

Featherwing, Smokefern, Echolight, and Kestrelberry had already left on a border patrol, and Morningrose had given Tinypaw, Echopaw, and Viperpaw permission to go train with their mentors Runningstream, Tigersplash, and Rosepool. This only left a pawful of cats available in the camp. With the extra guard rotations and the rule that everyone had to be out in groups of four or more, it was becoming very difficult for warriors to find the time to rest.

Morningrose waited to make sure that Iriswhisper, Shademask, Leafsky, and Basilwisp were leaving promptly, being nodded at by Dewpaw on guard, before turning to walk to the medicine den. The deputy wanted to speak with Dawnpetal. Perhaps the medicine cat would have some herbs to help boost energy and stamina.

In the forest, the four cats on the hunting patrol traveled togther, but it quickly became clear that their group was much too big to successfully track down any prey. Every time they caught a scent, whatever animal they started tracking would become aware of their presence and scramble to safety well before any of the warriors could get close.

Finally Iriswhisper sat back with a scowl. "This is pointless. We'll never make a catch like this! We need to split up."

Basilwisp nodded in agreement, as though he had been waiting for someone to say that. His white tail-tip started flicking excitedly. "That's fine. We'll definitely do better in pairs," he answered immediately. He turned to smile at his mate. "Come on Leafsky, you're with me!"

Leafsky stepped eagerly to Basilwisp's side, but Shademask hesitated, their stare narrowing at the pair. "No," Shademask meowed. "I think we should mix it up a little bit. Just in case." They gestured with their tail. "Basilwisp will go with me, and Leafsky can hunt with Iriswhisper."

Leafsky scowled at the dark gray and black warrior. "You don't trust us?"

Iriswhisper merely shrugged. "It doesn't make any difference to me, but let's just get on with it," she huffed.

"Fine," Basilwisp muttered, padding over to stand beside Shademask. "Let's go." Leafsky gave him a helpless glance, which Basilwisp returned with a silent promise that they would have some time together soon. His mate smiled as if she could understand his thoughts.

They split up, Basilwisp and Shademask picking a direction while Iriswhisper and Leafsky went the opposite. It wasn't long before Shademask froze, their nose twitching as they scented the air. "I smell vole," Shademask announced quietly. "Some distance away, but its trail goes that way." They pointed with their nose.

Basilwisp let himself sink down to a crouch to hide in the grasses. "You follow the trail. I'll circle around and try to catch it if it runs from you," he told his hunting partner in a whisper.

Shademask nodded, their eyes lighting up with excitement at the prospect of a catch, and they stalked off without needing any further encouragement.

Basilwisp waited until they were definitely out of sight before he straightened up. That had been almost too easy, he thought, starting to run after Iriswhisper and Leafsky. Shademask was so oblivious that they wouldn't notice he was gone until it was too late. He didn't have anything against Shademask, but, well, he needed to be with his mate.

Basilwisp rapidly approached where Iriswhisper and Leafsky had gone, and paused only when he had the two she-cats in sight. They were both wandering around, sniffing for scents. Leafsky turned around and met Basilwisp's gaze. Her amber eyes lit up in confusion, but she said nothing.

Basilwisp flicked his tail in a silent plea for her to come with him. Leafsky refused with an almost imperceptible shake of her head, and looked sideways. Basilwisp followed her gaze to Iriswhisper, who was coming nearer to them without seeing Basilwisp yet. The tom jerked his head in answer and slunk towards the pale gray she-cat.

"Iriswhisper," he hissed when he was close enough. Iriswhisper whirled around, narrowing her eyes when she saw Basilwisp.

"Why aren't you with Shademask?" the spotted warrior demanded with a lash of her tail. "Where are they?"

Basilwisp crouched down lower and flattened his ears as though ashamed. "Please, Iriswhisper, I know we were supposed to stay in our pairs, and I'm sorry for leaving Shademask..." he let his voice trail off, then come back soft and full of emotion. "But I really need to spend some time with my mate. Alone. Please," he mewed.

Iriswhisper just narrowed her eyes further. "Why should I trust you?" she demanded.

"Because I'm your clanmate," Basilwisp responded. "And I know that's a stupid answer... But it's all I've got." He took a deep breath. "Please," he repeated.

By this time Leafsky had padded to Basilwisp's side and brushed up against his pelt in encouragement before gazing at Iriswhisper with a pleading gaze.

Iriswhisper finally flicked an ear. "Fine. But don't get yourselves -- or me -- in trouble," she told them.

Basilwisp let his teeth show in a wide grin. "Thanks, Iriswhisper. I knew you'd understand," he purred. The black and white tom flicked his mate's shoulder with his tail and they turned away without waiting to see Iriswhisper's reaction.

Basilwisp led the way at a brisk trot, Leafsky keeping pace beside him. She brushed up against him as they walked.

"Thanks, Basilwisp," she purred. "Everything's just been so hectic lately... I feel like we haven't had any alone time."

"I feel the same way," Basilwisp admitted. They'd left Iriswhisper behind. Leafsky started to slow down, but Basilwisp nudged her side to make her continue. "Come on, let's keep going."

They continued on for a little while, but eventually Leafsky stopped and pulled back. She looked questioningly to her mate. "Basilwisp, where are we going?" she asked. Her voice held the slightest edge of suspicion.

"Just putting a little bit of distance between us and the others," Basilwisp insisted, but when he gestured for them to keep walking, Leafsky shook her head and sat down.

"No, this is far enough. Why did you really come for me, Basilwisp?" Leafsky demanded.

They faced off, black and white versus dark tortoiseshell, and finally Basilwisp let out an audible exhale and gave in. "We're leaving the territory," he told his mate.

Leafsky flattened her ears and furrowed her brows. "What? Why?"

"It's too dangerous for us in the clan," Basilwisp explained. "I need to keep you safe. And since the clan isn't safe anymore, that means we need to leave it."

Leafsky hissed and took an involuntary step back as though her whole being was repulsed by the words. "So you're running away?" she meowed fiercely.

"I'm doing it to protect you. To protect us," Basilwisp insisted. He stepped towards her, letting his cheek brush hers and a purr rumble in his chest. "Don't you want a future together?"

Leafsky jerked away. "Not with a traitor," she hissed. "Not with a coward and a traitor."

The purr turned into a growl. "I'm not a traitor. I'm trying to save you from the real traitors! The ones that would kill us! Can't you see that?" Basilwisp snapped. "We're leaving. Right now."

Leafsky's eyes turned cold. "No, we're not," she responded. "I don't need your protection. I don't need you." She turned tail, walking away without giving the tom a second glance.

The growl died in Basilwisp's chest, and where it had been, he could hear only the emptiness of a shattered heart. Leafsky had gone, and it was just him, facing empty trees, cold and alone.

~~~

The cat pricked its ears, listening. It could hear the rush of the river and hitched breathing. The feline crouched down and slunk forward, its bright eyes picking out the small hunched form of a certain black-furred apprentice grieving by the side of the river. The cat's teeth gleamed in a wicked smile. It was pure chance that they'd been alone in this forest. And it would now have another chance to strike a physical blow against the social structure of the clan it hated so very much.

Blackpaw was too absorbed in his grief to notice anything as the hunter stalked silently closer. His head was bowed over his chest, his eyes closed, his mouth muttering silent apologies to his fellow apprentice, killed the day before. Not by this same traitor's paws, of course, but it didn't matter. It was all the same in the end. Another cat dead. Another step closer to the end of the clan.

The hunter pounced, one paw pushing Blackpaw to the ground and the other forcing his head into the water. Blackpaw screamed, but the sound was lost to bubbles and rushing current. The traitor hissed as the apprentice thrashed under its grip, and it extended its claws, pinning him down. Blackpaw strained to lift his head out of the water, but to no avail, and the air he'd lost when he screamed was gone.

Gradually the apprentice's movements slowed, and then stopped. He was unconscious. But not dead yet, the traitor knew, and it kept Blackpaw's head fully submerged in the river as it tried to tame its own heavy breathing. Blackpaw had struggled, but not as much as the cat had expected. His grief had left him weak.

A minute passed, then another, and then a third. Finally the traitor relaxed its grip on the apprentice's limp body and stepped back. The wicked grin had returned. An easy kill - and easy to hide, too. A single sweep of the cat's paw sent Blackpaw's entire body tumbling into the rushing river. The traitor watched thoughtfully as his body was swept away, nothing more than a mass of black fur just under the surface. He would undoubtedly get washed up somewhere downstream, where a border patrol would find his dead body. And if not, well... the traitor shrugged. It wouldn't be the first time Blackpaw had gone missing.

The cat lifted its gaze to the trees above. Now, just to catch some prey, and it would be the perfect day.

~~~

Back at camp, Graystar was humming to herself as she went around the camp. She had finally sent Smallcloud to get some rest and gotten Icespark to replace him as the Highrock guard. Smokeflash and Snowstrike had switched places Featherpath and Dewpaw on guard as well. The three apprentices and their mentors had returned from training, and the border patrol of Echolight, Featherwing, Kestrelberry and Smokefern had come back a little while ago.

Lightdream was gathering more cats for a second hunting patrol. Honeyrose, Tigersplash, and Dewpaw jumped to join him. They cheerfully decided on Honeyrose's suggestion to hunt in the rocky area downstream, since Iriswhisper's patrol had gone to the thicker part of the forest. Lightdream and Tigersplash had a short glaring competition about who would lead the patrol, but finally Lightdream just shot Tigersplash a cheeky grin and ran out in front, gesturing for the others to follow him. Tigersplash glowered, but followed.

Graystar smiled as she watched them go, then turned to look at the rest of the camp.

Rainsong had woken up again and was drowsily eating a bird.

Kestrelberry, returned from the border patrol, had returned to sitting alone in the corner of camp with his shoulders hunched and his gaze on the ground. As Graystar watched, however, Rosepool padded up to him with a small mouse, which she offered to him. When Kestrelberry timidly looked up, Rosepool mewed "no deathberries, I promise," and laid the mouse at his feet. Kestrelberry gave her a shy smile and took a bite. Rosepool then sat beside him, starting up a light conversation.

Graystar couldn't help but feel grateful to Rosepool for giving Kestrelberry hope. The golden tom had been sitting alone for the past couple days, cast out by the clanmates who still blamed him for Snowsong's death.

A rustle at the camp entrance announced the arrival of the first hunting patrol. Leafsky came first, her eyes strangely cold and carrying a mouse, followed by Shademask, who held a finch in their jaws but was muttering to themself around it. Iriswhisper followed close after, with a sparrow and an annoyed expression that spoke of just how long Shademask had been muttering. Last came Basilwisp, empty-pawed and with a curiously empty expression. The first three cats made a beeline for the prey pile, but Basilwisp held back, watching Leafsky helplessly for a few heartbeats before lowering his head and slipping into the warrior's den.

Graystar tilted her head. Had something happened between the two mates? She wasn't sure, but she thought that just for a brief moment she'd seen similar flashes of anger in their eyes.

Shademask cleared their throat beside her and Graystar startled, being snapped back to present. She turned to look at the masked warrior. "Yes, Shademask, what is it?"

Shademask lifted their chin with a haughty gesture and mewed, "Graystar, I think you ought to know that Basilwisp ditched me during the hunting patrol." Shademask paused to shoot an injured glare in the direction of the warrior's den, where Basilwisp had gone. "We were divided into pairs, and he was hunting with me. He told me he would circle around to help with a catch but then he ditched me!" The warrior's voice rose indignantly with every word.

Graystar's eyes widened in alarm but she touched her tail to Shademask's flank to calm them. "Easy, now. Did he tell you where he'd gone?"

Shademask shook her head. "No. I just kept hunting until I caught my finch. Then when I went to meet back up with Leafsky and Iriswhisper, we sat and waited for him and he came back a little while later. But he hadn't caught anything." They glared at the den again.

Graystar hummed thoughtfully. "Thank you for telling me, Shademask. I'll go talk to him."

"If you can. He's all silent and broody right now," Shademask responded with a sniff.

Graystar decided to leave Basilwisp for the moment and instead padded over to where Iriswhisper and Leafsky were still by the freshkill pile.

"Iriswhisper, Leafsky, a moment please?" Graystar asked, and both she-cats faced her. "I hear Basilwisp left the patrol. Do you know where he went?"

Leafsky hesitated and exchanged glances with Iriswhisper as though she was looking for backup. "Well..." she started. "He came to us and said he wanted to spend some time with me. Alone. But we were busy hunting, so I told him to go back to Shademask. Then I guess he just wandered off by himself."

Iriswhisper nodded, supporting the theory. "Though I can't imagine what he was doing by himself. He didn't even manage to come back with any prey," Iriswhisper added. She rolled her eyes. "Toms."

Leafsky made a huffed sound of agreement.

Just then, Lightdream came running into camp, panting and yelling fiercely. "Graystar!" Lightdream called. He stopped and crouched down to catch his breath. "Graystar," he said again, and the leader sprinted over to him.

"What is it? What happened?" Graystar demanded.

Lightdream looked up, his amber eyes full of painful sorrow. "It's Blackpaw," he said. "We found him..." he had to stop and take a few breaths, while Graystar started shaking her head. She didn't want to hear this. "We found him in the river. Drowned."

"Blackpaw's dead."

---

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