Darkstorm rushed to Thinfur on speedy paws. Her thoughts coursed through her brain. Why did you go? Why did you come back? "What happened?" she ended up blurting. Thinfur winced as he answered.

"I need your help..." Yes, we get that! What happened? 

"You do," Shadeflight replied, grabbing Thinfur by the scruff. Orangetail rushed over to help him. The rest of the clan just sat there, watching in confusion. 

"ShadowClan!" Treestar's gaze swept through the cats. "Do not go. I feel that there is news within the Clan that we do not know about." Darkstorm swallowed. Does he know? But... Arrowheart hasn't seen me for a moon! She stood firmly on the ground. Treestar didn't know. And if he did, he wasn't mad. She had just become a warrior! "Orangetail," he snapped. What? Has Orangetail done something? Really? "You have broken the Warrior Code. Do you have anything to say for yourself?" Orangetail glared back at him.

"The warrior code is stupid," she spat. "Or at least, it is right now. I think we should change it. What's the harm in loving? What's the harm for a medicine cat to have kits? Why do we need gatherings if the Clans will attack anyway?" Darkstorm stifled a gasp. 

"You can't love a cat from other Clans. Otherwise, you won't be loyal."

"But why-"

"It's too tempting for a medicine cat to treat their kits before heavily injured warriors. And we need gatherings because we also need a time to show we are not savages, and to praise warriors for becoming warriors and kits for apprentices. But you have not followed the Warrior Code. Why don't you tell everyone what you've done?" Treestar responded. Orangetail scowled.

"Why don't I?" Unwavering, the ginger warrior continued. "I love a cat from another clan. A medicine cat. And he loves me. So if you want me to leave ShadowClan, I will, but do you want to, really? I'm still a loyal ShadowClan cat; I can still be loyal, and you know I'm a valuable warrior." Her gaze softened as she met Darkstorm's. I will fight for you, my friend, Darkstorm thought. And Orangetail understood. "And I have friends here." 

"Which medicine cat?" Treestar snapped. Orangetail shrunk back.

"Snarlfang," she lowered her voice. "From ThunderClan."

"Was that all a show? That StarClan is mad at us?" Treestar demanded. 

"No."

"So he disobeyed StarClan, did he?" Darkstorm sprang up.

"No! I bet that he thinks, like Orangetail, that we should change the Code! Maybe that is why StarClan is angry!" Treestar snarled.

"And are you a loyal ShadowClan warrior? Did I make a mistake in choosing you to be a warrior?" This time, Grassfang pushed forward.

"No. My apprentice is loyal." He shot Darkstorm a knowing glance. He knows, she realized with a growing horror. But he still trusts me. 

"Orangetail. You can stay- for now. And Darkstorm, be careful. Same with you, Grassfang." Does he know, too? Darkstorm wondered, looking up at Treestar. Orangetail raised her chin as she stalked towards the warrior's den. That was such a great after-ceremony, Darkstorm thought bitterly. "You can go now," Treestar yowled. ShadowClan began to move away. Badgerfang was looking at where Orangetail had been sitting with pure disgust in her eyes. Darkstorm sighed and ran to the medicine den.

"I heard," Shadeflight murmured. "I think..." he trailed off before regaining his voice. "I think Orangetail is right. Not about the gatherings, though. That was... a stretch." Thinfir weakly rolled his head.

"Are you a warrior?" he mewed. 

"I'm Darkstorm now," the black she-cat answered proudly.

"And I'm Shadeflight. Don't worry about the name," he added. Thinfur smiled.

"The kits are all grown up, do you hear that, my love?" he sighed distantly. "Our little Darkkit and Shadekit." Darkstorm and Shadeflight exchanged a glance.

"Who is our mother?" Shadeflight murmured. Thinfur blinked.

"Don't you know? Rabbitear," he muttered. "Oh, Rabbitear... We have to save her! We have to save Onyx, too... But she's dead, he killed her, she's dead..." Is he crazy? Darkstorm wondered. Yeah. I wonder who our mother really is.

"I'm going to go and check on Orangetai-" Shadeflight nudged Darkstorm. 

"Come with me. You and Orangetail. Thinfur just needs to rest for a while; he'll be alright by himself." Darkstorm nodded, confused, and found Orangetail.

"Come," she murmured. The orange-eyed cat followed Darkstorm and Shadeflight to the Dead Tree. "Shadeflight wants us," she explained. 

"Well, we know you aren't the apprentice," Shadeflight mewed. "At the Moonpool, the recent one, Jay Wing told me so." Orangetail snorted.

"You thought I was the apprentice?" Darkstorm chuckled at Orangetail's expression.

"It does seem mouse-brained. But we couldn't take any risk. So now it's either Slatepaw..."

"Me," Shadeflight added, "and Arrowheart." He blinked. "Orangetail. Do you really think we should change the Code?" 

"Yeah," Orangetail muttered. "Not take it away completely," she clarified, alarmed, "but change it." Shadeflight closed his eyes.

"I agree. And I know you do, Darkstorm, even if you won't admit it." He opened them and continued, "we medicine cats all agree. All of us. But the leaders?" he sighed. Orangetail nodded cheekily, but understandlingly.

"So how's it going with Arrowheart?" she asked. Darkstorm jumped.

"You know? I thought- I hoped only Grassfang, I think he knows," she admitted. "Who else?"

"You aren't exactly great at keeping secrets," Shadeflight mewed. "But that... isn't what I wanted to talk about. Orangetail, I want to ask Slatepaw some things. Before, Darkstorm and I spoke to Bushpaw, pretending to have medicine cat business with Snarlfang- who didn't even know that we were there-" she faltered, "but I can't go to ThunderClan with Darkstorm again, as it would be too suspicious. So could you go with me?" Orangetail nodded.

"Sure. But... what if it isn't Slatepaw?" Orangetail murmured, glancing at Darkstorm. "Also, how did you check on every single apprentice in each Clan?!"

"We didn't," Darkstorm explained. "We figured that it would be a useless clue if we didn't know, or at least have met, the apprentice."

"Oh. I can see that. So when do we go?"

"How about now?" Darkstorm butted in. "Because later you'll have to check on Thinfur again, Shadeflight, and Orangetail won't have any duties... at least for now." Shadeflight nodded. 

"Then let's go. And Darkstorm?" She looked at her littermate. "I have a feeling you should check on Arrowheart. I don't know when you're supposed to see each other, but go to the RiverClan camp and make an excuse." 

"Okay," she agreed, speeding through the forest toward the border with RiverClan. Her skinniness helped, even though she was hungry, to get there quickly. She stopped when she found a scent-mark and waited for a patrol.

"Hey!" a silver tom snapped. "Who are you? Do you think you're going to steal RiverClan territory?" Startled, Darkstorm lurched back.

"No, no! I need to see your medicine cat," she blurted. A tortoiseshell she-cat appeared beside her.

"Why?"

"Er... Shadeflight sent me," she blurted. "It's medicine cat stuff, something about a dream?" The tortoiseshell she-cat nodded.

"Come. You'd better not try anything," she added. I'm not going to attack your medicine cat! Darkstorm protested in her head. Her eyes widened as she was taken to a den. It was made of reeds and mud. "Get in there and talk to Finspot. You don't have a lotta time. We need our medicine cat." She glared at him, perched outside the den.

"Hello?" she mewed nervously. A grey tom greeted her. "I have a message from Shadeflight. About the Code," she added, lowering her voice.

"And?" the medicine cat asked. 

"I need to talk to Arrowheart," she blurted. "Er... He told me that I had to... give him a message, personally, yes." Please please please... 

"You yung un's. He's here. He got hurt." Darkstorm's eyes widened. Right here? Uh oh. She glanced at Finspot. "I don't care about lovey-doveys. Ya wanna talk, you can talk. I'm not repeatin' whatever you say to Coralstar. Shadeflight must've told you that I don't care about cross-clan business." Oh. Good. Darkstorm spotted a shape in the corner of the den, on a bed of moss.

"Arrowheart," she whispered, deciding to trust Finspot. "Arrowheart!" He rolled over.

"Hey, Darkpaw. You come to me in the middle of the camp now? Wait, are you Darkpaw anymore?"

"I'm Darkstorm," she explained. "But Shadeflight told me he had a feeling that you were in trouble, and that I should check on you." Arrowheart smiled smugly.

"It was only a small flood," he mewed. "There was just a kit that I helped, one that didn't swim."

"And you banged yourself against some underwater log," Finspot snapped. "Be careful when you're swimming." 

"Eh. Whatever. But I'm okay." Darkstorm looked at Finspot and lowered her voice.

"Next quarter-moon, same place, same time." Arrowheart nodded. "Did that red warrior visit you?"

"Oh yeah. She's here now," he added. Darkstorm jumped. "She trains me. A lot. Everyday." He snorted. "You should probably go. I'm surprised Coralstar hasn't barged in here already." 

Darkstorm pressed her nose to his forehead.

"Next quarter-moon," she agreed. "I'll see you then." As she walked out of the den, she stole a longing glance at the tom. But then another  cat padded into the den, and she had to leave, and the time she had with Arrowheart ended all too soon.

So I tried to include Arrowheart in this chapter. Hmm. Did Orangetail surprise you? What do you think will happen? I'll probably change the cover to something better- don't worry. Thank you all for reading this! These views make my day, and I can't believe that there are 219 of them!

-Shadowstorm