Harehop's eyes flew open as the sound of yowling erupted around the ThunderClan camp. Horror gripped her as she watched Fireheart standing motionless, even as the enemy cat slipped away into the forest. A glimpse of a striped tail disappeared, and in an instant, Harehop's kits were pressed against her side.

"Mother, I think Father was just here," Snowkit mewed, his voice trembling with distress.

Swiftly, Harehop rose to her paws, her kits following close behind as she emerged from the nursery. Chatter was buzzing all around them as the Clan cats meowed urgently, sharing the shocking news. "Who will be the new deputy now?" Runningwind's question hung in the air.

Fireheart glanced towards Bluestar, but the ThunderClan leader had already turned and was retreating to her den, her head low and her steps heavy, as if weighed down by sickness. There would be no announcement from her just yet.

"Fireheart should be the new deputy!" Swiftpaw declared, bouncing with excitement. "He would make a wonderful deputy!"

Darkstripe's eyes narrowed skeptically. "Fireheart? A kittypet?" he scoffed. Harehop felt a fierce protectiveness surge within her, and she hissed at the senior warrior. "Hold your tongue, mouse-brain," she snapped, her fur bristling. Bluestar fixed Harehop with a cool, warning gaze. "Calm down, Harehop," she meowed calmly, but Harehop could not help the low growl that rumbled in her throat as Darkstripe turned and stalked away, his tail held high in disdain.

Snowkit pressed against Harehop's side, his blue eyes filled with understanding. "It's alright, Mother. I would have ripped his ears off too," he murmured.

"Well, Fireheart," Graystripe's voice called out as he approached, his gaze filled with concern as he looked to Harehop. He leaned in closer and whispered, "Are you okay?" Harehop simply nodded, her heart heavy with the uncertainty that now hung over ThunderClan.

Graystripe turned to Fireheart. "You've already been deputy long enough, so I don't understand what the cats are fussing about," he meowed. Harehop nodded. "Yes, he was deputy long before that mangy Tigerstar decided to come back," she sighed. Then she lowered her head and looked intently at Graystripe. "How are you doing?" he asked. "Are the wounds very bad?"

"He'll be alright," Ashpaw mewed. "But his tongue got scratched up, and it's still bleeding. I don't know what to do for an injured tongue. Harehop, can you fetch Yellowfang for me?"

"Of course." She swept her tail over her kits' heads before leaving them with Fireheart and Graystripe and heading towards the tunnel. As she pushed through the soft, green ferns, she heard Yellowfang's voice. Something about it—perhaps its unusual gentleness for Yellowfang—made her linger in the shelter of the bent fronds for a moment longer. "Hold still, Brokentail. You've lost a life," Yellowfang murmured. "You're going to be alright."

"What do you mean?" Brokentail growled, his voice weak from blood loss. "If I have a life left, why do my wounds still hurt?"

"StarClan has healed the wound that killed you," Yellowfang explained, still in that same soft murmur that sent shivers down Harehop's spine. "The others need a medicine cat's skills."

"What are you waiting for, you scrawny old nuisance?" Brokentail hissed. "Do it. Give me something for this pain."

"Alright, alright." Yellowfang's voice suddenly turned icy, and a wave of dread washed over Harehop. "Here. Eat these berries, and the pain will go away forever."

Harehop watched in horror as Yellowfang carefully pawed something forward. Deliberately, she rolled three shining red berries in front of the injured Brokentail, guiding his paw to touch them. Suddenly, Harehop was transported back to a snowy day in leaf-fall. Swiftpaw was staring at a small, dark-leaved bush bearing crimson berries, and Ashpaw mewed, "The berries are so poisonous that we call them deathberries. Even one can kill you."

Dread flooded Harehop's senses as she realized what Yellowfang was doing. She wanted to leap forward and knock the berries away, to scream at the medicine cat to stop, but her paws felt rooted to the spot. She watched in helpless horror as Brokentail, the former ShadowClan leader who had terrorized the forest, slowly drew the deathberries towards his mouth.

"What are you waiting for?" Brokentail rasped, his voice laced with pain and impatience. "Give me something for this agony."

Yellowfang's eyes were cold and unforgiving as she replied, "As you wish." She watched, unmoving, as Brokentail consumed the deadly berries, his body convulsing in the throes of their poison.

Harehop wanted to turn away, to block out the sight and sound of Brokentail's agonizing death, but she found herself unable to tear her gaze from the terrible scene unfolding before her. She knew, in that moment, that Yellowfang had made a choice – a choice to end the life of the cat who had caused so much suffering and destruction in the forest. A choice that, while abhorrent, was perhaps the only way to truly bring peace.

As Brokentail's final breaths rattled in his throat, Harehop felt a deep, unsettling sadness wash over her. For all the wrongs he had committed, he was still a cat – a living, breathing being. And now, by Yellowfang's own paw, his life had been extinguished. The weight of that knowledge hung heavy in the air, leaving Harehop shaken to the core.

Harehop took a deep, steadying breath and, unable to bear watching more, retreated back to the far end of the fern tunnel, trembling, until the sounds of Brokentail's final struggle faded away. She shook her head and made her way back in. Brokentail lay lifeless in the middle of the small clearing. The old medicine cat crouched beside him, her nose pressed to his side. As Harehop approached, Yellowfang lifted her head. Her eyes were filled with anguish, and she looked older and more weary than ever before.

"Hello," Yellowfang rasped. Harehop nodded to her. "Ashpaw sent me to ask what we should do for a scratched tongue."

Yellowfang struggled to her paws as if she, too, could feel the numbing touch of the deathberries. "Tell him I'm coming," she croaked. "I just need to fetch the right herb."

Still unsteady, she hobbled over to her den. She did not turn to look back even once at Brokentail's motionless body.

Harehop watched her go, a deep sense of sadness and unease weighing heavily in her heart. She knew that what Yellowfang had done, as horrific as it was, had likely been a necessary evil – a way to finally end the reign of terror that Brokentail had inflicted upon the Clans. But the cost of that decision was etched in the medicine cat's weary features, a burden she would carry for the rest of her days.

Harehop let out a shaky sigh and made her way back to the nursery, her mind whirling with the events that had just unfolded. She knew she would need to be strong, not just for her own kits, but for the entire Clan, as they grappled with the aftermath of this tragic day.