Lilypetal's POV

The grogginess of sleep still seemed to be plaguing me as I sat beneath what was left of Silverpelt. The sky was a calming pale blue mixed with pink, only a few bright specks shining among it.

From where I sat just in front of the lake, I could feel the moistness of the early morning dew dampening my paws. The only sounds I could hear were the quietest ripples of the lake water, and the birds chirping as they always did when dawn was approaching.

I had never been up to hear or see all of these things very often, but because I had faced yet another restless night of sleep, plagued with more unusual dreams, I was now.

Or, dream, rather. Just one. A single kittypet dream with a single flashback, but just as lifelike as if I were experiencing it all over again. It was one that I had vaguely remembered up until now - the time that I had actually witnessed a border skirmish as a kittypet.

I had been peeking through the slits of my tall wooden fence, staring out into the forest as I always did at my past home - the home near the Clans' old forest territory.

This particular day, my stomach had practically twisted upside down with fear as I noticed a kittypet - a pale ginger tabby with dark stripes, one I had never seen before - wandering towards the forest many, many fox-lengths away from where I was.

From all of the spying I had done at this point, I knew that this tom was likely making his way into Clan territory, if he hadn't passed that mark already. Although his actions had seemed rebellious and brave to me at the time, I had felt a twinge of jealousy as well, wishing that I had that same courage to let my curiosity get the best of me and explore the forest, and find these wild cats that lived lives that I was so enamored with.

And although that would eventually happen, thank StarClan, I simply stayed in place as I continued to watch this tabby tom, his fur slightly bristled as he constantly whipped his head from side to side cautiously.

I had then let out a very audible gasp as I noticed three new shapes appear into my sight. I hadn't known who these cats were at the time, but I now recognized them easily as Dustpelt, Sandstorm, and Sorreltail (likely Sorrelpaw at the time). Present-me had been able to deduce that they were on a border patrol, and had clearly caught the scent of this kittypet by the urgency in their pawsteps.

The kittypet had backed away, its gaze fearful as Dustpelt's gaze fell on him, and he let out an angry hiss. "Hey, you!" the tabby tom had growled. "What are you doing here?"

I had watched, my eyes wide as the strange tom then struggled to find his words. "I... I-"

"This is ThunderClan territory, and you are well inside of our border," Dustpelt pressed, interrupting whatever explanation the kittypet had been about to give, if he had even had one.

Sandstorm had then rolled her emerald green eyes and quickly ran up to Dustpelt's side. "Dustpelt, take it easy," the pale ginger she-cat urged him. "It's just a kittypet."

Dustpelt let out another hiss, seemingly ignoring Sandstorm's reassuring words. "A kittypet that is on our territory!" I had then felt my own fur begin to bristle fearfully as Dustpelt lowered down, his claws slowly sliding out as his lips curled back into a snarl.

To my relief, Sandstorm had quickly intercepted him, while Sorrelpaw simply watched the whole scene unfold in alarm. "A kittypet that clearly didn't realize that they were," Sandstorm had meowed sharply. She then lashed her tail towards the stranger, whose legs were clearly shaking. "Just let him leave. You've scared him enough."

For a moment, it had seemed like Dustpelt wasn't going to comply. But, luckily for the kittypet, after Dustpelt met Sandstorm's hard gaze again, he let out a small growl and stood up. "Fine," he muttered before turning around and flicking his tail towards the kittypet. "Get out. Now. The next time you're not getting off so easily."

I had quickly averted my gaze back to the kittypet with Dustpelt's words. The tabby tom, obviously very shaken now, gave a few anxious nods before pelting in the opposite direction of the patrol, back towards the Twolegplace. Wow... I had thought as I watched the tom's pale ginger pelt disappear from my sight. He got off without a single scratch!

I had then looked back towards the border patrol, and watched as Dustpelt, Sandstorm and Sorrelpaw left the clearing as well. I could just barely hear Dustpelt's scoffing as they headed deeper into their territory.

I had stared straight at the place that the three of them had stood in for what felt like moons, absolutely blown away by what I had just seen. Although I purred with amusement each time I looked back on this - I used to assume that wild cats never showed any cat that wasn't one of their own any mercy. If you stole their prey, intruded on their land, or even tried to talk to them, you were as good as dead!

But this moment had been the first time that I had ever seen these wild cats do otherwise. I had been so overwhelmed with admiration and awe at seeing them ruthlessly protect their territory, but still handle an intruder with fairness and "grace", in a way.

I suppose that later on, I would come to find out that that was part of what it meant to be a true warrior, but I had been completely oblivious to that then, of course.

Which was why... I had no idea why I had dreamed of this at all. This dream - along with many of the other flashbacks I had experienced - didn't make much sense to me at all. I still didn't understand why they had emerged so recently - whether they were coming from my subconscious, a sign...

I had come to realize that they almost seemed to be at a... battle with my "visits" to the Dark Forest. The nights that my darkest dreams were the strongest, my kittypet dreams would be minimal to non-existent, and vice versa.

Which meant that last night, I had only had my single vivid flashback, nothing else. I hate to admit that that was almost disappointing to me, if these kittypet dreams were truly blocking out any of my encounters with the Dark Forest.

Right now, when I was in quite an interesting bind - deciding whether to take advantage of an evil cat's proposal, or leaving the situation be, I almost wondered if being in the Dark Forest - seeing Ashfur or Tigerstar again - would give me a better idea of what I could do... how to make use of the situation.

Great StarClan, did I have a huge headache.

Not only had I gone out to the lake because I hadn't been able to sleep, but I had wanted to clear my head - something I feel like I was doing often at this point. After a bit of lying awake in my nest, I had decided to quietly and cautiously leave the den - making sure not to wake up Thornclaw in our nest - and go to a place that brought me some comfort before another busy day of training in the tunnels.

The lake was a beautiful sight that calmed me, especially in this time of day. It was also where I felt closest to my mother, Mistpelt, as the lake was the place that she had fearlessly gone up to StarClan, saving my own kits.

I hadn't heard anything from her since she had died, so every once in a while I tried to "reach" her, in a sense, by sitting by the lake. Oh, Mistpelt, I'd give so much just to get a bit of your guidance right now... I thought solemnly as I stared out at the water. Where are you?

Although I hadn't expected any sort of response, I still felt a twinge of disappointment as the silence of my surroundings carried on. You know, when she wasn't lying or hiding things about our family, she was truly one of the wisest cats that I knew.

After a few moments, I then finally let out a long sigh and stood up, deciding that I needed to return to camp. Dawn was nearly here, and I wanted to be on call and ready to go when Brambleclaw was to organize the patrols for the day.

I quickly broke into a run, feeling wet droplets fall onto my pelt as I stepped through the dewy grass. I'm not one to be late, and I'd like to keep it that way!

Then, I skidded to a halt, almost sure that I was just hearing things through my fatigue, when I recognized Firestar's yowl come from the ThunderClan camp just a little ways ahead. "Wake up! Every cat, into the clearing!"

I then gasped with the ThunderClan leaders next words. "WindClan is attacking!"

Holy pile of maggots...

I burst into a sprint once again, now more determined than ever to get back home. I let out a nearly breathless sigh of relief as the gorse tunnel came into sight, and I then swiftly slipped through it and into camp.

Well, actually, only traveling through the tunnel itself was swift.

I had just barely made my way out of it when I crashed head-on into the golden brown tabby fur of my mate, and it was all that I could see for a moment.

I then backed away from Thornclaw as I shook my head quickly, trying to get my focus back as fast as I could. Once everything around me had definite shapes again, I shook out my fur and took a step closer to the tabby tom. "Oh my goodness! I'm so sorry, Thornclaw!" I meowed to him, my eyes wide. "Are you okay?"

Thornclaw also shook his head quickly, blinking a few times as he did so. "I will be once I stop seeing you with two heads..." He then gave himself one more shake before he finally seemed to be in focus again. He let out a small purr and padded up to stand beside me. "I'm sorry, too."

He then bent down and began to gently rub his muzzle on the top of my head. "I think I got you right in the head," he purred to me, a bit of worry in his voice. "Are you alright?"

"Oh, don't worry! I'm completely fine," I reassured my mate as he pulled away to meet my gaze. I then let out a small purr and tilted my head as we stood up and began to urgently join the group of cats that were beginning to gather. "But I'm wondering what the heck you were doing standing right at the camp's entrance?"

"Oh, I knew that you had slipped from our nest a little bit ago, so I was just about to go out looking for you," my mate explained, then letting out a snort. "Well... it looks like I did... but I also found a bit of dizziness, too."

I let out a mrrow of laughter and gave Thornclaw an affectionate nuzzle. Even when we're about to go into battle, this one still manages to make me laugh...

I was just about to give my mate a teasing reply, but thought better of it once the many voices of my Clanmates grew louder, surely drowning out anything that I could say. They were either anxiously speaking with each other, or asking Firestar questions that the poor leader probably couldn't answer until every cat was in the clearing.

As I looked over the crowd of cats, I began to well up with pride as I almost instantly spotted Goldenshine, who was standing with Hollyleaf, Brambleclaw, and Firestar. Not only was I proud of all of the hard work she had done to train her Clanmates in the tunnels, but at the moment she looked so calm and dignified, as if the thought of battle wasn't scaring her at all.

For me, the battle jitters that I usually had were finally beginning to rise - a mix of nerves, an increase in adrenaline, excitement, and determination to defend my Clan in whatever way I needed to. Although fighting in the tunnels had been completely foreign to me, I was pretty confident in my abilities, and I hoped that all of Hollyleaf's and Goldenshine's wisdom would stick with me in the midst of the battle.

And as much as I hated any sort of conflict, I will admit that I was having some battle withdrawals. I hadn't fought in a full-on battle since the fight with ShadowClan over borders, just before I had found out that Thornclaw and I were expecting our second litter.

So, I was watching eagerly as Firestar and Brambleclaw were giving directions to the convened cats. "We will meet WindClan in the tunnels. We won't let them set a single paw on ThunderClan territory," Firestar was meowing out clearly to every cat. I was then confused to see him glance towards one specific cat - Dovewing. "As far as I know, WindClan hasn't trained to fight in the tunnels."

Despite my confusion, I quickly shook it off and was filled with triumph as I watched Firestar lift up his ginger head and call out, "ThunderClan will have the advantage!"

I then joined in as yowls of enthusiasm rippled across the camp. There seemed to be no uncertainty prickling among the group - we were certain that we were well-prepared for this battle, and we were going to kick these WindClan cats' rumps. And we're going to prove to Sol that no trouble he tries to cause us can bring us down!

Thornclaw and I then exchanged a determined glance before padding closer to overhear what plans were currently being laid out. "We'll split into three," Hollyleaf was meowing. "One patrol will enter the tunnel above the camp, a second will take the tunnel near the old Twoleg nest, and a third one by the lake. Our aim is to push the WindClan cats back into the cavern with the river."

"That sounds good to me," Goldenshine agreed with her friend, and partner in crime at the moment. "That's where we'll be given the most room to fight."

Brambleclaw had listened intently to the two younger she-cats' words, and proceeded to give them both an approving nod. The dark brown tabby then leaped up onto a boulder, and I watched in anticipation as he then seemed to be scanning through the group of cats, likely figuring out the battle patrols.

After a moment, the ThunderClan deputy gave a definitive nod. "I'll lead one," he began, "Hollyleaf and Goldenshine another..."

My ears then flicked in surprise as Brambleclaw's gaze fell on me, his amber eyes certain. "And Lilypetal," he continued, "You take the third."

Hold up.

A wave of pure shock and disbelief ran through me as I stared up at the deputy. I was almost tempted to question his words, but simultaneously, I was more than ready to do what was asked of me. "O-okay," I breathed, still completely bewildered. I then shook my head quickly and gave Brambleclaw a sharp nod. "Okay!"

I was an overwhelming mix of feelings of exhilaration and surprise as Brambleclaw then leaped back down from the boulder, and Firestar began to choose the cats who were to stay and guard the camp with him. Well then... apparently I performed better in the tunnels that I had originally thought! I realized as a knot slowly began to form in my stomach, and I suddenly felt like I really needed to poop.

I had never led a battle patrol before. I had assisted the leaders of battle patrols before, but I'd never done it completely on my own. I could hardly believe that Brambleclaw and Firestar were trusting me with this responsibility. It... it feels like such an honor!

Still in my state of astonishment, I slowly turned to face Thornclaw, whose pale blue eyes revealed immense pride and warmth. "Oh my StarClan, Thornclaw..." I breathed. "I'm leading a battle patrol..."

Thornclaw purred with amusement and flicked one of my ears with his tail. "Yes, you are," he replied before briefly licking my cheek. "And you're going to be absolutely fantastic."

I flashed my mate a grateful gaze as he pulled away, and I was instantly warmed by his words. "Oh, I sure hope so!" I exclaimed. I then watched Thornclaw's gaze soften as I mine locked with his, and I wound my tail around his own. "Do you want to join mine?"

A purr then rose in my throat as Thornclaw pressed his muzzle fiercely against mine. "Always."

I let my mate's touch ease me for just a moment. After I few heartbeats, I gave my mate a loving look and then proceeded to quickly flit my eyes around the camp, knowing that I needed to choose more cats for my group as soon as possible. Hm... but who to pick?

I tried to think as quickly as I could as I looked through the group of cats, and simultaneously trying to figure out which cats had already been chosen for other patrols. "Alright - Brackenfur, Dustpelt..." I began, narrowing my eyes as I concentrated on making my picks. "Whitewing, Rosepetal, and Foxleap - you're coming with me."

I then felt another rush of nerves and excitement as the cats I had called speedily ran up to me. I quickly did a headcount, making sure that I had everybody, before scanning my eyes across the group and giving them an inquiring gaze. "Are we ready?"

I instantly got nods and murmurs in reply. My patrol was ready to go, and I was the one leading to them to what they were ready for.

I gave the patrol a sharp nod, took a deep breath, and then proceeded to lead them out of camp. I could still not believe that I was at the very front of the patrol, and that I was giving so many directions.

I felt a bit bossy, but I knew that if I was to ever do this again, I'd have to get used to that irrational worry.

"Great, let's go!" I exclaimed as I crawled through the gorse tunnel once again. Once we were out into the forest, I then meowed, "To my knowledge, we are entering the tunnels through the entrance closest to the lake."

I then quickened my pace and lashed my tail, ordering the cats behind me to do the same. "It's a little ways away from here, but the other two patrols will need our assistance as soon as possible!" I explained, then breaking into a full run. "Let's get our blood pumping!"

I heard Whitewing purr with amusement behind me as every cat began to run. "Let's do it!" she yowled out excitedly.

Everything around me then became a blur as I pelted through the forest, my patrol right behind me. My heart was pounding at this point, and it wasn't just because of the running.

Still being aware of what was in front of me, I turned my head to look over my shoulder towards Thornclaw, who was just a tail-length behind me. "How do you lead patrols like this so often?" I asked him anxiously. "My goodness, I'm so nervous."

My mate's eyes looked reassuring and certain as he looked back at me. "I can't tell at all, Lilypetal."

My eyes widened, as I was truly shocked by those words. "You can't?"

"Not even a little," my mate replied as he ran up to run just beside me. "A cat who didn't know you would think that you've done this countless times before."

As usual, I was grateful for Thornclaw's sweet words, and I felt another rush of determination. And this is coming from not only my mate, but the tom who probably has more experience with patrols than any other cat in this Clan! I told myself just as I was beginning to hear the sounds of battle in the distance. "Thank you..." I breathed as I began to slow down, the tunnel we were to enter through now being in view. "Good, I'm glad to hear you say that..."

I then came to a stop and turned to face my patrol. "Because we're here!" I meowed more loudly. "I'd give a motivational talk, but we're short on time - WindClan is already down there, having no idea of what's about to hit them."

I then stepped aside from where I had been standing in front of the tunnel's entrance. "Hopefully you all know the drill, already - enter one by one, and make sure that every one of us is inside the tunnel before you make any attack," I went on, the words I needed to say suddenly flowing out of me as easily as pebbles did in a stream. I then nodded to a few select cats in the group. "Brackenfur, Thornclaw and Dustpelt - you all will take the lead."

I then took one last deep breath and flashed an encouraging, determined look to every cat on the patrol. "Go," I meowed clearly after a moment, taking another step to the side. "I'm right behind you all."

I then watched as each cat filed down into the passage, out of my sight. Once Foxleap's red tabby tail disappeared into the darkness, I felt my adrenaline and will power rising all over again.

And after one more deep breath, I followed my patrol into the tunnel, all of my fear suddenly gone. Because, for the moment, no part of my dreams or personal worries mattered - defending my Clan was what did matter, and nothing else was going to get in the way of that.