⠀⠀ Cats gathered around the family as they desperately searched their minds for another option, but there were none to reveal themselves. Emberkit flattened his ears as his father scooped him into his jaws, fading into the darkness with each step. Lockwing watched intently as he made a turn towards the lake before finally vanishing into the shadows.

⠀⠀ The golden feline's body went rigid. What was he doing? Panicking, she bolted out of the camp, veering towards the direction she last saw him. He appeared only minutes later, padding solemnly along the rim of the lake. However, the tom showed no interest in going to Shadowclan where the kit's brother was. Instead, he shifted his direction to the left until there was a dull arch marked in the dense foliage. Being part Thunderclan, the she cat clawed her way up a tree, though it wasn't as graceful as she had hoped. Voleclaw paused, glancing over each shoulder before continuing.

⠀⠀ The tom padded through the forest with Lockwing following close behind. Her claws gripped the branches tighter with each leap, which sent twigs and fragments of bark tumbling to the earth. Voleclaw soon arrived in the Thunderclan camp, cats flooding around him. He set Emberkit down before speaking.

⠀⠀ "Hello," he began, "may I speak to a queen?"

⠀⠀ Murmurs twirled around them as a tortoiseshell she cat padded out of the den, a duo of near clones following close behind. Scarletdew, and her kits, Juniperkit, with green eyes, and Tigerkit, with blue, all studied Emberkit closely.

⠀⠀ "I'm going to assume that a queen has died," she began, her pale blue eyes filling with sorrow. The tom gave a feeble nod.

⠀⠀ "She died of an attack," he murmured.

⠀⠀ "Who did it?"

⠀⠀ "Why haven't you gotten revenge?"

⠀⠀ "I'll go get Willowstar! She'll know how to punish them!"

⠀⠀ Lockwing flinched at the final declaration, but her attention was caught once again by the black and white tom.

⠀⠀His eyes grew round when he realized that he had just stated that a cat had attacked. Though it was true, for some reason he couldn't say so. "A fox attack," he added loudly, attempting to hide the rattle of fear in his voice. This time, half of the clan joined in a chorus of sympathy, while the rest scoffed.

⠀⠀ "It's pathetic that your entire clan couldn't defend against a puny fox. If I'd have been there, your queen would be alive and, knowing Windclan, you'd be feeding on fox for the next moon."

⠀⠀ Lockwing knew who that voice was, and she was terrified because of it. Timberwing stood at the front of the group, his voice low. The feline realized just how much he had changed from when they were apprentices, it just took a near death experience to realize it. He used to be a bubbly, outgoing tom, but now that he had matured, he looked more like a Thunderclan cat than Windclan. So did Adderbite, even though he always had. Voleclaw simply nodded, unwilling to fall into an argument.

⠀⠀ It'd be too difficult for a Windclan built cat to swim in the rivers, and the last thing that Windclan needed was more Shadowclan warriors. The kit's only hope at the moment was Thunderclan. Willowstar emerged from the entrance of the camp, a plump rabbit resting in her jaws.

⠀⠀ "Will you be willing to take in Emberkit?" the tom asked timidly as he eyed the fluffy black and gray tom, whose golden eyes were the same hue as that of Lockwing's pelt. Wrenflight bounded forward, her paws light.

⠀⠀ "We'd be delighted to take in an adorable kit!" she mewed, humor gleaming in her eyes. "However," she paused, casting a glance to the tree that Lockwing was perched in, "we do not accept possible traitors. At least not anymore." Willowstar growled and surprisingly nipped at the ginger warrior's ear, causing her to yelp.

⠀⠀ "I'm sorry," she mewed, "Scarletdew already makes an excellent mother. I'm sure she could handle another kit, at least until you have another queen." While relief flooded Voleclaw's eyes, only anger swelled the golden warrior's. Why couldn't Willowstar be so forgiving when Lockwing was falsely accused of murder? She let out a growl and plummeted to the ground, but she misjudged her point of impact and landed awkwardly on her hind paws. Nonetheless, she bolted off, leaving an obviously stunned Thunderclan behind. It was likely that she still had her original scent recognizable by her past clan mates. Lockwing wondered why the other Windclan cats hadn't noticed the smell Thunderclan on her, but she soon realized that it was masked by the scent of the river and of Ciphercry.

⠀⠀ The she cat's paws lightly thudded on the ground as she raced back to Windclan territory, but she slowed to a stop at the sound of a shriek not far behind her. She quickly scaled an oak, her body hidden within the mass of leaves just as a trio of cats appeared beneath her, their muzzles raised into the air.

⠀⠀ "They have to be close," one hissed, his tail lashing wildly. A she cat looked at the tom and nodded before turning to... Adderbite. Something was wrong here. Adderbite, of all cats, had to recognize her scent. He was, after all, known as having the best nose in the clan. The tabby tom glanced up, squinting his eyes. Lockwing realized that she had let her golden tail hang down from the branch. She carefully lifted it to her side, watching with fearful eyes as her brother opened his jaws to speak.

⠀⠀ "What are you looking at, Adderbite?" the older tom meowed, following his gaze to the exact spot where Lockwing was hidden. To her relief, he closed his mouth and shook his head.

⠀⠀ "I was hungry, and I thought that I saw a squirrel," he mewed coldly. She winced as another dagger-like glare was shot from his eyes, this time locking with hers as her head emerged. "Let's go towards the lake. I'm sure that if there are any more of them, they'd have made it there by now. They are Windclan cats, after all."

⠀⠀ The others nodded and followed with steady strides, vanishing into the foliage. Lockwing picked her way down, not bothering to attempt staying hidden. If Voleclaw had killed someone, he'd be able to get away... hopefully.

⠀⠀ As she came closer to the camp, the reek of blood flooded her nose, causing the warrior to gag. She clawed her way up the tree she had previously sat in, almost loosing her grip at the sight that lay beneath her.

⠀⠀ Two cats lay limply on the dust, their lips rimmed in red. In front of them was a bluejay, its insides pouring out. However, instead of blood, velvet juice dripped onto the ground, penetrating the earth. An apprentice screamed as the cat next to her began to have convulsions. She too, ate a bluejay. She vomited before collapsing onto the ground, breathless. Lockwing shifted her gaze to another cat, tears welling up in her eyes. Timberwing was lying only a few tail lengths from the medicine cat den. He'd been the source of the terrible smell, but he was still breathing. The medicine cats turned to him as he coughed, giving him all of their attention. She sighed in relief. He'd live.

⠀⠀ As she watched her brother, a realization came to mind. Willowstar ate bluejays every time there was one in the pile, while many cats hated them. Only a select few, often senior warriors or even elders, ever ate them. Whoever did this was probably targeting the leader.

⠀⠀ The wind changed, carrying her scent down into the camp. Soon, four pairs of eyes were locked on her spot. It was time to go, but there was no way to without being spotted. She flattened her ears, trying to think of a solution, and fast. The vision of her mother emerging from the foliage with a prophecy sparked into her memory. Voleclaw had already fled the scene, leaving his startled kit behind, so it was okay to come out as herself, as long as she appeared... dead.

⠀⠀ The she cat padded pristinely out of the shadows and onto the bare section of the branch, just as the sun was rising, creating a luckily eerie glow. With narrowed eyes she began.

⠀⠀ "I see that you thought you could kill me," she sneered, digging her claws into the rough bark for support. "Bravo. You succeeded, but only to an extent. You seem to have forgotten about the dark forest, I suppose. But don't fret, I haven't come here simply to make my presence known to you, because that wouldn't be much fun, now would it?" She waited for an attack, but none came as she eyed her unsuspecting audience. "Of course not. I came here with..." the she cat paused, disguising her uncertainty with a smirk. "I came here with a prophecy, for one cat in particular." Her gaze turned to Wrenflight, who in return released a meek growl.

⠀⠀ "It began with sparrows, ended in ash, I believe it's time to take it all back. For when eagles soar, and deathly hawks fly, the time has come for lying wrens to die."

⠀⠀ The clan gasped, all eyes turning to Wrenflight. Seizing the opportunity, Lockwing silently vanished into the eerie scarlet light of the rising sun.