Hey! So this is the first chapter, obviously. I hope you all enjoy it. You can ask any questions or comment below, obviously :D

Chapter 1

"Shoulders down! Keep your body low and your tail down. I want you to dodge, and then strike. Remember to use your size against him. Ready? Begin."

"Lean to the side! Don't let him knock you down! Move faster!"

"Claws sheathed for now, Screechfoot. This is practice for Redpaw, not a battle. Try not to hurt our cats."

"We need a patrol to go hunting. The prey pile is getting low. Hey Frostfire, stop daydreaming and go gather some cats to hunt with you. StarClan knows why you love to."

Frostfire was broken from her revere at the sound of Talonheart's voice. She had been staring at the groups of cats that littered the training hollow. The huge sandy cavern was larger than their camp, and would have been an ideal location except for the fact that it was unprotected. The hollow, located deep within their territory, was blocked by brambles and thick, lush bushes; perfect for training cats in secret.

The large brown tom who had addressed her was not the deputy but was certainly well on the way to taking the position. Had he been a more aggressive or ambitious tom, then Leafpelt, the current deputy, would have been overthrown long ago. Talonheart seemed to enjoy his position in the sidelines, claiming to the other cats of ThornClan that as a warrior, he was in prime position for surprise maneuvering between the Clans. The Clan respected him enough that they did not question it.

Frostfire shook her head, focusing on Talonheart and his playful eyes. "Yes sir. Whatever you say, Mr Deputy sir." She replied to his orders sarcastically. The white she-cat exchanged a small grin with Talonheart, who knew full well why she enjoyed hunting. She hated fighting so he gave her "menial" tasks like hunting to keep her from it.

Talonheart flicked his tail at her, gesturing for her to move faster. She responded with a paw swipe, jumping from his retaliation with a snort. "Just go catch the Clan some prey. Bring me back a plump rabbit. You know that's my favorite." Frostfire brushed past him rudely, purposefully hitting him on the nose with her head. She left him to his chuckles, approaching a group of cats who were fighting in a seclusive corner of the Hollow.

"Anyone up for hunting? I'm taking a patrol out now." Immediately the three cats stopped what they were doing and stood to attention. Willowpelt, Gorsepaw, and Kestrelfeather followed her out of the training grounds with barely contained glee.

Frostfire observed her companions as they walked to an ideal hunting spot. Gorsepaw, cheerful and spritely though he was, worried her. Gorsepaw's mentor was a Fighter, one of the cats who was not afraid to attack and conquer, and who strongly believed that the territory belonged to ThornClan alone.

Willowpelt on the other hand, Rebel though she was, had a fierce apprentice, Redpaw, who's fighting spirit rivaled the fiery hue of his pelt. They conflicted constantly, and Frostfire would not be surprised if Redpaw hadn't complained to the deputy about Willowpelt's "softness". It was a shame for Redpaw that Leafpelt was also a Rebel, and would try her hardest to keep Redpaw under Willowpelt''s tutelage. Perhaps Willowpelt would be able to show Redpaw the error of his ideology.

"Ok Gorsepaw." Willowpelt told the young apprentice when they reached the thicker, prey rich forest grounds. "Scent the air. What can you smell?" As Gorsepaw began to relay information to the warriors, Frostfire found herself thinking about her own confusing apprenticeship.

Her mentor, Appletooth, had focused the majority of her training on fighting and warfare tactics. She had learned the bare basics of hunting, studied the warrior code once, and was taught how to clean the den one time before she was informed that it would be the apprentices' responsibility to split up Clan chores on their free time and get it done each day after battle training.

Gorsepaw was lucky to have gotten Fernstripe as a mentor, who didn't mind letting her sister borrow her apprentice for "menial" training. 'You'll need the practice for when you finally get your own!' Fernstripe had told her many times. Frostfire did not believe that she would ever get an apprentice. Their parents favored Fernstripe for her abrasive, strong personality and enthusiastic fighting spirit. Frostfire they merely tolerated.

"Hey look, Frostfire! I caught it." Gorsepaw's loud voice brought her back to the forest, where a mouse was hanging between his teeth.

"Good job. Willowpelt, would you like to take Gorsepaw for a little bit while I catch Talonheart a rabbit?"

"Sure. Don't take long!" Willowpelt's smirk and sudden bouncy step had Frostfire wriggle in annoyance. Every cat in the Clan knew of her crush on him, and she was hopeful of him returning the attraction but he had yet to go further than flirting. Or, what she hoped was flirting. He was playful with every she-cat in the Clan, and often teased those he was with. Her parents approved of their potential mating of course (as her mother hadn't failed to mention almost every day of the moon since she overheard them speaking one time. One time!) because of his high status in the Clan.

"He's just a friend." Frostfire called over her shoulder. Her protests were met with a giggle and a snort of disbelief.

"Just catch him his prey." Willowpelt teased. Frostfire shrugged her shoulders and bounded down the path. Talonheart was really lucky that she liked him. The only rabbits on their territory were located on the border of RockClan and ThornClan. RockClan were vicious, and tended to attack others for no reason.

"Catch me a rabbit, he says. Get me a plump piece of prey, specific for my tastes. He's lucky I like him." Frostfire knew what she was doing was dangerous. But there were a lot of rabbits in this area. If she was careful and if the odds were in her favor, she could catch a lot of prey and be out before a RockClan attack patrol arrived.

Scenting the air, the white she-cat crawled forward, peering through the thick undergrowth in an attempt to spot any prey. The area stank of RockClan, and she could barely scent anything. She padded forward a few more pawsteps, smelling close to the ground.

Bingo! Two foxlengths from the border, a large brown rabbit sat unprotected and unaware, foolishly eating from a large clump of dandelion leaves. All the flowers had long since been picked by the medicine cats for Clan cat wounds.

Frostfire crept forward until she was only a foxlength away. Bunching her muscles, she exhaled before darting forward in a mad dash to catch up to and intercept the rabbit. Moments later, she felt her teeth sink into its throat. Success!

"That's our rabbit. Drop it before we shred you." Frostfire's head shot up in surprise. Three RockClan cats stood before her, their large forms towering intimidatingly over her crouched body. Frostfire nervously breathed out, dropping her prey.

Right onto the border.

When she nervously inhaled once more, her body jumped, startled. Inhaling once more, she took in the now grinning faces of the RockClan cats. The cats who she knew to be Rebels, and therefore on her side. Cats who were her friends, and who had no right to find amusement in scaring her.

"You scared the StarClan out of me! You piece of foxdung!" She addressed the cat in the front of the pack, a dark tabby tom named Pineleg, the leader of the RockClan Rebels. His apprentice, Thicketpaw, dropped beside them, hysterically laughing at her plight. Frostfire had to admit that her panicking must have been a sight.

"It was all in good fun, you know that. Take the prey. We don't want it. It has ThornClan all over it." Woodwish, the black and white tom beside him teased. His voice took a mocking tone by the end of the sentence.

"Are you on patrol?" She asked them as she stood. It was Pineleg who answered.

"We are supposed to be hunting for the Clan. We have a bunch of prey already, so we came here in hopes of running into you. The meeting is still tonight, right?" Frostfire nodded.

"Three Rebels and the Rebel leaders of each Clan meet at the moonpool at sundown." Frostfire confirmed. "The excuse is night training, to keep apprentice minds sharp. So bring an apprentice just in case." Thicketpaw let out a little cheer.

"Where are those three? They should have been back with prey ages ago!" Frostfire's neck stood on end as the voices of nearby cats carried on the wind. Thank StarClan they were downwind at the moment, because any fresh ThornClan scent near the border would definitely entice an attack. As close as she was now, getting caught by any cat would guarantee her a pelt-shredding.

"You should go. Good luck, and see you later!" They whispered their farewells, Thicketpaw scenting the spot that Frostfire had been laying on by the border. She hadn't crossed it at any time, but it never hurt to be careful. She took a few moments to find and catch another rabbit before picking up her catch and heading towards the others. By sheer luck she ran into a squirrel, and by the time she neared the hunting clearing she was downtrodden with prey.

"Nice haul, Frostfire!" Willowpelt congratulated her friend. Their own pile of mice and voles was equally impressive. "Gorsepaw caught a lot of the prey here. Make sure Fernstripe knows that." Frostfire agreed. It wasn't fighting ability, but he was caring efficiently for the Clan. 

They divided the prey, heading towards the camp. It was a rule on their territory that no matter what patrol you were on, you always had to bring every piece of prey back to camp. Cats were inspected randomly, their breath smelled and pelts examined for signs of them not following the rules. If anyone came in carrying the scent of another Clan, they would be punished.

With that in mind Frostfire took a few moments to roll around in very strong scented ferns, then briefly rubbed her body against Willowpelt's to get ThornClan scent back onto her body. The Clan probably wouldn't care about smelling RockClan on her anyway, not with the huge rabbits she had plundered, but it still didn't hurt.

All of these precautions would not be necessary if only we could get rid of these suspicions and the need to fight. If only there were more Rebel cats, then maybe we could hold a massive battle and overthrow the leaders and Fighters! Then we could fix the forest! It's so deeply ingrained in some of these cats, though. Just look at mom and dad! Frostfire thought.

Frostfire hated that her whole family had been irreversibly brainwashed to believe that fighting was the correct path. She had been the only one to curiously question it as a kit, and her open mind had led to an entirely new, secret world within the Clans.

No cat really knew how the conflicts had started. Frostfire was told as a kit that the other Clans were bad, that they were all greedy and wanted to expand their territories and become rulers of the forest. She was brought up to hate the Clans for their falseness, their trickery and evil natures. She was told to never befriend a cat from another Clan, for fear that they would brainwash her with their lies.

Now the Clans live in secrecy and mistrust, keeping to their own territories and using their own rules, fighting and brawling in an attempt to take the forest for their own. The medicine cat told her once of how an old StarClan cat had told her of a Warrior Code of old, where things like 'Gatherings' used to be a staple of Clan society. Apparently the Clans met up each month to give each other news and to enjoy each other's company. Now the only peaceful grounds belonged to the Moonpool, and even that was a stretch.

It hadn't taken long for Frostfire to discover after various border skirmishes and talks that not all cats liked fighting, and that plenty were looking for peace between the Clans. She had become the gateway between those peace seekers, (self dubbed Rebels), and the ever elusive and hostile TreeClan, and from then on became the leader of the TreeClan section of the Rebel group.

"You're awfully quiet today, Frostfire. Lost in your thoughts again?" The amber eyed she-cat sighed.

"I just want to end all of this. I've been trying to think of a way to stop the cats from fighting, but so far-"

"All cats able to fight gather beneath the high rock for a Clan meeting!" Frostfire's tangent was cut off by the yowl of Hawkstar, their fierce golden furred leader.

"LakeClan cats have been crossing our border unrelentingly for the past few days." Frostfire delivered her prey to the pile, one ear focused on the conversation. She had a bad feeling about this one.

"They have intruded on our lands for far too long. I tried to be nice, to allow them the time to see the err in their ways. Unfortunately for them, the time for niceties has passed. After long, arduous thought, I have decided that we need to teach them a lesson." Hawkstar crowed from his perch. His joy elicted many hoots and calls of agreement from the surrounding cats. Frostfire bit back a groan of despair, schooling her features into a more thrilled expression.

"For the most surprise, I have decided that we should attack them now. I would invite any cat who wishes to fight to come with me, but unfortunately some cats must remain to guard the camp and our queens. I will therefore be calling names of cats who must remain in the camp."

Frostfire relaxed, sure of another stay in the camp. Time after time when she was younger, Hawkstar had pushed her away from countless attacks by forcing her to guard the camp. She had unfortunately gotten used to being left behind, and enjoyed being far away from the bloodshed even if it meant that her battle skills were not as sharp as they should be.

"Willowpelt, Redpaw, Appletooth, Brackenwing, Perchflight and Icepelt, remain behind." What? Frostfire felt her jaw slacken. Icepelt was being left in her place? Since when did her mom get left behind? She was one of the Clan's strongest Warriors!

"Hey Frostfire, this is great! You can come with me to fight!" Fernstripe bounded up to her sister, her persona uncharacteristically happy. Frostfire had never seen her sister that enthusiastic. Of course, she mused, the second we can fight together she becomes my best friend.

"Frostfire, Fernstripe, come here." The two she-cats followed the sound until they met their mother, a beautiful white she-cat with large green eyes. "I want you to work together during this fight, show the Clans why ThornClan is the best and how strong our blood truly is. Frostfire, Fernstripe is more experienced so I want you to listen to her and follow what she does."

She weaved between the two she-cats, fluffy pelt brushing against theirs. "I volunteered to stay earlier so that you could get experience, Frostfire. I want you to become more skilled and get the practice that you deserve. I want you two to be just as influential within the Clan as I am." Icepelt halted by Frostfire's side and nudged her shoulder. "Maybe if you fight well enough you can impress Talonheart."

Fernstripe and Frostfire giggled even as Frostfire rolled her eyes. It was all good natured. Thank goodness they approve of my choice of mate. Not that every she-cat in the Clan besides Fernstripe isn't falling for him. He is quite the catch.

"Go now, they're all leaving." Icepelt finished. Frostfire and Fernstripe waved goodbye to her before darting out of the camp, mood going from lighthearted joking to serious.

I need to get in the mindset. Every cat, even the Rebels, are my enemy. I need to attack without discrimination, quickly in and out, destroying all my enemies. I need to keep my cover. Frostfire knew that it was imperative to attack without mercy. Her sister was going to be keeping an eye on her, as would every other cat in the Clan. She couldn't show any signs of betrayal or hesitation.

"Make sure you don't damage the Rebels too hard. Just follow what I do." A voice whispered in her ear. She turned to see Talonheart padding along next to her, legs rippling with the promise of his strength. "Attack as many non-Rebels as you can. We avoid each other as often as possible during the fight in hopes that we won't have to hurt each other." He noticed the look on her face and laughed.

"Hey, relax. Seriously it isn't that big of a deal. Everyone understands that you do what you must. They respect you, and once the Clan sees you fight, they will respect you too. Oh! Thanks for the rabbit by the way. It was delicious." Talonheart strategically changed the conversation as other cats surrounded them once more.

"Quiet, back there! We're nearing the border." Snapped a cat from the front of their group. The two exchanged a glance before sobering up, becoming more alert and abandoning the jokes.

When they finally reached the border, the group waited for a few moments until their two scouts returned from their escapades. The report was of the cats lolling about in the Clan, sharing tongues and taking refuge from the hot sun. At that point of the battle, there were no words exchanged. Instead, a system of body language was used. This part of the battle required silence and full participation of each cat. It was crucial that every member pay attention and follow the required cues.

Each attack followed a general system: cats were paired in teams of two, where they were assigned to cover each other throughout the attack. Three of the teams would be assigned to a group tasked with a specific job within the Clan; be it destroy camp walls or attack vulnerable cats.

This time, Frostfire noted, it would be a little different. Her partner was Fernstripe, and she was with Talonheart's group. She didn't understand what Hawkstar had told Talonheart but by the looks of it, he didn't like his orders but would have to follow through.

"What are we doing?" She hissed quietly in his ear.

"He wants us to go after the nursery while the rest of the Clan acts as a distraction. We are supposed to kit-nap at least two of their kits as a bargaining tool, and escape quickly and quietly." Frostfire bit back a sharp gasp. That was horrible!

This attack was never about them crossing our territory. Frostfire realized. This is all about getting more territory. He told us it was a revenge mission, but he's changed his mind. He's going full out!

Frostfire felt her fur stand on end, and tried to flatten it without much success. The last time a Clan tried to steal kits to negotiate, there was a massive battle between all of the Clans! Why would he risk such a thing, especially with a strong Clan like LakeClan?

She grounded her teeth together, frustrated with her sudden, unfortunate realization. LakeClan territory is very valuable; It's marsh ground has many varieties of herbs, and it never runs out of prey. He wants to use kits to bargain for their fruitful grounds.

This is not going to go well.

She shook her mind from those trouble making thoughts and followed Fernstripe through the territory, nose wrinkling as the ground turned marshy and a strong fishy scent became prominent. She felt conflicted, stuck between her duty to her Clan and family, and duty to the cats that she led. Frostfire did not want to leave her sister unguarded, but her morals told her to prevent attack on Rebel cats.

I need to fight the Rebels, though! If I don't, then any that Fernstripe gets her paws on will be severely hurt. Ok, playfighting for the win. Frostfire decided. She would just have to pretend and hope that they did the same.

It had been far too long since her last raid, but Frostfire could clearly remember the lessons and techniques that had been ingrained in her since birth. Her group would have to circle around the camp, waiting for the main attack groups to create an opening in the camp walls. Then they would strike quick and fast, one team taking kits and the rest of the groups protecting them. When they were clear, the sound of a sparrow's call would cue for the rest of the Clan to leave. In theory, it would be a simple operation.

Of course, the theory usually ended up wrong.

Frostfire could already hear the cats yowling in surprise and anger. The LakeClan camp was generally unprotected in that its location did not allow for natural blockades. It's flimsy reed and mud walls were fragile compared to ThornClan's spiky thorn and bramble barriers, and it was easy for cats to dart into the camp and cause serious damage. As such it only took a few minutes for one crazy ThornClan cat to literally crash through the wall, breaking a cat sized hole for them to escape from.

Frostfire took a deep breath and plunged through the hole.

It was chaos. Blood and muddy dirt covered everything. The prey pile had long since been completely stampeded, with any prey they might have had buried in piles of mud and now unedible. Cats were strewn all over the clearing, tumbling over one another in what seemed to be disorganized fighting.

Frostfire ignored all of this, following her sister as they skirted around the chaos. Talonheart, who was leading their raid, stopped quickly at each den, sniffing for milk scent that would identify it as the nursery. At the fourth den, nearest to the center of the camp, he stopped and flicked his tail.

To Frostfire's surprise, Fernstripe darted forward and into the opening of the den. It was only her carefully honed instincts that had Frostfire inside a moment after. She came face to face with Fernstripe battling a snarling queen. Three little kittens were sitting in the corner of the den, peering out from underneath a mossy nest. One little brave one noticed her looking at them and had the gall to hiss at her and swipe a little paw.

"Go Frostfire! Do it!" Fernstripe snarled. I don't want to have to do this! StarClan, no! This is so wrong. Frostfire thought.

Frostfire darted around the queen who she could see was slowly weakening and uncovered the kits with one swipe of her paw.

"Enemy warrior! Go away! Leave my nestmates alone!" The black and white she-cat who had glared so fiercely before stood in front of the two other cats, who were cowering behind her nervously.

"Sorry, little one. I won't hurt you though. You're just... taking a little journey for now." Frostfire reassured. She ignored their distressed squeals and picked up the little tortoiseshell from the back of the nest. She deposited it at the front of the den, where it was taken instantly by one of their cats. The black and white she-cat mewed again, crying out for her sister.

"There's only three kits total. Can we take them all?" Frostfire asked Talonheart.

"Grab them all. Lets go, our forces are weakening." He snapped. Frostfire could see over his shoulder that a fresh patrol of LakeClan cats had come in from wherever they were on their territory. With them were some Rebels that she recognized.

"Come with me to grab the last one, then." She said. He followed her into the den and picked up the two remaining kits. The cream and brown she-cat hung limply while the black and white she-cat squirmed in Frostfire's jaws.  

By then, Fernstripe had moved to the entrance of the den, where she was pushing LakeClan cats out of their way. As a pack the three ThornClan warriors ran out of the LakeClan camp and met with the rest of their group. They sprinted towards ThornClan territory, leaving behind the sparrow call that signaled the success of their raid.

I can't believe I just did that! Thank goodness these aren't Rebel kits!

Frostfire followed her Clanmates to the camp where they deposited the kits in a pre-made den on the opposite side of the nursery.

Why the hell did we do this? Why in the world did we need any more territory? So many of our cats have died that soon we won't be able to guard all of it! Why did we do this? Why did I have to do this? Frostfire blinked, shaking her head. She felt filthy and disturbed.

Frostfire watched in horror as Hawkstar bounded into the camp, fighters following after him happily cheering and laughing from giddy success.

"Cats of ThornClan, we are one step closer to our goal! If you all continue like this and work together, we can become the greatest Clan in the forest!" He called through the camp. Frostfire felt lost amidst the cheers. Even as her mouth moved in a parody of her happiness, she felt hollow and empty.

"Great job, Frostfire! You didn't let anything phase you!" Frostfire stared blankly at her sister. Every cat's words faded in and out of her consciousness. Everything in her sight had narrowed to a thin tunnel of vision as she felt herself panicking. From across the camp she met the eyes of other Rebels in her Clan. Even though their bodies feigned happiness, their eyes told a different story.

Frostfire feigned an injury, brushing off her sister gently and stumbling throughout the camp. She leaned on every Rebel cat, whispering the same thing in their ears.

"Meeting tonight. This has to end."