Chapter 2

Dovepelt's bones ached. She felt like collapsing into the mud covered ground. Her kits squirming around her, blood oozing between their torn claws and torn ears.
"Are they all gone?" Honeykit wailed. Dovepelt poked her head out of the old apprentices' den where she and her kits sheltered through the worst of the fighting. No one was stirring.
"Yes," She murmured, stepping out and looking around for anyone. She saw movement and carefully picked her way over the dead cats. Lionblaze was nosing through the bodies.
"What are you doing?" Dovepelt tilted her head sideways. Lionblaze looked up, his eyes swollen and blood shot with grief.
"I can't find Cinderheart," He croaked. Dovepelt flinched, where was the gray she-cat? She had seen her fighting a large white tom during the battle, then she looked away for a moment and when she looked back, Cinderheart was gone!
"Watch them," Dovepelt left her kits with Lionblaze, as she began searching for the gentle she-cat. Dovepelt cast out her senses, trying to pick up any trace of Cinderheart's scent. But the only thing she could see was Cinderheart's tail running through the forest, and every time Dovepelt tried to catch up, Cinderheart sped up.
Dovepelt sulked back over to Lionblaze,"I think she's somewhere in the forest,"
"Lionblaze, Dovepelt, good your both... alive," Bramblestar mewed uncomfortably, coming up from Dovepelt's side. " I need you two to help move these cats out of the camp, Snakerock and Bumblestripe can help you," He looked at Dovepelt's injured kits,"I'll take them to Willowshine and Jayfeather now," He gathered the litter carefully and escorted them to the medicine den. Dovepelt watched them go before turning back to Lionblaze.
"Right, let's get started. Bumblestripe! Snakerock! Can you two help us over here?" Dovepelt called over the two toms who were busy handing herbs to WIllowshine. They both looked up and padded over.
"Yeah?" Bumblestripe mewed glumly.
"Bramblestar said we're going to bury the bodies outside of camp," Dovepelt explained.
"Wouldn't it be easier tomorrow when the sleet stops? My paws feel like they're going to fall off!" Snakerock complained.
"I don't know about you, but I don't want all these bodies stinking up the camp, plus we're having the vigils for our clanmates tonight," Lionblaze reminded the younger warrior.
"You two work on that half of the camp," Dovepelt pointed towards the nursery,"And we'll do this side,"
"Sounds good to me," Bumblestripe commented groggily. Snakerock followed him through the maze of bodies.
"Let's get this over with so I can go and find Cinderheart," Lionblaze grunted as he dragged a small tabby she-cat out of the camp. Her eyes were still open, looking forever. Dovepelt flinched, they reminded her of Ivyshade's dark blue eyes. She could still remember when she last saw her sister.
Starclan were leaving, their pelts fading into the darkness when Dovepelt remembered her sister.
"Wait!" She had hollered. The last of the cats were dissapearing, the only one that stood clearly was a large brown tom.
The brown tom blinked. He opened his mouth to speak, but his jaw was deformed and his pelt was fading from sight.
"Please! Wait! What about my sister?" Dovepelt pleaded at the paws of the tom. He merely looked down at her worriedly, he cast nervous glances at the sky.
"Dovepelt," Ivyshade's emotion filled mew made Dovepelt turn around.
"Ivyshade what are you going to do? Could you stay here with us?" Dovepelt searched her sister's eyes. But Ivyshade shook her head.
"No, Dovepelt, I'm dead, I could have never stayed here. My place is the Dark Forest," Her eyes clouded with grief.
"But you helped us in the end!" Dovepelt pointed out.
"But I killed Sandstorm for my own success, I could never see her again in Starclan," Ivyshade whispered wearily, studying her paws for a moment before returning Dovepelt's intense gaze.
"B-but..."
"Maybe I'll see you again one day," Ivyshade smiled weakly,"No, no you will never see me again, and I hope you never have to walk the forests of the Place of No Stars."
"I'll never forget about you," Dovepelt nuzzled her sister gently,"And my kits will be told of the great things you did," Dovepelt closed her eyes, breathing in her sister's warm scent before it was replaced with the scent of night. When she opened her eyes, her sister was gone, but she could still feel her sister's gentle gaze watching her.

"Dovepelt? Are you going to help or not?" Lionblaze grunted, waving his tail in front of her face.
"Huh- er- yes," Dovepelt murmured weakly, grabbing the scruff of the cat they were carrying out of the camp.
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"Starclan honors the bravery of Toadclaw, he was a brave young warrior," Bramblestar howled from the Highledge as the cats gathered around his body. Dovepelt was looking up at the stars shining brightly in the sky.
"We also honor Thornclaw who was old enough to be an elder, but decided to give the last moons of his life serving the clans, he truly was one of the hardest working warriors Thunderclan had ever seen," The cats in the clearing murmured their agreement, their wounds patched up for tonight.
"The Tribe would like to honor Screech and to thank the Tribe of Endless Hunting for sparing the lives of the majority of us," He glanced wearily down to Jayfeather, who was standing at the entrance of the Medicine den where the most severely injured cats were busy healing. Dovepelt remembered seeing Pebble, a pale she-cat, getting lifted into the medicine den with a horrific neck wound.
"Thankfully Shadowclan has not lost any cats today," Rowanstar mewed. Mistystar nodded in agreement, the clans with the least amount of warriors were spared, with the exception of Windclan, who lost Nightcloud and Harewhisker.
Dovepelt shifted her attention to the strange black and white skinny tom also standing on the Highledge.
"Who is that?" Dovepelt leaned over and whispered into Willowshine's ear.
"I don't know, maybe the Skyclan deputy?" Willowshine murmured back.
"For those of you who don't know me," A ginger she-cat stepped forward,"I am Leafstar, leader of Skyclan. Firestar found us many moons ago, when all but one cat had forgotten about Skyclan, and put us back together with the help of Sandstorm,"
"Oh yes, I remember Firestar leaving for a few moons when I was just a young apprentice," Bramblestar interrupted.
"Yes, and I would like to honor our fallen warrior, Rockfur, and one of our apprentices, Waterpaw. Both shall be honored in Starclan tonight." The whole world seemed to go silent for a few heartbeats to allow the dead cats to find their way to their warrior ancestors. Finally, one cat asked the question Dovepelt had be asking herself.
"Who is he?" The cat called up the skinny black and white tom. The tom's eyes looked up, he approached the edge of the highledge carefully.
"I am Tinder, I am the leader of a band of cats.We found Skyclan when they were traveling here. Would the cats in the group please call their names?" He prompted his cats.
A large black tom with gray stripes stepped out from behind Dovepelt,"I am Raccoon,"
"My name is Cristy," A small bracken colored she-cat stepped out from behind him. She smelled slightly of Kittypet, Dovepelt curled her lip in disgust for a moment.
"My mate's name is Sarah, she is over there next to the large golden tabby," Tinder pointed to Lionblaze, and next to him a tawny she-cat the resembled Tawnypelt slightly.
"I am Ghost," A pure white tom stepped out of the shadows, his amber eyes glinting in the moonlight, Dovepelt shuddered, he was an eerie sight.
Dovepelt looked around for more unfamiliar faces, she could see an old she-cat with dazzling blue eyes, reminding her of ice.
"Wait, I know you," Bramblestar stepped forward, squinting his eyes at the she-cat.
"Yes," The she-cat coughed,"Yes you do. I am Sasha, Hawkfrost's mother," Dovepelt gasped. Thats who's eyes reminded her of ice! Hawkfrost! Now that she thought about it, Mothwing's pelt reminded her of Sasha's!
"Well, er, welcome to the clans," Bramblestar mewed uncomfortably.
A jet black tom stepped forward confidently,"I am Twilight," His blue eyes glinted warmly in the darkness. Dovepelt turned and saw Jayfeather's ears perk at Twilgith's voice. She shifted her paws uncomfortably. The sleet had stopped, but the wind still chilled through Dovepelt's fur.
The leaders and Timber made their way down the highledge. Dovepelt joined the crowd around Thornclaw's and Frogclaw's bodies, breathed in their scent for the last time before making her way to the old warriors' den. She decided she would be needed for hunting tomorrow so she would need a good nights rest.
Dovepelt pushed through the brambles and looked in. All the nests were taken, most of them were from the other clans or tribe too! Dovepelt hissed quietly and lashed her tail, she would have to sleep out in the open tonight. She backed out and bumped into another cat. She turned around, Lionblaze was on his rear.
"Oof!" Lionblaze grunted as he picked himself up.
"Sorry, the den is full," Dovepelt murmured.
"Is Cinderheart in there?" Lionblaze mewed worriedly.
"You haven't found her yet?" Dovepelt's eyes widened in shock. Lionblaze shook his head. Dovepelt searched through the forest with her senses, but again she could only catch glimpses of the gray she-cat.
"Where could she be?" Lionblaze murmured. Dovepelt brightened.
"Lets find her," Dovepelt blinked.
"What? Now?" Lionblaze eyes shimmered.
"Yes now! What better time then now, if we wait any longer..." She trailed off. Lionblaze's eyes darkened.
"Alright, lets go," Lionblaze grunted,