Chapter 19

Jayfeather wished for not the first time to be able to see. He was settled deep in his nest, his head just poking out from the moss that separated him from Willowshine. Her breathing was slow and quick; she was in deep sleep. He could feel the moon shining brightly on his pelt through the opening of the medicine den, it would be full in a few days. He got up slowly, wincing as he accidently brushed her pelt with his paw. Willowshine murmured something inaudible and shuffled closer to her nest. He sidestepped her and walked past his apprentice who was closer to the den opening. A swift breeze tugged at his fur, but he did not shiver. He listened for any cats, there was a guard standing post at the camp entrance. He padded stifly across the camp.
"Late in the evening for a stroll," Raccoon's slanted comment flitted towards Jayfeather's ear. He almost curled his lip. Something about this tom made his neck fur rise. Jayfeather stepped past him, Raccoon chuckled slightly for an unknown reason. Jayfeather almost went into his mind, but felt he didn't need to know whatever Raccoon was laughing about.
Jayfeather listened for any clanmates in the forest, it wasn't uncommon to find Bramblestar and Squirrelflight night-hunting, and Shadowclan were renowned for stalking silently in the shadows. Thankfully, he couldn't hear anything stirring in the forest. He padded silently, using the common paths that led down to the lake. His fur ruffled, though he wasn't sure it wasn't just from the slight breeze that blew from the lake. The scent of the moor reminded him he was close to the border. Suddenly, a cat threw him to the ground. Panicking, Jayfeather tried to scrabbled away. This is it! This is who killed Whitewing! He tried to let out a yowl when fur covered his mouth. Sarah!
With all his panicking, he forgot to scent for who it was.
"Shh! Do you want a whole patrol to come running down through the forest looking for you?" Sarah murmured gently. She jumped off him, Jayfeather could hear her grooming his pelt.
"What color is your fur?" Jayfeather wondered absentmindedly, realizing he didn't even know what she looked like.
Sarah responded,"I'm a tortoiseshell, I have a ginger splotch over my left eye and my eyes are green like a leaf," She purred as she grew closer to him,"Of course, you wouldn't know what a leaf is," Jayfeather shook his head.
"Not true. I can see in my dreams and even when I'm awake sometimes," He explained quietly,"So I can imagine you perfectly," He felt Sarah's mind whirl in curiosity, but she said nothing.
"Is that your power then? What are Lionblaze's and Dovepelt's powers exactly? I've heard little things about them but no one really wants to talk about it," Sarah spoke quickly. Jayfeather flicked his ears.
"Why don't we find some place better to talk?" Jayfeather suggested, Sarah's pelt sparked with anxiety. He heard her flick her ears.
"Alright," Sarah sighed, followed him closely, their pelts brushing. Jayfeather padded through the forest, aware of another cat padding next to him. But it wasn't Sarah's fur brushing against his, the scent was sweeter, softer, more familiar. Half Moon! 
"Jay's Wing..." She whispered, her breath warm on his ear fur,"Don't..." Jayfeather knew if he would go through with tonight with Sarah, he could lose Half Moon forever. He felt his fur prickle, I-I have to, I need someone to trust, someone to be there for... someone who can be there for me... 
He could feel Half Moon flinch,"I'm always here for you," But not in the way I need you! I need someone alive, that knows what I feel! I'm sorry Half Moon...
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Jayfeather loped around Sarah, wreathing his tail around her neck. She was a compact she-cat with shorter legs than him. Her tail curved off into a delicate point of soft fur. She giggled.
"What are you doing Jayfeather?" She rasped a tongue around his ear. A fierce wind shook the forest, rattling the trees. "Brrr, its cold. Why don't you sit next to me Jayfeather," He heard her tap her tail against their make-shift nest. Jayfeather settled down next to her, their fur touching.
Jayfeather tried to start conversation,"Sarah, whats your favorite-" But he was interrupted by Sarah.
"Wouldn't it be better if all the clans stayed together?" She rasped a tongue along a paw,"I mean, what everyone is doing tomorrow night, won't that just cause more problems for everyone?" Jayfeather could feel her gaze boring a hole into his pelt.
"Theres always been four clans. It's more than just wanting to eat fish instead of mice or hunting in the brambles instead of pine trees. In in our hearts to be with our clan, to protect it, to hunt for it, to defend it. Or in my case to heal it. We have leaders to carry us through things that no ordinary warrior could, to be able to sort out problems. In a clan with all the cats of four clans, there could be no order, there would be too many cats to tend to all the problems that would rise. You can already see in Thunderclan's camp theres not enough space to fit all of them. Clan cats are bound to their homes stronger than a the stars are bound to the sky," Jayfeather finished, twitching his whiskers at the sound of twoleg monsters on the far side of the lake.
"Thats true. I guess I will never understand this about the clans since I wasn't born here," She sighed, "Can you tell me something else Jayfeather?" She snuggled closer to him, breathing into his ear,"Crowfeather is your father, am I correct?"
Jayfeather nodded,"Yes, and Leafpool is my mother,"
Another wind whipped across the forest from the moor,"Lionblaze is your brother, which I knew, and then Hollyleaf is your sister," Jayfeather flinched at the naming of his sister. She was killed by her own family in the Great War all because of her lust for the warrior code.
"Why did she join the Dark Forest anyways?" Sarah pondered absentmindedly,"I've never heard of her breaking the code..." Her voice trailed off, she swung her broad head towards Jayfeather. "Or did she?"
"...I don't want to talk about it," Jayfeather shrugged her off, turning his head away from her.
"Lets change the subject then. Who was your mentor?" Sarah flicked her tail on his chin. Jayfeather turned back to her, Why does everything have to go back to my family?
"Leafpool," He mewed, feeling her eyes on him again.
"But Leafpool isn't a medicine cat, she's a warrior," Sarah sounded confused.
"She was a medicine cat for a long time," Jayfeather explained,"Before..." He stopped, imaging the night Hollyleaf vanished into the tunnels again.
"Before what?"
"Before Hollyleaf told everyone who our parents were!" He shrilled,"Are you happy now? Now that you know everything about me!" He stalked off into the forest, toward Windclan territory, leaves from the previous leaf fall silencing his steps. His nostrils flared in anger, his fur rising on his neck, he clawed the grass in fury. He knew he shouldn't get this mad, especially at Sarah who was risking everything to be with him, but he couldn't stand talking about his family. There was nothing great about them, in fact his family had caused more drama for the clans since they came to the lake than any other family he could think of. His parents, leaving their clans for each other, his mother and aunt lying about their birth, Ashfur trying to kill them in the fire, and finally Hollyleaf trying to destroy the clans forever to retain the warrior code. All of these thoughts flew back into his mind, and it just made him angrier.
"Jayfeather!" Sarah's voice brought him back, she padded up to him, nuzzling his shoulder gently,"I found you. I'm sorry Jayfeather, I didn't know how sensitive you were," She murmured into his ear, gently rasping her tongue along his neck fur.
"Lets get back to our nest," He forced his neck fur to lie flat and followed Sarah back toward the forest. A fierce caterwaul of a twoleg sounded from the beach, Jayfeather flicked his ears toward the noise.
"Lets go down to the lake instead," Jayfeather commented to Sarah, flicking his tail along her cheek. The pair walked down the path, the scent of water telling Jayfeather they were heading the right way. But something else was puzzling him, there was another scent drifting toward them, it was an acrid scent he couldn't place.
"Do you smell that?" Jayfeather murmured to Sarah, the wind hitting them again as they came out of the forest and to the lake shore.
"Oh my Starclan," Sarah whispered in horror, her voice distant. Jayfeather narrowed his eyes.
"What is it?"
"I-its a fire, across the lake at the twoleg house," Sarah mewed in a hushed tone. Suddenly the night awoke to  another wail of a twoleg, then another and another. They were so blood curdling and creepy Jayfeather couldn't help but flinch. The scent he could smell was smoke and ash churning in the water and the wind and settling across the lake. Jayfeather blinked the ash out of his eyes, opening them to the sight of the twoleg nest on fire. Flames reared out of the gaps in the walls and they licked the sky greedily. Smoke swirled in the sky, creating ovals and edges. Pointed edges of the smoke's reach cut into the sky like teeth, the ovals were swirling like gray eyes of a skull. The image of a cat's skull was in the sky, and was clearer than any other sign Starclan could've given Jayfeather. The voice of Yellowfang swirled in his ears, foretelling the omen he had heard many moons before.
"There will be five, who bring the four to one," The gray she-cat murmured, Jayfeather could smell her rank breath in his nose,"Beware Jayfeather, bonds are forming, but something stirs in the hearts of the new," 
The skull and the ominous prophecy stirred in his mind. His fur started to rise again, who were the five? Did this have to do with the Dark Forest, were the three still needed? He thought the "new" Yellowfang had mentioned might be Sarah, and love was what was stirring in her heart. Even with the fire burning and the omen at hand, he couldn't help feel a little warmed by the thought of Sarah's love.
"Jayfeather?" Sarah's voice quivered, her voice no more than a whisper above the screech of the wind,"They stopped screaming," Jayfeather was now aware of the sudden silence that met the lake. There were no twolegs fleeing, no monsters running up the path. The fire was still burning, he could hear the twoleg nest crackle across the lake and part of it cave in on itself in a soft thud.
Jayfeather bit his lip before answering Sarah,"Come on, lets go back to camp," He weaved his tail around hers and led her through the forest. He felt her pelt quiver, he wasn't sure with what, but he felt bad. He had ruined tonight, by storming off and requesting to go to the lake.
"Lets stay in the forest instead," Jayfeather murmured,"I'm sorry I ruined most of the night, but I promise if we can make it through the rest of it," He nuzzled her,"we can make it through anything,"


YAY! Finally finished this chapter. I thought it was quite epic if I do say so myself. I've actually been planning this chapter for a long long time, especially the scene on the lake and the fire. Ooh I'm so excited!
~Firefoot