“RiverClan has gone crazy!”
Anxious mews rippled though the crowd.
Leafpool got to her paws. “Don’t be alarmed.” Her mew echoed over the clearing. “It makes sense for RiverClan to focus on rebuilding. They are like an injured cat, vulnerable and protective of their wounds. Let them have their peace. I know RiverClan. I know how resilient they are. Let them heal, and they will return to us a more powerful ally than before.”
As the Clans’ mews softened to murmurs, Bramblestar blinked gratefully at Leafpool and then turned to the gathered cats. “Without RiverClan, it is more important than ever that we work together. And we are fortunate that an old ally has returned to us.” He nodded toward SkyClan. “Leafstar, please, join the other leaders where you belong.”
As Leafstar got to her paws, the outraged yowl of Crowfeather rang through the air. “No!” Leafstar hesitated. “She doesn’t belong there. What do we know about SkyClan?”
“We’d never heard of them until ThunderClan told us about them,” Scorchfur called out from among the ShadowClan cats. “Why did Firestar, and then Bramblestar, keep this missing Clan a secret so long?”
“Typical ThunderClan!” Strikestone hissed.
The ShadowClan cats sounded suddenly confident.
Alderheart glanced at Sparkpelt. Her gaze was flitting excitedly from WindClan to ShadowClan. Would she join their outcry?
Bramblestar lashed his tail. “You all know of StarClan’s prophecy. StarClan asked us to bring them back.”
“StarClan only told us to find them,” Scorchfur argued. “They didn’t say we had to make them one of the Clans.”
“They are one of the Clans!” Bramblestar’s mew was taut with frustration.
“We only have your word for that!” Crowfeather snapped back.
And StarClan’s! Alderheart wanted to shout out, but he held his tongue. Was it his place to speak for StarClan?
“StarClan sent a prophecy about SkyClan.” Rowanstar raised his voice above the Clans. “We would be foolish to ignore it.”
Harestar nodded. “Another Clan would make us stronger.”
Crowfeather flattened his ears. “We were strong once, without them.”
“Their home is here, with us!” Bramblestar beckoned to Leafstar with a sharp flick of his tail. “Climb up.”
She scrambled awkwardly up the trunk and stood beside the ThunderClan leader. Her gaze was anxious as she surveyed the Clans below. “We want only to live peacefully among our fellow Clans,” she meowed over the hisses. “Darktail was our enemy! He killed our Clanmates too!”
“How?” Juniperclaw demanded. “You only joined our last battle with the rogues. I don’t remember hearing that any of you died.”
“He invaded our home in the gorge and took over,” Leafstar explained. “Eventually, he drove us from our camp.”
“Eventually?” Juniperclaw’s mew was suspicious.
“He lived with us for a while. Like ShadowClan, we didn’t realize how evil he was until it was too late.”
The world spun around Alderheart as an uneasy silence settled over the Clans. Alderheart could feel his Clanmates’ distrust. StarClan! Make them understand! His breath stopped as Sparkpelt got to her paws. What was she going to say? He braced himself, fearing the worst.
“I know SkyClan has suffered much and lost many Clanmates,” she began. Her voice shook, but there was determination in her mew, and the other cats quieted as she went on. Tigerheart, watching silently from the roots of the Great Oak, leaned forward and stared at her intently. “But why can’t they return to their old home? Darktail is gone now, and so are his rogues. SkyClan’s old home is safe again. I’m sure they were happy there once. They can be happy there again. We managed without them before. Why do we need them now?” She paused, her bright gaze holding the attention of the cats. “If they stay beside the lake, who is going to give up territory to give them a new home?”
Alderheart swallowed. He knew her words echoed the feelings of many cats. Why couldn’t the Clans see there was more to life than territory?
Before the Clans could agree with Sparkpelt, Tigerheart leaped onto a root of the oak and looked up at his leader. “Rowanstar, may I speak?”
Rowanstar nodded, looking at his deputy with puzzlement.
“We have suffered because of Darktail’s cruelty.” Tigerheart padded along the root and stopped in a pool of moonlight. “He has left us weak and frightened. RiverClan has withdrawn to rebuild their shattered Clan. ShadowClan has lost so many warriors that it will take moons for us to become what we once were.”
Rowanstar shifted uneasily on the branch above, but he let his deputy go on.
“There is no doubt that StarClan wanted us to find SkyClan. I believe StarClan had a reason. Not just to clear the sky of the darkness we have suffered, but because StarClan knew that the five Clans belong together. With an extra Clan beside the lake, we will find strength when we most need it.”
“But who will give up territory for them?” Crowfeather’s ears twitched distrustfully.
“We could.” Tigerheart turned his gaze on Rowanstar. “We have fewer mouths to feed now. And fewer warriors to patrol our borders. It makes sense to exchange some of our land for an ally.”
Rowanstar looked thoughtful, as though weighing Tigerheart’s words. The Clans watched him in silence. He turned to Leafstar. “Would you be our ally?”
“Yes,” Leafstar told him. “We are Clan cats. We share the same ancestors. It would be an honor to stand beside you. And we’d always be grateful for any territory you gave us.”
Alderheart held his breath as the cats of WindClan and ThunderClan exchanged glances.
Molewhisker’s gaze flashed with suspicion. “You’d be allies to us all, right? Not just ShadowClan.”
“Of course.” Leafstar stared into the crowd. “We want to live among the Clans our ancestors hunted beside countless moons ago.” She looked hopefully at Rowanstar. “Would you be willing to give us land?”
Rowanstar shifted his paws nervously. “You could have some of the land beside ThunderClan, with a narrow piece that opens onto the lake.”
“Our land?” Scorchfur looked outraged.
Rowanstar straightened as though settling the decision in his mind. “Our land,” he meowed firmly.
Tigerheart stared unblinking at Scorchfur. “Is that a problem?”
Scorchfur looked away, growling to himself.
Leafstar’s eyes lit up. “Thank you!” Her mew was filled with joy.
“Then it’s settled.” Harestar flicked his tail.
Bramblestar nodded. “Leafstar, you should stay in our camp tonight, and tomorrow ShadowClan can help you mark out your new territory.”
Alderheart felt limp with relief. A decision had been made. SkyClan was staying beside the lake. He sensed tension ebbing away as the Clans began to move, like stones freed from ice. ShadowClan had lost some of its territory, but perhaps the gratitude of a neighbor was worth more.
Bramblestar jumped down from the Great Oak. Rowanstar, Harestar, and Leafstar followed him. The Gathering was over. The Clans began to separate, each following their leader as they headed home.
Alderheart watched Twigpaw and Violetpaw move happily toward Hawkwing. Their father was staying.
“You see?” Leafpool looked relieved. “We can trust StarClan to guide our paws.”
Mist hung in the hollow, lingering even as the sun rose above the cliff top. The browning trees shone like gold in the early morning light. Alderheart padded from the medicine den, fluffing his fur against the damp air. He glanced nervously at the camp entrance, wondering how Twigpaw’s assessment was going.