Bluestar's Prophecy/Chapter 12

Chapter Summary
Bluepaw's PoV
 * Bluepaw wakes up and heads out of her den and into the clearing. A hunting patrol soon returns to camp with a good catch, each cat carrying two mice each. Thistlepaw, who was part of the patrol, explains that they had found a whole nest of mice and boasts that he had killed three of the mice among the catch. Snowpaw, at this comment, praises her fellow apprentice and looks admiringly at him. Goosefeather comes out of his den to eat one of the mice, and Bluepaw stares angrily at the medicine cat. She thinks that the speckled gray tom only cares about himself, and that if he cared more about his Clanmates instead, he would not have sent them into the dangerous battle against WindClan. Sunfall, walking up by his apprentice, guesses what she is thinking and reminds her that Moonflower's death was not her fault. The ginger tom tells Bluepaw to take something from the fresh-kill pile and that he will take her out training later.


 * Bluepaw picks a sparrow and sits down to eat it, but her meal is disrupted as she hears Thistlepaw and Snowpaw sharing tongues. She sees the gray-and-white tom picking burrs out of the white she-cat's pelt. Angered, the blue-gray she-cat rushes over to confront them, asking Snowpaw if she has forgotten how to clean herself. Snowpaw and Thistlepaw, after briefly arguing with Bluepaw, try to send her away, but the blue-gray she-cat won't go. Thistlepaw ends up leaving instead, and as the gray-and-white tom pads off, Bluepaw demands to know what is going on between him and her sister. Snowpaw responds that he makes her purr, and that there's nothing in the warrior code that says denmates can't become friends or even mates if they want to. Bluepaw retorts that if they're just going to follow the code, then they should give up eating and sleeping since there's nothing there about doing that. Snowpaw rolls her eyes and says that her sister is being ridiculous, but the two young cats' argument is interrupted as Sunfall comes to fetch them for a patrol.


 * Tawnyspots proposes using thick, waxy leaves to weave among the ferns in the elders' den in order to keep the nests inside dry. He decides to lead a patrol to gather them and to take his apprentice Rosepaw along. Sweetpaw, Smallear, Thistlepaw, Sparrowpelt, and Snowpaw decide to join the leaf-gathering patrol as well. Bluepaw, settling down to finish her sparrow, realizes that she hadn't been offered to join in the patrol, and thinks that Sunfall might have been right when he said that her Clanmates were avoiding her because she was bad-tempered. However, Lionpaw soon invites her to come with him, Swiftbreeze, and Goldenpaw to practice battle moves in the sandy hollow. Sunfall chooses to accompany them as well.


 * Once in the hollow, Swiftbreeze asks Bluepaw to show Lionpaw a simple battle move, the half-turn belly rake, and she obliges. Hardly before the blue-gray she-cat has finished her demonstration, the golden tabby has already rushed out to try the technique for himself. However, it is does not go well for the young apprentice, and he loses his balance and falls. Swiftbreeze instructs him more on the proper way to do the move, and when Lionpaw tries it again, he executes it successfully. Goldenpaw tries it as well and is successful on her first attempt, although it is noted that she doesn't have as much strength in her hind legs as her brother does. Lionpaw tries the move on Bluepaw and though she is able to dodge, she realizes that Lionpaw is strong and will make a good warrior when he has more experience. It is now Goldenpaw's turn to try the fighting technique against Bluepaw. The pale ginger she-cat is hesitant, but is told to pretend that Bluepaw is an enemy ShadowClan warrior attacking the nursery. Goldenpaw then strikes quickly and leaps onto Bluepaw’s back, but the blue-gray apprentice shakes her opponent off and rakes her claw against the ginger tabby's ear. Bluepaw's strike draws blood, but Goldenpaw doesn't mind the scratch, and the apprentices keep practicing.


 * Back in camp, the leaf-gathering patrol has returned and Sparrowpelt, Snowpaw, and Rosepaw are now weaving the leaves into the walls of the elders' den. Speckletail is upset when she sees the scratch that Bluepaw left on her daughter's ear, wailing that Goldenpaw will be scarred for life. The pale ginger she-cat is not as concerned, however, saying that it was good she would have her first scar even before going into battle. Stormtail suddenly joins the conversation, putting in that Goldenpaw had been lucky to escape with only one scratch since she was fighting Bluepaw. The blue-gray tom adds that his kit is a natural fighter and that Moonflower would be proud of her. Bluepaw is stunned by Stormtail's words and wonders if her father really is pleased with her even though he had seemed not to be paying her much attention.


 * Suddenly, a patrol consisting of Adderfang, Thrushpelt, and Thistlepaw bursts into camp, yowling that RiverClan has invaded their territory and crossed over the ice on the river to claim Sunningrocks. Pinestar, leaping to action, quickly constructs a battle plan. The reddish brown tom calls together a patrol that he will lead to Sunningrocks, including Bluepaw and Snowpaw on it. He also sends Stormtail to lead another patrol to attack RiverClan from the other side, thinking that a second wave of attack would finish their enemies off. He leaves the rest of the warriors to guard the camp, fearing that RiverClan might attack their medicine supply in retaliation for ThunderClan's attack on WindClan. Pinestar's patrol races out of camp and to Sunningrocks to meet the RiverClan patrol. There, Bluepaw sees a large group of RiverClan warriors perched upon the rocks. Hailstar steps out from among them, declaring that the rocks belonged to his Clan again and that an ancient wrong has been put right. Pinestar hisses that they will never be RiverClan's and orders his own patrol to attack.