Dark River/Cliffnotes

These notes are brief, noting major events and minor events in Dark River that will be of consequence later. They are intended to be used as a reference for those looking for specific events for re-reading and the book discussions.


 * The ancient cat Fallen Leaves is preparing to become a sharpclaw.
 * Before he leaves a cat mentions that it might rain.
 * Fallen Leaves speaks to Rock, an ancient cat from the tunnels.
 * Rock asks Fallen Leaves if it is going to rain.
 * Fallen Leaves says "the sky is clear" then ventures forward into the tunnels.


 * Lionpaw's point of view.
 * Lionpaw, Hollypaw and Jaypaw are pretending that ShadowClan is attacking.
 * They ambush Squirrelflight and Brambleclaw in the camp.
 * Squirrelflight and Brambleclaw tell them not to play around like that.
 * On the way to the Gathering, Jaypaw slipped on the tree trunk but managed to regain his balance.
 * During the Gathering Blackstar tells everyone Tawnypelt has had three kits named Flamekit, Dawnkit and Tigerkit.
 * The older warriors were shocked at the name Tigerkit.
 * Lionpaw thought it was silly every cat was frightened of Tigerstar when he was only a memory.
 * Lionpaw meets up with Heatherpaw and agrees to meet her the next night.


 * Hollypaw's point of view.
 * Hollypaw suspects Lionpaw is up to something when she wakes up to find him soaking wet from the rain.
 * She asks Brackenfur about whether she would have to battle Tawnypelt's kits.
 * Brackenfur tells her that the Clan comes before kin and to stop asking questions.
 * Hollypaw and Cinderpaw discover Lionpaw and Heatherpaw playing together one night.
 * Hollypaw tells him that he shouldn't be with Heatherpaw when she is from another Clan.
 * Lionpaw thinks she is calling him disloyal.


 * Jaypaw's point of view.
 * Jaypaw and Leafpool travel to the Moonpool with the other medicine cats.
 * Jaypaw enters Willowpaw's dream.
 * He finds that RiverClan is in danger of losing their home.
 * They head back and Leafpool tells Firestar about the dream of RiverClan in danger.
 * Firestar decides not to do anything.
 * Jaypaw runs into Hollypaw and she asks what he found out.
 * Hollypaw is unhappy that Firestar isn't doing anything.


 * Jaypaw's point of view.
 * Leafpool and Jaypaw go out to collect herbs.
 * A hunting patrol of Mousepaw, Birchfall, Spiderleg, Ashfur, and Lionpaw find them.
 * Mousepaw chases a squirrel but misses.
 * Jaypaw bumps into a stick while looking for mallow.
 * He feels it and finds that scars had been scratched on it.
 * Leafpool does not allow the stick to come back to camp.


 * Lionpaw's point of view.
 * Lionpaw has a nightmare about foxes.
 * He becomes annoyed at Hollypaw and Cinderpaw for watching over him.
 * He goes with Ashfur, Brackenfur, and Hollypaw to the training hollow.
 * They practice fighting the other Clans.
 * Still angry with Hollypaw, Lionpaw traps her and rakes his claws down her, but is stopped by Brambleclaw.
 * Brambleclaw takes Lionpaw aside for hunting.
 * Lionpaw tells him that he is tired at having to prove himself to Hollypaw
 * Brambleclaw tells him that he felt the same away since he was the son of Tigerstar.
 * One night, Heatherpaw comes to the ThunderClan camp.
 * Lionpaw finds her and agrees to come with her.
 * Heatherpaw shows him underground tunnels.
 * They make up the Clan DarkClan and begin to play.
 * The next morning, Lionpaw and Heatherpaw head back to their Clans, having fallen asleep.


 * Hollypaw's point of view.
 * Firestar calls a Clan meeting to give Millie her warrior name.
 * Hollypaw frets that a kittypet becoming a warrior might stir up more hostility in the other Clans.
 * Millie stops Firestar from giving her a new name, saying that she would be forever loyal to ThunderClan, but wished to keep her kittypet name.
 * The Clan us surprised, but Daisy and Brook agree with her.
 * Mousepaw, Cinderpaw, and Hollypaw go out on a hunting assessment.
 * Determined to catch a squirrel, Mousepaw climbs the Sky Oak, but gets stuck.
 * Cinderpaw goes up after him to help.
 * Mousepaw is startled by a bird's shriek.
 * Cinderpaw saves him but loses her balance on the tree.
 * She falls, hitting the ground hard.


 * Jaypaw's point of view.
 * Jaypaw removes a thorn from Birchfall's pad.
 * Hollypaw rushes into the clearing and announces that Cinderpaw has fallen out of Sky Oak.
 * Jaypaw and Leafpool rush to the scene to provide treatment and to carry Cinderpaw back to camp.
 * They discover that Cinderpaw broke her hind leg.
 * Leafpool sets Cinderpaw's break back at camp.
 * Cinderpaw falls asleep; Jaypaw enters her dream.
 * He discovers that Cinderpaw is the reincarnation of Cinderpelt.


 * Lionpaw's point of view.
 * Lionpaw is playing with Heatherpaw in the tunnels.
 * He meets Tigerstar and Hawkfrost for the first time as he's leaving.
 * He goes on the dawn patrol that morning with Sandstorm, Dustpelt, Honeypaw, and Hazelpaw.
 * While on patrol, Lionpaw watches the WindClan apprentices Breezepaw and Harepaw almost cross the border while they are chasing a squirrel.
 * Dustpelt is suspicious because WindClan have never hunted squirrels before.


 * Hollypaw's point of view.
 * ThunderClan arrive at a Gathering to find every cat in RiverClan on the Island.
 * Leopardstar tells the other Clans that RiverClan has a small problem and had to temporarily evacuate their camp.
 * Hollypaw agrees to meet Willowpaw later to find out what the trouble is.


 * Jaypaw's point of view.
 * Jaypaw decides to test Cinderpaw to see if she remembers ever being Cinderpelt.
 * Leafpool stops him and tells him that Cinderpaw must find her own destiny without interfering.
 * Cinderpaw asks Jaypaw what it is like to be blind.
 * Leafpool takes him out to look for herbs.
 * Jaypaw finds the unusual stick again.
 * He is unable to take it back with him due to an incoming storm.
 * The next morning, Jaypaw finds Lionpaw awake early.
 * They take a walk down to the lake.
 * Jaypaw finds the stick again.


 * Lionpaw's point of view.
 * Ashfur gets frustrated with Lionpaw for missing prey.
 * Honeypaw defends him in front of the other cats.
 * Lionpaw refuses Honeypaw's help, and ends up missing another vole.
 * Later, Lionpaw and Ashfur go out for battle training with Berrypaw and Brambleclaw.
 * Lionpaw is put up against Berrypaw but loses quickly.
 * Ashfur expresses disappointment in Lionpaw and sets him to work on a move while he helped with Berrypaw.
 * Tigerstar comes to Lionpaw and shows him a better way to do the move.
 * He shows it the other cats, who are impressed.
 * Bramblelcaw is troubled, having recognized Tigerstar's move.


 * Hollypaw's point of view.
 * Hollypaw is disappointed to see that the Clan was preparing for battle against WindClan.
 * Brackenfur tells her that they would be battle training instead of hunting.
 * Hollypaw goes to Firestar and tells him that he can't let the preparations for battle to happen.
 * Firestar tells her that they must be ready in case WindClan attacked.
 * Hollypaw decides that she needs to speak with Willowpaw.
 * She goes through WindClan territory and into RiverClan.
 * She finds Willowpaw and Mothwing.
 * Willowpaw shows her that Twoleg kits had started coming to RiverClan camp, but they were working on the problem.


 * Hollypaw's point of view.
 * Hollypaw promises not to reveal RiverClan's problem.
 * Willowpaw starts to take Hollypaw back to the border so she could go home.
 * A dog chases them, and they find a RiverClan patrol.
 * The patrol is caught by WindClan after accidentally crossing the border.
 * They let the RiverClan cats and Hollypaw return to their territory with threats of battle.
 * Reedwhisker takes Hollypaw to see Leopardstar.
 * Leopardstar refuses to let her go home.


 * Jaypaw's point of view.
 * The Clan begins to notice Hollypaw's absence.
 * They begin to think that WindClan took her hostage.
 * Brambleclaw and Firestar calm the Clan and decide not to attack WindClan.
 * Leafpool tells Jaypaw to try and dream where she was.
 * He refuses, saying that he wasn't even tired.
 * Jaypaw goes down to the lake and finds the stick.
 * He has a vision about what happened to Fallen Leaves.
 * It begins to rain, and the tunnels flood.
 * Jaypaw sees that Fallen Leaves drowned in the tunnels and never back came out.


 * Lionpaw's point of view.
 * Lionpaw continues to practice Tigerstar's moves in the tunnels while he waits for Heatherpaw.
 * Heatherpaw arrives and tells him that Gorsetail's kits almost saw her going into the tunnels.
 * Lionpaw shows Heatherpaw the battle moves he was practicing.
 * He teaches them to Heatherpaw.
 * The next morning, Hawkfrost stops Lionpaw returning to camp.
 * He tells Lionpaw that he is a traitor for teaching the enemy battle moves that she might use on him one day.
 * Lionpaw arrives back at camp to learn that WindClan had crossed the border and killed prey over it.
 * He joins the battle patrol and they head to the border where fighting was about to start.
 * Lionpaw defeats Breezepaw in battle with the help of Poppypaw.
 * Ashfoot calls the retreat for WindClan.
 * Leafpool and Jaypaw begin to treat the wounded cats.
 * Lionpaw tells them that WindClan doesn't have Hollypaw, as he learned through Heatherpaw.
 * Lionpaw sneaks out of camp to meet with Heatherpaw.
 * He tells her that they can no longer meet anymore.
 * Heatherpaw grows angry and tells him that she hopes being a warrior is worth it.


 * Hollypaw's point of view.
 * Squirrelflight arrives at the island holding RiverClan to bring Hollypaw home.
 * Leopardstar allows Hollypaw to return home with Squirrelflight.
 * On the way back to ThunderClan, Squirrelflight scolds Hollypaw for wasting the Clan's time and disobeying Firestar.
 * She also tells Hollypaw about the border skirmish.
 * When Hollypaw asks, Squirrelflight tells her that Jaypaw dreamed she was with RiverClan.
 * Back at camp, Hollypaw desperately tries to convince Firestar not to attack WindClan.
 * She is given the punishment of taking care of the elders and staying in camp for one day.
 * She talks to Mousefur and tells her that they wouldn't have to fight if they just talked to each other.
 * Mousefur becomes interested in talking to the other Clans and not guess about what might happen.
 * Cinderpaw begins to take short walks around camp, showing how her leg was recovering.


 * Jaypaw's point of view.
 * Firestar comes to the medicine den to speak with Leafpool and Jaypaw.
 * He tells them that he wants both of them to travel to WindClan tomorrow to speak with Onestar.
 * The next day, a patrol escorts them to the border.
 * They meet a WindClan patrol of Nightcloud, Tornear, Owlwhisker, and Harepaw.
 * The WindClan cats reluctantly allow Leafpool and Jaypaw to come with them.
 * Leafpool speaks with Onestar, asking if they were in trouble.
 * Onestar denies that they were.
 * She then asks him if RiverClan had invaded their territory.
 * Onestar tells her that they haven't yet, but might still.
 * Gorsetail suddenly finds that her three kits have disappeared.
 * Ashfoot with Breezepaw and Heatherpaw return to the camp, announcing that RiverClan had crossed their border.
 * Onestar forces Leafpool and Jaypaw to leave, telling them that WindClan would attack at once to get their kits back.


 * Lionpaw's point of view.
 * Ashfur congratulates Lionpaw on his improved hunting skills as they return to camp.
 * They find that the Clan is busy preparing for attack after what WindClan declared.
 * Lionpaw learns that three WindClan kits went missing.
 * He thinks that they might have gone into the tunnels.
 * Lionpaw goes down to the lake where Jaypaw and Hollypaw were.
 * He tells them about the tunnels and admits that he had been seeing Heatherpaw there.
 * The three of them go into the tunnels.
 * Jaypaw begins to get worried since it was raining.
 * They find Heatherpaw and Breezepaw in there as well.
 * Jaypaw picks up the lost kits' scent.


 * Jaypaw's point of view.
 * Jaypaw begins to lead the way into the tunnels.
 * Fallen Leaves comes to him and begins to lead him to the kits.
 * He leads them to a boulder.
 * The apprentices find the kits stuck behind it.
 * They go back to the main tunnel but find that the river has been flooded, blocking the escape.
 * Jaypaw sees Rock and learns of a way out.
 * The cats must let the river carry them out the river.
 * They all jump into the river.


 * Hollypaw's point of view.
 * The cats make it into the lake and swim to shore.
 * After a brief rest, they move as fast as they can to the border where the battle was going to start.
 * They arrive at the border just in time and announce that they found the kits.
 * Instead of telling the Clans about the tunnels, Hollypaw lies that they were on the shore of the lake to cover up for Lionpaw.
 * Sedgekit, Swallowkit, and Thistlekit return to WindClan.
 * Heatherpaw goes over to Lionpaw and warmly thanks him for his help.
 * Flatly, he tells her they would have done the same for any cat.
 * Heatherpaw is pained by his decision not to be with her but tells him he will make a great warrior.
 * Hollypaw decides that she can no longer be friends with Willowpaw anymore since she was not a medicine cat.


 * Lionpaw's point of view.
 * Lionpaw leaves camp and goes back to the tunnels one last time.
 * He says good-bye to Heatherpaw and knows that they would be free to do what they wanted in StarClan.
 * Outside, Tigerstar and Hawkfrost come to him.
 * They tell him he made the right decision.
 * Tigerstar tells him that friendship was worthless and he would become so powerful that he would not need friends, and then he would never regret that he chose to become a warrior.