Battle against the badgers (TNP)

The battle against the badgers took place in Twilight, in which badgers, having had enough of being chased out of their territory by the Clan cats, decided to enact their revenge and attack ThunderClan.

Premise

 * Leafpool and Crowfeather leave their respective homes, ThunderClan and WindClan, in order to break free from Clan rules and to pursue a life where they can freely be mates. While asleep, Leafpool dreams of lumbering animals in ThunderClan's camp. Waking up, she realizes she must go home to protect them. As Crowfeather and Leafpool continue to travel, they are encountered by Midnight, who tells them that badgers are planning to attack ThunderClan. Midnight tells them the badgers attacked for revenge, as they were driven out of their home several times. Leafpool and Crowfeather decide to return ThunderClan, to save them.

Overview

 * After Leafpool and Crowfeather leave their Clans, they shelter for the night. However, Leafpool has a vision, in which she sees several animals lumbering through ThunderClan's camp. The two, after Midnight confirms that ThunderClan will be attacked, return to the camp in order to help. Despite the battle being won, with WindClan reinforcements, it has deadly consequences, as both Sootfur and Cinderpelt both are killed in the fray.

Midnight's warning

 * While asleep, Leafpool has a dream in which she is surrounded by black fog, but she is able to see lumbering shapes moving around her. Although they are too blurred for Leafpool to identify what they are, she is able to see blunt claws, snapping jaws, and malicious eyes. One of the dark masses looms over her and claws her, ruffling her whiskers and barely missing her eye. Leafpool feels liquid surrounding her paws as she recognizes the scent of blood. She yowls for StarClan to help her, and is woken up by the extreme nature of the dream.


 * Crowfeather is standing next to Leafpool, demanding who is there as they notice shuffling pawsteps. Leafpool sees a badger coming towards her, and Crowfeather assures her that it is all right, telling her it is Midnight. Midnight is surprised and greets Crowfeather, calling him by his apprentice name, Crowpaw. Crowfeather corrects her, saying that he is Crowfeather, in honor of Feathertail. The dark tom introduces Leafpool to Midnight, and Midnight asks if the two are fleeing. Crowfeather answers that they had to leave, and they could not stay together if they were in their Clans. Midnight warns them that trouble is coming, and that her kin are angry with the Clans.


 * She explains that since Clan cats have driven badgers out of their territory, the badgers will do the same and take back what was theirs. Leafpool and Crowfeather recall the times when badgers had been driven out, and Leafpool asks Midnight if they are going to attack the Clans. Crowfeather asks what side Midnight is on, and Midnight replies that she has no side. Crowfeather asks what her family plans to do, and Midnight tells him that they will attack their "sets," otherwise known as their camps. Midnight explains that she had come to the forest to tell the Clans what was going to happen, and she asks Crowfeather if he will help.


 * Crowfeather explains that he and Leafpool had left their Clans for good, and there was nothing they could do. Leafpool exclaims that they cannot leave their Clans to die, and Crowfeather tells her that Midnight will warn them, and the Clans will be safe if they listen to her. He insists that they had come too far, and if they go back home, every cat will know what they had done. He adds that they would never be able to leave again, and things would not be the same as they would not be able to meet again - and all of this would have been for nothing. Leafpool, pained, knows that Crowfeather is right.


 * Midnight, watching every moment of their exchange, wishes them luck. She says that their future is in the luck of their warrior ancestors, and she will do what she can. Leafpool thanks her, and she and Crowfeather watch as Midnight lumbers away from them, heading to ThunderClan.

The badgers

 * Leafpool drifts into a troubled sleep, in which she hears Cinderpelt exclaiming for StarClan to help her. She wakes up, disturbed, and tells Crowfeather that she cannot stay here, and that they have to go back. Crowfeather tells her that he feels the same way, and that they have to go back and help their Clans.


 * Back at camp, Squirrelflight hears a low rumbling roar through the trees. Whitepaw streaks into camp, frightened, with Brackenfur behind her. The roaring eventually becomes louder, followed by snarling and growling. The entrance to the hollow snaps, and badgers thrust their way through camp. All able-bodied cats, save for Cinderpelt and Brightheart, who hurry to the medicine den, start to attack.


 * Squirrelflight engages in a fight with a badger, but much to her annoyance, Ashfur helps her. Brambleclaw orders Squirrelflight to help her, as they must get Daisy and her kits out of the hollow. Squirrelflight follows him, dodging Spiderleg and Sootfur, who are fighting together. Brightheart and Cloudtail come to rescue the kits, where Squirrelflight is about to show them a way out of camp.


 * However, Brightheart orders her to fetch Cinderpelt, as Sorreltail's kits are arriving. Squirrelflight scans the camp, but cannot find Cinderpelt - only Sorreltail's mate, Brackenfur, who is running towards the nursery. Squirrelflight orders him to find Cinderpelt, describing the situation, and Brackenfur goes to search for the medicine cat.


 * Cinderpelt reaches the nursery, ordering a guard for the entrance. Squirrelflight helps Daisy, her kits, and the Clan elders, Longtail and Mousefur, to find different ways to escape. Longtail and Mousefur are told to shelter on the Highledge, while Squirrelflight shows Daisy and her kits another way out of camp.


 * As Squirrelflight climbs the exit alongside the queen and her children, she looks down to see more badgers invading the camp, reinforcements for the ones already there. Anxious, she wonders if this is the end for the her Clan. She shakes her numbness away and successfully brings Daisy's kits to safety. Squirrelflight goes back to camp, where Brambleclaw is helping Ferncloud and Birchpaw escape. She asks the dark brown tabby if her father, Firestar, is alive, in which Brambleclaw replies that he is.


 * Squirrelflight goes to help Sootfur, who is severely injured. At first, she tries to help him out of the camp, but due to his injury, Sootfur dies in front of her eyes. Squirrelflight dives back into the fray, despite her inner thoughts that her Clanmates could not win this battle. As she fights, she hears a shrieking cry from the nursery, in which a cat wails for StarClan to help her.

Return of two cats

 * Leafpool and Crowfeather enter ThunderClan territory, in which Leafpool gives Crowfeather a farewell. Crowfeather tells her that he is not leaving her, and Leafpool argues that he needs to warn WindClan. He agrees, but says that he needs to take her to her camp first, which will not take long. Leafpool, knowing that it would only waste time arguing, agrees and races through ThunderClan territory. Although she and the dark tom can pick up the stench of badgers, they still travel, and when they reach ThunderClan's camp, they realize that the badgers have already broken in.


 * Ferncloud, who had been hiding under a bush, sees Leafpool and is about to ask her where she had been. However, realizing the severity of the Clan's situation, she orders her to help the Clan. Leafpool and Crowfeather run down the slope, and they see a horrible scene play out before their eyes - the entrance to the camp demolished, massive badgers trampling the ground and assaulting cats. Firestar orders his Clan to follow him and drive the badgers out. His Clanmates obey his order, and follow him.


 * The pale medicine cat frets about being too late, but during her worries, she hears the cry of Cinderpelt. She races towards the nursery, to be seen by her sister, Squirrelflight. Squirrelflight tells her that Cinderpelt was in the nursery with Sorreltail, as Sorreltail's kits are coming, but badgers had broken in. Leafpool attempts to enter the nursery, but she collides with a badger.


 * Crowfeather and Leafpool attack the badger, and Leafpool enters the nursery. She sees Sorreltail about to give birth, but she sees something else as well - the blood stained body of her mentor.

A tragic death

 * Cinderpelt is motionless, next to Sorreltail, with blood spilling from a gash in her side. Leafpool pleads with her to wake up, and Cinderpelt's eyes open. She acknowledges her, and says that she had prayed to StarClan for her return. Leafpool breathes that she never should have left her, apologizes profusely, and begs Cinderpelt not to die. She examines Cinderpelt's wound, and explains what she is going to do to treat her.


 * The gray medicine cat tells Leafpool there there is no point, as she is going to join StarClan. Leafpool protests, pressing moss against the bleeding wound. Cinderpelt murmurs that it is all right, as StarClan had told her that they would come for her soon. Leafpool stares at her, horrified that she had knew about her impending death all along. She asks why she did not tell her. Cinderpelt replies that it was her destiny, not Leafpool's. The medicine cat apprentice reminds her that she knew she was seeing Crowfeather, and that if she went away, ThunderClan would be left without a medicine cat. She adds that Cinderpelt should have forced her to say.


 * After exchanging some more words with Leafpool, and Leafpool apologizing to her, Cinderpelt tells her that her destiny cannot be changed, and lets go of her life to join her warrior ancestors. Crowfeather comes behind her and apologizes for her death, in which Leafpool wails in grief. Crowfeather tells her that she must stay with her Clan, and when Leafpool asks about him, he tells her that her heart lies with ThunderClan, and not him.


 * Leafpool realizes that he is right, and although she loved him, she did not love him enough to leave her Clan. After reassuring Cinderpelt that she will take care of the Clan, she orders Crowfeather to help her Clanmates keep the badgers off. She then comes to Sorreltail's side, reassuring her best friend that she was here, and everything will be fine.

WindClan reinforcements

 * Squirrelflight is surprised to see Midnight, who entered the camp, and she wonders if she is here to fight on behalf of her kin. Midnight tells her that she is not here to fight, but she brought help. To the ginger warrior's astonishment, several WindClan warriors race into camp and engage in the battle against the badgers. Brambleclaw remarks to Onestar that he came, and Onestar tells him that there were four Clans in the forest, but they could still help one another.


 * The badgers retreat, and the battle is over. Firestar greets Midnight, and Onestar explains to him that Midnight had gone to WindClan for help. Firestar thanks Midnight for coming and getting help. The flame colored tom also thanks the WindClan leader, saying that StarClan would have gained many more warriors if it was not for him. Onestar tells him that since ThunderClan had helped WindClan in the past, it was only right that they came and helped him. Firestar tells him that they will not forget.

Unexpected visitors

 * Thornclaw lets out a startled yowl as two cats pick their way through thorn branches. One of the cats meows that the state of the camp was not what he expected to find, and asks what happens. Squirrelflight stares at them, thinking that after the badger attack, nothing could have surprised her more. She realizes that the cats who had entered were Stormfur and Brook.

Deaths as a result of the battle

 * ThunderClan
 * Sootfur
 * Cinderpelt

Leafpool

 * The medicine cat apprentice of ThunderClan, Leafpool runs away with Crowfeather, due to her profuse love for him and her feelings of worthlessness about her status in ThunderClan. At first, she believed she was following her heart by running away with the cat she loves, however, when she receives dreams about ominous prophecies and attacking animals, she realizes that the best thing for her - and to truly follow her heart - is to return to her Clan. She knows that she must be their medicine cat, and that is where she truly belongs. After returning, she realizes that she although she loved Crowfeather, she did not love him enough to abandon her Clan forever.

Crowfeather

 * The one who stole Leafpool's heart, Crowfeather is a warrior of WindClan, who had fallen in love with Leafpool. Although he feels guilt for falling in love with someone so soon after his previous love, Feathertail, died, he begs Leafpool to run away from her Clan, so he can be with her and they will have no one forbidding them from being together. Leafpool eventually agrees, and the two run away. At first, when receiving the warning from Midnight about her kin's attack on the Clans, Crowfeather is reluctant to go, as he knows that when he goes back, he will never be able to pursue a relationship with Leafpool. However, he knows that Leafpool's heart is in ThunderClan, and his love for her is too strong to keep her from being where she belongs. He also knows that he must defend his Clan as well.

WindClan cats

 * Tornear
 * Ashfoot
 * Whitetail
 * Onestar
 * Nightcloud
 * Webfoot

Badgers

 * Midnight (on ThunderClan's side)
 * Several others

References and citations
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