[ the pact ;; warrior cat - based story ]

[rockett.]

to anyone that's actually bothering to read this; hi, i'm rockett c: i just had a crazy idea for a warrior cat roleplay, so this is it. i'm not really writing this for any reason except for the fact i just really liked this idea and i wanted to put it out there. i'm up for any feedback you have, but please pm me about it instead of posting it here. i hope you like it c:

oh, and i'm not really doing chapters - i'm just sort of posting as much as i can or feel like in one bit ^^

[rockett.]

the cats of cedarclan have travelled far from where the first clans lived. it is because of this that they are the only clan still alive - as far as they know. the clan thrives, seeing as they are the only ones in their forest. the forest they live in is filled with tall cedar trees, hence the naming of the clan. these cats are known for their thin and lean bodies, and their easily-blending pelts. cedarclan still believes strongly in starclan, and despite no longer having the same connection as they once did, they continue to pray to them and let the cats of the stars guide them on their paths.

cedarclans' territory ranges as far as the cats dare to go. this means the cats usually have free range on whatever prey or resources fill the forest, except for when a rouge or lone cat strays into their land. other than that, these cats have a safe, happy life.

cedarclan's brave and kind leader, wolfstar, lost his last life a mere few moons ago. the deputy was made the new leader, as tradition goes, and despite the clan being upset over the death of the noble tom, they put their faith in the new leader: windstar. they can only hope that he will be as strong and as wise as wolfstar once was. if not, then the clan will surely be put back into peril.

[rockett.]

leader; windstar - • - ♂ stocky tom with a crisp white pelt and pale green eyes.

deputy; mousefoot - • - ♀ petite young she-cat with olive green eyes and a smooth grey pelt.

medicine cat; birchfall - • - ♂ slender white tom with tabby patches and soft green eyes.

warriors; owlwhisker - • - ♂ tall tabby tom with warm yellow eyes.
riverpelt - • - ♂ lithe young tom with bright yellow eyes and a grey and white patched pelt.
foxstep - • - ♀ tall and lithe she-cat with a pale ginger pelt.
greyfur - • - ♀ senior warrior she-cat with a long silver tabby pelt and dark green eyes.
rookstorm - • - ♂ muscular tom with a crisp black and white pelt and amber eyes.
briarnose - • - ♀ sweet young she-cat with soft yellow eyes and a tortoiseshell pelt.
falconfang - • - ♂ big and bulky grey tom with yellow-green eyes.
minksplash - • - ♀ large, long-haired grey she-cat with pale yellow eyes.

apprentices; otterpaw - • - ♀ lean and lithe she-cat with a smooth tabby pelt and bright yellow eyes.
lionpaw - • - ♂ small ginger tom with sweet green eyes.
duskpaw - • - ♀ tall, lean she-cat with yellow eyes and a tabby pelt with hints of ginger.
dustypaw - • - ♂ small tom with a pale grey-brown pelt, folded ears and soft yellow eyes.

queens; mothwing- • - ♀ pretty she-cat with a golden and white pelt with dark tabby stripes.
tinyleaf- • - ♀ tiny, fluffy she-cat with a spft calico pelt and pale yellow eyes.
kits; cherrykit, smokekit and littlekit.

elders; ravenclaw - • - ♂ skinny, tall black tom with dull yellow eyes. he is also deaf.

[rockett.]

mousefoot and falconfang and minksplash are siblings
birchfall and riverpelt are siblings
otterpaw and duskpaw are siblings

owlwhisker mentors otterpaw
rookstorm mentors lionpaw
foxstep mentors duskpaw
greyfur mentors dustypaw

riverpelt has a crush on foxstep
windstar has a crush on mousefoot
briarnose has a crush on falconfang

rookstorm is mates with tinyleaf

rookstorm and tinyleaf are the parents of cherrykit, smokekit and littlekit
unknown and mothwing are the parents of otterpaw and duskpaw

[rockett.]

leaf-fall was never a problem for the cats of cedarclan. most of the trees were evergreen, which meant there weren't any leaves on the ground to disturb prey. it didn't get too cold or windy, so rivers and streams would stay unfrozen, and the cats would have some time to grow out their leaf-bare coats. they had barely any trouble compared to what some of the older clans might've faced. even though it was mostly positive, there are always some negatives.

cedarclan would usually never be prepared for when leaf-bare came, because leaf-fall was so easy. it was a very dramatic and fast change from leaf-fall into leaf-bare, and it most often threw the cats off for a while. the snow and the cold and the lack of prey would all come too quickly. luckily, wolfstar would always manage to get the clan under control before it happened. but now, wolfstar was dead. he had finished his last life after getting an incurable disease, one briarfall had never seen or dealt with before. it left the clan distraught - until windstar was named. cedarclan believed him to be a savior, to aid them in life just as wolfstar had. and even when the clan began to see that he wasn't anything like their previous leader, they continued to believe.

"let all cat's able enough to climb the tallest trees join me here for a clan meeting!" windstar yowled, lifting his head as if calling to the moon. cats began streaming into the center of camp, anywhere from the clan dens to the entrance of the camp. soon, most of the clan sat underneath the fallen tree, where cedarclan held it's meetings. "i say these words before starclan... so that the spirits of our warrior ancestors may hear and approve of my choice." there seemed to be a layer of tension in the air, with all cats holding their breaths and hanging on to every word he spoke. "the new deputy of cedarclan is mousefoot!" windstar moved his gaze to the sweet, soft grey she-cat that had sat herself beside her two siblings. the white tom gave a grin to the new deputy, flicking his tail to invite her to sit beside him. the she-cat, still in shock by being given the role, quickly leaped onto the fallen tree and sat beside the leader. the bulky white tom inched closer to her, so their pelts brushed together. "windstar, she can't be the deputy! mousefoot has not had an apprentice yet!" came a yowl from somewhere in the crowd. instantly, the rest of the warriors stared in shock at the tom who had spoke, as if he had just said the rudest profanity known to clan-kind. the cats moved away from the tom, to reveal who he was: it was falconfang, mousefoot's brother. mousefoot watched him carefully, trying to hide the hurt on her face. did he not think she was capable enough to lead the clan?

"falconfang, falconfang, falconfang," windstar meowed back, though there was anger hidden underneath his words. "has starclan made any sign to show that this decision is wrong?" windstar asked, but an eerie silence followed his words. "exactly. it is not your decision to make, falconfang," the leader spat out his name, trying to keep his hackles from rising. "so my decision is final." the muscular tom looked expectantly at his clan, who eventually chanted mousefoot's name in hushed, confused voices. "good. this clan meeting is over - you may all go and rest before tomorrow's duties." with a flick of his thin tail, the clan was dismissed, most of the cats heading into their respective dens. falconfang hung back, waiting for his sister to finish conversing with windstar. the big grey tom strained his ears to hear what the two were saying.

"i hope your brothers' rude words have not put you off of the position?" windstar asked curiously, but there seemed to be something else in his tone. falconfang couldn't decipher what.
"no, of course not. thank you for letting me have it!"
falconfang scoffed. that wasn't how it worked! a deputy was chosen because the leader saw potential in the way they did things, and believed that they had the abilities to lead a clan. they did just let cats have the position! falconfang decided that he truly hated windstar, for the way he was dragging the clan down. oh starclan, falconfang thought wistfully to himself. why did you have to take wolfstar from us?

finally, mousefoot was saying her goodbyes to windstar. falconfang didn't have to move a muscle to go and see his sister, because the she-cat was already storming over to him. "what in starclan's name do you think you're doing?! the deputy spat, eyes wide in what looked like frustration to falconfang.
"it's a pleasure to see you too. oh, and congratulations on becoming the deputy."

"this isn't the time for sarcasm, falconfang! don't you believe in me?"

falconfang sighed, drooping his shoulders. his voice became soft and quiet, something the tom rarely let himself do. "it's not because i don't believe in you, mousefoot. it's just... don't you think windstar is bringing this clan down? i mean, he was ignoring the warrior code! can't you-"

"wolfstar is dead!" mousefoot interrupted a little too loudly. the she-cat flicked her ears and lowered her voice. "wolfstar is dead. we have no choice but to believe in windstar now."
falconfang let another sigh escape his maw, lifting his head to match the gaze of his sister. her sweet green eyes were almost pleading as she stared at him, as if she was waiting for him to agree - or disagree. "we do have a choice, okay? and i'm going to prove it to you." falconfang brushed his nose against mousefoot's for just a moment, before turning and rushing out of the camp, not daring to look back at his sister's pained face.

[rockett.]

falconfang did not return to camp for the entire night. he stayed in the depths of the forest, letting the quiet sounds of the night soothe his anger. why couldn't mousefoot understand? why couldn't any of these cat's understand? windstar wasn't the savior of this clan! it was if all of cedarclan had been brainwashed - not even his own sibling would give him a chance to prove himself. the grey tom growled, digging his claws into the damp undergrowth. "this could all be over if i could just kill the mouse-brain," falconfang muttered to himself.

"you know, it's not a bad idea."

falconfang nearly jumped out of his skin, whipping his head around to see cedarclan's medicine cat, birchfall, watching calmly from the shadows. by the looks of things, he'd probably been there for a while.

"what are you doing here?!" falconfang scoffed, trying to smooth down his hackles. the grey warrior's body remained tense, ready to pounce if he needed to.

"you want to kill windstar, yes?"

"i didn't mean it, birchfall!" falconfang insisted.

"i received a message from starclan a few nights ago. they told me that the power of the wind would would blow the clan apart, and that it needed to be stopped. i knew i needed to get rid of him somehow, but who would listen to me? nobody believes him to be bad for this clan." birchfall had begun to circle the other tom, who continued to watch him warily.

"that was until i overheard your little outburst at the ceremony."
the slender medicine cat came to a stop in front of falconfang; despite the grey warrior being one of the bigger cats in the clan, birchfall still seemed to tower over him.

"birchfall, we are not killing the leader of cedarclan! have you got bees in your brain?!"
birchfall shook his head. "you said yourself that windstar was dragging this clan down. if we get rid of him, then the clan can go back to the way it was."

"only wolfstar can bring this clan back to the way it was, and he's dead!" falconfang exclaimed, feeling his hackles rise once again. he let out a sigh, dropping his head.
"maybe mousefoot was right. maybe i should just sit back and let windstar lead us the way he chooses."
falconfang began to push past the medicine cat, but birchfall blocked off his path, shoving him back with his shoulder - for a skinny cat, birchfall was quite strong.
"you know you don't want to do that, falconfang." please, trust me... i think we could do it."

falconfang tried to get past, but again birchfall forced him back.
"don't you realise the extremity of this? you would have to take away all nine of windstar's lives without him or the rest of the clan knowing!"

"i'm well aware of that, falconfang. but i have a plan that i guarantee will work. put your faith in me, and we can do it."

falconfang took a long, sharp breath, locking his eyes onto birchfall's.
"fine," he eventually meowed. "okay, fine, i'll do it."
"smart choice, warrior," birchfall replied, stepping out of falconfang's way.
the thick-set grey padded past him, disappearing into the shadows. "so is this... like a pact?"

birchfall felt a smirk creep onto his maw. "a pact - i like it."

-----

the next morning came all too quickly for falconfang. it seemed like as soon as he collapsed into his nest, the sun had crept into the den and the birds had begun chirping their morning song. with a loud groan, falconfang heaved himself out of his nest, and dragged his tired body into camp. no sooner then the grey tom was rubbing sleep out of his eyes, he was greeted by another cat in the clan. "morning, sleepyhead," rookstorm chuckled as he sat beside the grey tom. "don't you look wonderful this morning."

"rough sleep," falconfang muttered bluntly to the tom, swiping his tongue over his messy fur.

"don't get your tail in a twist. i get it," the black and white tom brushed his tail gently over falconfang's shoulder, smiling softly. rookstorm had been falconfang's best friend from the minute they could see. they got along perfectly together, and were more like brothers than friends.

"how's tinyleaf?"

"she's coping. mothwing is being more of a help to her than i am." tinyleaf was rookstorm's mate, and just recently, the two cats had become parents. unfortunately, rookstorm wasn't exactly the best with kits, so the retired queen, mothwing, had been helping tinyleaf take care of them.

falconfang looked up from his matted pelt to watch rookstorm. the tom had been there for him for so long; he told everything to him... but could he tell him about the pact? falconfang would surely be exiled immediately if anyone found out what he and birchfall had planned - falconfang still found it crazy that he'd allowed himself to be apart of it in the first place. but rookstorm was his best friend, surely he'd understand...

"rookstorm, can i tell you something? in private?"

the black and white tom cocked his head to one side, slightly confused. "ah, sure..." the muscular tom replied, awkwardly standing up. but before the two toms could leave to the privacy of the forest, a call came from inside the nursery.
"rookstorm! cherrykit wants to see you!"
rookstorm let out a long sigh. "sorry, falconfang, i should probably go. you can tell me later, right?" falconfang opened his mouth to answer, but rookstorm was already gone.

[rockett.]

since falconfang now had some time to prepare himself for his confrontation with rookstorm, the big grey tom had decided to venture back into the forest. the warrior was now pacing back and forth across the bank of a small river, sheathing and unsheathing his claws in sudden anxiety. what in the name of starclan would happen if rookstorm wasn't on board with the plan? would he keep it to himself, or tell windstar the second he had the chance to? or, what seemed even worse to falconfang, what if he actually agreed?

"rookstorm, i have some news." falconfang was now facing a tree, staring into its' pale brown bark with a look of distress. he shook his head and stepped back, starting over.

"hey rookstorm, guess what? me and birchfall are going to murder the leader! care to join us?" falconfang flattened his ears, biting back a growl. there was no possible way to word something like this, it was too difficult. falconfang let a sigh escape his still-tired body, before he looked back at the tall tree.

"rookstorm, i have something important to tell you, but you can't say a word about it to any other living creature, you understand?" falconfang ordered, giving the tree a deadly serious expression. how crazy he must've looked to the prey that was probably hiding in the shadows.
"birchfall and i... aren't happy with the way this clan is being leaded." the stoic grey cat took a slow breath. "so we are going to kill windstar."

"you are going to do what?!"

falconfang jumped, whirling around to see none other than mousefoot staring at him, her jaw practically sitting on the forest floor. it seemed like falconfang was going to need to find a better place for privacy.

"wait, mousefoot, let me explain -"

"there is nothing to explain, falconfang! you're crazy, you're sick! i can't believe you would ever be so cruel!"
the pretty grey she-cat cried, quickly inching closer to cedarclan camp. falconfang tried moving towards her ever so slightly - if mousefoot even spoke a whisper about this, then falconfang would be crow-food. he couldn't let her go without explaining.

"mousefoot please, don't go until you've listened to what i have to say!" in one swift movement, falconfang slid in front of mousefoot and blocked her path back to the camp, in the way that birchfall had done to him. "please."

mousefoot's eyes darted desperately around her surroundings, but she saw no escape. "i can't, falconfang, this is wrong..."

before anything more could be said, a call came from the camp that left falconfang completely empty.
"mousefoot? mousefoot, i need to speak with you," windstar's sickening voice trailed into both mousefoot's and falconfang's ears.

"i.. i have to go..."

"please, mousefoot, don't say a word about this to windstar. i can tell you everything, but not here, and not now."

mousefoot made no reply, pushing her way past her brother and rushing back into the camp. falconfang's heart slammed against his chest with such force that falconfang feared it would break out of his body. the tom followed briskly after his sister, staring anxiously at the pair of cats as they spoke.

"you called me, windstar?" mousefoot began, still trying to calm herself from the jarring information she had just received.

"i did indeed!" windstar chuckled. even his voice made falconfang want to claw his own ears off. "there's something i want to ask you."

"windstar, there's something i need to say as well," mousefoot confessed, briefly glancing at falconfang who only shook his head vigorously.

"i... i just wanted to let you know... how happy i am, again, that you chose me to be your deputy," the she-cat meowed, catching falconfang out of the corner of her eye mouthing 'thank you'.
it was like a the weight of all of the trees in the forest had just been lifted from his shoulders, or he had just surfaced after being trapped underwater for a moon.

"i'm glad you are. in fact, that's what i wanted to talk about." mousefoot flicked her ears curiously at windstar's statement, slightly confused as to what he meant.

"oh?"

"i wanted to let you know that my choice to make you deputy was for a very good reason." windstar inched closer towards the pretty grey deputy, whose confusion only continued to grow.

"for a long time, i've enjoyed your company; you're a sweet little feline, and i like that about you."

where is this going? falconfang wondered to himself, moving slightly closer to the two cats so he could hear them more easily.

"so i thought to myself, 'wouldn't this deputy ceremony be the perfect opportunity to get closer to that pretty little kitty'? so i made you the deputy, and now here we are!" windstar let a series of laughs fall from his maw.

mousefoot stared at the leader with sudden horror. "excuse me?"

"i wanted you to be the deputy so that we could be closer, mousefoot! so what do you say... how about we go and do some hunting later on tonight?" when the crisp white tom gave mousefoot a wink, it only snapped mousefoot further. "i'm terribly sorry, windstar, but i have some prior arrangements," mousefoot hissed, storming away from the leader and over to her brother. it took everything in falconfang's power not to say 'i told you so'.
mousefoot came to a stop right in front of the big grey tom, who was watching her with slight amusement on his features. "so?" falconfang questioned, arching his brow.

"i'm in."

[rockett.]

"so you understand now?" falconfang asked, his soft yellow eyes resting expectantly on his sister.

"yes, but i have so many questions - what is the plan? will we tell minksplash? what if something goes wrong, what happens then?"

falconfang let out a small sigh, shrugging his shoulders in defeat. "i don't know. birchfall only told me so much about what was going to happen... you'd have to ask him all of you questions."

mousefoot frowned, tail flicking in annoyance. as much as she now realised that maybe windstar wasn't right to lead cedarclan, did that really mean they had to kill him? there had to be another way. but as much as mousefoot thought about it, she could never find another option. if she tried to challenge windstar on his way of leading the clan, the rest of the cats would surely get angry at her. not even starclan could save them now - it seemed that cedarclan believed more in the bulky white tom than in the cats of the stars.

"well then lets go see him," the petite grey she-cat finally meowed, standing up from where she had been sitting. it was a long walk back to camp; falconfang had insisted that they go extremely far away from the camp, for what reason mousefoot did not know.

but the tension that still sat in the deputies' belly made her move faster, as if hoping that if she ran quick enough, the feeling would go away - which, of course, didn't work. by the time they had made it back to the camp, both mousefoot and falconfang's chests were heaving, and their breaths came hard and fast. falconfang had managed to catch a juicy-looking squirrel, so it didn't look like the two cats had been out in the forest for no reason.

mousefoot turned behind her to see her brother limping over to the fresh kill pile, dumping the squirrel on top then tentatively padding back to his sister. "what's happened?" mousefoot asked worriedly,
olive eyes fixed onto falconfang's raised paw.

"i think i stood on a thorn... will you come with me to see birchfall?" it took mousefoot long enough to see his hint, but when she did, she replied with a babble - she was awful at acting. "oh, you poor poor thing!" she exclaimed awkwardly, to which falconfang rolled his eyes. "let's get you to the medicine den right away!"

the deputy padded briskly over to the den where birchfall stayed, and falconfang limped behind her. birchfall was carefully sorting out his herbs when mousefoot rushed in, causing the medicine cat to jump and drop all of the herbs he had just sorted. the lanky tom growled at mousefoot, who let out a blunt 'sorry'.

"what are you doing here?" birchfall hissed, beginning to pick up his herbs.

"i know about your pact, birchfall."

the medicine cat threw his head up from his herbs to stare menacingly at the she-cat. just as he was about to say something (probably some profanity), falconfang butted in. "don't worry, birchfall, i told her everything she needs to know, and she's all on for it. she just wants you to answer a few questions."

"i'm not going to answer anything," birchfall retorted, pinning his ears back. "all that you need to know has already been told to you. now if you'll excuse me, i now have herbs to resort."

mousefoot parted her jaws to speak, but was rudely dismissed by a flick of birchfall's tail. with sunken shoulders, the deputy left the den. falconfang began to trail after, but birchfall told him to stay.

"i thought i told you that this was between us," birchfall said, his tone flat but filled with hidden anger.

"she caught me talking about it, that's all, i didn't mean for it to happen."

birchfall didn't bother to look up from his herbs, but falconfang could tell he was probably rolling his eyes.

"but she knows now, birchfall, and there's nothing you can do."

yet again, the skinny white and brown tom kept his attention on his herbs, ignoring falconfang.

"i'm going to tell rookstorm about our pact."

finally, birchfall moved his body to face falconfang, his soft green eyes boring into falconfang's.

"he'd be a good asset. and besides, i have to tell him - he's my best friend."

birchfall continued staring angrily at the grey tom, but eventually he turned away, returning to his herb-sorting. "you let rookstorm in and that's all, you hear me? if there are any more than that, then it will be too hard a secret to keep from the rest of the clan."

falconfang smirked - birchfall might've been one of the most grouchy and unpleasant toms in the clan, but somewhere under all that hatred was a heart. "thank you, birchfall, you won't regret it," falconfang meowed cheerfully, dashing out of the den to find his friend.

[rockett.]

falconfang had to wait until the next morning until he could express the plan to rookstorm. it turned out that littlekit, one of rookstorm's daughters, had symptoms of greencough, and the black and white tom wanted to be there the whole night with her. so, when mousefoot put him on the dawn patrol with herself and falconfang, rookstorm wasn't exactly thrilled.

"are you sure there was no other cat that could've come on this patrol?" rookstorm moaned as he walked sleepily beside his best friend, falconfang, who was much more anxious than he'd thought he would be. after mousefoot's reaction to the news, falconfang had no idea how the tom would react.

"rookstorm, there's a reason i chose you to be on this patrol," mousefoot insisted quietly, giving a quick glance at her brother as if expecting him to carry on.

rookstorm rolled his eyes, letting out a giant yawn. "well, there better be," he said with a half-hearted chuckle. falconfang felt a pang of sympathy for his friend; the tom must've been both incredibly exhausted and incredibly worried about his daughter if he wasn't even able to make a proper laugh - it was nothing like him.

falconfang stopped walking, and turned to face rookstorm. mousefoot followed suit, staying close enough to her brother so that their grey pelts brushed together. rookstorm came to a slow halt, looking at the siblings with confusion all over his features.

"okay, what's going on..."

"rookstorm, i'm about to tell you something extremely important that you can not tell another living soul; in fact, not even a starclan cat. nobody can know about this," falconfang began, soft green eyes searching rookstorm's for any signs of anger. luckily, all he could find was confusion.

"falconfang, are you being serious? what in starclan's name are you on about?"

"just listen. please."

rookstorm let another yawn ripple through his body, sitting down and looking at the grey tom expectantly. falconfang took in a deep breath, and began.

"rookstorm... birchfall, mousefoot and i have made a plan to kill windstar."

both mousefoot and falconfang suddenly became tense, ready to stop rookstorm if he reacted poorly. the suspense seemed to drag on for moons, but finally, rookstorm spoke.

"okay."

"okay?!" both mousefoot and falconfang exclaimed, eyes widening.

"yes, okay!" rookstorm replied, a smile finding its' way onto his muzzle.

falconfang blinked, trying to process the moment. "how can you be so... fine about this?!" rookstorm's reaction had been the complete opposite to the performance mousefoot had put on, and not even falconfang, rookstorm's best friend, could've seen it coming.

rookstorm shrugged. "well, you're obviously pretty passionate about getting rid of windstar, and i support what you do... so why not?"

falconfang let out the breath he had been holding, stepping forward to rub his head against rookstorm's muscular shoulder. "well rookstorm, welcome to the team."

"the pact," mousefoot corrected her brother, a sweet smile spread over her face.

[rockett.]

falconfang had never really realised how small the medicine cat den was until there were four fully-grown cats standing cramped in the middle of it. birchfall had insisted that the pact took their first meeting in his own den, which while seemed crazy to the rest of the group, it was still warily agreed to. it was rookstorm that had brought forth his worries about being so close to the rest of the clan while talking about such a subject, but birchfall ensured him and the other two cats that most of the clan was probably tucked in to their own dens, trying to keep warm and dry while the rain poured and the icy winds howled. birchfall had no apprentice, so they had nothing to worry about - or so birchfall said.

"i have already devised a plan to take away windstar's first life," the medicine cat began, shifting uncomfortably beside rookstorm. birchfall was a very solitary cat, so having this many others huddled around his workspace made him feel uneasy.

"what is it?" mousefoot asked quietly, soft green eyes bright with excitement. the she-cat had always been the goody-two-shoes type, so being a part of something so rebellious and dangerous was obviously getting to her. unfortunately, falconfang wasn't sure she fully knew what she was getting into when she agreed.

"this one's just going to involve myself and mousefoot," birhcfall began, followed by a sigh from rookstorm and a quiet squeal from the deputy. "mousefoot, you're going to ask windstar to share a meal with you. you've caught the prey yourself, and you really hope that windstar will like it." as soon as mousefoot heard the tom's words, her shpulders drooped and she rolled her eyes.

"isn't there anything else i can do? i'm still angry at him for only choosing me as the deputy so he could get closer to me," the grey she-cat pleaded with an irritated flick of her tail. falconfang rested his tail over her shoulder in an attempt to console her, but she simply shrugged it off.

"his infatuation with you is what's going to make this work, mousefoot - don't argue against my plans before you've heard the whole thing," birchfall snapped back, flicking his ears. "anyway... mousefoot, the prey you give him will be this." birchfall turned around for a moment, then pushed an old, shriveled vole to the centre of the group with a flick of his paw. immediately the whole group inched away from it, gagging and staring at it in disgust. before anyone could express their opinion of how awful the 'prey' was, birchfall began to speak again.

"i've been keeping this thing back here for a few weeks now. the only reason you didn't smell it before is because i've been keeping it covered in mint leaves," birchfall explained. "now mousefoot, you will go to windstar tomorrow morning, and ask him to try the prey. do whatever it takes to get him to eat it. as soon as he does, your job is done."

"and what about the rest of it? what happens once he's taken a bite?" falconfang spoke up, looking expectantly at the medicine cat.

birchfall chuckled. "you'll just have to wait and see."