Erin Hunter - Twilight

Squirrelflight flexed her claws. “I wish I’d ripped a bit more fur off, just for you, Midnight.”

The badger shrugged. “Is not important. Except I might have got here more sooner. RiverClan they hate most,” she added. “Warriors there drive them out first.”

“We’d better send a message to Leopardstar,” Firestar meowed. “The badgers could still attack there.”

Squirrelflight’s shoulders sagged at the thought of trekking all the way around the lake to RiverClan.

“No need,” rasped Midnight. “My kin in no state fight more. They think twice before bother cats again.”

“Thank StarClan for that,” Squirrelflight murmured. She was wondering how soon she would be able to crawl into what remained of the warriors’ den to sleep when she heard her sister’s voice behind her. “Brackenfur? Is Brackenfur here?”

The ginger warrior was lying in a patch of ferns at the edge of the clearing. His blood was trickling into the dust and he looked barely conscious. He lifted his head as Leafpool came up to him.

“Sorreltail?” He lurched unsteadily to his paws. “It’s Sorreltail, isn’t it? Is she all right?”

Leafpool brushed against his pelt. She looked exhausted too. “She’s fine. She has four healthy kits.”

“Four?” Brackenfur’s tail curled up. “That’s great! Thanks, Leafpool.” He raced across the camp and into the nursery.

Squirrelflight watched him go. Thanks to WindClan they had won the battle. ThunderClan had survived greater disasters than this, and sooner or later the Clan would be as strong as ever. The four scraps of new life in the nursery seemed like a promise from StarClan.

Yet life had ended too. ThunderClan would mourn Cinderpelt’s death for a long time. But it would have been even worse if Leafpool hadn’t returned.

Squirrelflight rasped her tongue over her sister’s ear. “I’m so glad you came back.”

Leafpool glanced over at Crowfeather, who was still crouched outside the nursery, then turned back to her sister.

“I’m glad to be back, too.”

Crowfeather stood up as the WindClan cats came back into the camp.

“Look, it’s Crowfeather!” Whitetail exclaimed. “What’s he doing here?”

Onestar stalked over to stand in front of the gray-black warrior. “Crowfeather, you came back… but not to your own Clan.”

Crowfeather looked at him steadily. “I wanted to bring Leafpool safely to her own camp first. I’m ready to come home now.”

“We have things to talk about, but now is not the time,” Onestar meowed.

Crowfeather dipped his head and fell in behind his leader as Onestar padded over to Firestar.

“Onestar, every cat in ThunderClan thanks you,” Firestar meowed. “Without you, StarClan would have gained many more warriors.”

“You’ve helped WindClan in the past,” Onestar replied.

“It’s only right that we should come and help you.”

“We won’t forget—” Firestar began.

He was interrupted by a startled yowl from Thornclaw, who was closest to the camp entrance. Squirrelflight stiffened. Had the badgers come back? She didn’t think she could lift a single paw now, even to save her life.

But her exhaustion vanished when she saw two cats carefully picking their way through the scattered thorn branches.

The first of them, a powerful warrior with a thick gray pelt, stopped at the edge of the clearing and looked around.

“This isn’t what I expected to find,” he meowed. “What happened?”

Squirrelflight stared in disbelief. After the badger attack, she had thought nothing else could shock her, but for a heartbeat she forgot how to breathe.

Gazing curiously around them, sleek furred and calm among the shattered Clan, were Stormfur and Brook.