A Visit from StarClan

Pinestar curled up next to Nightfrost in the den. He couldn't stop thinking about the dead snake and the dead cat he had seen in the Gorseledge. Was it a sign? he wondered.

Pinestar felt Nightfrost's warm flank heave with every breath she took. Up...down...up...down...

He drifted off to sleep.

He found himself in a brightly lit forest. Tall trees surrounded him on either side. Beneath his paws, the ground was lush and moist.

Suddenly, he saw a cream-colored tom appear in front of him. His piercing blue eyes seemed to be beckoning him.

Basil! he thought, recognizing his dead brother. His face lit up.

He walked away, vanishing into some shrubbery.

"Basil! Wait!" Pinestar yowled, racing away after him. He pushed his way through fronds of ferns until he came to a small clearing in which Basil sat.

"Oh, no..." he murmured. In the middle of the clearing was a dead snake and a dead cat. In between them was a dead poplar tree.

As Pinestar neared the horrific sight, he realized that the two dead animals were the exact same ones he had seen that day.

"W-why did you bring me here?" he asked, his voice wavering. He couldn't bear to look at what was before him. "It...It's a sign, isn't it?"

Basil gave him a long look that lasted for several tense heartbeats. Then he spoke, his soft voice grim.

"Peace won't remain,

For blood will reign.

A traitor will walk amongst mortal remains.

On several cats' shoulders the burden will strain,

To stop the snake before it bites again.

Two winds, strong and powerful, will blow.
The fern, violet, and lily will continue to grow.

From the steaming hot river, mist will rise.

The golden sun will shine into your eyes.
Thunder will roar, and a storm will call.
The tawny leaves of the trees will begin to fall.
The fallow deer will run, lithe and swift.
Through the branches of the trees, a breeze will drift.

Through the holes in the ground, dust will go.

Only then will the snake's poison stop to flow."

Pinestar listened to the ill-omened prophecy with wide-stretched hazel eyes.

"What does this mean?" he finally hissed, fearful. "What are you trying to tell me, brother?"

"The fate of PoplarClan rests in the paws of these cats. If you don't find them cats in time, the snake will bite again." Basil started to fade.

As Pinestar began to call, "Wait! I don't understand...!" the prophecy echoed in his ears. The words intertwined with each other, and the prophecy became a jumble of omens, getting louder and louder, roaring in his mind...

Pinestar snapped awake. Being careful not to wake Nightfrost, he padded out of the den.

Windpaw, Fernpaw, Violetpaw, Mistpaw, Goldenpaw, and Dustpaw were all sleeping together, huddled in a group. Pinestar padded up to the dozing Windpaw and nosed her ear lightly.

"Wind, strong and powerful, will blow," he murmured.

He approached Fernpaw and Violetpaw, who were sleeping side-by-side. "The fern and the violet will continue to grow."

Mistpaw was curled up into a ball, her tail wrapped around her nose. "From the steaming hot river, mist will rise."

Dustpaw was the smallest of all the apprentices. He slept away from the group, a little to the side. "Through the holes in the trees, dust will go..."

Pinestar finally sat in the middle of the clearing on his own, gazing up at the benevolent Silverpelt that hung above him. "Only then will the snake's poison stop to flow."

His gaze traveled to the other older cats in the prophecy that were dotted around the clearing. Thunderstorm, Windstreak, Goldenstream, Lilypetal, Fallowheart, Tawnymist, and Lithefoot. The words of his brother sounded in his mind. "The fate of PoplarClan rests in the paws of these cats. If you don't find them cats in time, the snake will bite again."

Pinestar padded back into his den.

**Pinestar**