"There's nothing here!"

Cougarstar's voice, angry and sharp, drifted toward Adderheart and Pantherleap.

The leader had ordered that they split off into different sections. Green gaze alight with fury, voice a knife splitting through the soft air of new leaf-fall, the leader had stalked off after leaving Adderheart and Pantherleap alone.

Yet of course, the two toms did not conversate. They almost seemed to know that Cougarstar likely hadn't gone far and was probably listening in on whatever they were saying. Instead, they obediently searched the territory with minimal words exchanged. Why had they split up, Adderheart didn't know, but he was finally glad to get the leader off his back.

Though, it obviously didn't last long. Cougarstar had been practically enraged at the fact that they weren't able to locate any rogues after searching. However, Adderheart noted that, as they were searching, Cougarstar wasn't really leading them to new places.

The leader was fairly well known as a very skilled tracker, so it was likely that his anger seemed to dull his skill to a lower level. It caused him to simply lead the warriors around in large ovals or circles, once or twice walking directly over a place they'd already been to.

But Cougarstar, blinded by his ferocity, hadn't noticed. Simply, the tawny-furred leader had wasted more and more time with every passing moment, allowing his desperation to heighten. It was incredibly clear that he'd wanted to find the rogues at that very moment, as if he expected them to stroll out any moment.

So the leader jumped through the bushes.

"There wasn't anything there," reported the tom in a brisk and tapered tone, tail lashing as he stared down Adderheart and Pantherleap. "Did either of you discover anything?"

Adderheart shook his head, and Pantherleap, clearly in favor of answering with words, offered a few:

"No, we didn't. There were no new scents and if anything, there was simply old prey scent around."

Cougarstar shook his head harshly, leaping past the two toms. Consequently, they'd been somewhat close, and so he caused Adderheart to stumble, nearly tripping upon his paws. Hurriedly, he pulled himself up and turned to where Cougarstar had sprung through the bushes.

Pantherleap turned to him for a half moment, eyes flashing as he mouthed 'Sorry' at the other warrior.

Adderheart's tail whipped instantly, beginning to open his muzzle in a reply, but the tawny-furred tom had already launched himself after the leader. Leaving Adderheart to do the same, most likely, and so he did, but as he landed in the clearing next to it, he simply saw Pantherleap's tail disappearing into the bushes.

Huffing, the pale-furred warrior sprung faster, paws slamming against the ground with small thumps each time as he hurried to catch up. Cougarstar would be even angrier if he were late. Adderheart could almost imagine the tom's expression, tainted and morphed by rage.

So when he spotted the tom ahead, he swallowed a breath of relief. Lapsing his pawsteps and stride to Pantherleap, who now was beside him, he noted that they appeared to be going back. Not to camp, simply the place where they'd all split up.

As the leader seemed to pause ahead, Adderheart noted that Antwhisper, Bearpatch, and Freckletuft had returned, and with quite a bit of prey, too. It appeared to run more freely when it was away from the clutches of SageClan cats.

At Bearpatch's paws lay a small collection of mice. Three, to be exact, two of bigger size and one smaller than the others. Likely a family he'd managed to snag, Adderheart guessed as he approached, stepping through the bushes.

Freckletuft held a large bird in her jaws, one with dark feathers that appeared soft and in good condition. Well, disregarding the blood that now splattered its raven-colored surface. Beside her lay a frog, too, clamped underneath a heavy paw, its mouth spread open as if in an endless squeal.

Antwhisper had a mouse and a vole as well as a lizard situated nearby him, his reddish-brown tail swept lightly around them. The lean warrior's jaws were stained, though not very noticeably, with blood from all of the creatures.

Cougarstar's tail flicked in delight as his green gaze surveyed all pieces of prey. That's... eight pieces of prey. Adderheart realized, dark gray eyes sharpening as he stepped to stand a little out of Cougarstar's way. Standing directly behind the leader meant he couldn't see anything.

Palewhisker's voice cut through the delicate silence.

"There's really not much here, Cougarstar!"

The pale-furred tom charged through the bushes, springing out on the opposing side with Fluffyflame racing after him. The latter was breathing heavily, his thick and fluffy fur clearly weighing him down.

"There were a few smells," pointed out Fluffyflame, "but nothing that was extremely clear or fresh."

Cougarstar's tail thumped against the ground, irritation clearly bubbling within his gaze. Adderheart sat down at the edge of the clearing, wrapping his tail tightly around his paws. Pantherleap shifted to stand nearby to the pale-furred tom after a few moments had passed.

"Marigoldcry, Dustshade, Russetpelt- where are they?" Cougarstar demanded, sharp green eyes sweeping around.

Fluffyflame's tail twitched and Palewhisker commented, "I'm not quite sure. I didn't scent them around, so I'd guess they'd gone off in a different direction and are arriving back soon."

Antwhisper noted, "We could always take our prey back. The patrol is rather large, and we don't need everyone here to simply travel back."

"No, that's... no," Cougarstar shook his head. "There's nothing wrong with waiting."

But there was something a little bit wrong with waiting.

The moon, which had plastered itself in the darkness of the sky, was now slowly inching down toward the horizon, pleased to be so close to resting for the day. Consequently, this also meant that the sun, wherever it was, allowed some rays of brightness to creep over the horizon, despite the fact that it did not yet show.

Adderheart felt as though he was bound to collapse from exhaustion any moment now. The sun was soon to creep over the horizon and peek delicately from behind the trees, its rays of pinkish peach light delightfully scaring away the gloom of night. He knew that he needed to sleep, and he knew he needed something to eat.

He wasn't going to be able to do that at camp, and he also knew that Pantherleap needed rest and prey, too.

StarClan, he was really trapped. He could stay out here and try and catch a wink of sleep before the tom noticed that he was gone. In turn, that risked being discovered by any rogues that happened to head by, since he doubted that there were simply no rogues around.

He could go back to camp, get something to eat, and pretend to be eating near the edge of the camp. However, he could simply be napping, only woken by the sounds of the cats milling around, and at those moments, he'd take a bite of the prey. Then, he'd allow himself to slip into slumber once more.

His grip around his paws loosened as he glanced over to Pantherleap. His heart ached a little for the tawny tom. His eyes were dull with exhaustion and his fur wasn't as shiny as it usually was. He sat down rather heavily within a few moments of Adderheart focusing on him. His shoulders slumped a little.

They'd better come back soon. Maybe I can corner Pantherleap off to discuss some of the stuff that's been discovered. Or, rather, lack of stuff that's been discovered.

So, the group sat around, waiting for the remaining cats of the patrol to come back.

Cougarstar settled off to the side, though he did not sit - instead, the tom stood, ears pricked and green eyes sweeping the clearing as if he expected the group to simply break through the bushes at any moment.

Bearpatch, after being motioned over by his father, sat down next to the large tawny tom, Palewhisker following soon after. It seemed as though Cougarstar was uncomfortable in this territory, but everyone knew that he wasn't afraid. He wasn't really ever afraid, and that wasn't because he was arrogant.

It was simply because the tom's courage was presented in the wrong way. He was courageous, but he took it too far in many situations. Of course, that also meant that he was incredibly proud and confident in his decisions, most of which were... incorrect.

Then, through the bushes emerged a thick white pelt with creamy stripes. Marigoldcry. They've arrived.

Cougarstar stood up, tail whipping at the two new pelts that stepped through the bushes after Marigoldcry. One was fluffy and white with dark russet accents - Dustshade - and Russetpelt's shiny reddish-brown pelt followed after.

"Did you find anything?" he asked. The tom's green gaze glinted in the sun that seemed to be slowly shifting above the horizon, as now the moon was settling upon the line in the sky.

Marigoldcry, Dustshade, and Russetpelt all answered in the same tone at the same time.

"No."

Cougarstar's gaze sparked for a moment but he turned around, tail lashing at Palewhisker. "Get some of the prey. Bearpatch won't be able to carry the smallest mouse without smushing it."

And neither will he.

Adderheart glanced momentarily at Freckletuft, and then his dark gaze swept to Pantherleap. He rose carefully. His bones creaked and he suddenly felt much older than he really was. He was only around sixty moons old, and he knew that he was bound to start feeling older soon, too. Pantherleap was sixty five moons, as far as he knew.

Cougarstar was eighty five moons old, and nobody knew the amount of lives that he had left. Well, besides his heir, and possibly the healers, too. Palewhisker, perhaps. It was one of the most closely guarded secrets that SageClan ever held.

It was like that with all leaders, though. No leader went around and shared when they were going to die, just like how leaders didn't go around sharing prophecies. However, SageClan most certainly differed in the fact that sometimes, the leaders would share prophecies with senior warriors.

If the heir, healers, deputy, and leader couldn't figure out what it meant, the prophecy was sometimes extended to senior warriors. Adderheart couldn't recall a time where he personally had been given a prophecy to assist in solving, but it was just something that Cougarstar did.

Sometimes.

And it wasn't like he was going to get it now.

Adderheart watched for a moment as Cougarstar surveyed the cats around, and then he sprung into the bushes, headed for the camp. The pale-furred warrior simply observed as the rest of the patrol launched into similar actions. He gave a half-hearted leap, legs aching too much for another full leap.

The tom heard Pantherleap struggling similarly and he gave the tom a frustrated glance. He didn't like being behind. He didn't like being the cat who wasn't keeping up. He could tell that Pantherleap felt similarly, as frustration seemed to gleam from within the tawny tom.

However, it was soon that they arrived at the camp's entrance. Adderheart's pace slowed dramatically as he scented the familiar cats and smell that wreathed the camp. Lightly, he allowed his dark gray gaze to skimp up to the sky.

It was no longer darkish. Instead, the sky cradled the warmth of day within its paws, soft and delicate as it offered swirls of peach and magenta to the pale blue sky. Pale clouds skittered across its surface as if expecting it to snap at it, yet the sky was pleasant and warm with the coming of day.

The moon had far sunk below the horizon and in its place flew the sun. The ball of light rested carefully upon the horizon, a beaming grin spreading across its features as it surveyed the camp below.

Cougarstar whipped to face the group, pulling himself to a stop.

"Don't talk about this," he ordered. "And, Palewhisker, Bearpatch, Pantherleap, fetch-"

"Cougarstar!"

What-?

From the leader's den ran a small whitish-brown furred she-cat, who Adderheart immediately recognized as Tinydust. The she-cat practically wrapped around her mate, which was quite difficult considering the size difference between the two cats, and she purred, nuzzling his thick tawny fur.

"You're back!" she exclaimed, looking up to him with widened pale gold eyes.

"Indeed," the tom rumbled, and he cast a sharp look to his brother, son, and deputy before leading the she-cat off. Consequently, that was right back to the leader's den, and instantly Adderheart guessed what was about to happen, especially considering that Palewhisker and Pantherleap had been called to get someone. Or some cats.

They're going to have one of those 'meetings'.

Adderheart's gaze flicked over to Pantherleap who had already began trotting miserably to the healer's den. The pale-furred warrior longed to speak to him, but knew that the rest of the patrol would certainly find it odd, and so he simply stayed quiet, watching as he stepped into the healer's den.

Beside him, Fluffyflame and Freckletuft simply turned around and bounded back out. To where, he didn't know, and he really didn't care. The two were likely off to discuss the apprentices. Fernfall was nowhere to be seen, though.

Pantherleap emerged from the healer's den with both dark-furred she-cats and they simultaneously padded toward the leader's den, where Palewhisker, Bearpatch, and Sootdawn had gathered.

One by one they filtered into the den, Pantherleap slipping in last.

I'd wanted to share something to eat with him, he thought, frustrated once more. Russetpelt and Dustshade shifted beside him yet they headed for the warrior's den, Marigoldcry and Antwhisper following similarly. However, the pale-furred senior warrior made a cut straight for the fresh-kill pile.

He sniffed the pile almost tentatively, not sure of what to choose.

Eventually, he settled upon a small, rather thin mouse. Its fur was an awful sort of grayish-sooty color. It appeared as though it had been sickly before its death or that it had been starving. Its little ribs poked out from its skinny form.

The pale-furred tom picked it up delicately, carefully carrying it toward the edge of camp that he seemed to consistently go back to. Adderheart knew it well by now, with the multitude of instances that had occurred right near it. It was unforgettable.

As he settled down and curled his tail around himself, he felt drowsiness overcome him in waves, similar to an ocean washing lightly upon the weathered shores of a beach. He laid his head on his paws, sniffling a little as he took a bite of the creature. It didn't taste bad, but it didn't taste normal.

Though, from the corner of his vision, he caught shapes moving about the leader's den. Absently, he let his dark gray gaze drift over to the entrance, and within it, he could see shadows flitting inside. A few hisses and snarls seemed to follow and instantly the warrior looked away.

If Cougarstar caught him looking, he'd be so doomed.

Solution?

Don't look at all.

But Adderheart knew that he would be simply too drawn in by the noises and hisses that gently floated from the den, and so he speculated instead.

Speculated as to what they could be arguing about, that was.

Likely the patrol, he realized. Hopefully Pantherleap is doing okay. I know he'll want the truth to be out but he's also... really, really tired. I hope it goes okay. The tom's tail flicked in concern for the other senior warrior. He knew that the tawny tom would certainly not allow any lies to escape Cougarstar's muzzle.

But would he be too tired to fight back? And if so, would anyone else say anything?

The healers weren't around. So would Pantherleap have ensured that they would know the truth, or...?

The pale-furred warrior's eyes sharpened and he quickly finished up his mouse. It wouldn't be any good of him to simply sit there and allow himself to speculate so uselessly. Perhaps he could do something a little better. Something that would actually help the Clan.

I'll check in with Willowdapple. Perhaps her kits are due soon.

Adderheart kicked the bones of the mouse away, and once more he skirted toward the pile. He didn't want anyone thinking that he was taking extra prey, which the tom was sure that he would never do, so he was quick to snatch up the first thing that came to his paws.

It happened to be a frog, and he recalled that she enjoyed them. His ears twitched as he quickly headed for the nursery, delicately ducking in. Instantly, he felt surrounded by warmth, for the sticks woven into the walls made it pleasantly heated within the den.

It made sense, after all. The kits deserved and needed the most heat out of any of the other cats. But Adderheart could guess that the dens that Bearpatch, Palewhisker, and Cougarstar had were specifically made for warmth too. His ears pricked as he spotted the she-cat stretched out between a few nests.

"Willowdapple?" he asked, shoving his way into the den. "Is everything okay? I brought you a frog."

"Yes, I'm fi-fine," she insisted, struggling to sit up. Her belly was swollen... far too swollen to be normal.

"Are you sure?" he questioned, stepping in and laying the frog down in front of her. She gritted her teeth, nodding firmly at his query. She pulled herself forward, taking a sharp bite of the frog.

"Thanks," she said through clenched jaws.

Adderheart simply sat down and curled his tail over his paws.

"If you need anything-"

She hissed in pain, but turned away from him.