Darkstorm sighed, flicking her tail to summon the cats. "We need leadership," she mewed. "I'm not saying me. But we need someone to lead us, and we will be a clan."

"I can't," Coralstar mewed as several heads turned. "I'm expecting kits, and I want to be a mother that can give them everything. I can't do that properly if I'm a leader."

"Then you'll have to change your name," Beechleap mewed gently. 

"Then I will. From now on, call me Coralfall." 

"Coralfall. Coralfall," the name spread through the cats.

"How about anyone who wants to lead steps forward?" Darkstorm suggested. Sparrownose and Featherheart went forward immediately, slowly followed by Thorntail, Troutfin and Ravenfur. Orangetail bounded up to the rock where the other candidates were sitting, and glanced at Darkstorm.

"Hey, you come, too!" she yowled. Shadeflight pushed her forward.

"They need you," he snapped. "Even though you're a liar." I have to do something about that... 

"I can't. I'm not..." Coralfall kinked her tail.

"You really should. You're a good leader. I mean, you have been so far."

"Treestar seemed to be, too, but almost immediately clearly wasn't," she argued. "I may not be!" But as more cats pestered her, she hesitantly got up and joined them.

"Whoever more cats want?" Coralfall asked. "I mean, let's vote. It's a weird way, but just for the first leader of this clan..."

"This is temporary," Darkstorm mewed. "Just saying." Coralfall nodded.

"There are lots of leaves," she mewed. "How about we make a pile of them, and then if one cat wants a certain leader, puts the leaf in front of them?"

"Can we vote?" Featherheart demanded. 

"No. It wouldn't make a difference either way, since you'll all vote for yourselves, but still," Hardclaw answered. Featherheart rolled his eyes and sat as the code cats took their leaves.

"Is everyone done?" Cloudstorm asked. A few cats made their last decisions, and Cloudstorm began to count. "I can?" she asked.

"Yeah," Shadeflight mewed. "I mean, you're a medicine cat, so you don't take part in warrior quarrels. And maybe it's better if one cat counts... It's not like I'll be any help." He spat the last bit.

"Well, not Sparrownose," Cloudstorm mewed after a while. The tom scowled and leaped down from the light grey rock. "Not Thorntail or Ravenfur, either." Orangetail, Featherheart, Troutfin and Darkstorm perked their ears.

"And not Troutfin or Orangetail. Darkstorm and Featherheart had the most lea-"

"Darkstorm!"

"Featherheart!" the cats screeched. 

"Darkstorm is fair! She's a good leader and won't lead us into unneeded fights!"

"But Featherheart is strong, and won't be afraid of the clans!"

"Neither will Darkstorm!"

"Quiet!" Coralfall roared. "This was a fair decision!" But how did Featherheart get so many leaves? Darkstorm pondered. Less than a quarter of the cats had been shouting for the once SkyClan tom. Almost a half had been rooting for her. She brushed it aside; perhaps some cats didn't want everyone knowing their decision. 

"They have the same votes," Cloudstorm mewed. Darkstorm narrowed her eyes. How?

"So we'll all vo-"

"StarClan." Cloudstorm looked up at the sky; there were still stars but next to none. "What should we do? Who should lead us? Please, send us a sign. Who is in your favor?"

Darkstorm held her breath, waiting. 

She breathed, glancing across Silverpelt. 

"They're too mad at us. They won't answer!" Cloudstorm gasped.

"Then we'll ask GhostClan!" Darkstorm exclaimed. Heads turned to her. "GhostClan is a clan of ghosts, like Tree. He's mediator among them and StarClan. We should choose a mediator, too. Maybe Tree will visit one of us."

"GhostClan," Shadeflight mewed quietly. "You are newly known to us. But you are still our ancestors, and have a say in our future. Tell us, ghosts of our kin's kin, who is our leader supposed to be?"

"StarClan is mad," Tree mewed from behind them. Darkstorm met his knowing amber gaze. "FInd out why, and we will tell you. If you cannot do such a simple thing, then maybe you don't deserve to get an answer." He blinked, walking away over the rocks and grass.

"StarClan is angry. What have we done wrong?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Snarlfang snapped. 

"Because we've split up?" Darkstorm asked.

"No, mouse-brain!" Featherheart spat. "They've been mad long before that! It's because we're breaking the code!"

"No, it isn't!" Shellstripe argued. "Isn't that what we're doing right now? I mean, the code has to change, but we are breaking it."

"That's not right!"

"No, it's because-"

"Snarlfang, what do you think?" Orangetail meowed.

"I know that it is because we depend too much on them," he explained. Darkstorm sucked in a breath, but it was Featherheart who replied.

"But... they're StarClan! They're only in Silverpelt to help us!" Darkstorm snarled.

"You don't know anything, do you?" she demanded. "StarClan cats were once alive, and so were GhostClan. They do not exist to help us. Each and every one of them- and us- have a different reason for existing. You'd better shut up right now if you think our ancesors exist to be our slaves." 

"Darkstorm's right!"

"I vote Darkstorm," Coralfall mewed. "And I will not change that vote. Who-" Nearly all the cats flooded up to Darkstorm, leaving Sparrownose and Amberflight, who padded over to Featherheart. 

"Well, that's pretty clear," Thorntail mewed gruffly. "Darkstar." Darkstorm backed away.

"I'm not Darkstar! I will be Darkstar if I return to ShadowClan and eventually become leader. I'm sure I'll return, but be leader... Just call me Darkstorm." Thorntail dipped his head.

"Who will be your deputy?" Streamface inquired. 

"Er..." Not Featherheart or Sparrownose. Definitively someone who wanted to be leader. I don't think Troutfin; she seems smart but not exactly a leader. A deputy, maybe, but not a leader. And I might die. She shivered at the reality. Orangetail is stubborn, which could be good, but I'm not sure. Maybe Thorntail, he's strong, polite and seems friendly enough. So  maybe  Ravenfur. She's kind, for sure, and decisive.

"Darkstorm?" Ravenfur asked.

But Ravenfur is too accepting of everything. She needs to be a bit edgier. Usually I would say the opposite, but... this is right.

"Thorntail. Will you be deputy of-" She paused.

"DarkClan! StormClan! CodeClan!" cats shouted, and Darkstorm closed her eyes.

"Will you be deputy of-"

"DarkClan!" all the voices raised to join together. Sparrownose and Featherheart sat off to the side, silently watching. Sparrownose nodded slightly; he didn't care what she chose. Wow. Maybe he'll actually listen now that I'm sort of leader. But wouldn't it be selfish to name ourselves after me? She stared at the pleading cats. They seemed to like her and support her; they wanted her to name them after herself.

"...DarkClan?" Thorntail looked at her.

"I would be honored." 

"I say these words before StarClan, that the spirits of our Warrior ancestors may hear and approve of my choice." What are the next words? Uh... Think, think think... "The new deputy of... DarkClan... is Thorntail." 

"Thorntail! Thorntail! Thorntail!" They approve of my choice. Darkstorm felt a dizzying happiness. Good. She looked worriedly at Ravenfur and Troutfin, they were obvious choices, as they had responsibility. They looked glad, not minding.

"Thank you," Thorntail mewed. 

"We should get going," Darkstorm mewed. "Towards the brightest star." DarkClan followed, her and Thorntail in the lead, as they began to go.

...

Darkstorm gasped, doubling over. She gathered her strength and looked back at her clan. The cats were starved; the Twolegs had reached sunrises away from the lake to haunt them, stalking where they went. "They can't keep this up much longer," Shadeflight rasped in her ear. "Neither can the rest of us."

"I know," she mewed grimly, an edge to her voice. "I'm a cat, too, you know. I also have to eat. You don't have to tell me that we have to find somewhere to stop if it's obvious." Shadeflight padded away, flicking his tail, annoyed. 

"Stop it!" Coralfall spat from behind them. Darkstorm swiveled around to see Featherheart whisking a mousetail away from her and Shellsttripe. 

"Why should you get to eat while the rest of us die?" the tom demanded snottily. Shellstripe scowled.

"You took prey from me, too. Coralfall have kits we need to feed, and in fact, we're taking less than you! We've only been taking mousetails!"

"And we've been eating last," Coralfall croaked, glaring. "I may not be a leader anymore, but I'm a queen. And queens have responsibilities."

"Yeah, right. You sneaked a whole rabbit, the two of you, when we were asleep. But I was watching." Sparrownose snarled at the two she-cats. 

"Exactly!" Featherheart unsheathed his claws. Shellstripe backed up, glancing at herself as if thinking about her kits, and dipped her head.

"We didn't, but you can have this mousetail. We have no interest in fighting you." Featherheart lifted his chin proudly, and Darkstorm's fur bristled, about to fight.

"Wait," Thorntail mewed. His eyes glittered with intelligence as he studied the toms. "They might not hurt her." Coralfall was standing her ground, claws like jewels and teeth sharp.

"Threaten my kits, will you?" she demanded. Sparrownose hissed, walking away. Featherheart held the moustail firmly in his jaws, and he gulped it down quickly. Coralfall screeched angrily.

"What? It's not like a worthless queen could attack me." Coralfall was silent, and then whispered, "You wouldn't be alive if it weren't for a queen. One day you might have a mate, who might be a queen. And you may have kits, who will be queens." She glared at him and turned to continue walking.

Featherheart barreled into her side, and Darkstorm leaped, Orangetail pulling her back. "Arrowheart doesn't want you dead," she growled. "Coralfall is strong, and others will help her." Troutfin, right on cue, sprang at Featherheart. He twisted to slam his paw on her neck, throwing her down. Coralfall swished her tail angrily.

"You want to fight me, not Troutfin!" Featherheart tossed his head.

"You wouldn't stand a chance." He pounced on her back, dragging her down, and bared his teeth to bite her throat. The pinkish she-cat pushed up with her paws, into his underbelly, and he yowled in pain. He growled and launched, his head pointed at her belly. Darkstorm watched in horror. He's going to kill her, and her kits! But Coralfall rolled out of the side, slashing her claws across his throat, and he collapsed on the ground. The other cats, who had thought this was a simple quarrel, began to shout. Sparrownose rushed over to his former apprentice and peered at him.

"You killed him! You savage, savage rogue! You fox-heart!" Coralfall sidestepped as he threw himself at her, fur bristling. 

"He was going to kill me."

"Stop!" Thorntail shouted, taking control. "We lost a brave warrior. Coralfall, you're right, he was trying to kill you, and you needed to defend yourself. So tonight we will sit vigil for him, and some of us will hunt before that. At sun-high we will continue, and all will be well." Darkstorm nodded quickly, trying to look authoritative.

"Come on, let's hunt now. Sparrownose, you stay here, and Coralfall, you come with me. Apprentices, you too. Coralfall and I will give you a fighting lesson, as we could encounter badgers or other threats." 

She sighed. How I change the code and solve the prophecy, she wailed inside, if I can't even keep my clan in check? What if this is pointless? What if I'm the apprentice, and I've doomed us all?

Oooh, so what do you guys think? No comments? Lots of them? This is really fun to write and I'm glad that you read this. Every day there's at least another read, and I'm just so glad that you guys vote this, too! I'm really happy, and it makes my day to  know I'm giving you something to do when you're bored. If you like this, you should read 'Times of the Clans' by me; to find it, just click on my profile and scroll down to see my books. Do you guys have any comments, or constructive criticism?

-Shadowstorm