Whiteheart's Betrayal- Chapter 20

 "Whitepaw! What in the name of StarClan are you doing?" Rosestar yelped. Instantly Whitepaw unhooked her claws and gave Nightclaw a guilty look. Blood gushed from his neck wound, but luckily it wasn't deep. She felt a wave of guilt. I could have killed him, she thought.
 Nightclaw staggered to his paws, ignoring the blood that threatened to gush from his wound and slide down his leg. He stared at Whitepaw, his eyes wide. "You're crazy," he muttered, avoiding her gaze. "Get away from me, Whitepaw. I don't understand why we ever became friends in the first place."
 Whitepaw's tail drooped. She felt farther and farther away from her old friend. When she begged Frostpaw and Nightclaw- Nightpaw then- to go and find out the truth about their birth, Nightclaw disliked her since. The truth had been horrible: Dark, a kittypet, never cared or loved them, and Stonepelt, a StormClan cat, wanted nothing to do with them. The truth angered Frostpaw, possibly for the first time in his life, costing the young tom his own life. Stonepelt killed him in cold blood, and Nightclaw vowed to avenge his little brother's death, even if it meant going into the Dark Forest.
 Rosestar broke into her thoughts. "Whitepaw! Get back to camp, now." Whitepaw flinched at the coldness in her voice. She turned her head to speak to Sweetpaw, but the tortoiseshell cat already left. A growl rose in her throat.
 If Sweetpaw hadn't come in the first place, this wouldn't have happened! Doesn't Nightclaw care about his reputation? Whitepaw thought to herself bitterly. When the Clan discovered the truth, they began to question Nightclaw's loyalty. It angered Nightclaw, but the tom got used to it and soon began to ignore their questions. She let out a growl of anger and padded back to camp with Rosestar.
 Emeraldflame was on guard, and her eyes were wide when she saw the injured, limping Nightclaw. She padded over to Rosestar and Nightclaw and gasped, "What happened to you?"
"Whitepaw happened!" Nightclaw spat. Whitepaw flinched at the anger in his voice.
"Whitepaw?" Emeraldflame gasped, then gave Whitepaw an accusing glare. "Why did you attack your own Clanmate?" Before Whitepaw had the chance to reply, her mother continued. "You're breaking the warrior code!" She flinched at the coldness in her voice.
 "Great StarClan, will Whitepaw turn into a traitor like Emeraldflame's first kit?" It was Leafstorm, one of the elders. She was in the Gathering with the patrol. Whitepaw stared at the brown tabby, surprised. "Other kit-?"
 "Don't ask any stupid questions!" Emeraldflame snapped before Whitepaw had a chance to finish her question. "Go to the apprentices' den. Now! You're going to work on the elders' ticks tomorrow as a punishment."
 Feeling hollow, Whitepaw padded into the apprentices' den as ordered. She curled up into a ball, but the silver and white she-cat didn't sleep that night.

   Whitepaw woke up in the Dark Forest, narrowing her eyes at the eerie light that seemed to come from nowhere. She glanced around, wondering why Breezeclaw forced her to wake up here.
"Welcome." A familiar voice mewed. Whitepaw whipped around, noticing the black figure of Breezeclaw's pelt. His yellow eyes glowed in the darkness and his teeth glittered when he smiled widely. He looked like a shadow moving in front of the trees when he padded closer to her. She shrank back in fear.
 "Why am I here?" Whitepaw mewed. It wasn't often Breezeclaw had summoned her into the Dark Forest.
"To tell you that many secrets will be shown to you," Breezeclaw mewed. "Your Clan has kept a secret from you, Whitepaw, and soon you will know that secret."
 "Secret? What secret?" Whitepaw mewed, tilting her head. Then she remembered what Leafstorm said about Emeraldflame's "other kit". Could that be the secret? Is it possible that Emeraldflame gave birth to two kits and not just her?
 "Whitepaw." Breezeclaw's deep voice rang in the air. "Do not make any moves that will make you look like a traitor. Always stay loyal to your Clan."
 "But I am loyal!" Whitepaw protested, sinking her claws into the ground.
 "So hurting your Clanmate is loyal?" Breezeclaw tilted his head, and Whitepaw hung her head down in shame.
"I-It's not my fault," Whitepaw murmured, staring at her paws. "He was going to meet Sweetpaw. I had to do something to stop him!"
 "Ah, but violence is never the answer," Breezeclaw began to purr. "You must control your anger, Whitepaw, or it may become very dangerous..." The black tom began to fade away, and Whitepaw could see the trees behind him.
 "No!" Whitepaw mewed, leaping at the fading tom, but her paws only sank into the grass. She wrapped her tail around herself in frustration, narrowing her eyes. "You have to tell me! Did Emeraldflame have another kit? My mother?" Surely Breezeclaw's been dead long enough to know about my mother's other kit? she thought.
 "All will be told soon...." Breezeclaw's voice faded along with his body. Whitepaw blinked, and the tom was gone. She lashed her tail in frustration. Closing her eyes, she began to sleep, and a black background began to cover her vision.
 Whitepaw woke up in her nest the next morning, though she felt like she barely had any sleep. She rose to her paws, blinking at the bright sunlight. She padded out of the den, making sure the mud wouldn't let her slip, and narrowed her eyes when she scanned the clearing. Her heart sank when Emeraldflame was speaking to Rosestar.
 Am I in trouble? Whitepaw thought. She knew it was against the warrior code to attack your own Clanmate. But would she get exiled because of it? That's not fair!" Whitepaw unsheathed her claws and sank them into the mud. It was an accident!
 "Whitepaw." Whitepaw whipped around, noticing a tall black and white tom. It was her father, Shortstem. Her heart sank at the disappointment in his green eyes.
 "Why did you attack Nightclaw?" Shortstem mewed. Before Whitepaw had a chance to explain herself, Emeraldflame padded over to them, glaring at her daughter. Whitepaw shrank back at the anger in her mother's eyes. Why did Emeraldflame look so bitter?
 "Rosestar wants you to visit Meadowflower," Emeraldflame growled. "Do it now."
 Whitepaw obeyed her mother, though she felt like she had a piece of prey stuck in her throat. She wondered if Meadowflower wanted to see her herself, or if Emeraldflame ordered to see her as a punishment. Emeraldflame clearly didn't look very happy with her right now- after all, she just attacked her own Clanmate.
 Whitepaw placed her paw in front of the den, peeking inside. The golden medicine cat had her back turned on her. Piles of herbs were sorted out neatly. Whitepaw was impressed. Meadowflower had some kind of berries in her paws and she placed them into a berry pile with the same color, and one of them rolled off, but the medicine cat used her small white paw to block it from rolling away and pushed it into the pile again. Whitepaw cleared her throat to get the medicine cat's attention.
 Meadowflower turned her head, blinking with surprise. "Oh? Whitepaw, what can I do for you?"
 Whitepaw blinked. She thought Meadowflower wanted to speak to her! She shuffled her paws, suddenly too afraid of what the golden medicine cat would say.
 "Whitepaw, I don't have all day. What do you want?" Meadowflower sounded impatient.
Whitepaw took a deep breath, "I attacked Nightclaw," she admitted, avoiding her gaze.
Meadowflower placed a paw on the pile of berries by accident in shock; they began to spread around in the medicine den, rolling away from the pile. But Meadowflower looked too shocked to pick up the mess. Her eyes were wide, and Whitepaw wondered if the medicine cat felt scared.
"Were you...angry?" Meadowflower asked.
Whitepaw looked at her paws. "Yes."
 Meadowflower shook her head. She padded over to the scattered berries and began to pile them up again neatly. One threatened to roll off the pile but the medicine cat used her white paw to stop it and pushed it back at the top. She padded in front of Whitepaw and sat down, wrapping her tail around her paws. "Why?"
 Whitepaw gulped. She didn't want to tell the medicine cat Nightclaw's secret. He'd only hate her. "I-I was fighting over who'd get to BreezeClan's camp first," she mumbled.
 Meadowflower let out a sigh, "Whitepaw, you need to stop playing these games. You're not a kit anymore. Nightclaw could have died."
 When Whitepaw didn't reply, Meadowflower continued. "Whitepaw. You have to control your anger." She sounded more gentle now and stroked the silver and white apprentice's head with her golden tabby tail.
 "But it's so hard," Whitepaw complained, though the medicine cat's tail felt comforting. Like Emeraldflame doing this to me, she thought sadly. Would Emeraldflame ever forgive her?
 That reminds me! I have to speak to Meadowflower about Emeraldflame's other kit! Whitepaw remembered. The medicine cat had been alive for a long time- possibly enough to know about Emeraldflame's other kit.
 Changing the subject, Whitepaw mewed, "Meadowflower, I promise I'll try to hide my anger." When the golden medicine cat opened her jaws to reply, she stopped her. "I want to ask you something."
 Meadowflower hesitated, then nodded. "What is it?"
"What did Leafstorm mean when she said 'Emeraldflame's other kit'?" Whitepaw asked. She braced herself for the truth to come out.
 Meadowflower waited for a long time, narrowing her eyes at the young apprentice. Whitepaw shrank back from the golden medicine cat's gaze. Some deep knowledge was hidden in her eyes, she felt sure, but also wisdom.
 "You deserve to know the truth," Meadowflower sighed, relaxing her shoulders. "All right, Whitepaw. But after I tell you this, you must promise to never tell the rest of the Clan, do you understand?"
 "Yes!" Whitepaw blurted out. I have to know what's going on!
 "All right," Meadowflower mewed, wrapping her tail over her paws. "Whitepaw. When Leafstorm said that, you know what she meant, right?"  
 "Yes. Emearldflame must have had another kit, or at least adopted one," Whitepaw mewed.
 "What Leafstorm said is true. Whitepaw, you have a sister. And her name is Sageleaf." Meadowflower mewed.
 Whitepaw's jaws gaped open. I have a sister?