Chapter 7

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That night, Hopepaw and Bramblepaw waited restlessly in their nests for everyone to fall asleep. Hopepaw listened to the breathig of her denmates to see if they were sleeping. She could hear Bramblepaw rustling in his nest, obviously anxious to get going.

It seemed like a lifetime had passed before all their denmates were asleep. Hopepaw sat up in her nest and so did Bramblepaw. "Are the warriors asleep?" She whispered to Bramblepaw.

"Let me check," Bramblepaw hushed. He crept out of the apprentice den and surveyed the camp. When he stuck his head back in, he nodded to Hopepaw. "Everyone's asleep."

"Let's go, then." Hopepaw murmured. She followed Bramblepaw silently across the clearing and out the camp entrance. The cool night air brushed against Hopepaw's fur. She loved the smell of the wind.

"Alright, where to?" Hopepaw asked Bramblepaw.

"Follow me." Bramblepaw led the way through the forest.

The way they were heading made it seem like they were going to Sandy Hollow. But Bramblepaw led Hopepaw straight past Sandy Hollow. She recognized the smell of the river and RiverClan's scent. Were they going to RiverClan? Bramblepaw continued onward until Hopepaw could see the river.

"Why are we going this way?" Hopepaw asked nervously. She didn't want to be anywhere near the river!

"You'll see," Bramblepaw whispered. "We're almost there!" They followed the river bank upstream and then turned out away from it. Hopepaw's paws were getting tired and she just wanted to return to her nest and sleep!

That's when she saw it: Fourtrees. The four great oaks stood taller against the other trees and their branches reached for the stars. Hopepaw stared in amazement at it. How could Bramblepaw even know how to get here?

"Wow," Hopepaw mused. "It's beautiful!"

"That's not even the best part. Come on!" Bramblepaw raced to Fourtrees and Hopepaw dashed after him.

The two apprentices entered into Fourtrees and stared in wonder at it. Hopepaw had never seen a tree so tall! And at the center of it all was a gigantic boulder where Hopepaw guessed the clan leaders stood. That's when Hopepaw noticed Bramblepaw climbing one of the oaks.

"Bramblepaw!" Hopepaw gasped. "What are you doing?"

"What does it look like I'm doing? I'm climbing. Come on, Hopepaw. It's amazing up here!" Bramblepaw waved at her with his tail.

Growling slightly, Hopepaw placed her forepaws on the trunk of the tree. She dug her claws into the rough bark and started climbing. It wasn't long until she reached the branch where Bramblepaw waited. Three strong branches gnarled together here to form a platform for them to sit. They were so close to the stars, Hopepaw felt that she could reach out and touch them.

She glanced at Bramblepaw only to find him already looking at her. Quickly, she looked away, embarrassed to have been caught staring. Bramblepaw purred in amusement. Then he looked back at the night sky.

"My father took me here after I was named an apprentice." Bramblepaw started. "He told me that once I was old enough that he would make me his deputy." Bramblepaw glanced at Hopepaw. "He said that TigerClan will grow so powerful that the other clans will quake in fear of our names. We are going to try to unify the clans."

"What?!" Hopepaw sputtered in disbelief. "But that's against the Warrior Code!"

Bramblepaw shook his head. "Tigerstar says that the clans will be stronger joined together. Don't you want TigerClan to be as strong as it can be?" His questioning stare burned into her like a flame.

Hopepaw nodded eagerly. "Of course I do! I just don't think that combining the clans will do that. What will happen to the other clan leaders?"

Bramblepaw shrugged. "Either they step down, or they're killed. A strong clan can't be divided."

Hopepaw lowered her head. Her mind was swirling with questions. "And how does your father plan on getting the other clans to submit?"

"Tigerstar says that all we need to do is conquer one clan. If we have two clans in one we are already stronger than the other clans. Either they join peacefully or we take them over by force." Bramblepaw turned to face Hopepaw and his amber eyes were filled with excitement. "When I become leader, everything will fall to me. And...well, I was hoping that you might want to be my deputy?"

Hopepaw could only stare at Bramblepaw. She knew, deep down, that Tigerstar was power-hungry and that Bramblepaw was ambitious. But couldn't that be a good thing? And she couldn't deny the warm feeling in her heart whenever Bramblepaw looked at her. Where had these feelings come from?

"Don't make promises you can't keep." Hopepaw mewed softly, her green eyes turned downward.

Bramblepaw lifted her head with his tail. "No, I promise Hopepaw. You'll be my deputy. There isn't any other cat I'd want to rule TigerClan by my side." His amber eyes met hers and she saw fierce determination there in the gold of his irises. "I promise."

~

A/N

This is kind of a short chapter but it's meaningful. In case anyone hasn't caught on, Hopepaw is kind of the alternate version of Squirrelpaw. They even look similar, although there are key differences. Anyways, please vote, comment, and add this story to your reading list!

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