fire and ice: part five

Sandpaw starts to warm up to Fireheart, even playing with him when they go on patrol together. While out they notice the river is frozen. Sandpaw is excited - they can do a raid on RiverClan territory. They go back to report what they have learned and Bluestar calls immediately for a raid led by Tigerclaw. Desperate, Graystripe says he thinks a thaw is coming. Willowpelt agrees, so Bluestar wants the attack to happen right away. Fireheart offers to go so Graystripe doesn't have to. But when they reach the river it has already thawed so the raid is called off.

The cats return to the camp and break the news. Graystripe attacks Fireheart for questioning his loyalty. Bluestar demands to know what is going on but Fireheart cannot betray his friend's secret. Everyone is sent on hunting missions and while out Fireheart decides to check on his sister. She gives him her firstborn to take back and raise as a warrior.

Fireheart happily takes the cat but when he returns to the camp everyone is angry at him - both for seeing his sister and for bringing back a strange cat. Graystripe speaks up in Fireheart's defense, saying if it has Fireheart's blood in it then it will make a good warrior. His statement is meet with mocking - both for his friendship with Fireheart and his fight with him.

In the end Brindleface agrees to nurse the kit and Bluestar allows it to stay, giving him the name Cloudkit. Graystripe keeps sneaking off so Fireheart keeps training Brackenpaw. Cinderpaw is eager to return to her training but Fireheart doesn't know what to tell her. She finally admits to him that she knows she will never be a warrior but she needs to dream. She stays with Yellowfang, unsure what her place is now with the clan. Yellowfang keeps her busy. Meanwhile Sandpaw becomes even closer to Fireheart, telling him everything will be fine with Cloudkit instead of mocking the kit's kittypet roots.

These were some really sad chapters. Fireheart has been feeling like an outsider for some time now. Some of the clan still do not accept him, Tigerclaw hates him, Bluestar doesn't believe him, and he has been fighting with Graystripe. He misses the sense of kinship that all the cats feel with each other and thinks having another cat not only just like him, but of his own blood will make things better. Unfortunately, it makes things worse as Cloudkit is met with scorn. In the end he gets to stay but Fireheart is left feeling more depressed and alienated by everyone's reaction. As for Graystripe and Fireheart, it is painful to read as their friendship falls further and further apart - especially when Graystripe is letting his warrior duties slip over this affair and refuses to acknowledge this.