Pinestar has led a raid on WindClan's medicine stores, but it is going horribly wrong. Goosefeather told him that StarClan wanted him to lead this raid, assuring him of their success, but they are being horribly defeated. He sees two cats sneak into the stores, and feels relief, but they are followed by two WindClan cats and the medicine cat, who blocks the door, and Pinestar's relief turns to fear. The fight inside the den spills out, and Morningflower is killed. Bluepaw sees her mothers death, and cries out in agony. Pinestar calls the retreat. Heatherstar tells him the attack was unjust and StarClan would never have granted them victory. Bluepaw keeps begging Morningflower to get up, but she does not. Pinestar goes back to collect the young apprentice. Later on he tells Jake all about the fight. Jake points out to him that at least the cats blame Goosefeather for the defeat. Pinestar counters that he is the leader and is responsible for the cats. He confesses to Jake that he worries about Goosefeather and his prophecies. He also admits he thinks Goosefeather has had a prophecy about him that he isn't sharing. As he visits with Jake another cat named Shanty comes along. Pinestar dozes off listening to Jake and Shanty talk, feeling happy to have no responsibilities right now.
Pinestar and Smallear are dozing in the sun when Smallear tells Pinestar he made the right choice to mate with Leopardfoot. Pinestar doesn't want this conversation with his warrior and is glad when Smallear leaves. But he does wonder if he will have kits with Leopardfoot - and if he could bear to train them to have them fight and possibly die in the service of the clan. Pinestar sneaks off and finds Shanty. Shanty's human comes out to pet her and Shanty convinces Pinestar to let her pet him too. Pinestar does and realizes it is not quite so bad. He and Shanty get into a fight over honor and the warrior code - Shanty arguing that she might not be part of a warrior clan, but she and her twolegs make a clan of their own. Pinestar understands what they mean and they make up. Then they doze off together. As he sleeps he sees Doestar. She speaks to him of the fight with RiverClan over Sunningrocks. His response - a sarcastic reply over how he can't wait for more cats to lose their lives over stones to warm themselves on - shocks Doestar. She reminds him of his loyalty and duty to his clan. She then tells Pinestar that Leopardfoot is expecting his kits. She also warns him that the tom has a shadow over his destiny, and will have the power to destroy ThunderClan. Pinestar doesn't know what to do and Doestar responds that he must teach the tom about loyalty, honor, and compassion to try and avert his dark destiny. Pinestar wakes up and leaves Shanty, feeling ashamed for being with her and also feeling that no matter what he does he cannot escape his duties.
Pinestar sneaks carefully back to the camp. Lionpaw caught him the other day talking to Jake's twoleg, and he lied to the apprentice, saying he only pretended to befriend the twoleg to learn more about kittypets. He doesn't want Lionpaw or anyone else catching him again. In the camp he feels like Bluefur is watching him carefully, looking for hints that he has been spending his time with twolegs. Featherwhisker appears, telling Pinestar that Leopardfoot's kits are coming. Swiftbreeze, her mother, is worried since it is a month early. Featherwhisker asks Pinestar to sit with Leopardfoot, but Pinestar declines, saying he doesn't want to get in the medicine cats way. Bluefur and Swiftbreeze are shocked at Pinestar's response. As the day goes on Pinestar still refuses to visit her. He can feel his clan judging him, but he cannot make himself go into the nursery. When Bluefur announces it is two queens and a tom, all he can think of is Doestar's prophecy. Pinestar races through the trees, unable to face Leopardfoot. He runs to Shanty, unable to keep the prophecy to himself any longer. He finds her and tells her that Leopardfoot had her kits. Shanty is confused, feeling this should be good news. Pinestar starts to tell her the truth but a monster suddenly heads towards them. Pinestar tries to knock Shanty out of the way, getting hit himself. As he loses his second to last life Thunderstar comes to him and tells him the time to make a choice is near. Pinestar wakes up and finds Shanty dead. Her twolegs come out of their den and find her and start to mourn her. Pinestar returns home and seeks out Leopardfoot. She is upset with him for not coming sooner. All three kits are very sick and weak, the tom weakest of all. Pinestar finds himself hoping that StarClan will take the tom before he grows up. Leopardfoot tells him she named the kits. As he looks at them Tigerkit, the tom, opens his eyes and looks and Pinestar, causing him to jump back in shock. When he tells Leopardfoot what happened she doesn't believe him since it will be days before he opens his eyes.
Pinestar dreams of the nursery, of Tigerkit's cold amber eyes, and of blood everywhere. Silvery cats hold him down, telling him his son is evil and the downfall of his clan. When he asks them what to do they tell him to murder Tigerkit. Pinestar yells out no and pushes them away. He wakes to find Goosefeather in his den. Goosefeather asks after Pinestar's dream, but Pinestar tells him it doesn't matter. But Goosefeather tells him it does matter and that Sweetpaw is dead. Pinestar speaks of his hope that everything was better but Goosefeather tells him not to be a fool, and that StarClan has told Pinestar exactly what is going on. Pinestar leaves his den. Tigerkit wants to play with him but Pinestar brushes him off and leaves. He finds himself in twoleg place, at Jake's den. He eats the pellets the twolegs give him and decides it doesn't taste that bad. Lionpaw catches him, asking what he is doing, and tells him RiverClan is invading. Pinestar makes his choice, and tells Lionpaw he will not join the fight and asks the young apprentice to tell the clan he is dead. Lionpaw is angry and refuses to lie for Pinestar because he wants to become a kittypet, and tells Pinestar he should be brave enough to tell the clan himself. Lionpaw races away and Pinestar follows. At the camp he announces his decision to leave them and become a kittypet. Everyone is upset and angry, but Lionpaw speaks up asking if they really want a leader who does not wish to lead. Pinestar tells Sunfall that he knows he is leaving the clan in good hands. Some of the cats wish Pinestar well, while others ignore him. As he leaves he tells Lionpaw that he was right, he needed to tell the clan himself. He tells Lionpaw that he hopes Sunfall names him Lionheart. Leopardfoot tries to stop him, reminding him of their kits. Unable to tell anyone about the prophecy in the hope that Tigerkit will be treated fairly, Pinestar responds that he will be proud of his kits and forces himself to tell Tigerpaw especially of him.
Pinestar goes to Shanty's house folk. At first the male doesn't want him there but the female convinces him it is okay. Pinestar seeks out Jake to tell him that he left the clan to become a kittypet. Jake is impressed and offers to show Pinestar around. Pinestar tells him that he must go home now, his house folk will be looking for him. As he leaves he tells Jake that his new name is just Pine now.
This was a sad story. Pinestar clearly never really wanted to be leader - not because he wasn't capable or didn't care enough for his clan, but because he cared too much. Every death weighed heavily on him and he just wanted his clan to live in peace and safety. But that isn't their way of life. Their way of life is a struggle for survival and it was too much for him.
Then add the prophecy about Tigerkit! And I think Tigerkit did open his eyes, since Pinestar knew his eyes were amber colored. I don't know if StarClan really did send him the dream to kill Tigerkit or if it was just an ordinary nightmare, but I think it is possible. Especially since Goosefeather clearly knew some of what was going on. But either way it showed that the truth of Tigerkit was too much for Pinestar to handle. He couldn't kill an innocent kit, but he also couldn't bring himself to spend time with that kit and try to raise him right knowing the truth that he did know.
I don't know that he made the right decision to leave. I understand why he made it, I'm just not sure it was the right one. With Pinestar gone in theory Tigerkit would grow, judged by his own actions and not a prophecy. But the problem with that is Pinestar knew the truth and no one else did. He knew that Tigerkit could be evil and he wasn't there - and didn't trust anyone else with the knowledge - to make sure Tigerkit made the right choices. And Tigerkit didn't.
I heard a rumor - years ago - that Firestar might be descended from Pinestar. I remember talking to my ex about it when we first started reading these books. The theory was Pinestar had kits with a kittypet and one of those kits was Rusty, which is why he heard the call of the forest and became such a great warrior - he had the blood of a clan cat in him. I was hoping the story would end with a confirmation of that but it didn't. But if Firestar is Pinestar's son, then that would make Tigerstar hate him all the more. Can you image your father having another son, who was half kittypet, and who was better at everything then you are? That would burn Tigerstar all the more.
This was a good story, but it was sad. But it was good to see the why behind some things happening. And for a final thought, what was up with Goosefeather? And that raid on WindClan? Pinestar almost felt as if he couldn't trust Goosefeather. Was it just that Goosefeather also knew the truth? About Pinestar and Tigerkit? Or was it something more? He seemed fine in Spottedleaf's story, but in Pinestar's story he seemed off. I don't know, and my question might never be answered. It could simply be that Pinestar was under so much pressure he was imagining things about Goosefeather. But that raid was still odd.
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