The Silent Thaw/Chapter 16

==Chapter description==
:Anxiously, Rootpaw peers from the apprentice's den seeing the camp clearing deserted. He reflects that it had taken his Clanmates ages to settle in their dens for the night and it was going to make him late to the meeting. He hears bracken rustle behind him, spotting Wrenpaw and Needlepaw still asleep. The young tom takes his chance and leaves camp, keeping his steps quick and wishing that for once, Bramblestar's ghost was with him. He notes that the spirit had disappeared the previous night and was possibly keeping an eye on Squirrelflight. A whisper catches him off guard and as Rootpaw looks around he spots his father, Tree. The older tom questions his son's late-night departure, to which Rootpaw eventually caves in and tells the yellow tom about the meeting. Tree asks if the meeting has something to do with the ghost, or Bristlefrost. Rootpaw tells him it doesn't and that Spotfur and Stemleaf invited him as it was for cats worried about what was happening with the Clans.
:Tree invites himself along and while Rootpaw initially doesn't want him to, he lets the older tom follow along. The cross into ShadowClan territory and as they walk Tree asks if Rootpaw was going to tell the gathered cats about Bramblestar's ghost. Rootpaw tells him he wasn't planning to and that he didn't want other Clans knowing he can see dead cats. Tree frowns and questions his son's statement to which the younger cat admits that he doesn't want other cats thinking he's like Tree. Rootpaw feels awful at his comment and goes to apologize but he spots a cat moving through the grass up ahead. Tree recognizes them as Frecklewish, and calls out to her. The medicine cat freezes and questions them both as Tree reveals they are also going to the meeting. The three cats then head towards the meeting spot and are greeted by the sight of many cats. Rootpaw finds himself recognizing a few of the gathered cats and is surprised to see Blossomheart, noting that she must've left camp before he did.
:Stemleaf starts the meeting by thanking the gathered cats for coming. Breezepelt questions if they'll be able to stop what is happening to the Clans. This causes Whorlpelt to speak up, stating the issue is Bramblestar. Both Sneezecloud and Frecklewish agree with the statement, and the medicine cat adds that he appears to have StarClan on his side, as proven by Shadowsight's recent vision. Stemleaf suggests that if they stand up to Bramblestar, they would be standing against StarClan. Rootpaw voices his thoughts that perhaps StarClan only wants the codebreakers to acknowledge what they have done. Spotfur notes that not every codebreaker knows what they've done and is backed up by Twigbranch. Stemleaf continues as other cats begin voicing their thoughts, and he suggests that they have to rid the Clans of Bramblestar before he goes too far.
:Rootpaw listens in shock as cats begin agreeing with the idea of banishing Bramblestar. He thinks about the real Bramblestar's ghost and what his thoughts would be if had heard what cats were thinking. The tom catches his father's stare amongst the cats, reading his gaze as a sign to tell the gathered cats about the impostor. Rootpaw tries but is unable to as shame crawls through his pelt. Sneezecloud and Cloverfoot continue throwing suggestions for what to do with Bramblestar, before the ShadowClan deputy notes that they could cause a war. Tree speaks up with his opinion of leaving the Clans instead of fighting. He suggests the idea of cats leaving to make their own Clans as Rootpaw cuts him off, stating that leaving isn't an option and that they must deal with Bramblestar. The apprentice points out that his change in behavior happened after losing a life and that may have had an effect on the leader. A few cats voice that the other leaders didn't change drastically after losing a life and that unlike other leaders, Bramblestar still had eight lives left. Finleap makes a comment about his leader and that the old Bramblestar wasn't like this and that enough makes Tree, instead of Rootpaw, mention Bramblestar's ghost.
:Stemleaf questions the mediator, as do other Clan cats as he tells them about Bramblestar's ghost. Tree tells the gathered cats that Bramblestar's body had been stolen by some other cat, which confuses some warriors, and that the real Bramblestar's spirit had been left to roam the forest. Cloverfoot doubts Tree, but Stemleaf and Spotfur share an uneasy look as Twigbranch explains the changes in ThunderClan and their leader. Frecklewish notes that they should perhaps talk with Shadowsight about the night Bramblestar had lost his first life. The medicine cat, after speaking briefly with a concern Cloverfoot, states that she would speak with the younger tom about his visions and try and learn more from him. At that, Stemleaf tells the gathered cats that they'll get information from Shadowsight before they decide on their next step and that they should return to their Clans before they are caught.
:As the meeting wraps up, Rootpaw dwells on the fact that his father had covered for him in front of the Clans and blinks gratefully at the tom. His attention, however, is caught by rustling and the appearance of Bristlefrost. Twigbranch raises an alarm at the young ThunderClan cat's appearance, calling her Bramblestar's spy. Rootpaw freezes in confusion and feels dreadful at the thought of her helping the impostor.
==Characters==
===Major===
*Rootpaw
===Minor===
===Mentioned===
==Trivia==
*This chapter aligns with chapter eight of Spotfur's Rebellion.
==Notes and references==
Category:The Silent Thaw
Category:The Broken Code arc
Category:Chapter subpages