Fire and Ice/Chapter 13

==Chapter description==
:Fireheart sits by the pine tree where his apprentice, Cinderpaw had buried her first lot of fresh-kill. When Cinderpaw and Brackenpaw arrive, Brackenpaw can barely hold his catch. Fireheart feels relieved, as Tigerclaw would not be able to criticize the apprentices' hunting.
:Fireheart offers to carry Cinderpaw's prey back, and they head back to the ThunderClan camp. When they arrive, some of the cats are already taking prey, and Tigerclaw heads up to them, waiting for them to return. He asks Fireheart if they caught all the prey themselves, and he replies that they had, and Tigerclaw tells Fireheart to join him and Bluestar to eat.
:Cinderpaw and Brackenpaw show admiration, as it is usually a privilege to eat with the leader and deputy of the Clan, but Fireheart doesn't share in the apprentices' excitement, as he wants to share his report to Bluestar alone. Tigerclaw asks Fireheart if he has seen his friend, Graystripe, as he was supposed to stay in camp with his cold. Tigerclaw comments that he hasn't seen Graystripe since sunhigh. Fireheart admits that he hasn't seen him, and wonders if he was with Yellowfang. Tigerclaw heads back toward Bluestar, who is eating a pigeon. Fireheart starts to worry about his friend's disappearances, and he selects a small chaffinch, but regrets the decision, as he didn't want to report with a mouthful of feathers.
:Bluestar welcomes Fireheart, and tells him that Tigerclaw had reported that the apprentices had caught plenty of prey, but Tigerclaw glares at Fireheart critically. Fireheart agrees, and tells her that they had never hunted in the mist before, but that didn't put them off, and reports that he watched Brackenpaw catch a wood mouse with excellent stalking. Bluestar questions Fireheart about Cinderpaw, and he notices the steely glint in her eyes. Fireheart wonders if she is worried about Cinderpaw's abilities, and replies that her hunting skills are developing, and that she has lots of enthusiasm.
:Bluestar questions if he is worried if that would make her reckless, and Fireheart replies that she is quick and inquisitive, and a quick learner, which makes up for her eagerness. Bluestar replies that Cinderpaw's eagerness worries her, and that she will need careful guidance in her training. Fireheart's spirits are lowered, and wonders if Bluestar is unhappy with his mentoring.
:Bluestar comments that Cinderpaw is always going to be a challenge, but she is turning into a fine hunter, and tells Fireheart that he has done good work with her. She also compliments him for taking over Brackenpaw's training without being asked to, and tells him to carry on mentoring both of the two apprentices for the time being. Fireheart senses Tigerclaw's anger, and thanks Bluestar. Tigerclaw tells Fireheart his friend has returned, and he turns to see Graystripe appearing from behind the nursery. Fireheart suggests that he was probably getting some peace and quiet, as he is still feverish, and it couldn't have been easy being stuck in camp.
:Tigerclaw comments that Graystripe should be concentrating on getting better, as leaf-bare is no time for getting sick. He tells Fireheart that Mousefur was coughing on patrol, and voices his hope that StarClan would protect them from greencough, as they lost five kits to it last leaf-bare. Bluestar agrees, and voices her hope that they wouldn't have a hard leaf-bare, as it was never an easy time for the Clans. Bluestar tells Fireheart to take the chaffinch to Graystripe, since he would want to hear how his apprentice, Brackenpaw, did on his assessment.
:Fireheart thanks Bluestar, he picks up the chaffinch and heads toward Graystripe, who is eating a wood mouse. As Fireheart drops his prey beside his friend, Graystripe sneezes. Fireheart asks him if his cold is any better, and Graystripe replies that it isn't, and comments that he will have to stay in camp for awhile longer.
:Fireheart notes the cheerfulness in his friend's voice, but doesn't want to betray his suspicions of Graystripe being up to something. Fireheart tells Graystripe that Brackenpaw did really well on his assessment, and Graystripe says that is good. Fireheart mews that Brackenpaw was a great hunter, and questions Graystripe about his disappearances. Graystripe asks him why he wants to know, Fireheart replies that he didn't see him after his patrol last night. He mentions that Tigerclaw also noticed his absence.
:When Graystripe expresses his worry, Fireheart reassures Graystripe that he told Tigerclaw he was probably finding peace and quiet or was with Yellowfang. Fireheart then questions if he was doing either of those things, but Graystripe ignores him, and thanks Fireheart for covering for him. Fireheart does not question Graystripe any further, so Graystripe announces that he is going back to the den, leaving Fireheart in the dark. Fireheart tells him that he will stay here a bit longer, and Graystripe pads away from him. Fireheart notices that Graystripe had cleaned himself recently, and wonders if he was trying to hide something.
:Fireheart then remembers that he also gave himself a good wash after his meetings with Princess, and didn't tell Graystripe about the meetings. He sees something in his claw, and realizes it is a catkin that grew on a willow tree. Fireheart wonders how it got there, as willow trees didn't grow on ThunderClan territory, and he knows he's only seen them grow on RiverClan territory. Fireheart wonders if the catkin came from Graystripe's fur. Fireheart returns to the warriors' den to see Graystripe asleep, and he lays awake beside his best friend. Fireheart wonders if Graystripe was going into RiverClan territory, even after Leopardfur's anger after Whiteclaw's death.
:Fireheart awakens to chilly weather, and begins to worry for his friend. Runningwind startles him by commenting on the chilly weather, and Fireheart agrees. The older warrior asks if Fireheart was okay, and if he caught his friend's cold, as Mousefur had got a cold, and Longtail and his apprentice, Swiftpaw, were sneezing through training. Fireheart tells Runningwind that he is fine, just tired from his apprentice's assessment. Runningwind tells him that Bluestar had requested him to help Fireheart with Brackenpaw and Cinderpaw, and asks Fireheart if that was all right. Fireheart thanks him and says it was fine and that he appreciated the help.
:Runningwind tells Fireheart that he would meet Fireheart in the training hollow after he ate. He comments that if Swiftpaw was coming down with a cold, they would have the place to themselves, and he asks Fireheart if he was hungry. Fireheart just shakes his head, and Runningwind goes to eat at the fresh-kill pile. Fireheart decides to wait at the training hollow for the apprentices and Runningwind. Fireheart thinks that since Graystripe wasn't training, his friend would probably slip out of camp.
:Runningwind soon arrives with Brackenpaw and Cinderpaw. Cinderpaw asks Fireheart what they are going to do today, and Brackenpaw questions him if they are going hunting. Runningwind suggests that they practice stalking techniques. Fireheart agrees, and Cinderpaw shows her disdain, but is silenced by Runningwind, who turns to Fireheart to start the lesson. Fireheart tells the apprentices that he would start by showing them the best way to stalk a rabbit. He begins to stalk moving fast and light until he is at the end of the hollow. He turns back to the others, who seem confused, and Cinderpaw asks him if that stalking would fool a rabbit.
:Fireheart realizes that he did a bird stalking technique, as a rabbit would have heard him from three fox-lengths away. Fireheart turns to Runningwind, who is frowning, and the older warrior tells asks the two apprentices if they wanted to be shown how to creep up on a shrew. As the day passes, Fireheart still finds difficulty concentrating on the training session. He soon tells Runningwind that he isn't feeling all that well, and asks him if he could take over the training for the rest of the day. Fireheart explains that he wants to see if Yellowfang had anything for bellyache. Runningwind comments that Fireheart had seemed distracted, and tells him that he should go back to camp, and he would take the apprentices hunting. Fireheart thanks him, and leaves the hollow, although he feels guilty for lying. He breaks into a run and returns to camp, remembering that Graystripe had returned through the nursery.
:Fireheart realizes that it is the best way to sneak out of camp, as Yellowfang had used it to escape camp when the former medicine cat, Spottedleaf, had been killed. He pads around the wall, and scents Graystripe, but it is stale. He hides in a nearby tree, and hopes that Graystripe won't come. Soon, Fireheart sees Graystripe slip through the fronds, and head to the training hollow. He starts to hope that Graystripe is feeling better and just heading to the training hollow, and he follows him. The path veers away from the training hollow, and instead Graystripe headed for Sunningrocks.
:Fireheart watches Graystripe head for the RiverClan border, and he hopes that there are no warriors nearby. He starts to make his way down through the fronds, and notices that the river isn't frozen anymore. Fireheart stops at the edge of the bracken, and watches Graystripe. He notes that Graystripe is too relaxed to be listening for prey, and soon hears a cat's call in the distance, and wonders if it was a RiverClan patrol. Graystripe stays where he is, and soon Fireheart recognizes Silverstream as she crosses the river to meet Graystripe.
:Graystripe pads up to her in delight, and the two touch noses. Fireheart, shocked, sees that Graystripe doesn't seem to mind getting water on him as the two cats share their affection with each other.
==Characters==
===Major===
===Minor===
===Mentioned===
==Notes and references==
de:Feuer und Eis/Kapitel 13es:Fuego y hielo/Capítulo 13fr:‎À feu et à sang/Chapitre 13nl:Water en vuur/Hoofdstuk 13
Category:Chapter subpages
Category:Fire and Ice
Category:The Prophecies Begin arc