Lilywhisper drew her pink tongue over one pale-furred paw and swiped it over her ear, ice blue gaze distant and dreamy. Though she was physically in the ThunderClan camp, her mind was far off in some imagined place. She relished the cool, quiet shade beneath the rock wall, the faint buzz of conversation fading into the background. It may have been hot, but Lilywhisper was calmly drifting in her own thoughts, paying no mind to the greenleaf heat that enveloped the forest.

A happy, longing gleam shone in her eyes as she placed her paw back on the dusty ground. Laying down on her side, she closed her eyes, desperate to fade into sleep so that she could visit the location her imagination had conjured. After all, if she could enter her dreamland, she could see him again. With her tail wrapped loosely around her, Lilywhisper drifted off.

"Hey, Lilywhisper!" It felt as if only a few seconds had passed between when she'd fallen asleep and when her twin sister, Silversparrow, mewed in her ear to wake her up. Groggily, Lilywhisper sat up, blinking the sleep from her eyes.

"What are you doing?" Silversparrow asked, cocking her head to one side. Lilywhisper stared back at her sister, feeling as if she were staring into a reflection. They were identical in every way, except for their personalities. Lilywhisper was the shy one, keeping only a few close companions, while Silversparrow was friends with every cat in the Clan. Despite their conflicting personalities, both she-cats were thick as thieves, sharing everything with one another, including things that no other cat could find out about.

"I was sleeping…" Lilywhisper's response trailed off in a yawn. It was near sunhigh; she'd not been asleep for very long.

"Dreaming about him again?" Silversparrow mewed, blinking knowingly at her twin. Lilywhisper nodded.

"I can't stop thinking about him." Silversparrow sighed, shaking her head.

"He's a RiverClan cat, Lilywhisper." Lilywhisper sighed, looking away.

"I know, but I just can't stop meeting him. He's so sweet… And I think I'm carrying his kits…" Her sister's eyes flew wide with shock.

"What?!" she cried, a little too loud. The soft-spoken twin felt her face grow hot as a few nearby cats looked over at them.

"I can't believe this! How could you be so stupid?" Silversparrow was now pacing back and forth, her tail lashing irritably. When she looked over at Lilywhisper, her eyes were dark and incredulous. Lilywhisper ducked her head.

"Tell the whole Clan, why don't you…" she grumbled sarcastically, irritated that her sister was so furious. She was even more annoyed by the fact that Silversparrow had every right to be angry.

"I should, you know." Lilywhisper's head shot up, eyes narrowed.

"You wouldn't dare…" she hissed, ears flattening slightly. Silversparrow inclined her chin, eyes flashing.

"What are you going to tell them when you get too big to go on patrols? You've never given any ThunderClan tom even a glance, so why would they believe that one of them is your mate?" Lilywhisper pressed her ears flat to her head as she leapt to her paws.

"It was a mistake, Silversparrow! I never wanted to have this, but what's done is done!" she snarled, furious that her twin was being so unsupportive. Silversparrow narrowed her eyes, lips curled away from her teeth.

"A mistake? After you've been secretly meeting him for moons, you say it's a mistake? What a laugh! You wanted his kits all along, Lilywhisper, don't deny it. I've seen you; ever since you started meeting him, you've been staring at the newborn kits with that pathetic, dreamy look in your eye! It was not a mistake. It was a stupid choice!" Lilywhisper took a step back, her anger quickly replaced with hurt.

"What's going on?" Phantomstar padded up between the bristling she-cats, fixing both of them with a firm glare. Lilywhisper cast her sister a desperate look, pleading her silently to keep her mouth closed.

"Lilywhisper is carrying kits." The black-pelted leader looked curiously at the quiet twin, whose eyes flared up with alarm instantly.

"Really? Whose?" His tone was surprised, but pleased, though Lilywhisper knew it would not be for long.

"Reedfrost." Silversparrow's voice was coldly triumphant as she spat out the name of the RiverClan warrior her sister had been meeting with for moons. Phantomstar looked shocked for a few moments during which Lilywhisper was torn between fear for her punishment and hatred for her sister. A crowd was forming around the three cats; the twins' fight had caught the attention of most of the Clan. At the mention of the tom, the entire crowd fell into a stunned silence

"A RiverClan warrior?" he asked, his tone betraying how staggered he was. Lilywhisper hung her head, ashamed.

"Traitor!" a cat yowled from the crowd. The call was soon taken up by much of the Clan and the soft-spoken, heartbroken she-cat was immediately pelted with a torrent of insults. She felt her whole body go numb as each nettle-sharp word was flung at her, dripping with poison. Silversparrow's look of triumph had faded into shock at how quickly the Clan turned against her sister.

"Silence!" Phantomstar shouted. His eyes were still shocked, but they had grown ice-cold, as if he agreed with every cat that stood around them.

"I…" Lilywhisper began, before the black tom cut her off with an even colder glare.

"We've all made stupid choices. Some are worse than others, yes, but we shouldn't turn on one another for making mistakes. However, I would like to speak to Lilywhisper alone. There are things that must be discussed," Phantomstar growled the last few words in the trembling she-cat's direction before turning and stalking towards the Highledge. With the heat of the argument long gone, Silversparrow went to stop her sister as she trudged after her leader. Lilywhisper, however, shot her a venomous glare that stopped Silversparrow in her tracks. The terrified she-cat plodded along in her leader's wake, head bowed as she felt the icy stares from her Clanmates penetrate her fur. She scrambled up the rocky ledge to the leader's den. Sliding through the crevice, she found herself staring straight at Phantomstar, who was already seated in the middle of the floor. Lilywhisper stood awkwardly in the entrance before the black tom gestured for her to move closer. She did, scuffling further into the space and sitting back heavily on her haunches, waiting for the lecture to begin.

"When did you first begin to meet with Reedfrost?" His voice was level and calm, which scared the she-cat more than if he'd shouted at her.

"After the Gathering before last," she answered meekly, not meeting his gaze. Her throat felt constricted, as if it were being squeezed shut, and she felt lightheaded.

"Relax, Lilywhisper. I'm not going to kick you out of ThunderClan," he mewed, allowing a touch of humor to lighten his tone. When she visibly relaxed, he grew stern again. "However, you know that I cannot allow this to go unpunished." She nodded, grateful that she wouldn't face exile.

"For four moons, you may not attend Gatherings. You may not leave the camp without another cat. When you are able to go to Gatherings, you cannot be alone with any RiverClan warrior, especially Reedfrost. In addition, you must assist the medicine cats in collecting herbs for the stores." Lilywhisper nodded again. The punishment was harsh, but it fit the crime. She had, after all, broken the warrior code. He was quiet for a moment before continuing.

"Your kits will be treated as part of ThunderClan, since they are innocent. I know it'll take your Clanmates awhile to trust you again, but I want you to know that I forgive you, this time. If you ever step over the boundaries of the warrior code again, I'll be forced to take more drastic action. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Phantomstar." She still felt lightheaded, though it was with relief this time.

"Good. You may go now." Getting to her paws, Lilywhisper dipped her head in farewell and slithered back out of the den. scrambling down the ledge again, she found herself nose-to-nose with her sister. Silversparrow looked more than a little apologetic, but Lilywhisper would have none of it.

"What do you want?" she snarled into her twin's face. Silversparrow flinched, afraid of her sister's sudden fury.

"I… I'm sorry…" Lilywhisper cut her off with a glare that was colder than the lake in leafbare.

"I don't want to hear it. The whole Clan hates me now because you couldn't keep your mouth shut. I can't forgive you for that. Not now, not ever. Just… Just stay away from me!" she spat, her voice cracking on the last couple words. Not giving Silversparrow a chance to respond, she hurried away. Remembering that she couldn't leave camp without another cat, Lilywhisper stalked into the warriors' den, curled up in her nest, and lay with her chin on her paws. Her blue eyes stared at nothing as she contemplated how she was going to deal with her Clanmates now that they hated her. As it grew later, her eyes began to droop shut. Just before sleep overcame her, Lilywhisper made up her mind to tell her kits everything when they were born, and to encourage them to be proud of it. She would not allow her children to regret the poor choices their mother had made.

Moons passed slowly as Lilywhisper lived out her punishment. After the first two moons, the Clan began to warm up to her again. Shortly following the end of her punishment, she moved into the nursery. She became fast friends with Riverwind, who was nursing her third litter.

Eventually, her kits came. There were four in all, and all of them were healthy and strong. The three eldest were toms, whom she named Icekit, Moonkit, and Nightkit. The only she-cat was harder to name. At one point, Lilywhisper would have named her Silverkit, after her sister. However, she hadn't forgiven her twin for disclosing her secret to the Clan, and therefore labored over her daughter's name for three days. At dusk, Lilywhisper finally decided. Her only daughter would be named Reedkit, after her father. She was a mirror image of her forbidden mate, with thick black fur and ice blue eyes. The four kits were popular among their Clanmates, despite their mixed blood, and were raised to be proud of who they were.

The conflict between the sisters was never resolved. Though Silversparrow tried to win her twin's forgiveness, Lilywhisper couldn't forget how easily Silversparrow had betrayed her. Their relationship was permanently broken, and could never be healed. They went from being thick as thieves to worst enemies in a single day.

Silversparrow, however, learned to think before she spoke. She went from being headstrong to cautious, for fear of losing another companion due to a stupid mistake.

AN:

This one wasn't nearly as good as the other oneshots, but I tried. The fourth chapter for Blind will be posted ASAP; I've been suffering from a horrible combination of a busy schedule and a bout of writer's block. However, as soon as it's done, I promise to put it up. I apologize for the long delay, my lovelies!