Brambleclaw was horrified. Pacing in the dark forest, he was alone. The beautiful kits that he had watched being born, had brought up, had loved so much, weren't his own. All the love he had given them and had received from them was a lie. How was this possible? His life with Squirrelflight and his children was shattered. Suddenly, there was a sound above Brambleclaw's head. Claws unsheathed, he looked up. Nothing is there.
Still feeling confused and distraught, Brambleclaw began to head back to camp. Once again, a whistling noise sounded above his head. Brambleclaw began to look up when a gray blaze threw him off his paws. He stood up as fast as he could, knowing that such a vicious ambush would not be just for fun. This cat is trying to kill me! But as Brambleclaw stood up in a defensive position, he noticed that this gray cat was not coming at him as he suspected. In fact, now this cat did not look gray at all; it seemed to be made up of stars. He is of StarClan! Brambleclaw thought, as the cat drew closer. "Not exactly." Replied the cat, his voice full of emotion. Suddenly, the cat came close enough for Brambleclaw to distinguish his features. "Ashfur!" Brambleclaw pounced on the starry figure, infuriated that this cat would show himself to the deputy of ThunderClan; the mate of the cat he had tried to kill in his life. But as Brambleclaw flew through the air, Ashfur had disappeared. Brambleclaw crashed to the ground, feeling blood trickle from his jaw. "I'm not here to fight." Brambleclaw spun around, facing his enemy once again. "You tried to kill Firestar; you tried to kill Squirrelflight and our kits! What else did you come here to do, chit-chat?" Ashfur slowly padded up to Brambleclaw. "But they aren't your kits, are they?" Snarling, Brambleclaw nipped back a reply. "But I still love them, no matter if they are my kits or not." There was a long, silent pause. Nothing around the two cats made a sound; the wind had stopped, as if holding its breath. Suddenly, Brambleclaw realised what he had just said. It had come from deep in his heart.
"Brambleclaw. You now know what you must do. Squirrelflight lied to you, but she still loves you, and you still love her. The kits are still a big part of your heart, even if they are not from you." Brambleclaw was silent, taking in the murderers words. "I made a mistake long ago, when Squirrelflight left me. I vowed to take revenge, even if it cost me everything. Now everyone knows that the kits aren't yours, after Hollyleaf told them. I have my revenge. But it really did cost me everything. I can never join StarClan; I will spend eternity in the dark forest." Brambleclaw was stunned. This cat was apologising to him. This murderer of a cat, of whom Brambleclaw was glad to be rid of, was sincerely sorry. Unfortunately, no amount of apologising could save him from eternal sadness. "But the thing that hurts most of all is not being able to see Squirrelflight, ever again." And with that, Ashfur vanished in a flash of gray light. Brambleclaw stood still, listening to the sounds of the night. He had a new found respect for Ashfur. Maybe if Squirrelflight and I had acted differently towards him, he would have been different. Maybe if we hadn't been so oblivious to his needs and feelings, he wouldn't have done the things he did. Brambleclaw slowly padded away, listening to his own heart thumping. His heart thumping with love for his children; his whole Clan. As he thought of his love of Squirrelflight, his pace quickened. He wanted to curl up to her body, have her sweet scent mixed with his own once again.