Good evening, thanks for coming to read ch. 2! Made my first self-made deadline *whew*

Thanks for the reviews! I really liked seeing some old and new names! I appreciate all your support, but to avoid spoiling, I'm just going to give you the chapter!

Chapter 2

"My name is Flint."

Fallstripe, with her tail against a wall of rock, stared at the rogue tom before her. His sooty gray fur was sliced by silver stripes, identical to her father's. But he had unusually large ears that were familiar but not from her father, and deep, dark blue eyes that stared into hers without blinking. Scars, barely visible, but clearly there nonetheless, marked his smooth coat and his muscles were as lean as any Clan-cat.

"What's your name?" the tom continued, tilting his head and there wasn't a note of hostility in his tone now.

Fallstripe lashed out with her claws, grazing the tom's nose and as he took a quick step back in surprise, she bolted past him, flying down the hill as swiftly as a swooping hawk. She would return to camp and alert them to a rogue, she would then lead a patrol back here to either capture or drive off this rogue.

Her breath came in short pants as her legs struggled to keep up with her speed as she ran down the hill. She swiveled her ears behind her and she felt a flash of fear as she heard another steady thrum of paw-steps.

He's chasing me? Why would a rogue chase me? She pushed herself faster, belly brushing the ground as her thin, dark legs swept like a shadow over the grass. She flew over the border and she slowed, listening to see if the tom would follow her into ThunderClan territory.

A spike of shock almost made her stumble as she heard his paw-steps not even falter in their chase but seemed to be gaining speed now that they were on more level ground. What do I do? I can't lead him to camp, and I'm running out of breath.

Her eyes took in her surroundings, the passing green, brown, and orange undergrowth could provide her with cover, but she still couldn't fight him alone. But I could slip away to camp and get help…

Before she could put her plan in action the paw-steps behind her disappeared, and before she could turn her head to look behind her, a heavy weight crashed into her, so that she hit the ground and skidded on her side over the leaf-strewn floor, the weight that had hit her slipped off in the tumble, but before she could open her eyes she was pinned with her back to the ground by the tom who held her by her shoulders.

She glared up at him, letting out a ferocious snarl as best she could between pants. The tom looked confused as she growled and flicked his ears, big eyes frowning in puzzlement. "What's your name?

Fallstripe was dumbfounded as he repeated the question he had asked at the top of the Moonpool trail. She recovered herself and glared at him, "I don't have to answer a rogue, you're trespassing on ThunderClan territory!"

The cat blinked again, "This is ThunderClan territory?" he asked, stepping back and letting her get up. But she noticed he kept her carefully trapped against bramble bushes. She'd either have to run right past him or else risk getting cut up by thorns to escape.

"Didn't you smell the border?" Fallstripe looked at him contemptuously, he may be strong, but he was no warrior. "You were looking for the Clans, but you can't even recognize ThunderClan markings?" she scoffed, lowering her head and eyeing him. Who was this cat? Why was he here? Where did he come from? Why did he look like her father? But those dark, dark blue eyes… she knew those eyes, but from where? This was making her uneasy, as if she were going to learn something she wished she hadn't.

He was watching her closely. "I noticed the cat scent, I just didn't realize it was ThunderClan."

"Well I'm ThunderClan, didn't it smell like me? And besides, why are you looking for the Clans if you know nothing about them?" Fallstripe shot back. She had to keep him talking, until help arrived. As embarrassing as it was to be rescued from a rogue, she and every other cat knew fighting wasn't her specialty. She'd only ever participated in a few border scuffles, and she almost always ended up getting driven away by the enemy or else sent back to camp for reinforcements.

The cat looked at her without answering and she felt frustration and desperation growing in her, maybe I can slip away through those brambles, or else make a break for it if I can catch him off his guard.

She and the tom engaged in a silent stare down for a few moments until the tom flicked an ear away, nose to the air as if he detected something. Fallstripe seized her chance, exploding from a standstill to a sprint, sweeping past the tom, so closely that their fur brushed.

"Hey, wait!" the tom called as she disappeared into the undergrowth. She could hear him clumsily pushing his way behind her, but luckily it seemed he wasn't used to thick forests and before long she'd left him behind in the silence of the forest.

Fallstripe immediately knew she had to return to camp and alert them to an intruder, then they could come back and drive him off. She was almost completely certain he wasn't behind the murders, he was too ignorant, and stupid.

The dark she-cat stopped and sat straight up as she caught a new whiff of scent. Father! Her tail shot up at her good luck and nearly got stuck in an overhanging holly bush as she hurriedly went to meet her father, from the scent he was with two others—probably going to investigate the intruder's scent formerly.

Climbing over a stump of an old tree, she leaped down and skidded on the slick grass before forcing her way between two wilting fern bushes and reaching the main path. She had to go only a few steps before her father's tall figure became visible against the green and brown background.

"Father!" she called, hurrying to meet the patrol while trying to calm her pants and look calm.

"Fallstripe," Coalspark greeted her coolly, eyes sweeping over her disheveled pelt that had bits of grass, dirt, twigs, and leaves crushed into it.

Fallstripe looked at the other two cats on the patrol, as she had guessed from the scents, it was the queen Sagelight and the warrior Mallowpelt who was looking at her with nervous curiosity.

"Are you alright?" Sagelight mewed, stepping past Coalspark. She had been a queen when Fallstripe was a kit and had often protected her from the other kits when the games got too rough since she'd been the smallest and weakest. Although now it embarrassed Fallstripe to see such motherly softness from a cat notorious for her sharp skill and tongue.

"Er, yes, I'm alright. But I encountered a rogue on our territory and—"

"And you were unable to drive it off yourself?" Coalspark concluded, looking down at her with unreadable, narrowed eyes.

Fallstripe felt herself shrink in front of his gaze, "He's a strong opponent…" she trailed off as Coalspark's tail gave a single lash.

"I don't want excuses, just lead us to where he was," the deputy snapped and Sagelight gave him a glare while Mallowpelt took a step back from the group, to avoid getting involved.

Fallstripe dipped her head, ears tingling with embarrassment as she kept her gaze fixed stubbornly ahead while leading the group back to where she had left the tom. "You shouldn't be so hard on her! She's not that kind of warrior!" she could hear Sagelight hissing at Coalspark.

"Every warrior should be able to protect their Clan, regardless of their talents," was the deputy's grumbled response.

Fallstripe swiveled her ears forward, trying to ignore their back and forth conversation. She didn't want to be defended, she knew she wasn't the strongest warrior and she was okay with that, if she could serve her Clan as a spy, that would be enough for her. She just wished her father could see it was enough, after all, he was the one who first recommended her for these jobs and assigned her these missions.

"We're getting close," she whispered, starting to slink silently in the shadows as they got closer to where the tom was. But Coalspark marched past her boldly, not bothering to hide his presence as he pushed his way through the undergrowth with Mallowpelt and Sagelght following. Fallstripe fell to the rear, faltering behind the three powerful warriors ahead of her. Even Mallowpelt, who showed cowardly tendencies from time to time, had his gray fur fluffed up and claws unsheathed—ready for a fight.

The rogue was exactly where Fallstripe had left him. He was sitting with his tail curled over his paws with his head bowed into his chest and eyes closed, his back to the thorn barrier that he had trapped Fallstripe against, which now effectively trapped him. He didn't seem like he was planning on fighting or leaving.

Coalspark and the patrol approached him, and she could see Sagelight and Mallowpelt exchange a look of surprise, they clearly had seen the similarity between the rogue and their deputy. Especially face to face, only tiny differences could be seen, it was like looking at a reflection in water that was slightly distorted.

Only Coalspark himself didn't hesitate as he had the patrol fan out, surrounding the rogue. "You're on ThunderClan territory, rogue."

"That's exactly where I want to be," the rogue responded simply, eyes still closed but now he lifted his head, drinking in their scents. "So, you went to get your friends? You could have told me," the rogue mewed, opening his dark eyes and looking straight at Fallstripe.

She glanced sideways and saw Coalspark flinch, his green eyes wide and blank. "Where did you come from?" Coalspark demanded.

"Far away from here, probably further then you can imagine," the rogue mewed, getting to his paws and looking them all squarely. "My name is Flint, and I want to join your Clan." His announcement was met with stunned silence.

"Don't be so impudent, only Clan cats are members of the Clan. Outsiders aren't welcome," Sagelight hissed, seeming to have recovered from her surprise at his appearance.

Flint looked at the queen steadily, "I won't leave until I become a member of the Clan."

"Let's drive him off," Mallowpelt growled, looking to Coalspark for the signal.

Fallstripe looked to her father as well, confusion crashing upon her as she saw a whirl of emotions flickering in his usually cold and cool eyes. "Coalspark," Sagelight mewed, her tone warning, "This is nothing more than a rogue, you know what has to be done to protect the Clan."

"I don't want to hurt the Clan, I want to help it and join in," Flint mewed, taking a step toward Coalspark.

"And why is that?" the deputy asked, slightly recovering himself and refocusing his eyes on the rogue.

Flint didn't answer, but he took a step closer, looking imploringly at the deputy "I never imagined it would be so difficult to convince you, especially. But I am the son of two warriors, and my dream was to return to the Clans, and I will not give up on it."

At this silence fell over the four cats and Fallstripe looked at the rogue in confusion and despair. She felt like this cat was opening a forbidden topic and that nothing good would come from this. "Let's just drive him off," she whispered urgently to her father who had a fixed gaze on the rogue, a myriad of emotions still flashing in his green eyes.

"Who are your parents? If you claim to be the son of warriors, then you must tell us their names," Sagelight demanded, her eyes narrowed suspiciously, but she didn't look unconvinced that this rogue, Flint, had warrior parents. After all, his similarity to Coalspark was nearly proof enough to he shared blood within the Clan.

Fallstripe felt her spirit fall even further, if he's related to my father somehow, then he must be related to me as well… "I cannot tell you their names, because I don't know their warrior names," Flint admitted, dipping his head in apology. "But please, allow me to join your Clan, or at least, stay with you all for a time."

Mallowpelt was shifting from paw to paw, glancing between Coalspark and Sagelight. Sagelight stood still, her eyes set hard on Coalspark, clearly waiting for him to make the final decision. Coalspark remained motionless, his lips curled back slightly as if he had a bitter taste in his mouth, and ears tilted forward, as if he were thinking terribly hard about this. Fallstripe's tail lashed from side to side and she dug her claws into the soft dirt beneath her paws, desperately anxious to hear what would happen.

Oh StarClan, please, let's just drive him off and forget about him. We're in the middle of an investigation! We can't be taking in outsiders, even if they claim to be kin of ours. Besides, if he's related to the Clan but was born a rogue, what does that say about his parents? That they either abandoned the Clan or were driven off… And what will the other Clans think?

The thought crossed her mind, but she wasn't terribly worried about other Clans. Their precarious peace would certainly be more unstable if it came out that they had taken in a rogue recently, but if this cat wasn't the murderer—and Fallstripe highly doubted he was—then any justification on the other Clan's part for inciting a fight over this would simply be an excuse for war.

Coalspark took a deep breath and every cat stared at him, waiting for his resolution. Fallstripe could feel her heart pounding uncomfortably in her chest and her ears twitched as she kneaded the ground in anticipation. "I cannot make the decision to allow you to join the Clan. However, I will allow you to meet with our leader and discuss it with him."

Flint's dark eyes lit up and his tail shot straight in the air, "Thank you, may I meet with him today?"

"No," Coalspark's cold answer came without hesitation and explanation. Probably because of Leopardspot's vigil… "Tomorrow you will meet with Fallstripe—" he gestured with his tail toward her "—where you first met her today, and she will escort you to our leader and he will decide whether to allow you to join the Clan or not. That is all I can offer you."

Flint's eyes narrowed, and his tail twitched but he dipped his head in acceptance, "I will wait then," he mewed and then looked at Fallstripe, "I'll be there at sun-high, make sure you are too." Flint turned and started retracing his steps back toward the border. Fallstripe's fur rose along her spine, how dare he give her orders! The nerve! She didn't know what to think about all this, but she was sure she didn't like it one bit.

"Sagelight, Mallowpelt, follow him and make sure he leaves our territory," Coalspark barked the order and the two cats hurried the follow the rogue, leaving the father and daughter alone.

Fallstripe stared at the back of Coalsparl's head, she was sure her hazel eyes were fuming as her tail lashed behind her, stirring the leaves on the ground. "Let's return to camp and report to Boulderstar," Coalspark growled, facing her and looking down at her with his green eyes.

Fallstripe continued to face him mutinously for a moment before giving in and breaking eye contact. "Fine," she muttered, falling in behind him as he led her back towards camp.

"I expect you to continue honing your warriors' skills even as a warrior. Compared to your littermates your fighting leaves much to be desired," her father lectured.

Fallstripe stifled the growl in her throat, she had heard this a thousand times before. "But my tracking skills are better than theirs, and my hunting is some of the best in ThunderClan."

"Those skills won't save your life or the lives of your Clan-mates in a fight. This is a dangerous time, with rogues on the border and a murderer hiding somewhere. I want you to be prepared should you ever have to defend yourself or some cat else with your life," Coalspark answered back harshly and Fallstripe widened the distance between them, feeling her rebellious emotions waning into prickling guilt.

"Alright," she mewed, glancing sideways off the trail at the undergrowth that was dying back with the start of leaf-fall. "But after I catch this murderer, I only have one moon to do it."

...

This chapter was way shorter than the first! (like by half) but I don't think that trend will continue. Anyways, in this chapter we formally re-meet Flint! And since it may have been awhile since you read the trilogy, just to remind you, Flint is Jay's son! (And Jay is Scorch's daughter, who is Rainstone's daughter... so the legacy continues!) I think I hinted in the epilogue of Jay's story that he was leaving the mountains. I always planned that he would be the one to go back to the Clans, and here he is! (they grow up so fast)

Anyways, I hope you'll continue to read this story to the end! And I'll continue to try to make weekly updates!