Just a quick note: this story will probably be only about twenty chapters, before I make another volume of these. This is just so that nobody has to read 50 chapters or anything.

I hungrily ripped up the flesh of a thin and small vole. Honestly, it was so limp and thin already that it was merciful to kill it. Just like everything in the bitterly cold forest right now. My fawn pelt was fluffed up against the freezing winds, barely sheltered beneath the bramble apprentice den. I passed the meager rest of the prey to my only denmate, a she-cat named Goldenpaw, who quickly ate it without a word. Our fur was pressed together, trying to stay warm in the bitter leafbare that ravaged the forest.

ShadowClan was doing terribly. There had been several outbreaks of greencough, and Snowtail had run out of herbs many times. Goldenpaw and I had to go out and look for the few remaining plants almost every day, along with our normal apprentice tasks. The wind and cold was terrible here, and everyone was always worried. Nobody seemed to joke around anymore, and even the kits seemed subdued.

I shivered as snow dripped through the den's roof, landing on my pelt. The unpleasant cold rippled through my nerves. Goldenpaw flinched as small, hard chunks of snow broke on her back. This happened almost every day, but it was still hard to resist the cold.

"Hey, Lightpaw? Do you think we'll even make it to being warriors?" Goldenpaw asked, only half joking, as she shook the snow off her white-striped fur. I was silent for a few seconds, before replying.

"I don't know."

I was woken by a fearful wail and cats stirring and murmuring in alarm. It was freezing and before dawn, but I still stood up, leaving Goldenpaw in her rock-like slumber.

I cautiously padded out of the den, but instead of another Clan attacking, or a badger, or a fox, I saw a silver she-cat with white paws yowling in the middle of the camp. My eyes widened in alarm. Mistfall? I was across the camp and at the queen's side as fast as lightning. "What happened? Are you hurt? The kits? Are they okay?" I asked quickly.

Mistfall's face crumpled pitifully as she yowled, "No, they're not okay! They're missing!" I was immediately confused by her reply. Her kits never were like the kind who would leave camp in the middle of a leafbare like this. They had no urgency to become apprentices.

But lately, things had changed. They'd changed for everyone. They had probably left to go hunting and prove themselves, and then...

I wasn't related to Snowkit, Silverkit, or Sorrelkit, but I still loved them like I was their sister. I'd played with them every day since they had opened their eyes and decided to go exploring the camp. Sometimes, it was almost like they were my kits too. My heart shuddered in fear and love for them, and at that moment, I knew exactly what I needed to do.

"Mistfall, I'll go look for them," I said, trying to look brave and hide my fear. I stood up straight and held my head high, trying to look important. The cats in the clearing, now including Goldenpaw, were all watching, some mewing in protest, some shocked. My mother, Fireclaw, was hysterically protesting. Goldenpaw stuttered, "But you can't go! It's freezing out there-"

But I was already out, slipping through the entrance into the tempest of ice and snow that awaited me.

Goldenpaw was right about one thing. It was freezing. The wind made it hard to keep my eyes open, and the snowflakes practically blinded me, but I persevered, trying to make it through the territory long enough to find the kits. Barely a thing scuffled through the dawn forest, as I trudged through the snow, my blue eyes standing out in the darkness.

The forest felt endless as I tried to look for any signs of a pelt, but the kits would probably blend in with their white and silver fur. I was starting to shiver profusely, but still, I continued on, with no regard to how cold I was getting, or how I was starting to slow.

I heard a distant echo of pawsteps, and I blindly stumbled towards the noise, wind biting into my fur. There was a familiar squeak of a tom-kit, but wavering with cold. "Look what you've gotten us into!" That was Snowkit for sure.

I reached my paws forward. It was becoming more and more difficult to walk, and even my long pelt no longer offered me protection. Then I saw three pairs of eyes, two green and one blue, the only colors in the blinding whites and grays darkened by the night. They looked at me with wide eyes as I took the three by the scruffs of their necks, unable to talk. "Lightpaw!" chorused Silverkit and Sorrelkit from beneath my head, but Snowkit just let out a huff.

It was a battle just to stay standing, my breathing slow and shallow. It felt like my blood was turning to ice. I heard one of the kits say, "Lightpaw, are you okay?" But it seemed so distant. I was losing the feeling in my legs, and the cold was starting to recede from my body. Maybe this meant I was almost there...

After what felt like ages, I stumbled into the camp, holding Mistfall's kits. Everything started blurring together, but I knew I heard murmurs of concern, cheers from my Clanmates, Goldenpaw asking me if I was okay. The medicine cat was leaning over me, a voice that sounded like my mother was wailing. My eyelids were heavy, and I was no longer cold.

The last thing I heard was Fallenstar whispering, "We name you Lightfire, for your unrelenting courage and the true warmth in your heart. May you rest with StarClan."