Filler chapter, but some good info and a fun moment in it.

Chapter Twelve, Deadeye's pov

I wake up to cats sounding very happy and yawn, lifting my head and shaking it to get rid of the last of the drowsiness. There weren't many cats left in the den, most already out on patrols or in the main area of the barn.

There's more sounds from outside the den, making me get up and stretch out. The only other ones in the den were Roselight, Petalspots, and Snakepelt, all still fast asleep. To not wake them, I quietly pad to the entrance of the den before going outside.

"You're doing great," I hear, and turn to see that Moongaze and Birdwhisper were watching Fluffheart as he slowly walks around the clearing, leaning on Russetspots' shoulder.

"It looks like he's way better," I say to Moongaze as I pad over, and he nods.

"The infection is gone and there was no swelling this morning. I'd say we can leave in another few sunrises," he tells me.

I take a deep breath. "Right. We have to leave."

"I know you're not looking forward to having to leave the clan again," he then tells me. "You've been pretty silent about the entire situation since we had the clan meeting about it."

"Well, I'm not exactly excited for it," I admit, sitting. "I don't like that our clan is being put in danger again."

"You don't have to be," he says, then looks back to where Russetspots and Fluffheart were. "Okay. That's enough for now. We can do this again this dusk."

"Thank you," Fluffheart says, panting slightly. He looked like he was in a bit of pain every time he moves his injured shoulder, and I get up to pad at the opposite side of him than Russetspots just in case.

I see his wound before they help him lay in the medicine clearing. It was mostly healed, but occasionally there would be a part that hadn't sealed yet. Luckily, it didn't seem severe, and the entire wound looked far better than when they had returned to camp the day he got it.

"It definitely looks better," I say.

"And it feels better," he says.

"Which is a great sign," Moongaze says as Birdwhisper pads off to check on Flowerheart and her two kits, Alderkit and Gingerkit.

"Warriors coming through!," we hear, and suddenly the two older kits, Smokekit and Lilykit, jump out from the nursery.

"Sorry Birdwhisper," Smokekit says when they almost run into her. She just flicks her ear and enters the nursery, and the two kits look around the clearing.

"Lilykit has Pufftail's eyes," Firetail says from not far off.

"Sure does," I say, seeing the kit's bright blue eyes.

Smokekit and Lilykit start chasing each other around the clearing, darting around the few warriors hanging around. They eventually run over to Nightflame and run in circles around her, making her stop cleaning her fur to watch them as her whiskers twitch in amusement.

"Lilykit! Where'd you go?!," Willowspot calls, exiting the nursery.

The kit squeals, running away from Nightflame in my direction and hiding behind me. "Don't tell her I'm here."

Moongaze, Russetspots, and Fluffheart laugh as I do, and I curl my tail around Lilykit. "Bad mistake. You're mine now."

"No!," she laughs, and squirms in the light grip of my tail. She manages to escape and darts around me, but I paw her closer, holding her on her back with my paw on her belly and lightly shaking her back and forth.

Lilykit's squeals of delight carries all the way to Willowspot, who turns in my direction, sees me playing with Lilykit, and calms.

"I've got ya," I growl playfully as she starts batting at my paw.

"Not if I have anything to do about it," Willowspot says, padding up.

"Willowspot! Help!," Lilykit yells.

Willowspot flashes a paw out, scooping Lilykit out from underneath my paw, and pulls her closer. "What are you doing outside the den? Especially without permission or supervision."

"I was with Smokekit!," she defends, and I purr in amusement.

"I told you not to worry," Moongaze says to Willowspot. "She just took her time to open her eyes. She's getting into just as much trouble as her denmate."

"Who are you?," Lilykit asks Moongaze.

"That's Moongaze," Willowspot says. "He's one of the medicine cats, the ones who keep the clan healthy and translate the messages from Starclan."

"Are you a medicine cat too?," she then asks me.

"No," I say. "I'm Deadeye, the clan deputy. I organize the patrols and help Skystar with important decisions about the clan."

"Like what?"

"Like what to do with rascals like you when they get themselves in trouble," I say.

"Deadeye is actually my father," Willowspot tells Lilykit. "My littermates and mother are probably out on patrol, though." She looks up at me. "Are they?"

"Larkstrike and Finchheart are on border patrols right now, and Pufftail is leading a hunting patrol, but Roselight is here," I tell her. "She's still sleeping."

"Good," I hear Moongaze mumble, and turn to him.

"What? Why?," I ask him.

"Uh..." He stutters for a response before sighing and standing. "Come with me."

I follow him into the medicine cat's den, and we sit once we're inside. "So?"

"There's something that a few of us haven't told you, and it has to do with Roselight," Moongaze says.

"Does it have anything to do with something Willowspot has just gone through?" He shakes his head. "Is she sick?"

"Well, not necessarily," he tells me. "When she slept in here that one night, she woke up from a nightmare. I gave her some thyme to calm her down, but before she actually took it she told me that she'd been having nightmares a lot."

I sigh, hanging my head. "Out of all the things to get from me..."

"She didn't necessarily get it from you," he reminds me. "You've only been having them since Pufftail nearly died and Finchheart almost wasn't kitted. Her's has been happening since..."

"She was a kit," I finish for him, and he nods. I remember how, in the six moons before she and the other three were apprenticed, I would occasionally sleep in the nursery with Pufftail and the four of them so that I could calm Roselight down and Pufftail could sleep through the night. My nightmares are from something that happened, while her's are natural. "I didn't know it was that bad..."

"Russetspots and Birdwhisper are the only other ones that know, and I think I'm going to tell Volestorm to watch out during the night in case she ends up having one," he tells me. "Birdwhisper has been giving her thyme if I'm not able to when she needs it to sleep, and Russetspots came up to me last sunrise and asked me if I had been giving Roselight anything so she could sleep. He's known since the first moon she was apprenticed, since she would be more tired in the mornings than the other apprentices, and noticed she had been a bit more..." He pauses. "... Lively lately."

"Her nightmares couldn't mean anything, could it?," I ask him. "Maybe it was an early sign that this would happen, and we just hadn't figured it out?"

"If it was an early sign, then Starclan must be able to travel in time. They would never have known back then," he says. "It's just her."

"Do you know what she has nightmares about?," I ask him. "Did she tell you?"

He shakes his head. "Nope. Just that she has them. If I know anything though, the ones lately probably have to do with the journey that were all about to go on."

"But she isn't even going."

"But you and Pufftail are," he tells me. "She's always been more reliant on you two. The danger in the journey that we'll be going on probably isn't helping her nightmares at all."

He stands, padding over to the herb storage while I sigh. "I wish there was something I could do to help her."

"Right now, there isn't," he tells me. "Just make sure that she knows you will all be as safe as possible, and that should hopefully help her nightmares a lot."

"I hope it will," I say, standing. "I'd better make sure that Foxblaze knows what to say for Alderkit and Gingerkit's welcoming."

"Okay," he says. "Could you send Birdwhisper over here too? We need to talk about Fluffheart's treatment now that he's able to walk for a bit."

"Got it."

Tada chapter 12

I didn't realize it had been a couple weeks since I updated. Huge apologies.

But yeah! The chapter where they leave is coming up quickly, considering Fluffheart is getting so much better. I'm not gonna say when exactly it is gonna be, but let's just say that if my memory is right it will be up within the next month (as long as I remember to update more often).

Also, how did you guys like the moment where Deadeye played with Likykit? Little behind the scenes sort of thing for you guys, but originally this story was not supposed to be the sequel to Different. Originally, the sequel was supposed to be right after Different of them settling in as a new clan, aka Pufftail hadn't had Roselight, Larkstrike, Willowspot, and Finchheart yet. You guys never got to witness Deadeye as a father, and I actually didn't either considering I didn't get that far before deciding to make this one.

But fear not! There will be more kits (not necessarily from Deadeye and Pufftail) in the future!

Also, one last question for anyone reading this. I can't change the length of the chapters in this story considering it is structured, but how would you guys like it if the chapters were posted twice a week rather than once? Even with updating this every weekend, it's not gonna be completed for you guys for another year. I wanna get it out to you guys as soon as possible.

Anyways, thank you all for reading! Please let me know what you think of anything! Bye!

Ttyl

-TheRealDigiGal