For the second time in a half-moon Dawnheart found himself outside his territory and on his way towards the place he was born. This time, though, he wasn't alone.

Kibby and Frayclaw flanked him. Oliver and Talonscore had taken the lead and Fitzy brought up the rear. Dawnheart was surrounded by friends, family, and clanmates this time. What could be better? His whiskers twitched as Frayclaw and Kibby's argument started up again and he remembered why he was between them in the first place.

"I'm just saying, you can't say you don't like it if you've never tried it." Kibby insisted.

"I don't have to eat kittypet food to know I won't like it." Frayclaw said with a flick of his tail.

"You don't even know what it tastes like!" Kibby protested. Again.

"I know what your breath smells like." Frayclaw muttered.

Kibby made a tight noise of indignation.

"Enough." Dawnheart said before the fluffy she-cat could properly respond. "Every cat has different tastes."

Frayclaw rolled his eyes. "My taste is real food."

Kibby stuck out her tongue at the warrior from around Dawnheart's shoulder.

"Food?" Dawnheart turned to face his denmate. "Remember when you got a belly ache from eating too many juniper berries?"

Frayclaw's eyes got wide. "Those are food." He protested.

"Those are medicine." Dawnheart said with good humor. He flicked his tail across Frayclaw's flank.

Frayclaw's ears flattened in embarrassment and he said no more.

The group slowed to a stop as they left the trees and neared the Thunderpath. Dawnheart could smell the acrid scent on the chill night breeze. He suppressed a shudder as he remembered what it felt like to tear across the black expanse on terror-hastened paws.

"We can make it from here." Oliver said as he looked around at the tall grass.

Dawnheart's lightened mood fell slightly. "Are you sure?"

Fitzy padded past the group and poked his head through the dry brown vegetation. "I can see the road." He said with a flick of his crooked tail.

"The road always leads home." Oliver heaved a bittersweet sigh. He turned to the others. His yellow eyes glowing with warmth. "This is where we say goodbye."

Kibby pressed herself to Dawnheart's flank. Her large eyes were downcast and her short tail drooped. For once she seemed lost for words.

Dawnheart rested his chin atop her head. "It's not goodbye forever." He reassured her.

She pushed her head into his chest fur and mumbled something that sounded like an affirmation. Dawnheart felt a rush of affection for the she-cat.

"Don't forget to tell Jasmine what happened." Dawnheart said as he gently extricated himself from Kibby's embrace. She nodded and sniffed loudly.

"Thank you again. My kits will grow up knowing your names." Talonscore was saying to the other house cats. The scarred warrior dipped his head in a low bow to the two toms. Fitzy looked distinctly uncomfortable.

"Anytime." Fitzy said without making eye contact.

Oliver touched his nose to Talonscore's ear. "They'll be the best in the clan."

Dawnheart stepped forward and touched his nose to each tom's ear in turn. "Goodbye. Thank you for everything."

Fitzy just sniffed. He gave a final nod and then slipped through the withered grass and out of sight.

"He's not good at goodbyes." Oliver said, watching him go.

Dawnheart shrugged.

Oliver looked at Dawnheart with a sideways glance. The older cat shuffled his paws and his tail swished once. "Tell Plumleaf thank you for me, will you? I didn't get the chance before she left."

"I told you to do it yourself!" Kibby said with a huff.

Oliver shot her a look from narrowed eyes. "I didn't want to bother her."

Dawnheart couldn't help but purr. "I'll let her know." He promised.

Relaxing slightly, Oliver dipped his head to Talonscore and Frayclaw once more. The warriors returned the gesture. Oliver turned to Kibby and nodded to her.

"It's time to go." He said.

Kibby's tail fell to the frozen ground. She looked at Dawnheart with shining eyes. He felt a pang of sympathy for her as he realized that she had had to say goodbye to their littermates before. She hadn't seen them since.

Dawnheart touched his nose to hers. "I promise we will see each other again."

Kibby blinked softly and purred. "We'd better." Her voice was tight.

"Run along, now." Dawnheart said, straightening up and nodding towards the Thunderpath. "That twoleg boy you told me all about will be wondering where you got to."

Kibby's eyes widened as if she just remembered something. She stood a little taller and nodded firmly. The she-cat turned to Oliver and waved her tail. "What are we waiting for? Let's go!"

The kittypets waved their tails in farewell one last time before disappearing into the long grass. Dawnheart watched his sister go, a feeling of melancholy filling his belly.

Wordlessly the Cedarclan warriors turned and began the journey back to their own territory. They walked in silence until they were back under tree cover.

Talonscore was the first to speak. "I owe Quailstep a squirrel."

Dawnheart flattened one ear. "Why's that?"

"I bet her that Fitzy would ask to stay." The ginger warrior said. "That one fit right in."

Dawnheart considered Talonscore's words briefly. "True," he relented, "but his loyalties lie elsewhere."

Talonscore sniffed. "I can't fathom how they live with Twolegs." He gave himself a shake. "Getting near the Thunderpath was close enough for me."

"Twolegs aren't so bad." Dawnheart said without thinking.

Talonscore shot him a strange look.

"Their nests are awful though." Dawnheart added quickly. "I'd rather lose my tail than set paw in one ever again."

Seeming satisfied, Talonscore took the lead and headed through the nighttime forest. The patrol walked in silence until they reached the Cedarclan border. Talonscore left them a few tree-lengths into the territory.

"I'll test my luck on that squirrel." He had said before heading down slope towards the lake.

Frayclaw and Dawnheart were alone now. They walked in silence for a bit. Dawnheart couldn't help but feel a little awkward. They hadn't had time to themselves since he had come back from Twolegplace.

Dawnheart tried to lighten the mood. "I'm surprised Oliver didn't ask to stay, what with how he talked about Plumleaf." He nudged Frayclaw. Frayclaw shrugged.

There was another long silence as the warriors climbed over a fallen tree trunk. On the other side Frayclaw stopped entirely. Dawnheart slowed to a halt and turned to face him.

"What's-"

"I was afraid you were going to go with them." Frayclaw interrupted.

Dawnheart's belly lurched. His thoughts flew to that day under the hawthorn bush in a gentle snowfall where he had considered never going home. He shoved the thoughts away. He had made his choice then.

Before Dawnheart could voice his surety Frayclaw continued. His gray eyes fixed Dawnheart with an intense stare.

"Did you want to?"

Dawnheart shook his head. "No. My home is with Cedarclan." He brushed his cheek along Frayclaw's jawline. "My home is with you."

Frayclaw stiffened at Dawnheart's touch. Dawnheart drew back, concerned he had done something wrong. Frayclaw avoided eye contact. Dawnheart tried to lighten the mood again.

"I could never leave. Who will be your deputy when you become leader?"

Frayclaw snorted. There was a hint of humor in the sound. "Leader?"

"Of course." Dawnheart said, relieved. He started walking again. Frayclaw followed.

"You're stoic, intimidating, strong…you're perfect for the job." Dawnheart added.

Frayclaw shook his head. "I don't want to be leader."

Dawnheart cocked his head. "Then what are you going to do with all that?" he gestured at Frayclaw with his tail.

Frayclaw stopped again and looked into Dawnheart's eyes. Dawnheart paused. He was frozen by the intensity there.

"I want to serve my clan by your side." Frayclaw took a step closer so their muzzles were a mouse length apart. "That's all I've ever wanted."

Dawnheart's mind had slowed. He was confused. "Why me?"

Frayclaw's eyes searched Dawnheart's face. "Isn't it obvious?" His voice was low.

A shiver went down Dawnheart's spine. Why was Frayclaw saying these things? And what was this that Dawnheart was feeling? Disbelief? Confusion?

Happiness?

He didn't get the chance to figure that out. A loud rustling in the dead undergrowth close by made both toms jump and whirl around.

Talonscore burst from the darkness. His bushed out tail and unsheathed claws rang of alarm.

"What's wrong?" Frayclaw demanded.

Talonscore glanced over his shoulder with wild eyes. "Rouges."

Dawnheart gripped the frozen ground with his claws. "Where?"

"By the Pineclan border." Talonscore said. "They're heading to camp." Without another word the ginger warrior whipped around and took off through the night.

Dawnheart and Frayclaw exchanged glanced before pelting after him.

Blood roared in Dawnheart's ears as they ran. The rogues were back, and on the night of the full moon no less. There was no telling how much damage a pack of angry rouges could do to an under-defended clan.

A thought occurred to Dawnheart. He put on a burst of speed and caught up to Talonscore. He ran at the warrior's side and called to him.

"How do you know they're heading to camp?"

"They were being led." Talonscore said in a raised voice.

Dawnheart nodded and pulled back. He fell in beside Frayclaw again.

"One of us should run to the lake." Dawnheart said between breaths.

Frayclaw nodded. "You're faster."

"Right." Dawnheart nodded back.

Frayclaw drew close enough that Dawnheart could feel the gray warrior's shoulder brush against his. Frayclaw glanced at Dawnheart and gave him a look that the cream-colored warrior couldn't quite place. The moment lasted less than half a heartbeat. Then Frayclaw's eyes were fixed on the forest ahead and Dawnheart was left feeling breathless.

"Go." Frayclaw said.

Dawnheart pulled away and headed off towards a break in the trees to his right. He stretched his paws out as far as they could go and really began to run. His strides carried him so fast that the scenery around him blurred into a moonlit splash of vague shapes and shadows.

He let himself fly through the trees at blinding speed. The night air bit at his nose and ear-tips. He barely felt each footfall as his paws skimmed the frozen ground. Despite the urgency that carried him he couldn't help but feel a joyous freedom as he ran.

It wasn't long before he could see the shimmer of the lake through the trees. He slowed only to make sure he didn't lose his footing on the more uneven ground. He had only just reached the tree-line drop-off when he heard something nearby.

Dawnheart slowed and dropped into a crouch. Something was near, just beyond his vision in the undergrowth. His mind screamed at him to ignore it and run to Blizzardstar but his instincts kept him low to the ground.

Whatever was there did not want to be seen.

Dawnheart came to a stop behind a rock. His heart pounded in his ears. He looked ahead and saw the gathering taking place. It was too far away for Dawnheart to make out any details, but it looked as though a fifth cat had joined the leaders on the Greatrocks.

Confused, Dawnheart lifted his head just slightly. He had never heard of or seen such a thing. What was-

His thoughts were interrupted as a huge force slammed into his side. His head connected with the rock beside him.

With a crack and a flash of white light, Dawnheart's senses were deadened to the world.