Mothfall wove around Ferntooth, her kits, and Shortleg, too excited to sit still. Almost a half-moon had passed since she was made deputy, and though her wounds had healed, her paws still tingled every time she remembered: Ratpelt is gone. And I'm Deputy!

She glanced at Ambereye, who held his head close to Grasseyes, mewing in a low tone. "You'll be able to find the Moonpool safely without me?"

"Yes, Ambereye."

"If you get lost, go find ThunderClan camp, and they'll be able to point you in the right direction. Don't try and play hero and wander around on your own, okay? I can't lose my apprentice before he's even been introduced to StarClan."

Grasseyes rolled his eyes. "Stars, Ambereye, you'd think I've never left camp before! We won't even be gone for half the night." He pushed the golden-brown tom forward. "I'll be fine. I'll meet you at the moonpool."

"You're my apprentice. It's my job to worry about you."

"I'm also older than you. I'll be fine. Relax and have fun."

"Okay," Ambereye relented. "I'll meet you there. Don't let them start without me."

"Go," Grasseyes mewed.

Shortleg held out their paw, halting Mothfall in her tracks. She hopped over their stubby paw and kept moving. "You're making me dizzy," Shortleg purred. "Slow down."

"I can't help it," Mothfall responded.

Ferntooth purred as she slid down onto her belly, allowed Blazekit and Runningkit to climb on top of her back, arguing about who was stronger. Runningkit pushed Blazekit, and Blazekit tackled Runningkit onto the groud, growling playfully. Ferntooth didn't bat an eye as her kits tumbled about her. "You're so wound up. Are you sure you're my sister? Maybe you're Ambereye's kin."

"Very funny." Mothfall. "Are Troutpth and Beelight okay that we're taking the kits out of camp?"

"Okay? They're thrilled to have some personal time to themselves," Ferntooth purred.

Mothfall turned to face Ambereye as he approached the group. "Are we ready?"

"As I'll ever be," Ambereye confirmed, glancing back at Grasseyes.

Shortleg nudged Ambereye towards the front entrance. "He got jittery when he first apprenticed Frogjump, too," they told Mothfall. "Don't mind him."

Mothfall herded the others forward. The setting sun teased her; the half-moon would be rising soon, and she didn't want to be late. She gave the camp one last look before she left, but stopped in her tracks when she saw Berrystar limping towards her from the leader's den.

The leader grunted as she halted a few tail-lengths away from Mothfall. Was that amusement in the depths of her deadpan gaze? "You'll be back in time to assign morning patrols, I assume?"

Mothfall straightened. "You're not going to stop me?"

Berrystar flicked her tail in Ambereye's direction. "I know better than to stand in the way of both my medicine cat and my deputy. Clearly, I'm outnumbered."

Mothfall dipped her head. "We'll be back before dawn. Bravefeather's leading a night patrol; he should be heading out soon."

"Good." Berrystar jerked her head in a stiff nod. "I'm glad to hear that you're taking your job as deputy seriously."

"Why wouldn't I?" Mothfall tilted her head.

Berrystar flicked her ear. "This may come as a surprise to you, but you're very different from my last deputy."

Mothfall's tail flicked, uncertain if the black-and-white molly was joking. "I see."

"Briarstreak has been my best friend since we were apprentices. She believed in my vision. You don't. You challenge everything I've ever done."

Mothfall hesitated, before eking out, "You're welcome?"

Berrystar's whiskers twitched. "Yes, maybe that's the correct response. Maybe it's good to have a deputy that isn't afraid to push her leader to be the best she can be."

"I think that's exactly what a deputy is supposed to do." Mothfall lifted her chin.

"It'll make you a good leader, that's for sure." Berrystar looked away, and for the first time ever, Mothfall swore the leader looked concerned. No, not concerned. Ashamed. "I haven't said I'm sorry since before I became a leader, and I don't intend to change that now."

"That's fine. I don't intend to change, either. It'll keep you humble."

A deep rumble rose out of Berrystar's throat as she laughed. "If you think I know anything about staying humble, than you don't know me as well as I thought." But her eyes twinkled with amusement, and she clearly wasn't offended. "I look forward to working with you. Go, enjoy your time with your family."

Mothfall nodded and turned around, ready to head out.

"Mothfall," Berrystar called after her. "Keep them safe."

Mothfall gathered she meant more than just for tonight. "I will."

She padded to Shortleg, Ferntooth, and Amebereye. "Ready?" Pushing ahead, she lead them towards the lake. Shortleg limped close behind, and she slowed down so they wouldn't have to rush. After hearing Shortleg stumble, she rested her tail over their shoulder. "Follow in my pawsteps."

"Thanks," Shortleg puffed. "It's so hard to see. Night blindness and all."

The kits scampered around her paws, and she laughed as Blazekit tried to duck underneath her and caused her to stumble. "You're larger than you think. Maybe we should skip apprenticeship and make you warriors straight away."

"Can you really do that?" Blazekit asked, eyes wide.

Mothfall purred and pressed onward.

As they proceeded, she noticed Adderkit perking up and taking more interest in their surroundings the farther they got from camp. He chased after his littermates, and nosed around in the pine needles. At one point, he made a loud chirping noise and his littermates rushed over to see what he'd found. Heartbeats later, Runningkit squealed and backpeddled. "It's a worm!" she cried out. "Gross!"

"Worms are good for the earth," Ambereye mewed mildly. "So best to leave it be."

Adderkit chirped. He set the worm back down and ran after his littermates.

Mothfall glanced at Ferntooth. "Has he ever acted this alert before?"

Ferntooth watched him go, eyes shining. "Sometimes, if he wakes up in the early mornings, before anycat else."

Mothfall nodded. "I wonder if the loud noises around camp upset him. I'll take him out of camp by himself tomorrow, if that's okay with you and your mates, Fern. I can teach him how to learn when he's becoming overwhelmed by all of the noise. Maybe teach him some signals for communication, too, since he seems mute most of the time."

"You'll be a great mentor," Shortleg mewed.

"It's because I had a great mentor," Mothfall replied. "Two great ones, actually." She angled her ears forward. "We're almost here." Her paws trembled as she approached. Was this really a good idea?

Ferntooth beckoned her kits to her side as they broke through the tree line. The lake broke into view, mirroring the half-moon on the horizon in broken symmetry. The kits gasped in awe, and even Ambereye made a noise of appreciation. "It's rare that I get to see anything but the moonpool on these nights," he murmured. "I forget how beautiful the rest of the world looks."

"Hey, look, it's Mothfall!" a voice called out from the halfbridge. "And she's brought friends!"

The FunClan cats were all gathered on the halfbridge. Gone was the need for distancing, and she could see Dapplecall, Silverleaf, Flash, and Freckle all piled together. Creekfur ran her paws down Shortstone's side, asking her some question that the stone-gray molly answered with enthusiasm. Pebblestripe and Martysplash were all engrossed in a conversation; judging by the dampness of Martysplash's and Pebblestripe's fur, they were arguing over whose splash was better.

Mothfall bounded forward, eager to greet her friends. Shortstone met her halfway, rubbing her face against Mothfall's, purring so hard it made Mothfall shake. "Thank the stars you're okay."

"More than okay," Mothfall mewed, still surging forward to greet the others. "I'm deputy now. And Ratpelt's gone forever."

"I heard about that when Berrystar visited our camp," Martysplash mewed, eyes wide. She shuddered. "I can't imagine being exiled."

"Don't worry. He deserved it," muttered Ferntooth, pressing against Mothfall.

"Is this your sister?" Shortstone asked, nodding to Ferntooth.

"Is that it? I thought I was seeing two Mothfalls!" Freckle purred, and Flash shoved her.

Mothfall's ears burned as Silverleaf stepped forward. "Did I hear right? You're deputy now?"

"We've never had a deputy in our ranks," mewed Flash. "What, does this mean you're our leader now?"

"I'd rather not," mewed Mothfall, squirming under everycat's attention. "You're my family. Not my underlings."

"Good," muttered Flash.

"As far as I'm concerned, you're not anything." Creekfur grumbled.

She took a deep breath. Whatever she'd done in the past, it's been done. "I realized that I had hurt you all by disappearing, the way that I did. I thought I was being brave, but really, I was being selfish. I wasn't putting my family first, because you guys are my family, and I left you. I shouldn't have done that. I'm sorry."

For a heartbeat, no cat responded. Mothfall braced herself, and is planning the best way to gracefully make an exit without screwing things up even more when Dapplecall broke out into a purr. "Of course, you're welcome!" they called. "Once a FunClan cat, always a FunClan cat."

Flash and Freckle shrug, both clearly nonplussed, and even Pebblestripe and Martysplash reluctantly nod.

Mothfall turned to Creekfur. The silver-striped molly stared back at her, fur bristling. Dapplecall touched their nose to her shoulder, and Creekfur shrugged them off. But eventually she, too, dipped her head. "I'm not going to act like nothing happened," she murmured. "But I have to believe that, if given a chance, you'll make things right."

"Thank you," Mothfall breathed, as the rest of the FunClan cats cheer.

"Are you going to introduce us to your friends?" Dapplecall mewed, pushing themselves into an upright position. Their eyes were still sunken and haggard, but as they glanced at Creekfur, their eyes glowed with affection.

As if their calling was a signal, the kits tumbled forward, eager to say hello to these strange cats. Ferntooth stepped forward, attempting to call them back, but Mothfall ran her tail over their side. "They'll be fine. FunClan wouldn't hurt a fly." At her sister's confusion, she cleared her throat. "Oh. Um, right. FunClan, this is my ShadowClan family. ShadowClan, this is my FunClan family. I thought it was only fitting for you guys to meet."

"Hey, I know you," Silverleaf tilted her head, peering at the assembled cats. "Aren't you the ShadowClan medicine cat?"

"I am." Ambereye dipped his head. "And I am honored to be a part of Mothfall's family. She would have made an excellent medicine cat, but she'll be just as good a leader, if not better. I've watched her struggle so much to find her place in this Clan, and, well…" he beamed at her, "Her struggles have made her a better cat."

Ferntooth tried to press against her, but Mothfall stepped back, fur bristling. "Please don't say that."

"Say what?" Ambereye tilted his head.

"That my struggles made me a better cat. Don't justify the pain I've gone through. I shouldn't have had to deal with my father's abuse, or put up with snide comments that I was never fit to be a warrior. I shouldn't have to overwork myself so hard I end up in the medicine den more than once, just to prove that I'm just as worthy as other ShadowClan warriors who've never done any of that."

Stunned, Ambereye blinked.

The FunClan cats murmured agreement. "Here, here," called Shortstone.

"As future leader of ShadowClan, I want to make sure no cat ever feels hurt like I did. Just because we're not kicking out our disabled cats doesn't mean we're welcoming them as a part of this Clan. Briarstreak and Berrystar told me themselves that they fought harder than any cat to get to where they are today, and they didn't seem to realize what was wrong with that. They didn't even consider that some cats can't do that," she glanced at Adderkit, who had snuggled up against Dapplecall and was kneading their paws into their belly, "and that no cat should have to."

Ambereye's eyes shone. "You've grown more than I could have ever hoped," he murmured.

"Your brother would be proud of you," Creekfur added. Mothfall stared, shocked to see her speaking in support of her. "You're doing what he said you couldn't. You're making a place for lovers, not warriors."

"Where did you learn how to do this?" Shortstone asked. "Certainly you didn't learn it from your poor old mentor." As Shortleg ducked their head in embarrassment, Shortstone purred in amusement.

Mothfall turned to all of the gathered cats. "I learned it from all of you. My family."

Dapplecall scooped Adderkit close with their paws, but they didn't take their eyes off Mothfall. "Hey, Mothball, what's that in your tail?" their eyes glittered, as if they already knew the answer.

Mothfall held her tail up for everycat to see. "It's the token Dapplecall gave me when I became a warrior." Broken, battered, and more than a little clawed up, but still as sturdy as ever.

"Won't ShadowClan cats tease you for wearing that?" asked Pebblestripe. "Or do they not dare diss their deputy?"

"They do, but I don't care anymore. If I waste all of my energy trying to fit in, I'll never make the Clans better."

"I think that's a dumb place to put it," piped up Freckle. "Clearly, it's supposed to be a collar. Why put it on your tail? It's mostly covered by your fur."

"What would you know?" challenged Flash. "Your head is empty."

"Is not!"

"Name one thought you've had."

"I've thought that, uh… this!" Freckle growled and launched herself at Flash, growling playfully.

"Are they always like this?" Ferntooth meowed, her yellow eyes growing wide.

"Pretty much," Shortstone's whiskers twitched.

"Well, I love it!" Runningkit declared as she bounded up to Ferntooth's side. "Can we come every half-moon?"

"Ask again when you're older," Fernooth scooped Runningkit close. Growing serious, the dark ginger molly pressed against Mothfall's side. "I wish Smokeheart could see this right now. He would be so proud of you."

"You really think so?" Mothfall asked, voice barely more than a whisper.

"Of course. Look at what you've done. You've proved not only that there is a space for love in the Clans, but that we are stronger when we love than when we fight." Ferntooth purred.

Before Mothfall could respond, Wildkit ran underneath her paws. "Momma! This cat says she's a momma cat, too! You should talk to her!"

Ferntooth looked at Mothfall. "Will you be okay?"

Mothfall purred. "Of course I will. Go on."

She watched as Wildkit lead Ferntooth to Creekfur, bouncing in between them with excitement. Ambereye and Shortleg had fallen deep into discussion with Pebblestripe, and even Adderkit looked excited as Dapplecall and Silverleaf nestled him in between them.

Mothfall thought that her heart couldn't grow any more.

"Follow me." The stone-gray molly slipped out of Mothfall's grip, towards the lake shore. Mothfall padded after her, curiosity getting the better of her. Shortstone stopped in front of one of the logs that supported the halfbridge. "Here."

"Here?" Mothfall echoed. She stepped forward, eyeing the log. "You mean… you want me to add my name?"

"Of course." Shortstone mewed. "only true members of FunClan can add their marking to the log, as a reminder of their existence. I want you to add yours."

Mothfall tilted her head. "Are you sure that this isn't a fancy way of conning me into staying with FunClan?"

Shortstone purred. "That is an added bonus. But really, I want you to understand we love you. You're our friend, and you're a valued member of FunClan."

"I don't know…" Mothfall hesitated. "I've never tried marking something like this before."

"Neither did I?"

Mothfall snorted. She stepped up beside Shortstone, rocking back onto her hind legs to brace her front legs against the log. "No offense, but I think a moth is harder to draw than a flat rock."

"Hey! You said yourself that it looked like a dead frog!" Shortstone headbutted Mothfall, tail curling in amusement.

Mothfall unsheathed her claw, testing the log to see how easily it marked. Her claw sunk into the soft wood, and she snorted. "This wood is so soft, It's a miracle the halfbridge hasn't collapsed underneath us." She sank her claws into the log again, carving out deft, curving strokes. She stuck out her tongue as she concentrated. The motions weren't normal for any cat, and her pawstrokes were wobbly and uncertain. Still, when she pulled back, she felt satisfied that what she had drawn was recognizably a moth.

She turned to Shortstone, who was examining her work with thought. "It's not falling."

"Oh, come on," Mothfall purred, nudging Shortstone. "You, Dapplecall, Pebblestripe, and Freckle, all did variations of circles, and Creekfur and Flash did straight lines. I'm sorry my name is too complicated and nuanced to perfectly capture in wood."

"I suppose it'll have to do." Shortstone's amusement died off. "I'm glad you came back."

"Yeah," Mothfall breathed. "Me, too."

"Oh, there you are!" Dapplecall's voice appeared above them. Mothfall craned her neck back under she could see the dapple cat watching them from on top of the halfbridge. "Did you add your name? It's about time. But we haven't seen you in ages! We need to catch up!"

"Oh, is she down there?" Ambereye's muffled mew carried over the din of the other talking cats. "Can you tell her that I want to say goodbye before I head to the moonpool?"

Dapplecall flicked their ear. "You heard that, right? Get your butts up here!"

As they disappeared again, Shortstone pressed her forehead against Mothfall's side, nudging her forward. "Well, you heard them," she mewed. The two of them climbed back onto the halfbridge. Her heart skipped with joy to see the ShadowClan and FunClan cats completely intermingled, impossible to see where one group ended and the other began.

This is how it should be, Mothfall thought. One family, together.

Ferntooth beckoned them over, and Mothfall was quick to run to her sister's side, nuzzling her face affectionately.

"These cats are amazing," Ferntooth mewed earnestly. "I can see why you like them so much. Smokeheart would have liked them. And Pricklepaw too, I think."

Mothfall swallowed thickly. "I hope so, too."

"They'd both be proud of the cats you are today, if they could see you now," Ferntooth mewed.

"You really think so?"

"Of course!" Ferntooth assured her, and at the same time Shortstone said, "Duh! 'Cause I'm proud of you. Who wouldn't be?"

Both ginger mollies turned to stare at her, and she ducked her head, embarrassed. "I just mean, you're pretty cool."

"I think you're pretty cool, too," Mothfall purred.

Shortstone headbutted Mothfall. "I love you, Mothfall," she murmured. "I think you're my best friend."

Mothfall purred and wrapped her arm around the stone-gray molly, holding her close. On her other side, Ferntooth pressed against her, purring. She surveyed the gathered cats; her two mentors, her friends, her kin. These were the cats worth loving and living for.

"I love you, too," she responded. "I love you all."

Yaaaay! A happy ending at last! I've thought about including notes for what happens to the characters after the end of the story, but I hope to come back and write one-offs every now and then, so I won't spoil the fun now. :P But I will say that Adderkit is autistic, and he gets a more formal diagnosis soon, after Mothfall (with the help of Ambereye) works with him and figures out the specifics of his brainstuff.

Thank you all for coming on this journey with me, whether you've been with me since the beginning or just catching up now, or if you were a silent reader or constant commenter. I hope you all enjoyed reading as much as I have writing!

I don't have plans to write a full-length sequel, but I have a few ideas for one shots I want to tackle at some point, so be sure to follow my account if you want notifications for those. ;) I may also post some speedpaints or animatics on my youtube channel! I have one up already: /7pCKqfcn-E (It's a Hamilmoth AU!) There is no pressure at all to view or comment, of course, but I tend to go through phases of more writing vs more art, so this may be a place to check out if you want to see other Moth stuff. (At this moment in time, youtube is the only platform I post art on.)

Thank you all again! I can't thank y'all enough for the support and enthusiasm for what had started as a silly idea.