Longtail sat on guard, waiting patiently for Fireheart to return. As the sun began to rise, Fireheart still hadn't returned. So Longtail decided to go and find him. The others would wake soon and Bluestar would want to leave as soon as possible.

As he padded through the short patch of forest, he caught Fireheart's scent mixed with blood-scent. Longtail broke into a run. He came up on the scene where his scent was strongest. There was another cat's scent, too. It smelled like a she-cat. Blood was spattered everything. Longtail bent down at one of the small puddles of blood, scenting it. A familiar scent hit his nose.

Fireheart.

Longtail turned and sprinted back to the others. They were always starting to wake up. Whitestorm and Bluestar were talking quietly. Cinderpaw and Brackenpaw were grooming each other. Graystripe waslicking his paw and drawing it over his ear, while Tigerclaw and Willowpelt were just sitting up.

"Bluestar!" Longtail gasped.

The ThunderClan leader turned her head to look at Longtail with her icy blue eyes. She shot to her paws, just as every other cat there did when they saw him.

"Longtail, what's happened?" Bluestar demanded.

Longtail's lungs burned from running so fast, but he fought through it to answer her. "Something happened to Fireheart."

Bluestar's eyes widened. "Let's go."

She signaled with her tail for every cat to follow. "Longtail," she ordered, "lead up to the last place you remember scenting him."

Longtail nodded, taking them to the crime scene. "Fireheart," he heard Graystripe whisper, voice quivering.

The blood spatters and puddles seemed to have a stronger scent, even though the scent was stale. The she-cat's scent was stronger than usual. Then Longtail realized it was a different she-cat's scent. He looked ahead to see a pretty long-furred she-cat pad out into the crime scene. Her amber eyes showed distress.

"Do- do you happen to have a lost friend?" the she-cat asked, approaching the group of ThunderClan cats. "Going by the name of- name of Fireheart?"

"Yes," Willowpelt meowed. "Do you know where he is?"

The she-cat nodded her head. "My name is Quince," she meowed. "I can take you to your friend, but I'll warn you that his situation is something he needs to fight alone."

"What do you mean?" Tigerclaw asked. "Fight alone?"

"Nutmeg is taking her revenge," Quince explained. "She's trying to kill Fireheart, but he's stalling her for now."

Her eyes filled with guilt. "I'm so sorry!" she wailed. "It's my fault! Nutmeg tricked me into helping her!"

Bluestar stepped forward, touching her tail tip to Quince's shoulder. "I'm sure you didn't mean it, Quince," Bluestar assured her. "But can you take us to Fireheart now?"

Quince nodded, leading them to their flame-pelted friend. She took them around the corner of a large Twoleg den, and under a small hole in a fence. She stopped in front of a Twoleg fence, a larger hole in the center. Guiding them through it, Longtail could feel the thin branches of the bush brushing against his back and sides as he squeezed in.

"Here we are." Quince finally came to a halt in the garden enclosure.

They saw a limp orange body in the corner of the garden. A brown tabby she-cat slipped out of the Twoleg den, bounding across the grassy garden and over to the limp body. She kicked it, yowling, "Get up!"

The orange cat struggled to his paws, bleeding from several wounds. Longtail noticed the tom's emerald-green eyes shimmering with pain.

"Fireheart." Longtail turned his head to see Cinderpaw quivering, muttering her mentor's name.

Fireheart's fur was ruffled and matted with dry, sticky blood, fresh blood still streaming out of a few of his wounds. He looked like he felt dizzy - almost as if he wished he were dead.

Longtail had already confirmed to himself that he had a crush on Fireheart, and it pained him to see the orange warrior in that state. He had come to respect the young former kittypet and his decisions. But... if Fireheart died, then Longtail would never be able to confess to him. And if Longtail confessed to him, Fireheart's living...

Would Fireheart accept his confession?