Hey! Sorry for the delay on this one- I'm in South Carolina for vacation and just managed to get onto my stepdad's Internet-hooked computer to update. Bramble and Crow POV, danke to Dewflower my editor, and thank you all for reading and reviewing!

Firestar, Sandstorm, Dustpelt and Cloudtail came out to meet Brambleclaw and the others as they padded into camp. The tabby warrior flinched- he hadn't expected to face the Clan leader and his senior warriors the moment they got back to camp. The flame-colored tom surveyed them, his eyes hard. "Well?" he growled. "What were you all doing out in the middle of the night? If it was a patrol, I certainly didn't order it."

Brambleclaw forced himself to meet his leader's angry gaze. "It was important, Firestar, I promise."

Firestar's green eyes widened as he looked over their wounds. "Brambleclaw, come to my den," he meowed. He let a flicker of warmth enter his expression as he added, "The rest of you go to Cinderpelt's den to see what she can do for you."

Brambleclaw felt the eyes of every cat in the camp on him as he limped after his leader towards the Highledge. Unsteadily he leaped over the rubble into the cleft in the rocks, Firestar just before him. The inside of the den was dark, and as Brambleclaw's eyes adjusted he made out Firestar's nest in the corner with its lining of moss and feathers. The Clan leader sat down, facing his warrior. Some of the anger had faded from his eyes, but his gaze was still stern. "Well?"

Brambleclaw sighed. He had been working out how to tell Firestar all that had happened on the way home. Still, the preperation didn't seem useful now. Slowly, he began his story, starting with Hawkfrost's approaching him at the Gathering, meeting Tawnypelt in the woods, and then both their impressions of the first meeting. He continued on to tell about how Cedarheart and Tawnypelt had found him on patrol and described Hawkfrost's secret meetings. Finally he depicted what had happened that night, filling in the things Squirrelflight had told him on the walk home. His voice shook as he told of Tawnypelt's death, and Firestar's tail reached out, gently touching his shoulder.

"So he killed her," he meowed softly. There was a reminiscent look on his face, and Brambleclaw wondered if he was remembering Bluestar's death. "Go on."

"Squirrelflight and the others came out," Brambleclaw mewed, "b Ab0 nd there was a battle. I fought Hawkfrost..."

Firestar blinked. "Is he dead?"

"I couldn't do it," Brambleclaw confessed. "I could have, but I didn't. Squirrelflight did."

Firestar's eyes flashed; for a heartbeat Brambleclaw thought he was angry that he'd put his daughter in danger, and then he recognized the look of admiration. "Good," he meowed quietly. "It was better this way." His meow was laced with pride. "She's a true warrior, isn't she?"

"Yes," Brambleclaw agreed. And I would be dead now if she hadn't come looking for me.

Firestar's legs stretched out before him. "I can't say I'm happy with everything you've done, Brambleclaw," he meowed, "but there's no doubt that you did well tonight. Not many cats have the strength you've showed." His ears twitched. "From now on, any cat would be mousebrained to ever think of you as the same as Tigerstar- or Hawkfrost, for that matter. You are very different from them. No doubt just as ambitious, but ambition doesn't always have to be a bad thing."

Brambleclaw dipped his head, relieved. "Thank you, Firestar."

"I believe- " Firestar paused as if choosing his words carefully, and then went on. "I believe that, someday, you will make a fine deputy...and perhaps even leader of ThunderClan."

Brambleclaw's eyes widened with shock, and he looked at his leader, trying to find some trace of amusement in his expression but unable to see any. "Thank you, Firestar," he managed, "but there are others far more experienced warriors than me who deserve the spot more."

Firestar looked at him squarely. "No, Brambleclaw. You journeyed to the sun-drown-place, led us to our new home, and now foiled a plot to take over the forest. You are an outstanding warrior." He paused. From now on, though, I'd like you to tell me about any plots that may be going on in the forest."

The dark tabby dipped his head. "I will."

Firestar watched him for a moment more before he began, "But for now you should go-"

Brambleclaw shook his head quickly. "I'll let Cinderpelt tend to the others first. I just want to sleep."

Firestar shook his head, his eyes never leaving Brambleclaw. "No. Before you do any of that, I think there's something you know you have to do first."

&&&

Crowfeather just wanted to curl up in his nest and sleep until greenleaf, but Onestar, Moonfrost, and several others were waiting as he and Webfoot and Briarpelt trotted into camp. The WindClan leader looked at them, surprise turning to suspicion as he saw their wounds, but before he could ask Crowfeather meowed bluntly, "There was a battle."

"With who?" Moonfrost demanded.

"Hawkfrost and his warriors," Crowfeather explained tiredly, launching into his story, carefully sticking to Squirrelflight's lie of him patrolling around the border when he'd run into the ThunderClan she-cat, and went with her and Leafpool to see where Brambleclaw was going.

"Why would you follow her?" Owlclaw wondered. "They were all ThunderClan cats. It could have been a trap!"

"Of course it wasn't." Crowfeather was stunned to hear Nettleclaw's voice as he padded up. His gaze was carefully neutral as he looked over Crowfeather. "Squirrelflight went to the sun-drown-place with Crowfeather. She wouldn't be plotting to hurt him, let alone kill him."

Crowfeather nodded to him before he went on. All of WindClan had gathered around, their curious looks turning angry as they realized what Webfoot and Briarpelt had been doing. Whispers erupted when they realized Nightcloud hadn't come back, and more than one cat unsheathed their claws.

"Why have you come back?" growled Moonfrost roughly, looking over the pair of them with disgust. "Why should we even keep you here? That's twice now you've betrayed WindClan!"

Onestar reached out with his tail to him for silence, but he too looked at Webfoot and Briarpelt, waiting for a response. They didn't say anything, and in the end Crowfeather spoke. "They could have fled with Nightcloud," he meowed, "b they stayed."

"We want to prove that we're loyal," put in Briarpelt, and Webfoot nodded. "Hawkfrost made it sound like his plans were good. He said they were right for the sake of the clans and the forest."

"He was lying," Onestar meowed bluntly. "Everything Hawkfrost ever did was for himself." He looked over his warriors. "Why should I trust you? For all I know, you could be lying as well."

Webfoot swallowed. "You shouldn't," he admitted. "Not after everything we've done. But we hope you will."

Onestar shook his head slowly from side to side, then looked up. "Crowfeather, keep an eye on them. If they put a claw out of line I want to know. For now, they may stay in Windclan."

His gaze landed in the two toms."And don't think I'll be forgetting this any time soon."

He waited until the deputy dipped his head and then padded away, Moonfrost trotting at his side, meowing urgently. Briarpelt gave Crowfeather a look of gratitude, and even Webfoot nodded to him as the two headed for Icepaw and Barkface's den.

As tired as he had been before, Crowfeather's mind was buzzing now, and he didn't think he could fall asleep. He padded to the top of the rise, knowing that no cat would disturb him. The gray-black cat tilted his head up, watching the dawn silently. He could still see Silverpelt twinkling faintly beneath the glare of the early sunlight. The clouds were dark, like shadows thrown into the air, and Crowfeather watched them shift as he replayed the night over in his mind. In the light of everything else he had almost forgotten that Squirrelflight knew about him and Leafpool now. He was sure that she wouldn't tell anyone, and was almost a little relieved that she knew. It would be easier on Leafpool now that she didn't have to hide her feelings from her sister.

He wondered what the medicine cat was doing now. Probably treating the cats that had been at the battle.

Of course. It's not like she'd go to sleep now, when there are cats still hurt out there. That's what he liked about Leafpool, always thinking of others before herself. He twitched his whiskers just as he sensed another presence beside him. He jerked his head around to see Nettleclaw, his dark blue eyes unreadable. Crowfeather turned away and the black cat sat down beside him. "You really are deputy now."

Crowfeather blinked. "What do you mean?"

"Onestar never would have let Webfoot and Briarpelt back in the Clan if you hadn't said anything."

Crowfeather nodded slowly. "I guess not." He cocked his head at Nettleclaw and narrowed his eyes. "Angry that a traitor like me has the trust of Onestar?"

Nettleclaw shook his head slowly. "No."

The deputy was surprised. "No?"

Nettleclaw sat down beside him with a gusty sigh. "Look, Crowfeather. You're a good cat, and a good deputy. "Even with the...other things."

"Leafpool, you mean." Crowfeather flicked his ears.

"Yeah." Nettleclaw looked him in the eye. "Squirrelflight knows, doesn't she?"

Crowfeather's fur bristled. "How did you-"

"Patrolling in the middle of the night at the ThunderClan border?" Nettleclaw twitched his ears slightly. "Come on Crowfeather. What else could you be doing?"

Crowfeather's claws unsheathed self-consciously into the soil. He haden't realized how obvious the situation was before now. "Well...yeah. She knows. And she's not going to tell anybody."

"Good."

Crowfeather tipped his head to one side. "Good?"

"Yes." Nettleclaw's tail-tip rested gently on his shoulder. "It doesn't matter what I think, Crowfeather. You're happy, and WindClan needs you. That's all that matters."

He blinked at the deputy, and then padded away. Crowfeather looked after him, feeling his tail curl up. That's all that matters, he agreed to himself. That I'm happy, and Leafpool's happy. It's all that ever mattered.

&&&

Brambleclaw's paws made no sound on the turf as he padded through the forest. His outside wounds were numb compared the the intensity of the emotional scars inside him. For Tawnypelt,and for Hawkfrost too. He had been right in saying that they were brothers, and always would be. And he had been a great warrior, despite everything else he'd done. Like Tigerstar, he had been given all the strength and power to become a legend among the Clans...but he had thrown it all away.

Firestar had once told Brambleclaw that he had been a little sad after Tigerstar's death, which the dark tabby hadn't been able to understand. He himself had been stunned and sickened by Tigerstar's death, more than he'd thought he'd be- but Tigerstar had been his father. How could Firestar be upset, when they'd always been enemies, ever since Firestar had abandoned his kittypet life for the forest?

Now Brambleclaw thought he understood. It wasn't about the history between them, it was about how much of a loss Tigerstar- and Hawkfrost- had been to the forest. They could have been legendary warriors for everything they'd done. But they had chosen the wrong paths, and paid dearly for it. Brambleclaw shook his head with a bit of a shiver as he realized how close he'd come to doing the same.

Squirrelflight had offered to go with him, but Brambleclaw had refused. Still, she'd made him rest for a while before he could go, and the day was getting old by the time the island came into sight. He had thought he'd be alone, but he made out the shape of another cat standing on the shore of the Gathering place, watching the lake. There was a lump of fur beside him, and Brambleclaw stiffened as he stepped onto the log, expecting to be faced with the body of his brother. But, with a jolt, he realized it was Tawnypelt. Cedarheart was beside her, drops of lakewater gleaming on his whiskers, brighter than his dull blue eyes.

"I found her," he meowed quietly as Brambleclaw came up. The tabby nodded. He looked around, but he did not see Hawkfrost's body, and he didn't feel like asking Cedarheart what he'd done with it. The gray cat's fur was slicked with water, and his muscles were slack beneath. His head was bowed as if he didn't have the strength to lift it back up. There was no trace of the ferocity that he'd always shown before when meeting Brambleclaw, and his tail touched Tawnypelt's sodden body gently.

The dark tabby looked down at his sister, feeling a lump form in his throat. "Did you...love her?" he asked softly.

Cedarheart's ears pricked up and he turned to face Brambleclaw. "I don't know."

"Did she love you?"par par The ShadowClan cat's eyes narrowed. "No," he admitted. "Well, I don't think so. Not like a mate. We were both warriors; warriors before anything. That's what I liked so much about her."

Brambleclaw's whiskers gave a feeble twitch. "Tawnypelt always put ShadowClan first," he agreed.

Cedarheart nodded. "She would have died for it. I don't understand why the other warriors never realized it. Why didn't they think her loyal? She was the most loyal cat in the forest!"

His frustration pricked at Brambleclaw's heart, and he sat down on the other side of his sister, remembering how fierce, how proud, how stubborn she'd always been. She'd never been ambitious like him and Hawkfrost. She had always been less like Tigerstar than he was- both in looks and personality. Yet she'd been the one to leave ThunderClan, simply because she hadn't been able to stand the insults. But they must have been worse in ShadowClan. She could have come back. But then she would have been taunted more...

"She was never really happy," Cedarheart meowed, as if he could read his thoughts. "She loved ShadowClan- but not the cats. She hated that they didn't trust her, she tried so hard to make them see, proving her self time and time again. The trip to the sun-drown-place only made it worse."

"I made her go," Brambleclaw whispered.

"She needed to go. I only wish StarClan had chosen a different cat." Cedarheart lifted his head to the setting sun. "Maybe she's finally happy now, though. In StarClan."

The words came back to Brambleclaw then: There are far worse things than hunting in the stars. It had proven true for Tawnypelt, but what about Hawkfrost?

He shook his head. There was no telling whether StarClan had even accepted his half-brother. Perhaps he hunted in the dark skies with Tigerstar now- he'd finally gotten his wish of meeting his father. Brambleclaw tipped his head up, wondering if he would ever see those icy blue eyes in his dreams.

The evening sky was empty of all sign of both dark tabby cats, and Brambleclaw wondered if Tawnypelt might be there, too. He turned his head to look at Cedarheart. She's probably watching you.

Though Cedarheart doubted it himself, he was certain that Tawnypelt must have loved him...but maybe not like a mate, as he'd said. It was rare for her to show affection for any cat, and he knew that she had to have cared deeply for him.

"I'll help you bury her in ShadowClan territory," he offered.

"No," mewed Cedarheart. "Not ShadowClan. ThunderClan. She would never admit it, but she never stopped wishing that she hadn't left her birth Clan. She belongs there. She always did."

Brambleclaw was surprised, but he slowly nodded. "Okay. I'll make sure that Firestar knows, and you can come visit her grave any time."

Cedarheart twitched his ears, dipping his head slightly. It was as close to a thank-you as the proud ShadowClan warrior would ever give to Brambleclaw.

Together the two toms lifted the limp tortoiseshell body from the turf and began to carry her towards ThunderClan territory. As they went, Brambleclaw could not resist looking back one last time, just as the setting sun touched the water. Like at the sun-drown-place, the fiery orb was swallowed by the water in one burst of dark light. During that one heartbeat- it seemed to last seasons to Brambleclaw- the surface was stained crimson, During that one heartbeat, in the place where blood kin had fought, where blood had been spilled, the lake ran red.

One more chap left, and also a question. I have an idea for a Power of Three fic that would be based off of Twilight and Sunset My Versions. I could also do a new Sunset: My Version, that corresponds with the real Twilight, which comes out on the 22nd. Which would you rather me do? Please tell me in a review!