Slash was waiting by the fence at the very instant when she could leave without alerting suspicion. Now it was nearing moonhigh and Brambleclaw appeared through a bush.
"Sorry I took so long. I was put on a nighttime hunting patrol."
"It's alright. We're both early, anyway."
"Oh…" He chuckled. "I guess I couldn't wait."
"Me neither."
"Anyway, let's help you get this collar off."
"Ice slipped it on when I arrived into his tender care, but I figure now that I've grown into the blasted thing it'll be too hard to slide off."
"The teeth also pose a risk."
"Let's try and break it here. The fabric is a bit worn."
She placed the collar against a stiff root, and Brambleclaw bit as hard as he could while she strained away from the collar. Finally, with a resounding snap, the red collar that had defined her status was off.
A fresh breeze touched her ginger scruff for the first time in moons.
"We did it!" She purred quietly.
"We'd better get going." Brambleclaw whispered.
Slash could see why he was nervous. Shadows moved on the wooden panels, casting eerie figures around the pair. And his Clan camp wasn't exactly guaranteed to be welcoming – she'd learned of BloodClan's aftermath, so him taking a former BloodClanner in wasn't exactly popular.
But they wandered to camp slowly, as she followed Brambleclaw's lead, feeling that some of the most worn paths along the way were oddly familiar. A bright star would peek through the canopy of a tree every now and again, reminding Slash of the ancestors among the stars that Brambleclaw had told her about.
They reached the camp tunnel as misty light started to illuminate the forest. She wrapped her tail around his comfortingly – she stood to lose nothing, while he could potentially have to give up the only family he'd known. He smiled wanly at her before taking a breath and stepping in. She was surprised that the entryway was so unguarded, but the forest cats must be more trusting than the all-cats-for-themselves BloodClanners.
She looked around the dawn camp, feeling a surge of love for it already. Dens ringed a central hollow, while a food pile stood tantalisingly off to the side. A large rock stood pride of place in the camp, nearly taller than the ravine that surrounded it.
Their arrival had caused the cats starting their day to look up. Some's fur bristled. Others stared bemusedly at the pair. A brown-and-white cat dropped the mouse that she was eating, letting it fall limp to the ground.
Amid all the commotion, a flame-coloured cat emerged from a lichen-covered hole in the large rock.
"What is – Squirrelkit?"