Hello once again! Apologies for the semi-long wait, I got caught up in missed work and studying for exams pretty much the moment I got back to the US, which left me basically no time whatsoever to write. However, as I procrastinated studying this week, I managed to finish this chapter and now I present to you what I believe to be the third- or fourth-longest chapter so far! ^^

Also, I'm currently on winter break, since my last exam was yesterday, and as long as I can get into a good writing schedule I should be able to easily have the next chapter out by next week, since I'm doing basically nothing for the next two weeks. Unfortunately, I haven't gotten off to such a good start today, since I'm in a bit of a grumpy mood and I doubt my writing would start to flow tonight, but the moment this mood lifts I'll get right back to it. I might even try to start another writing competition with Leafy, since that seemed to work fairly well.

On to a couple review replies and then I hope you all enjoy the chapter!

Lilystripe608: Oh, that's perfectly fine! I know I certainly have trouble keeping up with fanfiction updates, particularly when I'm busy. ^^; I hope you enjoy catching up!

Guest: I know a lot of people tend to get annoyed by reviews just saying, "Update!" or something similar, but honestly I don't think I'm one of those people. Your review actually inspired me to sit down and write when I saw it! So thank you very much and I hope you enjoy this update. ^^

"Hey, Rae, watch me!"

I glanced around, eyes wide as the opening in the cavern's roof, just in time to see Felix slide head-first down a pile of packed snow. His forepaws reached out in front of him, toes spread wide apart, braced for the impact. As he hit the ground, he tumbled head-over-paws, landing on his back with snow dusting his whiskers.

"Nice one, Felix!" I congratulated him. "You've built that one pretty high!"

"I know!" Pushing himself upright and shaking clumps of ice from his ears, the pale gray-and-white tom pranced about in a circle, his tail held jauntily aloft. "Bet you can't do that," he challenged.

"Oh yeah?" Grinning slyly, I padded around to the other side of the snow-pile and scrambled to the top.

"Careful of your shoulder," Cephas called over. But when I looked over at him, I realized he wasn't actually watching. I ignored his advice.

But as my eyes took in the darker rosettes on his gray fur, I couldn't help but be reminded of another tom with an identical pelt and a mysterious plot to hoodwink a Rebellion cat. From my vantage point atop the mound, I sent a hasty glance circling around the clearing, but couldn't see Peter anywhere. The moment he returned from the morning's hunting, I'd be on his tail like a tick. Maybe he'd let something else slip.

"Do a spin on the way down!" Felix urged.

Staring down the rather short descent, I shook my head. "Uh uh. I don't have enough space!"

Felix snorted imperiously. "What are you, a scared squirrel? Scaredy-squirrel!"

"No, I'm bigger than a squirrel," I pointed out, rolling my eyes. "That's the whole point! I'm too big; I haven't got enough room."

"Cephas said to be careful of her shoulder," Lumi meowed, staring pointedly at her brother. "I don't think she should do a spin."

Felix scoffed again. "You're still a scaredy-squirrel."

"You're the scaredy-squirrel," I shot back, crouching. If I timed it just right…

"Nuh uh!" Felix crowed. "I'll do a spin. Just watch me!"

I lunged forward off the top of the pile, forepaws aimed directly at Felix, or at least I tried to. My hind legs had other plans. With a whump that knocked the wind from my chest, they slipped out from under me and I landed hard on the snow-mound's slope, sliding to the bottom to lie in a cold heap.

Upon seeing my failed attempt at a stealth attack, Felix burst into giggles. "Wh… what was that supposed to be?" he choked.

"I meant to do that." I straightened, taking care to keep my weight off my foreleg. Why can't it heal faster? I grumbled inwardly.

"Yeah, yeah, of course you did." Felix pranced over on his toes. "You slipped, didn't you? Ha! You're not just a scaredy-squirrel; you're also a clumsy squirrel! You're a… a scaredy-clumsy-squirrel!" He beamed as the words left his lips, evidently proud of his creation.

"That's such a dumb name," Lumi scoffed. "And, Avalon said we can't call other cats names. Remember?"

"Hey, loosen up for once, why don't you?" Felix nosed her so hard she almost toppled to the ground. "And you too, Fable!" He raised his voice, staring over to the edge of the snow-pile to where Fable sat, gently grooming his fur.

At his brother's words, the gray Bengal tom lifted his chin, blinking. "No," he said shortly, then ducked back down to give his plumy tail another long lick.

I tilted my head to one side. "What's up with him?" I asked. Fable might be more reserved than Felix, but he wasn't usually this aloof… was he?

"Eh, don't mind him." Felix flicked his tail off-handedly. "He's just still annoyed that he didn't get to hear a bedtime story yesterday. Avalon said she was too tired after giving us our hunting lesson, and that if we wanted a story we should ask Cephas. Only thing is, Cephas was too busy. I guess Emil got a thorn in his eye or something."

I winced; that must have been painful. Poor Emil.

"So we just never got a story yesterday." Felix shrugged. "I didn't mind. Neither did Lumi. But Fable was super annoyed about it. I guess he thinks if he acts irritated enough today, Avalon and Cephas will be sure never to miss another story."

"Really." I quirked an eyebrow in Fable's direction, but he didn't react.

"Yah huh."

As my attention returned to Felix, I noticed he didn't seem too interested in the conversation anymore. Instead, he lowered himself into a balanced crouch, his ears perked up and his eyes fixed unwaveringly on something across the cavern. Though I followed his gaze, I saw only untouched snow.

"Watch this," he instructed, tensing his hindquarters. Lunging forward, he streaked through the snow, scattering little flurries and tumbling head over paws. He came to rest on his back, his fur flecked with bits of ice, shaking his head in a dazed sort of way.

"Was that supposed to be your best hunting stance?" Lumi shook her head. "You completely messed up that last bit there. Here, watch me." She crouched just like her brother had done, then darted forward and pounced on his tail, pinning it to the ground. "Like that!"

I snorted to myself as I noticed her lingering reservations about the snow; though Felix had pressured her enough to join him, she stretched herself upward with every step, touching the cold, packed crystals with only the ends of her toes before pushing herself into the air once more. Even now, crouching with her forepaws pressed against Felix's white-furred tail, she arched her back as high as it would go to prevent her belly fur from brushing the snow.

"Like that?" Felix rolled his eyes. "Yeah, right! Was that supposed to be a run? It looked like you were just prancing around like a newborn learning to walk!"

"Was not!" Lumi insisted. "And I actually landed on my target, unlike you!"

"Yeah," Felix countered, "because you had a precise target to aim for! I just had a general area in my range!"

The kits' increasingly high-pitched voices were interrupted by a deeper rumble. "Rae, come over here!"

"Coming!" Leaving Felix and Lumi to continue their argument, I headed swiftly (but carefully, remembering Cephas's near-constant warnings about how slippery snow could get) over to where the adult cats rested. "What?"

"Caspian's back from his morning hunt." The medic nodded toward the prey-pile, where, indeed, a certain cream-colored tom had just dropped two bare-boned squirrels on top of the other fresh catches before bounding toward us.

"Training again?" My tail drooped. With Cephas here, Caspian and I could only train by launching rocks at the wall again. While I had noticed muscles forming once again along my haunches, that couldn't stop the dreary repetitiveness of the task. I wanted to explore the mountain, not lie on my back all day staring at the ceiling.

"Sort of." Caspian glanced at Cephas. "May I tell her yet?"

My ears pricked up. Something different?

"I guess it's unavoidable. We're about to start, after all." Cephas turned back to Avalon, beginning to groom her long fur once again with increased haste, as though trying to finish her bath before we started this new form of exercise. I tilted my head to one side, staring quizzically at my informal mentor.

"Well, you've heard about the Sun Pool, right?"

I nodded, starting to realize where this might be going. "But my tail splint hasn't been removed yet," I pointed out. "I shouldn't be learning to swim yet." And, I added to myself, if I go down to the Sun Pool, I won't be able to watch for Peter.

"Ah, but you won't be submerging your tail just yet. Today we'll be working on your paws and head, trying to get you used to the sensation of water. According to you, you don't like water, right?"

I shivered involuntarily. "I mean, I don't know a single cat who doesn't like rain," I defended myself.

"Yeah, yeah. Rain and pools are entirely different forms of water. One is calm, manipulative, and carries you along if you know how to control it. The other takes the form of little beads of death hurtling at you out of the sky." Caspian shook his head. "Completely different. I don't blame you if you don't like water. However," he added, flashing a grin, "you do get blamed if you don't like the Sun Pool."

Cephas rose to his paws, shaking out his fur a little to give his flattened side a bit of protection from the chilled air. "Ready to go?" he asked.

As I nodded, a voice called out from behind me. "Can I come too?" Though I turned to look, I already thought I knew who it was. I was right.

"No, Felix, go play with Fable and Lumi," Cephas chided him gently. "Rae's got to go train now, you hear?"

Felix pouted stubbornly. "But I wanna go! I've never seen the Sun Pool before!"

"That's because you could drown. We don't want that, now do we?"

Off by the edge of the snow patch, Fable's ears perked up. "But if Rae's learning to swim already, it'd be easy to teach us at the same time," he reasoned. "Then you wouldn't have to worry about us drowning, because we'd be able to swim and get ourselves out of the water on our own."

I blinked. How much did Fable want to swim, if he would give up his mute pride to ask his father for a chance to learn? Was this a really big thing for the kits? Maybe they just wanted to explore the forbidden area out of pure curiosity. I had a sudden moment of déjà vu as I remembered begging Thalia to let Rowankit and me go on adventures in the city.

"No, I don't think—"

"They could come, couldn't they?"

Cephas blinked at me. So did Caspian. I curled my tail self-consciously around my hind paws, wondering if I'd overstepped my boundaries a smidge.

"Yea!" Felix leaped into the air in delight. "Rae says we can go! We can go, right Cephas?" He stared eagerly up at his father, whiskers curled forward and eyes shining in delight, his body positively quivering with delight. I couldn't help but snort a little at how cute he could appear.

Cephas let loose a blustery sigh. "Only if you behave."

Felix whooped. "We're going to see the Sun Pool! We're going to see the Sun Pool!" He turned in a circle, random paws batting at the air, before he lost his balance and tumbled into the snow yet again. Cephas rolled his eyes.

"And that's why I didn't want you to come to the Pool with us," he muttered.

"Uh, it is okay that they're coming… right?" I asked uncertainly. After all, it had been only with my support that Cephas had given in.

"No, no, it'll probably be fine. I can watch them while Caspian works with you. With any luck, Felix will fall in once and I'll rescue him fine, but he'll be so scarred from the experience that he'll stay far away from the edge for the rest of the day."

My ears twitched at the word "scarred." From what I knew of it, it was mostly permanent. "You, um, want him to be scarred?"

Cephas shrugged. "You've seen him. Tomorrow he'll have forgotten all about it."

"Oh. Okay." If Cephas wasn't worried, I supposed I shouldn't be either. So, instead, I watched as Felix tried to give his brother a grateful nuzzle, but Fable dodged and he went sprawling into the snow. Again. Yaksha, that kit was clumsy!

"Well, kits? You coming or not?" Cephas smiled softly to himself as his three children came dashing over immediately, all three with bright eyes and tall tails. Lumi twitched her paws every few steps to rid them of lumps of snow, her jaw clenched a little at their freezing temperature. I guessed she'd be happy to dip her toes into the Sun Pool, if only to overthrow their numbness. I snorted; what with her long fur, she was probably used to being warm and didn't much like the sensation of cold.

"Okay… march!" Cephas nosed his kits' hindquarters, sweeping his tail across their heels to get them to start walking (not that they needed much encouragement; Felix looked like he was about ready to shoot across the cavern at the speed of an eagle). The four cats trotted toward the Sun Pool tunnel, Caspian and me following close behind.

My trainer let me go first, a fact of which I was grateful. As darkness closed over my sight and I began brushing my whiskers against the walls, I realized after a moment that the pat-pat and the pit-pit-pit sounds of pawsteps ahead were growing fainter.

"Not that way," Caspian murmured, his nose grazing my tail-tip as he pointed me in the right direction.

"There are other tunnels down here?" I asked as I retraced my steps and started along the correct route again.

"Well, yeah. It's part of why we don't allow young kits down here; they could get lost."

"Where do they lead?"

"Most of them just end in cave-ins. We haven't explored all of them, though."

I felt my stomach turn cold momentarily. A secret entrance?

"Don't worry, though," Caspian added, correctly (ish) interpreting my silence. "We have guards posted at the Sun Pool and they get changed often enough that we'd notice any unfamiliar scents. If Nova found an alternate entrance to the cavern, he'd send in a scout first before assembling a battle patrol. It wouldn't be that smart to send a fighting force deep into Avanti territory with the expectation of an invasion, only to find the tunnel meeting a dead end."

"Right." But what if the Avanti didn't recognize the scout as a member of the Rebellion? What if they thought the scout was one of them? My heart started beating faster. I've got to tell Phantom, I thought. Wait. No I shouldn't. He won't believe me. He won't do anything about it. I forced myself to push away my rising irritation. I'll just have to explore them myself when I can get away. Then I'll bring the information straight to Nova.

"Uh, Caspian?"

"Yeah?"

"How do you find your way around in these tunnels?"

He snorted. "Oh, it's easy once you know the trick. You've got to leave a distinct scent trail behind you. What Cephas is doing now is following the trail of the last guard. We can't smell it because their scents have blotted it out. When the next guard comes down, they'll follow us, see?"

"Oh. Okay. So if I left a distinct scent trail behind me, I could go explore those other tunnels if I wanted? I wouldn't get lost?"

Caspian paused for a moment. The fur along my spine rippled as I felt his gaze upon it. "Yes, I suppose so," he meowed slowly.

My heart raced faster than Felix's excited bound. Had I gone too far? Was Caspian suspicious now? Did he know I was a spy? Did he think—?

"You've got an adventurous streak in you, don't you? I guess it comes from living in the city, huh?" Caspian chuffed a little, like he was smirking. I almost collapsed to the ground as a powerful tide of relief swept through my body. "Guess it explains why you came to find Phantom. You wanted the adventure as well as the reunion."

"Yeah. Yeah, that's right." I smiled to myself, still a little weak-kneed, thankful for the darkness that hid my expression.

After another couple moments of walking in silence, I noticed a faint glow of light emanating from somewhere ahead. Quickening my pace, I watched it filtering through the dank tunnel air, growing stronger and stronger until I padded through the exit behind Cephas and the kits. Blinking in the sudden brightness (the cavern never got this bright, not even at sunhigh), I gazed around.

We stood on a rocky shelf overlooking a wide, sorta clear pool. Steam hung in the air, giving the dry Frozen-Time wind a hint of moisture. Overhead, the ceiling arched away, at least a third of a tree-length high. At the opposite end, a small, blue-cream tortoiseshell she-cat crouched beside a narrow opening which stretched almost all the way to the ceiling. It let in a soft, chilly breeze and filled the cave with cloud-dimmed light. Remembering Caspian's and my secret outing, I breathed in deeply, savoring the variety of scents upon the air: pine, decaying leaves, the sky, squirrel, frost, just a hint of feathers, earth…

"Welcome to the Sun Pool," Cephas meowed. Then, to his kits, he added, "You make sure you behave, you hear me?"

"I hear you," squeaked Lumi, but she seemed to be the only one of the three who still regained control of her voice. The other two stood as though struck dumb by the view, their eyes fixed not on the Pool, but instead through the opening, out into the forest.

"Wow," I thought I heard one of them breathe.

"No kidding," returned the other.

Caspian stepped forward and I turned my attention onto him. A surge of nerves suddenly swamped my belly; what if I wasn't good at swimming? Would he think I'd let him down? That I wasn't good enough to receive his training?

Clearing his throat, Caspian opened his mouth to speak, but upon catching sight of my expression, he paused. After considering me for a moment, he gave me a swift, cheery wink that clearly said, Don't worry. You'll be fine. I felt the knot of worry within me loosen slightly.

"This is the place where many young cats of the tribe learn to swim," Caspian began, sweeping his tail around to gesture at the flat water. "You will be continuing that tradition to strengthen your legs as you heal. Since today is your first lesson, and since I believe you have not had much experience swimming before, you'll just be getting used to the water today." He jerked his head in a summons and started off along the cave's wall, heading toward a section of rock that gradually sloped down to meet the water. I followed, ears pricked and eyes wide.

Caspian stepped right to the water's edge, his toes just far enough away from the slight ripples so as not to get wet. I watched him cautiously, a sudden thought jumping into my mind. What if he was about to throw me in? Then reason kicked back in and I almost rolled my eyes at myself; of course he wouldn't do that! Hadn't he just said I couldn't get my tail wet?

"Now, I can't really remember how exactly I learned to swim, since I was so young. I just remember being able to swim." Caspian shrugged. "So if I'm moving too fast for you, just let me know, 'kay?"

I nodded. "'Kay."

Lifting one of his forepaws, Caspian dipped it into the water, letting it sink down until I saw its jagged, undulating outline press against the bottom. "This is how deep the water is here, see? Just above my ankles. Think you can put your paw in like mine?"

I hesitated a moment but, telling myself Caspian could think me cowardly, I clenched my jaw and nodded again. Tentatively, I reached out with my injured forepaw and slowly eased it downward, watching its progress with eagle eyes, trying to predict the exact moment my pad would touch the surface. As it turned out, I misjudged the gap and felt warm wetness against my toes much sooner than I'd expected. Letting out a tiny squeal, I hopped backwards a little, shaking my paw vigorously.

"What is it?" Caspian tilted his head to one side, his brow furrowing. "Is it too hot?"

"Uh, no. No, it's not that." My violent shakes subsided into the occasional twitch, then into stillness again. I stared shrewdly at the Sun Pool, wondering if there was some easier approach to take.

"Well then what?" Caspian retreated to my side, nosing me forward again. "Go on. It won't bite."

I shot him a look that plainly said, I know, before following his instructions and padding back toward the pool's edge.

Caspian kept pace with me, his eyes soft. "The water can't hurt you from here. You know that, right? Even if you slip, I'll rescue you. There's no need to be afraid."

"Yeah. I'm not scared," I insisted. "Just… it feels so weird!"

Caspian barely held in a snort. "What a detailed description! Tell me more!"

I rolled my eyes at him.

"Okay, okay, fine, I'll be serious." Caspian reached his damp paw back into the water, thoroughly soaking it, then resting it against the fur of my foreleg. Though the water hadn't yet cooled in the steam-filled cave, I shivered at the sensation of droplets running across my skin.

"It's an odd sensation, I agree. I guess you've just got to get used to it." Caspian removed his paw and I twitched my paw again, trying to stop the tickling. "Here, how about you try putting your paw back into the water? It feels much nicer than drops."

Casting him an uncertain glance, I cautiously extended my leg again, letting it hover over the pool's surface, my fur slowly dampening from the rising vapor.

"That's it," Caspian purred encouragingly. "Now just let it go down a bit. And you've already felt the water on your pad, so it shouldn't be that odd to feel it again. Maybe this time you can keep your paw there for a few heartbeats?"

I gritted my teeth, forcing my eyes shut. I hadn't been able to tell exactly when my paw would touch the surface last time, so I shouldn't tempt myself to do the same again. My stomach fluttering at the thought of the Sun Pool rippling innocently only pawsteps in front of me, I tried to ease my paw downward, only to find it wouldn't move. My muscles had locked up or something out of nerves.

A loud splash echoed around the chamber and my eyes flew open, staring around for the source. It wasn't me; I wasn't wet in the slightest and my paw still stuck out over the water, half a tail-length into the air. It wasn't Caspian either, as a quick glance in his direction informed me. He also stared around for the source of the noise.

Out in the center of the Pool, I spotted a white-furred head bobbing with the sudden waves. Since the kit's fur was plastered to their head, I couldn't tell how long it was. Stretching my neck, I tried to see how many gray markings were present on the face.

Cephas took a running leap off the bank, his eyes stormy with either fear or fury, or a combination of both. He landed near the floundering kit, who was quickly being dragged under the surface, and dived down to rescue them. Back on the rocky shelf sat two kits with anxiously glittering eyes: Fable and Lumi.

The medic resurfaced with his son in his jaws and began paddling with strong, swift strokes toward the shelf again, pulling himself out with practiced ease and depositing the sodden kit onto the rock. "What in Yaksha's name were you thinking?!" Cephas hissed, lashing his dripping tail. Fable and Lumi shrank backward in order to avoid the droplets of water flying everywhere.

Felix shivered in a gust of wind from the cave entrance. He looked utterly miserable under the intensity of his father's anger. "I… I just…" he stammered, his teeth chattering a little.

"You just what?" Cephas spat. Despite his recent dunking, I noticed tiny flames dancing in his green eyes, unable to be doused even by the water still falling from his forehead whiskers.

"I—I just wanted… to, to l-learn how to sw-wim." Felix ducked his head as though preparing for an explosion.

"You do that by following along exactly with what Caspian's telling Rae," Cephas growled. "Not by leaping into the Sun Pool like some kind of flying squirrel. I never thought my son's brain would turn into a swarm of bees." Cephas nosed Felix's jaw. "Look at me," he commanded, and Felix meekly obeyed. "I don't ever want to see you do that again, you hear me?"

"I hear you."

Letting loose a soft, irritated sigh, Cephas relaxed and nodded for the kit to be dismissed. Sufficiently cowed, Felix slumped back toward his siblings, who, after glancing once at their father's expression, contented themselves with only one teasing shove apiece before leaving him be.

"Well, that was interesting." Caspian raised his eyebrows at me.

"Yeah." I nodded vaguely, not really paying attention to him. My mind was still on Felix, on how he'd just jumped in all at once. And here I was struggling to stick one measly paw into the water. I can't let a three-moon-old kit get the better of me. So, gathering my resolve and steeling my nerves, I closed my eyes and splashed my forepaw down into the pool.

Water splashed everywhere, splattering against my other three legs, my belly, and even as high as my chest. I shut my eyes, lifting my chin to keep my face, at least, still dry, shivering as the water rushed in around paw and wrapped it in what felt like a sodden second pelt. Ugh. Immediately, I wanted to pull my paw out again, but, reminding myself of Felix's daring, I forced myself to hold it there.

"Wonderful!" I opened my eyes to see Caspian's face light up in excitement. "That's really wonderful, Rae! Great job!"

"It feels like my paw's being smothered," I hissed through my teeth.

"Does it?" Caspian hastily placed his paw beside mine. "Hmm. I guess it would feel like that. How about you try moving it around a little?"

I waggled my paw from side to side a little, my leg joints stiff as though it was still splinted, feeling tiny currents wash my fur from side to side. "It, uh, has more substance to it than air," I noticed.

"But does it feel freer?" Caspian asked, his brow furrowed again. "That's what it feels like to me. It's just supportive enough to keep you on the surface, but not solid enough to really trap you."

I shrugged, my paw still moving back and forth. I felt my ankle relaxing a bit, letting my paw drag behind the rest of my leg. "I suppose. It… it feels better than before, I guess."

Caspian grinned. "That's it. You just have to get used to the feeling of water."

"Yeah." I continued swirling the water a little, then glanced back up at him. "Is that it for today, or…?"

"I was thinking we'd try putting water on your head today, since Cephas suggested we do that after I got your paws in, but I suppose we could always leave that for tomorrow if you're d—"

Another splash echoed around the cave. Immediately, I glanced over to where the kits still sat. Fable and Lumi were, again, still safely on the shelf, though admittedly much closer to the water. Felix, again, was struggling in the water, though much closer to the shelf. Cephas didn't even have to get himself wet when he reached down to pluck the kit out.

"What," Cephas growled, "did I just tell you?"

Felix, apparently emboldened by his second adventure, sat up straight and squeaked, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to fall in! I was just reaching down toward the water because I wanted to see if I could touch it, but I lost my balance and fell in! I didn't mean to, honest!"

Cephas shot a ferocious look over at his other children, both of whom flattened their ears nervously. "Is he telling the truth?" he asked in a voice of quiet, deadly calm. Both kits hastily nodded.

As he'd done the last time he'd spoken to Felix, Cephas let out a gusty sigh. "Very well. I won't blame you for falling in if it wasn't done on purpose. However," he added, his voice growing a touch angrier, "I do still blame you for placing yourself in a dangerous situation. You could easily have fallen in with such a dangerous stunt!"

"But you told us to follow with what Caspian was telling Rae!" Felix complained. "That's what I was doing! I was trying to put my paw into the water like what Rae's doing!"

I hastily drew my paw out of the pool's grasp, wondering if Cephas's anger would soon be turned upon me and Caspian. He didn't even glance in our direction, though, but instead remained focused on his son.

"So you go over to the shallower part and ask politely if Caspian wouldn't mind you joining in. That goes for all three of you," he added, staring over at Fable and Lumi. "You hear me?"

"I… I hear you." Felix, apparently unable to think up another comeback, ducked his head in submission to his father. His littermates quickly dipped their heads respectfully, too. After a pause, Felix glanced upward again. "Can we go over and ask now?"

"Most certainly not. You've proved yourself immature enough for today, I think. You can try again during tomorrow's training session."

"Oh." Felix's ears flattened. "Okay."

Cephas flicked his tail at his kits. "In fact, I think it's time for us all to go back up to the main cavern. Felix, you need to get dry again, and I'm sure your mother would love to help you while you explain exactly what happened down here." As Felix's eyes filled with horror, Cephas continued, "In fact, I think I'd very much enjoy helping you tell the entire story, just in case you leave something out."

The gray Bengal tom started toward the tunnel again. Rather put out at the abrupt end to their fun, the three kits trailed a little ways behind him, their tails down. Felix looked especially forlorn as he cast one last glance over his shoulder at the Sun Pool and beyond, through the narrow exit into the outside world. Then, realizing he was being left behind, he trotted hastily after his family.

"Should we maybe go, too?" I suggested.

"Yeah… I suppose so, if you're done for today." Caspian shot me an inquisitive glance and I nodded. "Okay. But how about you dry off your paw first, since it shouldn't take all that much time?"

"Oh. Okay." Bending, I gave my foreleg a few licks, wiping off the majority of the moisture. After a couple heartbeats, though, I noticed Caspian was no longer beside me. Straightening, I glanced around and located him padding toward the exit. What's he doing?

I soon realized what was on Caspian's mind as he settled himself beside Theola, who was still silently sitting guard.

"Hey, Theola," Caspian meowed, puffing out his chest a little. "How's the shift going?"

The blue-cream tortoiseshell blinked a little, as though startled he would speak to her. "Um, fine," she murmured softly.

Caspian squinted out into the forest. "Bit bright, isn't it?" he asked casually. "It seems the sun's come out at last."

"It won't last," Theola meowed in her quiet voice.

"What? Why not?"

"It'll snow tonight."

Caspian's whiskers drooped a little. "Well, that's disappointing, isn't it? I was looking forward to a bit of sunshine. Ah, well. I guess once Melting-Time arrives we'll get more sun than we really want. We should probably treasure the snow while it's still here."

Theola lifted her shoulders marginally in what must have been a shrug and didn't reply.

"You know what?" Caspian continued, breaking the descending silence, "I haven't really been out to enjoy the snow yet. Do you like playing in the snow? We could go out together and, I dunno, throw snow at each other or something. Or," he added hastily, "uh, we could just sit and enjoy the quiet and the peacefulness, if that's more your thing."

Theola shrugged again. "Saffron wanted to go hunting tomorrow. She'll probably have herb gathering later, too."

"Oh." Caspian's tail dropped a couple pawsteps. "Well… how about I join you two? Or you could let Saffron go off on her own to gather herbs and we could go for a walk?" he added hopefully.

Theola shook her head. "Saffron needs my help."

"Oh, okay. Well, I'll ask her if I can join you two anyway. How about that? We could go gathering herbs together and enjoy the quiet peacefulness at the same time!"

Theola shrugged and didn't reply. After a moment, Caspian nodded a little awkwardly. "Uh, okay then. I'll see you tomorrow, then?"

"Okay."

Caspian shot Theola a quick, lopsided grin, then retreated back to my side. As he got within reach, I gave him a playful nudge in the shoulder. "What was that?" I teased.

"Come on. You said you wanted to go get dry again, right?" Caspian began shunting me toward the tunnel, though still trying to look as though walking normally. I snorted with laughter and, as we entered the cool shadows once more, I started again.

"Are you and Theola, like, a thing?"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"You sure about that?"

Caspian didn't reply. I imagined him rolling his eyes and snorted with laughter.

"I can't wait to see the two of you tomorrow, walking out of the cavern with your tails twined, off to enjoy—"

"Oh, shut up."

I raised my voice. "Off to enjoy a long, romantic walk together in the quiet snow!"

"I said to shut up!"

"Yeah, and I didn't listen!"

"Hey, who's the fully fledged Avanti here?"

"Uh, me?"

"No! And if you don't respect your superiors, I'll, um—"

"You'll what?"

"Don't interrupt me! I'll have you cleaning out the kits' bedding for the next three moons!"

"Aw, I get to play with them! That'd be so much fun!"

"Hey! No fun allowed!"

I began to see the light filtering in ahead. "It's tough not to have fun with the kits around," I meowed sagely.

"Okay, okay. Fine. Uhhh… I'll have you, um, cleaning the bedding for the sick cats, then! You can check them for ticks and clear away their dirt if they're too sick to move, and—"

"Ooh, easy peasy! I'm not sure if you've noticed, but we don't have any sick cats at the moment."

Caspian growled good-naturedly behind me. "You're lucky you're still injured, because otherwise I'd give you a good walloping! It'd teach you to talk back to your elders."

"Oh, yeah, because you're such an elderly cat. Riiiiiight."

We emerged into the main cavern and I glanced around, blinking in the light. Almost immediately, I spotted Peter lounging with Simon beside the prey-pile. My heart leaped up into my throat and I remembered my decision to follow him around as much as possible. How much had I missed of his conversation already?

"I don't have to talk to you anymore, you know." Caspian stalked past me with his nose dramatically high in the air. "I'm allowed outside, unlike someone."

"Oh? You sure about that?" I raised my eyebrow, hoping to encourage him to follow through with his suggestion. If Caspian left me to my own devices, I could easily go grab something from the pile and pick at it while I listened in to Peter's conversation.

"Of course I am. Why wouldn't I?"

"Prove it."

Caspian shot me a look over his shoulder. I tried to plaster my face with the most innocent expression I could. The ghost tabby tom snorted, but, lifting his tail jauntily high, swaggered toward the entrance tunnel. I fought hard to keep the grin off my face.

"Here I go-o!" Caspian tossed his head with a flourish. "Off to explore without you!"

"Yeah, but I bet it won't be that much fun!" I shot back. "Your special someone's not with you, after all!"

"Not listening!" Caspian trotted off down the tunnel, his paws lifting high into the air with each step. Smirking to myself, I watched him until he rounded a bend and was hidden from view. As soon as he disappeared, I sprang into action, padding swiftly over toward the pile of prey and snagging a small rodent from the top. Carrying my tiny meal in my jaws, I settled myself several tail-lengths behind Peter's sprawled form, close enough to hear every word but not quite close enough to attract his attention. Dropping what I now saw was a skinny mouse, I took a small bite.

"I mean," Peter meowed in his loud voice, "I told Kahuna she should send out extra hunting parties today, since I heard it's going to snow tomorrow. It'd send all the prey right back into their burrows, you know! Definitely not good for hunting!"

"True," Simon agreed between rasps of his tongue. Leaning forward, he moved from his chest down toward his belly, cleaning it of a dried mixture of grit and snow.

"I know! I tried to make Kahuna see reason, you know, but she just won't listen! I wonder if there's something else on her mind?"

My ears pricked up. Then I realized that was probably a dead giveaway I was listening in and tried my best to relax them again. But my mind still buzzed at his question and I shifted onto my other side to hear better. Was this, possibly, about her plan? And so soon after I'd started listening in? I could hardly believe my good luck.

Simon merely shrugged in reply, but for once Peter let the silence drag on, apparently waiting for a real response. I felt tension building within me and tried to let it out covertly by twitching the end of my tail back and forth, but it didn't work that well. I took another miniscule bite and chewed, biting down extra hard.

"She might," Simon finally consented. "But who am I to know the intricacies of the guru's mental processes?"

Peter snorted. "Yeah, I guess. I heard she went out to sniff around the borders a bit this morning, to try and see if Nova'd been sticking his nose anywhere near here."

"Hmm. And did she?"

"Did she find anything? Ffff, how am I supposed to know? She isn't back yet."

Simon returned to his somewhat dirty belly fur. "You spoke in the past tense. I assumed."

"Well, you always know it's bad to assume." Peter rolled his eyes. "You know, someone could just be putting up a clever façade. Maybe they're not who they say they are."

My stomach clenched. Was he talking about me? Or maybe Phantom? I took a larger bite, just in case he was looking in my direction, trying to see if I was eavesdropping. Nope, nothing to see here. Just enjoying this lovely mouse here. Nothing to do with your conversation, nope, not at all.

"Soooo…" Peter's voice broke the descending silence. "I think I saw you with Saffron the other day. Eh? Eh?" He gave Simon a light nudge.

Surprisingly, Simon didn't react. Kudos to you, Simon;Iprobably would've. Rasping his tongue in a rather dignified manner along his haunch, Simon cast Peter a disapproving look. "Saffron would take you as her mate about fifty times over before she'd even consider me," he meowed coolly.

"You know it," Peter snorted. "But, what, that doesn't bug you at all?"

"Not in the slightest."

"Oh, c'mon! You're no fun!"

"I'd take you as my mate fifty times over before I'd consider her."

"Oh, gross! Simon, we're brothers!"

"Only proves my point." Simon returned to his grooming.

After chortling softly to himself, Peter leaned a little closer. "You know," he whispered (though still loudly enough for me to hear easily), "if you don't get a move on you'll be forever alone."

"Yes, I do believe I should listen to you, the tom who has nursed a burning passion for the guru, of all cats, ever since he was seven moons old."

"Hey, I do not nurse a burning passion!"

"Could've fooled me."

Peter scoffed, his mouth falling open, though nothing came out for several moments. "I can't believe you!"

Simon apparently didn't deem Peter worthy of a reply and went on nibbling at his claws, stripping off a layer of the sheath and spitting it carelessly onto the ground. It bounced once on the cold stone and came to rest close to Peter's paw.

"You know," Peter meowed, poking a toe at the semi-translucent curl, "if everyone in the tribe did that, we'd soon be treading on bits of claw instead of rock. It'd be a bit sharp, don't you think?"

"Good thing not everyone does it then."

"You're missing my point." Peter shot Simon a look, which Simon didn't return. "You should do that in the dirt-cave or something."

"Like I want to clean myself surrounded by other cats' feces." Simon shook his head. "Honestly."

"Or you could go outside. You could just, like, flick it into the bushes or something. Then it wouldn't get in any cats' way."

"I would probably contract hypothermia along the way. I'm sure Cephas would love nursing me back to health instead of playing with his kits."

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Drama squirrel."

"Who are you calling a drama squirrel?"

"You." Peter smirked, apparently proud of getting a rise out of his brother.

Simon rolled his eyes and returned to his washing. "Squirrels can't talk, so how can they be dramatic?" he muttered. "It doesn't make sense."

"The world doesn't have to make sense, Simon. It's okay."

"Now you're belittling me."

"Naw. Really? I didn't realize!" Peter recoiled, his mouth widening in horror, then burst out laughing. Even Simon snorted a little. "What?"

"Oh, nothing." Simon continued grooming himself, still smirking.

The last of my mouse was gone. I poked my tongue around behind my teeth, making sure I got every last scrap, then sighed. It didn't seem like I'd be hearing anything of importance after all. Maybe I should go hang out with Fable and Lumi again while Felix was still drying his fur.

"What?" Peter leaned forward. "C'mon, you can tell me. I'm your brother, after all."

"A very unobservant brother, apparently."

"What?" This time, Peter's voice was filled not with lingering humor, but with genuine confusion. He tilted his head to one side.

"Oh, it's nothing, really. Just your girlfriend's back."

What? I scanned the entrance and, sure enough, spotted a regal-looking blue point she-cat padding purposefully toward her cave.

Peter's head shot up, staring around the cavern. After a moment, he fully comprehended what Simon had said and gave him a shove. "Kahuna is the guru," he said pompously, "and she should be treated with respect." He got to his paws. "And I think I've just about finished with your sarcasm for today."

"Going to ask her how her morning went?" Simon turned his attention back to his hind legs. "Good luck."

Maybe today I was going to overhear something useful, after all. I got slowly to my paws, wondering how I could fake needing to lie right at the entrance to Kahuna's den. After a moment of frantic searching, I spotted a rather unfamiliar brown patched tom padding slowly out of the medics' tunnel. Aha.

Abandoning the remains of my mouse, I sped across the cavern as fast as my lopsided gait could manage, managing to cut the tom off right as he passed the guru's den. Both Kahuna's and Peter's scents were fresh, leading directly inside. My heart leaped; if I played this right, I might just get to listen in on another secret meeting.

"Heya!" I grinned at the tom, who I now saw had one of his eyelids tightly shut. No wonder he was walking so slowly; his depth perception must've been all wonky. "I'm Rae. Don't think I've met you yet, funnily enough!"

The tom blinked his good eye slowly, not saying a word. And this is why we haven't yet talked,I thought. He doesn't exactly seem to be the loudest cat ever.

"Uh, what's your name?"

"Emil." The tom's eyebrows tilted upwards a little, as if in confusion. Ooh, yeah. Whoops. That might not have been the best idea of mine, to just waltz up to him and start shouting in his face.

"Uh, cool name." I tried to lower my voice a bit. "Um… how'd you get that eye injury?"

Emil shrugged. "Thorn scratched it."

He's about as talkative as Simon, I remarked to myself. Those two should talk sometime. Or, I guess, there wouldn't be much talking going on. Maybe they could communicate telepathically or something.

From inside the cave, I suddenly heard a voice. "Peter, I've already told you!"

My stomach flipped as I realized I could barely hear what they were saying. Shuffling around closer to the den's entrance, I meowed, "Well, uh, I guess I shouldn't keep you. I'm sure you've got some very important stuff to do, right? Uh, I'll, uh, see you around sometime."

Emil blinked again, his eyebrows remaining fixed right where they were, or possibly even inclining a bit more. Ugh, great first impression, Ravenpaw. I bet he'll be really enthusiastic about our second meeting. Yaksha, he probably thinks I'm insane or something.

After an awkward pause, Emil began shuffling off again, apparently heading aimlessly for the prey-pile. After breathing a soft sigh of part relief and part exasperation at myself, I turned my attention behind me, into the guru's cave (though kept my eyes fixed on Emil's back to look more natural to other cats).

Kahuna's voice again echoed out of the tunnel's entrance, just loudly enough for my ears to pick up. "If you'll excuse me, I do happen to have things to do."

"I don't know why you're so determined to keep this from me!" Peter half growled. "Haven't I given you endless examples of my loyalty to the Avanti Tribe? To you?"

"I don't see why I'm required to tell you everything I'm planning. Even if you are loyal—"

"Which I am."

"Don't you interrupt me again," Kahuna hissed. I suddenly imagined a snake lifting its body high into the air, its hood unfurling and its long, venomous fangs exposed. After a moment of utter silence, she started again. "Even if you are loyal, you are not the guru. I am your superior and I feel justified in demanding your respect."

"But I could help," Peter protested, sounding a bit less formal and a bit more like the way he'd been with Simon out in the cavern.

"I happen to already have all the help I need, thank you very much. It is, after all, best to keep this mission between as few cats as possible."

A mission? That sounded an awful lot like a plan. But it must be something different, right? Because it was Peter who was trying to convince the Rebellion to give up the plans in the first place?

"I won't tell anyone. You know me, I can keep a secret until the day I die."

"Still, I'd prefer to keep the details as secret as possible."

Peter snorted. "I already know some things. I've—"

Kahuna's voice barked out over Peter's, every syllable filled with her snake venom. "What did he tell you?"

"Nothing. He's being very secretive, just as you no doubt ordered." Despite how I normally felt about Peter, I couldn't help but allow the formation of a tiny bit of admiration for him. I wasn't sure if I'd have been able to reply in such an expressionless, monotonous voice to an attack like that.

"Good." Kahuna's voice had calmed to its regular tone already. It was a bit unnerving how quickly she could switch between the two.

"As I was saying, before you so rudely interrupted me," Peter continued pointedly, "I've seen him scooting out of the den on odd nights, sneaking around the territory, helping you carry out your oh-so-precious, oh-so-secretive plan."

My throat snapped shut, trapping my breath inside. So that was the plan. But Peter wasn't part of it. Could I have mistaken another cat for him? But then… which one was in on it? And why would Kahuna trust him instead of Peter, who so vocally insisted he wouldn't ever let her down? My eyes roved around the cave, wondering if the cat in question was within my sight at this very moment.

"Very well, you've made your point clear." Kahuna's crisp words reached my ears once more. "However, I stand by my previous decision. You are not directly needed in furthering the plan, and so you will not be informed of its contents. Please leave my den; as I said before, I have work to do."

Peter huffed loudly, but didn't protest any more. His pawsteps echoed up the tunnel and I edged covertly to the side, hoping he wouldn't ask any awkward questions about why I'd followed him from the prey-pile to here. However, he didn't seem to notice me at all as he burst out of Kahuna's den, his fur ruffled in anger and his tail lashing. As I watched, he cast one cold glare across the cavern before stalking off toward the main entrance.

My heart beating rapidly, I followed his gaze. Could it be…? But no, that wouldn't make sense.

Except it would, I thought suddenly. It would! I bet that's why I mixed them up in the first place, since their voices are so similar. But as my eyes landed on the cat in question, I couldn't help but feel a bit of disparity in Peter's actions. After all, hadn't I just seen them joking around together only a few moments ago?

It was his brother. Simon.

Simon was the spy.

And thus, the plot thickens. Sorta.

Okay, I kind of wanted to save this for the end, since more of you would probably remember than if I'd mentioned something at the beginning of the chapter. I'm considering changing my pen name to something different in the new year. I've got a poll set up on my profile about which name I should change it to, and it would be amazing if you could go give your opinion on it! I'll probably change it after the new year, so it's like a thing that changes with the new year or whatever (and also my birthday I suppose, though that's a little later in the month). Anyway, if you really really want me to keep the pen name I have, then I'll have an option for that, too, though I probably would prefer if you voted for something different, if that's okay. ^^'

QOTD1: What do you think of Cephas's parenting style?

AOTD1: I'm not going to say much here, since I'm curious to see your answers, but I will say he does care about his kits a lot, which is kinda cute (cue the art idea).

QOTD2: Do you have any sort of winter break around nowish? If so, are you doing anything fun for it?

AOTD2: I think I sort of mentioned this above, but I'm not really doing anything over the next two weeks. My immediate family will be home and we'll probably have an extended family dinner on Christmas, but otherwise nothing much. Should be fairly relaxing, at least.