Yo, guys. Yeah, I changed my pen name...you can still call me Tempest, though. Anyway, I was gonna save this update until after I finished rewriting the other chapters, but school threw a wrench in that plan. Enjoy, I guess. Starting next week, I am going to update every other Friday, until I finish rewriting previous chapters, in which case I'll update every Friday, unless noted otherwise. That is a promise.

She knew.

I could tell the minute I groggily opened my eyes. Spottedleaf stared at my with a forlorn look in her amber eyes. She didn't look angry, or even appear to hold any accusation in her gaze. She just looked...disappointed.

I killed Featherwhisker. I killed her mentor.

Al was still curled up is the corner, snoring gently. Spottedleaf barely held my gaze for more than a heartbeat before she looked away and padded to his side, placing a paw on his chest to check on his breathing. I looked away, scoffing weakly to myself.

I don't know why I did it.

To protect Al? No, that wasn't it. Featherwhisker might have been our ticket home. I only created more danger for my brother and me by killing him.

Why was I dwelling on it?

It wasn't as though I'd never seen death or even caused it before. Usually, though, it was because killing simply couldn't be avoided. It would be a lie if I said I hadn't felt guilty about another's death, even if I hadn't directly caused it, but I had never felt the same ball of ice pooling in my gut over a death.

I couldn't live my life as a ThunderClan warrior.

That much, I had known since coming here, but it had only fully registered at that moment. It hit me, painfully hard, like a brick to the head, with the severity of our current situation, Al's and mine. Something had to be done, obviously.

My thoughts were groggy and jumbled, and it took all the willpower in my body to keep from puking or passing out. Slowly, painstakingly so, I sat up in my nest with a loud groan. The world blurred and danced before me, and I forced myself to blink until everything came into focus.

Spottedleaf had evidently left the den, as Al and I were alone. I dragged myself over to his nest, then promptly collapsed by his side and turned away to vomit. My shoulders trembled and shook violently as a surrendered and allowed nature to reverse itself, voiding the contents of my stomach and splattering them onto the sandy floor. After a moment, I finished with a dry heave and a grimace, scraping a layer of gritty earth over the acidic puddle, gagging at the stench.

To my relief, Al was still sleeping soundly. I leaned over him, watching the rhythmic rise and fall of his chest. Over the sound of his gentle snoring, I hadn't heard Spottedleaf return. She didn't speak, just brushed past me in the narrow den, startling me, then got to work sorting herbs. I watched her from the corner of my eye, then decided to get out of her way and vacated the den.

Things were continuing as normal in camp. Ravenwing wasn't around, as far as I could tell, but Greystripe and Fireheart were still within my line of vision, sitting under the same tree they'd been by when I first arrived at ThunderClan, chatting over a freshly killed blue jay. Hesitating for a heartbeat, I made my way over to the two warriors, flicking my ears in greeting.

"Hey, Metalwing!" Greystripe greeted with a pleasantly surprised gleam in his eyes. Fireheart blinked, surprised, then murmured a greeting.

"Greystripe, Fireheart." I returned the greeting with a nod.

"What brings you here, shrimp?" the fluffy grey warrior teased, lifting a paw to gently nudge me in the side. I growled softly, biting back an indignant hiss. Still, I stood on my toes and puffed out my chest, trying to ignore the height difference between the other warriors and me.

Fireheart chuckled softly, but I could tell it was halfhearted. There was an unbearable tension in the air, and I knew the others realized it.

"Have you guys seen Ravenwing?" I asked finally.

"Hunting." Greystripe replied simply, licking a forepaw.

An irritated sigh and half a headache later, I watched Fireheart push a layer of earth over the remains of the blue jay and stand to leave, Greystripe mirroring the last action. They paused for a moment to see if I would follow. I stayed put, and, shrugging, they started to pad away.

"Wait, Greystripe!" I called, remembering the reason I had approached them in the first place. "We should team up! You guys, Ravenwing, and me!"

Greystripe didn't look over his shoulder, nor did he slow his pace. He merely waved his tail to show that he heard, and called back "We'll think about it," in a tone that undoubtedly said "yes", his words carried to me on the breeze.

I didn't have much time to sit and watch the duo pad to the warriors' den, presumably to take a nap. Ravenwing, Dustpelt, and Longtail returned to camp a moment later, each with a bird or a mouse between their jaws. Once the catch had been deposited on the fresh-kill pile, Dustpelt went back out, this time with Sandstorm following briskly, and Longtail dozed off under a tree. Ravenwing, on the other paw, scanned the camp for a moment until he spotted me. The black and white apprentice bounded over, his tail waving in greeting.

"Hi, Metalwing!" he chirped, butting heads with me in a friendly gesture. "You were smirking and looking over at Greystripe and Fireheart. Make friends?"

"Yeah, Raven," I chuckled, reaching up with my metal paw to ruffle the fur on his head like brothers sometimes do. "I guess I did."