Epilogue
A ginger tom paced anxiously before the nursery, claws unsheathed and shredding the ground beneath his paws. What was taking so long? Were her injuries acting up again? Unable to take the suspense any longer, he ducked into the nursery, nearly running into the tortoiseshell coming out. The she-cat whispered, "They are here," before slipping back inside. The tom quietly followed and gasped in relief as he saw the sleek, dark gray spotted she-cat, three tiny kits curled in the crook of her belly.
The silvery-furred she-cat glanced up at the white-pawed tom and smiled in happiness. "Meet Birdkit, Mousekit, and Squirrelkit."
Birdkit, the smallest, looked like a tiny replica of her mother, while Squirrelkit looked like her father. Mousekit, on the other hand, had a much more haunting similarity.
"She looks just like Copperstar, doesn't she?"
The tom was shocked at his mate's analysis then said, "You're right."
The queen looked into her mate's eyes then asked, "Russetclaw, what's the matter?"
For a moment the tom hesitated then said, "Nothing, Sealstar… Nothing at all…"
The queen just laughed, "I thought I told you to call me Seal, Russet!"
"…And then she lunged forewords, teeth tearing deep into the fearful leader's throat. The leader, though, managed to deal a deathblow of her own. We all thought the infamous leader of the rebellion had finally lost when we finally won, but, by the biggest stroke of luck, the four medicine cats managed to seal the wound long enough to bring her to the RiverClan camp and heal her wounds. It took several moons, but eventually, the rebellion's leader had been brought back from the dead. And the first thing she did was restore order to the four Clans, end the destruction of half- and multi-Clan cats, and take up the reigns of ThunderClan, left without a leader and deputy, since both had been killed in the recent battle and a proper replacement had yet to be found."
The three apprentices waited for more of the story from their mother, and then realized it was over. The youngest, a she-cat just like the one that had told the story, asked, "Who was the leader of the rebellion?"
For a moment their mother hesitated. Then she leaned forewords and whispered, "You have to keep this a secret, okay?"
The three she-cats nodded their heads then their eyes widened as the queen told them, "I was the leader of the rebellion."
The oldest, a ginger one with white paws, asked, "You were?"
Their mother, Sealstar, nodded her head then added, "It was all because of my father. He… he had died saving me from Yarrowstar, one of the old ThunderClan leaders… He told me to run, but I thought I would never get very far. Then he told me I'd always have the strength to go on. It was my only memory of him, besides at the Gathering that night."
The three kits sighed, "We'll never be as big and strong as you, mom. You're awesome!"
The she-cat just laughed, "Yes you will. You can and will."
"But how?" the three asked. The middle one, a golden-rusty she-cat, stepped forewords and said, "How can we ever hope to live up to your legacy?"
Sealstar's only answer was, "Just remember what my father told me, Birdpaw, Mousepaw, and Squirrelpaw."
"What?" The three all took another step closer as their mother bent forewords to whisper something to them.
"You will always have the strength to go on…"