I had to work on my one-shot There Never Was a Sweeter Apple (MLP FiM), so I didn't get the chance to do this earlier. Anyways, hope you liked it! I would like to thank Rosefur of thunderclan and Invisia for their reviews! I lurve you guys!

Review Answers:

Rosefur of thunderclan: I know, I will certainly miss those two being together. I hope this chapter was soon enough for you!

Invisia: Thank you so much! I'm so glad that you liked my story so much, but I must argue that my story is far from perfect. I do try to keep the cannon characters true to their original personalities. Anyways, thanks, again!

Ivypool POV

Sandstorm, Graystripe, and Millie helped Purdy carry the five bodies out of camp to be buried among their fallen clanmates. The three senior warriors planned to have their elder ceremonies at sunset.

The clan was still very shaken from yesterday's battle with ShadowClan. Everyone was still on edge, their ears constantly pricked, waiting for another ambush. Of course, ShadowClan had suffered nearly as badly as ThunderClan, so they couldn't really afford another fight so soon. You never knew with ShadowClan warriors, though. It seemed wrong to have lost so many cats in such a short span of time. And with Sandstorm, Graystripe, and Millie moving into the elders' den, they were losing more warriors still.

Ivypool still felt awful for completely missing the battle. On the night of her break-up with Tigerheart, she had fallen asleep in the bramble bush, and slept in late the next morning. Still tired and sad, she had taken her time getting up and walking back to camp. By the time she had gotten there, the stone hollow was near destroyed.

Ivypool gripped a bramble tendril in between her jaws pushed it into the growing wall of thorns to weave it through the other bows. Toadstep passed her another from the pile that Molepaw, Seedpaw, and Lilypaw had collected. Ivypool was feeling very awkward and exhausted today. She constantly felt like she was going to wretch, but if there was anyone to keep their mouth shut, it was Ivypool.

Careful not to get any thorns in her mouth, Ivypool grasped the the branch and tangled it amongst the others of its kind. She repeated this procedure over and over again until the pile of briars disappeared. Squirrelflight bounded over to survey their work.

"Nice job!" she praised. "Now, let me see- oh yeah! We need another hunting patrol! You two pick one or two other cats and see what you can find. Okay?"

Ivypool and Toadstep nodded mutely, and a satisfied Squirrelflight scampered away to check on the progress of the other cats working around camp.

But I don't want to go hunting! I want to go back to bed! Ivypool though, exasperated. She kicked herself for thinking like that. You be quiet, Ivypool! she told herself. The morning's hardly over and you're already complaining! What's wrong with you?

She and Toadstep approached Icecloud and Rosepetal, who were sharing tongues. Ivypool hated to ask them to come hunting, because Icecloud was grieving over Dustpelt and Foxleap, and Rosepetal had lost her father, Spiderleg, just the other day, but there weren't many other options. All the other cats were either out hunting and patrolling or repairing the camp.

"Icecloud, Rosepetal, will you come on a hunting patrol with us?" Toadstep asked. "There probably isn't much prey left, but Squirrelflight said to see what we can find."

"Sure! C'mon, Icecloud!" Rosepetal mewed, rising from her seat. Icecloud smiled weakly, and also stood up, though her posture sagged.

The four cats exited the busy encampment, the atmosphere being tensed but politely friendly. They walked through the camp entrance in silence, the cold prickling their skin and the day-old snow crinkling in between their toes, each lost in their own thoughts.

Despite the saddening tone of the wind's voice, and the sullen gray of the forest's shadows, Ivypool's personel little world was at peace. She no longer had to worry about running away with Tigerheart, or Dovewing's approval of their relationship. Her life was once again simple and glad, like it should be.

Ivypool picked up her pace to flank Toadstep. They walked close together, their coats brushing, sharing their body heat between the two of them. Ivypool knew that she was where she belonged, beside him. She knew that she wanted to spend every moment of her life knowing that Toadstep was safe, and that he belonged to her.

Every motion pained Ivypool. Every step, a sharp prick shot through her leg, and her stomach gurgled. She felt strangely large. How could it be possible that she was extra plump? It was the middle of leaf-bare, and she hadn't had enough to eat for the last moon, it seemed.

"I smell something," Rosepetal whispered. Ivypool, Toadstep, and Icecloud each ducked down. Sure enough, just ahead, a red squirrel was digging up a stash of acorns. Deeply engaged in its task, the squirrel was completely oblivious to the four hunters crouched behind a fern less than three fox-length's away from it.

Rosepetal stalked forward without a sound, slowly advancing. Ivypool watched intently, her mouth watering. She could already taste the squirrel meat, though it probably wouldn't be her eating it.

Then, Ivypool's stomach jolted. No, something in her stomach jolted. Something was kicking around inside of her. Ivypool let out a high-pitched shriek of surprise, and the clamped her jaws closed, too late, as she realized her mistake.

The squirrel sat up, abruptly alert. It spotted Rosepetal, who was now only one fox-length away from it. The squirrel chirped in surprise, dropped its nut, and darted up the tree. Rosepetal raced after it, snapping at the empty air, but the squirrel was already gone. "Mouse dung!" she cursed.

Toadstep looked at Ivypool. "What's the matter, Ivypool?" he asked, concerned. Ivypool began to tremble. She opened her mouth, and then closed it again. Icecloud and Rosepetal stared at her in confusion.

"I-I need..." she stammered, half-regaining her voice. "I need to g-go to Jayfea-feather!"

Ivypool broke into an anxious run, leaving her friends in the dust. Her muscles screamed in protest, but she ignored the aching of her limbs. She needed to see Jayfeather or Leafpool now and not later.

"Wait, Ivypool!" Toadstep called from behind, his voice muffled by the distance.

Ivypool didn't wait. She ran and ran and ran as fast as her hurting legs would carry her until she reached skidded into the medicine den. Jayfeather looked up from where he was sorting herbs. Briarlight stopped humming and cocked her head.

"Hey, Ivypool! What's wrong?" she asked, her voice as cheery as usual. Leafpool entered the den, summoned by the sudden commotion.

"What's going on?" she questioned, urgency sharpening her tone. She looked at Ivypool, whose eyes were still centered on Jayfeather. "What happened, Ivypool?"

Ivypool didn't look away from Jayfeather's vivid blue gaze. She knew she looked silly standing stiffly in the middle of the den, hackles raised and claws unsheathed as if she were about to attack. "Jayfeather! Am I-I... Am I pregnant?!" she demanded, her voice rising as alarm boiled through her body. Her heart beat rapidly, and her chest heaved from the rush of running so far so fast in her tired state.

Jayfeather bit his lip, moving closer to inspect Ivypool's body. "Have you been feeling sick lately, like you were going to vomit?" he asked, kneading her pudgy belly with his paws.

"Um, yes. And just now I felt a kick," Ivypool reported, staring at his face to try and read his emotions, but it was impossible to decipher his mask of solitude.

Jayfeather pressed an ear against Ivypool's barrel, listening for the tiny utterings of unborn kits. Slowly, he nodded. "I think so, yes," he confirmed softly. Then his nodding became more confident. "Yes, you are pregnant. Congratulations, Ivypool!" Jayfeather's muzzle curved into a crooked smile.

Ivypool sucked in a breath loudly, her eyes widening. She was carrying kits. There were kits in her belly, and they were going to be born, and Ivypool was going to raise them. The question was, who had sired them?

"Oh, that's wonderful, Ivypool!" Briarlight clucked, dragging herself forward slightly. Ivypool could see the envy glinting in her amber eyes. Briarlight couldn't have kits. But Ivypool was too caught up in her own feelings to feel pity for the injured she-cat. She had her own issues.

Ivypool didn't want Tigerheart's kits. She wasn't his mate, she was Toadstep's. At least she knew that much. But it was likely that Tigerheart was the father. She had been with both Toadstep and Tigerheart throughout the last moon. She had no idea who the sire was.

What if the clan found out? How would her clan react to not one, but both sisters being involved with the same cat from ShadowClan. If one of the kits looked like him, they would be suspicious. Ivypool swallowed, a sour flavor forming in the back of her throat. Her tongue prickled, eager to speak, but lacking the correct words.

So now Ivypool was harboring kits. Now it was only a matter of getting the news out, and figuring out who the kits belonged to.

Ivypool padded in step with her sister, concentrating the noise of their pawsteps in the snow. The moon's light pooled dimly into the forest, its silvery glow dripping off of the leaves and creating luminous puddles on the forest floor. Ivypool recalled another night, just a few days ago, when she had walked through this very forest beside her sister, meeting the same ShadowClan tom. The only differences were that the moon was slimmer, they were traveling towards the Twolegplace instead of towards ShadowClan territory, and they were carrying three kits instead of two.

A tear trickled down Ivypool's cheek, sliding down until it collected itself in the hollow of her chin, and then it was drawn down, down, down by gravity and landed without a sound in the snow. The tear was so tiny. It had been born, bringing with it swirls of emotion. It had lived a brief life, careening towards what appeared to be a bright future. But then, just as quickly as it had arrived, it had unceremoniously died, falling away to join the other other droplets of liquid now encased in ice in the snow.

Applekit. If only Ivypool had been at the battle, at least she might've been able to help. Maybe she could've prevented her death, and changed the horrendous outcome of a series of trivial mistakes. Even if she hadn't been able to help, at least she would have the satisfaction of knowing that there was nothing that she could've done. But now, Applekit was in StarClan, and there was no way of knowing how things would've changed if Ivypool had been present.

Ivypool and Dovewing reached the boundary. Tigerheart was standing just beyond the scent marker. He grinned warmly at Dovewing.

"You came!" he greeted, his amber eyes glistening in the dim light. His gaze turned colder as it whisked over Ivypool. "Ivypool, what are you doing here?"

Ivypool set Beaverkit down on the snowy earth, and took a defensive step backwards. "I came to say good-bye, before you leave," she reproached, staring coolly back at him.

Tigerheart offered her a tight nod of acceptance, and then turned his attention back to the kits. Dovewing lighted Beekit down as well. The two tom-kits pattered cautiously up to Tigerheart, their proportionally large eyes were bright and wide.

"Father?" Beaverkit asked, taking a little step towards the ShadowClan tom. Tigerheart nodded with a deep chuckle, and lowered his head to nuzzle the tiny tom, who looked like a smaller copy of him. He turned his head to nuzzle Beekit as well.

"Hey, Beaverkit, Beekit," he whispered. "I wanted you two to know that I am so proud of you, and I will never stop thinking of you," he said tenderly. The two kits looked back at him curiously.

"Are you going to come to live with us in ThunderClan?" Beekit asked. "Is that why we came here, to bring you back with us?"

Tigerheart smiled sadly. "No, Beekit. You came so that we could say good-by. I'm going to have to go away now, and you probably won't see me again. I'm going to miss you very much." Tigerheart lifted his head back up and stood up straight to look down at his kits, his chest swelling with pride. A low purr echoed in his throat

"Are you going to where Applekit went?" Beaverkit mewled. Ivypool could see his eyes watering. "Why didn't she come to say good-bye?"

Tigerheart shook his head again, his smile disappearing. "No, I'm going to a different place. But someday, in a very long time, I'll go to that place, and you will, too. And when that happens, we will all be together as a family. You two, Applekit, your mother, and me," he assured the two kits. He looked at Dovewing. "Someday."

Tigerheart took a step towards Dovewing. She closed the distance between them, gently pressing her nose to his. Then she broke away from him, looking him in the eye.

"I don't regret a thing, Tigerheart. But I know where my place is now," she informed him, her voice warm. Tigerheart nodded, not severing their connection.

"As do I. I don't regret a thing either." The two cats continued to stare at each other, drinking in each other scents. They stood, unsmiling, each just watching the others' subtle movements. Ivypool's temper flared. She cleared her throat loudly. Dovewing and Tigerheart turned her way.

"Uh... Anyways, I'm sorry that you, um- you know, got exiled and all," Ivypool stuttered. She felt suffocated, or as though she had forgotten how to make conversation. Tigerheart shrugged.

"I guess it's the best situation. There's nothing really left for me here. I wanted to leave anyways, though under different circumstances," Tigerheart mewed, his eyes scorching Ivypool's pelt. Ivypool didn't look up. "Actually, I think it may be..." he trailed off, staring up at the stars, deep in thought. He looked back at Ivypool and Dovewing. "I think my true destiny may lie outside of the clans."

Ivypool pondered over Tigerheart's prediction. It actually did make some sense. Tigerheart was a ShadowClan warrior, at heart, but maybe he didn't belong in the clans. He seemed to intentionally look for trouble, having taken part in affairs with two she-cats from other clans. A cat like him should have a different kind of freedom. Tigerheart craved liberty, she could see it him.

I hardly know him! Ivypool thought. I thought I was in love with him for less than two moons, and that's it. I never really took the time to get to know him. She recalled his fury the other night. She had never seen that in him before, and it was because she didn't know him well enough. This reinforced her impression that it had all been a silly mistake. When he had lashed out at her, she had been frightened. She did not want to feel that way. The things that had been said...

"You were going to warn me, that's what you were going to say!" Ivypool blurted, realizing her misstep. "The other night, when I was telling you that I wanted to stop meeting you, you were going to tell me something. You were going to warn me about the attack on the camp, weren't you?"

Tigerheart nodded curtly. "Yeah, I was."

Ivypool remained quiet, as did Dovewing. After a few wordless moments, Tigerheart broke the silence. "So how are your clanmates treating you, now that they know that truth?" he meowed casually. It was Dovewing's turn to shrug.

"I don't know. I guess it's alright. My family, Whitewing, Birchfall, Cloudtail, Birchfall" Dovewing coughed. "And Bumblestripe, have forgiven me. But some of the others, like Thornclaw, Mousewhisker, and Dustpelt, they think I'm about to turn on them in a second."

Tigerheart nodded, a sympathetic look in his eyes. Ivypool frowned. She had heard cats whispering about the question of Dovewing's loyalty. Molepaw had refused to give the fresh-kill he had caught to the "code-breaking queen".

"I better go now," Tigerheart whispered, still looking at his paws sorrowfully.

"Do you have to go?" Beekit whined.

"I'm sure Firestar would let you come live with us, if we asked him!" Beaverkit pleaded. Tigerheart left.

"Nope, I gotta go. Okay, little ones, take care of your mother now! I know you'll grow up to be great warriors," he crowed. Tigerheart nuzzled the kits, holding the embrace for several long seconds, memorizing their scents.

"Good-bye, Tigerheart," Dovewing bid Tigerheart. "May StarClan go with you!"

"Good-bye," he chirped, gleeful as ever. Tigerheart turned to leave, but Ivypool stopped him, unable to bare parting with him in such a way. "Wait, Tigerheart!" Tigerheart turned back to her, searching for her expression.

"What?" he asked.

Ivypool looked at her paws. "I almost forgot to tell you – I'm carrying kits," she stated, attempting and failing to remain toneless. She risked a sideways glance at Tigerheart. His face was swimming with mixed apprehension and joy.

"Yo-You mean...?" he began, his voice shuddering. Ivypool bit her lip. "Are the kits mine?" Tigerheart inquired directly, alert for Ivypool's reply. She was hesitant to grant him her response, as it was anxious and malformed.

"Well..." she started, trying to shape her words to sound professional. "I would suppose so. I'm not sure, I mean, there was also Toadstep..." Ivypool pursed her lips, unsure how to continue. Betrayal glistened faintly in Tigerheart's eyes, but it disappearing into a flurry of other emotions.

"Oh. I didn't know that you were seriously involved with him, while we were still... together." Tigerheart inhaled and exhaled loudly. The sound was smooth and controlled. Ivypool chewed the inside of her cheek. Her tongue was having trouble serving its purpose today.

At last, she gathered her thoughts, clumping them together in groups so that they were each more recognizable. "I'm sorry, Tigerheart. I never meant for it to end this way. I never wanted you to have to go away," she mewed apologetically.

"And yet, it is for the best. I hope that your kits, whether they are mine or someone else's, prosper. Farewell," the ShadowClan tom said simply. With that, he turned on his toes and waltzed defiantly into the Twolegplace beyond, melting into the shadows, disappearing from Ivypool's life forever.

Ivypool stood still, staring at the place where he had stood, waiting for him to materialize back to stand before her. But he didn't. Ivypool blinked and clenched her jaws, forbidding the tears to leak from her eyes.

The last words that Ivypool had said to Tigerheart were "go away". And she had meant them.

I hope you liked this chappie, I made it especially for all you reviewers out there! So the next chapter will be the last one. It will be more of an epilogue, though, kinda short and conclusionary. But you can expect it very soon! Please, please, please review!