"Lionblaze, can I go on a hunting patrol?" Sakura asked. Lionblaze looked her over once and tried to figure out what was wrong with the day. It was peaceful, Squirrelflight and Bramblestar were on good terms with Whitethunder and Cherry again ever since they returned two days ago, Sakura was oddly giddy and he was feeling weird.

"Uh, sure." He mewed slowly. "You, Bumblestripe, Leafpool and Iv-" she snaps her teeth lightly at him. He narrowed his eyes as she glanced briefly in one direction and... Oh. Ooooh. "Mousewhisker." He said finally. "Gather them up. Leafpool is in charge of the patrol."

"I want to go on patrol!" Cherrytail mews, walking over to him.

Lionblaze blinked at her and tilted his head. "You, Molepelt, Ivypool and..." He looks around and frowns. Sending the same cats out for patrolling was boring, plus it could be counted as an act of trust. "You, Molepelt, Ivypool and Whitewing go and patrol Shadowclan borders."

"You sure about that?" Whitethunder growled as he glanced at the white she cat. Lionblaze nodded his head after a thought.

"Yes, I'm positive. Whitewing!"

Said she cat poked her head out of the warrior's den with a wide yawn. She blinked her eyes tiredly as she trotted out to meet him. "Yes?"

"You are going on patrol."

"Huh?"

"Cherrytail is in charge, get going."

Whitewing blinked owlishly at him. Lionblaze sighed in exasperation. "Patrolling Shadowclan borders? Ring a bell? I trust you not to try anything. It's up to you to restore your own trust back into your clan."

"Yea, don't end up like Mousewhisker and Icecloud, back in the ditch." Ocean hissed as he passed by. Luna was following him, cutting the Mousewhisker a glare before disappearing in Bramblestar's den. The grey and white tom sighed and hung his head slightly.

"Ok, go." Lionblaze ordered. Nodding her head Whitewing happily went off with Cherrytail and the rest.

Lionblaze watched Leafpool's hunting patrol go by with a bitter attitude. He ignored the twitch of his claws as Sakura bumped shoulders with Mousewhisker and laugh. He really didn't like the tom now, in fact he hated him.

'I don't hate Mousewhisker,' he thought in shock. Shaking his head he turned and walked into the nursery, bypassing Cinderheart and ignoring her. She was lying by the entrance staring at who knows what.

Squirrelflight was watching the kits wrestle while Sorreltail stood and stretched her limbs. "Today's the day. I hope you can manage without me?"

"Of course we can," Poppyfrost purred. "We will join you after all, just as soon as the kits turn into paws."

Lionblaze watched as Sorreltail walked out of the nursery. "What's going on?"

"Oh, we are going back to being warriors." Poppyfrost told him

"What?"

"Yea, after the kits are paws we will resume our warrior duties."

Lionblaze sat and scratched his ear. "I do miss seeing you guys in action." Squirrelflight chuckled and Lionblaze looked at her. She was talking quietly to the kits.

"Lionblaze," Poppyfrost mewed, "what's going on between you, Jayfeather and Raven?"

Lionblaze shook his head. "I don't know what you are talking about."

"You won't let him near Leafpool."

"Oh, well I guess we sorta adopted some Moonclan habits..." He muttered sheepishly. "It's the Guardian thing."

"Oh, like how Raven is with Sakura?"

"Uh-huh. I never thought Jayfeather would jump in. He seemed-"

"Thunderkits, attack!"

Lionblaze snapped his head around just to get a face full of ginger fur as the kits pounced on him. Squirrelflight laughed as he squawked in surprise.

~ooo~

"Ok split up." Leafpool ordered before they went their separate ways. Sakura sat down as they left, eyes stuck to Mousewhisker.

"Mousewhisker?"

The grey and white tom stopped and looked back at her. "Yea?"

"Can we hunt together?"

Mousewhisker frowned slightly and narrowed his eyes. He wanted to hunt alone and vent his anger; having someone with him would only agitate him more.

"What's wrong?" She asked. He shook his head.

"Nothing..."

"Come ooooon." She pleaded as she rose and stepped towards him. "Tell me."

"Tell you what? I have nothing to tell!" He spat. Sakura looked taken aback by his attitude and he sighed, relaxing.

"Nothing to tell? OK," She said quietly, obviously angry. "Sorry for trying to help."

"You couldn't help even if you tried, not with this."

"Try me." She challenged. Mousewhisker's nose twitched.

"You wouldn't know anything. You don't have a mate."

Sakura smiled slightly and nudged his shoulder. "Let's walk."

"No..."

"Oh stop being such a mouse," she fussed and pushed the slightly offended tom, making him stumble a little before he settled in a comfortable stroll. "So...?" She said. Mousewhisker sighed again.

"Cinderheart is angry with me."

"Well, I would be angry too had my mate betrayed the trust that was given to him and making the clan hates us even more." Sakura mewed smartly, huffing a bit. Mousewhisker growled at her and stopped.

"No, she was angry because I fail!" Sakura stepped back in shock. Mousewhisker advanced with each step she took back. "I should've never listened to her! She was the one who told me to do it! She was so convinced that the Moonclan visitors were changing us, she wanted to get them out of the clan, and she tried to do that by lying to Bramblestar and Squirrelflight about the kits. I fell for it too! She made me believe her words! And Icecloud, Icecloud didn't have to be in it. I forced her too..." Mousewhisker whimpered and sat down, panting after his outburst. "I'm letting down my kits...and all because their brainwashed mother."

Sakura moved closer to him slowly and pulled him into a hug. He instantly relaxed in her embrace and took a deep breath of her fur. She smelled like flowers, like she had just rolled around in a rose bush. 'Amazing,' he purred inside.

Sakura pulled away and tilted her head to the right. "Well, maybe it isn't meant to be then."

"She's having my kits, of course it's meant to be. We just...we just have to work it out. I think she still is influenced by Thornclaw's words; I just have to convince her otherwise. Yea, maybe that's it." His ears perked the more he thought about it. "Yes, that's it."

Sakura sighed softly and shrugged. "Whatever it takes Mousewhisker," she nuzzled his cheek briefly before turning away. "We have to hunt."

Mousewhisker blinked at her twice before shaking his head. "Right, the others should be almost done by now."

Sakura hummed and trotted away, disappearing into a nearby bush. Mousewhisker did the same, his mind reeling with thoughts. 'All I have to do is make her believe that Thornclaw has no more influence over us, but what if doesn't work?'

He shook his head viciously. "No, no Cinderheart will believe it." He told himself firmly. As he stalked a vole he smiled a little.

'It's nice of Sakura to be there to listen,' he thought again, and before he knew it e was purring. The vole heard him and shot off but he caught it quickly, a smile still on his face. 'I'll convince Cinderheart, win back my trust and hopefully trusted enough to be Sakura's friend!' The thought excited him. If he could convince his mate to stop dwelling on Thornclaw, restore the faith his clan mates lost to him and appear trustworthy enough for Whitethunder to let him at least talk to the red she cat then he could have someone to talk to more often, and then he won't feel so lonely and manipulated.

'Cinderheart manipulated me,' he mind hissed, turning his mood foul. It quickly dissipated with a flick of his ear. 'Because she is still thinkingof Thornclaw. Get rid of Thornclaw, she will go back to normal.'

Nodding his head firmly he set out to hunt again when someone shouted, "RABBIT!" He quickly buried his black bird and vole as he saw a streak of large brown fluff bounding his way and took off after it.

~ooo~

"Squirrelflight please tell them to stop..." Icecloud pleaded. The kits had been pouncing on everyone who walked into the nursery on their mother's command.

Squirrelflight chuckled and swiped them away with her tail. "Ok kits, calm down. Look, the hunting patrol is back. It's time to eat."

"I want a vole! Can I have a vole? Please?" Gingerkit begged. Millie chuckled.

"Well," Squirrelflight murmured, "hmm, I guess. Eat slowly though, OK?" She leads the kits out to the fresh kill pile just as Bumblestripe dropped two birds in. He looked down at the kits and grinned.

"Pick out a prey that you all will share. Mousewhisker caught a huge rabbit today."

"Really? Woooow!" Flamekit squeaked, staring at the giant mass of brown fur.

Squirrelflight eyed it with approval. "It's very healthy too. Nice catch."

Mousewhisker looked back at them and smile victoriously, dipping his head in thanks and glancing over at Whitethunder. He too seemed to approve of the rabbit, along with Sakura, who was eyeing hungrily. He grabbed a squirrel from the pile and trotted over towards them. Whitethunder instantly tensed and Raven glared from across the camp.

"Whitethunder," he mumbled around the grey fur of the squirrel, glancing briefly at Sakura. The she cat looked at the squirrel curiously.

"Is that for me?"

"If you want it…"

Whitethunder growled. "In my clan this is an act of courting. Are you asking for my daughter?"

Mousewhisker's eyes widened. "Wha- I have a mate of my own! I just, well, Sakura helps me, a lot… I was just showing my thanks." Somewhere behind him Leafpool snickered quietly as she and Squirrelflight watched, casting each other knowing looks.

The light red she cat purred and gingerly took the squirrel from his jaws. "You are welcome. Next time talk to someone instead of brooding."

Mousewhisker nodded his head, casting one last fearful glance at Whitethunder before turning and trotting off. He allowed himself to shiver when he went to the pile again. Whitethunder was downright intimidating when directly under him. He grabbed a blue bird from the pile right when the kits started shouting.

"Squirrel!" Sunkit called.

Flamekit made a face and shook her head. "No! Thrush!"

"I still want a vole!" Gingerkit yowled.

"Can you three hush?!" Dovewing yowled as she ran from the warriors den. "I can't concentrate with all you're yowling!" Squirrelflight glared at her and picked a plumped vole from the pile."

"What is it that you hear Dovewing?" Brackenfur asked. The pale gray she cat's ears twitched as she stood still. Everyone in the clan was silent.

"Are the patrols back yet?" She asked suddenly. Lionblaze looked around. The Shadowclan patrol walked in at that moment.

"Now everyone is."

"I hear pawsteps."

"Who's pawsteps?" Bramblestar asked.

"I don't know."

"Where are they from?"

"Towards Shadowclan."

"We just finished patrolling there!" Cherrytail gasped.

Whitewing stomped her paw with a hiss. "Can you still hear them? We can go and get whoever it is!"

"Bramblestar can we go?" Autumnspot asked. The leader narrowed his eyes at them.

"I don't know..."

"We won't cause unnecessary harm." Longclaw told him. Whitethunder nodded in agreement.

Bramblestar still looked unsure. "How many can you hear?" He asked Dovewing. Her ears dropped as she looked up at him.

"A lot."

"Is it an attack?" Daisy fretted.

Squirrelflight growled loudly. "Why now?"

"No time, Whitethunder, you and your patrol can go. Lionblaze, take three other cats with you and lead the way."

"Blossomfall, Briarlight, Toadstep. Let's go." Blossomfall and Toadstep hesitated only for a moment before they followed Lionblaze and Briarlight out of the entrance, Whitethunder, Longclaw, Autumnspot and Mudfur following behind.

Cherry hissed and sat down with a pout. "I wanted to go."

"Oh cheer up. If they need reinforcements they will send for some." Ravenheart told her. He stared at the entrance anxiously. Minutes passed before the brambles shook. Autumnspot came through.

"Bramblestar, its Onestar, Blackstar and Mistystar, and they have each brought four warriors from their clan."