It was a few days after her ill-fated swimming session when Starlingpaw finally got a break from her training. Though not as physically taxing as before, as ordered by Honeypool, she still spent the majority of her time discovering ways to deal with her tail. Be it walking or swimming, she was almost constantly on the move, and it was a great relief to lie down in the dappled sunlight and relax.

Birchpaw sat beside her, equally tired, as the apprentices had been ordered to train together, for both of their benefits. This meant that Starlingpaw could comfort Birchpaw whenever an attack came over him, and he could support her physically if she was having trouble with training. Both apprentices seemed to improve greatly just by being in each other's presence. However, it did mean many awkward training sessions with Thornflame, who had been unceremoniously notified of his daughter's disease, something he was still very upset about.

Starlingpaw and Birchpaw were deep in conversation about the hunting lesson that day where they both learned how to catch birds with different means suiting the apprentices' specific needs.

"I just can't do the part where you have to stand on your hind legs! I always end up falling on my face," Starlingpaw complained with a huff, but her tone was good-natured.

"i guess that means you have to be quick enough pouncing that the bird doesn't fly too high for you," Birchpaw responded between licks of his mid-length fur.

Their conversation was cut off just as they began to speak about pouncing positions, as Starlingpaw's ears were suddenly pricked and she sat up straight to pick up a sound.

Birchpaw noticed her movement and strained his ears to hear as well, but it proved difficult over the din of midday camp activities.

"Do you hear it?" Starlingpaw mewed softly, trying to make as little noise as possible.

"I can't tell what it is," Birchpaw replied, equally as quiet.

Starlingpaw realized the identity of the sound just as the Sunhigh patrol returned through the thicket tunnel, their numbers stronger than when they had left. "A bell?" she meowed, confused.

She got to her paws slowly and steadily, careful not to step on her tail, which still wasn't fully healed, and took a step toward the entrance of camp. Birchpaw followed close behind her, matching her pace out of politeness.

They reached the patrol just as Blizzardstar emerged from wherever he was to see what was going on, and soon enough most of the Clan had gathered around the entrance to camp.

Oakstripe, Nettleclaw, Sootpelt, and Larkpaw made up the Sunhigh patrol. Starlingpaw cast a confused glance at her brother, who seemed upset about something. He didn't notice her signal, but Starlingpaw soon figured out what was bothering him.

From behind the four patrol cats came the jingle of a Twoleg bell, to which many cats in the crowd hissed and flattened their ears. A well-groomed silver tabby pushed between Oakstripe and Sootpelt toward the DawnClan cats. His light green eyes shone in the midday sun, and his marbled pelt seemed oddly familiar to Starlingpaw.

Then it struck her; this was the kittypet that she had encountered on patrol with Larkpaw and Birchpaw. The one that looked strikingly similar to Vinetail.

Oakstripe dipped his head in respect for his leader, who now stood at the head of the crowd, and explained. "We found this kittypet hunting on our territory, so we've brought it back here."

It? Starlingpaw thought, confused. That's a weird way to speak about a cat.

But she soon noticed why Oakstripe had spoken about the kittypet in such a way. Starlingpaw couldn't scent a gender off of the newcomer, as if it had been… changed, somehow?

"Kittypet," Blizzardstar meowed, his voice more commanding that Starlingpaw had ever heard it being. "Are you a tom or a she-cat?"

The kittypet cringed. "I used to be a tom, but then the Twolegs…" It shuddered, and so did much of the Clan. A few cats hissed in disgust and others gasped in shock.

"A Twoleg can do that?" A voice meowed, filled with fear.

The newcomer nodded. "Yes, sadly. I was only a kitten when it happened. Luckily, they left my claws."

Even more yowls of horror came from the DawnClan cats. Starlingpaw saw Fireblossom wrap her tail around her three young kits as if to shield them from the kittypet's words. Personally, Starlingpaw was appalled that a Twoleg would do such a thing to a cat. She knew the pain, both physical and emotional, of losing a part of herself, and she was shocked that Twolegs were so heartless to willingly inflict that pain on their kittypets.

"So you now are a…" Blizzardstar started, trailing off as if he expected an answer.

"The full cats call me a gib. A broken tom. But you can still refer to me as he," The silver cat explained with surprising calm.

Blizzardstar raised his hackles. "Regardless of your troubles, you were trespassing on DawnClan territory. What do you say in your defense?"

The kittypet had no time to answer, as suddenly a DawnClan cat pushed through the crowd toward him. It was Vinetail. Now that the two cats were beside each other, they did look remarkably alike, both having silver-colored pelts and marbled stripes. The elderly she-cat simply looked to be a lighter-toned version of the kittypet.

"What is your name?" Vinetail asked, unusually brazen.

"I'm Mint," the kittypet answered, his eyes swimming with confusion.

"Your mother's name?"

"Pearl, but why-"

Vinetail interrupted him by shoving her snout close to his pelt and sniffing wildly. She pulled her head back and looked him dead in the eye. "What about her mother?"

Mint was bewildered. "I have a lot of relatives, you know, and it's very hard to remember their names."

Vinetail hissed at him, her ears flattened. "Look at this camp full of cats! I know the names of all of them, including the kits! I'm not even related to them by blood!"

Mint's eyes widened, likely in fear by the crazed old cat. "Okay, okay! I'm pretty sure it was Snowy. That's my mother's mother."

Vinetail was silent, her pupils dilated and her eyes unfocused. She sat down as if she were dizzy, and after a moment she spoke again. "Snowy was my sister."

The crowd erupted with mutters and murmurs, all wondering if Mint truly was related to Vinetail.

"What do you think?" Starlingpaw whispered to Birchpaw, who sat beside her.

"I think it's pretty unlikely that there would be two identical cats named Snowy in the Twolegplace. Mint is probably right."

Her head spun. Vinetail's kin was right here in DawnClan camp! Had he known the whole time, or was it purely an accident that he came here?

Mint looked perplexed as the Clan mused, but at last, he realized what Vinetail meant. "You must be the kitten that ran away! What was it… Bella?"

Vinetail bristled at the name and the Clan was thrown back into curious murmurs. "Don't bring up my past. It's gone now, and this is my Clan. I've served them as well as any Clanborn cat has."

Starlingpaw nodded in agreement, remembering the many stories that Vinetail and the other elders had told about grave injuries and serious illnesses that the old medicine cat had healed. The sable apprentice had great respect for her.

"Regardless of any of this," Blizzardstar cut in, raising his voice to be heard over the crowd. "I shall not permit hunting on our territory. Prey theft is not tolerated," Starlingpaw heard a snort from the crowd, and as she recognized it as belonging to Thornflame, her father. The young apprentice was both confused and intrigued; what did Thornflame know about Blizzardstar that she had yet to discover?

Mint looked uncomfortable. "Look, I really didn't mean to cause any trouble. I was just chasing a bird from my garden, and it crossed over the fence. It wasn't even your prey, really!"

Blizzardstar growled, and Starlingpaw wondered why he was being so aggressive. "That prey came from our forest. We need every scrap of fresh-kill we can get!"

There was no response from the crowd, only a tense silence. Every cat in DawnClan knew that prey was never a problem, even in leaf-bare. DawnClan had such a huge territory in proportion to their amount of cats that there was always extra prey, so long as the cats ventured out far enough.

Mint seemed to notice the mood of the Clan. "You all seem perfectly well-fed to me," he pointed out, to which several cats nodded their agreement.

"Silence!" Blizzardstar spat. "You shall obey me, as is the will of StarClan!"

"The will of StarClan surely isn't prosecuting innocent cats," a smooth voice meowed from the back of the crowd. The Clan turned to see who had spoken and were met with the intimidating sight of Ashscar, who was pushing her way to the front of the crowd. Starlingpaw recoiled as the great cat passed her, as equally terrified of her prowess as any other cat. "Blizzardstar, you must be confused. DawnClan has no issues with prey. Even if it were, you would have enough lives to outlast the famine, wouldn't you?" Her eyes flashed with some unspoken threat at her last sentence.

The white tomcat seemed to have shrunk to half of his size. "O-Of course, Ashscar. Mint, you are free to go," he ordered with a flick of his tail.

Mint released a breath and turned to leave.

"Wait!" Vinetail yowled, her voice desperate. "Don't leave! You should stay here, with me. Your kin."

A series of exclamations came from the gathered crowd. Starlingpaw was getting tired of the constant noise.

The gib turned back, his piercing green eyes glittering. "You really would? Do that, I mean?" But he shook his head, and said, partly to himself, "No, I must get back to my garden. I'm expected."

Vinetail looked devastated. "What? You don't have kits, do you?"

"No," Mint answered, his head cocked to the side in confusion.

"Well then, what do you have to lose?" Vinetail meowed, her voice almost a yowl.

Mint seemed to consider this, but he didn't get to answer.

"What? Absolutely not!" Blizzardstar screeched, his voice high and shrill. It was almost comical, but his words disgusted her more than they amused her.

Ashscar flexed her long claws into the earthy ground and raised one of her black-and-white paws, pretending to inspect it, but it was obviously meant as a warning for Blizzardstar. The fluffy white tom sputtered for a moment longer before quieting. Starlingpaw wondered if Ashscar would actually carry out her threat, and found herself completely unsure of the answer. She knew very little about the deputy, but the intimidating she-cat seemed to have a good heart.

"Mint is a DawnClan cat by blood whether he likes it or not," Ashscar stated. "Vinetail was a valued medicine cat before she became an elder, and he is her kin. He has a spot in the Clan if he wants it," Starlingpaw thought that the deputy was assuming more control than she actually had, but at least it was for the better. Blizzardstar should never have been chosen as leader.

Mint had to sit down. His entire world had been changed over the course of a sentence. Starlingpaw and Birchpaw watched in anticipation as the kittypet thought about his answer. After a long stretch of silence, Mint meowed, "Yes."

Vinetail tried to hide her excitement, but she couldn't. The elder she-cat walked forward and pressed her nose into her kin's fur.

"I have to do something first," the kittypet added, looking slightly uncomfortable with his sudden new home. "I'll be back by sundown!"

With that, the gib turned around and sprinted out of camp, leaving all of DawnClan bewildered.

"What do you think he's doing?" Starlingpaw asked her friend, excited by all the sudden events.

"I don't know, maybe he has a mate?" Birchpaw responded, his words detached but his tone just as interested as hers. "Just think! We're getting a new Clanmate."

"Hopefully he's an interesting one."

"Think of all he knows about Twolegs!"

"Is that a good thing?"

"Sure!" Birchpaw mewed. "There's so much we've yet to learn that could help us with… well, I don't know, but something!"

Starlingpaw smiled. "You're right!"

The two apprentices padded back to their den and laid again side by side in the sunlight, and they were soon joined by Larkpaw and Tawnypaw, who were both abuzz with the commotion.

Starlingpaw and her friends spoke late into the day, sharing thoughts about Mint or stories from their training, and for once she felt at peace. It was nice to think about something other than her kit-gait or her lost tail. She felt free.

Just as the sun began to sink, a yowl rang out from the front of camp. The four apprentices leaped to their paws, excited to see if Mint had returned.

They were right; Mint had come back and was standing at the end of the thicket tunnel, his blue collar tied tight around his neck.

Four young, different-colored kittens sat at his feet.