tv announcer voice*:

JOIN US FOR ANOTHER INSTALLMENT OF RED CAT REDEMPTION. PAN IN OVER A CLEARING IN THE WOODS, WHERE LEAN, MUSCLED FERAL CATS HANG AROUND A PILE OF THE MEAT OF SMALL WOODLAND CREATURES… PUSH IN ON THE BIGGEST CAT THERE, A YELLOW SHE-CAT WITH A PROUD STANCE…

Yellowstar couldn't believe her eyes. She and Fallensnow froze at the fresh-kill pile, where they'd been busy separating pelts from mice to use as water skins, and stared at the mangled, scruffy, red-and-white cat standing in the FireClan entrance. She looked…. Well, Yellowstar wasn't scared of much, but, she thought, she looks like a cat I'd rather not meet on the battlefield. Her eyes burned with an oddly powerful light, as if she'd fought the Ageless Ones themselves and lived to tell the tale; the scar across her throat was a puckered, pale thing that Yellowstar couldn't believe the cat survived, and the scars crossing one of her eyes left the same impression.

"Maple!" Suddenly, Redpoppy exploded from the nursery and raced across the clearing, her pelt bushed out and her ears flat to her skull. By instinct, Yellowstar dropped into a defensive crouch; Redpoppy looked like she was racing to fight a badger. But Redpoppy just covered her daughter in licks so fierce the burly and battle-worn she-cat actually wobbled and fell. The two cats laughed, cried, and buried their faces in each other's coats while the rest of FireClan amassed around Yellowstar.

"Mapledawn," Yellowstar said, feeling a bit bad to break up such a heartfelt reunion. "Explain yourself."

Mapledawn gave her mother a last lick and stood up straight. "Before I do," she said-Yellowstar couldn't stifle a look of shock when she heard that grizzled voice- "I must ask a favor."

"A favor?" spat Jaggedclaw, coming up beside Yellowstar, his fur bristled along his spine. "How dare you!"

"Hush," Yellowstar said. "Let her speak."

"Shouldn't you call a meeting?" Fallensnow whispered.

Yellowstar lashed her tail-tip. "No point in ceremony. Everyone's watching. Mapledawn, speak."

"I did not come alone," Mapledawn said. "I know it's insane of me to ask a favor after all this time… But I have to know before I proceed. I brought several cats with me. These past moons, I've trained them in the ways of our life, and they wish to become members of FireClan. But I've told them it's not up to me." Mapledawn dipped her head as low as her chin. "It's up to our Leader."

"Incredible," Jaggedclaw spat again. Yellowstar silenced him, again.

"This is an incredible ask," Yellowstar mewed evenly, even while she stifled a glimmer of joy. They needed warriors, and bad. Could it be StarClan was finally showing mercy on the Clan?

"I know," Mapledawn said, "but they are battle-tested already. That's another thing. Scratchface, some of his cats, and Frecklefang, attacked the-" She paused. "The group of cats I was staying with. We did not manage to kill Scratchface, but we beat him. I'm not sure where he went after. Most likely he's on his way here." She dipped her head again. "That's why we left right away."

"Oh, a group of cats," Jaggedclaw snarled. "Must have been kittypets."

"Jaggedclaw, by the Ageless Ones, if you speak out of turn again, you'll be on apprentice duties until next season."

"They're not kittypets," Mapledawn insisted. "They've hunted, fought, and survived together in a colony not unlike this one. But," she said, swiveling her head to look across the Clan, "I understand that you cannot take my word for it. Let them in. Let them prove themselves. Then make your decision."

Yellowstar nodded. "Send for them," she said with an air of finality. She gave Jaggedclaw a scathing look before he could open his mouth. "We will see what these cats are made of." Mapledawn turned to go back through the thorns, but Yellowstar stilled her with a claw. "Not you. You must explain yourself. Paletuft will go. Where are they?"

"At the border," she said. "Be careful. They're carrying kits."

"Paletuft, go. Bring Acorntail. Be quick. And hide their smell, if you can. The other Clans don't need to know." She whispered into her mate's ear: "Now for ceremony." And yowled: "Let all cats old enough to be called paw join below Highledge!"

Yellowstar leapt atop the ledge in one clean, quick motion. The rest of the Clan hardly had to move a mousetail to take their places at the base of the ledge. She pointed with her tail for Mapledawn to stand just beneath the ledge, where all could hear her. Redpoppy padded back to the nursery, where she and Thrushflight peered out from the edge of the den.

"Speak," she said to Mapledawn.

Mapledawn took in a deep breath. "This will be hard to hear," she began, "and it sounds incredible. But I had a past life. I was once known as Mapleshade. Mapleshade-I-was a brutal cat, with a brutal life, whose heart was warped by a thirst for vengeance. She… I…" She shook her head. "Mapleshade had a forbidden romance with a RiverClan tom, Appledusk. But when her kits came, she kept their parentage a secret. Frecklewish believed the kits were her dead brother's, and Mapleshade made no move to change her mind. But when her Clan found out the truth, they showed no mercy. Their Leader, Oakstar, exiled Mapleshade and her newborn kits, sentencing them to death. She tried to bring them to live in RiverClan, but RiverClan denied her, too. The river took them. They died."

Mapledawn's tail trembled. A look of agony cut across her weathered face. She swallowed hard and kept on. "So Mapleshade vowed vengeance against everyone she blamed for her kits' death. She killed many. She blinded Frecklewish. She killed Ravenwing, the FireClan medicine cat. She killed Appledusk… She died, and spent her time in the Dark Forest wreaking more evil, until she finally, tired and broken, faded away." She paused, tail trembling again. "But some members of StarClan believed she was wronged. Her Leader had no right to exile kits who hadn't even been weaned yet. So they… They sent her back. They sent me." She turned to look at Redpoppy. "I'm not Mapleshade, not anymore. I'm Mapledawn, and I've spent my entire life running from the ghosts of a cat I am not anymore." She looked down at her paws. "Although StarClan does have a funny sense of humor, don't they? They sent Frecklewish back, too, as Frecklefang. Goaded her both into attacking me. She tried to kill me. And my kits-yeah, they sent them back, too, and tried to take them from me again." Her voice trembled. "But one survived. And I'd die to keep him safe, believe me. I'd die a hundred times over to keep him, and his Clan, safe. I'm a FireClan cat. Not ThunderClan. Not Mapleshade."

The Clan was as hushed as a forest in the middle of leafbare. But then little Freezepaw mewed from the edge of the medicine cat den: "We know."

"You know?" Mapledawn said.

"We know," Yellowstar said.

"Then why make me say it?"

"To see if you would," Yellowstar said. "To see if you would be truthful with us. A test, Mapledawn, which you passed."

"Oh wow," came a voice from the thorns, "this place is cool!"

Yellowstar looked down on the ragtag bunch of cats stepping carefully into the hollow, led by Paletuft, with Acorntail in back. The loudmouth was an incredibly skinny tom-skinnier, somehow, than TallClan-with huge ears and buggy green eyes. Close behind was an imposing, dark brown tabby tom with icy blue eyes and long tufts of fur sticking up from his ears. Two kits swung by the scruff from his wide jaw; one ginger-and-white, the other black with a white mark on his chest. Just behind the big tom was a rather pretty pale gray she-cat with long fur. The last three cats stood close together, blinking around camp with eyes wide in obvious wonder-a pale torbie she-cat, an exceedingly thick brown tom, and a silver tom with a luxurious pelt.

Mapledawn walked over to touch noses with each cat, taking particular care with the huge tabby tom. "This is Waiting Falcon," she said. "He's kind, strong, and wise. And this," she said, touching the skinny one on the nose, "is Yew, a chatterbox, but sweet, honest, and good with kits. And Mist Shadow, she's skilled with herbs, but she can fight, too. These three," she said to the last group of cats, "Pig, Billy, and Butter, proved themselves not only adept fighters, but clever, and good at working together, in the fight against Scratchface." She looked around. "Where is Cloudstep?"

Fallensnow hung her head. "He died," she mewed. "BlackClan."

Mapledawn lashed her tail. A low growl rumbled through her chest. "Weaselstar. That foxheart."

Freezepaw stepped up from the medicine cat den and walked around the pretty one, Mist Shadow. "Mapledawn says you know herbs."

Mist Shadow dipped her head to the much smaller cat. "From what Mapledawn says, your Clans have dedicated cats for healing. Where I'm from, most cats know how to heal. But I guess I was a bit like-what is it? A medicine cat. I learned from the best."

Freezepaw regarded the she-cat slowly, looking at her up and down, before nodding. She turned to Yellowstar. Yellowstar didn't even need to hear her words. Freezepaw clearly approved of the pretty gray she-cat. Yellowstar dipped her head slightly to Mist Shadow. Maybe the Ageless Ones haven't forgotten me. I know she's not a warrior cat, but… Cloudstep just died, and the other Clans refused to help. Maybe that's because Mist Shadow was meant to be our medicine cat.

"Cats of FireClan," Yellowstar yowled. "I cannot allow these cats to become full members of our Clan without proper training. But I can allow them to prove their worth. FireClan, I know this is strange. But you cannot deny how badly we need warriors." Jaggedclaw nodded ever so slightly. It seemed like Mapledawn's speech had softened him. He still glowered at her, but there was the tiniest glimmer of approval in his cold eyes. Fallensnow blinked reassuringly at her, while Yellowstar's deputy, Paletuft, scrutinized each cat. The elders, their heads peeking out from their den, shook their heads and muttered to each other. Downtail was the only other cat who seemed disturbed by her announcement-but how much of that was because he was angry at her, not the new cats?

"For now," Yellowstar continued, "Mist Shadow, your name will be Mistpaw, and you will apprentice under Freezepaw." Two apprentices teaching each other. Two apprentices leading the Clan. Who would have expected it? She stared down Jaggedclaw before he could yowl his disapproval. "Yew, your name will be Yewpaw. For now, you will apprentice under Downtail." It is beyond time he had a new 'paw. "Waiting Falcon, now Falconpaw, your mentor will be Dapplecreek. As for Pig, Billy, and Butter, you will apprentice…" She looked around the Clan evenly to check for any sour faces. So far, they seemed apprehensive, but respectful. Plus, the pause made things more dramatic. "You will all three apprentice under me. Pig, your name will be…" Mouse droppings, mouse droppings-what's a pig? Whatever. "Pigpaw. Billy, you will henceforth be called Burrpaw. And Butter, you will be called Littlepaw." The new cats all followed tradition and dipped their heads to Yellowpaw, although the energetic three-Pigpaw, Burrpaw, and Littlepaw-could hardly keep themselves from jumping in the air with excitement by the way they kept fidgeting.

"For today," Yellowstar continued, "that will be enough, but in a few sunrises, if these cats prove themselves as Clan cat potential, we will conduct official apprentice ceremonies. Today, I would like all of my new mentors to teach these cats the warrior code, and the basics of Clan life. As for Mapledawn." Yellowstar stifled a sigh. I want her back. She deserves to be back. But I can't ignore what this might do to the Clan.

"Mapledawn has done well not only by returning to us, but by telling us all the truth. However, I-"

"Mapledawn?" Wrencatcher broke through the tunnel entrance. Mouse droppings. I was hoping to be done with this before anyone realized he was missing. She'd had him on a solo hunting patrol. "Is that you? And is that-"

Yellowstar noticed the tiny, patchy kit hanging from Falconpaw's jaws for the first time. The black one smelled like the other unfamiliar cats, but the patched one… Redpoppy's jaw dropped. She went over to nose the kit, before exclaiming: "It's yours?" to Mapledawn.

This changes everything, Yellowstar thought, trying not to let her muzzle show what she was feeling. No matter what the Clan says, I cannot turn Mapledawn away. It wasn't in the warrior code exactly, but it was unheard of to turn away a suckling queen.

"Yes," Mapledawn mewed. "This is Patchkit. Ravenit belongs to another queen, who wished for him to become a FireClan warrior."

"Mapledawn." Wrencatcher deposited his sparrows in the fresh-kill pile. "You have a kit."

"He isn't yours." Mapledawn met Wrencatcher's face levelly. A part of Yellowstar dared Wrencatcher to do, or say, something stupid. The other part of her, the sensible one, knew they needed warriors, even ones as foxhearted as Wrencatcher.

"No?" Wrencatcher came up to sniff Patchkit, but Mapledawn blocked him with her body.

"You lost all claim to him when you betrayed me," Mapledawn said. "His father is Waiting Falcon. Sorry-Falconpaw."

Wrencatcher stared at Mapledawn for a long time. Then he dipped his head, looked away, and padded over to the elder's den, where he started cleaning out their soiled moss in silence.

"FireClan," Yellowstar announced. "Please, join me in welcoming Mapledawn back into the Clan. Redpoppy, Thrushflight, will you make her a nest in the nursery?"

"Of course," Redpoppy purred while the rest of the Clan came up to touch noses with the battle-scarred she-cat. Thrushflight and Redpoppy were the warmest, but Dapplecreek greeted her like a long-lost kit, and even Jaggedclaw gave her a cool, respectful nod after touching noses. Skypaw and Stormypaw bounced up to pelt poor Mapledawn with questions: how she got each scar, why her voice sounded funny, whether she was REALLY an evil cat in another cat's skin. Mapledawn took each question with the calm equanimity of a Clan Leader before respectfully bidding everyone goodbye, licking Falconpaw's cheek, and following her mother and Thrushflight into the nursery, her small, ginger and white kit trailing the more energetic black one, Ravenkit, close to Mapledawn's paws.