DOVEPAW WOKE WITH a start at the sound of Rosefeather's panicked yowl. She slipped out of her nest and gave herself a quick wash before leaving the den.

     Rosefeather was meowing hurriedly to Owlheart. ". . . We have to find him! He's the best warrior in the Clan! Without him how are we going to fight against MoonClan?"

     Dovepaw narrowed her eyes. He must be on patrol or something. . . . Or gone, like those other nights. She began to think that she was right all along, but she needed more evidence. She limped towards the two cats. "What is going on?"

     "Sparrowfeather is gone! He's not in his nest, and his scent is stale! I tried to follow it, but there's no sign of it anywhere. I don't think some cat took him away, because there's no other scent or a trail or blood . . . I don't know what happened to him!" She let out a feeble wail. "Not now, not Sparrowfeather!"

     Hollypaw, Gorsepaw, and Foxpaw were coming out of their den, their eyes bleary with sleep. "What happened? I heard that Father went missing," Hollypaw meowed, her voice shaking.

     Rosefeather turned her weary gaze to her daughter. "Yes. He did. I cannot follow his scent or find where he went. And he hasn't been in his nest all night!" She padded over to Hollypaw and pressed her flank into her daughter's. She licked her ear comfortingly.

     Now most the Clan was slipping out of their dens to see what was happening. Owlheart hopped on top of the Snowrock and called to the Clan. "We need a search patrol! Blizzardpelt, you lead it. Dawnsplash, Whitefoot, Mousepaw, and I will go with you."

     The four cats stepped forward. They looked up at Owlheart expectantly, and also a little nervously. Mousepaw glanced across the clearing at Dovepaw, her eyes showing with concern and You knew all along.

     Dovepaw nodded to Mousepaw before her sister followed the patrol to search for Sparrowfeather. She hoped that they would find Sparrowfeather and find out what he was up to.

     "Dovepaw! Dovepaw!" Foxpaw came dashing towards her with a frantic look in his eyes. "Dovepaw," he panted, "do you have any idea where he went? Didn't you see him that night before Frostfeather was attacked?"

     Dovepaw blinked at him. "Y-yes, but I have no idea where he could have gone."

     Snowtail was striding over to them with fury blazing in her green eyes. "I know where he went! Was I the only one who scented MoonClan on him? He obviously went to join MoonClan, or StarClan knows what happened to him."

     The cats fell silent, staring at the feisty she-cat. "What do you mean? Do you mean he's been doing all of this for MoonClan?" Rosefeather asked, horror clear in her mew.

     Snowtail whipped around to face the pretty tortoiseshell. "Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying! Hareleap, don't you remember when we heard that screech when the rainstorm came?"

     Hareleap was sitting at the edge of his den, watching. He looked startled when Snowtail turned to him. "Yes, I do. And Sparrowfeather said that a tree killed Rainpaw. Is that what you mean?"

     Blizzardpelt began to bristle. Rosefeather began flexing her claws. "I remember," Rosefeather hissed, though her voice shook.

     Dovepaw's breath caught in her throat as a memory swirled into her mind. She didn't know where it came from, but obviously she had it.

     At first, it was all quiet, then there was rain pounding on hard ground. There were panicked meows and mutters outside of the den. The scent of freshly fallen snow surrounded her.

     Then, she heard, "Two beautiful she-kits."

     There was a gasp from her mother, and then a rush of paw steps from many different cats. They gasped and 'awed' as they saw her. She wanted to look at them, but she couldn't open her eyes.

     "What will you name them?"

     That must be my father.

     "Dovekit for the white one, and Mousekit for the white-and-brown one."

     Dovepaw was jolted back to the camp grounds when Foxpaw nudged her. "Are you okay? You kind of froze there."

     Dovepaw glanced at him. "Yeah, I'm all right. Just thoughts."

     Foxpaw gazed at her, affection and concern clear in his eyes. "You can tell me. I won't tell anyone else. Not a soul."

     Dovepaw sighed. "It's hard to explain . . ."

     Foxpaw opened his mouth to press on, but Badgertooth came padding across the clearing. "Dovepaw, I would like for you to gather some juniper berries. Go join the search patrol, and maybe you can find some."

     Dovepaw nodded. She looked at Foxpaw to address him. "Let's share fresh-kill later today."

     Foxpaw shrugged. "Okay. Good luck!"

     Dovepaw twitched her ear to acknowledge him and left the camp. She drank in the patrol's scent trail and followed it. She soon found them traveling the plains of their territory. She ran to catch up. "Hey! Mousepaw!"

     Mousepaw, at the rear of the group, turned around. "Hi! What brings you here?" she asked when Dovepaw caught up.

     "Badgertooth wants me to get more juniper berries. He told me catch up with the patrol to get some." Dovepaw stayed beside Mousepaw as she walked.

     Mousepaw flicked her tail to a patch of bushes in the distance. "There's some bushes in that patch over there. Maybe there's some berries. I can go with you, if you like. If Whitefoot lets me, at least." She raised her voice so that her mentor, who was meowing quietly with Dawnsplash, could hear her.

      Whitefoot turned around. "Oh, hi, Dovepaw. Yes, Mousepaw. You can go help her get some berries. Just tell us if something goes wrong."

     "Nothing will go wrong, I promise. Come on, Dovepaw! We've got no time to lose." She flicked her tail and the two littermates bounded towards the patch of greenery. The forest expanded ahead of it. They skidded to a halt when they got to the edge of the bushes.

     Dovepaw opened her mouth and drank in the scent of the bushes. The scent of juniper flooded her nostrils. She followed the scent, hearing the snow crunch as Mousepaw followed close behind. She found a bush with the blue berries hanging to the branches. She began to examine them and find the good ones. She put them in a large leaf. When Dovepaw finished she wrapped them in the leaf and picked them up on her jaws.

     "Let's go," Mousepaw muttered. "I'm cold."

     Dovepaw nodded. She and Mousepaw began to leave before a loud hiss drifted over to them. They turned around, curiosity taking a hold on them.

     "What do you think you're doing here, Shadowheart?" a black tom hissed. He was huge. He had a long scar along his neck and the tip of his tail was missing.

     "I-I was trying to see if I could find T-Tawnyflight . . . I haven't seen her in forever, and she must have had my kits . . ." Shadowheart cowered under the black tom's unwavering gaze.

     A claw of sorrow and loss raked at Dovepaw's heart. Images of dying Tawnyflight rushed through her mind, but she quickly pushed them away, stifling a growl of frustration.

     "That traitor?" the black tom spat. "Who cares about her anymore? She left us for FrostClan! What kind of MoonClan member does that?"

     Shadowheart straightened up, bristling. "I care about her! She's my mate! And she left with my kits! Why would I just let her leave and never see her again? That's what a non-loyal cat does, Nightclaw!"

     Nightclaw hissed. "Leave. This is no place for a mouse-heart like you to be." His eyes flashed with anger.

     Shadowheart narrowed his eyes. "Who's that? I smell FrostClan, MoonClan, and ThunderClan on him. Who is that?"

     Dovepaw followed Shadowheart's gaze cautiously. She noticed a light brown tabby tom stalking through the trees, his eyes wide with fear and his fur bristling. She thought she recognized this cat, but she didn't dare open her mouth to tell Mousepaw.

     "There," Nightclaw meowed coolly. "There he is. Over here!" He called through the trees. The brown tabby turned and dashed towards Nightclaw and Shadowheart.

     Dovepaw narrowed her eyes as the tabby approached them. She recognized his sharp green eyes and his mottled tabby fur. She flicked her tail over Mousepaw's ear and glanced at her as if she were sharing a message.

     Mousepaw's deep blue eyes were wide with excitement and maybe a little shock when she saw the tabby tom. They both turned back to the MoonClan cats.

     "You're back." Nightclaw dipped his head to the tabby.

     Sparrowfeather!

     Mousepaw began to bristle and she bunched her haunches from under her, preparing to spring to action. Dovepaw hissed silently at her, and her littermate sat down again, her tail twitching impatiently.

     Sparrowfeather dipped his head in response. Dovepaw examined him. His claws were red with blood and his fur was ruffled and bloodstained. Clearly he had been in a fight. He turned to a small creek running through the treeline that separated ThunderClan territory from FrostClan. He washed his paws in it, staining the crystal clear water red.

     "Did you do it?" Nightclaw demanded when Sparrowfeather turned back to him.

     Sparrowfeather nodded hastily. "Yes, I did. No cat found out. I think."

     "Do you have her body?" Nightclaw snarled.

     Shadowheart began to tremble beside him. "W-what do you mean? Did you—" Nightclaw slapped his tail across the black warrior's mouth, silencing him.

     Sparrowfeather nodded again, this time backing away. "I'll show you." He rushed into the trees and came back dragging a heap of red fur. Mousepaw and Dovepaw's jaws gaped in silent gasps. Dovepaw recognized the scent of Crimsonfrost, a ThunderClan warrior, mixed with death and blood. "Here."

     Shadowheart looked away from the disfigured and motionless body of Crimsonfrost. "Nightclaw, why would you make him do such a thing? That cat never did a thing!"

     Nightclaw ignored the sensitive cat and hissed in satisfaction in response to Sparrowfeather. "Very good. And did you cover your scent?"

     "Yes."

     "How fast did you escape? Did any warriors catch you?"

     "Immediately after she died, I dragged her body away and covered my trail with fox dung. No warriors caught me." His eyes were haunted with fear and sorrow. "Nightclaw . . . why would you make me do that? She never did anything to harm us."

     Dovepaw nudged Mousepaw and nodded to the direction that the FrostClan patrol went.

     Mousepaw nodded and darted away. Dovepaw cringed as she dove into the undergrowth and away into the distance. She glanced at Shadowheart, Nightclaw, and Sparrowfeather. Nightclaw's ears were pricked and Shadowheart was frozen.

     Dovepaw froze also, her heart racing. Nightclaw shot a look at Sparrowfeather and Shadowheart to warn them to stay silent before he stalked towards the bush where Dovepaw was hiding. "Come out, wherever you are. I know you're in there, so there's no reason to hide."

     Dovepaw kept her mouth shut. She prepared to spring and race away.

     "Don't be scared, now . . ." Nightclaw peered through the bushes. His yellow eyes met Dovepaw's blue ones, and he hissed. "Spy!" He leapt at Dovepaw, and, before she could race away, clawed at her neck. Pain shot through her neck and she raced away, not thinking twice. Blood dripped onto her paws.

     Nightclaw was hard on her heels; his paws were pounding on the ground as he ran. She spotted the patrol racing towards her. "Help!" she screeched as loud as she could. She pelted towards them faster. Nightclaw's horrid scent wafted around her.

     "Dovepaw! We're coming!" Mousepaw's yowl came from far away, or it sounded like it came from far away. She was leading the patrol towards Dovepaw.

     Before Dovepaw knew it, a battle began. "Go! Hide! Don't let them hurt you!" Dawnsplash called to Dovepaw.

     Dovepaw scrambled away from the raging battle and ran towards the camp, which wasn't far off. She limped under the arc that led into the camp. Badgertooth was rushing out. "Dovepaw! What happened?"

     Dovepaw's vision was darkening. Her neck throbbed. She took a deep breath to relax. "MoonClan . . . Sparrowfeather . . ." she managed to gasp.

     Badgertooth put moss on her wound and helped her to the medicine den. "It's okay. Owlheart's sending patrols now."

     Dovepaw nodded. Badgertooth help her to a moss nest. Immediately she passed out.