Days seemed to blend into one another after that. The cat with the green eyes came to visit Princess; he introduced himself as Rusty. It had been hard to take in at first, that her brother was happily living among wild cats, but she adjusted.

One day in leaf-bare, her kits were born. There were five of them, three toms and two she-cats. Not long after, Fireheart came and took one away. Her eldest, a handsome white tom. Princess asked him too. She wanted her son to become a wildcat, like Rusty had.

One of the she-cats looked just like Diablo. Her fur was a shade darker, the tabby markings more distinct, but she still had a striking resemblance. Princess named her Kylie, after a friend of Minty and Sage whom had died many seasons ago.

The other she-cat was a pale brown tabby. Her fur was soft and thick, and her eyes were a startling shade of gold. She looked a bit like Autumn, one of Princess's siblings. She was named that in honor of the sick kitten, who had been taken to the vet one day and never brought back.

The toms looked very similar. One was long furred and white- that was the kit Princess had given to Rusty. The second tom had even longer fur, but he was a pale shade of gray. Princess named him Xander, because she wanted to honor the friends whom had never betrayed her. The third tom, the youngest kit in the litter, had patchy, short fur. He was pure white, with the same green eyes as Xander. Princess allowed Diablo to name this kit. He chose the name King.

Over time, Kylie, Autumn, Xander, and King were taken by other twolegs. They grew up happy and well fed. Over time, Princess stopped visiting them, and they stopped visiting her.

Autumn had her first litter of kits at a young age. There were eight of them, but six were too small and died very soon. The other two, a she-cat and a tom, were named Leaf and Patch. They both looked just like Princess, but they had Autumn's eyes.

Princess found Chestnut's body alongside the thunderpath a few moons later. Her body was cold, but it was obvious that she had suffered for a long time before succumbing to her battle wounds. Though she had been a traitor to Princess, and though she had killed Dusty, Princess regretted letting Chestnut leave. Speckle had led the kittypet astray.

When Fireheart- by this time, known as Firestar- warned Princess about Bloodclan, she was terrified. Images of her former friend flashed through her mind, the blood-soaked body resting alongside the thunderpath. But she didn't show her brother this fear, and hid everything she knew about the evil cats from him. She never wanted to remember those times when Speckle haunted every corner.

Eventually, Firestar and his friends moved away. Diablo died of a sickness in the leaf-bare, and Minty and Sage were taken to another den, much farther away. Princess made new friends, but they would never replace the empty space she now felt in her heart.

And finally, one terrible night in newleaf, Princess's eyes closed for the last time. She thought about very cat who had given their life, and let out a faint sigh. Slipping into nothingness, everything became black.

And then Princess opened her eyes. It had been a dream! One long, exhausting dream. She was back in her old den, with Quince and Jake. Autumn was there too, and Oak. Strangely, they all seemed to be different ages.

"This is real." A soft voice purred from behind her. "All the cats you lost are here. Your parents, your brother and sister, Dusty... Chestnut is here as well."

Diablo was standing behind her. He was young and handsome, about the age he'd been when Princess had her kits. She also felt young. Autumn was still a kit, of course, and Oak was about a moon old. The age he'd been when Rusty was taken away. Quince and Jake were older, but still young enough to chase after Autumn's tail as she darted around. Her constant illness had vanished. Everyone was here... Except for Rusty and Cloudtail. They were alive somewhere, somewhere far away.