Bouncetail sat in the centre of a circle, explaining everything that happened on the trip. The group listening to her was made up of Thornclaw, Ashfur, Millie, Whitewing, Swiftstream and Brackenfur. Ashfur and Millie already knew what happened but they still wanted to be there, just to be near Bouncetail. It had been a full moon since the battle with RiverClan and Spiderleg's death and Bouncetail was finally starting to get back to normal.

For the entire moon, she hadn't eaten, sleept, or did any of her warrior duties. Spiderleg was like a brother to her and having him ripped away from her…it broke her. Slowly but surely, with the help of Ashfur, Bouncetail started to heal. She started eating and getting full night's rest and three days ago, the white she-cat finally came to terms with what happened. Shrewclaw was still in the healing process but Squirrelflight was by his side for every second of it.

The 'sharing circle' had started after Firestar made the announcement about BloodClan. After he said that they had saved Bouncetail and Millie's life and were the reason Bouncetail was alive, the Clan lightened up.

"And one of the cats, Silver, stopped Havoc from killing us and they brought us back to camp," Bouncetail explained. "They caught us food and told us that we were welcome any time we pleased and that BloodClan would always be there if we needed help."

"Who was their leader?" Brackenfur asked.

"His name was Slate. He was wise and very loyal to his Clan. At first he was terrifying but you can tell that he only wants what's best for his daughter, Silver."

"What's Silver like?" Thornclaw asked.

"She's kind of sassy and laid-back. She doesn't seem to take a lot seriously and can be a bit bossy. And the best part is she looks pretty much exactly like me," Bouncetail purred and Ashfur rolled his eyes.

"Only she's silver," Millie put in. "They do look a lot alike though."

"What about the rest of BloodClan? Were they nice?" Whitewing asked and Bouncetail nodded.

"They were all really big and scary looking but one of them, Osprey, turned out to be really caring and thoughtful," Bouncetail explained. "He was the one to lead us out of the city."

"What about Havoc? He sounded mean," Brackenfur put in and Bouncetail shrugged.

"I didn't really get the chance to talk to him. Did you?" Bouncetail asked Millie and she shook her head.

"What was Violet like?" Swiftstream asked.

"I never met Violet since she went to go live with Two-legs," Bouncetail explained to her brother and then turned back to the rest of the group. Whitewing looked confused.

"Who's Violet?" she asked.

"She's Silver's sister. Didn't I mention that?" Whitewing shook her head. Bouncetail tried to recall everything she had said. Not once did she mention Violet. "Wait, how do you know about Violet?" she asked Swiftstream.

His entire face fell, as if he realized he had just let something slip. Brackenfur, Ashfur, and Thornclaw all stiffened. Bouncetail sat up straight. "How did you know, Swiftstream?"

"I-I-" Swiftstream stuttered, looking around for an exit. "She-"

"Don't, Swiftstream," Ashfur warned.

"How did you know?" Bouncetail demanded.

"I- she's our-" Swiftstream tried again but the three toms cut him off by yelling threats at him.

"Don't you dare finish that sentence, Swiftstream!"

"Don't tell her or it'll be the last thing you do!"

"You better not say anything!"

Everyone in the Clan turned to look at the commotion, all of the older warriors looking like they knew exactly what it was about. The younger ones looked just as confused though.

"Swiftstream, tell me!" Bouncetail yelled over the other warrior's threats. "Scout!"

The camp fell silent as everyone stared at Bouncetail. Just by their reactions, Bouncetail knew it was true. All of the pieces were falling into place and this just confirmed it.

"Scout," Bouncetail whispered, her eyes filling up with tears. "That's your name isn't it? And Silver really is my sister, isn't she?"

Bouncetail looked around for anyone to answer but they all just looked down when their gaze fell on her. Until she reached Cloudtail and Brightheart, standing in the center of camp. "And you aren't my parents…"

"What?" Whitewing shot up. "What's going on?"

Bouncetail felt all the memories of her kithood come flying back to her. Cheshire and Amber. Silver and Violet being taken away from Slate. Being convinced that it was all a dream and the entire time she was a kit of ThunderClan.

"And you aren't my sister," Bouncetail whispered. She turned to Swiftstream, "Isn't that right Scout?"

Swiftstream looked down.

"Bouncetail…" Ashfur tried but the she-cat whirled on him, her claws sliding out.

"You! You lied to me! You told me straight to my face that I was ThunderClan born but you knew!" she turned to the rest of her Clan. "You all knew!"

"Bouncetail, calm down," Firestar ordered the she-cat.

"Do not tell me to calm down! I have been lied to my entire life and I am done with keeping calm so I can be lied to some more! Just tell me where I came from!"

Silence. Finally, Brightheart stepped up.

"Bouncetail, I'm your mother-"

"You. Are. Not. My. Mother." Bouncetail snarled out. Brightheart visibly flinched and was at a loss of words. "It all makes sense now. Why I didn't look like you. Why Whitewing was always favored over me. Why you never talked about my kitting. It all makes perfect sense."

"Bouncetail, we were trying to protect you," Ashfur said and Bouncetail turned to him. She didn't look angry anymore and for a second, he truly believed that everything would be okay. That she would at least hear him out and let him explain. That she would forgive him and they would happily ever after and everything would be okay.

But then it wasn't.

"You didn't protect me. All you did was hurt me and I hate you for it."

Bouncetail turned and raced out of camp. Ashfur stared at her disappearing tail for only a few heartbeats before darting after her. Millie went to stop him but Graystripe stepped in her path. "Let them go. If he doesn't go after her… that'll be the last we see of her."

"Bouncetail," Ashfur yowled as he sprinted after the warrior. For once, her white fur came in handy because he could easily spot her through the brambles and trees. "Bouncetail, just let me explain!"

Bouncetail whirled around and Ashfur had to skid to a halt so as to not run into her. "Let you explain? There is no explanation for lying to me my entire life! You told me directly to my face that I was part of ThunderClan!"

"You are," Ashfur pressed. "Just because you were born to another family doesn't change anything. Brightheart and Cloudtail still raised you, Swiftstream and Whitewing are still your siblings and you're still a warrior of ThunderClan. It doesn't change anything!"

"It changes everything!" she shrieked. "Do you know what it's like to finally get your life in place only for everything to crumble around you? Do you know what it's like to be betrayed by your whole Clan for a secret that I could have grown to be proud of? No, you don't. Because like every other rat in ThunderClan, you're Clan born and you don't know what betrayal is even if it sliced open your throat!"

Ashfur flinched back as if he had been struck. "I… we thought that you'd be better off not knowing. We only wanted to protect you from all the hardships Cloudtail and Firestar had to face."

Bouncetail laughed bitterly and hissed, "Well I'm facing them now!"

"Then let me help you," Ashfur pleaded. "I can help."

"You've done enough!" Bouncetail spat. "I'll deal with it myself, without your help or the help of your lying Clan!"

"It's your Clan too!"

Bouncetail stepped back. "Not anymore."

"Please don't do this, Bouncetail," Ashfur cried out. "Please don't leave! We can work this out!"

"Give me one good reason why I should stay," Bouncetail hissed.

"Because…because I love you."

Bouncetail froze, her amber eyes widening and her shoulders slumping. For a second, Ashfur thought she would run into him, whispering the words back. But she only turned and ran away.

Ashfur stood in his spot, frozen to the ground. If he chased her, she would only run faster. For the second time in his life, Ashfur watched as the white she-cat left, but this time, he knew it was for good. There would be no grand journey that would bring her back to him or a quest that made her find herself. This time, she was gone and Ashfur was completely broken inside.

The gray tom turned and numbly started walking back to ThunderClan. Thorns snagged on his pelt and ripped out tufts of fun but he could barely feel it. He stumbled through the camp entrance where he was met with expectant gazes. When they saw that Bouncetail wasn't with him, all of their faces fell and they realized what happened.

Ashfur didn't bother explaining what happened, he just trudged to his den and collapsed on his nest. He was so tired and it felt like the entire world was weighing on his back but no matter how he tried, he couldn't fall asleep. He just stared at the empty moos bed next to his for hours; more warriors walked in the den and collapsed on their nests and a soft snoring filled the cave.

Finally, just after midnight, Ashfur could hear someone new enter the cave, lightly padding over the sleeping cats before they were standing right in front of Ashfur. He didn't look up right away, not until the figure curled up on his nest, next to him and a familiar forest-y scent filled his nose. His head shot up but before he could even say anything, Bouncetail shushed him.

"I love you too but if you say anything I'm gone and I'll never come back."

Ashfur clamped his mouth shut and wrapped his body around the white she-cats. He was never letting her go again.

Amber padded through the forest. Her once lush, white fur was now full of brambles and thorns and her eyes held no joy like they once did. The two kits dangling from her jaw were both out of it; Scout was passed out and Bounce was barely awake and whimpering under her breath. Whenever the kit did say something, it would be slurred and random because she was so dehydrated.

"Wa...er," Bounce whimpered but Amber didn't say anything. She didn't know what she was trying to say.

Amber didn't know her way to ThunderClan, though Princess did try and give directions.

"Who are you and what are you doing on ThunderClan territory?" Amber turned around to see a group of four cats, all huge and terrifying. One was a pale gray tom with darker flecks on his back, another was a golden brown tom standing next to a younger gray tom. Finally, there was a lithe, pale ginger she-cat. She had been the one to talk.

The all looked shocked when they saw the two skinny kits dangling from her jaws but the three older ones quickly gained back their composure.

Amber dropped the kits so she could speak easier. Bounce yelped pitifully but Scout didn't make a sound. "I-I'm looking for Firestar."

"What is wrong with you?" The older of the gray toms, hissed. "You just dropped your kits like they were nothing but rotten prey!"

"Ashfur, shush," the she-cat ordered before turning back to amber. "Why do you need him?"

"I can't take care of my kits anymore and I was hoping... I was hoping they could grow up in ThunderClan," Amber said steadily. The ThunderClan patrol all looked down to the two kits. They were filthy, underfed, and if they stayed with the stranger for another day, they would die.

"Fine, we'll bring you back to ThunderClan. Ashfur, Thornclaw, carry the kits. Sootpaw, go back to camp and tell Firestar what to expect," the she-cat ordered. The youngest of the four nodded quickly before darting off in a completely different direction than Amber was heading. It looked like she really was lost. "What's your name?"

"Amber. My mate went to the Cutter and I know my kits would have the same fate if I let them stay there any longer," Amber explained. The she-cat's green eyes seemed to soften as the started walking in the direction of ThunderClan. "My mother told me to bring them here since I can't care for them anymore. She said Firestar would take them in."

"Who's your mother?"

"Her name is Princess."

The ThunderClan she-cat froze in her spot and whirled around to face Amber. "What did you just say?"

"H-her name is P-Princess," Amber repeated. The warrior held such a strong gaze that it made Amber quiver under her pelt. The she-cat didn't answer but started walking again. Soon enough, a camp came into view.

Cats stared at them as they led Amber in. A fiery ginger tom was standing in the center of the camp, an unreadable expression on his face. Some of the cats standing off to the side whispered in horror when they saw the poor shape of the kits and one gray she-cat even hissed to Amber, "You're a disgrace to mothers everywhere!" The Queen wrapped a protective tail around her two sons and pulled them close.

"My name is Firestar and I understand that you wish to give your kits to ThunderClan?" the ginger tom said and Amber nodded. "But why? Why would you ever dream of giving up your kits?"

Amber explained everything. She explained falling in love with Cheshire and having his kits. She explained Slate and finding her brother on the street, ran over by a car or as they called them, a 'monster.' Finally, when she finished, she was out of breath and Firestar stared at Amber with a more softened look.

"I couldn't bear to go through what you did, especially now that I have two daughters of my own with my mate, Sandstorm." The pale ginger cat from before, stepped forward and pressed her side into Firestar's. "But ThunderClan will agree to take them and raise them as our own, under one condition."

"Anything," Amber breathed.

"Their history remains a secret. I too, was born a kittypet and I've never worked harder in my life to prove to others that I was a true Clan cat. I don't want these kits to face the same hardships that I did," Firestar explained. "This means you may also never come back."

Amber slowly nodded. She knew coming into this that she would never see Scout or Bounce again but it was still difficult to know that she would never see the four pieces of love that her and Cheshire had created. "I understand."

Firestar turned to two cats, one was pure white and looked very similar to Amber, and the other was a ginger and white she-cat with have of her face scarred and destroyed. "Brightheart, Cloudtail, only having one daughter, you have more than enough milk for an extra two. Will you take these kits and raise them as your own?"

Brightheart and Cloudtail shared a glance before nodding. Brightheart meowed, "We will love them as our own. Whitekit will believe they're her siblings and they will be raised as a true ThunderClan cat."

"Then it's settled, we have two new kits joining ThunderClan today," Firestar announced and a few cats cheered. Others just looked shocked and confused; they were still trying to process what was going on. "Thornclaw and Brackenfur, please escort Amber back to wherever she came from."

Amber started walking away when she heard a tiny voice behind her say, "Mama? Are we going home now?"

Amber slowly turned around to face her kit. "This is your home, Bounce." And then she walked out of camp without looking back. Even though she would miss her kits dreadfully, she knew they were going to grow up healthy and loved. It also helped that her own brother was taking care of them.

In the ThunderClan nursery, three kits were silently drinking milk while Cloudtail and Brightheart lay curled around them. "What did she say the she-kits name was?" Cloudtail asked. "Bounce?"

Brightheart purred at the name and gently licked her new daughter across her ear. "Bouncekit. Amber never mentioned the toms name though."

"Well what do you want to name him then, darling?" Cloudtail asked his beautiful mate.

"I...I was thinking Swiftkit. Swiftpaw gave up his life so I would live and I think his legacy deserves to live on," Brightheart answered.

"Swiftkit, Bouncekit, and Whitekit. Our family."

It's all been explained! And as a side note, I am so angry at myself! I had the entire thing written out and save to my computer and then thinking it was an old document, I deleted it! Thankfully, I found a way to restore it, even after it was deleted from recycling so everything is okay :) Anyway, what did you guys think?

The secrets out and Bouncey and Ashy are finally together! I hope you enjoyed and don't forget to leave a review about what you thought of it and what you want to see more of!

And finally, I'd like to thank Glimmershadow and Aquafrost of SolarClan for adding Bounce and Perfect Timing to their communities. Both stories were added to 'Great Warrior Tales' and 'Undiscovered Gems: The Best of Warriors Fanfic' and I was SO happy when I saw that! Thank you so much :) It means so much to me!