Recap: 

Every couple of moments, a small head peeped out of the den. Then, there were two. Ashfeather drew in a breath. Bramblekit! Bristlekit!

She was distracted from the two kits from a motion behind her, and ducked into the undergrowth just in time. Sunpelt padded past, head held high, and walked into the camp. Barely daring to breathe, Ashfeather slipped past her and followed her patrol's scent trail until she bumped into them. Ashfeather's heart soared.

"You found the other patrol!" she said to Brackenfur.

He nodded. Hurriedly, Ashfeather explained what was going on. Mousetail's patrol growled when she mentioned Rootkit, and unsheathed their claws. Just as Ashfeather had done when she was an apprentice, she circled her Clanmates in, and they voiced their plan until they knew exactly what to do. Nodding to the warriors, Ashfeather, Eartheart and Streamfur crept off. They made a circle around the clearing until Ashfeather found the place where the kits were hidden. Earthheart unsheathed her long, curved claws and easily clawed away the backdrop. All three of them scraped and bit at the back of the den until there was a kit-sized hole. Ashfeather stuck her muzzle in, barely daring to move a muscle.

"Bristlekit, Bramblekit, we've come to rescue you! Come here and be quiet!" she breathed through the opening. There was a shuffling sound, and Ashfeather wiggled back. A moment later Bristlekit crawled through the hole, with her brother behind her. Both kits had scratches, and were exhausted. Bristlekit sank right down to the ground as Mousetail and the others appeared.

"All good?" Skybright whispered.

Treestorm gently took Bramplekit in his jaws and settled him on Mousetail's back. Skybright helped him heave Bristlekit onto his back, and slowly they set off, away from the dangerous place. When they got back to camp, they were greeted by howls.

"You got them!"

"Was it really Sunpelt?"

"What are they planning!"

The kits are safe!"

"They're hurt!"

The last yowl came from Willownose. She pushed through the crowd with leaves in her jaws, looked the kits over, and motioned for them to to come to her den. Waterstar came out to hear the report, and Ashfeather gracefully leaped onto the rock again.

"cats of SilverClan!" she began. "Sunpelt and Grassflight are traitors! They gathered dogs for a Clan, and they are leading them. They indeed have taken our kits, and harmed them. We all swore not to meddle with dogs. We swore not to harm kits. We swore not to betray our Clan! Sunpelt and Grassflight have broken our code. We will fight!" Ashfeather announced. She took a step back and dipped her head to leader, who stepped to the foot of the rock.

"I confirm. Is everyone familiar with our attacking formations?"

Nods rippled through the camp.

Waterstar surveyed her cats calmly, then raised her eyes at the moon, which was full.

She unsheathed her claws. "Tomorrow, practice formation seven. We leave at sunse-"

Goldenstripe pushed her way to the front of the crowd, her green eyes wide with anxiety.

"Sorry to interrupt, Waterstar, but before we disperse, we need to hear the story that our kits have to tell."

She stepped aside to reveal Bramblekit, Redkit, Rootkit, and Bristlekit. The four kits sat down at the foot of the rock, and Redkit began to speak.

"I was asleep in the nursery. When I woke up, my littermates weren't there, and I could smell Sunpelt. I was suspicious of Sunpelt. She was always sneaking off somewhere, and I wasn't allowed to follow her. I told my mother, who woke the Clan. Then you started to-to-"

Goldenstripe cut him off with a gentle nod.

"That's it, Redkit. Willownose will take you back to the nursery."

The black young medicine cat picked up the kit, brought him to Frostfur, and returned to sit next to Goldenstripe. Rootkit got to her paws and shakily began to talk. "S-sunpelt took us to a fern circle. We were excited to go on an adventure, but we should have realized that it was bad. Sunpelt told us that we were going to be held hostage until she became leader of our Clan. I told her that wasn't going to happen, so I walked away. But Sunpelt growled and hissed at me. She took out her claws and hurt my littermates. They slumped in the ferns. Then she lunged at me and everything went b-black,"

"Poor thing," murmured Snowbreeze, and guided the kitten back to her mother. The Clan looked expectantly at the two remaining kits.

Bristlekit sat up first. "After Sunpelt hurt us, we had blood on us. When I woke up, Sunpelt was dragging me through the grass. I was hurting so I stayed still. We came to a small clearings were there were-"

She paused, paw in the air.

"Dogs," supplied Mousetail.

The kit nodded. "Dogs. Sunpelt put me in a den and there were three of them guarding the entrance. I fell asleep. Th-"

Bramblekit stood up, quivering. "When I woke up, Grassflight was carrying me to the camp," he whispered. "I was hurting a lot so i was scared to move or complain. Then she dropped me in the den, where Bristlekit was. We took turns poking our heads out to see what was going on, and then Ashfeather made a hole in the back of the den and rescued us, and brought us back."

The kits slowly made their way back to their mother, and for a moment there was horrified silence. After what seemed like an eternity, cats started to yap.

"Who would harm kits?!"

Why would they plan with dogs?!"

"Waterstar, stop them! Drive them out!"

Waterstar hushed the Clan.

"Like I said, practice formation seven. Streamfur, arrange for all the warriors to do this." she wheeled around, looking for something. "Apprentices, it is your duty to hunt as much as you can. The Clan will need to be fully fed, and you will hunt without supervision, so don't stop to do anything!"

The apprentices nodded, tails in the air, while Streamfur yowled out instructions of the Clan.

"Every able warrior is to come with me tomorrow. Now, get some sleep and we start at dawn!" cats streamed into their dens. Ashfeather checked on the kits before joining them, and curled up and closed her eyes. 

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