"Wake up," a voice breathed into Fiona's ear. The she-cat blinked her eyes open and the face of her mate, Pinebranch, swam into view. She could hear birds chirping in the very background, the faint rustle of squirrels in the forest, and the movement of cats in the clearing. The sun was coming up over the horizon--just a pale line of light peeking at the world, teasing it with fleeting warmth.

She stood and stretched, twining her tail with the russet tom's. After escaping from the lab and coming back to the Clan in the wrong bodies only to be switched at the entrance of camp, she and Pinebranch had grown closer. Even with her constant complaining, he still seemed to find all the best in her, and soon she slowly warmed up to him.

Fiona had chosen not to take a warrior name after joining the Clan, but Fianna--now Mistyfeather--had decided to become a full member of the Clan. Everyone had expected Mistyfeather to find a mate first, with her easygoing, cheerful personality. But instead it was Fiona.

The two sisters had remained close, and despite the barrage of insults at first hurled at them by the more hostile Clan cats, they had been accepted. Now, many seasons after the lab incident, they were fully a vital part of the Clan.

"Time for dawn patrol," Pinebranch reminded her, startling her out of her nostalgic thoughts. "C'mon, the borders aren't going to mark themselves!"

"Hush!" she snorted. "I'm remembering stuff here." The tom's eyes twinkled in amusement. "Stuff, as in the lab stuff? I remember that all the time." She purred softly at him and flipped her fur out of her eyes. Even after so many seasons, she still felt a thrill of not having her head fur so springy and light. She preferred it droopy. It suited her character.

The two headed out of the den and into the chilly morning air. It was early newleaf, the frost from leaf-bare lifting and the prey emerging from their dens, but a cold snap still hung around, not really understanding that it should have left a moon ago.

The other two cats on the patrol--Dapplefoot and Froststripe--greeted them with brief nods before setting off into the forest, eager to move and get warmed up. But no matter how hard Fiona concentrated on avoiding the undergrowth and not tripping, she was so caught up in the memories of the lab that she stumbled twice on the same twig.

Pinebranch glanced back at her, concern lacing his gentle eyes. "Is something wrong? I've never seen a cat trip on the same twig--twice!" he joked, but there was worry under his teasing mew.

"I'm fine," she replied, "but I can't stop thinking of the lab. I-I don't know why."

Dapplefoot looked at the two. "Do you want to go back to camp, Fiona?" she offered. "Froststripe and I can finish up here if you two want that, we're almost done anyway."

Fiona nodded gratefully, her breath making a cloud of white in the still air. "Thanks, Dapplefoot. I guess I'll go talk to Mistyfeather--"

"Fiona!" A voice filled with excitement hurtled through the trees and cannoned into Fiona's side. "Guess what?!"

"Mistyfeather!" the she-cat spluttered. "What are you doing?"

"Looking for you! Han is here!"

Fiona stopped and gazed at her sister in shock, the words tumbling through her mind. "Really?" she said softly. After the lab incident, Han had cut all ties and left to become a kittypet. He claimed the life of a warrior was no good for him, and he preferred a simpler, easier life.

"Yes! He said he wanted to talk to us."

Memories swept over the two she-cats like a wave. If Han was here, had something bad happened? Pinebranch touched Fiona's ear with his nose. "You two go back to camp. We'll be fine here."

She glanced at him, breathless with excitement. "Thank you," she whispered, and with a single movement the two sisters turned and sped through the forest back to camp. Worry plagued Fiona's mind as she ran. Was something wrong? Was Han in trouble?

They reached camp soon and found the tom waiting, a twinkle in his eyes. "Fiona! Fianna!" he greeted them cheerfully. "It's great to see you!"

"Is something wrong?" Fiona blurted out, not bothering to correct him on the wrong name of her sister. Mistyfeather didn't seem to mind, anyway.

Mistyfeather snorted. "Of course not.......right, Han?" She looked worried for a second but shook it off. "I'm sure he's fine!"

"I'm fine," Han laughed. "I-I just felt compelled to visit you today. I'm sorry that we haven't seen each other for seasons. But today I kind of started remembering everything we had gone through. So you live with the Clan now?"

The three padded off into the forest, and as they walked and shared stories and purred together, all of Fiona's doubts that had collected that day seemed to soar off her shoulders and disappear into the rising sun.

written by leopard :) sorry if it seems hurried or rushed at the end >.< and wow, the end of another book! cries we're so amazing now :')