Nearly a moon had passed since Snowfeather's departure from the woods she once trained in. The nights in the forest had been lonely and depressing. She wondered if she was already too late to save her family. She had prayed  to StarClan that they were okay.

            She had traveled through nearly three forests in this time, but no luck had come from it. She had met several kind clan cats, but none of them had ever heard of MoonClan or any cat from it. She would then accept their hospitality for a night, leaving the next morning.

            Sometimes, Snowfeather still kept an eye out for Bear. She did not look for him to madly fall in love with him again though. She only kept an eye out for him so she could stop him from hurting other she-cats.

            But Snowfeather didn't want to keep an eye out for him. She knew that if he were ever to show up, she'd probably claw him to shreds. So she kept her gaze on her family and the future, though she wondered if a mate and kits were ever in it.

            Snowfeather padded through the forest, the warm breeze blowing softly against her pelt. She could not believe that green-leaf would end in just a few moons, but for now, she enjoyed the season.

            Some rain had fallen during green-leaf, though not too much. Enough rain fell to keep rivers and streams full of water, and Snowfeather was thankful for that.

            Snowfeather sniffed the air, picking up the scent of another cat. The scent was unfamiliar, and she gazed around, wondering who this cat was.

            The scent was fresh, though Snowfeather heard nothing. She continued on her way, trying to get out of the area as quickly as possible.

            A sudden hiss stopped her, and she spun around. "Hello?"

            "What are you doing on our territory?!" a large white tom spat.

            A creamy she-cat knocked the tom away. "Calm down, Milkfur."

            Snowfeather stood, watching the two. She wondered if she should just run away now, but something made her stay in place.

            "This is an intruder, Berryfire! Why are you acting like a soft-spot kittypet now?" Milkfur hissed, his yellow eyes glaring at the cream-colored she-cat.

            "I don't mean to intrude," Snowfeather finally spoke up. "I'm just passing through."

            "To where?" Berryfire asked.

            "I'm not terribly sure," Snowfeather said.

            "We have to bring her back to camp with us," Milkfur spoke to Berryfire. "Grassstar will not like it if we just ignore this event."

            Berryfire sighed, looking at Snowfeather with her pale green eyes. "I'm sorry, but you'll have to come with us. We promise it'll only be for a short time. We won't hurt you."

            Snowfeather felt like running again. She hesitated, then followed the two clan cats slowly through their territory, glancing around the woods that was home to them.

            "What's your name?" Berryfire asked.

            "Snowfeather," she replied.

            "Ah, so you're a clan cat," Berryfire smiled. "What clan do you come from?"

            "Uh, well—" Snowfeather was cut off by Milkfur.

            "We're here," he growled, approaching two trees that seemed to form an arch. Bright green bushes stood in front of the two trees, and Milkfur quickly padded through the bushes, Berryfire and Snowfeather padding behind.

            Snowfeather padded into their camp nervously. She couldn't tell this unknown cats her past. If they found out she was from BloodClan, she'd be held prisoner for sure.

            She looked down as she heard the whispers of cats snickering and laughing, and she slowly followed Milkfur and Berryfire towards a small den.

            A fairly young brown tabby tom stood inside it, his eyes narrowing as Snowfeather padded into the den beside Milkfur and Berryfire.

            "Who is this, Milkfur?" the tom asked.

            "We found this she-cat on our territory, Grassstar," Milkfur replied. "She claimed she was just passing through, but she doesn't know where she's going."

            Grassstar looked up at Snowfeather. "What's your name?"

            "Snowfeather," Snowfeather spoke quietly.

            "You look like you're around eleven moons," Grassstar guessed.

            "No, I'm nearly fifteen moons," Snowfeather spoke loudly. "I was the runt of my litter."

            Grassstar narrowed his gaze, slowly walking around Snowfeather. "What clan do you come from, Snowfeather? Or are you an exile? A runaway?"

            "I come from, um..." Snowfeather did not know what to say. A sudden idea lit up in her mind. "SnowClan. I come from SnowClan."

            "SnowClan? That sounds far away from here," Grassstar said. "Why are you not in your clan?"

            "My family is in another clan, and I need to see them. I'm looking for MoonClan," Snowfeather spoke. She winced, waiting for another hopeless response.

            "MoonClan? Why that's just north of here!" Berryfire exclaimed.

            What? Was Berryfire telling the truth? Did they actually know where her family was? Excitement filled Snowfeather, and she let out a smile. "I-It is?"

            Milkfur nodded. "It's on the other side of the mountain."

            "Oh, thank you! Thank you!"

            "Not so fast," Grassstar growled. "You still trespassed through our territory. We'll keep you prisoner here, just for the night. Don't try to escape. For all I know, you could be planning battle on RainClan."

            "RainClan? That's what this clan is called?" Snowfeather asked.

            "Playing stupid, eh?" Milkfur asked.

            "What? No!" Snowfeather spoke, growling at the tom. "I promise you I'm not planning battle. Keep me here for the night then."

            "Very well," Grassstar said. "We'll let you go in the morning. Berryfire, give her something to eat. She can sleep in the old warriors den."

            Berryfire nodded, leading Snowfeather out of the leader's den. "Sorry about that," Berryfire whispered. "I believe you."

            "Thanks," Snowfeather spoke. "It seems you're the only one."

            She was led to an older den, one that had gathered much dust. As Snowfeather stepped on a nest, it nearly crumbled to pieces. This was no hospitality.

            "Don't worry. I'll get you some proper nests," Berryfire giggled.

            Snowfeather sat in the warriors den, occasionally receiving a glare from a clan member. It was like she was in BloodClan all over again. Though this time, she was alone. It was only for a night. It wasn't like she was being held captive.

            Berryfire padded back in moments later with a plump squirrel and some moss which she formed into a cozy nest.

            Snowfeather bit into the squirrel, her empty stomach filling up from the long day of walking.

            Berryfire fixed up her nest, and both remained silent as Snowfeather ate. After awhile, Snowfeather spoke. "Grassstar seems awfully young to be leader."

            Berryfire nodded. "He was made deputy during his warrior ceremony. He's only about eighteen moons. Our leader died very shortly after he was assigned deputy."

            "Interesting," Snowfeather said, finishing her meal. "Thanks for fixing the nest."

            "No problem," Berryfire spoke. "That's nice you're going back to your family, but will you miss your old clan? Why did your family leave in the first place?"

            Snowfeather nervously shuffled her paws. She hated lying, but she knew she had to. "I left, they didn't. I didn't feel MoonClan was right for me, so I went to SnowClan. I heard my family was in trouble, so I'm on my way right now to find them."

            "That's odd that you don't remember the scent marks. Surely you know how to get there."

            "It's been quite a long time," Snowfeather gulped. "I just wanted to make sure I was going the right way."

            "Well, like I said, it's just over the mountain. About a moon's journey if you just walk. If you were to walk day and night or run, well, you'd be there in about fourteen sunrises."

            A moon? Snowfeather didn't want to wait another moon! She wanted to find her family now! She knew that StarClan would watch over her family...hopefully, and she just had to hope for the best.

            Berryfire exited moments later, and guards took place next to Snowfeather's den. The sun began to fade, and Snowfeather closed her eyes, thinking about her family. She then fell into a deep sleep.

Light shining through the den woke her, and she was face to face with Grassstar. The brown tabby tom growled as she awoke, and Snowfeather slowly got to her paws.

            "Alright, you're free to go," he groaned, nearly pushing her out of the den.

            Snowfeather staggered, finally regaining balance. RainClan cats glared at her, and she slowly made her way out of camp. As she disappeared into the bushes, she heard a sudden yowl.

            "Wait!"

            Snowfeather turned, spotting Berryfire. The she-cat had a rabbit in her mouth which she dropped at Snowfeather's feet.

            "For your travel," she smiled. "Good luck. Remember, straight over the mountain."

            "I will. Thank you for your kindness and hospitality, Berryfire," Snowfeather spoke, taking the rabbit from the she-cat.

            Snowfeather then turned, padding away from the cream she-cat who watched her. Snowfeather looked up, seeing the large mountain from a distance. Her journey began now.