Lilypetal's POV

It felt like I had only just closed my eyes when the sun dragged me back into consciousness. My eyelids felt heavier than a boulder, but the absence of Thornclaw's warmth beside me immediately snapped me awake. I blinked at the empty spot where he'd been, his nest already cool. Great. Either he was up ridiculously early or I'd overslept.

I got up quickly and stretched, my claws scraping the moss as I got to my paws. The warrior's den was quieter than usual, with only a few cats still tucked into their nests. I would bet all of the prey that I'd eat for the rest of my life that the morning patrols were already sent out.

Feeling a bit rushed, I burst out of the warriors den and I pushed my way into the clearing. My ears twitched as I caught sight of Firestar near the Highledge—and there, sitting beside him, was a familiar figure that made my heart skip a beat – I'd almost forgotten through my grogginess that he was here.

Smudge!

The black and white tom was chatting animatedly with his old friend, his whiskers twitching in excitement as I padded up to the two of them. Firestar had said that we would all talk more tomorrow. That's happening now, right? Right?

Too excited to even speak, I simply sat down in front of them, wrapping my tail around my paws and waited patiently. But as if sensing my presence, Firestar turned his head towards me, blinking with delight and surprise. "Lilypetal, welcome! We were wondering when you were going to wake up."

I let out a snort. "Don't worry, I surprised myself too," I muttered.

Firestar let out a purr of amusement and exchanged a humored glance with Smudge. "No worries! I'm glad you got some rest."

"Me too!" Smudge meowed warmly. I then let out a mrrow of laughter as Smudge then narrowed his yellow eyes at me. "You've been getting sleep while you're here, right?"

Overwhelmed with affection at seeing Smudge badger me just as he had when I was younger, another purr rumbled in my throat and I gave the tom a nod. "I have, don't worry," I reassured him before giving a shrug. "Guess I really needed it last night."

"Exactly," Firestar agreed as he gave a nod. "Well, now that you're up, why don't you join us?" As my eyes widened with excitement and amazement, the ThunderClan leader gestured with his tail toward the Highledge and the den beneath it.

Smudge and I then exchanged an ecstatic glance, his tail swishing behind him as Firestar led us into his den. Once we were all up there and settled down, I couldn't help but take a deep breath as my emotions seemed overwhelming in the best way all over again. I could feel a storm of emotions brewing—joy, curiosity, and maybe a touch of nostalgia.

Truthfully, it had been so long since I'd thought about my kittypet life. Now here was Smudge - a piece of that life, sitting right in front of me like a dream I hadn't realized I missed.

"Anyway, Lilypetal, before you showed up we were just talking about Princess," Firestar began, his green eyes gleaming. "You said you knew her back when you lived in the forest, didn't you?"

I nodded eagerly. "Not as well as Smudge did, but yeah, I did!" I then nodded to Smudge, who was listening to me with gleaming eyes. "She was an absolute sweetheart, I remember."

I then nodded to Firestar. "I'm honestly not surprised at all to hear that you two are siblings."

"Oh, I wasn't either! Two pretty special cats, if you ask me." After Firestar gave a roll of his green eyes, Smudge then looked excitedly between the two of us. "Gosh, she'll be so excited to hear that I found you guys!"

Firestar then nodded to his friend, his eyes having the smallest bit of urging. "Tell her I say hi when you get back, will you?"

Smudge nodded and gave a snort, as if that was silly request. "Of course I will, you silly!"

Firestar rolled his eyes again, giving his friend a light nudge with his tail before then nodding towards me, his eyes now full of curiosity. "I have to say, I'm still processing the fact that you two know each other so well!"

Smudge and I exchanged a look and purred. "Of course we do!" Smudge meowed. "Like I said yesterday, she was just a tiny kit when I met her. Again, quiet as a mouse at first, but I brought her out of her shell. My charming personality worked wonders."

"Charming personality?" I echoed with a snort as I gave the tom a teasing look. "I don't remember meeting you at all. You must've been really unforgettable."

Smudge put a paw to his chest in mock offense. "You wound me! But seriously, you were so little." He then let out a sigh and began to shake his head. "I cannot even begin to tell you how weird... but how incredible it is to see you all grown up... and here!" He then nodded to Firestar. "Being led by my best friend!"

I then let out a huff, his eyes wide with amazement. "Gosh, this is all so awesome. I'm so glad that I came."

Firestar and I then both exchanged a look of amusement and shared a mrrow of laughter. Smudge was right – this was awesome. Just getting to sit here and talk – reminisce about our pasts... it was something that I honestly wished I had done a bit more since I'd joined the Clans. While thinking about living the lifestyle of a kittypet wasn't my favorite, it was cats like Smudge that made it enjoyable and made me look back at it fondly.

Almost as if Smudge could read my mind, he gave a sniff, winked at Firestar and then said - "The kittypet life is still pretty good, you know," he said, his voice tinged with mischief. "I don't know what made you all leave it."

Firestar and I both purred in amusement. "It was good while it lasted, I suppose." I said diplomatically.

Firestar nodded. "Warmth, food, comfort—it was all there. But I wouldn't trade my life here for anything."

I gave a nod to Firestar, resonating with his words completely. Sure, the beds were soft, and the bowls were always full, but it came with its own set of problems—like being dragged to the vet (ew) or stuck behind Twoleg walls (gross). No, I'd always dreamed of something more, though I never thought those dreams would lead me here – clearly, Smudge knew that and had always known that. It was his support at the time that had been a big influence in me finally deciding to take the plunge. So, among everything else, he's almost the reason why I'm here too, I realized. Goodness, he's been a part of my life and has influenced it for longer than I realized.

I then gave a flick of my ears as I nodded to Firestar, now overwhelmed with curiosity as I tried to put the timeline of my life together. "When exactly was I taken by the Twoleg?" I asked the ThunderClan leader, the question bubbling up unexpectedly.

Firestar's tail flicked as he thought. "Hmm. It was after the BloodClan battle, but before Brambleclaw and Squirrelflight disappeared to go on their journey to the sun-drown place. Your mother was still new to the Clan."

"Wait," Smudge interrupted, his eyes widening as he looked at me. "Taken?"

My mouth dropped as I looked back at Smudge, realizing that he had no way of knowing what had happened to me just a bit after I was born – I had been too young to remember when he met me as a kit. "Oh my goodness, I forgot that you didn't know! You couldn't have!" I exclaimed to Smudge with wide eyes. "Smudge, you'll never believe it – but I wasn't always a kittypet. My mother – Mistpelt, you'll have to meet her - gave birth to me in ThunderClan, but a Twoleg snatched us up just a couple of moons after I was born.

I then had to take a moment to purr with amusement as Smudge managed to look even more shocked than he had already. "We were separated, and that's when I was taken to the shelter to be adopted."

Smudge's mouth fell open. "Wow, Lily. Wow, I never knew, what the heck? That is crazy," he meowed, giving a bewildered look towards Firestar before looking back at me, his yellow eyes now more thoughtful. "But now that I think about it, that makes complete sense. You did just kind of just appear one day. No mother, no littermates, just you."

My chest tightened at the memory. My kithood had been a whirlwind of chaos—born in the forest, stolen away, and thrust into a world of Twolegs and kittypet rules. I could barely remember my mother's face or the scents of the forest from back then. But thank goodness that I was able to recall everything and meet Mistpelt so much later.

"So then you were able to meet and get to know your birth mother then. That's fantastic," Smudge purred to me, and I nodded in agreement. Love began to swell in my heart as I thought about my mother – Mistpelt. The fact that I got to meet her and know her after all that I had been through... I couldn't even begin to describe how thankful I was for that.

I then looked back at Smudge as he seemed to be thinking again. And I had to admit, his next question made my fur prickle. "Did you ever find out who your father is?"

Oop.

Firestar and I exchanged a look, and my heart sank. I took a deep breath. "Yes," I said carefully.

Smudge tilted his head, clearly noticing the change of energy in the den. "Who?"

Firestar spoke up, his voice quiet as he glanced at me briefly again. "Smudge, do you remember the leader of BloodClan? Scourge?"

Smudge blinked, his eyes wide again. "The tiny guy? Scourge?"

I flinched at the name, my tail curling tightly around my paws. Smudge's eyes grew impossibly wide as realization dawned.

"No way..." he breathed, his head slowly turning to look at me again. "How could such a weed create such a sunflower?"

I let out a shaky laugh. "Guess I'm full of surprises," I purred, giving a bashful shrug.

I then quickly steered the conversation away, not wanting to give my... father the time of day. My real one, at least.

Sure, the thought of him alone messed with me, but I had to admit, the fact that I'd only found out recently that he was my father didn't feel too good either. I suppose that out of shame, Mistpelt hadn't wanted to tell me who my father was, and she'd only told me just a few moons ago that Scourge was my father. While I'd found it in me to forgive her, the thought of that whole situation still made me feel a bit off.

So, I was more than glad to move the conversation along to something else. "So, I haven't even asked this yet, I can't believe it. But..." I then nodded from Smudge and then to Firestar. "How did you and Firestar meet?"

Firestar let out a low, warm purr of laughter and flicked his tail toward Smudge.

"Ah, we just grew up together," he said, his voice tinged with nostalgia. His green eyes softened, their sharpness momentarily dulled by the haze of memories.

Smudge tilted his head, his whiskers twitching with amusement. "Grew up together? That's putting it lightly! You were practically glued to my side, Rusty—or, uh, Firestar now, I suppose." he chuckled.

Firestar's whiskers twitched with amusement as he raised an eyebrow. "Don't act like you weren't the one constantly dragging me to chase butterflies or climb Twoleg fences. I lost count of how many times I nearly got stuck!"

Smudge let out a playful huff, puffing out his chest. "Well, someone had to teach you how to have fun before you went off chasing fox tails and playing hero in the forest. You were all seriousness back then—no sense of humor whatsoever!"

I let out a soft purr of laughter, unable to help myself. Watching the two of them was like watching kits tussling in the nursery. It was hard to imagine Firestar, the dignified leader of ThunderClan, scampering around Twolegplace like a mischievous apprentice.

Smudge gave Firestar a teasing nudge with his paw. "Though, I'll admit, I couldn't believe it when you said you were leaving. After everything—our games, our talks, the safety of Twoleg nests—you just up and decided to go chasing some wild dream in the woods."

Firestar's expression grew wistful as he glanced down at his paws. "It wasn't an easy decision, Smudge," he murmured, his voice quieter now. "Leaving everything behind... leaving you behind... it was tough. But I know I made the right choice—ThunderClan is my home. But that doesn't mean I didn't miss you."

The sincerity in his tone made my chest tighten a little. Firestar's loyalty to his Clan was unwavering, but it was clear how much his friendship with Smudge had meant to him—and still did.

Smudge blinked slowly, his teasing demeanor giving way to something softer. "Well, I missed you too, you know," he admitted. "It was weird, not having you around. The Twolegplace felt a lot more lonely without you."

The two toms shared a look, one that spoke volumes of a bond that time and distance hadn't managed to break.

I found myself trying to hold back a purr as I watched them. There was something heartwarming about the way they interacted. So, so sweet...

And before Firestar could respond to Smudge's kind words, all of us seemed to flinch as we all simultaneously seemed to hear gasps and yowls of surprise coming from outside the den.

All three of us froze, ears pricked and eyes wide. Firestar's expression shifted in an instant, all traces of nostalgia vanishing as he sprang to his paws.

"Uh, oh," he breathed, almost too quiet for me to hear. "Let's see what this is about."

Smudge and I exchanged a brief, alarmed glance before rushing after him.

We spilled into the clearing, where the peaceful quiet of the camp had been replaced by chaos. Cats emerged from dens, their fur bristling with tension, while others stood frozen, their gazes locked on the camp entrance.

It wasn't hard to see what had caused the commotion.

Squirrelflight was right in the center of camp, Brambleclaw, Brightheart, and Cloudtail right next to her as they tried to answer the questions of all the other cats surrounding her.

My heart thudded as I took in the sight of her carrying something in her mouth. At first, I couldn't make out what it was—just a small, limp bundle of fur. But as she drew closer, I caught the faint, high-pitched mewling. No way!

A kit!