Have you ever met someone who seems to have a cold exterior, but after they get comfortable with you or someone else, they turn into someone completely different? There could be someone who never speaks up in class or to others and hardly ever smiles, but later you see them dancing in front of people and shouting at others with a bright smile on their face you never thought they had. Some people may be caught off-guard by this and take time to study them. Quiet in one class, and then wild in the next. How exactly do we think of those kinds of people?

I know that I'm one of that kind, and I get plenty of, "I didn't know you were like this." We may all have our reasons, it really depends on the kind of person. Some may seem arrogant at first, but then become a caring person with a sarcastic sense of humor after they get comfortable or they're around someone they know. To me, everyone's like that. When we first meet someone, they may act differently and then open up after some time. 

How exactly do we think of those kinds of people?

X X X

"We probably should've taken Tigerfrost or somecat who can tell us who each stone is with us," Beechpaw noted after a few minutes of staring at the rocks littering the circle. The queen wasn't lying, there were tiny stones of different shapes and colors scattered across the circle, untouched for moons. A forgotten ancestor of her family might be at her feet and she never knew they existed. Leaning down, she brushed the layer of dust off of one stone, exposing a white surface.

"Think we should start our own circle? We can have Mallowkit in it. Firefleck, too," suggested Beechpaw. Mothpaw smiled at his gesture but shook her head. He pouted, pretending to look angry at her.

"If we did, who would we put it here? How many cats do we know that have gone missing?" she asked, whisking away a dead leaf with her tail. "All that I can remember are Mallowkit, Firefleck, and you could say Ripplestone and Honeypaw."

An awkward silence passed between them at the sound of their sister's name. Beechpaw fumbled with his paws, unable to say anything. Mothpaw stayed quiet, her mind working on another conversation topic. However, the image of her fiery sister stayed in her mind along with the sun-yellow pelt. She wondered if there was any chance they could see each other and if she could even see her sister ever again.

Don't worry about her, she's with Ripplestone, our father.

She could hear Beechpaw's voice ring in her head and say, "That makes things worse!" 

"Okay, so no new pebble count," Beechpaw confirmed. She reluctantly agreed, getting to her paws. Brother and sister left the abandoned circle, giving a waiting Tigerfrost a nod of gratitude before heading toward the small prey pile.

There, Deerleaf and Swiftbranch were chatting about something. Mothpaw did her best and eyed her stomach, wondering if the she-cat had any signs of other kits. When she found nothing, she followed her brother.

If those two kits were still alive, then they'd be six moons, old enough to become an apprentice. Her friend group never went back to the Moon Tree after Robinwing's and Echoflight's death; they decided they weren't going to be the reason MeadowClan lost any more cats. The only thing she could do was hope that something was out there protecting them, something that was really out there, unlike StarClan.

They snatched a small mouse and split it in two, each taking a small part of the prey. Mothpaw began to devour the food like a starving fox. Her mind was wandering off toward the exit of camp, waiting for nothing in particular. The sound of Tigerfrost's kits filled the camp while warriors lazed about, the borders and hunting for the day completed. She spotted Ashstar and Dapplefur beside each other, seeming to get into a fight, but their voices were hushed, making it unable to depict what they were saying.

She rested her chin on her paws, licking away bits of prey left on her jaws. Beechpaw leaned against her, closing his eyes against her warm pelt. Mothpaw raised an eyebrow at him, but he was already semi-asleep on her shoulder. Her ears flattened against her skull as she scowled. Shoving him off was a choice, but he was pretty heavy for an apprentice, and she didn't have the energy or enough rage to toss him. Letting out a sigh, she returned her gaze toward the entrance, her brother's heartbeat thumping against her flank.

"Ashstar," said an unfamiliar voice.

MeadowClan perked their heads up at the sudden intruder, and Mothpaw spotted two she-cats standing there. One had a pelt of tree bark, her skinny frame showed her that poor condition she was in - or the she-cat was always skinny. Her blue eyes traced the camp, passing by all of them before landing on the highrock. The other one was a paler shade of white fur and pale, blue eyes that made her think she was blind. The scent lingering on them was new, but she recognized it from the faint whiffs she would get each time she passed by the river.

"CinderClan," Beechpaw whispered into her ear. "What are they doing here?"

"This is the first time we've seen them, you know we don't bother with Gatherings anymore," she replied, keeping her voice low. Ashstar stood up, leapt off of the rock, and padded over to the two. The white she-cat stepped aside, revealing two apprentice-sized cats. One was a stone-gray tom with light blue eyes - he gave her an unsettling reminder of Ripplestone. The other one was smaller, a creamy white she-cat with ginger spots splashed across her pelt and warm, yellow eyes. Mothpaw silently cursed StarClan that they weren't the two kits from the Moon Tree.

Swiftbranch's jaw dropped open before Deerleaf slammed it shut. Beechpaw jumped back, fur spiking out. His eyes wavered and he pointed a shaking paw at the she-cat. The two CinderClan cats didn't notice the commotion going on near the freshkill pile. Mothpaw looked at the she-cat and then drifted her gaze toward the tom. Nothing popped out at her until her brother managed to say a few words.

"Mothpaw... Do you remember Swanflame?" he rasped like an old cat.

Digging deep, her mind traveled as far as it could when she was a small kit. She was back in the nursery, the surroundings blurry. Echoflight was there with her siblings. Hailbreeze too, handling both Runningpaw and Olivepaw as they scrambled over her. Far in the corner, pushed away from the others was another queen. Mothpaw squinted her eyes, straining her memory to make out the other cat. A blurred image of a white she-cat on her side, tenderly licking her pelt. The white she-cat, Swanflame, a queen who never got to see her kits - or so they thought - had disappeared overnight.

Mothpaw stumbled, letting out a small yelp when the blurry cat abruptly turned to face her with a deranged look.

"Mothpaw?" asked Beechpaw worriedly. 

"Aspenstar, Clearwhisker," Ashstar said, dipping his head at them. The two she-cats dipped their heads back. Around them, she saw older cats like Dapplefur and Lionfur eye the CinderClan leader with an unreadable expression. This was the first time she had seen the infamous leader MeadowClan had put her out to be. Mothpaw couldn't help but think they were just used as a way to spread terror, taking it as the skinny cat standing a few feet away was like a twig. The cat beside her gave off an intimidating aura. 

"I'll cut the small talk," Aspenstar spat, jerking her head to the two cats. Forcefully, she shoved both of them forward, causing a squeak out of the she-cat. The tom snarled, whirling around to attack, but the leader was quick and shoved him to the ground at Ashstar's paws. The MeadowClan leader glanced at the two like they were an infectious disease. Clearwhisker let out a huff, turning her head away.

"Take these so we don't have to deal with them anymore." The white warrior shoved them further into Ashstar's paws. Aspenstar lifted her head in disgust before turning away, tail flickering. Clearwhisker perked her head up, a flash of confusion blinking on her face. Mothpaw waited for her leader to say something to stop the other leader. The warrior dipped her head without another word and dashed after her leader. Sleekfeather jumped in the way, her ears pinned against her head. 

"Why should we take them?" demanded the deputy. Aspenstar didn't flinch, but Clearwhisker jumped ahead, putting herself between her leader and the other she-cat.

"It gives us two fewer mouths to feed," Clearwhisker replied. "It also gives you more cats to help your current condition. Don't you want that?"

"I'm not stupid, you need cats just as much as we do." The fur along Sleekfeather's back began to rise with each word. The other she-cat copied her, two fires rising higher in the camp. MeadowClan jumped to their feet, lashing their tails and unleashing their claws. Aspenstar glanced at her side with a bored expression, yawning in front of Alderfang, who snarled, ready to pounce. Dapplefur jumped off the highrock, crashing onto the warrior before he could pounce. Spotting the medicine cat, the CinderClan leader whirled on her paws, marching toward the calico. Ashstar jumped in the way, shielding his medicine cat and warrior.

"Stop," he ordered. Aspenstar raised a mocking eyebrow.

"You don't scare me, even if I'm outnumbered," she answered, claws unleashing. Deerleaf sprang from her spot, darting over toward her father. Aspenstar didn't brace herself in time, and the small she-cat rammed into the leader, knocking both to the ground. Clearwhisker let out a hiss, barging through Sleekfeather, but the deputy held her ground and the two wrestled. Ashstar flattened his ears.

"Enough!" he roared.

"Father, I—" Deerleaf was thrown off Aspenstar with a single blow. Swiftbranch jumped to his feet and dashed over to his friend. He helped her up and sent an icy glare toward the CinderClan leader. Ashstar moved onto Sleekfeather, who backed down, a low growl rumbling out of her throat.

"Why are you giving us them? Sleekfeather makes a good point, don't you need more cats?"

"Unlike your Clan, we're thriving," Aspenstar answered. "Be glad I'm even giving you them."

"Who are the parents?"

A cold grin split the leader's face. She turned her cold gaze to him with a smirk. "They said their mother was Swanflame."

She let the words sink into the entire Clan. Ashstar blinked in surprise and Dapplefur stared at the two cats. The siblings looked at Aspenstar with wide eyes. Beechpaw flicked Mothpaw with his tail, telling her that he was right. She batted him on the head, pushing him away. Alderfang stared at the two of them, eyes quivering. The she-cat turned to him, facing him with her yellow eyes. The tom snarled at the senior warrior. Runningpaw and Olivepaw stood by their mother with an equally shocked expression. Clearwhisker grinned at Sleekfeather, who snarled at the other she-cat.

Satisfied, the CinderClan leader said, "Obviously, we knew they were MeadowClan—"

"Then why didn't you give them to us earlier?!" Deerleaf snarled.

"But we needed them for numbers. Then our queens began expecting more kits, and we had no use for them anymore. Instead of leaving them where we found them, I decided to give them to you. Their mother was a MeadowClan cat, anyway," she explained. Aspenstar pointed to each of them, saying their names. "They say they're Flintkit and Finchkit."

If they're here, is Swanflame dead?

"Take care of them," Aspenstar said, bumping into Ashstar. Mothpaw found it strange and scowled to herself. The CinderClan and MeadowClan leader acting like old friends after raising their claws at each other. Neither of them looked bothered by it, so she guessed it was alright. By the look on Beechpaw's face, he was thinking the same thing. The only one who acted was Deerleaf, who lashed a paw at the brown leader, threatening her if she came closer. Clearwhisker was on alert, which, in turn, made Sleekfeather get in a defensive stance. 

"Enough," Ashstar repeated, voice rising. "We'll take care of them."

"Good, it's not like you to turn down cats," she replied, turning tail and leaving camp. The two she-cats left without another word. Flintkit and Finchkit glanced at each other before bounding off, following the older cats like a moth to a flame. Tigerfrost's litter stopped them, practically tackling them to the ground, abrupt shouts spreading throughout the camp moments later. Aspenstar did look behind her shoulder and then quickly looked away. Ashstar shook his head, lowering his head.

"She's never changed."