I HAVE ONESTAR’S CONFESSION!

Onewhisker catches a rabbit just before it crosses the border into Fourtrees. Firestar lauds his catch and asks him how prey is running. They discuss Twolegs interfering in their territories. Onewhisker wonders if he should have been so candid with Firestar and mentioning shortage of prey, but remembers Firestar is an old friend and trusts him as much as his own Clanmates. In third-person, a paragraph recalls how he had met Firestar several seasons ago. Onewhisker had been shocked to learn that Fireheart had been a kittypet first. He later told Ashfoot that he was wrong about Brushpaw and that a kittypet can become a warrior.

Even now, he still felt guilt about Brushpaw’s death, while his admiration for Fireheart had grown as he became deputy and then leader. As Firestar and Onestar talk in the present, Onewhisker growls that he wished he could have killed Tigerstar himself in revenge for Gorsepaw. As he remembers the dead cats, he thinks how Deadfoot lived long enough to see Crowpaw. The conversation ends and they say farewell happily. Onewhisker, on the way back to camp, is thankful that he had no ambition to be Clan leader and that it must be a lonely job.

Few days later, he and Whitetail hunt for the Clan. Whitetail has done exceptionally well and he notes how after first seeing her as a kit in the nursery, she became his apprentice and is now a clever, capable warrior and a good friend and was the first cat he had thought of to come with him on the patrol. He returns to camp expecting to see the camp empty, but it looks like he disturbed an ants’ nest. Mudclaw tells him that Crowpaw is missing. Ashfoot is super worried as Crowpaw was the only surviving kit of her litter. Most cats give up, but Ashfoot then yowls she can scent him in a gap between two bushes; he seems to be heading to Fourtrees. Tallstar sends Onewhisker, Ashfoot and Whitetail there to find him. But the trail ends at a stream. But Whitetail jumps it and picks up his scent again. They lose the trail again as they head toward Fourtrees but Whitetail picks it up again. At Fourtrees, they realize other cats of all the Clans had been here with Crowpaw and that they met. Whitetail makes out that there were six cats who met. Two ThuderClan, two RiverClan, one ShadowClan and Crowpaw. Whitetail locates where they left and that they left together. They wonder if Highstones was their destination, but the trail is soon lost completely, even Whitetail gives up.

Onewhisker suggests Crowpaw and five other apprentices went off to be kittypets. He muses that life as a kittypet wasn’t as bad as the Clans made it out to be and that he had never been able to turn his back on kittypet life. He tells himself he will check Twolegplace for Crowpaw the first chance he gets.

That night, he sneaks out of camp and goes to Twolegplace, eager anticipation speeding him up. He thinks that if Twolegs destroy the camp, he knew enough about Twolegs to convince them to take him in. He reaches the den he was aiming for but the cat he wants to see doesn’t emerge, but soon a lot of kittypets surround him, including Melody and Dudley, a small orange tom. Melody is noted to have never spoiled the stories for the other kittypets despite knowing what Onewhisker said wasn’t entirely true. He tells them a story about a fox then tells him that his Clanmate is missing and if they’ve seen him. They haven’t seen him and upon their request Onewhisker tells them the missing cat’s name is Crowpaw. As he is describing how Crowpaw looks, Smoke arrives and tells him the same thing about not seeing Crowpaw. Onewhisker admits that the real reason he comes back to Twolegplace is to bask in the kittypet’s praise of him. Before he leaves, Dudley has Onewhisker try one of his treats in the garage, a term Onewhisker knows at this point. Onewhisker has to try one and silently admits they are delicious. Before telling Dudley they are good and thanking him. Dudley tells him they are bacon flavored. The night grows darker and the kittypets leave, leaving Onewhisker with Smoke. Smoke licks his ear and offers to walk him back to Clan territory, saying they can go the long way around.