Alderpaw wants to find the others, but Needlepaw convinces him they need to sleep. The next day they backtrack to find their friends scent, then follow it. They realized their friends must have passed them while they slept and that the river probably washed their scent away. They realize they need to cross the river so they can go home but cannot find a way to do so. With Needlepaw's urging they enter an area filled with twoleg nests and ask a kittypet for help. He tells them how to cross a river and asks if they have anything to do with the three cats who came that way earlier. Alderpaw is thrilled to realize his clanmates are on the same path as them. Alderpaw asks the kittypet if another large group of cats has come through, but they have not. The kittypet shares his food with Needlepaw, who eats it much to Alderpaw's horror, and then they move on. Needlepaw asks Alderpaw why he isn't happier and he tells her it is because he failed.
Needlepaw tells Alderpaw that he is being ridiculous, as clearly SkyClan was driven away long before his vision - so therefore his vision must mean something else. They travel for many day and the scent of the ThunderClan cats grows weaker when they come across the farm they passed on the way to the gorge. Needlepaw races ahead and slips into the barn for shelter for the night. That night Alderpaw dreams of Sandstorm, who tells him he hasn't failed yet, he just needs to take a different path.
Alderpaw and Needlepaw reach the thunderpath they had to cross and wait for an opening. Alderpaw tells Needlepaw of his vision. Needlepaw finds a tunnel going under the thunderpath and decides that is the "different path" they have to take. Alderpaw disagrees but Needlepaw is insistent. In the tunnel Alderpaw finds two kits whose mother is missing. Realizing the kits will die they care for them and name them Violetkit and Twigkit. They wonder if this is what Alderpaw's vision was about.
The cats reach the lake. They are happy to be home but that happiness quickly turns into a fight over the kits. Alderpaw feels it was his vision so he should take them both. Needlepaw feels it was her idea to go into the tunnel so they should go to ShadowClan. After arguing Needlepaw suggests they each take one. Before they can resolve this a ThunderClan patrol arrives. They were sent by Brambleclaw to find the missing apprentices. Birchfall takes over and says the kits will go to ThunderClan while their fate is decided at the next Gathering.
The kits thrive in ThunderClan while Bramblestar debates what to do. He has a meeting with Squirrelflight, Leafpool, Jayfeather, and Alderpaw to determine the kits fate and how they fit in to the prophecy, but nothing is resolved beyond Bramblestar's wish to keep the kits. At the Gathering, however, things do not go as hoped. Rowanstar accuses ThunderClan of stealing the kits when Needlepaw helped find them. Bramblestar points out that Needlepaw shouldn't even have been there, much to Rowanstar's embarrassment. But it pointed out that the prophecy applies to all of the clans, not just ThunderClan. It is decided ShadowClan gets one of the kits. Rowanstar takes Violetkit, and the kits scream as they are separated. Alderpaw locks eyes with Needlepaw, but she coldly turns away. Alderpaw comforts Twigkit, determined to take care of her.
I have to say, I like Needlepaw, but I am worried. She is traveling down a dark path. She is very selfish and self-centered. I understand her wanting ShadowClan to be involved with the kits, and I understand her feeling ShadowClan has a claim on them. However, her clan doesn't seem like a very friendly place right now. There is blatant disrespect for every cat going around. How can Violetkit be cared for in a hostile environment where the warrior code is getting tossed out? And how can Needlepaw not see this? I think she has feelings for Rain and has a mindset of "every cat for himself" but there is no foresight in that - because it means creating an environment where anyone who becomes injured is tossed out. I'm thinking of Jagged Peak and Clear Sky right now. She is bringing a kit into an environment where no one will want to care for her because right now everyone only cares for themselves. She is so obsessed with having one of the kits she does not care if it kills the kit.
Speaking of which, how on earth did Rowanstar let his clan fall apart like this? It cannot just be the apprentices who are disrespectful. They must be learning this behavior from some of the warriors, otherwise they would be put in their place and given extra chores until they learned proper behavior. Hopefully the next book gives more insight and it is not as bad as it appears. But if the apprentices are acting like rogues, and the elders are complaining about the lack of respect, and everyone seems to be out for himself... Well, I'm not optimistic.
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