Cloudtail could hardly believe it had happened. Even a moon on from the Dark Forest's strike, the memories still clouded his mind, and the words he had wanted to say to Firestar echoed over and over, taunting him, dragging him into a world where he had spoken his gratitude more before pushing him back into reality. He missed his uncle. He practically longed for him.

Of course he still had Brightheart and his precious daughter Whitewing, but they didn't need him anymore. Brightheart could manage perfectly well now with only one eye, and Whitewing had a family of her own to care for. Cloudtail had no siblings to watch out for, even his adopted brother and sister were dead. His adoptive mother had been murdered back in the forest, the same place he had left his true mother-Princess, in a twoleg home, without even getting the chance to say goodbye. He didn't know his true siblings, nor his true father, but he didn't mind that. He'd always had Firestar to fill the role, and his patient, wise, gentle uncle had never disappointed.

But he too was gone now, and it was as though something snapped in Cloudtail's already broken heart. He couldn't hide behind smart remarks and confident jokes any longer. When he saw Firestar's body, he wanted to simply lay down and die beside him. He remembered when he was a kit. Whenever there was a storm Firestar told him, "It's just Starclan kits playing and being too noisy. Don't worry, their mothers will stop them in a little while."

Of course, Cloudtail now knew this was nonsense. He had done for a while, having eventually given up belief in Starclan, but as a kit it provided the comfort he needed. Now, he hoped that there was a Starclan. Well, he knew there was, he had seen them help fight the Dark Forest with his own eyes, but all the same...he didn't want Firestar there. He wanted him beside him again. He wanted to tell him that he missed him, that he was sorry for all his little 'issues' as an apprentice, and that he saw him as a father. But Firestar was gone, and Cloudtail didn't think he'd ever be the same again.