Full Disclosure (S)

Lighttail was walking alone to clear her head, something she’d been doing since the dogs’ defeat. She found herself on the far border, where SkyClan met no-clan’s-land, when a familiar scent drifted her way and her head snapped up to meet familiar green eyes. Bianca. Lighttail tensed a little. She didn’t know what it was about that particular rogue, but she’d seen her before and her presence always made Lighttail nervous.

“Lighttail, wait,” Bianca called. “May I speak with you, please?” Lighttail stalled, suspicious.
“What business would you have with a SkyClanner?”
“Please, just listen. You’ll understand when I’ve told my story.

When I was young, I was a kittypet living not far from here. I had a good friend, a nomadic loner named Light. She wasn’t always around, but when she was we always had so much fun together. She never taught me any serious survival skills, but I did learn a few little tricks from her.

I also had a lover called Carlos. I thought we were each other’s true love, but it turned out he had another mate the whole time. I was just a game he played, he said what I wanted to hear and strung me along with his looks and hunting skills. When his mate found out, he stopped coming to see me.

Not long after, my housefolk moved away and left me behind. At the time, I told myself I had been forgotten and that they would remember me and come back, but now I’ve seen it happen to enough cats that I know the truth: twolegs will simply abandon their cats when we become inconvenient. I was very much alone. I hadn’t seen Light in a long time, and there was no chance of help from Carlos or anyone else. I got by on scraps and began a search for Light.

I learned several things. Number one, Light was dead. Number two, she’d apparently had a kit. Number three, that kit was adopted into ShadowClan. And number four, I was expecting kits of my own with no way to provide for them. I made the hardest decision of my life and left my three kits in ShadowClan territory.”

“Where Light’s daughter found them,” Lighttail mewed in shock. “You… you’re my birth mother, aren’t you?”

“Please forgive me,” Bianca mewed through tears. “I hated to leave you behind. It tore me up inside for ages. I could barely live with my choice, but I knew I would never forgive myself if you starved. Please tell me, are your brothers well?”

Lighttail was crying too, now. “I… I’ve wondered for so long! I knew I was loved in ShadowClan, but I wondered why my birth parents left me there. There’s nothing to forgive. In fact, I want to thank you. You gave me a shot a living, and I could never think badly of you for that. Um… as for my brothers, though…” She took a deep, shuddery breath. “Deerpaw, the brown and white one, he… died, and last I knew Slugkit left the territory. I hope he’s well, though.”

Bianca let out a long, slow breath. “I love you, and your brothers wherever they may be.”

Lighttail nodded. “Thank you. In future, I’d love to talk more. Just please don’t approach me if I’m not alone. It’s not against the rules to speak to outsiders, but it’s frowned upon.”