1This is for Indo (Crescent Indigo) over at Lawlclan. Merry Christmas, Indo, and I hope you like it. This was incredibly challenging, as it's my first story for this category, but it was fun nonetheless. I'll probably be writing more Warriors fandom in the future :)
Prompt 1: The sun is only half of the day; sometimes, you have to search in the moonlit night to find the thoughts that have drifted away in daydreams, and force your own mind clear of the ones that aren't yours.
Prompt 2: Just because you believe that every shadow isn't moving, that every snapped twig isn't a monster lurking in the dark, doesn't mean that there isn't a smiling friend waiting to leap out and make you jump.
Prompt 3: The moon is the eye of the night, and unless it is closed, all that you do, whether covered by leaves or by wood or by brambles, is seen and remembered. Every twined tail, after all, foretells a coming love, and a coming eternity.
The sun caressed her back, its gently rays warming her ginger fur and dulling her senses. Her head lolled to the side, thoughts drifting lazily across the open sky like leaves in the breeze. She stretched out her paws and rolled over, staring up at the sky. It was blue and cloudless, the hope of the day shining out through the trees. Her tail flicked, warding off the insects that had started to gather, buzzing irritably around her ears.
The day started to drift to a close, the shadows lengthening as the time ticked down until night. Sunlight streamed through the trees, liquid gold spreading across the clearing where she lay. The day perched somewhere between afternoon and evening, the sky a beautiful purple, highlighted by streaks of red and orange. She sighed, annoyed by the listlessness of waiting, the time she would have to wait stretching out in front of her, like staring out at the forest and knowing you had to make your way through it.
As the evening got later and later she could feel an excitement building up inside her, taking hold of her like a strong current in the river, pulling her forwards, ever closer to the forest's edge. It was consuming her, the desire to just start running, leave everything behind her and just disappear into the trees. She could fell her thoughts getting sharper, her focus growing stronger, but it only made the time seem to pass slower. She tried to cast her mind back to the rest of the day, but she couldn't remember what she had done. It all seemed a blur of waiting and hoping, hoping to see him again, hoping to…
No, she wasn't going to think about him, for it only made the wait longer. She had to force her mind away from the unwanted thoughts, the thoughts that right now, weren't hers.
.
Finally she could bear it no longer, leaping up and bounding into the forest, barely pausing to check if she'd been seen. Her world started to collide as she ran, twisting and turning, transforming into the night she'd been waiting for. Through the trees she glimpsed the stars, shining radiantly without the moon to leave them in shadow. It was a cloudless night, the sky clear of almost everything but those tiny points of light scattered across the face of Star Clan. She started to run faster, her breath coming out in gasps as she pushed herself faster through the trees. The wind ran it's way along her fur, causing it to flatten against her. It buffeted her face as she leapt through the undergrowth, her thoughts cascading behind her as she made her way to their meeting place, buried in the depths of the trees on the border of Thunder and River clans.
She reached the spot, panting, the air coming out in gasps while she fought for breath. As she regained it, she slowly became aware of the silence of the forest, a stifling pressure that felt like a weight on her shoulders. She sank closer to the ground, pacing around in circles as she looked for the eyes she could feel watching her. Her eyes traced the edges of the shadows, searching for something in the ominous black expanse.
He is just late, she thought to herself fervently, he wouldn't miss this, not with how much time we have left.
So little time…
.
She remembered when they had been young and carefree, their love glistening in the sunlight and their happiness shining like dew drops in early morning light. They had played in the forest, flaunting their passion to their separate clans, never worrying they would be caught, let alone the consequences of that happening. They had given hope to each other, hope that they could stay together through opposing ideas and clashing values, and the hope that it might all work out.
.
She's brought back to the present by a thudding sound, echoing around the small clearing, again and again, until she doesn't know which direction it's coming from. She starts backing away, her tail flicking and her ears trained to the sides. Her eyes scan the darkness around her, probing it for some sign of movement.
A shape emerges from the darkness and she leaps forwards, hoping for the element of surprise, but she lands on the ground behind him.
"Lightningpelt?" she asks, looking up at the white tom.
"I've missed you," he says, his voice smooth and caressing as he rubs his muzzle against her neck. She gives in, purring as the curl up together.
"I- Lightningpelt, I'm having kits." The tom looks shocked and she worries she made a mistake in telling him, but then he purrs, his body relaxing and his eyes bright with joy.
"What will you tell the clan?" he asks, his muscles tensing again. "They're going to ask questions, and you're not-"
"No," she interrupts "I'll just say that Blackclaw was their father." The tow paused for a moment, remembering the warrior who had died in the last skirmish with Shadowclan. "It'll be okay," she murmured, rubbing her muzzle against his. "It'll all work out."
She looks at the sky suddenly, as if afraid the moon is watching them, but it's not there. She feels safer without it, as if they are alone, with nothing but the stars as company.
The moon makes her feel uncomfortable, because all that you do, whether covered by leaves or by wood or by brambles, is seen and remembered, and there's nowhere to hide from it's piercing gaze.
It is when the night's eye is closed that they can see each other, travel through their territory and meet on the border, stealing away from everything they know and moving into something risky, driven by wishes rather than reality.
She rubs against his neck, purring, as slowly their time melts away, like frost at dawn. The sky starts to lighten, the stars slipping away one by one, disappearing into the sky as they are slowly overwhelmed.
It is near morning when she finally leaves, running through the forest as if she was being chased by some monstrous beast. She arrives at the clearing just before dawn, the risk she has taken obvious in her pounding heart and frantic breathing. She slips in through a hole at the back of her den, creeping over to her nest and laying down. Out of the gap in the bushes she can see a tom and a she-cat, their tales intertwined, enjoying the last vestiges of darkness before they are forced to part. She watches them, silently wishing them luck with the adventure they call love. She lays her head on her paws and sighs, her thoughts starting to drift off again. She can almost see them floating past, caught on the breeze like dust.
The kits inside her stomach start to squirm, stretching as they wake up. Their story started with twined tails, she thinks, and now they have a future stretching ahead of them, a coming eternity.
She raises her head, staring at the sky and watching the clouds go by, waiting for the moment she'll see him again.