We Meet and Part
Featuring: Lionpaw and Heatherpaw
"Lionpaw? Are you there?" Heatherpaw called out from inside the tunnels. It was too dark to see clearly but she could just make out Lionpaws golden fur entering the cave.
"I'm right here, Heatherpaw. I'm sorry I took so long. Ashfur almost caught me." Lionpaw apologized and look a large step forward so the WindClan apprentice could see his features clearly.
Heatherpaw purred as she got into a playful battle crouch. "I don't know any Heatherpaw you speak of. I am Heatherstar!" she said and lunged toward the ThunderClan apprentice. She bowled him over and they went tumbling down the dark tunnels.
Lionpaw pushed 'Heatherstar' off with ease. The young apprentice then jumped into another battle stance and tried to detect Heatherpaw but it was too dark to see anything. He could barely even see his own paws!
"Wow, you're getting pretty good at battle training. Ashfur must be a good mentor, huh?" Heatherpaw complimented and Lionpaws chest swelled with pride. He could hear Heatherpaws feet as she walked closer to him. Once he was sure that the WindClan apprentice was only a tail length away did he reply.
"You could say that. I've been getting some extra help on the side." he grinned as they walked closer to the tunnel entrance so they could see each other better. Heatherpaw cocked her head in confusion.
"Extra help? By who, Sedgekit?" she purred and Lionpaw rolled his eyes. She was the only cat that would compare Lionpaws battle moves to a WindClan kit
"No, mouse brain, I meant you. Beating you at a fight every few nights is making me a pretty good fighter." It was Heatherpaws turn to roll her eyes though she heard something underneath all of his boasting. It almost sounded like he was lying? But Lionpaw wouldn't lie to Heatherpaw, would he? Besides, there wasn't really anything he could lie about. Well other than where he was getting his 'extra help' but Heatherpaw was sure he just meant it as a lame joke.
"Heatherpaw? Are you okay?" Lionpaw asked and the WindClan cat snapped back to reality. The golden apprentice was staring at her with a mix of confusion and worry in his amber eyes.
"Oh, huh, yeah I'm fine. I guess I just got lost in thought." Heatherpaw said and Lionpaws face lightened up. All of the worry disappeared from his eyes and he stood straighter.
"And that is another reason why I beat you at fighting." he bragged in a very snotty voice. Heatherpaw responded by lunging at him while letting out a playful snarl.
"In your dreams. Nobody can beat Heatherstar, not even her loyal deputy!" Heatherpaw growled and pinned Lionpaw to the ground.
"Deputy?" Lionpaw gasped and wriggled to get free, "You doubt my powers." a new light took over his eyes and Lionpaw pushed Heatherpaw off. She yelped in surprise as he barreled into her again and scratched her across the side with unsheathed claws.
Heatherpaw jumped back in pain. "Lionpaw! You scratched me! We aren't actually fighting!" the scratch wasn't too painful but it hurt Heatherpaws feeling more that Lionpaw could ever think of physically hurting her.
Lionpaw backed away and said something under his breath before apologizing to his play mate. Heatherpaw cocked her head in amusement, instantly forgetting what Lionpaw did.
"Did you just scold Tigerstar?" Heatherpaw purred and a tiny trace of fear showed in Lionpaws eyes but Heatherpaw chose to ignore it. He was probably just being mysterious, old Lionpaw. "You are one strange cat, Lionpaw."
The playfulness returned in Lionpaws amber eyes. "Not any stranger than you, Heatherkit."
Heatherpaw gasped in fake horror at the pathetic insult then smiled evilly. "Now you've done it."
The two apprentices continued to play until the stars started to fade in the sky. By then they were both on the ground trying to catch their breath.
"Lionpaw, are you sure we should be doing this? It's against the Warrior Code." Heatherpaw asked and Lionpaw turned his head to face her.
"No, having a lover outside your Clan is against the code. We're just friends. There isn't anything wrong about that." Lionpaw said and Heatherpaw nodded. She still felt guilty about her visits with Lionpaw though. How long would it be until they did start breaking the code?
"Yeah, I guess." Heatherpaw said and they both turned their gazes towards the sky. It was still dark and would take a few more hours until dawn. "I guess we should be going now."
Lionpaw nodded, neither of them wanted to leave. Heatherpaw was the first to stand up and then the golden tom was second.
"Tomorrow is the gathering and I don't think I'm going but do you want to meet three sunrises after that?" Lionpaw asked and Heatherpaw nodded. Three sunrises seemed so long but they knew that if they wanted to keep up their strength for apprentice duties that they couldn't meet every other night.
"See you then." Heatherpaw licked Lionpaws ear goodbye and he returned it.
Heatherpaw felt her heart sink as Lionpaw turned around and started wailking out of the tunnels.
If he looks back then he feels the same way I do, if not, he thinks of me just as a friend. Heatherpaw thought as she watched until Lionpaw was almost at the exit of the tunnel.
He didn't look back. Heatherpaw sulked and turned around to head back to her own Clan. If she had watched for only a second longer, she would have seen Lionpaw turn his head to glance at Heatherpaw just before he exited the tunnel.
