Warning: Lots of fluff ahead. This is chapter where Jayfeather and Briarlight confess their love. Thank you so much for the reviews, and please review again for this chapter! Now, on with the story.
Chapter Two
"You remember the plan?" Jayfeather hissed. The two of them were hiding in the bushes just outside the big Twoleg nest, but Briarlight couldn't get her mind off the night before. Jayfeather seemed nonchalant, as if nothing had happened, but the brown she-cat couldn't shake off the sensation she had felt. Is this how Bumblestripe feels around Dovewing? she thought.
"Briarlight! Concentrate!" Jayfeather scolded. He twisted his head to look back at her, his eyes like blue chips of flint. "We only have one chance to do this!"
"Sorry," Briarlight muttered. "Yes, I remember the plan." She narrowed her eyes and stared out at the big Twoleg nest. It was a bright white color, with a row of monsters sleeping in front of it. As she watched, a female Twoleg carried a kittypet with a bleeding paw into the nest. After a while, the Twoleg reappeared, and the kittypet had something white around his paw. Briarlight tilted her head. Jayfeather was right. The Twolegs bring their pets here and they get healed!
"All right," Jayfeather whispered. "Go."
Briarlight quickly slithered away, leaving a furrow of leaves in her wake. She navigated around the side of the Twoleg nest and rounded a corner to the back. Here, there was an expanse of the black stuff on Thunderpaths, and as she dragged herself across it toward the nest, she suppressed a hiss of disgust. How could Twolegs live with such a horrid stench? She did her best to ignore it and pulled herself to a halt just outside the back wall of the nest. Squared-off stones were stacked on top of each other - stairs, Briarlight recalled from her mother's stories - leading up to a platform that led to … what was it called? A door, she remembered Millie saying. Leading up to a door. Those are stairs to a door.
She instinctively glanced back toward where Jayfeather crouched in the bushes. His blue eyes glinted at her, and he flicked his tail encouragingly. Taking a deep breath, Briarlight turned back to the nest. She tipped her head back, flattened her ears, and let out a distressed wail.
For a heartbeat, she thought nobody would come, and her heart started to pound. But then the door opened with a loud creak, and a female Twoleg stood staring down at her. Briarlight was so shocked by the warmth in the Twoleg's eyes that she stopped wailing and fell silent. The Twoleg said something in a low voice and leaned down, reaching out her paws toward Briarlight. Instinct told her to run away, but she remembered Jayfeather's words. Bracing herself, she allowed herself to be picked up by the Twoleg.
"Hssss!" Jayfeather darted out from the bushes and stood bristling in front of the Twoleg. He wound his tail around Briarlight's body and laid back his ears protectively. Don't be too angry, Briarlight thought. Remember the plan!
The Twoleg's eyes softened with understanding. She said something quietly, gently unwinding Jayfeather's tail from Briarlight's body. Then she gathered the brown she-cat up in her forelegs, and stepped back slowly. Jayfeather still bristled, but didn't advance any further. Good, Briarlight thought. Everything's going according to plan.
As the Twoleg carried her inside the big nest, Jayfeather flew to the door and pressed his paws against it, staring after Briarlight. His blue eyes were wide with concern and love, and as she stared back at him, she realized that everything in his eyes was real - even the love. Briarlight felt a jolt of a strange emotion - happiness? Joy? Confusion? She kept her eyes on Jayfeather's until the Twoleg rounded a corner and she couldn't see him anymore.
Is Jayfeather in love with me? Briarlight wondered. Maybe that was why he had acted so strange, and maybe that was why he was willing to go to such extreme measures to get her legs fixed. She knew she wasn't imagining the affection in his eyes. But he's a medicine cat! He's not allowed to have a mate! Briarlight shut her eyes. And why do I care? Do I love him too? She had to admit that Jayfeather was always there for her whenever she needed help or somebody to talk to. And when she ranted to him, he sat there silent and unmoving, unlike Blossomfall or Bumblestripe or Millie, who changed the subject frequently. He listened to her. He knew how it felt to be her. That was something no other tom in ThunderClan had - the understanding that Jayfeather had for her situation. And, well … He's kind of handsome, Briarlight admitted. His sleek silver tabby fur gleamed in the sunlight, and his eyes were so big and blue …
She didn't linger on Jayfeather, for the Twoleg had laid her down on something tall and made of wood. As Briarlight lay there, the female Twoleg bustled around the den, holding something in her paws. After a while, the Twoleg walked over to the brown she-cat and slid something in front of her. Briarlight stared at the strange-looking white pellets the Twoleg had handed her. Does she want me to eat that? she thought incredulously. But the Twoleg was watching her with an expectant look on her face, so Briarlight gave a sigh and lapped up a few of the pellets.
Immediately, she felt drowsy. As the den descended into darkness, she felt herself growing tired. Her eyelids lowered, and Briarlight let herself drift off into a peaceful, dreamless sleep.
Bright white light shone into Briarlight's eyes. Grumbling, she blinked open her eyes and stretched in satisfaction. Curling her tail over her haunches, she flicked her ears and stood up, glancing around. She was in a Twoleg den! What am I- Then she remembered.
Jayfeather. The journey. The Twoleg nest. Her legs! Briarlight craned her neck and stared at her back half. I'm … I'm standing! My legs - they're fixed! They looked a bit strange, her joints a little more stiff than they should have been, but … she was fixed! Her heart soared, and she felt as if she were walking on stars. I can walk! I can hunt! I'm a warrior again! Barely able to control her emotions, she slithered down to the floor of the den and stretched her hind legs experimentally. They worked! The Twolegs really had fixed her up.
Briarlight bounded out of the den and down a long, rectangular tunnel. She could see a mound of silver fur just outside the door. Rising to her hind legs, she scrabbled at a shiny golden thing halfway up the door. There was a click, and then the door creaked slowly open. Briarlight wriggled through the gap and prodded Jayfeather gleefully.
"Go away," he grumbled. "I was having this really great dream and-" Jayfeather leapt to his paws, eyes wide. "Briarlight!" He leaned closer, sniffing at her legs. "Your … your spine is fixed."
"I know!" Briarlight agreed giddily. She turned and flexed her paws in glee. "I can't believe it! The Twolegs actually did it!" Suddenly feeling brave, she whirled around and nuzzled his shoulder affectionately. "Thank you for bringing me here. I owe this all to you."
Jayfeather stiffened at Briarlight's touch, and for a moment the she-cat thought she had offended him. You mousebrain! she scolded herself. How did you ever trick yourself into thinking he loved you? She was just about to turn away when he relaxed, and nuzzled her back uncertainly. "I would do anything for you," he murmured, so low that Briarlight barely caught it.
"I-" she began.
"Briarlight-" Jayfeather said at the same time.
Awkwardly, Briarlight pulled back and cleared her throat. "You first."
Jayfeather sat down and stared at his paws. The rising sun set his fur aflame, making him look almost as if he were from StarClan. "Briarlight," he began again, shuffling his paws awkwardly. "I'm … I'm sure I'm the last tom you want to hear this from, but …" Jayfeather flattened his ears in embarrassment. "When I thought of this idea - the whole Twoleg fixing thing - I wasn't just thinking about clearing room in the medicine den."
Briarlight drew in a sharp breath. Is he about to say what I think he is? "And … and what were you thinking about, then?" she forced out.
"I was-" Jayfeather stopped and looked up at Briarlight. "I was thinking about, well, I was thinking about …" His ears literally turned red with mortification. "About how you would never be able to have kits with a broken spine," he blurted out. Like two nights before, he whirled around and looked away, shaking with embarrassment.
Briarlight was stunned. She was not expecting that.
Quietly, she stepped toward him and sat down next to him. Jayfeather didn't move when she laid her head on his shoulder. "Your kits?" she murmured into his fur.
Jayfeather slid out his claws and scraped the stone beneath his paws. "Well, I wasn't-" he began to protest, then cut himself off with a sigh. "Yes," he admitted. "Yes, I was thinking about … my kits." He ducked his head and sheathed his claws.
"I don't know how to feel!" he shouted suddenly. "I have this … this feeling whenever I'm around you, and I'm just so confused! And I start acting really strange and I don't even know what I'm saying ... I'm supposed to be a medicine cat, but I can't … I can't deny that I-"Jayfeather broke off with a sputter. "That I love you," he whispered. "And that I brought you to the Twolegs because of that."
Briarlight blinked. "Jayfeather-"
"No," he sighed. "Please don't. I don't need my heart broken right now." He turned away. "Besides, I'm a medicine cat. We could never be together."
"Never?" Briarlight murmured. She shook her head and pressed closer to Jayfeather. "You don't understand. I'm not going to break your heart. I … I love you." She paused to let this sink in, but before Jayfeather could say anything, she continued. "And there's no reason why a male medicine cat shouldn't have a mate. After all, it's not like … it's not like he's going to have the kits. If the warrior code forbids this, then …" Briarlight's paws tingled. "Then maybe the warrior code should change."
Jayfeather was silent. A breeze ruffled their fur as the sun climbed into the sky. Greenleaf trees rustled in the wind, and a single green leaf spiraled down to land on Jayfeather's paw. He flipped it onto his claw and shredded it distractedly. With a short laugh, he turned to Briarlight and pressed his muzzle to hers. "I never thought I would have a mate," he confessed. "It's against the warrior code, and Hollyleaf - she convinced me that the code was all we had. But I could never regret this feeling." He twined his tail with Briarlight's. "This feeling that I have everything I've ever wanted in the world." Jayfeather sighed. "And you're right. If the medicine cat code forbids taking a mate, then it's time for that to change." He stood and shook leaves off his pelt.
Briarlight looked up at him, eyes wide with curiosity and surprise.
"Let's get back to camp," he said softly. "We need to talk to Bramblestar."
