She stared out over the lake. So much had happened in the past few moons. So much had gone wrong, so much had gone right, so much had changed.
Leafpool still remembered following her sister to the site of Firestar's near-death. She still remembered blaming Brambleclaw, then seeing all that blood and realizing he'd saved her father. But from whom? She knew before she even approached the lake. Hawkfrost.
Seeing his body lying there, lifeless, still, dead, had hurt her more than any betrayal, more than any tooth or claw could ever do. Her heart was wrenched out all over again. At that moment she hated Brambleclaw for what he did - but at the same time, she revered him, for saving her father, for saving the Clans, for saving himself. For being loyal enough, good enough, to qualify for her sister's mate.
At least they were happy. Her and Crowfeather's parting had been bittersweet. Crowfeather seemed to have been embarassed after that; she'd been completely shocked when he mentioned he'd had a kit with Nightcloud named Breezepaw. Leafpool looked down at her round belly, swollen with the weight of kits. She still couldn't tell if she was having just one or multiple kits; it was too early in her stage to decide.
But they were Crowfeather's, she knew that. Leafpool sighed. There was supposed to be peace now. How could she have been so idiotic to think that she and Crowfeather could live a life away from the Clans, with just their family?
Once again her amber eyes travelled to her belly. And what about her kit(s)?
She'd keep them a secret. She'd ask Squirrelflight to take them on as her own. Maybe she'd never tell them that she was their mother. Leafpool sighed and swung her head up, gazing at the stars which were just beginning to appear in the sky as the sun set.
"One day, Hawkfrost," she whispered, barely conscious of what she was saying. "One day we will meet again. I don't love you anymore. I love Crowfeather. But one day, I will meet you again, whether you are in StarClan or the Place of No Stars, and we will exchange our proper goodbyes."