Ah... next week won't be fun at all. Or the week after. I've got tests and finals that are all due on the same day. So whether I update next week is currently up in the air. Also with Christmas coming up... night shifts. Lots of FuN night shifts. At least my paycheck will look handsome. But an update on Christmas week is also up in the air. Sorry bout that.
When I'm not buried under mounds of homework and assignments and tests-that-I-need-to-study-for-otherwise-I-feel-guilty-for-not-studying, I've been busy playing Brilliant Diamond. The nostalgia trip has been real y'all. I didn't think I would enjoy starting with Turtwig this much. I haven't even gotten the third badge yet and I already have a Torterra. The Grand Underground has been a blessing for grinding :D :D
Reviews are appreciated!
"Firestar, you can't keep doing this. I've missed so many patrols because you wouldn't let me go," Sandstorm grumbled, her ears flat against her head. She wanted to be irate at her possessive mate, but at the same time she knew that it was his new instincts that were making him behave this way; instincts that weren't so easily fought, especially because she had caught his eyes flash red whenever someone tried pulling her away from Firestar.
At least, she thought she saw them turn red. It was always too quick for her to be sure.
She didn't want to admit that she didn't actually mind being wrapped up in his tail. She could feel the heat emanating from behind his scales, warming up her pelt that was very much appreciated through leaf-bare.
The dragon above her snorted and constricted his tail slightly tighter, not enough to hurt her, but enough so that she wasn't going anywhere. The metal tip was delicately positioned so that its sharpness wasn't anywhere near her, as were the spikes that lined his tail.
She looked over the mound of scales and into the camp, eyes pleading with anyone to help her. Most cats just looked away awkwardly, and the others were giving her sympathetic looks. Rosepetal shook her head, looking resigned to the fact that she wouldn't be placing Sandstorm on anymore patrols today.
The metal tip and the spikes were just reminders that trying to fight a dragon was a foolish idea. So she was forced to move onto her next plan for escape.
Sandstorm turned her pleading eyes onto him instead.
Firestar shifted uncomfortably at his mate's wide eyed look. Something inside him didn't want to let his sand-colored treasure go, but another part of him was upset at her upset look. Something that told him that he had done something wrong to make her this way.
He didn't like seeing his treasure upset. "Sandstorm, that's not fair," he whined.
She dropped the wide-eyed look. "You want to know what's unfair? Your stupid strength keeping me here is unfair!" she hissed, scowling. He sighed, withdrawing his tail with a sullen expression. She rolled her eyes good-naturedly. "It's only for one patrol mouse-brain. It's not like I'm leaving forever," she remarked, stretching out her body and relishing in all the kinks in her legs popping. That was the one downside to being wrapped up in his tail- she needed to get her blood flowing every time afterwards.
He lay his head on his claws, staring after his mate as she joined up with the rest of the hunting patrol with clear, lucid eyes. Part of him was screaming at him to bring her back now but refused to act on such urges. It was nice to be finally lucid after moons of exhaustion, but being awake with a clearer mind was allowing his mind to visit unwanted thoughts again.
He was glad that the scents of new-leaf were chasing away the feelings of tiredness and drowsiness, but somehow he got the feeling that next leaf-bare wasn't going to be as easy as the past one.
His eyes wandered across the camp, watching cats go about their day. A strange mix of boredom and melancholy welled up inside him. It didn't feel right just sitting up above camp, not doing anything meaningful. But there wasn't much he could do besides flying off to hunt for more of those strange black and white creatures, and he had already had his fill for the day.
It was just setting in how boring his life was about to get when Jayfeather and Lionblaze hurried back into camp with odd looks on there faces.
"Bramblestar!" Jayfeather yowled up to the leaders' den. The tabby emerged, giving his pelt a quick lick, before sliding down the High Ledge to meet up with his medicine cat.
"What is it? Are the herbs not growing in yet? Have birds eaten everything?" Bramblestar asked quickly. "Someone didn't steal anything did they?" he inquired, quickly flashing a look over at Firestar. Firestar watched the exchange carefully, and refrained from snorting too loudly. Shadowclan and Windclan wouldn't dare try to take anything from Thunderclan territory with Firestar's threat still hanging over their heads.
Lionblaze shook his head. "No one has stolen anything. It's just that... the territory's changed," he uttered.
Bramblestar blinked at him, puzzled. "The territory has what?"
The golden warrior shifted uncomfortably. "You haven't noticed that the trees are taller and thicker than before?"
Now that they mentioned it...Firestar hadn't paid much attention to the trees, considering that he was taller than them now. Or was he? He was more focused on making sure he landed perfectly and didn't accidentally squish any cat on the way down. But now that he was examining the trees around him more, he found that the branches rose a little above him now.
There were still branches poking irritatingly at his back and wings, but not as many as before.
Did he actually know how many were annoying him before? Most of the time he had been too dazed from drowsiness to function properly through leaf-bare.
The forest was still trying to grow into new-leaf, but it was clear that the camp would be blanketed under the soft shade of leaves once green-leaf started rolling around.
"Not only that, but we managed to find a huge clearing nearby that I know wasn't there before," Jayfeather stated, eyes flashing over in Firestar's direction too fast for anyone to pick up besides the dragon's keen eyes. He lifted his head up from his claws, interested. The stone ignited to life on his chest, sending a warm feeling up his spine. Although curious about the stone's reaction, he did his best to ignore it.
Bramblestar looked perplexed. He closed his eyes, taking in a deep breath before opening them again to stare into Jayfeather's unseeing ones. "You're telling me that there's just... an entire clearing, in our territory, that everyone just happened to miss despite a few seasons of living here?" he seethed.
"There's a huge opening at the top of the trees. You wouldn't be able to miss it," Lionblaze commented.
Bramblestar took in another deep breath. "How huge is this clearing?"
"Big enough to hold a dragon," Lionblaze confirmed. Now everyone in the camp was listening in, and switched focus to see Firestar's reaction at Lionblaze's word. He had already starting sitting up, preparing his wings to take flight. The stone's warmth increased, urging him further.
"Show me," Bramblestar commanded.
.
.
"No. No way has this place just... existed within our territory without anyone noticing!" Squirrelflight howled as the patrol took in the sights of the mysterious clearing.
Said clearing had already been mostly taken up by Firestar's size. It hadn't been too hard to find- he had noticed the gaping hole atop the forest canopy and easily swooped in and landed without any trouble. He found that he had more than enough room to lay down or stretch his wings out without the space being too confining. Plus, he could easily get in and out to go hunt.
The springy grass floor of the clearing felt much better than the rocky ground of the hollow.
"Did Starclan have a paw in this?" Bramblestar whispered to Jayfeather as Firestar was examining the clearing.
Jayfeather paused, ears swiveling around over at Firestar's direction. Then he nodded. "Leafpool's scent led us to this place," he murmured back, voice low as possible so Firestar couldn't hear what they were saying. Bramblestar's ears perked up, intrigued.
"So Starclan has finally done something for him then," the leader breathed out.
The stone let out a pulse of warmth, almost like it was pleased. Firestar craned his neck down to gaze at it suspiciously. Did it know this place was here? Had the stone built this clearing for him?
Well... he supposed he liked it better than living atop the hollow. This was much more comfortable.
He also wasn't scaring anyone here.
"I guess this would be a perfect place for you to live now," Bramblestar commented, padding up besides Firestar.
It would be but... "There's one thing missing though," he rumbled, wings drooping in realization.
His hatchling blinked up at him, gesturing to continue. "I wouldn't be at camp anymore. I wouldn't be able to see you all so easily," he sighed, wrapping his tail carefully and gently around Bramblestar's midsection to raise him to his eye level.
"It wouldn't be that bad. We can always visit you," Bramblestar meowed gently. He perked his head up, an idea forming in his head. "We could always come every so often and eat together here. Wouldn't that be nice?"
Firestar only purred, grateful for such an arrangement. More warmth generated from his chest, almost like the stone was in agreement.
"Guess I'll be fetching Sandstorm tonight then," Squirrelflight purred, padding up to join them.
While the three were convening, Jayfeather hummed and tapped his tail to his hindleg thoughtfully. "Something on your mind?" Lionblaze murmured to him.
"Nothing much," he replied. He was brought back to his dream from that one time at the Moonpool, the clan coming together and feasting at this very clearing with Firestar. "Just some prophetic dreams coming true."
Remember when Fires gave up on hope that Jayfeather's vision of Firestar being a type of guardian figure for Thunderclan was ever going to come true?
I do love me tying up some plot holes from 40 chapters ago!
Obviously, Leafpool is kind of a trigger name for Firestar. Otherwise he goes into a state of self-loathing.
Tell me how I did.