When Lilyspark returned from her hunting trip that evening, Bluefur could tell immediately that something was bothering her. The younger molly's eyes were blazing with annoyance, her white fur fluffed up. As she entered the camp, she paused and looked around as though expecting to see someone. Apparently, whoever she had been expecting wasn't there for she shook her head and continued on her way to the fresh-kill pile, depositing her load.

Out of the corner of her eye, Bluefur spotted Thistleclaw, seated over on the opposite side of the camp, stand up and make as if to walk over to Lilyspark. At the last second, however, he appeared to change his mind and sat back down. Her sister gave no indication as to whether she had noticed any of this, but Bluefur couldn't help feeling suspicious. Had Thistleclaw done something to Lilyspark?

"Hey there," Lilyspark meowed, sitting down heavily next to Bluefur and exhaling deeply. She closed her eyes. "StarClan, I need a break right now..."

"What happened?" Bluefur asked, feeling her whiskers twitch as she suppressed a laugh. "And what's going on with you and Thistleclaw?"

"Nothing. Well, at least not on my end," her sister answered. As if sensing Bluefur's confusion, she clarified, "He...more or less cornered me when I was trying to leave to go hunting this afternoon."

"And...what did he want?" she asked, dreading what the answer would be.

"Well, first he invited me to go hunting with him. Apparently, he decided to wait for me to finish eating because he knows I always like to go hunting after a meal," Lilyspark replied, grimacing in disgust. "I turned him down, of course, but then he insisted on trying to become friends with me. Can you believe that?"

"He what?" Bluefur exclaimed, stunned.

Her sister nodded. "Tell me about it. So I asked him why he suddenly wanted to be my friend–I mean, that mouse-brain never does anything without a motive–and he gave me some load of fox dung about wanting to 'present a more unified front to the other Clans' or something like that."

Bluefur couldn't suppress a snort at that. The irony of Thistleclaw wanting to appear unified wasn't lost on her. She couldn't think of a single cat in the Clan who genuinely liked the spiky-furred warrior. There were cats who respected him for his fighting skills, certainly, but nobody went out of their way to befriend him.

"Right," Lilyspark agreed, seeing her reaction. She shook her head. "Well, naturally, I saw right through that–I mean, come on. How stupid does he think I am? So I told him to tell me the truth. And do you know what that...that absolute...that piece of–"

Thoroughly alarmed, Bluefur watched as her baby sister nearly worked herself into a rage, her fluffy white tail lashing back and forth. Ever since they were kits, Lilyspark and Thistleclaw had possessed a talent for making the other lose their cool over seemingly the smallest incidents. It was rare that a single day went by without the two of them getting into a heated argument. Yet even during all those screeching fights, never once had Bluefur seen Lilyspark so angry that she was nearly incoherent.

"Lilyspark, calm down," she meowed soothingly, resting her tail on her sister's shoulder. To her relief, she felt the tension in the younger molly's shoulders relax slightly. "Tell me what he did. If he's hurt you in any way..."

She left the thinly veiled threat hanging.

"No, he hasn't hurt me. Not physically anyway. His stupidity is a bit painful to deal with, though," Lilyspark replied. Her lip curled into a sneer as she added, "He was ever so kind enough as to inform me that he loves me."

Bluefur nearly choked. She had been wondering why Thistleclaw had suddenly taken an interest in Lilyspark so soon after Snowfur's death, but never had she imagined that this would be the reason. Anger flared up inside of her as she looked at her sister, so much like Snowfur in appearance aside from her eyes and her pure white ears. It didn't take a genius to figure out why Thistleclaw was suddenly into her. Who did he think he was?

"Do you like him?" she asked. The thought of another one of her sisters becoming mates with the arrogant weasel made her feel sick, but if it was what Lilyspark wanted, Bluefur knew she couldn't stand in her way.

To her relief, Lilyspark shook her head fervently. "No, Bluefur. I don't. I would never like someone like him. And I doubt he even really likes me. I told him as much today–I mean, what else did he expect? Did he think that I would ever accept him? Even if I did like him, he was our sister's mate! You don't move in on your dead sibling's mate, especially not two blasted moons after their death. It simply isn't done."

"No, you don't," Bluefur agreed. "You're right, Lilyspark, you shouldn't."

She had never felt more disgust toward Snowfur's former mate than she did at that moment. Even though she hadn't approved of their relationship, she could at least accept it knowing that Snowfur was happy. What must her sister think now, looking down from StarClan upon the cat she must have thought she'd grow old together with?

Did Thistleclaw only want to be with Snowfur so she would have his kits? Is that the only purpose of having a mate to him?

It was a dark thought, but once it crossed her mind, she couldn't shake it off. Snowfur had become pregnant so soon after they had become warriors, sooner than most queens did. Not that Bluefur was one to judge–after all, a molly was free to have kits as long as she had earned her warrior name–but it hadn't made sense. They were still so young, and Snowfur had always been so wild and independent. Had Thistleclaw somehow pressured her into having his kits?

No, Bluefur thought, shaking her head. Thistleclaw might have been as arrogant and self-centered as they came, but Snowfur had spoken about wanting a family with him well before she had gotten pregnant.

"I don't know what to do now, though," Lilyspark meowed again, snapping her out of her thoughts. "What if he doesn't stop? He's been borderline stalking me ever since Snowfur died. I rejected him today, but what if he isn't willing to take no for an answer?"

"Do you think he would do anything to force you?" she asked, feeling a pang of worry.

"I don't know. And that's what worries me. I don't know if he's willing to accept my answer as it is or if he's determined to get me to say yes, and, if he does go that route, how far he's willing to take things," her sister admitted, and Bluefur could see by the way her claws were digging into the ground that she was genuinely scared. "He...he's creepy, Bluefur. I don't know what it is, but something about him makes me feel like I've got ants crawling all over my pelt, and for once, it's not because he keeps looking for an excuse to start fights on border patrols."

"Have you told our parents about this?" Bluefur asked.

Lilyspark shook her head. "I don't want to bother them about every little problem I have. He hasn't done anything to hurt me yet, and for all I know, this will be the end of things. I don't want to cause unnecessary trouble."

"Alright," Bluefur meowed reluctantly. "But if he keeps bothering you like this, then I want you to talk to Moonflower or Sunstar. And if you don't feel comfortable doing it, just tell me and I'll say something. They're our parents, Lilyspark, and they'll want to make sure that you're safe."

Lilyspark nodded and rested her head against Bluefur's shoulder. "Alright," she murmured softly. "I will."

"Hey," Bluefur meowed softly, curling her tail protectively around her baby sister. "It's going to be okay, Lily. I promise. No matter what, I'll make sure Thistleclaw can't hurt you."