Summary - "Did you find what you were looking for?" he asked instead, ignoring the obvious question. Russetfur's shoulders slumped as she finally allowed him to see how tired she truly was. "No," came her broken whisper. "I didn't."

What Did You Bury

"Why were you digging?

What did you bury...

I will not ask you where you came from.

We should just kiss like real people do."

- Like Real People Do, Hozier

Heavy clouds of fog obscured the setting sun. It was impossible to stare more than a couple of tail-lengths past the fog, but the cloak provided Blackstar with a sense of comfort. On top of these StarClan-forsaken mountains, he was venerable from every angle; it felt like fire ants crawled across every inch of his flesh until the fog rolled in.

His Clanmates also seemed to find comfort in the heavy fog. They clustered together and shared tongues, and their eyes didn't dart about every time someone kicked a pebble. Finally, they've relaxed, Blackstar thought. Everyone has been on edge since…

Since Smokepaw took one wrong step and tumbled down the side of the mountain.

Blackstar cast his gaze out until it honed in on Smokepaw's mother, Nightwing. The grieving mother was curled in a tight ball, but her shoulders no longer shook with sobs. Tawnypelt laid close beside her so that their tails touched. Good. He didn't trust her to be alone right now.

Out of the corner of his eye, the fog stirred. A blurry, dark ginger form stepped into clarity, and Blackstar wasn't surprised to see his deputy. Russetfur had disappeared some time ago.

When their eyes met, Blackstar signaled her to join him. A wiry frown pulled at her lips and she breathed something inaudible; knowing Russetfur, it was a curse of some sort. Still, she approached him without complaint.

"Blackstar," she greeted him, as she dipped her head.

"You weren't supposed to leave," the white tom rumbled, not bothering with greetings or pleasantries. He respected Russetfur too much for those.

It didn't take long for her to throw them out, either. At that, her green eyes widened indignantly. "You never told me that," she growled.

"You already knew," he retorted.

"Ooh, I understand now," Russetfur drawled, sarcastic. "This is another one of those times when I was supposed to read your mind and obey your nonexistent orders, right?"

Blackstar narrowed his amber eyes, and reminded himself that ripping his deputy to ribbons in front of the other Clans would not be wise. "You knew," he repeated himself, and although he lowered his voice, somehow it sounded louder. He refused to tear his gaze away from hers. "You knew."

Russetfur cast her glare off to the side. "I'm back now, aren't I?" She mumbled.

It was the closest thing to an apology that he would receive from her. Instead of hounding her, he noticed the hardened mud that clung to her paws and legs. A frown pulled at his lips. What in StarClan's name were you doing, Russetfur?

She noticed his staring, and shifted her weight on her paws. "You look like you've seen mud for the first time, Blackstar. Have you already forgotten about the marshes?"

He raised his gaze to meet hers, and something passed silently between them. "Did you find what you were looking for?" he asked instead, ignoring the obvious question.

Russetfur's shoulders slumped as she finally allowed him to see how tired she truly was. "No," came her broken whisper. "I didn't."

Blackstar squeezed his eyelids shut. Of course not. When he opened them again he meowed, "Get some rest, Russetfur. And don't leave me again."

Despite her obvious exhaustion, that caught her attention. Her ears perked forward as she echoed, "You?"

"Us," Blackstar corrected himself. "Don't leave us again."

Her expression twisted. "Of course, Blackstar." And with that, she turned around and started to storm away.

"Russetfur," he called. His deputy did not turn around, but she paused midstep. Blackstar considered his next words carefully, then said softly, "We can't save everyone."

She didn't reply, but the way her tail fell to the ground said enough. She pushed her way into the fog and far away from him. Blackstar watched her dark ginger pelt until it disappeared completely.

Lizard-brained she-cat, he thought, though try as he might it was impossible to force any real malice into the thought. Instead there was only the desire to rush into the fog and pull her back to him. But that was nothing new.

He tore his gaze away from where she disappeared and raised it to the twilight sky. Soon the moon would be high in the Silverpelt and the stars would hang from an invisible string. Smokepaw would be there tonight, too.

May your spirit watch over her now, Smokepaw, he thought.

I've always thought Russetfur struggled with survivors' guilt after Smokepaw fell, because she rushed forward to grab him but was too late. In case I was a bit too vague, she went looking for his body in hopes that he survived his fall.

If you're waiting for me to update one of the fics I've already started... those updates are coming, they're just coming very slowly. For more details on that, visit my Tumblr account (KatieK101). I have some explanations already up, but if you can't find them then you could always drop an ask.

If there's a specific headcanon or idea you would like me to explore, feel free to request something in a review! I'm here to serve, after all :)