Chapter 10
Honeywing sat down beneath a short tree. Berrynose padded up to her. "Hey, what's going on with you and Lionpaw?" he asked. Her eyes turned from happy to annoyance. She looked away. Berrynose stepped forward. "Honeywing?" he asked. She turned her golden gaze to him.
"N-nothing," she meowed. Berrynose snorted. "We all know all too well to know that it's not nothing," he mewed seriously. She rolled her eyes. "Honeywing, what did he do?" Berrynose asked.
She didn't look at him. She just stared at nothing with no emotion in her eyes. "Honeywing, he's your best friend. You can't stay mad at him for long," Berrynose meowed. He pressed his muzzle against her shoulder to comfort her, but in a friendly way. "Come on, just go and talk to him," the cream furred tom encouraged.
She finally looked up at him. "Fine," she murmured stubbornly. "There's the Honeywing I know," he meowed, licking her ears. She moaned. "Don't treat me like a kit," she meowed playfully. He rolled his eyes and said, "Now go and talk to him."
Honeywing nodded and weaved in and out of the cats. She spotted Lionpaw walking up to Heatherpaw and couldn't help but let out a hiss…
Lionpaw felt a wave of fury crawl along his spine. He drew his lip back into a snarl. Heatherpaw looked at Breezepaw. Her pretty eyes were filled with shock, yet happiness as well. "I…" Heatherpaw trailed off when she saw Lionpaw standing behind them. When the black tom saw Lionpaw, his amber eyes turned from soft to anger.
"What are you doing there?" Breezepaw hissed, his eyes flaring with anger and fury. Lionpaw returned his gaze. Heatherpaw stepped between the two toms before they could begin a fight. Lionpaw looked at her and her eyes now showed concern and a pleading for him not to do anything. He sighed and looked at Breezepaw. The black tom's fur was bristling and his teeth were showing.
"I came to talk to Heatherpaw," Lionpaw meowed.
"Heathertail now," Breezepaw hissed. "And I'm Breezepelt," he meowed boastingly. "Heathertail…? Congratulations!" he meowed happily to Heathertail. She looked down embarrassed. "Breezepelt, can I have a moment with Lionpaw?" she asked the black tom. His golden eyes were disapproving, but he looked from Lionpaw and Heathertail and then looked down and nodded. He turned and bounded over to a couple of young RiverClan and ShadowClan warriors. Lionpaw glared after him, but then turned to Heathertail, the cat he loved… and also, unfortunately for him, the cat that Breezepelt loved as well.
"Lionpaw, I can expl-" she managed to get out before Lionpaw blurted out. "Do you love him back?"
Heathertail's eyes turned to shock. "What do you think, Lionpaw?" she hissed. "Of course I… I don't," she mewed. "I-I love you Lionpaw," she purred, pressing her muzzle against his. He felt much better, but still uneasy. He looked down at Heathertail. Even though, she was a warrior, she was still smaller than him. He was already the size of a warrior. He sighed.
"I'm sorry about that," he mewed. "Don't be," she purred, licking his cheek. He licked her ears and purred. They sat next to each other for the whole entire gathering. "I think they're about to start," he meowed, seeing the leaders gather together. As he looked, he saw Honeywing eyeing them. He felt uneasy again. He looked at her. He read her gaze and they showed no signs of anger, just concern. She caught his eyes and gave him a look saying: Be careful, Lionpaw. He sent her a thankful look back.
She looked down at her paws, her eyes lost in emotion. He felt bad. Even after he attacked her, he put all of this extra trouble on her shoulders and she was keeping his secrets. He owed her big time. He was lucky to have her as a friend. "Hey, I need to go and talk to Honeywing," he mewed.
Heathertail's eyes began to blaze with fury. "That golden brown cat!" she spat. "Yes… but Heathertail, don't be mad at her. She… she knows," he told her. Heathertail gasped. "She hasn't told has she?" Heathertail asked in horror.
"No," Lionpaw replied.
Heathertail sighed in relief. "Is she keeping our secret?" she asked.
Lionpaw nodded. "She is," he said. "I just need to talk to her for a second," he meowed to Heathertail. He saw her nod understandingly and he bounded across the clearing to Honeywing. "Hey," he said, slowing down and walking up to her. He saw her look up at him.
"Hey," she murmured. There was silence for a second and he saw her look away for a second.
"I'm sorry!" they both said at the same time.
"You go first," Honeywing said.
"Look, Honeywing, I'm really sorry about putting you through all this trouble. I'm… really sorry that I… hurt you. I didn't mean to, honestly. I just… I was just," he trailed off, trying to find the right words.
"In love," she finished for him. He looked at her. Her amber eyes showed understanding and softness.
"… Yeah," he meowed. "And… I want to say thanks as well. You know, for keeping our secret," he mewed quietly. He saw her become tense. "I know it's probably hard, but… it means a lot to me," he purred. He saw her open her mouth to say something, but then the ground began to tremble and shake with great force…