Warriors: Unknown Origin: Epilogue
Bubblestar took a deep breath. She called for RiverClan to gather around her, even though all of the cats were already crowded around Stone Mound. They knew what was going on, and they watched on with sad expressions.
Nightfur jumped up beside her, and touched his tail-tip to her shoulder. He gave her an encouraging nod, and she smiled back gratefully. Her decision was only fuelled when she saw the grey streaks in her deputy's fur, and the white in her own whiskers.
"RiverClan," she called, her voice loud and even, "today is an important day. Today . . . my deputy, Nightfur, and I are retiring from our positions."
A murmur started up in the crowd; they'd known it was coming but it still came as a shock.
Bubblestar smiled, a little sadly. "We have had a long and adventurous journey—too long," she added with a wink. "And now it's time that we handed it over to some cat more capable than ourselves."
"You're still capable, Bubblestar," Wreathberry called out.
Bubblestar chuckled. "I have only two lives left after all that has happened. Just recently I almost got it down to one. And my old bones deteriorating—I am not as fast and nimble as I once was. And so...Nightfur and I have come to a unanimous decision that Ribbonflame will be your new leader."
Ribbonflame looked up, in a slight daze, it seemed. He padded quickly over to stand beside Bubblestar—Bubblewing—and Nightfur.
"Welcome, Ribbonstar," Bubblewing meowed with a grin.
Ribbonstar grinned back, sheer joy sparkling in his eyes. "Thank you so much, Bubblewing. You've been an amazing leader, never making a mistake," he mewed. "Well, maybe not never making a mistake, but..." A chuckle rippled through the crowd as Ribbonstar grinned again. Bubblewing cuffed him playfully over the head with her paw. "Really," he meowed, sincerity now pure in his voice, "thank you."
Bubblewing blinked away her tears and told them not to come back. "You're going to be great, Ribbonstar."
RiverClan chanted their new leader's name. When that died down, another cat started a new chant—"Deputy! Deputy!"
Ribbonstar looked around and almost immediately locked his eyes on a warrior in the crowd. "My new deputy will be Glassfang."
The silver tom stepped gracefully through the crowd, his pelt shining almost as much as his excited eyes. Glassfang jumped up onto Stone Mound.
"Glassfang! Glassfang! Glassfang!" the cats shouted.
Glassfang grinned at Ribbonstar, then at Bubblewing and Nightfur. When the meeting had been dispersed, Ribbonstar asked to see his deputy in the leader's den. As the silvery tom's pelt brushed against the previous leader's, Bubblewing murmured, "Your father would have been proud."
Bubblewing sat on Stone Mound late that night, staring at the near-full moon. Before she knew it, tears had bubbled up in her eyes. She would miss being leader so much. But she knew it was time for her to retire and give a new warrior a chance. And who better to be leader than the very cat whom she had trained when he was an apprentice? She had complete faith in him.
She lay her head down on her paws, silently letting the tears flow. All the while she stared up at the moon, at the stars. One twinkled especially bright at her as the memories of her life as leader came rushing back to her.
Bubblestar stepped on Coyotefur's tail by accident in her excitement. He yelped in pain, and she hastily apologized.
"What? What are you so excited about?" he asked, weakly laughing off the pain.
Bubblestar leaned her face closer to his, breathing in his comforting scent. It only made her heart beat faster.
"I'm pregnant."
Bubblestar smiled fondly as she watched Ribbonflame pretend to lose pitifully against Pumpkinkit, Glasskit, Orangekit and Acornkit. But they were too old now to be fooled so easily.
Glasskit whacked the warrior with his small paw. "We're not mouse-brains, you know!"
"Not anymore, at least," Ribbonflame retorted with a grin.
"We're not, but you are," Acornkit giggled.
Ribbonflame bared his teeth at her playfully.
"Train us for real," Orangekit put in, stamping her paw on the ground.
Ribbonflame rolled over so he could stand again. "You're going to be apprentices soon," he meowed. "You'll be trained then."
Bubblestar walked over to them. Her kits crowded around her gleefully. "Yes, soon you'll be even better than Ribbonflame."
"Maybe not better," the saffron warrior meowed.
"Well it wouldn't be hard," Bubblestar told him with a grin, flicking her tail at him. Her kits all squealed in a laugh.
Coyotefur came running over, a flash of silver. Glasskit was the spitting image of him, and Orangekit looked a lot like him as well, but with flecks of copper spread around her pelt. Pumpkinkit looked like his mother, and Acornkit was also like Bubblestar but her fur was more bronze than grey.
Coyotefur dropped the small piece of fresh-kill, and the kits squealed again. They were excited to be eating real food as opposed to milk supplied by a surrogate mother. (Brightpelt, who was also nursing, had fed the leader's kits her milk because Bubblestar wasn't producing enough, and she also had her duties as leader)
As they watched their kits eat, Bubblestar let out a purr as her tail intertwined with Coyotefur's.
Bubblestar breathed in the fresh air of new-leaf, with Glasspaw, Pumpkinpaw, Orangepaw and Acornpaw flanking her. They had been hunting together, and had just come to dig up their prey and bring it back to camp.
As she trotted along, the RiverClan leader noticed they were passing the spot where she had met Coyotefur as an apprentice. Warmth flooded her heart as the memories came back to her. He had saved her life then. And many other times. She couldn't live without him, that was an understatement. She smiled and caught up with the four apprentices.
When they got back to camp, darkness was falling. After she dropped her fresh-kill on the pile, Coyotefur intercepted her on her way to her den.
"Yes?" she purred.
He was smiling, a mischievous glimmer in his eyes. "I think we should just escape together tonight."
Bubblestar paused, and then a smile of her own crept its way onto her features. They snuck off, back to that very spot where they met to just have the night to themselves.
Bubblestar felt her heart would shatter. She was certain she could live no longer, absolutely certain. Her soul had just been ripped out of her. She couldn't take a step. She couldn't make a sound. She could only stare ahead of her, agony threatening to tear her to pieces.
She couldn't go on. Not with Coyotefur dead.
"He's with StarClan now, Mother," Acornfire mewed in an attempt to comfort her. But how could she, when she was depressed herself? "Don't worry..."
Bubblestar said nothing back.
She just cursed badgers right down to their horrid souls.
Bubblestar felt much older. Her bones clicked and occasionally creaked when she ran or sat slowly. The muscles around her shoulders ached and her tail felt heavy.
Bubblestar hadn't withdrawn for long. She was on her feet and talking again a day and a half after her mate died. But Nightfur had had to take on the heavier duties of leader until Bubblestar could fully get over her depression.
After about a moon, Bubblestar dreamed of Coyotefur. He had spoken to her. He was safe in StarClan. She didn't have to worry.
And she didn't really, after that. She was back to her normal self, mostly, after that. Except for the physical problems her depression had introduced.
She was kind of ashamed that she had been so affected by Coyotefur's death, but she quickly got back in the groove of things and was in control again before the next Gathering.
When she reported Coyotefur's death at that Gathering, a silence fell over the crowd and it was easy to tell that he would be missed.
As Bubblestar lay weeping on Stone Mound, she could feel a warmth on her pelt that was unmistakably Coyotefur's. She breathed in shakily and caught his scent faintly. Her heart swelled and her tears stopped. She fell asleep on the rock, the moon and the stars shining brightly, warm and comforted.
Her life had been her own. Though she was sent from StarClan to finish a prophecy and wasn't born normally, she had her family. And she'd made her own family. Plus she had fulfilled the prophecy. Her life had ups and downs, but the result was that she was happy.
Through her tears, she smiled wearily, thanking StarClan for her happiness.
I think the ending was kind of stupid, but...that's the ending, everyone! :) I hope you liked it...I liked how I went from the end and then scrolled through the rest and back again, hopefully you did too. :P
Man, I can't believe it's done now. O.o I'm free! XD Thank you to everyone who's been reading and reviewing this story for, what, two years now? Especially Vixenfur and Dragonheart, you guys are awesome. ;)
Please leave one final review! :D Hopefully it won't be on how stupid that last line was, but how much you enjoyed the story, right? RIGHT!
XD Thanks again to everyone, I hope you enjoyed the story! I enjoyed writing it for you! Bye ~