"Hey, Sedgewhisker!" A plump queen gently set herself onto the ground next to the said she-cat, who had her head on her paws and was gazing at nothing, her eyes glazed over.
At the arrival of the queen, Sedgewhisker raised her head half-heartedly, blinking and giving a barely audible greeting, "Hey, Icefrost," before placing her head back down.
"Come on, Sedgewhisker! What's wrong?" The pretty white queen tilted her head slightly, nudging the motionless she-cat beside her. But still, there was no response.
After various prompts to talk and a few tiny threats and hisses, the heavily pregnant she-cat heaved a sigh and started to get up clumsily, grumbling.
Finally, Sedgewhisker's eyes cleared a little as her only littermate and best friend slowly hobbled away, she raised her head and croaked "Wait."
Icefrost turned around, hope glimmering in her pale amber green eyes. Hope that her sister would stop her moping. Hope that her sister would finally tell her what was going on. Hope that she would finally get her sister back.
Sedgewhisker, not wanting to draw any attention, twitched her tail ever so slightly and beckoned towards the camp entrance. Icefrost nodded slightly and padded towards the entrance, gently supporting her sister.
A silver blur shot in front of them before they could exit and the two sisters reared back in surprise. Graystorm, a massive silver tabby tom who also happened to be the deputy and Icefrost's mate blocked their path.
"And where do you think you're going?" he meowed playfully, nuzzling his mate. "Just out." Icefrost replied vaguely, pushing past her mate gently.
"Okay then, just be careful." the deputy replied, flicking his tail in response and casting a barely visible look of sympathy at Sedgewhisker. She bristled in reply, glaring at him with shards of emerald. Graystorm backed away hastily, allowing them passage through the entrance.
Sedgewhisker swished her tail over the deputy's shoulder, giving him an apologetic glance. Graystorm dipped his head in acknowledgement and whispered softly, "Keep her safe, her kits are due soon." After nodding, she followed her sister out into the forest.
The two sisters pressed together tightly as they trudged through the forest, paws snapping fallen twigs and leaves.
They finally reached a secluded clearing and Icefrost turned on her sister. "So what's this all about?" she demanded, practically nose to nose to her sister.
"U-um-m," Sedgewhisker stammered, looking around frantically before taking a deep breath and composing herself.
"Well…" Icefrost listened patiently as her sister poured out her story. "I met a tom from ShadeClan at the last Gathering and he was just so nice! We met up every two nights and then finally, a quarter moon ago, I found out that I was expecting kits! Sageleaf thought that the kits were Rookfur's and she was absolutely overjoyed that her brother was going to be a father. I knew at once that it wasn't Rookfur's kits, but I couldn't bring myself to tell her." Sedgewhisker drew another breath before continuing her tale, "I acted like nothing happened, except for an occasional mood swing. No one noticed anything, except for Rookfur. He noticed my behavior and went investigating. He found out that I was being unfaithful to him and he confronted me. He said that he will continue being the kit's father, but he will not guarantee be there for them."
After finishing her story, Sedgewhisker crumbled and broke down, tears streaming down her face. "Can I be entirely honest right now?" Icefrost asked, placing a gentle paw on her sister. No response. "I guess that I'll just take it as a yes, then."
"What Rookfur did was better than you deserve. You were unfaithful, yet he's still going to be the kit's father. You broke the code, yet he's not going to tell Falconstar." Icefrost said firmly, the glint in her eyes suggesting that she'd better listen carefully. "Just because Falconstar doesn't know, and neither do the rest of the Clan, doesn't mean that there won't be consequences."
Sedgewhisker nodded mutely. "Because if there's one thing for certain," Icefrost continued on, "Then it's that there will be consequences."
She smiled warmly at Sedgewhisker, and nuzzled her sister. "And when they come, we'll face them head on. Together."
"Together." Sedgewhisker echoed faintly.