The Secret Mission (Holly, B-Claw)

[bluebrook3]

"I've never felt like this before...I suddenly feel tired, hungry, and...I'm getting fat but I haven't been able to eat anything in a few days." Hollyleaf meowed in a gentle voice.

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

Saviorpaw blinked and looked up into the darkness that surrounded him. Interesting... He took in her scent and closed his eyes.

"I think I know what's wrong... but I'm not a Medicine cat, so I can't quite be sure..." Saviorpaw murmured, his tail twitching slightly.

"I don't quite know how to ask this, but..." He turned and glared at Ashfire, who was slightly lower in the tree. "Have you taken a mate, by chance?" He asked in a low voice, his ear flicking slightly.

[bluebrook3]

Hollyleaf looked up at Ashfire then back at Saviorpaw, Her ear twitched. "...Yes, b-but It's not like you think..." She meowed. She didn't know how exactly tell him about Mountainfur.

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

Saviorpaw made a soft hissing sound between his teeth. This was just great. Now they had to worry about that. He sighed.

"As I said, I could be wrong, but... I think you're expecting kits, Hollyleaf." Saviorpaw murmured, his eyes narrowed.

[bluebrook3]

Hollyleaf looked down at her belly then back at Saviorpaw. She nodded to him and whispered. "I see it in your eyes and I know you can tell...you know who my mate is don't you." She said softly.

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

Saviorpaw shrugged slightly.

"I can't say I'm positive, but I could guess." He paused, "It's Mountainpaw, isn't it?" He asked quietly. He had remembered feeling a strong attactment between the two. He could still feel them stirring within Hollyleaf, and it wasn't too hard to patch the pieces together. He sighed. This was just getting worse by the minute.

[bluebrook3]

"You guessed right but it's Mountainfur now.", Hollyleaf said half joking then she looking down at her paws, a tear fell down her face. "Bluestar told me specifically I wasn't supposed to see him again but I did anyways..." She meowed getting made at herself. "Now look at me...I'm having kits and she's definitely going to know who the father is and I'm going to look like a traitor." She sighed.

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

Saviorpaw was silent for a few moments. He knew he probably should be angry at her. He should probably be yelling at her, screaming that she was a traitor to the Warrior Code and everything about it. But then again, he really wasn't in the position to talk. He had left his Clan to serve his heart. He had known StarClan had destined him for this. Saviorpaw couldn't bring himself to berate her, since their positions must be so much alike.

"You're not a traitor, Hollyleaf. You listened to your heart, and if you hadn't, you would have betrayed yourself. No matter what, I'm there for you. And I know my sister will be, too." Saviorpaw said, brushing her shoulder with his tailtip in an attempt to comfort her.

[bluebrook3]

"Thank you, Saviorpaw." Hollyleaf purred flicking him with her tail in a friendly way.

[Brambleclaw]

Canyonpaw wasn't listening to a word. Well, not at first. Marveled by his speech, maybe. But not listening to useless gabber. And then he heard it. At the mention of mate and Mountainpaw they had Canyonpaw's attention. He only heard the last few bits, and even those were just pieces of the conversation. But he heard enough. Enough to know that Hollyleaf loved a cat named Mountainfur, and she wasn't supposed to. So what did that mean? He tried to think hard. But he only kept thinking about an unfamiliar cat. He was tall, strong, and very alert. He seemed wise and brave. Canyonpaw, whenever he imagined the cat, often thought of Nightpaw. She was so much like him, not in looks but in stature. And the cat seemed very leader-like. But the more Canyonpaw thought about it, the more he saw something new.
The cat, standing tall on the crest of the hill, runs down to a borderline like that or WindClan and ThunderClan. There he watches steadily the horizon. Waiting, watching, for someone.
Canyonpaw leaped down to stand beside the two conversing cats.
"If you need our help, we will be here. I say we, or some of us, should protect Hollyleaf if she cannot climb. We'll scout a better shelter tomorrow. In a days travel, at the rate we are going, we'll be at the TrueClan camp."

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

Mistpaw leaped down from her branch on the tree, listening intently to Canyonpaw. Out of respect for Hollyleaf's privacy, she had not listened to what had gone on. It seemed that something was up with Hollyleaf, and that was about all the she-cat needed to know. Mistpaw flicked her tail, fixing her friend with her keen blue eyes. She had never imagined Canyonpaw as a leader. He had always followed, ever since she had met him. Or at least he had never really led anyone anywhere. It felt odd seeing him where she used to stand. Mistpaw couldn't quite admit to herself that she was a little jealous of Canyonpaw. She had always seen herself as the leader of the two, but it seemed now she was being replaced. She couldn't compete with Canyonpaw now, it seemed. Mistpaw tried to tell herself she was being silly, but she realized that it hurt her to think that she was inferior to her friend. The one thing she didn't know was why.

"If Hollyleaf is having problems, I will most definately do all I can to help." Mistpaw meowed firmly.

[Brambleclaw]

Canyonpaw heard Mistpaw's firm voice and felt his heart flutter. He really did love this cat, and he was realizing it more and more. He felt himself lean slightly closer, to nuzzle her, but he quickly pulled back.
She probably hates me. I bet she doesn't like me at all. It's all in my head. I shouldn't care about her. She doesn't care about me. But nothing worked. He still loved the beautiful cat.
"Thanks." He meowed, sounding too much like a leader. He tried to sound more sincere, but his newfound voice wasn't very allowing of it. He wondered why.
"Mistpaw, can I talk to you a minute?" It was now or never, he told himself, and padded off a distance from the tree.

[bluebrook3]

Hollyleaf laid down placing her tail around her paws. "Do you think they going to accept us in Trueclan?" She asked softly.

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

Mistpaw turned and watched Canyonpaw for a moment, almost reluctant to go with him. But then she shoved that thought aside and padded after him. As she went she heard Hollyleaf ask something of Saviorpaw, and she just heard his reply before she was too far away.

"I'm sure Dragonstar will not turn you away." He meowed. Mistpaw sat down as soon as they were alone and looked calmly at Canyonpaw. There was something about him that worried her, something in his very posture that made her think something was up. Mistpaw shifted her weight from paw to paw nervously, though she tried her best to look calm and collected.

"What's up, Canyonpaw?" She asked evenly.

[Brambleclaw]

"Well, this might sound odd, but here goes." He muttered to her. "What do you think of me? Honestly? Did you like me better when I couldn't talk? Or now? Because I can shut up forever if you want, Mistpaw. I'd do anything for you." He stopped, caught his breath. He had gone from sitting to standing, ears back with worry and speaking directly to her. He looked as lost as a kit in a field of dogs.
"I'd do anything for you, Mistpaw, because I love you!" He blurted the words out. Suddenly, he realized that he had probably made a mistake. He shrunk back.
"I'm sorry." He meowed, turning and running. He ran hard and fast, not stopping. Once he cast a quick glance back, but she was not following him. With a sigh, he raced on, determined. He stopped only as he realized that he had been running almost the whole f night. Dawn peeked over the mountains, and for once in his life, Canyonpaw did not feel lost. He was certain this was it. He would spend his whole life alone in the middle of no where, wandering, searching for his true love. With a sigh, he slowed to a walk and tried to see everything through hazy, sleepless eyes.

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

Mistpaw looked at Canyonpaw with a calm expression, though she was puzzled by his questions. She opened her mouth to tell him that of course she didn't mind that he could talk! Of course she thought of him as her best friend! But the tone that he had used when he had said 'I'd do anything for you' made her breathless with some unknown phenomenon. Before she could recover from the shock of his words, he blurted out something she would never have imagined...

"I'd do anything for you, Mistpaw, because I love you!"[/i] Mistpaw's eyes widened and her mouth fell open with shock. Her body went rigid and she couldn't move. He... loved her? She felt her blood run warm in her veins. Her heart pounded in her chest so hard that it made her chest ache. But then Canyonpaw stuttered that he was sorry, and he took off like a shot. She was too startled to go after him at first. But finally it wore off, and she could think clearly again. Pain racked through her when she blinked and could find no fresh scent of her friend nearby. She streaked forward, her legs rippling with power as she lunged over any obstacles in her path. Her mouth hanging open, her eyes stretched wide, and the fur on her nape pricked, Mistpaw pelted after her friend.

"Canyonpaw!" She cried. She ran and ran, losing track of time as the sun set behind her. She scrambled over logs and under bushes until her legs grew too numb to be of any use to her. She had so many scratches she could barely move. Mistpaw limped along as the sun began to rise. She felt a horrible ache in her chest as she slumped to the forest floor, too beaten and broken-hearted to care about anything. She looked up into the patches of sky and let out one final yowl.

"CANYONPAW!!" She screamed, pain filling her voice. Her muzzle fell back onto the earth and her eyes closed. She felt the world slip away as she finally lost consiousness.

[bluebrook3]

Hollyleaf padded into the clearing with Mountainfur. "Look who I found at the fourtrees guys...my mate, Mountainfur and he's also Ebonytail's brother" She meowed.

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

Saviorpaw turned to fix the darkness with his pale blue eyes. They had made a little camp in the alcove since Hollyleaf had gone, to make sure she would be comfortable and safe mostly. He sat on lookout, of all the irony, his ears poised forward on his head. It wasn't surprising that he was chosen to be the scout, though. He had keen senses and didn't rely on his sight to tell him when danger was near. Saviorpaw twitched his nose a little when he caught the scent of WindClan. He recognized Mountainfur's own smell beneath this, but it was different than what Saviorpaw remembered. His head tilted slightly, and he blinked as he introduced him as the brother of Ebonytail.

"It's been some time." Saviorpaw mewed. He wondered what the tom could think of him and his sister and brother, Ashfire and Nightpaw. They were so different...

"Hey, has anyone seen Mistpaw and Canyonpaw? They went off together and I haven't seen them since." Nightpaw asked worriedly, his ear twitching. His amber eyes displayed a bit of concern, but he seemed otherwise composed. He was slowly forming back into the self-assured cat Saviorpaw remembered. He wondered what had happened to his brother to make him go to SilenceClan. The fur along his spine shivered when he remembered the look his brother had given Ebonytail. Do I know you? He had asked incredulously. Ashfire made a soft noise in her throat, obviously concerned, as well. They had been gone long enough for questions to arouse, at least.

[Brambleclaw]

Canyonpaw soon began to wind through the twoleg nests when he heard a low growling from one yard. He sighed, moving on. How could he ever go back? But why had he even left? Had he been scared? With another, much louder sigh, he continued to wind through the mysterious lands.

-

Mountainfur smiled as he found his way over to the group of cats that were heading back to TrueClan.
"See, I told you I'd find the way!" He meowed triumphantly to his mate, Hollyleaf. Unfortunately, it had been mostly Hollyleaf who had actually found the way. Shaking his head, he surveyed the scene before him with a mix of surprise, confusion, and hunger. He saw several cats that seemed so familiar to him...
"Yes, I am related to that good-for-nothing bilebrain. She'd be such a nuisance since I left, at gatherings. Begging me to come back. Say, I think I know you from somewhere..." His voice held tight to the confusion he felt. And then, he remembered something.
"Oh, Ashfire! Ha ha, I knew I'd remember you sometime. And this is... hmmm... Oh, I know you!" Mountainfur frowned as he tried to recall the two cats. He remembered... nothing. Dang it, I'm no better than Ebonytail! Mountainfur sighed.
"Canyonpaw... tom with red-gold, fiery colored fur? Helped me fight off a dog at Fourtrees. Headed off to the twoleg nests after that. Not much sense made in that decision, though." Mountainfur plopped down on the soft earth and began to lick his paws.

[bluebrook3]

"You guys all know each other?" Hollyleaf meowed looking at Saviorpaw and Mountainfur.