and so consequences follow [closed]

It had been a no-brainer that she’d accept the poor kittens when Crimsonflame presented them to her. She couldn’t possibly turn them away, and since their origins were known, there was no searching to be done- she had her answers. That was the easy part. What she dreaded, however, was dealing with the consequences that were to follow. She didn’t want the burden of dealing with this. It felt so foreign and odd, and she was lost ok what to do. Crimsonflame had broken the code, hadn’t he? He wasn’t part of the Clan at the time, and that muddied the waters. He knew he was coming back to SkyClan, so did that still make it wrong? Outside of the grey area she found herself drowning in, Briarstar felt like a hypocrite the moment she considered any form of punishment. After all, hadn’t she committed the same crime? Her fur stood on end as she grew frustrated, sitting in the leaders den. She had to handle this eventually. Smoothing down her fur, the molly ducked out of the den and searched for Crimsonflame, making her way toward him once she spotted him. Her thick coat laid flat against her back, and she kept a stony expression as she mewed, ”Crimsonflame, meet me in my den, please. We’ve got a few things to discuss.” On one paw, she hated leaving him hanging. Not only was she sure it made him anxious, but it made her anxious as well. On the other paw, she didn’t particularly want to spread his business across the Clan. For the moment, this was between the two of them. Padding into her den, she sat and curled her tail over her paws, waiting patiently for the younger tom to follow.

Of course Crimsonflame knew this was going to come. He was not naive to think that he would not be punished. A relationship outside of the Clan was forbidden. Even an accidental one, or one he presumed to be accidental anyway. But the punishment was not what scared him. He knew Briarstar was a logical cat, and we'll meaning. What scared him was that when she approached him, he couldn't read her. There was no anger or anything. No emotion for him to go off of.

With heavy Paws, Crimsonflame followed the leader. He didn't say a word as he sat down, Briarstar knew everything anyway. There was nothing he could say. It was all in her paws now.

Crimsonflame promptly followed behind her, settling into the den without a word. Briarstar had always been awkward, even if she tried not to show it, and as the brief silence stretched between them, that feeling of awkwardness grew. With a sigh, she attempted to relax her muscles and clear her mind. ”To say that this is a simple matter would be foolish. I’m not going to spend time lecturing you about the code or drilling you about why what you did was wrong- you already know all of that. Likewise, I’m sure you know that your actions can’t be let slide.” Another sigh, this time out of slight frustration. She didn’t want to do any of this. It felt wrong- hypocritical, even- to speak down to someone about something of this nature. She was guilty of the same thing- worse, even.

”Seeing as you weren’t technically part of the Clan when it happened, I find it easier to give you some grace.” ‘Cut to the chase, fur-brain.’ ”Outside of being responsible for the kits and their proper Clan upbringing, all I ask if that you not leave camp alone for a moon or two, and tend to the queens and elders until your kits leave the nursery. Your main priority now is proving to your Clanmates that they can trust you and your loyalty to us again. I trust you, but they may not. Once they can place their trust in you once more, everything can be forgiven. Understood?” Briarstar’s gaze remained locked on Crimsonflame, pale green eyes unwavering.