Too polite to say it [closed]

Lightfoot's short fur fluffed against a stray wind as he laid in the camp clearing, his mind buzzing. The past few moons had been uneasy when it came to being near or around Dawnstrike. He had loved her very much, and their kits were perfect, but he'd been a little too observant for her to get away with the not-so-little stunt she'd pulled. The tom noticed how she withdrew and stopped looking at him admiration. He noticed the way her sweet scent became milky, like it had been when she was close to birthing Rowanpaw, Daisypaw, and Ivorypaw. And apparently there weren't even any kits to show for it, which meant that another Clan had a new member or two. Lightfoot responded in kind; he pulled away from her the same way Dawnstrike did to him, but he never confronted her about it. It wasn't worth the strife. Maybe if she thought that she had fooled him, then she could be the sweet and gentle cat she had always been beneath it all. Lightfoot just wondered who it was that had so easily taken her love from him. He cast his melancholy blue eyes around the camp, supposing that Dawnstrike was out hunting, or possibly meeting her lover. He shook the though from his head; he wasn't going to be bitter. He wouldn't blame anyone but himself.

Sablefur nodded to her Clanmates as she entered the camp from a patrol. It was a rather successful patrol; her jaws were filled with prey along with the cats trailing behind her. She tossed the prey carefully into the fresh-kill pile. WindClan was faring very well these days. Sablefur purred as she padded toward the center of camp. However, her happiness was short-lived as she noticed Lightfoot's melancholy mood. She was panged with sympathy as she approached the white tom, tilting her head.

"Lightfoot?" she called, settling next to him. It wasn't any of her business.... But Lightfoot was usually a cheerful cat. The deputy was quiet for a long time before speaking. "Are you all right?" She had noticed he was spending less time with Dawnstrike. Perhaps it would help him to talk to her more...

"Oh, Sablefur," He meowed, surprised by her approaching. She was a very busy cat and was often taking care of WindClan, so he was somewhat worried that he was taking time out of her crowded schedule. "I'm sorry, I don't mean to distract you from your duties. I'm fine, I promise." Lightfoot said, a toothy grin forcing its way onto his muzzle. But it didn't really feel right to tell her nothing was wrong, and he had no ability whatsoever to lie to clanmates. He sighed, drawing a white paw through the grass beneath him. "That's not really true. I'm sure you could tell. I've been having a difficult time with Dawnstrike..." Lightfoot glanced quickly around. "...I'm not sure she loves me. I'm not sure I love her either. I don't know what happened to us." He didn't want to burden such an important cat with something so useless, but he had no one to turn to.

ooc: late post imsry </3

ic: Sablefur dipped her head at the tom as he turned. She held back mrrows of amusement at his flustered actions. Lightfoot was always so respectful of her and seemed to hold her with high regard. However, she flicked her ear at him. Something was definitely the matter. "Don't worry. There's nothing so dire that I should turn a blind eye to a Clanmate." She eyed him questioningly, settling down next to him and careening her ears to listen. The deputy felt her heart break at the sound of the tom's words. But Dawnstrike had his kits... It wasn't every day that two cats fell out of love so far into their lives together. However, the brown she-cat butted her head against his shoulder. "I'm sorry to hear that, Lightfoot," she sympathized. "I'm here for you..." What did she know about relationships? She'd never even been in one! She would have to choose her words carefully. After a long moment of her sitting deep in thought, she glanced up from her silence. "Well, have you talked to Dawnstrike about it?"

At once he felt guilty. "Ah... no. I haven't seen her around for a very long time. I was worried that she went missing or was taken by rogues, but I never really said anything. I guess I thought she'd come back one sunrise." He suddenly realized how dumb he'd been. Not reporting a missing Clanmate in fear of seeming too clingy to a cat he no longer loved? Lightfoot was glad he had Sablefur's support, but surely she would think him a fool now for acting so daftly. "Sablefur, what if those rogues got her? The kittens--well, they're not kittens anymore, but they'll always be in my mind--I don't know if our kits have even talked to her, either." He tore at the ground helplessly. Honestly, he was so useless. What good could he do for WindClan in this numb state?