Bring Back the Cat I Love

Redwing didn’t seem to be much like herself as of late, Poppyheart thought to himself as he watched his mate leaping down from Jaggedrock after holding yet another apprentice ceremony for one of his brother’s kits. He rose up to his paws and followed after the russet-colored molly. He was on a mission to try and cheer her back up, hoping to bring back at least a small part of the innocent, carefree cat he had fallen in love with many moons ago.

”Hey, Redwing,” he meowed with a smile once he reached her side, gently pressing his muzzle into her shoulder with a soft purr. ”Do you want to go hunting with me for a little? It’ll be nice to spend some quality alone time together.” He figured at least a little time away from her new and demanding deputy duties would do her some good.

After finally finishing all her ceremonies for the day, Redwing felt like she needed to get out of the camp. Time was, she wanted to spend all her time in camp- around all her Clanmates and family and friends. All those numbers were rapidly shrinking, though, and time alone sounded exponentially better than watching everyone fawn over the returned Asterspark and all his growing kits. However, someone had different plans. Even as she leapt off the rock and began to head straight out, a familiar face nudged her shoulder. She would know that purr anywhere. Poppyheart- her mate. They really hadn't spent much time together for... since... well. A while. Almost surprised, her head turned, luminous green eyes taking in the sight of the tom she'd fallen head over paws for forever ago. The father of her many kits... her one living kit. The deputy stared curiously at him for a few seconds, trying to reconcile that tom with the one she saw before her now. He'd been through things, too. Disappeared for moons. Lost his father, too, recently. Lost his brother multiple times. And, lost the same kits she had.... half of them, anyway. The birth he'd been there for.

It took her a few moments to process his request. The one that had fallen so easily from their mouths during the moon or so that they'd been deliriously in love before he vanished. Go... hunting? But she knew he didn't just mean for food. He would want to talk. Exhaustion showed in the tilt of her ears and the dragging of her fluffy tail, but she didn't have it in her to deny his request. She still loved him. She thought. Probably. As far as she knew. Something warm still beat within her at his gaze, but it was muted, buried under the same rockslide that had buried Firestone and Sharptooth. Still, he deserved a chance. And she deserved some time. "...All right," she meowed quietly with a smile, feeling a little bit of weight shift off of her broad shoulders. Maybe getting out with her mate would be good for her.

Leading the way out of camp and into the marshes of their territory, the two flame-colored ShadowClanners remained silent for a while, as Poppyheart wanted to give Redwing just a moment's worth of peace and quiet before he began speaking to her. He didn't want the silence to turn uncomfortable or tense, though, so after stopping near the deep marshes, he turned to his mate. "What can I do for you, Redwing?" he asked, looking deep into her beautiful eyes that shone like pools of emerald in the sunshine. The corners of his mouth fell from a gentle smile to a saddened frown as he elaborated. "I can tell you aren't happy anymore. The role of deputy is too much for you to bear, isn't it? And ... we both have lost so much, but I feel like you're taking it harder than I am. Especially because ... I hadn't been there for you when you had our first litter. ...The litter I never got a chance to meet." His amber gaze shifted downward in regret. He knew it wasn't his fault for being gone for so long -- it was mainly that insufferable Twoleg, and a little bit Coldgaze as well. So why did it feel like it was his fault? "I don't want you to be sad or hurting, Redwing. I love you so much, even if we haven't spent nearly as much time together as we should have. So ... is there anything I can do to bring back the innocent, happy Redwing I miss so dearly?"