A matter of love (closed)

Stoatclaw shook slightly as he lead his deputy through their territory. It felt odd walking around without the feeling of bark beneath his paws, but at this point he wasn't sure he'd have enough strength to get around in the trees. All of his limbs felt weak from a combination of nerves and hunger. If he had any food left in his belly Stoatclaw knew he would have already spewed it out somewhere along their path.

Sucking in a deep cold breath the tom stopped his trot and turned to Wolfblossom. He knew that either she or Birdstar would need to hear about this, and between the two of them Wolfblossom had been the clear choice. She had always seemed to be a genuinely kind soul, something that Birdstar wasn't. "I, uh... I have a mate now." Stars he felt so awkward pronouncing something like that, especially after leading her so far from camp. "She's not from Skyclan though, which is why I'm telling you about this. She's a Shadowclan cat, and for obvious reasons I'd like for her to stay with us. I-I haven't asked her to leave her clan yet, but if she's not allowed to join Skyclan then I'll have no choice but to join Shadowclan."

Filthy. Stoatclaw was absolutely disgusted with himself for trying to give Wolfblossom an ultimatum, but it truly was either her or him; and if Lighttail refused to leave Shadowclan then... Well, his decision had already been made. If Lighttail didn't want to leave her clan then he would join her, even if that meant living with the same cats that had tried to gut him.

Stoatclaw led her from camp, and she was reminded briefly of when he had asked her for help once in training an apprentice. This was different, though. His paws were shaky, a visible betrayal of his nerves. "Stoatclaw? What has your fur ruffled?" The deputy tipped her head, watching him. Whatever was bothering the warrior, it was serious enough to warrant coming to her over. She much preferred that to her warriors keeping things to themselves, personally.

Finally the warrior stopped and turned toward her. His words were unexpected, and before Wolfblossom could ask the questions she wanted to ask, he was answering them. A Shadowclan mate, who he wanted to bring to Skyclan. If it was allowed. If not... Wolfblossom did not like the idea of losing one of her warriors, much less a friend.

"A Shadowclanner... Well, we can't help who we love. And I'm glad that you brought this to me, rather than steal off in the night without a trace. What's her name?" Wolfblossom asked, that was one of the few things that he hadn't answered himself yet. And there were plenty of reasons to want her to be in Skyclan - not just because that was where Stoatclaw had been born and raised, but Shadowclan had seen and caused more than their fair share of hardship recently. Wolfblossom was no fan of the ultimatum that Stoatclaw delivered, and her eyes narrowed slightly. She could tell he didn't much like it either, but she understood it. If his loyalty was greater to his mate than to his clan, there was simply one option were they not allowed to be in the same clan together. That option wouldn't be necessary, at least not by Wolfblossom's view.

"So... how long has this been going on? You're asking me if she'd be allowed, but you haven't asked her yet? Would she be willing to leave her birth clan behind, and join Skyclan?" The deputy watched him for a moment, whiskers twitching. "You know, my father wasn't Skyclan. He joined the clan to be with my mother, as well as myself and my siblings. He was Thunderclan's medicine cat, and put those loyalties aside for his new clan and family. I'll always be glad he was allowed to make that choice, and was allowed to stay. I know not all cats are willing to do that... Though I think if you're going to be mates with someone, spending your life in the same clan should be a consideration." Stoatclaw was a bit too young to have known Dovefrost, but that knowledge still informed Wolfblossom's decision-making. Birdstar's, too. "I believe my sister would allow her to join, as would I, if your mate agrees to do so willingly. Leopardstar will also need to be informed - we cannot and will not take warriors from under her nose without explanation." Leopardstar was relatively level-headed, as far as Shadowclan was concerned. Wolfblossom liked and respected her, as much as the rest of Shadowclan made her wary.

"Name?" The tom blinked. "Er, Lighttail."

"Since I was an apprentice. I snuck out of camp almost every night and sat at the border waiting for her. That's how-" Stoatclaw winced, his scar aching in anticipation of the name he was about to speak. "You know. The thing. B-but I thought it would be better if I got permission for her to join us first. I didn't want to give her the offer and not be able to follow up on it, and if she doesn't want to leave Shadowclan then I'd already have my answer." One way or another they would be together.

A medicine cat leaving his own clan, and the molly in front of him was the product of that move. Stoatclaw was glad that old medicine cat had made the decision that he did, Wolfblossom might not be here today. Well, depending on how certain things played out that is.

The tom's tension had been subsiding bit by bit, but as Wolfblossom finished speaking it had evaporated entirely. "Ah, Wolfblossom! Thank you!" He wanted to show her a more physical show of appreciation, but they weren't close enough for that. Besides, he was sure that would be embarrassing for the deputy. Stoatclaw settled with giving her the biggest smile he'd ever shown to a Skyclan cat. Wait, wasn't he forgetting something? "Oh! Um, I have one more request for you actually. Would you mind telling Birdstar for me?" He didn't supply a reason for the request, but he'd rather not have to deal with her if possible.

Lighttail. Wolfblossom would remember the name. Stoatclaw had apparently known her since he was an apprentice, and Wolfblossom let out a quiet curse of disbelief. All this time and he'd- She hadn't even known. Stoatclaw's reference to that nasty little situation with an unhinged Shadowclan warrior made the deputy grimace. She hoped for his sake, that Lighttail was a very different cat.

"...I understand." He was loyal to Lighttail, evidently. If she would come to Skyclan, that was the better option. If not... Why keep a warrior whose heart lay elsewhere? In part, that was simple pragmatism. But Wolfblossom would rather see a clanmate happy than pining and miserable. Her acceptance of it seemed to make the weight lift off the tom's shoulders.

"I'll tell her, yeah. She's not so scary though, y'know. Well, her face is-" Wolfblossom joked, "-but I think she'll be understanding."