Aspenleaf kept herself low to the ground, carefully drawing her paws one in front of the other, her tail off the ground so that it didn't drag in the crisp brown leaves. She rolled her soft paws, endeavouring not to make a sound. It was a particularly plump mouse up ahead of her, probably fattening itself up in preparation for leaf-bare. She could feel herself salivating as she shifted her weight from paw to paw, preparing to spring.

There was a flash of black fur and with a squeak, Shadowstep looked back at her smugly, the mouse dead in his jaws.

"No fair!" she said straightening up. "That was my kill! You saw me stalking it!"

"You were taking ages." He mewed through his mouthful. "If you didn't go soon it would have run away." He put it down before her. "Go on then, you take the credit. I wouldn't have spotted it if I hadn't seen you watching it."

Her tail lashed. "You are the most frustrating cat I've ever come across, you annoying fluffbutt!"

Badgerbane peered out from where he had been stalking from behind a tree. "Are you two quite done?" he snapped. "If you carry on like that, you're going to scare away all the prey in the area."

Aspenleaf turned, flicking her tail at Shadowstep's nose. "You can forget about me keeping you warm tonight." She growled. "Get cold for all I care."

She stalked away a few steps before Shadowstep picked up the mouse and bounded after her. "Look, I'm sorry alright?" he pleaded. "We'll say you caught the mouse."

"That isn't the point!" she said loftily, holding her nose in the air.

He stopped watching her go before looking back at the rest of the patrol.

"Don't worry." Dryrose mewed picking up the rabbit she'd caught. "She doesn't know how to hate you."

Aspenleaf padded into the camp, her hackles still up. She glanced around. The last six moons in Thunderclan seemed... different somehow. Bramblefire had finally left Creekshadow alone and he and Quailwing had had three kits, Sunkit, Whitekit and Flamekit. Ambermoon and Honeyfur had passed on and were in Starclan now but Eaglefeather and Stemtail had moved into the elders' den, so Twigtail wasn't alone.

The biggest difference Aspenleaf had noticed however was that her mother no longer avoided her. In fact, sometimes if they were passing one another, her mother would give her a curt nod of acknowledgement. While it may not be the loving relationship she had once hoped to have with her mother, it was certainly better than the way she had been treated her when she had been younger.

Icemask was grooming his fluffy coat outside the warriors' den. He looked up as she approached. "What's he done now?" he muttered, going back to cleaning his pelt.

"I don't know what you mean."

"Don't play coy. You and I both know the only cat who actually gets your back up is him. What's he done?"

She rolled her eyes. "He stole my kill." She muttered. "He saw me stalking it and he caught it."

"Fresh-kill is fresh-kill." Muttered Icemask shaking his head rapidly. "As long as someone caught it and put it on the pile, doesn't matter who delivered the bite."

She pouted. "You're meant to be on my side."

"I'm not taking sides when it comes to you two." He muttered running a paw over his whiskers. "It's all just petty fights anyway." After a moment, he paused watching her, then reached out and cuffed her ear gently. "Besides you know that if a fight really mattered it would be you and me to the end."

She batted at his paw. "You should be on my side no matter what. You're like my brother."

"And he's my friend." He mewed firmly. "I won't take part in your kit-like bickering." He went back to cleaning his whiskers. "Are you going to the gathering tonight?"

She shook her head. "I went last time. You are, obviously."

He scratched behind his ear for a moment. "Unless I'm told I won't be able to, yes." He shrugged. "I enjoy them."

Icemask had gone to every gathering that he could since he had been allowed to make the journey to the island. He claimed it was to make up for the time he'd missed out on as an apprentice, but Aspenleaf had a sneaking suspicion it had something to do with a particular Windclan warrior.

Maplepaw had become Maplewhisker a few moons back, and upon entering the gathering, Icemask had been the first cat she had dashed up to tell. The two of them would spend the whole of the time for socialising at the gathering with their heads close together, talking animatedly. Aspenleaf couldn't shake the annoyance she felt when she saw them together. She suspected it was frustration at the sight of them together. Icemask was a Thunderclan warrior and she was Windclan. If they came against one another in a battle, would they be able to fight, or would their feelings get in the way?

The rest of the patrol filed in. Badgerbane was walking alongside Dryrose, several voles dangling from his jaw while she held her rabbit firmly. Shadowstep deposited his catch onto the fresh-kill pile and began to hurry over to where Aspenleaf was sitting.

"Incoming." Muttered Icemask getting to his paws. "I'll leave you two alone."

"No don't..." she mewed but Shadowstep was already before her.

"I'm sorry." He mewed before she had a chance to say anything. "You know I would never do anything to upset you."

She shrugged looking away from him. "It's fine. Fresh-kill is fresh-kill."

"Don't be like this!" he implored trying to follow her line of sight, his tail low and his ears flattened. "You know I didn't mean anything by it."

She looked at him for a second. "Forget it. It doesn't matter."

He tried to shift closer. "It sort of does though... let me make it up to you. Let's go hunting tonight while the other cats are at the gathering."

She just looked at him for a long moment. "We shouldn't really. What if something attacks the camp... or if someone needs something."

"We aren't the only cats staying behind tonight." He encouraged. "And I'm sure that cats would appreciate something being on the pile first thing in the morning."

She couldn't argue with that. But there was something in his yellow eyes that was making her almost uneasy. It wasn't an unpleasant feeling, but enough to make her question if there was something else behind his innocent request. She pushed the feelings down. He was one of her closest friends. She shouldn't be doubting him like this.

"Alright." She said at last. "Once the other cats have gone, we'll head out."

He purred. "Perfect."

At dusk, the cats attending the gathering left. Icemask had been sitting near the entrance ready to go for some time. Badgerbane had rolled his eyes. "Makes you queasy doesn't it." He muttered to Dryrose.

"I think it's sweet." She whispered back.

He rolled his eyes again. "You would."

Silverstar had given the order to move out, leading the group of cats, Shellclaw walking close beside her. Robinblaze had padded out beside Dryrose, Badgerbane a little way behind them, walking alongside Icemask.

Aspenleaf had been lying outside the warriors den, watching them go. Once all the cats that were going to the gathering had left, Shadowstep poked his head out of the den.

"Coast is clear." He chuckled padding out. "Come on, lets head off. Cats will think we've just gone along with them." He began to bound towards the camp entrance.

Aspenleaf rolled her eyes and hurried after him. "Why all the secrecy?" she asked softly as she caught up to him.

He shrugged. "I don't know. I just want it to feel like an adventure."

She gave a little chuckle at his enthusiasm. It was difficult to be the one to dampen his excitement at times. "Alright." She said after a moment. "Which way are we going?"

He sniffed at the air for a moment. "The opposite way to the gathering." He said decisively. "Less likely to get caught."

She gave a nod and began to follow him as he began to run towards one of the old borders.

He was far nimbler than she was, leaping over logs and rocks, his short fur making him more streamlined while her thick fluffy coat caught several times. Eventually, he drew to a halt at the old border. She padded up beside him and looked at him. He was gazing towards the pine trees, his eyes round. "Why do we never go there?" he asked softly.

She followed his gaze towards the old territory. "Too many ghosts of the past." She murmured. "Too many cats that were still in the memories of cats in the other clans lost their lives there..."

He continued to blink towards it. "I've always sort of wanted to go and check it out."

She shook her head slightly. "I don't know. It... I don't know if it would feel right."

Shadowstep glanced upwards at the clear starlit sky. "Would Starclan let us know if they didn't want cats in the territory?"

She shrugged. "I don't know... I guess they usually find a way to let cats know."

He glanced over his shoulder at her before flicking her nose with his tail and laughing.

"What was that for?" she squeaked.

"To get rid of that serious expression." He teased before bounding away into the old territory. "Come on, let's go check it out."

She shook out her pelt nervously before hurrying after him. As much as she wasn't sure they should be doing this, she couldn't let him go alone. There was no telling what would be in the abandoned territory. Foxes, rogues, anything.

He was laughing ahead of her, his tail flicking playfully. "How are you so slow Aspenleaf? You never could keep up, even in apprentice training."

Her eyes narrowed in determination and she put on a spurt as he disappeared into the pine trees. She darted after him, just seeing the striped tip of his tail vanishing ahead of her. Although she knew this was more serious than he realised, she found herself enjoying herself. She pushed herself forward, her soft paws making no noise on the pine needles that littered the ground.

She burst out of the ferns ahead when he suddenly halted and spun to face her. She skittered to a stop as he pounced forward and tackled her to the ground.

"No fair!" she squealed as he pinned her to the floor. "I wasn't expecting that!"

"Ah! First rule of being a warrior. Do what your enemy least expects!" he growled playfully pummelling her gently. She laughed as his blows tickled her more than anything.

"Get off me, fluffbutt!" she giggled shoving him off and getting back to her paws. She looked around as he backed off. "It's... so quiet..." she murmured. She looked up before hopping to a low hanging branch and clambering up the pine tree a little way. She paused on a sturdy branch and looked around, her dark eyes sparkling.

They were about halfway up the hill that led away from the lake. From where they were, the view was spectacular. The full moon was reflected in the lake, seeming impossibly big and bright.

Shadowstep climbed up beside her. He let out a breath. "Well... I could certainly get used to a view like this." He murmured.

She gave a nod. "You don't really appreciate how beautiful the territories are when you only look at them from one position."

He nodded. "Shows it's good to change perspective from time to time." He agreed.

For a long time they just sat there, side by side, neither speaking, but it wasn't an uncomfortable silence. On the contrary, Aspenleaf found herself quite enjoying the quiet... moreover she was enjoying spending it with him.

"We should keep exploring." He mewed before scrambling back down the tree. She quickly followed him down.

Up ahead of them was a small wall of bracken, similar to the wall that surrounded Thunderclan. He looked over his shoulder at her before padding forward.

"Wait..." she said dashing to catch up with him. "I think this..."

He pushed his way through the wall into a small clearing inside. She followed him through and paused, blinking around. Around the edge of the clearing were small bushes and woven dens, all of them in a state of disrepair. She padded further into the clearing looking around, her eyes wide. "This..." The scent of cats was old stale but only just there. The more she looked around, the more signs there were that this had been a site of battles. There were scratch marks on the trees surrounding the camp, some of the dens seemed to have been torn open rather than fallen apart.
Shadowstep stood beside her. "This was it..." he whispered.

She nodded. "This was Shadowclan."

His eyes widened as he stared around, taking in the broken dens. "So much... pain..." he said softly.

She nodded remembering the stories from her kithood. "There weren't many clan cats left I don't think." She said quietly, stepping forward and poking her head into one of the dens, sniffing. "They were all rogues and loners as far as I know."

He stiffened behind her. "How does that not make them clan cats?" he asked a little indignantly.

She shook her head. "You misunderstand. They..." She looked back at him. "They killed clan cats..." she murmured. "They didn't believe in the warrior code. In the end, it was their undoing." She looked around. "And they destroyed something which once..."

She broke off, imagining what this place once must have been like. Whole lives would have taken place in this camp. Kits would have been born, apprentices trained, warriors served, elders cared for... leaders overseeing it all.

He looked at her for a long moment before turning to face her. "It could be like it again." He mewed. "We could... we could restart a clan here."

She blinked at him. "You're starting to sound disloyal... what are you talking about?"

"You and me." He said moving closer, a hopeful, almost playful glint in his eyes. "We could rebuild a clan here. I'll be the leader, Shadowstar, and you'll be my loyal deputy."

She chuckled. "You're making it sound like kit games."

"I've never been more serious." He mewed taking a step towards her. "You and me, we could repair the dens, and find other cats who wanted to bring Shadowclan back. There must be some there." He threw his head back, looking at the skies, as though waiting for a sign from Starclan that they were displeased. "And our kits and their kits, and all of our descendants would become the new Shadowclan. It'll stand strong as it once did."

She stared at him. Only one part of that sentence had really sunk in. "Our... kits?"

He lowered his head slightly. "If... if you wished it to be so..."

Aspenleaf looked into the dark tom's yellow eyes. "Shadowstep..."

"No." he murmured, gazing down at her. "Not tonight. Tonight, we're not warriors."

She blinked. Being a warrior was all she'd ever known. "It's not something you can turn your back on."

"Tomorrow, we'll go back, and we'll be warriors." He whispered, leaning closer. "But tonight, there are no clans, no duties, just you and me. Tonight, I'm not Shadowstep, and you're not Aspenleaf."

She stared at him. "We worked hard for our names." she mewed indignantly, which only seemed to brighten the playful glint in Shadowstep's eyes. "Go on then. Who am I?"

"You're my Aspen." He murmured, touching his nose to her ear. "My beautiful, strong... safe Aspen." He drew back and met her gaze. "I've never felt safe until I met you. My mother abandoned me, and I spent my whole life before joining Thunderclan running or hiding. If it wasn't one group trying to drive me out of their territory, it was another trying to kill me for stealing 'their' prey." He shifted closer to her, his muscles tense under his pelt. "I'm no longer just a loner roaming from place to place. I saw you in my dreams. Starclan led me to safety. They led me to you."

Even the breeze that had been rustling through the pine trees seemed to have silenced as Aspenleaf held her breath. She felt her heart swell at his words, and she could see from his eyes that he meant every word. She no longer doubted him or wondered whether or not she could trust this strange cat who had always been her friend, but never...

"And who are you?" she whispered averting her eyes, her breath catching in her throat.

He gave a soft purr. "What do you need?"

For a long moment, she gazed at her paws before raising her eyes to him. She knew what she wanted. She wanted to never be alone again. She wanted to always have someone beside her... but need? She'd never really asked herself that.

As their eyes met, she understood the difference. She never wanted to be alone, but she needed him.

She moved herself a little closer to him. "Stay with me." She murmured.

He purred loudly and blinked at her, his eyes glittering with sheer joy and affection. "Always." He whispered, pressing against her and twining his tail with hers. "As long as I'm living, I'll be at your side." He gently butted his head against her shoulder. "I'm your Shadow."

She turned her head and gazed down at him. "Is this only for tonight?" she asked softly.

He lifted his eyes to hers, his gaze suddenly intense. "Tomorrow, we go back to camp, we go back to being warriors, and our lives continue... but my feelings won't have changed."

The pit of her stomach dropped at his words. Somehow, she knew what was coming next, and it both thrilled and terrified her. "Nor mine."

He gently pressed his nose to hers. "I'm yours, Aspen. Forever. Please be mine too."

She closed her eyes, fighting the delicious fear within her. She had always wondered what it would feel like to feel like this, but she hadn't expected it to be scary. But this... knowing that suddenly, your own life, your heart, everything about you belongs to them. In spite of herself, her anxieties of depending on someone else like this begging her to run, she could not turn away from him. "I will." She whispered.

"I love you."

The words were out of him before either of them had realised it. He looked surprised at himself and she immediately drew back, staring at him in disbelief. "I'm sorry." He mewed at once. "I know that was a little-"

She silenced him by stepping back and pressing her cheek against his. "I love you too." She purred.

And the skies remained clear.

Shadowstep CTA NizumiFangs

---

So after a month of writers block, here's the latest XD

Badgerbane belongs to Nicholas Mullen

Dryrose belongs to Meadow Leon Flower