spiritclan's decree

~~~

BEFORE NOW, ROSEFROST HAD NEVER had an encounter with SpiritClan before. But from what she'd heard they were the gentle, wise ancestors of the Clans, the best of souls. That was why, when she peeled open her eyes and was greeted with a blazingly angry amber glare, she yelped in fright and scrambled backwards.

Those eyes reminded her so deeply of Tigerblaze, and for a moment, it felt as though she were looking at him. Her dazed brain certainly wasn't helping to clear up that confusion.

"Dawnbeam, be calm." This voice was steady, something firm for Rosefrost to focus on and try to clear the blur in her vision. "She's still adjusting."

As the blur slowly faded away, Rosefrost took in the sight before her. A row of cats with stars rippling in their pelts stood in a circle around her; right in front was a calico she-cat with those Tigerblaze-like eyes, her lips curled in an angry snarl.

It didn't take a lot to infer that this was Dawnbeam, Tigerblaze and Dovepetal's mother.

To Rosefrost, Dawnbeam was an odd sight. She looked so much like Dovepetal, a beautiful mix of soft orange, white, and brown fur, so much so that it made the brown tabby's heart tug sadly. She missed Dovepetal.

But Dawnbeam's eyes, a fierce blaze of amber, was strikingly Tigerblaze's. Never did Rosefrost think she'd see Tigerblaze's cruel gaze in Dovepetal's sweet fur.

"Can you hear me?" Dawnbeam demanded, and from the angry tone she used, the brown tabby felt as if the SpiritClan feline were going to claw her face off if she didn't say yes. "Can you hear me now?"

Rosefrost had only barely managed to nod before the calico she-cat spat at her paws.

"How dare you! How dare-"

"Dawnbeam," The yellow tom, who owned the firm voice that'd first spoke, cut in. "Don't-"

"Don't what, Beebounce?" Dawnbeam hissed, rounding on her Clanmate. "You're the one that said I could speak to her."

"Yes. Speak, not shout." Beebounce looked exhausted. "Screaming won't solve anything-"

"Well of course it will!" the calico declared. "It'll keep this no good cat away from my daughter."

"Wait-" Rosefrost broke through their conversation with heavy confusion, cutting herself off abruptly as she tried to piece together their words. "What do you mean, stay away from your daughter?"

Dawnbeam's attention turned back onto Rosefrost, and for a brief moment, the brown tabby wished it hadn't. It felt as though she were under the cold, judgemental eyes of Tigerblaze. "Are you harebrained? I mean, leave Dovepetal alone."

"What?" Rosefrost's face twisted, and very suddenly, she saw her future flying away from her. SpiritClan had been her hope in returning to BreezeClan to be with Dovepetal, but if they weren't on her side...

Steadily, she felt her confusion and desperation fade into frustration. How could they not be on her side?

"You've brought shame onto our Clan," Dawnbeam meowed icily. "Shame onto my mate, my kits - why would I ever want you near Dovepetal ever again?"

"Because I love her," Rosefrost snapped, unable to keep her tone even.

Dawnbeam rolled her eyes. "Oh, please. You're barely a warrior. What do you know about love?"

"I know-" Rosefrost broke off, taking a deep breath to study herself.

She couldn't put into words the excitement she felt when she would learn Dovepetal's on the same patrol she is, or the fondness she'd feel when they're on a dawn patrol together and the calico's eyes were full of gentle sleep. Or the eagerness after she'd made a particularly hard catch, to turn around and see if Dovepetal had noticed, or the silly elation she'd feel when Dovepetal had seen and complimented her.

So, she kept it simple. "She makes me happy."

Dawnbeam scoffed. "There's much more to love than that," she snarled, unimpressed. "And plus, you're both she-cats. You could never love each other."

Rosefrost felt her pelt beginning to rise. She'd had enough of hearing that. "But I do. I love her."

"Yeah, right," the calico hissed, lashing her tail. "Now I know you're young, Rosefrost, and young cats tend not to listen. But if there's one message you leave her with tonight, I want it to be this: leave Dovepetal alone."

As she spat out that last word, a harsh gust of cold wind slapped across the brown tabby's face, and suddenly, she'd been pulled out of that dream. She gasped, pulling her muzzle from the Starpond's water, trembling slightly as she collapsed on the nearby sand, her breath labored.

For a long moment, all Rosefrost could do was lay there, slowly working through what'd just happened. It felt as though her veins had turned into ice, and she'd never felt more alone than she does now, abandoned by everyone; even her warrior ancestors.

Then came the battle of the voices. Dawnbeam's furious tone against Calypso's.

"Leave Dovepetal alone."

"If this Tigerblaze tried anything like that on me, I'd kill him."

Followed by:

"Then what's stopping you?"

Slowly, Rosefrost came to an answer for that question. Nothing. Nothing's stopping her. There was nothing left to lose. Nothing except Dovepetal, and Rosefrost would fight her hardest to be with the calico. No matter what anyone told her.

They couldn't live in BreezeClan together? Fine.

They wouldn't be together in SpiritClan? Also fine.

They would run away together. Run away from these horrid Clans, live out the rest of their lives peacefully and in love. Maybe they could live with Fox and Calypso. And maybe, they could even adopt some orphaned kits to raise as their own.

Paws tingling with fierce determination, Rosefrost rolled onto her paws and set off towards BreezeClan to find Dovepetal.

It started snowing on the journey back. Harsh gusts that brought sharp flurries; half of Rosefrost wanted to give up, but the other half, full of love for Dovepetal, won out without much fight.

As she approached BreezeClan's borders, the brown tabby ducked into some heather to help cloud her scent. Once she was certain her smell was well hidden, she took a step out, only to leap back into the foliage almost instantly.

This had been caused by the sound of sleepy voices, growing louder as they traveled toward her. Among them, Rosefrost could pick out Ravenleaf's, and she felt her tail-tip twitch. He was bringing a patrol out to the Starpond, just like he'd promised. Only too bad for him, he was too late.

"What're we doing again?" a tired voice wondered.

"Because, Falconflight, we need to protect the Starpond," Ravenleaf answered. "Rosefrost is there right now, tainting its sacred grounds."

"She'll probably leave soon," another voice spoke. Rosefrost identified it as the deputy, Nightpetal. "What could the Starpond possibly offer her?"

"I don't know, but we must make sure she isn't there anymore," Ravenleaf insisted. "Come on, now."

Rosefrost watched as the paws of her former Clanmates pad away. One by one they trickled past, and the brown tabby kept still. However, her heart almost stopped when she recognized the cat near the end.

Tigerblaze.

And, to her surprise, as the rest of the patrol went on, Tigerblaze halted, right in front of her bush.

"Tigerblaze?" Rosefrost almost flinched when she heard Blueblaze's voice as he came to a halt as well. "What's going on? Why're we stopping?"

"Because this entire thing is stupid," Tigerblaze hissed lowly. "I should be back in my warm nest right now, not going on a long trek to the Starpond."

"But Ravenleaf said-"

"Ravenleaf's old and gets out of his mind sometimes," Tigerblaze replied, whisking his tail. "They won't even know we're gone, they've got plenty of cats. Now, c'mon, let's hide in this heather here until they're gone."

And Rosefrost felt her breathing shallow as the ginger tabby tom and his friend climbed into the heather patch beside hers.

~~~

def wasn't our favorite chapter, but we wanted to get something out!! let us know your thoughts, please, please share!

predictions are welcomed, as always!!

also, a little self promo, i (lily) am working on a brand new warriors cats fanfic series!! it's called hyacinth, and i'm super duper excited to share it. i'm planning on publishing it once bloodied rose wraps up, so i'll keep you guys updated on that <33

~ lily & effie