Brookshadow dropped down onto the island where the Clans went every full moon for the Gathering. Her heart had mostly healed, and she'd accepted Dewfur fully into her heart. Turning, she saw that Dewfur had let Lightfur go before him, and Brookshadow waited until he dropped down next to her, then turned and began to pad towards the center of the island. Once they pushed past the undergrowth and into the Gathering clearing, Brookshadow was surprised to find that she was looking for a familiar red-orange pelt amongst the RiverClan warriors, and she shook her head at herself and turned back to the conversation her siblings, plus Dewfur, were having.

"I'm just saying, I think battle training is way better than hunting at any rate, on any day." Flintwhisker was saying.

"That's because you like fighting more than the rest of us," Featherdapple argued.

"I enjoy both. Each has their perks." Dewfur mewed.

"What do you think, Brookshadow?" Lightfur asked.

Brookshadow blinked. "What?"

"What do you think is better, battle training or hunting?" Lightfur said.

"Oh. Uh, they're both good." Brookshadow replied.

"Are you okay?" Dewfur asked her.

"Yeah." Brookshadow mewed softly.

"Okay." Dewfur meowed, turning back to the conversation with a concerned glance at her.

Brookshadow sighed and spotted a flash of fur and the gleam of eyes staring at her. She felt her pelt prickle and stood up. "I'll be right back," She told Dewfur. He nodded and she left, heading towards the eyes. They were green, and they disappeared as she got closer. Supressing another sigh, Brookshadow pushed through the bushes and saw Piketooth in front of her.

"What do you want?" She asked him, feeling renewed greif at seeing him again.

Piketooth was sitting, his tail curled neatly around his paws ans was staring at her with an unreadable expression. "What are you doing?"

"What do mean, what am I doing? Living my life as a loyal ThunderClan warrior?" Brookshadow asked.

"I meant with him."

"You don't control my life, Piketooth." She felt her heart cracking again, and, altough she tried to keep her voice firm, it shook as she spoke. "I can talk to whatever cat I want, and be happy with it."

"I thought you wanted to be with me." Piketooth's mew was barely a whisper.

"I did. But not anymore." I do. I still do. Brookshadow told him, feeling herself falling apart again. She pressed her ears against her skull, trying her best not to let her emotions show.

"Why? What does he have that I don't?" Piketooth's tail lashed back and forth on the ground behind him.

"Well, nothing. But he's in the same Clan as me, and you're not. If you were in ThunderClan I would have considered it." She couldn't meet his gaze anymore. Why was this so hard?

"Love is more than borders, Brookshadow!" Piketooth's exasperated mew was almost too loud. "You knew that once."

"It isn't, not when you're in a Clan." Brookshadow's voice cracked, and so to back herself up, she stood and lifted the fur along her spine. "I need to be loyal to my Clan, and my Clan alone. The Warrior Code says we can't be mates, or have kits together, and it was made that way for a reason! I don't know about you, but I can't have divided loyalties!" Brookshadow's voice was heartfelt, and she could see his hurt expression.

"I love you, Brookshadow. Please! Love me back," He pleaded.

"I want to. I want to more than almost anything." She turned her gaze away, her voice cracking again. "But I can't. This is just making it more difficult for both of us."

"But I-" Piktooth mewed, reaching a paw out to her.

"I can't!" She mewed. "Don't you understand? I can't!"

Piketooth closed his eyes, looking pained for a few moments. Then he opened his eyes again. "Okay..."

Brookshadow nearly started. He's finally giving up on us?

"Okay... I love you, Brookshadow. I always will... But I hope you're happy... I hope you will always be happy."

Brookshadow expected herself to feel releived, but him accepting they couldn't be together hurt more than anything, and she backed out of the bushes and trotted towards Dewfur, her tail dragging.

Dewfur noticed her mood.

"Are you alright? What happened?"

"N-nothing... I'm fine." Brookshadow mewed, her voice jerking.

Dewfur glanced around, then lowered his voice and stepped closer to her. "What is it? You're not okay. I didn't want to say anything... especially not here. Did someone hurt you?"

Brookshadow closed her eyes, her jaw trembling. "I-... I can't tell you."

"Of course you can... You can tell me anything, Brookshadow."

"N-not here, Dewfur. Not now. Please... Later."

Dewfur looked at her for a few moments more, then nodded and sat down next to her with his tail draped over her shoulders. Brookshadow settled closer to him and numbly listened to the leaders giving their reports.

Onestar stepped forward first. "WindClan is doing fine, with plentiful prey and lively kits. There was a few mishaps with dogs this moon, but nothing my brave warriors couldn't handle." The lithe tom stepped back to let Mistystar speak next.

"RiverClan is full fed as always, with plenty of fish to catch in the river, and we plan confidently for the leaf-bare to come." Mistystar meowed, then dipped her head to Bramblestar as she stepped back.

"ThunderClan is well-fed, and our nursery has quite a few kits. We look forward to newleaf this season, although we imagine no trouble from shortage of prey." Bramblestar stepped back and let Blackstar take his place.

"ShadowClan is a strong as ever, with plentiful prey. We did have a fox in our territory for awhile, but my warriors drove it out. Just for everyone to know, I didn't have my warriors follow it to see where it went, so be on the lookout just in case it enters one of your territories."

The leaders began to assemble their Clans and head for home. Brookshadow stood when Bramblestar began to leave, and Dewfur stood next to her. "I'm not pushing you to tell me, but when will you?"

Brookshadow took a breath. "I need... I need some more time." Dewfur nodded and guided her home. Brookshadow laid down in her nest with Dewfur, emotionally spent. She fell asleep easily, Dewfur warming her fur.

The next few days she politely refused Dewfur's offer to hunt together in the morning. Again, he'd understood, meowing, "Take as much time as you need."

Brookshadow wandered around her territory for half of a day. She bumped into several patrols, all who asked if she was okay, and she'd nodded to all of them: "Of course I'm okay! Why wouldn't I be?"

But she didn't feel okay. She wanted nothing more than to curl into a tiny ball and sleep to never wake up again. But her paws continued carrying her.

Her nose twitched and she snapped into reality. She was on the RiverClan border. She checked to see if any cats were there, and if they were, whether they had noticed her or not. She didn't see or scent anyone, and she turned around. But a hiss reached her ears. "Brookshadow. Why don't you stay awhile?"