The Exile wrote:
"it was you, wasn't it, beesting?"
the tom sat off to the corner of the camp,
head turned away and tail folded over his
paws. he said nothing in response to the
words of his sister, and her eyes softened
with grief as her whiskers trembled. she
opened her maw once more, but shook her
head, looking down as sweetnose spoke up.
"why?" he asked quietly, disbelief in his
voice. "why did you do it, beesting? i don't
understand-- to your own sister-" the elder's
expression was one of bewilderment, his
eyes reflecting the deep and painful sorrow
that coursed through his chest, an ache
deep within him.
"because she let them die." beesting returned,
his voice broken. "pipitfreckle, my kits--
they suffered and they died, and then, and
she was rewarded? didn't any of you find it
odd that she had a kit so soon after we'd lost
so many of our own? that potoostar was just
so okay with it?" he turned to look at them,
grief and anger in his eyes. "i thought that it
would ease the agony if she paid for her
crime, but i am only more bitter and pain-
-ridden than before."
"and what about splashwhisker? and pottostar?"
lichenpaw demanded, trembling with rage as
tears burned her eyes.
"splashwhisker was an accident! the river was
overflowing, and i wasn't--" beesting's words
broke, voice wavering. "i wasn't strong enough
to pull him up. potoostar walked into that trap
of his own accord. i couldn't do anything--"
"do you expect us to believe that?!" lichenpaw
snapped, but lightningtail stood, moving to
stand in front of her brother.
"enough, lichenpaw. you may not believe him,
but i do." the golden she-cat looked toward
sweetnose. "sweetnose told us stories about those
traps before--sometimes, cats die to them. cats
die, lichenpaw, for all sorts of reasons." her
voice softened. "even if it isn't right."
beesting said nothing, and lightningtail looked
back toward him, her eyes filled with sorrow.
"...even so, you cannot stay here, beesting. you
know that, don't you?"
the tom closed his eyes, pain in his features, but
he nodded.
"we don't hate you."
"i know."
"you're strong and able. another clan will accept
you easily. we won't spread rumors of this."
beesting's features softened, and he looked up,
grief and exhaustion displayed clearly in his hollow
optics.
"...i know you won't."
"you can leave tomorrow morning. so you can say
good-bye to the kits. they'll miss you."
"i'll miss them, too."
for a moment, there was silence, before lightning-
-tail touched her tail to his shoulder. "...i'll miss you."
"...i know you will."
-------------------------------------------------------------
fadedbriar, moonfur and riversplash returned.
lightningtail declined the position of leader--she did
not want, nor felt qualified for, such a position of
power and trust. fadedbriar humbly took his position,
where he rightfully should be, and things settled down
again. everyone played a part in taking care of the
apprentices, and moonfur gave birth to three healthy
kits. on their travels, they'd met a loner who treated
them kindly, and brought him back with them.
lichenpaw finished her training, and became lichenclaw,
for her fierceness. she was promised one of moonfur's
kits as an apprentice when they were old enough, and
that suited her just fine. there was no need to rush.
things settled down, and lightningtail saw beesting
moons later at a gathering. he had a mate again, and
kits. he looked happy, for the first time she had seen
in ages. it made her glad, and she was sure that clover-
-heart would be happy for him, too.
it wasn't long before riverclan began to heal, and things
went back to a sense of normalcy no cat had known for
a very long time.
"ah, but just as the flower doth wilt, i, too, fall to
the earth, a molted feather from the decaying plume
of my love."
congratulations, riverclan! you have successfully found
the killer!
