Rainfrost was sleeping against Gleamfire, she was too scared to leave his sight in case he vanished again and this time, she wouldn't be able to save him. She woke up, yawning, closing her eyes and flexing her claws. She got to her black paws and shook her pelt before lying back down, she wanted to go run around but her worrying over Gleamfire, and even Acornrush was much stronger then anything else.
Gleamfire woke up slowly and felt the sun shining on his pelt. His paws were still hurting and numb from the fall but he felt as good as he hadn't felt in moons.
He heard Rainfrost's flat breathing next to him and raised his head to sniff the air. The breeze was fresh and the air was clear. The rain had stopped.
Rainfrost let out a sigh of relief when he sniffed the air, she nuzzled him before realizing what she was doing. "Are you hungry? I can go to the fresh kill pile and get you something" she whispered gently to him.
Gleamfire looked at the she-cat and he didn't know whether he should be amused or angry. He jumped to his feet and looked at her.
"Why are you treating me like a kit?", he asked, confused. "I'm not your apprentice or something. I'm a full grown warrior and I can care for myself, don't worry. My injuries aren't that bad, you know."
Rainfrost's ears flattened against her head and she stared at her paws. "Sorry, it's just...you've been through a lot and I wasn't sure if you were injured or not. I just wanted to help" she lay her head on her black paws, staring at his golden paws. "Sorry" she repeated quietly.
Gleamfire let out a purr of laughter. "Don't worry, it's okay", he said and stepped towards Rainfrost to lie his tail on her shoulders. "We all have been through something in the last days", he added with a shiver. "Let's go home."
The blue-grey she-cat looked up at Gleamfire with her pale green eyes as she purred, nodding before letting out a mrrow of laughter. "Gleamfire, your pelt...you must have been rolling around in your sleep or something because it's all fluffed up!" she licked her paw and tried flattening a piece of his fur that was on his head.
Gleamfire looked at his chest fur that stuck out in all directions and gave it a couple of embarassed licks. "This is no help," he stated helplessly. He fell on his back and tried rub the fur with his forepaws, but the enormous pile of fluff still wouldn't disappear.
Rainfrost laughed, very grateful that her pelt wasn't as fluffy as his, she padded over to him and licked his chest fur, trying to get it flat however it didn't work. She looked up at him before feeling hot under her pelt. "As we're heading back to camp we can go to the flooded stream and try and flatten your pelt" she suggested.
Gleamfire nodded uneasily and looked away. Slowly he padded back to camp, Rainfrost by his side. Remembering how they had played when they still were younger he walked in deep silence, both enjoying it but also searching for some right words to say.
Rainfrost made sure she was alert in case something attacked them or Gleamfire fell or something. However, she didn't like the awkward feel around them. "Well then" she mewed. "If I remember correctly, Wishdream invited you and I to the gathering, she said Acornrush and Swiftleaf would be going next moon" she said, trying to strike up a conversation.
"Gathering...oh yes!", Gleamfire meowed, glad that Rainfrost had broke the silence. "It's going to be really late, though. I hope I won't be too tired to go..." He looed at his paws, trying not to stare at Rainfrost while they walked. "It's going to be my very first gathering! I'm really excited", Gleamfire beamed.
Rainfrost laughed, purring. "I'm glad, I went once when I was an apprentice, but it was after my mentors death and I was so depressed about it, I didn't even notice anything around me, nor do I remember any of it now" she explained with a sad, sigh before deciding to change subjects. "So Acornrush and Swiftleaf...are they mates now?"
Gleamfire nudged Rainfrost who was talking about her mentor, sadness in her eyes. But when she started speaking about Swiftleaf and Acornrush, his heart stiffened and Gleamfire looked away. "Yes. Yes they are," he replied, his voice low.
Rainfrost smiled. "I think it's sweet" she mewed before sighing. "I like a tom too, but I don't think he's ready to know that just yet. It could ruin our friendship" her head dropped.
Gleamfire looked at her, suddenly alert. Who was she talking about? He laid his ears flat to the head and decided to not saying anything. His heart was racing.
When they arrived at the stream they paused to drink. Gleamfire even mastered to hold his hurting paws into the cool water without flinching. With a corner of his eye he still stared at Rainfrost who dipped her small elegant head to drink.
Rainfrost sighed as he walked away from her, heading towards the stream to put his paws in the water, she perked her black ears when he didn't seem to flinch from it. Walking over, she made sure the water wouldn't pull them in like it did for Gleamfire, "hmm" she mused before she began to drink then lifted her head. "I've saved you twice, from slipping into the water and from the bush that you got poisoned" the thought made her smile before her heart sank. "Gleamfire, I need to tell you something"
Gleamfire stared back at her. What was she talking about? "I always will be thankful that you saved me", he purred. "I seem to be quite a troublemaker, right?"
He rested his head on hers, silencing her. He heard her heart beating and suddenly he felt nervous as well. He quickly looked around but they had luck - no one seemed to be around.
Rainfrost froze for a moment when his head rested onto hers. She sighed, opening her mouth to scent the air before she decided to just go with it. "Remember I said a few moments ago that I had my eyes on another tom?" she didn't even wait for him to say anything. "That tom is you, Gleamfire"
Gleamfire's body shuddered when Rainfrost said "That tom is you, Gleamfire". He closed his eyes for a moment, he stepped back and opened them again. He looked at Rainfrost again, into her light green eyes - what was in them - hope? Fear? - and slowly he began to understand. He actually meant something, meant a lot to that she-cat and the thought of being loved warmed the golden tom.
He stepped towards her and gave her a tiny lick on her nose, hoping that she would understand the gesture; he wasn't sure whether his voice would obey him in that moment.
Rainfrost had closed her pale green eyes when the golden tom looked into her eyes, as if searching for an answer. She said nothing, only bit her tongue, she did love him, after everything she had done with him she realized this but just had the fear of telling him. When she felt him lick her nose, her eyes shot open and went round as she looked up at the fluffy tom. She smiled and purred.
Gleamfire listened to Rainfrsot's purr and his chest swoll with happiness. He felt that he trusted her and suddenly her scent became the softest and sweetest scent in the world.
"I'm happy that you're here", he said and curled his tail with hers, smiling warmly.
Rainfrost wrapped her tail around his, rubbing against his flank, licking the inside of his ear. "Same here" she mewed.
Gleamfire stood still for some more seemingly eternal moments, just listening to the stream. Suddenly he heard paw steps and turned around immediately. A patrol of four Cloudclan cats passed them at some distance and Gleamfire started to return into reality. He again realized the pain in his paws.
Slowly he looked back at Rainfrost: "Let's go home."