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Burningleaf led the small patrol through the furthest reaches of LightningClan territory. Burningleaf and three other cats were keeping up the border near the mountains, just in case some loners decided to take advantage of the weaker scent markers. They had covered over half the border without much fuss, with one of them even catching a rabbit. Being the dawn patrol, the four cats shared the meal before moving on.

After just placing another marker, Burningleaf caught a glimpse of something moving through the brush on the far side of the border. Gold eyes scanned the area, but he moved on after seeing nothing more. Then, the wind changed. Burningleaf froze in his pawsteps, his blood running cold. The patrol kept moving, and Burninleaf called out to his Clanmates. "Go on ahead, I'll catch up." The three cats nodded and carried on.

He watched them continue until they disappeared behind a hill. The ginger and white tom faced the border, heart beginning to race. The scent had been faint, and changed, but the underlying tones were all too familiar. White paws crossed the border as he headed toward where the scent had come from. His pawsteps became hurried, anxiety and anticipation growing within him. Gold eyes raked through the brush, visually tearing through every possible hiding place. Hell, if he had to, the senior warrior would begin shredding every bush and every blade of grass until he found him.

It had been too long. He wasn't getting away this time.

[Hellion]

Flash
Loner
-------------------------------

"This limb will be the death of me." Flash cursed allowed, still learning how to walk with his leg in constant pain. Crow, formally known as Crowfang had told him to take poppy-seed and had pointed them out to the red tinted tom, he had started to take them daily to ease the pain, but traveling as he was, Flash wasn't able to eat the poppies as he wanted.

A audible wince and sigh came from his mouth as he struggled up a slight hill. LightingClan should just be over the top of his hill, he thought to himself. The joy of returning home was nothing compared to the fear he carried deep in his heart. What if Burningleaf had found someone else? The tom knew that if his love had that everything would shatter and he'd much rather go alone as a loner then face the fact that Burningleaf had regarded him as dead friend.

Flash had finally made it over the hill, his limb screaming to be given a rest but he wanted to be home in the warrior's den even if it was only going to be for a few nights, just enough to regain his strength and if Burningleaf wanted him gone he'd leave.

The hill itself gave him a decent view of how leafbare had affected LightingClan and while small pockets of snow scattered everywhere, he didn't bother with taking too much in. Yet something caught his gaze, four bodies were along the border, even at a distance Flash knew in his heart that the handsome ginger tom was there.

Pushing his pain aside he tried to put his pace at a trot, cover the ground faster but he wasn't able to, the torment of his limb was too much and he scowled himself for not having poppy seed with him.

As the two drew closer together, Flash took in the beauty of the only cat he ever truly loved. Wanting to say so much, Flash couldn't form the words but just looked at him. Burningleaf hadn't seen him yet, Flash himself hadn't noticed that a large bush kept him out of Burningleaf's eyes sight but Flash was clearly able to see him. Afraid to startle him he pushed it aside and broke, with a whimper of pain, through the brush to stand before Burningleaf.

"I'm home....I've come back..for you.." His words were drawn out and his speech broke from the emotion but, still scared of saying such intimate things to Burningleaf. Once he had finished his short sentence his sparkling blue eyes were downcast, afraid of his rejection.

Notes::
Song::Click Here

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. : b u r n i n g l e a f : .

Though he had expected to see him, when his love stepped out from behind the brush, Burningleaf's heart stopped. There he was, the cat he had cried over for seasons. Here, alive, real. Frozen in place, Burningleaf just stared at the red-tinted tom. Even though he was here, standing before him, alive, it was hard for the ginger and white male to believe it. The last time he'd seen him, he'd been..

Dead. He'd been lying on the ground, dead. He hadn't moved. Burningleaf had lived over twenty moons thinking his love to be dead. Over twenty moons sitting and rotting away in LightningClan, wishing each day for death to come and take him to StarClan with his love. But here he was, alive.

"I'm home....I've come back..for you.." Burningleaf's heart shattered at the pain in the other male's voice. Gold eyes filled with a mix of emotions, sorrow, hurt, pain, but love and joy and happiness, all of which went unseen, as the other had lowered his head. Burningleaf swallowed hard, having never expected it to come to this. He stood there for a while, still frozen, as words piled up against one another in his mind. The senior warrior opened his mouth to speak...

But all that came out was a strangled sound, and Burningleaf gave it up all together. Instead, he moved forward quickly, pressing his head into the other's fur. A broken purr emerged into the air as Burningleaf's gold eyes closed. "Oh, Flashbrook... I've missed you... so much..." Burningleaf choked out the words, his throat tight with the mess of emotions welling up inside.

The ginger and white tom sighed, nuzzling Flashbrook gently. He allowed his lost love's scent to wash over and wrap around him, losing himself in the moment. For a while, everything was forgotten. The patrol was gone, LightningClan was gone, everything was gone. All that mattered was here and now, and the feeling of Flashbrook's fur and his scent and just being here with him. He was alive, and he was real, and Burningleaf felt alive again because of it. No, he definitely wasn't letting go.

[Hellion]

Flash
Loner
-------------------------------

"He missed me, he really missed me"
The feel of having Burningleaf nuzzle into his fear was enough to send a purr outward as he expressed how happy he was. Nothing in the world right now would drive him away from Burningleaf and while it was a little of mix emotion he felt he wasn't going to press the issue just yet.

Was Burningleaf acting this way because he missed as a plain old friend or because he missed him just as Flashbrook missed him. His thin tail flicked back and worth as he fought with himself briefly wanting to ask that dreaded question, but it had to be done.

He tried to form the words in his head, but the emotion of finally being with Burningleaf was far too much, burying his own head into the neck scruff of the ginger tom, he drank in his scent. They were apart far too long and at this moment Flashbrook wasn't even sure he'd be comfortable allowing Burningleaf out of his sights for too long.

With the presence of him, Flashbrook was far more at ease and wanted to tell him how he came about, surviving and traveling, that was how he settled on talking to Burningleaf, he'd ask his question later.

"I know you are wondering how I am right here in front of you, over joyed to finally be back." He started to say, finding that talking to Burningleaf was the hardest thing he had done in moons. Harder then learning to walk again with a curse limp, even learning to hunt for him, Flashbrook found it difficult to talk to his darling after all the bad that had taken place.

"That night when Venomspirit and I fell over the cliff, a loner and former medicine cat of StoneClan took care of me. He healed me the best he could but I'm stuck with this limp." She spoke bleakly of his weakness, knowing that he wasn't anything like the warrior he was before. "I've traveled far and wide, learning to hunt with a messed up leg, I hadn't had to fight in a long time, loners are actually really peaceful." He remarked, trying to ignore the growing pain in his leg, lifting it off the ground so there wasn't much weight on it.

"I found a tribe of cats, they welcomed me as a loner passing through, I've taken up using just Flash as my name but it sounds so much sweeter when you call me Flashbrook." He purred as he moved away from Burningleaf to look the time in the face, his dazzling blue eyes full of emotion. "Do you love someone?" Flashbrooke said bluntly, never known for being very subtle. He wanted to know right then and there, regardless of his fears.

Notes::
Song::

[Deleted]

. : b u r n i n g l e a f : .

Burningleaf smiled as Flashbrook returned the affectionate gesture. Standing there with his love, Burningleaf felt the seasons melt away. It was almost as though it were that day in the star field, when he first expressed his love for the red tinted tom. It felt like then, like nothing had happened, and they could go back and start over...Until he spoke.

"I know you are wondering how I am right here in front of you, over joyed to finally be back. That night when Venomspirit and I fell over the cliff, a loner and former medicine cat of StoneClan took care of me. He healed me the best he could but I'm stuck with this limp. I've traveled far and wide, learning to hunt with a messed up leg, I hadn't had to fight in a long time, loners are actually really peaceful. I found a tribe of cats, they welcomed me as a loner passing through, I've taken up using just Flash as my name but it sounds so much sweeter when you call me Flashbrook."

Bunrningleaf stood there, letting his love's voice wrap around him. His heart twisted at the tale, wishing he could take away all their pain. The illusion was gone; it was no longer their first embrace, and the seasons separating them crashed down hard around him. An anger set into Burningleaf's heart as Flashbrook spoke of his injury. He wished he could take it away, or take it upon his own shoulders instead. But he couldn't, and the best he could do was help him cope. Flashbrook pulled away, and Burningleaf gazed into his love's beautiful blue eyes.

"Do you love someone?" The question took Burningleaf by surprise; wasn't it obvious? Reflexively, the ginger and white tom took a step back, gold eyes a mess of emotions, with confusion brimming at the top.

"What? .. Flashbrook..." Burningleaf swallowed hard, wishing his voice wasn't so shaky. There were so many emotions running through him, it was overwhelming, and the senior warrior felt like he was bursting at the seams. Burningleaf dropped his gaze, attempting to collect himself and his thoughts. He looked up, golden eyes pinning Flashbrook's gaze to his. This time, when he spoke, his voice was stronger, less shaky. "Flashbrook, I've only ever loved you. That hasn't changed... And it never will." There. He'd said it. Confessed his love for the tom before him. Again. But this time, Venomspirit wasn't there to tear them apart. It was all up to them, this time, where they were going next.

[Hellion]

Flash
Loner
-------------------------------

Burningleaf stepped away and Flashbrook nearly shook with the fear of losing him again. The red tinted tom's blue eyes were down cast quickly, afraid to say anything. What if his words came out mean and hurtful again? The emotion that played between them so wildly and powerful were always a threat to force one of them to say the wrong thing, or misunderstand each other. For the time being he remained silent.

Silence was his coping skill, while lost and wandering around he stayed silent in order to not come off as a threat. He wanted nothing more then to the submissive one, do anything he had to in order to prove that his heart belonged to the ginger tom.

Burningleaf spoke and it seemed as if he too was unable to form the words, make sense of his own feelings. For to many moments, Flashbrook thought of all the handsome cats back at camp. If Burningleaf wanted to, he could have anyone Flashbrook was sure of it. Who would pass down the ginger toned tom? Flashbrook had for a moment until distance brought his heart to love his dearest friend more stronger then two kit-hood denmates. It was a love that was rarely spoken of but Flashbrook it was that kid of love that propelled him to return home, damages and all.

The words later spoken by Burningleaf had sent a tremor of joy through all his limps. Despite the throbbing pain and stiffness in his hip, Flashbrook would have jumped with joy and never leave Burningleaf's side until StarClan called him away.

Hearing the words that solidified his loyalty to the ginger tom was enough to push away all fears and allow him to collide with Burningleaf as two long lost lovers. "You don't know how much those words mean to me, to know you haven't replaced me." Flashbrook paused, nuzzling Burningleaf's cheek gently. "I'm happy our love didn't die, that we might have a future together. As mates if you'd allow it." Flashbrook asked rather shyly, a blush warming his cheeks.

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Burningleaf only had a moment after he finished speaking before Flashbrook was once again against him. The ginger tabby and white tom purred loudly, the rumble flowing through his chest and throat. "You don't know how much those words mean to me, to know you haven't replaced me. I'm happy our love didn't die, that we might have a future together. As mates if you'd allow it." If possible, Burningleaf purred even harder.

The senior warrior stepped slightly to the side and moved forward, circling Flashbrook. He kept his fur pressed against the red tinted tom, coming to stand beside him on his other side. Burningleaf nuzzled into the back of Flashbrook's neck, breathing in his scent. "I'd like that very much, Flashbrook."

Burningleaf pulled away slightly to smile at his long lost friend, his love, his mate. Gold eyes filled with so much love and longing, and for the first time in moons, Burningleaf felt at peace. He could be happy again. He flicked his tail, his broad smile unwavering. He licked his mate's ear gently, purring. "Come on, darling. Let's go home."