[Deleted]

w i l l o w f u r
senior warrior, treeclan

Willowfur stuck her nose in the fresh prey pile, sniffing out two juicy morsels of flesh for herself and a particular golden tom. A robin and a squirrel ended up in her jaws, the feathers and fur mingling together to create an interesting texture on her tongue, yet not unpleasant. It promises for a good meal, freshly caught, probably just brought in from the latest hunting patrol.

She paused outside the entrance of the leader's den momentarily, hesitant in her very bold offer of a meal with Lionstar. He had shown her nothing but kindness in the face of everything that had happened to her, yet still she felt like she was intruding on his time by wanting to spend hers with him. She knew he would never complain, yet still she hesitated. But by now, the scent of the prey would have reached his nose, so it would be rude to turn away now.

"Lionstar, I brought you some prey," she mewed into the cool den, waiting for permission to enter. She then picked up her offerings and brought them with her, blinking as her eyes adjusted to the darker atmosphere. He sat, poised and regal, and Willowfur momentarily forgot herself as she let eyes silently sweep over his majestic frame. The urge to smooth a few stray tufts of his fur hit her with an overwhelming force, but she kept her jaws firmly clamped to the prey to avoid anything too forward.

"I hope you like bird or squirrel," she mewed after dropping the two meals at his paws, waiting patiently for him to choose before picking her own. She liked both, so it didn't matter to her which he picked. She was just happy to spend some time with him.

place your head on my beating heart
we found love right where we are

Fawn ; lionstar :tags
293 :words
it’s good to be back :notes

[Fawn]

Lionstar

54 Moons || Tom || TreeClan

---

        
Somehow, she was exactly who he needed to see to make this day turn out alright. Stormchaser's death had struck the golden tom hard, and he drew in a steeling breath when Willowfur entered his den, wanting nothing more than to press his face into her soft, gray-and-white fur until the world seemed right again. Looking to the prey brought before him, Lionstar almost selected the squirrel, before his manners caught up with him. "It's good to see you, Willowfur. You can pick first, I don't mind." He never would. He'd be happy to give her the whole prey pile if he didn't have an entire Clan to feed.

It was on days like these that Lionstar felt as if StarClan's power had dwindled; as a Clan leader, he was given a special connection with them that was defined differently than that of a medicine cat's, but he still liked to think they had some sort of understanding going on between himself and the warriors of the past. Or so he'd thought. It likely wasn't StarClan's fault that so many lives had been lost recently, but he couldn't help blaming them; it was an easy explanation for a situation that could offer no explanation. Why did Stormchaser have to die? Why did Thunderclaw and Bloodtalon? Because they were warriors. Because this was a tough life. Because sometimes that's just what happened.

He felt like an apprentice all over again. Full of frustration, full of youthful, misplaced outrage over things he could not change. Stormchaser's death had hit him hard, perhaps the hardest since he'd first lost Willowfur. Looking at her now, Lionstar entertained a completely asinine hope that Stormchaser would come back into their lives, battered and bleeding, but alive. He entertained that hope until memories of burying his oldest friend pricked him like sharp thorns. Trying not to descend into a gloomy mood, he forced a smile. "How have you been? Anything you... remember?"

---
Word Count: 317 Words
Tags: @lacihparg

[Deleted]

w i l l o w f u r
senior warrior, treeclan

Surprised, Willowfur mewed her thanks before selecting the bird with a careful bite, pulling it towards her. She settled down next to him, rather than across, her heart beating quickly even as she tucked her paws under her. It was wasn't close enough to let their fur brush against each other (to do that would be a pleasure she wouldn't indulge), but her leader seemed shaken and she wanted to provide some comfort.

Pushing the squirrel towards Lionstar with her nose, she dug into her own meal without hesitation, hoping to urge him to eat as well. After a few measured mouth fulls, she paused in her eating to answer his question. "Some things, yes," she finally mewed, turning to look at him out of the corner of her eyes. "Bits and pieces, no more than flashes of memory. But I'm starting to feel less like a stranger in my own home, and that in of itself is welcome." She ate a few more bites, savoring the taste of the prey.

Sitting here, in Lionstar's den, with his scent surrounding her? Willowfur found herself in a moment of weakness but she refused to give in. She would not press her side to his and bury her nose in his mane, breathing in his wonderful, comforting smell. She couldn't rely on him to fix her problems or make her feel comfortable in TreeClan. So she was fighting to find that familiarity for herself.

"The hunting patrol brought in a good amount today," she began conversationally. "I don't think leaf-bare will be a bad season this time around."

place your head on my beating heart
we found love right where we are

fawn ; lionstar :tags
266 :words
--- :notes

[Fawn]

Lionstar

54 Moons || Tom || TreeClan

---

        He didn't rush to bite into the squirrel; the problem wasn't a lacking appetite, but an overly-occupied mind, preferring to listen to Willowfur speak first before actually taking his fill. "Good, that's one less thing to worry about, this season. I'm happy to hear that some of your memories are coming back, even if it's just bits and pieces. I trust my extended family has been treating you well?" Lionstar mewed, referring specifically to Rowanberry and Silverfern, his youngest half-sisters—and the ones he was undoubtedly closest with. Though it wouldn't surprise him in the least if Appleshade, the flirtatious, irresponsible, irrepressible she-cat had taken it into her own paws to make Willowfur feel welcome.

Lionstar smiled a little at the thought, claws unsheathing to hook the squirrel by the tail and draw it over to him, speaking once before taking a bite. "Would talking about some of those memories help you remember? I have a good pawful of stories to share." Now was probably not the best time, so soon after Stormchaser's death—actually, maybe that made this the perfect time?

Just looking at her provoked a small storm of nostalgia to swirl around him like static in the air, breaking up a little of the grief he had been wearing like a second mane. Funny, somehow, she still made his heart bound the same way it had when they were apprentices—when he was a big-pawed, loud-mouthed, aggressive little mousebrain, and she'd been the prettiest cat he'd ever laid eyes on. Lionstar didn't know whether to grimace or laugh at his past self, able to see now that he'd been... well, a bit of a jerk, actually. Unintentionally. It was more out of carelessness than any kind of malice towards his Clanmates; he'd been a nice tom, just a bit... self-absorbed.

---
Word Count: 303 Words
Tags: @lacihparg
Notes: <3

[Deleted]

w i l l o w f u r
senior warrior, treeclan

Willowfur ducked her head a little at the question, nodding as she took a bite to avoid an immediate response. Lionstar's sisters had done more than enough to make her feel comfortable in the Clan and she was grateful, but sometimes Appleshade could take things a bit too...far. Like dropping hints that her brother had feelings for her that had been there since apprenticeship. Granted, Willowfur was beginning to remember more of that, but she wanted to discover these things on her own, not have them forced upon her.

She took another bite of her bird and started at his invitation to talk, though perhaps it would be welcome to talk to him. Swallowing, she nodded again. "I'm starting to remember things in chronological order, somewhat. Like, kithood memories came back first, and now my apprenticeship is starting to fall into place." It was weird how systematic everything was, with things coming back like she was reliving her life from the beginning. Even weirder was watching those memories with the knowledge of what he had done to her, realizing now that something was wrong even in kithood. "I remember Silvermist preparing us--" her voice hitched but she kept on with the memory. "for our apprentice ceremony. When Granitefang was chosen as my mentor, Wasptail and Silvermist were both ecstatic and happy for me. They came over to me first and spent tons of time with me throughout my apprenticeship, which was really nice."

She raised amber eyes to meet his and laughed lightly, a teasing twinkle in her eyes. "I also remember when you and I were doing battle training together. Granitefang and Sagefur thought we'd be good to work together, so they each taught us specific techniques then set us to sparring. Do you remember? I had you pinned in a flash!"&nbsp;She grinned at him and touched his flank with her tail in a friendly gesture, momentarily forgetting the distance she tried to keep between them. "They made you catch me a squirrel after we finished training. And then the next time we sparred you barreled me over and showed that you were a very capable warrior."

Willowfur stopped, holding back from saying what else she thought about Lionstar. That was the closest she had come to admitting her interest, but at the same time she thought it was just because he was trying to help her adjust. That was always what she came back to, never mind Appleshade's comments or the gossip she heard from some of the other cats who she now remembered as being apprentices with her and Lionstar. She had herself only slightly convinced that those developing feelings were a result of some misplaced gratitude and that the wonderful tom could never return them. Instead, she swallowed those emotions along with the last bite of her bird and set to grooming herself, speaking between licks.

"So my memories have been coming back at a comfortable pace. It can still be overwhelming, but I think I can manage."

place your head on my beating heart
we found love right where we are

fawn ; lionstar :tags
504 :words
i hope i didn't take too many liberties here! :notes

[Fawn]

Lionstar

54 Moons || Tom || TreeClan

---

        "You remember that?" Mewed Lionstar, mane prickling with surprise—and the sensation of not quite being able to breathe when she laughed, great StarClan he'd missed that sound. At once, Lionstar pictured a swaggering golden kitten who thought he knew his way around a battlefield, strutting into the Hidden Thicket right in front of Sagefur. Oh she hadn't known it then, but he'd been completely abashed as to how to spar with the pretty she-cat, even if she'd been a few moons younger than him, she'd still caught his eye and given him a serious case of 'puppy love' (not that they had such terms).

Embarrassingly for him, Willowpaw had not cared a whisker for his internal romantic turmoil, and pinned him in seconds. He could remember Sagefur's laughter and Granitefang's look of surprise, when the younger of the two apprentices had bested the older. "I had a reputation to protect," his tone was jesting, warmed by her friendly behavior towards him (oh how it reminded him of how things used to be), next, the golden tom was leaning in with a conspiratorial smile. "I was the self-titled 'best fighter in the Clan', I couldn't let you keep beating me up."

The unrelenting downpour of nostalgia aside, this was tremendously good news. The return of Willowfur's memories, especially the good ones of her life here in TreeClan would help root her to her family, her real family, not that mangy exiled traitor she once had for a brother. Wishing she wouldn't stand on ceremony, he brushed his bushy golden-and-black tail against her flank in a comforting sweep. "It really makes me happy to know that you're starting to remember so much, but my paws are crossed that anything else you remember about me puts me in a nobler light." This was a joke, of course; any memories of their interactions at all together were precious to him, he didn't dare get 'picky' over the ones she actually remembered. His gaze lifting, he let his thoughts take over, adding with a softer but still humorous tone, "funny, how the cats you most want to impress are the ones you most often end up embarrassing yourself in front of."

---
Word Count: 321 Words
Tags: @lacihparg