--Teardrops and Goodbyes--(Private)

[Cherrysky]

A small spotted figure padded through the RiverClan territory, paws dragging slightly against the forest floor. The evening sunlight was setting behind the RiverClan camp, making the lake and the ground glow a soft orange and pink. A few stars spotted the early night sky, glimmering hopefully. Her favorite evening breeze brought the forest to life, floating across the dusk-lit lake and brushing up against her fur. But despite all of the beautiful things around her, the spotted she-cat's face was speckled with a few broken tears.


A farewell gesture.


However much she convinced herself that she was doing the right thing, part of her still held onto the place that she had called home all of her life. That part of her cried for what she was leaving behind. Everything that had happened to her since she was a kit happened within the boundaries of RiverClan. She had called this place home since she was born. How could she leave it now? After everything she had been though here, how could she just walk away?


Cherrysky stopped in front of a line of pine trees, the border between RiverClan and ShadowClan. She didn't know what was out there... if she would find anything more, anything with more meaning. A purpose... The one thing she didn't feel like she had in RiverClan anymore. A purpose kept a family together, it kept a leader strong enough to support their clan, it gave someone's life meaning... The spotted she-cat's emerald eyes flickered out onto the lake, watching the few stars in the sky dance across the water's surface. There had to be something more out there; she had to believe that. She was meant to be something more then this and somewhere in her heart, she knew that was the reason behind her decision. It wasn't Whitedawn's fault either or was he the reason for her actions. This was just her decision. Cherrysky's eyes turned back to the pines in front of her, trying to find where her heart really belonged.

[>))*~.:Crystalstar:.~*((<]

<sup>It was a relatively quiet night. After the badger attacks, Crystalstar had finally wrapped her head around the forest being a safe place again. She was pretty happy, and there wasn't too many cares in her mind. The sunset was beautiful, and Crystalstar had decided to take a moment to patrol the borders. It was a calm night - she trusted her warriors and deputy to hold down the fort for only a few minutes. The scenery calmly passed her by as her silver eyes wandered elsewhere, somewhere no one else could see. It was back to the worrying for her. She was a leader, after all. Worries were a part of her everyday life - the lynx-cat knew that, but hated the feeling in the pit of her stomach.

It was about her Clan, as always. In fact, two particular warriors. She couldn't publicly pick favorites, but one of her best friends from the beginnings of time, it seemed, was involved. Cherrysky, the loyal spotted warrior, seemed to have troubles with a new warrior, Whitedawn, and the silver cat wanted to sort it out soon. There was something not right in the air around RiverClan for a few days past, and it made Crystalstar's insides churn. There was something terribly wrong in the air, well, in her opinion. The rest of the Clan seemed to carry on without notice, and that was okay, she supposed. It was better than the whole Clan in an uproar, of course. Crystalstar didn't know how she'd handle one of those!

She was just a normal cat, like everyone else, who fate had chosen to pick her up and stick her in a spot that would change the world. Why was she worthy? How could she become a leader as great as the one before her? The task was daunting, and she couldn't bear the idea. After all, it hadn't even been six moons yet - all of the other leaders had lives of experience behind them! There was an invisible line that the silver leader drew in between herself and the other leaders. Herself here, the other leaders there. Sighing, she drew in a deep breath, trying to rid herself of the bad thoughts that spun through her head faster than fish in the River. She'd sort out the issue between Whitedawn and Cherrysky right now. Smiling, she almost made to turn around when a familiar scent hit the roof of her mouth.

And her heart froze. Something was terribly wrong. Racing through the underbrush, the silver-eyed cat was reduced to hysterics in the confinements of her mind. RiverClan scent, Cherrysky's. Sadness, loss maybe? Pain? She couldn't think properly. Her eyes popped and her nose searched desperately, following the path until she heard her friend. Her own dainty paws slowed as she saw Cherrysky, dragging her paws, looking like the world had fallen down on her. Lynx met the Leopard as concerned, Crystalstar crept closer, until she faced her best friend, worry in her eyes. Gently, she began with a soft mew. "Cherrysky? Are-are you okay?" She could drop the noble leader act around her friend, and stripping that away, she began a small she-cat, concerned for her best friend. She found herself moving forward, putting her head on the spotted flank, murmuring small comforting sounds, trying to heal the pain, without an idea of the cause.

((About Crystal, not a good leader, Leopard & Lynx. (Notes to me.)))</sup>

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[Cherrysky]

The spotted she-cat was just about to get up when familiar paw steps came hurdling through the forest behind her. Should have known it wouldn't have been this easy. Life had never been easy on Cherrysky...ever. And it didn't seem like it was going to get easier any time soon. The last thing she had wanted to do was confront Crystalstar about her decision, because no matter what she would say, the silver she-cat would have tried to find some way to make her stay. But that's not what my heart wants...

Emerald eyes became pierced with sadness as Crystalstar buried her face into the spotted she-cat's flank. Why did she have to make this harder then it has to be? As if I don't have enough to try to keep me here already! Cherrysky pulled back away from her friend, her face pained but held together by the decision she was making. "You've known for a while I'm sure..." She meowed, her voice crumpling under her guilt. The last thing she had wanted to do was drag Crystalstar into this... but it seemed that now it was too late.

The spotted she-cat let out a small sigh, trying to find the words that she needed to say. She would open her mouth, only to shut it again in frustration. Try not to hurt Crystalstar?...or listen to my heart? Pick your poison was more like it. She wasn't happy here... the only reason she was still here was because of the she-cat in front of her. And even though she loved Crystalstar to death, Cherrysky knew she wouldn't be able to stay here. Her emerald eyes flickered back up to the silver cat in front of her, tears brimming on the edges of her eyes. "I don't belong here Crystal. You're my best friend and you always will be but--" She broke off as the tears spilled over her cheeks. Why did this have to be so difficult?! Her gaze flickered over to the lake's surface, wishing that she could just wish everything away. "I was meant to be more then I am." Her voice was rough and cracked as she finished her last sentence. There would be no way to find herself without hurting Crystalstar... This wasn't my intensions...

[>))*~.:Crystalstar:.~*((<]

<sup>As Crystalstar's best friend in the entire world pulled away, the hurt was evident on her face. It was as if Cherrysky had raked her claws down the leader's face, the tears and confusion threatened to spill over. The pain on the leopard's face made in insides curl, and her silver eyes searched for some kind of explanation. Although, when it came, she wanted to back up, pretend it never was. The leader was suddenly gripped by dizziness, and she slowly lowered her flanks to the earth below her, supporting her. "I... I don't understand..." She began, her mew broken and hurt.

She watched her friend sigh, and waited, ears pointed down, for the end of her world. She felt it, as if her heart was being ripped out of her body. "I don't belong here..." No, no, no NO!!! She wanted to scream, and her claws raked deep holes in the ground, filling with the pain and loneliness her best friend was causing. "Cherrysky, you're... you're everything here! We'll work through it, I promise!" It was horrible to beg, but the leader, so sure that nothing could go wrong, was being attacked on the one side that would bring her down. "You're everything to me..."

These wounds won't seem to heal... the pain is just too real...</sup>

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[Cherrysky]

The look in Crystalstar's face sent a jolt through the spotted she-cat- like a lighning bolt had stuck her on the insides. "Please...don't do this to me..." The words came out in a mangled string of broken sobs. She never wanted to hurt her best friend... why was this the only way to find her heart again? It felt like it was in peices right now; what was the point of finding it?

But she was unhappy where she was...

Sure she could stay, but there would always be this hole that no one could fill. And Cherrysky would always know that it was something she could have changed if she had just taken the chance...gone the extra mile to try to fix it. As the last bit of sunlight dissapeared over the horizon, a splash of moonlight flooded into the forest, making everything glow a radient silver. Her emerald eyes opened back up as she stared back at Crystalstar, her heart crumpling more as she took in her expression. "Please don't cry..."

[>))*~.:Crystalstar:.~*((<]

<sup>At her best friend's pleading voice, Crystalstar's heart finally broke in two. The tears that flowed from her own cheeks drew lines in the fur on her face, and were mirrored in Cherrysky's. "But... why?" her mind couldn't grasp the concept. Why would her own best friend betray her so badly like this? She couldn't understand. Was everyone out to hurt her? She couldn't function without her best friend by her side! And how would it go if she had to face her in a battle one day? And then, she felt something. It was a glimmer of recognition, of understanding, of finally knowing why. The silver leader's eyes flew open, pupils as small as pinpricks, and then narrowed into slits. Her ears stood right back, only a small black amount of the tufts on her ears stuck up, and drawing her claws, she backed up, Crystalstar's response to what her mind had finally understood.

(Lemme know if this para is allowed.)
And what had happened to give the leader a clear explanation? Why, her body had still been on the earth, but her mind belonged to another cat, someone from DarkForest, had taken her and 'shown' her the truth. She never loved you like a sister... she was always plotting against you, trying to bring you down. A voice purred in her head. She even staged the drama in your Clan to make you feel guilty, to knock you off balance. She was just waiting for the time to take over the Clan from you... A smaller part of her mind tried fighting it, but the hurt and betrayed part understood. You are right... She thought, and the voice chuckled, taking a permanent residence inside her mind. The leader's eyes became red as rust, and her fur already looked more ragged. She looked like a broken, evil cat, tainted by the bitter minds of evil passed.

"No... now I understand, Cherrysky." Her voice took on an edge of ice, frozen by betrayal, fueled by hurt and pain. "You never believed in me as a leader, did you? I don't even know if you were really a best friend!" The daggers that she hurled at the leopard stung the lynx too, but she was numb to it, yet she would find her heart shredded later. "You always thought that I couldn't do it. I don't need you! You can run off to ThunderClan or wherever you're going! I DON'T CARE! YOU always wanted to be leader, didn't you? And when I didn't make you deputy, that just added to the fire, didn't it?!" She walked forward as she said this, her voice loud and roaring in pain.

Finally, she stopped. The hurtful words ended their stream of pain. Bowing her head, Crystalstar closed her eyes, looking for sadness or pain and finding nothing. "Go now. You're right, you don't belong her. You were never a friend to me." Her voice was low, but it had the hurtful intention. Betrayed... in her mind, she was the injured party. The evidence now placed in front of her was staining the happy memories of her best friend and RiverClan. Purr....fect. The voice now mewed, the ancient evil housing a body once more. Looking up one last time, the lynx's voice grew stronger as the red in her eyes did. "If you are ever seen on RiverClan territory again, you will be attacked as if you were a traitor to the Clan, as you are."

((I died a little inside while writing that.... ))</sup>

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[Cherrysky]

[hmm Cherry might go into shock about this before she meets up with Lion =p AWESOME POST SUN!!!! =D]


Cherrysky flinched back like someone had ripped their claws down her face- only she wished someone would have done that instead of this. Anything....anything at all would have been less painful then that. She stood there for a moment though, not knowing what to do or say to Crystalstar now. It was dark now, only her eyes were visible in the night's foreboding darkness. Emerald stared at red, one pair frozen into a crumpled state of shock and hurt while the other pair glared maliciously at the spotted she-cat in front of her.

Then there really isn't anything for me here... The thought stung worse then a badger's claw. Crystalstar... She would have cried if she had any tears left in her... if the numb feeling that had spread through her hadn't made her barely capable of breathing. "If that's how you really think..." She choked out, her voice completely dead and numb. "Then I will lea-a" She couldn't even say the last part of the sentence, her throat closing up around the giant lump that had formed after Crystalstar's words.

Emerald eyes flickered up to the lynx cat one last time, dead, cold, and lost. "I won't put up a fight..." She turned from her friend for the last time, her insides hollow...and numb. Without turning back, the spotted she-cat staggered into the forest, to pained for tears and to numb to run.



To::Patrol::

[>))*~.:Crystalstar:.~*((<]

^{And yet, the leader was numb. She had felt nothing in her heart, where a small part of her rattled at the cage that it was imprisoned in, knowing and feeling her cruel betrayal of her best friend. Try as it might, the malice kept its hold, and Crystalstar sat, the way she had, like a statue as she watched her former friend fall to pieces. It made no sense in her now cold mind - why would one so set on destruction feel so awful? All merely a play, pay no attention to it...}

[/i][/color] Her new voice in her mind said, and finally, she responded to the leopard-like she-cat. Who knew how many wonderful memories had been made with this same she-cat? Who knew so little words could break everything they ever had?

"That is how I truly feel. I want you gone. You are no more than a meaningless piece of rotted fresh-kill, tainting the River I and my Clan call home and caretaker." Her voice... didn't sound right. Not her own... She needed time to think. Time alone. Time gone, gone. Her garnet eyes narrowed as the last sentence caught her attention. "How disappointing. And yet, relieving. Then we won't have to hurt you, not that I didn't want to." Who's we, anyways? Crystal struggled, and yet, the hold would not relent. She watched her friend with no emotion, nothing. Cold as stone. Hard as ice. Cruel as any cat could get. She had had enough. She had no intentions on letting this traitor slink around her territory, and silent, she slunk into the forest, returning to her home.

To: Grim Words[/center][/sup][/color]