my heart is gold | Bright

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BRIGHTSTAR

Lilypetal still couldn't quite believe it, but her sister was back. Her sister, her littermate, the cat who had been by her side ever since her first breath, was finally back. Deep down, Lilypetal had feared that Brightstar would never come back, and that she would continue to act cruel and ruthless until her demise. Though I suppose that's true, in a way. Brightstar had to lose a life so that she could come back. Lilypetal hadn't been able to watch Birdbones kill her sister, even though she had known that the medicine cat's actions were justified - there was no way that she could have. Even though Crowstone had been in Brightstar's body when Brightstar had lost a life, it was still Brightstar's body that had been killed. There was no way that Lilypetal could have watched that without feeling completely sick to the stomach.

It was a relief to have Brightstar back. It was so good to see her bright, cheerful sister again, as opposed to the dark and merciless cat who had possessed Brightstar's body. But there were still issues. Lilypetal already knew that Coldpaw didn't trust Brightstar - she had made that apparent immediately after her return. Lilypetal still wasn't sure how the rest of her Clanmates had taken Brightstar's return, though she hoped that they had taken it better than Coldpaw. I understand why Coldpaw is mad, but at the same time, she's being unfair. Brightstar couldn't control her actions, and besides - Crowstone literally tried to murder Cloudwatcher. If Cloudwatcher can forgive Brightstar for what she did while she was possessed, I think it's only right that Coldpaw should forgive her too.

Lilypetal wasn't really sure how she was meant to act towards Brightstar, especially as she wasn't sure how her Clanmates viewed Brightstar yet. But, no matter what, Lilypetal knew that she and her sister needed to talk. It had been a long time since Lilypetal had had an actual conversation with the real Brightstar. I've missed her so, so much.

The cream point decided that now was a good time to talk to her sister. The longer she waited, the worse she would feel. And so, the cream point headed towards the nursery, a smile creeping on to her face at the thought of Brightstar's kits. They're my kin too. I'm so happy that they're here! The beautiful molly then stepped into the nursery, her delicate paws silently pressing against the ground as she came face to face with her sister.

"Hi," she greeted Brightstar quietly, settling down beside her, wrapping her tail neatly around her front paws. "How are you?" her whiskers twitched a little, the smile on her face becoming a little wider as she added, "And what's it like being a mother? The creamy molly let out a tiny, soft laugh.

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//sorry for the late reply! Haven't had much energy

Lilypetal could feel her heart melting just at the sight of Brightstar's newborn kittens by her side. They're my kin... That thought alone made the creamy molly feel warm and fuzzy on the inside. She couldn't believe that she was the aunt to such beautiful, precious kits. "They're beautiful..." the slender feline breathed, laying down close to her sister, her pretty blue gaze resting warmly on the kits. "Though, you're going to have your paws full once they open their eyes and start walking." The cream point's whiskers twitched with amusement as gentle laughter bubbled out of her maw.

Hesitantly, the creamy warrior moved a little closer to the kits, sniffing them, her nose twitching slightly. They seemed so pure... so... different. It was like they lived in a completely different world to Lilypetal. They didn't know of pain, of sadness, of death, and Lilypetal wished that such things could stay the same, but of course, they would be exposed to the outside world eventually. "You're going to be a really great mother, Brightstar." There was no doubt upon Lilypetal's face, her smile completely genuine. She knew that Brightstar would be a perfect mother to her children, and she felt no shame saying that right now, for no one was watching. For a moment, Lilypetal held her sister's gaze, her eyes full of affection. She hoped that Brightstar would understand if she was more closed off towards her when they were around other cats. I wouldn't blame her if she didn't understand - I don't even understand myself. She was just so scared of letting her Clanmates down, of being different from them. She just wanted to do whatever they expected of her, even if that meant turning her back on Brightstar.

For a few moments, Lilypetal was silent. What else was she meant to say? There were two obvious topics to talk about right now - the first being Brightstar's kits, and the second being Brightstar's possession, which was something she really didn't want to talk about for a million reasons. But she had to say something. "WindClan will love them too. Everybody's really excited for the new kits," at least, she hoped that they were. The kits hadn't done anything wrong, after all. She added, purring softly, "And I can't wait to play with them!" She leaned forwards, licking her sister's cheek affectionately. Here, one on one, she felt like she could be herself around her sister. Nobody else was watching her, it was just her, Brightstar, and their beautiful new family members.

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Lilypetal's gentle smile grew a little wider upon hearing her sister's cheery response. She was as positive as ever - that was a trait of Brightstar's that Lilypetal admired a lot. The calico seemed to always look on the bright side of every situation, which was something that Lilypetal struggled with more than she wanted to admit. For perhaps the thousandth time since Brightstar's return, Lilypetal reflected, with relief, on how pleased she was for Brightstar to be back. She just hoped that the more skeptical cats in the Clan would warm up to Brightstar again soon.

"Babysitting?" the cream point's whiskers twitched with amusement. "I've never done that before, but there's a first time for everything." Her blue eyes softened as Brightstar pulled away her tail a little, allowing Lilypetal to see her new family members better. They were all so gorgeous, so sweet, so innocent... Lilypetal could feel her smile growing uncontrollably wider and wider. She wasn't the biggest fan of kits, but she did find them cute at least, and besides, these were her adorable nieces and nephews - how could she not love them?

It didn't surprise Lilypetal at all that Brightstar wanted to mentor one of her own kits. Of course she wanted to - they were her kits, and Lilypetal was sure that Brightstar would want to spend as much time with them as possible. Any of those kits would be lucky to have Brightstar as a mentor - I sure hope none of them are mentored by me. A shiver ran down the pretty she cat's spine as she briefly imagined Brindlepaw's lifeless body lying on a rock at the bottom of the gorge, but she forced herself to push the terrifying image away. This wasn't about her dead apprentice - this was about Brightstar's beautiful, beautiful children.

Giving Brightstar a very gentle nudge, the slender molly purred, "It's not wrong to want to mentor one of your own kits, and I mean, you're the leader, so you can do whatever you want! I'm sure you'd be a great mentor to any of them." Lilypetal had never really been the sort of cat to give a crap about rules, with the Warrior Code seeming like a waste of time to her to an extent. Of course, there were some rules that she respected, but others completely got on her nerves, such as the rule prohibiting cats from different Clans becoming mates. Lilypetal had never fallen in love with a cat from another Clan, but she didn't see anything wrong with it.