𝓈𝓂𝒶𝓁𝓁 𝒻𝓇𝒶𝑔𝓂𝑒𝓃𝓉𝓈

↳ chapter three.

Russetfire's brown eyes fluttered awake. Mintsplash stood in front of him. She parted her jaws to speak, but Russetfire already felt the pain in his shoulder. "I'm going," he mumbled, still dazed with sleepiness and confusion. The vines brushed his pelt as he padded inside. Ferretpaw saw him first, but it wasn't long until Hollowbreeze came prodding outside of his nest.
"What do you want?" he growled. Russetfire sat down, trying to hide his shoulder wound. Ferretpaw scooted ahead of the brown tom. "Russetfire promised he was going to help me get watermint," he explained. Hollowbreeze let out a grunt and retreated to his den.
Russetfire flicked an ear. "Nasty little old man," he whispered to his brother. Ferretpaw chuckled. "It gets worse."
Ferretpaw brought him down to the riverbank. He tore up a leafy plant with some circular purple flower on the top. Russetfire spotted one and grabbed it with his teeth.
"No, Russetfire. That one's dead."
"Oh," he let go and licked his paw awkwardly.
Ferretpaw noticed Russetfire's wound and pointed to it with his tail. "What's that from?"
Russetfire shuffled his paws. Should I tell him? Of course I should tell him. He's my brother.
"I've been training in the Dark Forest," he said, staring at the ground. Ferretpaw didn't seem surprised. "Then stop," he said simply.
"I can't."
Ferretpaw cocked his head to the side questionably. "Why?"
"I love my mentor."
Ferretpaw stared at him, sadness glowing in his eye. "Russetfire," he breathed.
If he already knew I was training with them, he surely didn't know I was in love with one of them.
The small tom plucked the lavender petals off slowly and silently. Russetfire watched them fall to the ground until there was one petal left. Ferretpaw took the stem and simply dropped it on the floor.
"He's hurting you, Russetfire," he told him, "I don't think he feels the same way."
"Nonsense."
Ferretpaw shifted his paws uncomfortably. "That part doesn't matter, I guess," he said quickly, "Promise you won't go back tonight, please. You can't keep letting him hurt you."
Russetfire nodded.
Ferretpaw let out an exhilarated sigh and walked back to camp with the plants clamped in his jaws.

✕ ✕ ✕

When they arrive back at camp, Russetfire followed him into the medicine cat den once more.
He placed down the herbs softly on a wood slab and fastened a thin rope of cobweb around his neck. Russetfire peered at him out of the corner of his eye. Ferretpaw's ice blue irises shone with warning.
"Don't go back there, Russetfire."