Nightfall had just finished giving them a tour, when the sun started to go down. "It's time I appointed a deputy," Hollystar meowed.
She walked across the clearing, to what Nightfall called, the highbranch. It was a really tall tree and the lowest branch-where the leader sits-is about 5 fox lengths off the ground.
She jumped on the branch, "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey, gather here beneath the highbranch for a clan meeting!" Nightfall was already there, and when Blackpelt and Snowstorm emerged from their new dens and joined Nightfall, she started the ceremony, "I say these words before StarClan, so that the spirits of our warrior ancestors may hear and approve my choice. The new deputy of LightningClan is Nightfall."
When she jumped down from the highbranch, Nightfall walked over and meowed, "I wasn't expecting this-I thought you'd choose Blackpelt because you knew him longer."
Hollystar made sure her voice couldn't be heard by the others, "True, but Blackpelt can be a pain in the tail sometimes," she purred.
Nightfall let out a purr of amusement and touched her ear with his nose, "Thank you," he murmured, before padding off to speak with Blackpelt, "We need to go hunting, all we have right now are a couple of mice."
She couldn't help watching as Nightfall and Blackpelt left.
"It looks like Nightfall likes a cat here already."
She jumped with a start to see Snowstorm sitting beside her, "But he can't! We just met! And isn't it against the warrior code for a leader who is a she-cat to have a mate and kits?"
Snowstorm looked at the sky, "I don't know," she admitted.
***
That night, Hollystar couldn't sleep. She left her den beside the highbranch and looked around the clearing. There was movement by the warriors' den that caught her eye, "Nightfall?" she whispered.
Nightfall came over to her, "Sorry if I woke you up," he meowed.
"You didn't wake me up, "she assured him, "I just couldn't sleep, that's all."
"Me neither. And I have something to confess."
"What's that?" she asked hesitantly.
"I... well, I was thinking... we could be more than friends."
"But we just met!" she protested.
He sighed, "I know. I wasn't going to tell you how I feel, but I couldn't keep a secret from you," he looked at his paws, "I don't think leaders that are she-cats can have a mate anyway," he turned and started padding toward the warriors' den.
"Wait!" she ran over to him and buried her muzzle into his thick, black tabby pelt, "I don't think it matters about mates, but we have to try not to have kits."
She could tell that Nightfall was suppressing a purr of happiness.
"Come and share my den," she invited him, "at least for tonight."
When they got to Hollystar's den, she instantly fell asleep.
