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Seasons ago, Bluestar would have thought the idea of a leader's mate sharing their nest within the leader's den was preposterous. The den was sacred to the Clan and the leader, where StarClan may well visit a leader. How could any cat break that sanctity?
She thought on this as she pressed her nose into Rosetail's bushy tail, breathing in the warm, woody scent fragranced by flowers and forest breeze.
Despite her doubts, inviting Rosetail to share her nest had not been difficult. Nor had she thought on what the elders might think, how they might react.
Of course they would think many things. Such as the confirmation that the two were mates.
Here, in the tranquillity of her den, she thanked StarClan that she even had the opportunity to have Rosetail with her.
Sunstar, to her knowledge, had never brought a cat to share his space, unless Featherwhisker had curled up with him during sickness. Pinestar she reflected on less, but he was hardly the most conventional or inspiring leader.
Bluestar breathed in that scent again. It wasn't just comforting. It was like new life coursing through her, like a life bestowed upon her by StarClan anew. The warmth pulsing from Rosetail's thick pelt could fend off all of leafbare; her gentle snoring could battle away nightmares; her twitches and shifts could captivate her for an eternity.
If she had kept her kits, she thought with some anxiety, she thought Rosetail would have loved them as her own. Thrushpelt had, but Rosetail would have taken them in, would have wrapped her red tail around their bodies, would have...
There was no time for regrets, but she could imagine it. The three of them, one for each kit. Perhaps, in another life, she could have still become deputy. Thrushpelt nesting in the nursery, Rosetail watching over them, her visits more frequent than they had been for Whitestorm.
Rosetail moved in her sleep, her lips parted and tongue blepping. Bluestar looked at her, admired her, and wondered if the she-cat knew how much comfort she gave each moment they were together. She must. They've been as close as kin most of their lives, but there's something different about now.
Becoming mates wasn't just a change in how they saw one another. It elevated the companionship they had. There was nothing better.
"I love you, honey," Bluestar whispered into the air. She thought she saw Rosetail's ear twitch, but it could have been a trick of the light. She nuzzled firmly into the fluff of her tail. "I love you more than the sky."